More Bonding!

= Well, this is a bump, but if you post sometime tonight, Eon, I'm going to have band literally all day tomorrow. 9-10. Zero, could you please post if I'm unavailable? XD =

Turbine continues to limp away, nearly oblivious of everything around him. He seems to be panting out some unintelligible words as he stumbles his way with clumsy leaden steps. Enigma then commands the small fighter plane. The Airraid zooms toward Turbine, who remains completely oblivious, his face twisted in pain. The plane twists and turns, then fires a barrage of shots at the defenseless navi. With a groan, he is thrown to the ground, and twists his upper torso slowly around, just in time to receive the last shots to the face.

His data dissolves, into millions of tiny azure datum, and he is deleted.

Spool, climbing out of the hole by using a network of prehensile scarves is abruptly surprised by the sight of the rapidly disappearing data. He turns to the side, grabbing Big.

"Looks like your former friend has done my work for me. Well, he's got a choice now. He can kill you, or I can shoot you very far away from here, extremely painfully. Or I can kill you, if you like. Which would you like to do, Netpolice bitch?" He has a wicked grin on his face, seeming that he'd not care much if Big chose the latter option.

The sound of the engine reveals itself to be an armored assault truck with what looks like a miniature armory of artillery on the top. The armored wheels screech on the 'asphalt' of the net, driving its way closer extremely quickly.

"...Oh, my reinforcements. Never really needed them, you know. I guess the head honcho is still a bit worried about me, y'know. Anyway, here comes the cavalry, policeboy, better make your choice quick--- before it's taken out of my hands. I can almost hear them baying for blood." Spool chuckles darkly as he hefts Big. "On a sidenote, I didn't think your 'friend' had it in him to kill an officer of the netpolice in cold blood." the Netmafia navi shrugs.

"The most surprising things come from desperate people, I suppose? Make your choice, and make it quick."

---

Meanwhile, Enigma manages to hook himself a ride on the Bike as he launches the Airraid. He finds the bike abruptly stopping as Turbine dies, spinning and tumbling as it suddenly loses all sense of direction. It remains there, though. The bike obviously ain't his. Any normal SP or Signature would have vanished with the death of Turbine. The piece of cloth is destroyed in the crash.

Terrain: 75% Normal, 25% Broken


Enigma: 80 HP [5 Tactical Action away from Spool/Big]

Spool:??? [Has Big by the throat] [3 Tactical Actions away from Enigma]
Big: 80 HP [3 Tactical Actions Away from Enigma]['With' Spool]

--'Turbine's' Bike: 240 [Inactive, 2 away from Enigma, 4 away from Spool/Big]

Turbine: DELETED[size=75][font=impact][/size][/font][size=75][font=impact][/size][/font]




Armored Vehicle:
Chassis: 90 [Stonebody]
-Wheel: 30 HP
-Wheel: 30 HP
-Wheel: 30 HP
-Wheel: 30 HP
---Engine: 30 HP
-----???:???
[15 Tactical Actions away from Enigma, 18 from Spool/Big] [Closing in at extremely quick pace]

Spool, Enigma growled, not moving one inch from his position other than to straighten himself from the crash. Big is innocent, unlike that NetPolice scum. He knows nothing of the situation; he wants only for no one to die. Let him jack out in peace, he demanded, sounding as sure of himself as he ever would be.

I'm sorry for getting you involved in this, Jay, Ceres said apologetically, turning to his partner sadly. I honestly had no idea we were going to be caught up in past politics. Your best option would probably be to jack out safely-- unless you really want to deal with me, Spool, AND the tank.

I'm going to take this bike, Enigma said slowly, and then I am going to drive it, if it cooperates, very slowly towards the pair of you. I am hoping, that by the time you have arrived, neither of you have done anything stupid, Big can leave in peace, and that maybe I can smooth things out with you.

Ceres, sighing, decided to admit something. Spool, Big hasn't done a damned thing to you other than destroy some bits of cloth that were attacking him first. Obviously, you don't care about them anyways...

Enigma, meanwhile, slowly backed up towards the careening bike, and casually ordered the fighter-jet back to him, and had it stop, circling, above Big and Spool, as as a sort of intimidation, hopefully. As he approached the bike, he leaned down very carefully towards it, and picked it up, hoping it wouldn't go crazy and buck him off again. Big... are you going to go peacefully, or will I have to do this the hard way? he thought sadly.

