Beams and bullets screamed through the hall. I heard beams dissipate against the concrete walls and bullets embedding into walls. Eventually, the sounds of plinking and sizzling and thudding slowed, then stopped. The gangsters had finally realized that magdumping the hall without actually aiming for anybody wasn’t doing anything. Which sucked for us, because they could just flood the room and strangle us with numbers. I only had my shotgun, handgun, and knife, and Noah only had his Fune 2. Yori didn’t even have a weapon. In short, we were fucked.
I heard footsteps pounding against the floor, directly ahead and to the right. Without looking over, I slung my shotgun over the table I was behind, and squeezed the trigger. A ghoulish wail told me that I hit someone. Judging by how it continued, it wasn’t enough to kill them. Shuffling noises emanated from outside the room. Nobody else wanted to test my shotgun, it seemed.
More footsteps echoed through the room, on Noah’s side this time. He copied my strategy and blindly fired off shots towards the footsteps. I couldn’t tell if he hit anyone or not, but the footsteps quickly backed off to where they came from. The gangsters were acting skittish. Nobody wanted to die against a foe who had their back against the wall. Why would you put yourself in danger for a fight you’re sure to win?
All of a sudden, yelling echoed from down the hallway. Gunshots rang out, feet stomped, and gangsters cursed. The shuffling outside the room became a mad scramble. I peered over the edge of the table I was hiding behind. Bodies streamed past the door, scrambling to get away from the other end of the hallway. A few Crevice gangsters came in, but Noah and I made quick work of them. Something was making the gangsters run away, but I wasn’t quite sure what.
“Get some! GET SOOOOOOOOME!” A familiar voice yelled. “WHERE THE FUCK IS YORI!”
“Tsu, I don’t think Yori’s over here. But the gangsters went down the hallway, so let’s follow them to see where they went.” Another familiar voice spoke, in a voice that was soft, yet powerful.
“Good call. I’ll look through any side rooms. See if they got Yori crammed in there. Saka should be around too, but she hasn’t responded to any messages for a while.” A third voice called out.
“Saka, huh. She probably got here first. Let’s hope she didn’t kick the bucket.” Tsu replied.
A few of the Tavern mercenaries were here. They must’ve organized a raid while Noah and I were making our way here.
“Hey!” I called, poking my head into the hallway. “Didn’t know you guys were showing up.”
“Saka!” Tsu said, raising his arms. “You’re not dead!”
“I was about to be, until you guys came over here and saved our asses. Thanks.”
“No problem. We were here for Yori anyways. You know where they’re at?”
I pointed a thumb back into the room we were hunkered down in. “Yeah, they’re in there.”
I swept my eyes towards the other mercenaries that came with Tsu, the Aeon mercenary. One of them was Kara, a Sabi mercenary who was missing an eye. She toted a submachine gun in both hands, the barrels still smoking. Kara was known for being a great gunslinger. She specialized heavily in gunfights, so she was hired often for boots-on-the-ground missions. I hadn’t talked to her often, but we were somewhat friendly.
The other mercenary was Bubbles. Not his real name, his nickname. Bubbles was a mystery to all of us. He was only known to us as a lanky suit. I’ve never seen Bubbles take off his helmet, or reveal any part of his skin. He wore an oval shaped helmet and his suit was pearl white. In his weird, thin hands, he held his signature gigantic hand cannon. Bubbles was somebody I didn’t mess with. Nobody knew much about him, and he tended to stay quiet. Everyone at the Tavern called him Bubbles, as a joke. But it stuck.
Bubbles holstered his massive gun, and took a few steps over to us, raising his hand in greeting. Even the way he moved was unnatural. All of his movements were fluid, and he seemed to slightly bounce whenever he moved. I had no idea what species he was, but I didn’t plan on asking him anytime soon. Bubbles freaked me out.
“Hey! Yori!” I heard Tsu say, behind me. “And who’s that guy? Never seen him before.”
“Oh, that’s Noah. He’s working with Saka.” Yori replied.
I turned to join the conversation. Noah waved his hand meekly to Tsu.
Tsu examined Noah from head to toe. “I thought Saka didn’t work with anyone. You must be something, kid.”
“I’m still new to all of this, but Saka’s been teaching me well.” Noah replied.
“And he’s a very fast learner.” I said. “Hey, you guys know where the Crevice gang leader went? He was supposed to be around here somewhere.”
“Oh, him? We ran into him on the way to this room. Bubbles took care of him.” Kara said, nonchalantly.
