Monday 12/09/61, Location: 22.16513, 113.58226, Time 21:15

"I'm gonna check the outside of the bird, make sure nobody's put anything on there." Hunter grabbed the bug-scanner and headed out of the cockpit, Marius giving him a nod of approval.

"Ja. I will continue the pre-flight checks and make sure the systems have not been interfered with." Marius sat back in his chair, taking his time – Hunter would be at least a few minutes while he walked the exterior, so he had more than enough time to be thorough.

As Hunter exited the cockpit area, closing the door behind him, he saw the others settling down in the passenger bay. Tads was getting changed in the corner, putting her normal travelling clothes back on instead of her suit, as was Shimazu, Kai was just chilling in his chair while Aswon had elected to stay in his tailored suit – but was checking over his Purdey, as if reunited with a long-lost friend. Hunter snorted quietly to himself and then bounded down the steps, pulling out the small wand and starting with the port-side front engine, started to play the sensitive electronic device over the engine cowling, looking for any electronic signals.

Thirty seconds passed, and then Marius felt a tickle, a soft breath on the back of his 'neck'. Feeling just the same as if the hairs on his actual skin – or what used to be his skin before it was replaced – were standing on end, he checked the sensor display, knowing that it was just how the rigger interface was translating the alert signal.

"Heads up. We have a vehicle inbound along the service road at moderate speed. Appears to be some kind of SUV."

"Hostile?"

"Unknown, Aswon. My sensors just picked it up. But the road is otherwise quiet."

"What have we got that will stop a charging SUV? Just in case?" Kai asked offhandedly. Shimazu quickly grabbed his sword in the scabbard and started to strap it around his waist, while Tads flopped down on her seat and projected out of her body.

Aswon paused for a moment, looking down at the Purdey in his arms, then glancing up at the overhead straps where the monster Anzio 20mm rifle was securely stored. He wavered for a moment, then glanced sideways and changed his mind again, setting down the Purdey entirely and grabbing the shotgun and quickly ejected the magazine before working the action to eject the live round. Another few seconds of quick rummaging found an alternate magazine, and a quick heft let him know that the rounds were much heavier – the twelve gauge rounds being supplemented by a much denser explosive and a depleted uranium shaped penetrator. If he had to stop a vehicle, this was going to do the job just as well as the Anzio, but would be a lot handier

Tads flew out onto the road and watched the vehicle approaching, then took a calculated gamble, dropping down to be directly in the way and bracing herself, hoping that it wasn't warded – or that the wards were not too strong if it was. The vehicle roared 'through' her, and she concentrated on trying to peer inside the vehicle in the moment it took to drive over the spot where her astral form hovered. Another blink of an eye, and she was back in her body.

"One occupant, the merc contact from Ten Thousand Daggers, the one with lots and lots of cyberware."

"The Ukranian guy? The orc? Pizza and beer by the canal?" Aswon queried.

"Yes, that one. He didn't feel hostile, but there's an edge to him. I didn't get a good read on him, though."

"Kai – are you going to talk to this guy, or do we take him out?" Shimazu headed to the doorway of the passenger compartment, staring out towards the gates.

"We'll try talking. But we should be ready."

A moment later, there was the sound of a heavy impact as the SUV steered into the turning and just rammed into the gate. It had been slowing as it turned, so it didn't go through, but it hit hard enough to force the gate open a handbreadth. The door was pushed open, and the massive orc slid out and quickly moved around to the front of the car. His hands rose up to grip the gate and then he flexed, the gates shrieking in protest as his cyber-limbs slowly forced the barrier backwards, motors complaining and gears clacking as he strained. When the gap was wide enough, he slid through, then stared to walk towards the Broadsword with a determined march.

Kai moved up behind Shimazu and tapped him on the shoulder, letting him know he was ready. Shimazu pushed off from the top step, leaping down to the ground in a single bound and started walking towards Slavomir, hearing Kai descending the steps behind him, with Aswon following along next – but he kept his eyes fixed on the hulking mercenary.

The two men they'd spoken to the previous night were on duty again, and they saw one of them hurrying across the apron to intercept Slavomir, his protests clearly carrying across the concrete pad. As he got close though, one of Slavomir's arms shot out, grabbing him by the throat and bodily lifting him up into the air. As he reached apogee and started to fall, the orc flexed his wrist and elbow, tucking the man in under his arm, holding him tightly – all without breaking stride. He did it so naturally he looked more like a sportsman catching a random ball, rather than someone that had just picked up another man bodily and rendered him ineffective. The second heliport worker skidded to a halt as Slavomir raised his other hand and pointed at him with an outstretched finger, clearly indicating that his fate would be no different.

"Good evening, Mr. Rawciz. Did we have any outstanding business after our earlier meeting?" Kai called out. "If so, perhaps we can just put the worker down, and discuss things?" He hoped that mentioning the meeting earlier might give either Tads or Shimazu something to work from if they were trying to assense his mood or read his body-language – his efforts so far mostly focussed on the fact that this guy seemed to be more like a juggernaut. He heard an electronic whine from behind and to his left, and a quick glance that way revealed a flicker of movement – from roughly the right direction for the turreted autocannon at the tail of the aircraft. "Come on now – what can we do for you? A beer perhaps?"