=-=-=

Enigma.EXE
HP: 80
1-2: Advance towards, hopefully secure Bike [2 actions]
3-4: Talk it out! [Dodges]
AirRaid1: Circle, DO NOT ATTACK Big and Spool

ALL SIGS: READY!

(( I am allowed to punch Ceres. got the okay from Hiko. :3 ))

At hearing this from his partner, Jay simply stared into Ceres with intense, green eyes. "Wha... what do you mean, deal with YOU and them? What the hell does that mean?!" His expression went from dumbstruck, to anrgy, but quickly changed to a calm sort of rage. "I don't know what the ef you're up to..." Jay said, averting his gaze. "But whatever it is, I just wanna let you know that Big an' I are always gonna be here if you ever need somethin' like this."

For a moment, Jay simply stood there, fists shaking by his sides, his eyes shut closed. Then, without warning, his arm whipped out, and backfisted Ceres across the face. "Just think 'bout what you're getting into. C'mon Big, we're leavin'."

Big scowled at Spool for a few seconds, then began to look back and forth between Spool and his operator's monitor. "Fine." Big said curtly to his Op. He turned back to Spool, and said, "Here's a parting gift." With all due respect, he gave SPOOL a punch across the face, only, this one was much more hateful, obviously.

"Big, jackin' out."

__________
1. Punch (8) > Spool
2. JACKOUT

Spool was shocked by the attack, and didn't have time to dodge. However, he reacted with reflex, jamming a fist into Big's stomach, then that transformed into an Airshot3, sending Big flying into the distance. Big jacked out just fine, though.

(It's your choice whether or not to report Turbine's death to the Netpolice or not.)

Big's Reward: BigHammer1

"I'll call that punch payback and we can leave it at that, brat." He spat out at the air, wiping some digital blood off his lip. The punch was more an insult to dignity than anything else.

"Now, you-- you should probably join the Netmafia. If you don't.. " Spool shrugged noncommittally. "I won't be responsible for what happens to you, anyway."


"Oh, right. This is yours, I guess. Congratulations, your first murder in cold blood." The remainder of Turbine's data was handed to Enigma in the form of a chip.

Enigma's Reward: Areagrab

The vehicle skidded to a halt, and the objects folded away. What was left was a skulky navi with oily brown hair. He looked shifty, and a sneer was permanently pasted across his face.

"Didja leave none for me, Spool? The rest've the boys will be reaaal disappointed to hear that. They wanted netpolice chunks of data. They're gonna be here shortly. Is this your new friiiend?"

= DIDJA MISS ME? XD =

Enigma, sighing sadly at the jackout of his partner, bowed his head, and then looked to Spool curiously. I have to say I'm not pleased with the entirety of this outcome.

I apologize, Jay, Ceres said solemnly, and then leaned in on the discussion. In all honesty, neither of us are friends of the NetPolice, but I'm not quite sure if I want to associate myself with the, with all due respect, least reputable organization in the world...

I'm in, Enigma announced suddenly, a trace of a smile crossing his lips. Tell me what papers to sign, eh?

Enigma, you can't jump into this. I don't think the best way to solve the problem is revenge, Ceres snapped, eyes flaring momentarily. Killing every single NetPolice agent won't make us feel any better about it... or make Dad come back.

Maybe it won't make you feel better, Enigma frowned, and continued on -- But it will sure as hell make me feel better. And besides, I can't kill all of them. Only enough so that those haughty bastards realize I'm a threat...

The idea of making them pay is just as appealing to me as it is to you, trust me-- but maybe there are better ways of going about them.

I'll figure them out later. Spool, and, well, you there. How do I get in...?

Ceres just sighed and looked around sadly before drawing his well-fingered pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and lighting up, sitting back in his chair and trying to figure out how things had gone wrong.

= Scores of trumpets serenade the messenger as he approaches Lord Eon's castle, riding fast on his brilliantly white steed. Long, dark hair whipping behind him in the wind and chain mail glinting, he approaches the citadel with all the self-righteousness of the King himself. Calling his steed to a halt suddenly, he lurched forwards in a sort of galloping trot and click-clack of hooves. Clearing his throat, and raising a small horn to his lips and playing one note, he unrolled a small scroll from his pack and read as loud as he could,
BUMP. =

Spool muttered something at the sleazy looking guy, who seemed to take offense, but wheels formed, and he sank into a his armored car, driving back to--- wherever he came from.