Poor guy. He didn’t even order Yori’s kidnapping, but he still paid for it. Still his fault for not having control over his subordinates though. Yori’s kidnapping was a perfect demonstration of the mercenaries’ power, however. Every time Yori was wronged, the mercs would swoop in and take care of any offenders. It was a message to everyone that messing with Yori meant messing with the Tavern. Yori was well-liked among the Tavern mercs, and Yori did work for them all the time. Yori downplays their work, but their suits were truly incredible. It was probably better than military grade. In short, Yori’s insane skill and loveable personality made them very popular among the Maralu Station mercenaries.
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“Alright, guys.” Tsu clapped his hands together. “Let’s get out of here before more people come check out the commotion. Yori, Saka, Noah, follow us. We’ve got a ride out of here.”
All six of us briskly walked through the clubhouse hallways, making our way to the front entrance. We passed several gangster bodies laid out on the floor, leaning against walls, and blown to bits. Tsu and his friends hadn’t pulled any punches. Right at the front entrance, I saw a large Xilashi gangster decorated with tattoos and gold jewelry, laying on the ground. Kara nudged his body with her foot.
“That’s Xeems, the Crevice boss. Dude ran into us right when we were coming in. That’s what he gets for bailing. To be fair, he was smart to realize that the Tavern was coming, but he wasn’t smart enough to leave faster.”
Xeems’s body was in poor shape. He had chunks of his body torn off, presumably from Bubbles’s hand cannon. His face remained contorted in agony. The gigantic Xilashi’s reservoir of blood covered the main entrance floor. Yori, Noah and I skirted around it, while Tsu, Kara, and Bubbles just walked right through. He was definitely going to be a message to any future opportunists. The Crevice gang would recover, but they’d know their place.
We walked out the front door. The streets were clear of any activity, which made sense, considering the amount of gunshots that must’ve rang out over the past several minutes. Tsu and his crew strolled up to a shitty old van parked right in front of the gang’s clubhouse. Tsu got into the driver’s seat, Kara took shotgun, and Bubbles got in the back of the van, causing the whole vehicle to shift. He beckoned for us to join him, wobbling his weird fingers around.
Yori shrugged, and climbed up into the back of the van first. Then Noah, then me. I was forced to squeeze next to Bubbles, pushing up against his suit. He was a little sproingy, for some reason. As usual, I still had no idea what Bubbles was.
Tsu began to drive.
“Hey, Tsu, where are we headed?” I asked.
“Oh, we’re going to the Tavern. Need to wind down after all that action, don’t you agree? Get some drinks, eat some food.” He replied while keeping his eyes on the road. He swerved to avoid a jaywalker.
“I’m down for that.” Yori said. “I definitely need a drink or two after all that. I’m still stressed out!”
“You were pretty nonchalant, though.” Tsu laughed. “You looked the same as always even after coming out of a gunfight!”
“I was in shock!” Yori threw their hands up. “It usually doesn’t escalate that much when this happens!”
“Thanks, though. For coming to save me.”Yori continued. “I know I get my ass in trouble a lot but I know you guys always got me.”
They gave a quick hug to Noah, who was sitting next to Yori. Bubbles moved his arms to hug Yori, but they didn’t notice. Bubbles was left hanging, and his shoulders slumped in disappointment. Noah patted him on the shoulder in consolation.
“It’s all good, Yori.” Tsu replied. He honked at a slow moving truck in front of him. “Your suits are top notch, so it’s always worth helping you out.”
Kara and Bubbles nodded in agreement.
The rest of the drive to the Tavern was uneventful. Tsu was a maniac behind the wheel, though. I made a mental note to never get into a vehicle with him again. The Aeon was just as reckless as he was reliable.
A few kilometers of swerving, nearly tipping the van over, and a close call involving a pedestrian later, we found ourselves at the Tavern.
“Oh, Noah, you’ve never been here before. This is the Tavern. Pretty much all of the mercs in Maralu hang out here.” I said.
Noah nodded. “So it’s like a western saloon, then.”
“I don’t know what that means, Noah.”
The Tavern was rowdier than normal. Several mercenaries raised their mugs to greet Yori and Tsu. They were by far the most popular individuals within the Tavern’s social network. Yori was important to the well being of all of the mercs who commissioned them, and Tsu was charismatic, skilled, and well-connected. The six of us sat down at a table, and a few friendly mercenaries hovered over to our table.