Slavomir glanced over at Kai and Shimazu, before his head swivelled to look at Aswon. There seemed to be a moment of thought and then he heaved his arm up, swinging the still protesting worker back upright and sending him staggering towards Kai, his feet wobbling as he suddenly found himself in contact with the ground once more. The orc adjusted direction, closing in on Aswon with the same determined march – not slowing even as Aswon lowered the shotgun down into a clear firing position.

"That's close enough, pal." Aswon didn't put any emphasis on the words, but spoke clearly and calmly, hoping that he wouldn't have to pull the trigger. The anti-vehicle rounds were going to be excessive on a person – unless he had a considerable amount of dermal armour or sheathing, or even a full cyber-torso modification. They knew he didn't have much of his humanity left, so perhaps the heavyweight penetrators were a good idea after all… Aswon's finger felt the trigger, and started to apply a little pressure, taking up the slack in the action.

"You – what is your name?"

"Hello – I am Aswon. Er… I mean…"

"HAH! I knew it! Slavomir halted, probably about four metres away from Aswon, and then fished inside a pocket. The shotgun stayed focussed on his torso as Aswon tensed, watching the man root around for something, before pulling his hand out and holding a small case between thumb and fore-finger. The hand lowered to his waist and then swung up, launching the case towards Aswon, who caught it cleanly. "There are not that many mercenaries with your description – or reputation. I have an offer for you. When you are finished your current contract, come work for us."

Kai had been dusting down the heliport worker, holding him by the shoulder and giving him a quick check over to try and reassure him, but as he heard the job offer come out, his head snapped around to examine Slavomir and Aswon.

"Everything ok over there?" He called out, trying to keep his voice neutral.

"Yes, all is fine. I am just poaching your sniper – or trying to. I offer him good money, steady contract. Details are on the chip."

"You could have… I don't know… called us? We could have chatted over the phone."

"Ahh, but I could not see his face then when I ask for his name. And besides, I did not know if I would catch you in time. Some things are better done face to face, such as making job offers."

"Well, thank you – and I appreciate the efforts you've gone to. But we were just about to leave, and Aswon already has a contract, I'm afraid."

"Hang on a minute… what sort of offer are we talking about here?" Aswon queried, throwing Kai a quick glance.

"Six figures, medical, a few other perks and bonus options. Steady work, reliable contracts."

"Aswon?" Kai looked at him, suddenly wondering just how tempted he might be.

"Well, as my boss says, I do have a contract. But I'll keep it in mind, and if anything changes – I'll be in touch?"

"Good enough. Ok, I leave now – see if rioting has stopped."

"Rioting?"

"Yes. Many people changing suddenly, growing feathers and things. Or turning into hedgehog. Suddenly people very frightened, lots of fighting on the street. Police very busy."

"Tads. Can you do a quick scout?" Kai asked over the comms link, wondering how accurate this description was. "So, Slavomir, now that you've tried to poach my man, are we all done?"

"Yes, of course. All is chill." Slavomir gave a nod to Aswon, then turned on his heel and started to stride back across the apron, heading back towards the gates. As he passed Kai, Shimazu and the still slightly traumatised heliport worker, he reached out a hand to slap the man on the shoulder in a 'friendly' fashion. "Perhaps talk to boss. Need stronger gates – upgraded motors. Too easy to break." The man nodded nervously, unsure on what to make of the 'advice', and deciding to downplay things in the hope that the huge scary man would go away and leave him alone…

Slavomir did, quickly crossing the distance back to the gates and sliding through the gap, before getting back into his car and slowly backing up, disentangling his vehicle from the entrance and then turning it around in service road before heading back towards the rest of the city. The heliport worker gave a sigh of relief as the SUV disappeared, and then almost jumped out of his skin as Aswon appeared at his elbow, arriving silently. Aswon gave an apologetic grin, but then offered the man a cup of coffee and some cookies.

"Here, these might help. A bite to eat and a nice drink will help you get over that, settle you down." The worker looked at them with surprise, and probably a little distrust. "Look, just have a bite to eat – and relax. And we'll make sure that the guy is really gone, and nothing else is going to happen to you. He mentioned rioting in the city, and we're checking on that, too…" Aswon gave him a contemplative stare, his mouth set with no trace of a smile or humour, until the guy nodded and sipped at his drink.

Hunter continued his survey, while Kai and Shimazu supervised the worker as he calmed down, Kai telling him random stories of far-away places to keep his mind distracted. Marius had finished the pre-flight sequence, and was holding now, just short of engine start-up, while they waited for Tads to return from her investigation.

"I don't know about a riot – but there's a lot of trouble in the city." Her voice sounded over the earpieces, letting them know she was back. "I don't think we need to stay, but I can tell you what I've seen." A moment later the whine of the compressor on the auxiliary power unit could be heard, then the rumble of the small engine starting up and running, building up pressure until there was enough power available to prime and start one of the four main engines as Marius took her at her word. "There's a whole bunch of people up and down the strip suddenly finding themselves being affected. I don't think it's anything to do with the place itself. Nothing I could see or detect anyway – but I think it's more the sheer number of people found here. This city is so busy, so densely packed, that I think that it's just going to have more people randomly affected than other places."