As he disappeared into the distance, Spool turned once again to Enigma.

"I wish I could have had my hands on him for a while longer, but I suppose it's decently better than him getting to the Netpolice. Speaking of whom, you shouldn't be here anymore. There's a pretty good chance Turbine's death set off an alarm somewhere along the line. Well, we'll send an email to you inviting you officially, but if you meet up with any other Netmafia members, just mention my name. They'll leave you alone."

Spool began to walk away, his pace a leisurely stroll.

Enigma nodded in understanding, implying his thanks, and then jacked out, leaving nothing but a few indigo specks of data where he had been.

= JACKOUT. =

Quote ()

Name: Turbine.exe
Reported missing: September 30th
Time of deletion: September 28th, approx. 12:00 PM
Estimated cause of deletion: Unknown
Evidence: Bike signed out by Turbine.exe at scene; Battlechip data fragments found, conflict suspected; No Navi ID traces found.

Poor shmuck. He went out on a regulation assignment like hundreds of other officers do every day, and he has the luck to go and get himself deleted. There were apparently some special orders he was under, but hell if that matters anymore. I'm here to figure out why this guy died, not what the bastard ate for breakfast that morning. And, of course, this report is full of crap. These rookies in forensics have no idea what they're doing. Speaking of looney forensics...

"Blacklight! Found anything yet?!" I shouted over to my nerd of a partner. I doubt he heard me; he gets really in the zone when working. Either way... Staring at this half-assed report isn't gonna do me any good. Time to do some profiling of my own... But I guess I need Blacklight's info first. Guess I'll have to snap him back into reality. And there's only one way I know to do that...

*kick*

I jam my foot right into his side as he hunched over to examine a spot on the ground. Naturally, he falls flat on his ass and looks up at me confusedly. Every time, every time...

"Find anything useful yet?"

"4 Navis, the deleted included. Turbine's ID is easy enough to find since we have him in the database already. There are 2 more that will be easy enough to ID back at the lab, but... This last one is completely blank. Someone knew how to clean up their tracks, and do it really, really well. That worries me. A lot."

Blacklight does usually get a little shaken when he can't decode trace data, I guess. Well... That should be enough info to start. I just need to take a quick drag... Ahhh. I don't know if I could do this job without a cigarette. Alright, here goes:

"Sounds like Turbine bit off more than he could chew. For this guy to know how to wipe his trace data fragments... Netmafia. No grunt, either."

"I wouldn't bet against it. However..."

"He's not the deleter. We wouldn't even have the evidence we do now if he was. That leaves one of the 2 others." Keep finding clues, Blacklight. Profiling is my job. Tch... Now I'm annoyed. Time for another drag.

Thankfully, and for his own good, my partner gets up ands begin following a new trail of data. Considering he's looking through that imaging visor all the time, I'm amazed he never mixes up what he's already materialzed and what isn't. Oh well, makes my job easier... Great. He's walking in circles. Just great. I'm going to need to light another cigarette before this investigation's done...

"This is the point of deletion." he says assertively, pointing straight into the middle of the circle he'd walked about 10 times already.

"And lemme guess... The weapon was the donut you've been running around for the past 2 minutes."

"Very funny." Don't have to tell me twice, bub. "Anyway... There are traces of Battlechip use in a circular pattern here. And, as it turns out, this is the endpoint of Turbine's trace. Judging from the bullet remains and the movement pattern, I'd say it was an AirRaid."

Huh. Don't see that chip every day. "There any trace from the user?"

"Well... It's a remote chip. I doubt there'd be any direct residue. But maybe..." And there he goes with one of his incomplete thoughts, turning on his dark beam again to follows the prints. "... Following the chip's path will lead back to the user. Got it." I'd hope so. It's what you're paid to do. He materializes what looks like the guy's footprint traces and extracts some to a vial.

"Alright, you got your sample. Get back to HQ so you can identify it."

"What's eating you, Chicago? You sound even more irritated than usual." Tch. This guy's been my partner for too long. Guess I have to answer since we're both getting into the patrol car now...

"Just don't like this case. The other departments piss me off, but he was still NP. One of us. The punk that did this isn't going to get away so easily."

Man, it's been a while since I had a grudge on a case. It was probably some upstart punk who did it, too, which just really bites me. Huh... I guess I should toss this cigarette before getting in the car. Now... Nah, I'll let it burn. Maybe Turbine could use a little smoke after this.