“What’s the occasion, Yori?” One of them asked. “You rarely come over here!”
“Oh, I got fucking kidnapped. These guys kidnapped me back and dragged me to this shithole insead.” Yori replied, pointing a thumb back at me.
The merc chuckled. “We gotta keep you here somehow. If you leave Maralu or something, we’d all be fucked!”
“Don’t worry.” Yori said. “I’m not leaving anytime soon. This is the only place I can overcharge without anyone complaining.”
The table erupted into laughter. Tsu slapped Yori on the back.
A few minutes later, the food and drinks arrived. Noah started fumbling with his helmet, so I slapped my hand down on the top of his head, to avoid an accidental face reveal. Noah scratched his neck sheepishly. He’d have to wait until we got back to Yori’s house to eat anything. Bubbles patted Noah’s shoulder in a demonstration of sympathy. Come to think of it, I’ve never seen Bubbles eat or drink anything. Must be tough, hiding your identity.
A few more mercenaries gathered around, and Tsu started telling the story of Yori’s kidnapping, from his perspective. He’d seen my message on the merc chat, and saw that I didn’t respond to any of the messages after my last one, so he assumed the worst. He grabbed the nearest van and his crew, and immediately drove off to the Crevice. Tsu and his friends busted open the front door and caught Xeems with his pants down, leading to his very violent death. Afterwards, he started clearing out the gang clubhouse from front to back, which caused the gangsters to retreat further into the building. However, this pushed the gangsters towards Yori, Noah and I, which caused us to be pinned down in the main room. After a minute of indecision by the gangsters, Tsu, Kara, and Bubbles inadvertently pincered the gangsters with Yori, Noah and I. The remaining gangsters managed to flee further down the building after we managed to meet up. The rest of the story I knew. We escaped the clubhouse, got into the van, and endured Tsu’s shitty driving.
Once Tsu was done, he turned to me. I started explaining my part of the story. I explained how we got through the window, interrogated a guy, and how we prowled through the hallways. Tsu laughed when I got to the part where I decided to use a shotgun while trying to be stealthy. I ended my story by explaining how we found Yori, then came across Tsu.
“Hey, show me that shotgun.” Kara asked. “I wanna see it.”
I obliged, laying it on top of the table. “The dealer said it was used for Aeon Spec Ops, or something. Laser pump shotgun. I’m liking it a lot, so far.’
Kara picked it up and closely inspected it. She turned it, explained all of its faces, and ran a finger over the smooth chrome top. Once she was satisfied, she handed it back to me.
“You’ve got something good here, all right. I haven’t used one of these in a while, but they pack a punch. It fits your up-close-and-personal style well, too. Don’t lose that shotgun, Saka.”
“Wasn’t planning on it.” I replied. I stowed it away in my jacket for now. This shotgun was the solution to my lack of firepower. Next time I went up against a Xilashi, I’d be ready.
The buzz of conversation grew louder as the night progressed. I made sure not to get drunk, I didn’t want to get hungover two days in a row. Yori got shitfaced, though. They were never one to pass up on a free drink, or two, or several. Noah continued to stare grimly at the food. At one point during the night, a bunch of nosey, drunk mercs tried to ask Noah several questions on his species, where he came from, why he was partnered up with me. But Noah managed to dodge all of them, thankfully. He just bought them drinks, and asked questions of his own. The drunk mercenaries were more than happy to brag about their achievements.
Eventually, people started to leave. Kara went first. She had a small job the next day, and she couldn’t afford to oversleep. I thanked her and we said our goodbyes. Several minutes later, Tsu threw in the towel. He lost a drinking contest against Yori. A couple of his friends grabbed him by the shoulders and dragged him out of the Tavern. Poor guy was going to have a terrible time tomorrow morning. The Tavern began to slowly empty. Bubbles was the next to leave. He got up from his chair, and strolled towards the exit. He turned back towards us and excitedly waved his hands goodbye. Noah and I returned the gesture, but not nearly as hyper as Bubbles’s wave had been. He turned and disappeared into the metallic city.
It took Noah and I a while to get Yori to stop drinking, but we finally managed to wrangle them away from the alcohol. Yori was barely able to stand up, so I picked them up, cradling them between my four arms. We caught the last trains back to Yori’s house, and dumped them onto their bed.
I threw my body onto the couch, muscles aching with exhaustion. Noah changed out of his armor and into his street clothes, and bundled up with some blankets on the floor. We were quickly asleep.