"What kind of things did you see?"

"One guy had grown spines, looked like a hedgehog gone mad. Screaming in pain, and not sure what was happening, the police had him pinned down and the medics were trying to sedate him, with a very nervous crowd around him. Another one seemed to have grown gills or something like that, and was thrashing around on the pavement. I manifested at the back of the crowd and tried shouting to throw him in one of the lakes, but there was too much screaming and shouting from everyone else – I don't think they heard me."

"Can't see why people are kicking off like that, then… I mean those are both unfortunate, but not that concerning for everyone else."

"Oh, I hadn't finished, Kai. One guy I saw looked to have been shot dead. He had some kind of spines too – much shorter ones though, and growing out of flesh tubes. And from what was laid out around him, they're something like a volleying porcupine. Remember those creatures that we nearly ran over in Iran when we were trying to get away? So yeah, there were half a dozen dead bodies laid around him, all with these quills in them. From the contortions and layout of the body, I'd say they had to be poisoned, probably from the darts launched by this man. Big exclusion zone around him, and they had a team just turning up in hazmat gear to deal with that."

"Oh, ok – that does sound more serious. And once word gets out that things like that MIGHT happen, I bet a lot of people are going to assume the worst…"

"Yes – I saw lots more people out and injured, where they'd had what looks like minor changes – bits of fur or strange colour changes, or things that didn't seem too dangerous… but they'd also been pelted with rocks or bits of fence, or whatever the crowd could get its hands on. I think word is spreading fast that some people are being affected by deadly or dangerous changes.

"Let's get out of here then." Kai looked around the team, and gave a wry grin. "The last thing we need to do is find ourselves dealing with a crowd of people that don't like the weird, unusual or unexplainable. Hunter – you done?"

"Last section. Clear so far, just this last bit by the tail to do. Marius – go ahead and power up, by the time the engines are up to temperature, I'll be done." He heard the immediate rise in noise as Marius prepared for take-off, but ignored it – concentrating on the readings on his bug scanner as he continued to play the wand over the exterior of the aircraft. True to his word he had finished the scan just in time, and bounded up the stairs, hitting the close control just as the engines rose to a deafening howl. The Broadsword rose into the air sharply, the engines driving them up vertically until they hit two hundred metres and then reconfiguring quickly to start driving them forwards.

"We are clear of the landing zone – but what is our destination?" Marius asked Hunter.

"I dunno – have they not decided? I was busy doing the scan?"

"Kai – what is our destination?"

"I dunno – has Hunter not told you, he's the navigator?"

"I was DOING the SCAN!"

"Calm down, your highness, I was only saying… um. Alright, Marius – head north ish, as if we were going back to the mountain, but go steady. We'll get in touch with Yat Gwan, and see if she wants the info in person, or what. And if she's done with us, we need to start getting those weird things together, so we'll work out which one we're getting first. Ok?"

"Affirmative." Marius wasn't thrilled with the directions of 'north-ish', but at least for the first few hundred kilometres, it wouldn't make that much actual difference. He felt Kai activate his commlink and the interface with the Broadsword's communications system, feeling the outgoing call as if someone was gently running a fingernail over his scalp.

"Hello. This is Kai. We've just left Macau – but we have the information you required."

"Oh? Do tell."

"Well, the short version is that it was "Bravo Company" that took the contract and have carried out the missions against your facilities. We were fairly sure it was them from some social engineering, but we then carried out a little operation and have confirmation in the form of electronic records."

"Bravo Company? Hmm. Very well. What are these additional details?"

Kai opened his tablet and started to read out the information gathered from the mercenary negotiator, describing the meeting they'd had and wincing slightly as he relayed the name given during the meeting – hearing the indrawn breath from the other end of the line as he said "Gwat Yan". It went quiet for a few moments after he had finished, and he was just about to ask if everything was ok when their employer spoke quietly.

"Very well. I will deal with them. Regarding the boy – I have made many of the preparations required. You should seek out the items required for the ritual, and return here when they are ready. Call me when you have obtained them all, and I will uphold my end of the arrangement."

Kai started to say that he would when he heard the disconnection noise and the line go dead. Yat Gwan, it seemed, was more than a little annoyed with the news, and perhaps worse wasn't afraid to show it. From what Kai had gathered, she wasn't a 'great' dragon, the most powerful, largest and, it seemed, oldest of their kinds – but she was still a dragon, a creature of incredible power, both physically and in terms of knowledge and skills. Having someone that powerful be upset and not afraid to show their anger was a worrisome thing – you could never tell when that anger might splash over onto the people around them. He folded down the panel on his commlink and put a bright smile on his face, then called out to the others.

"So – we need to get the things off the shopping list, then call Yat Gwan back when we're on the way to her. Where do we need to start then?"

"The hand-forged steel is sorted." Shimazu reminded him. "I reached out to the swordsmith in Japan, and he will make what we require, using the traditional materials and methods. He's going to ship it over to us, as it's cheaper and easier – and the goods aren't restricted. So that's taken care of."

"Great. What else was it we needed?"

"I have the list here… one moment." Tads rummaged on her pad. "Ahh, here we go. Healing dust – we're pretty sure that involves crushed rock from a certain type of sea condition, and we think the Spratly Islands might be a good source. Or rather, Allorra would be. We also need some fire bamboo, from somewhere in China – we don't have a lead on that precisely. The 'sweat of dedication' we're pretty sure we can get from a quick visit to Chun and his training academy, so that's a simple one. The hardest one is this paragon ruby, just based on the size and quality needed. We have some ideas of alternative locations such as some regions in northern India, but I'm still wondering if Mary Pat might be our best option. We're pretty sure she's moving illegal gems through the black market, based on our visit to Afghanistan."

"Well, why don't we give her a call then?"

"Because last time we visited her, I'm pretty sure I pissed her off, somehow. I'm not sure how or why, but I got the distinct impression we weren't welcome in the village."

"I have something." Shimazu said quietly into the pause. Kai looked over to him and raised an eyebrow. "I contacted Saito – he used to live over this way. He's not 100% sure, but he's got memories of a bamboo plant that sparks, and says we should try the Shaanxi province to the north."

"Ok, that's useful. Tads, add that info to the list, please. Well, it seems to me then that if the ruby is going to be the hardest one to get, we should start with that. The others we can do afterwards – but if we can't get the ruby, it might not be worth trying to get the rest." Kai looked around, and though the others didn't seem to be convinced about the idea, nobody was arguing either. He was just about to carry on, when Shimazu looked up from his commlink.

"Sorry, was sending a thank-you to Saito. I agree though – get the ruby first. If we do have to go digging for it, it might take the longest to find, while the others all sound easier, and quicker."

"Ok, then let's do that. We can call her in a few minutes. But for now – Marius and Hunter, what's the journey look like?"

"About four thousand seven hundred kilometres, each way." Hunter warned. "So we need to refuel at least once. I'd actually suggest going via at least two stops – Dragon Ridge and then Trafford, that we've visited before. That leaves us needing less fuel at each stop and a bigger reserve, as well as not having to touch the barrels at all. By the time we stop for fuel, we're looking at an eleven or twelve-hour flight."

"Marius, you up for that?"

"I can make that work. I got good sleep last night, and I can sleep while we we're there. From our discussion, I do not believe that I will be much help in finding these gems, or add much to any attempt to dig. I can sleep, and prepare the aircraft for the journey back."

"Alright then – let's head for the village then, and Mary Pat – and I'll call her now. If it doesn't work out, we'll have only lost a few minutes…"

They felt the aircraft heel over sharply, turning from a northbound course to one almost due west as Marius headed for the Guangxi border. Kai checked his watch, then did a quick bit of maths, much to the surprise of the others, checking that it was a reasonable time in the former country of Afghanistan. He placed the call and the team listened in on his half of the conversation, wondering what he was getting from the other side. It seemed to go ok though, and a few minutes later he hung up.

"She's ok with us coming, I've arranged that we'll meet her sometime after lunch tomorrow. She was a little worried that we were just coming in to land." He paused for a moment, getting a drink and then sipping at it quietly, keeping the others waiting. "She's hiding something, and she's uncertain. I'm not sure about what, but the impression I get from her is that we, or I DO know some secret about her. She wasn't keen on us coming, but when I raised how disappointed I'd be if we had to go elsewhere, she back-peddled. Really quickly. She's definitely up to something, and she thinks that we know more than we do. So we need to be a little enigmatic with her, I think. At least until we have what we want…"

"And she'll help us find it?" Tads asked, equally confused by what Kai was saying, or at least hinting at.

"She says she'll try. That much, at least, I think she was being really honest about. She says she has some promising locations that could contain gems, but was very clear about it being a low order of probability. Could take weeks and weeks to excavate and blast into the mountain. I didn't bother explaining that we had better or faster methods. We can sort that out when we get there…"

"I have a suggestion then. And this is not just because she is… or at least was, my friend. We're after this paragon gem thing, a big one. If we find other gems – we should give them to her. I don't know what it is that we supposedly know about her… but giving her the gems will keep her happy. And maybe keep her off-balance, or questioning things. She'll be uncertain, and she might give something away?"

"That's actually a pretty good plan, Tads. Yeah, we'll plan on giving her stuff, and questioning what she knows. Or thinks she knows. And if she makes some Nuyen out of this as well – well, so what? It's not like it's going to bother us!"

He was interrupted as the screens in the back flickered into life, and all the passengers turned their attention to the news feed that Hunter had just relayed back to them. They watched the scene unfold in silence, watching as a mob of people set fire to some building, storming through a security barricade and launching Molotov cocktails into the area, then scattering when riot police arrived. Hunter managed to get some subtitles up, and they learnt that it was a scene from one of the suburbs of Paris, and the building was an impromptu medical centre, where some of the people affected by the strange mutations had been quarantined.

As they watched, a doctor or medical worker was being interviewed, expressing uncertainty over what was causing the mutations. As the journalist continued to probe they could see the doctor becoming irate, claiming that they needed more information and that the Ministry of Health would issue a full statement in the morning. When someone in the crowd apparently shouted out and pointed up into the night sky, presumably towards where the comet was lurking behind the dense clouds, the doctor exploded with rage, the subtitles struggling to keep up with the tirade of abuse directed at the onlooker. Sensing some juicy story, the reporter asked the questions again, probing and needling at the doctor, asking them to define exactly what was causing the mutations, trying to back him into a corner and get him to admit that he didn't know, hammering at him until the doctor stormed off in a rage.

The channel flipped, and they saw a story from somewhere in Greece, then Portugal, then another from the UK. It appeared that all over Europe incidents were kicking off, with mobs of terrified or angry people taking up arms or just joining up with fellow protestors and seeking out the camps or facilities that the changelings were being taken to. Talking heads on the news-shows discussed how alike this was to the wave of goblinisation that had swept the world when the awakening had come, describing how similar this was in some cases, and how different it was in others. Other 'experts' claimed it was a virus, or a bacterial infection, spread through some unknown vector, a plague that was travelling around the world with vast speed. Some claimed it was magical, though opinion was split between those associating it with the arrival of the Comet, and those who just saw the Comet as a sign, something that had prompted the various conspiracy groups into action. Doomsday clubs and cults were out in force, it seemed, prophesising the end of the world, along with those claiming that Immortal Elves had stolen their babies and the real crazies that said that someone had dug out an ancient infected dragon carcass from the ice-wall that surrounded the flat-earth, and that this was divine punishment for those globers who denied the truth.

The team watched with sick fascination as the crazy people seemed to take over the asylum, and with more practical concern as the reports came in more and more quickly from all across the European continent, catching every country and corporate enclave up into the rising tide of violence. As the hours crept by, they started to see the same kind of madness erupting along the east coasts of the UCAS and CAS, while the coastal mega-cities of Amazonia seemed to just erupt into anarchy.

"Now might be a good time to upload the data we've been collating about the cases we've seen Hunter. It might do some good on Shadowland somewhere… and it seems like the right time to discuss it at least."

"Roger that… uploading now." Hunter did a last quick run through the database and information they had gathered, then uploaded it to the matrix via the satellite connection, cross-referencing it to various special interest groups or SIGs. It didn't take long before he started to see hits as people stumbled across the information or browsed to it from the tags he'd set up on the data, and soon there were people adding comments or discussion items – adding context or debate, but building upon the posting and adding value, and crucially enhancing the visibility of his post and his public standing.

They flew onwards, hitting first Dragon Ridge, then the Trafford stops. In both, they landed only long enough to refuel the Broadsword and make use of the toilets and shop to grab some food and drinks, then vaulting back into the air to continue their westward trek. It was surreal as they watched the news – the spinning of the planet below them in combination with their flight plan appeared to accelerate time, and keeping up with the updates from multiple time-zones left them feeling discombobulated and out of touch with the rest of the world. Though Hunter kept the news channels flowing, after a while they stopped watching – the news was the same, it seemed, all across the world now, and they'd seen plenty of unthinking violence and irrational crowd mentality before.

"Shit. Folks, wake up – this is a big one. Going to cause some ructions I think." Hunter's voice disturbed them from their dozing, and they focussed on the screens once more, seeing the view from what appeared to be a circling news chopper. The camera was orbiting a stadium, and they watched the silent display for a few moments while Hunter found some translations for the subtitles to put up. With mounting horror, they watched as the camera zoomed in to the interior of the stadium and saw hundreds, then thousands of people lying prone on the floor, slumped in defeat it seemed from some kind of catastrophe.

The subtitles finally caught up with the scene, and they read that this was the view of the Olympiapark Stadium in Munich – a huge oval stadium and athletics facility with seating for more than sixty thousand people in vast terraces that lay underneath a sweeping series of tents made of translucent material, supported by giant metallic uprights. The stadium was littered with tents, laid out in a fairly regular pattern indicating some level of organisation that was instantly at odds with the bodies strewn all over the grounds.

"It's a meta-human refuge, from what I can find on the matrix. A haven for the sinless and the down-and-outs from the area. International red-cross and a few other organisations set up the tent city and dole out aid to everyone, no questions asked, and they try to keep the area secured and patrolled. There's some sponsorships going on as well, and they have a work program and things like that – so there's a lot of people calling the area home, and it keeps the streets in the surrounding areas somewhat safe as well." Hunter's voice had that absent-minded quality that they'd come to associate with him pulling information straight from the ether and just relaying it verbatim, passing over facts without bias or thought.

The subtitles continued, revealing that a local terror organisation calling themselves 'Nationale Aktion' had claimed responsibility for the attack, providing a number of key pieces of information to the Munich police. The city was the capital of the Free State of Bavaria, and it seemed hosted one of the cells of the terror group that was active throughout the Allied German League – claiming to represent 'traditional Christian German values', at least according to their manifesto. But as part of their attempts to safeguard the German people, they had released a bio-weapon in the stadium – an aerosol form of VITAS that had been concocted in some lab somewhere.

Nobody was asleep in the aircraft now as they read that – VITAS, or Virally-Induced Toxic Allergy Syndrome was the disease that had run rampant around the world in the last fifty years. VITAS-1, first recorded in New Delhi in 2010, spread worldwide in a short period of time and left approximately 25% of the world population dead, threatening to collapse social orders and overwhelming care facilities in every country. Spreading like wildfire, the symptoms became apparent only twelve hours after exposure, causing fevers, chills, vomiting and anaphylactic shock, mostly leading to bronchoconstriction, suffocation and then inevitably death. A second pandemic in the 2020s had spread around the world killing another nine-hundred million people, leaving some third-world nations with a 70% reduction in overall population.

Authorities had sealed the stadium off, and a rapidly enlarging barricade was being set up, enforced by the military and armed police, along with some corporate guards that seemed to be based nearby. Nobody was 100% in control of the situation, it seemed, but anyone trying to leave the stadium was repelled with deadly force as they kept the infection source contained.

The news report returned to a studio, somewhere in Germany, while the two anchors talked about the situation, leaving the chopper footage playing on the screen behind them, as they went over the press briefing that had been dumped on them and several other news agencies and government departments by the terrorists, before they cut over to a very tired looking Minister announcing that while, yes, they were investigating a terror incident in Munich, it was too early to speculate on the details. However, he could confirm that there was indeed a government-sanctioned bounty on the heads of any of the suspected thirty-seven cells for Nationale Aktion, with a payment of up to a hundred thousand Nuyen for a confirmed capture – or delivery of a dead body.

"Well, life's interesting in Germany right now. Wonder how many people are going to end up dead because their neighbour reports them for being a terrorist?" Aswon shook his head sadly, knowing that the number was probably going to be significant.

"Hunter? How many people in the stadium? Any news on that?"

"Probably over twenty-thousand. And almost certainly people that are in poor general health, malnourished and living in squalor. So we're going to see a lot of dead people there – way higher than standard for an outbreak." Tads paled as Hunter confirmed her thoughts.

"I'm not going anywhere near that place, just in case anyone was wondering about a fly-past for information. The misery and suffering there is probably going to distort astral-space around the stadium, just like it did in Nagasaki or Auschwitz. In fact, you might want to mark the area on your map, Hunter, and make sure we don't fly near or over it by accident."

"Roger that."

It fell quiet in the cabin for a few minutes, each of the team lost in their own thoughts about the attack, until Tads stirred and looked over at Aswon.

"You had an opportunity to go back to being a mercenary back there, but you didn't take it. Why did you stop?"

"I got put in a cage. Then I got out of the cage, and found myself in a new contract. Such as it is." He flashed a look to Kai that was ambiguous, and made Kai wonder what he was thinking. "But I'm here, now. Working private security, of a kind. And my needs are met – I have somewhere to live, food and water, my weapons are provided…" he gestured towards the massive 20mm cannon with one hand, "and when I need supplies, they're provided. And… well, it's enough. For now."

"Fair enough." Tads waited a few more seconds to see if he was going to add anything further, but he didn't – instead leaning back in his seat and closing his eyes. The rest of the team exchanged glances, wondering what he was leaving unsaid, before settling back themselves, and the passenger cabin became quiet, just the background roar of the engines lulling them into fitful sleep as they continued to fly westward.

They woke as the pitch of the engines changed and the aircraft began to bank sharply, pulling off blankets and checking their positions. It was approaching nine in the morning local time, and by the feel of things they were coming in to land – a quick check on the screens showed the sensor feed comprised mostly of yellow and brown rocks, rapidly rising up over the top of the aircraft.

"I am putting us down in the same valley that we landed at last time. It was close enough to the village to be convenient, but far enough away to keep us out of sight." Marius announced, touching down gently onto the sun-baked ground with a gentle bump. Once the engines started to spool down, the team emerged from the doors, dragging out the camo netting to drape over the aircraft and help conceal it from any overflights or orbital surveillance. The temperature was climbing, but not yet that hot, so they managed to get the netting dragged over the skin of the Broadsword fairly easily, concealing the shape and helping to obscure the hull.

While the rest of the team had dealt with that, Marius had prepared his drones – the ground drone for local defence, poised on the back ramp ready to deploy as needed, the surveillance drone was lofted high up into the air and was already in orbit around the valley, sending down a continuous sensor feed to his deck, while the vector-thrust attack drone was ready in the launch rails, just in case.

"I am going to bed now. I have set up the drones on patrol and to stand ready. Hunter – if you run into problems, send me a message. I have my deck set to monitor your GPS location, and the drone will head for you if called, while I get ready to take over."

"Cheers, pal. Hopefully we won't need it…" Hunter clapped Marius on the shoulder as the pilot squeezed past him into his narrow bunk located just behind the cockpit, pulling the curtain closed to isolate him from the light.

The team assembled their gear, making sure they had their survival kits fully stocked, a medkit to hand, their batteries charged and backpacks stuffed full of extra clothes, rations and some tents – there was no telling how long they'd be away from the aircraft, or what environment they were going to find themselves in, after all. As they set off from the Broadsword, Kai asked Hunter to send a message to Mary-Pat, advising her that they'd landed and were on their way to the village. They'd not even made it to the end of the small side-valley they'd landed in when Hunter picked up a response to the message.

"She's coming down to meet us. Says to wait at the end of the valley, she'll come to us."

"Huh. Does she not want us in the village for some reason?" Kai frowned. "Not sure why… we did some helpful stuff up there last time."

"Maybe that's why. She doesn't want to be challenged as the saviour of the local folk." Hunter sniffed. He looked at Tads who seemed uncomfortable with the idea, but didn't have anything to argue against it. They reached the end of the valley and found some rocks to sit on, and kept an eye out – spotting their contact walking down the main valley towards them about ten minutes later. Like them she was dressed in sturdy and practical clothing and carried a rucksack with her – though hers was a narrower and more compact design, the kind favoured by climbers rather than hikers or the military.

"Mary-Pat! So good to see you again. I do hope you're not going too far out of your way with this one?"

"Hi Kai. Um… no, it's fine. I'm happy to help out Tads, and her friends. And you helped out the village." She stopped a few paces away from the group, planting her hands on her hips. Her words weren't hostile, but her body language was guarded to say the least – she certainly didn't seem happy to see them. "So… what's this about? You need a big ruby?"

"Yes. It's a matter of life and death – and I say that quite literally. The son of one of our contacts got hit by a magical curse, and it's required as part of the healing ritual we need to do to save him. We MUST have one, and it must be pure – dug out by hand, not blasted out with explosives."

"Well, I have a place. A spot that I think there could be rubies in. But I gotta warn you, though there's a lot of science to geology, there's a lot of luck too." She waved for them to follow here, and headed northwards along the valley floor, away from the village. "Just because there's a promising seam or drift, doesn't mean rubies, or any other gems for that matter. Or you might get some that are tiny, occluded, fragmented or with impurities."

"I understand. But having somewhere that might have some is a lot better than just digging at random. And we have some skills that might be able to help tip the odds." Kai gave her an encouraging smile. "Is it far?"

"It's a good ten klicks or so, going to take us a while."

"Oh, that's fine – nothing like a stroll in the hills to work up an appetite. So… if you'd be so kind – what exactly is a ruby? It's a type of red diamond, right?" Kai looked at her, his face innocent and naïve, walking alongside her as she took a sharp intake and shook her head.

"No, rubies are a pinkish red to blood-red coloured gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum – or if you're talking scientifically, a specific formation of aluminium oxide with traces of chromium mixed in…" Mary-Pat explained, before launching into further details of what exactly made a ruby, what factors affected their quality such as size, shade or colour, and clarity. Kai kept asking open questions, seeming to be suddenly very ignorant about such matters, and encouraging her to continue her lesson.

The route took them to the end of the valley and up the side of the hills, slowing their pace dramatically as they zigged and zagged up the slopes, sometimes climbing at a sixty-degree angle on the loose stone and dirt slopes. The area seemed mostly deserted, apart from a small flock of crows that followed them, circling lazily overhead. Aswon sighted in on them with his scope, spotting the same creatures they'd encountered previously in the village, no doubt following them in the hopes of picking up some discarded items or food to consume.

Eventually their climb stopped, reaching a small plateau about halfway up the mountain. From the look of the terrain around them, some kind of tectonic event had sheared off a large chunk of the slope, creating the small flattened area and a large debris field below it – but also revealing a crack in the mountain itself that disappeared deep into the interior. A few streaks of marbled rock were visible on the outside face of the crack.

"Here we are… this is the site that I think is promising. It's a bugger to get into, though." Mary-Pat looked over at Hunter and Shimazu. "Nothing personal, but I can't see you being much help – you'd have to dig out so much material to get in, it's going to take weeks and weeks. Probably longer, if we can't blast…"

"We're not here to dig. We're here to keep the area secure." Hunter smiled at her, his lopsided face and discoloured tusks forming a hideous visage. "Finding stuff is up to Tads." He looked around at the small clearing on the mountain side then glanced over at Aswon. "You mark out where the shelter will go, I'll move some rocks around to make a little bit of cover."

"Ok. I'll need about three meters or so. Will try to keep it snug into the rockface to keep it as hidden as possible." Aswon started to lay out the fabric for the shelter, rolling it out and weighing it down with small boulders to stop the wind whipping it away. As soon as they had it stretched out, Hunter and Shimazu made for the slope and started to move much bigger rocks and boulders between them, building up a low wall around the space while Aswon sorted out their shelter.

Tads, meanwhile, moved to the crack and peered inside, spotting the winding chasm delve deeper and deeper into the mountainside, angling down at about twenty-five degrees. Irregularly shaped, the crack wended its way left and right, sometimes narrowing, sometimes opening up a little, a natural fault line that had split open with whatever earthquake or fault-line shift had happened in the area.

"I'm calling your spirits in, all except the ones looking after the aircraft." She warned the others, then recalled the guardians she had allocated out to them each at dawn. Settling down at the entrance to the seam, she gave them instructions, picturing in her mind the rubies she was looking for and then detailing each one of them to enter the seam and start searching through the rock itself to look for pockets of gems. It would be very, very slow going – the mountain itself had an aura, and each of her spirits would have to push through it, examining the rock in close detail to look for the clusters of precious gems – but it would still be FAR faster than actually excavating.

"What are you doing?"

"Sending spirits of the land into the rockface to look for gems. They will magically pass through the rock, and hopefully find what we are after."

"I didn't know you could do that? You didn't mention anything about that when you passed through here a while back…"

"I couldn't do it then." Tads didn't care for the slight tone of accusation in her voice, but tried to not let it get to her. They needed her expertise and local knowledge – and if these stones were as valuable as she thought they were, then potentially this could be a very lucrative trip. And on reflection, she probably couldn't blame Mary-Pat if she thought that Tads HAD been holding out on her all this time!

They waited, with Kai still asking questions about gems, finding out lots of information about different cuts and the market for gems – as much to keep Mary-Pat talking and engaged as from a desire to know. But the conversation stopped when one of the spirits manifested in front of Tads and pointed into the mountain. Tads stared at it, deep in communion with it mentally, getting the picture of what it had found.

"Ok, we have one. About twenty three metres in, five metres to the right of the crack and a metre below."

"So now what?"

"I go caving."

"I'll come in with you, just in case." Aswon put down his spear and rifle, knowing they'd be more of a liability in the narrow cleft, and shrugged off all his non-essential kit. He was slender and wiry enough that he should fit wherever Tads could, and his height might be useful if they found any cracks of fissures they needed to cross.

They worked into the crack, half crawling and half sliding down the slope until they reached the right part, the spirit guiding them with the direction. Tads took a cleansing and calming breath, and then cast her spell, shaping the earth to their right and opening up a perfectly cylindrical tunnel, being guided by the mental commands from her spirit, physically reshaping the natural stone of the mountain around her until she reached the small pocket of banded marble, containing tiny flecks that glimmered in the light of their head-torches. She moved more carefully now, slowly parting the rocks around them, until she spotted the deep red gem protruding from the rock face, and then slowed even more as she moved the marble gently away from it until she could pluck it free. One more little burst of mana enlarged the space around them enough that they could easily turn around, and then they started the crawl out and back to the surface.

Emerging about ten minutes later, Tads handed over the find to Mary-Pat, who carefully examined it using a small lens.

"Probably about seven carats. Some silks, but not too many. Nice colour on it – even and with good saturation. A very nice find." She went to pass it back to Tads, but stopped when the shaman shook her head.

"Too small for us, so you have that as a finder's fee – or at least a start. It's been mined naturally as well, so it's magically untainted. If you're selling that on, it should make it more valuable to some buyers."

"Base cost for a gem that size is probably around three thousand." Hunter announced, looking over her shoulder, making Mary-Pat jump a little and nearly drop the gem. "Oh yeah, I move quiet for a big guy." He grinned at her again, then grabbed his assault rifle and moved back to the small nest of stones he'd built himself, and returned to scanning the mountain side and the area around them.

They went back to waiting, with Tads and Aswon diving into the crack a few more times as the various spirits came back to them with suspected finds, carving their way through the mountain and coming back with five more gems – four of them tiny little things, no more than two carats in size, and another that was about the same size as their first find. Kai followed Tads' example and split the gems into two piles, working with Mary-Pat to ensure the split was as even as possible in terms of the quality of gems.

"I still don't quite understand how you're doing this… but I can't argue with the results!" Mary-Pat looked at the small box of gems in front of her, no doubt calculating the sale value and comparing it to the normal amount of work required to get a haul this size.

Over the next few hours they found another small handful of gems, adding a few hundred Nuyens worth to their stockpile. Tads watched the setting sun carefully, and as the light faded gave a little shudder as she felt the spirits leave the world to return to the spirit realm.

"Ok, dusk. Give me a minute." She summoned a large spirit first, sending it back to the Broadsword to conceal it overnight, then grabbing two ibuprofens and a water bottle to deal with the nagging headache that resulted from the effort that took. "We have a choice now. The small spirits are working, but slowly. It's very tough for them to search through the solid rock, and it's going to take hours and hours. And I need to be ready when they do come back. But if we summon a much larger spirit, it will have an easier time searching – but it might slow me down considerably. And we could, if we're feeling lucky, try to go for some spirits and release them – and hope they're feeling helpful."

"I would suggest a larger spirit, for the speed – but not to release it. Previously it was on land that was being attacked, and there were locals that revered it. Here we would have no such advantage." Aswon gestured around at the barren mountainside. "And hopefully if you only have a few spirits, the recovery time will be swift."

"Yes. I may do a few small spirits, like I would normally, just to have ready, or to help out, and then do a big one, then…"

"They're taxing then, I take it?" Mary-Pat asked, looking between Aswon and Tads. She didn't understand all of what they were saying, but she could gather a lot from the context.

"Yes. I need ten or fifteen minutes to clear my mind – I had to summon a powerful spirit to guard our aircraft and keep it safe for the night. But once I've recovered, we can get back to mining."

"Outstanding." Mary-Pat found a sheltered spot and sat down, then pulled out a small hip-flask and took a dash of the contents. "That works for me…"

The team settled down to wait for Tads to recover and start her summoning rituals, keeping an eye on the darkness that surrounded them, ready to respond if any critters or meta-human threats emerged and fancied their chances.