Slev glanced from the shoddy double door to the display window, automatically discounting the obvious entry points. The roof, however, was about 4 meters tall and probably, hopefully, led down to whatever passed for a showroom. He pulled a small silver disk from a pouch on his side, palming it with familiar ease. Then, in one smooth motion, he propelled himself over the scrap stack. Activating his armor's maneuvering thrusters in an indigo halo beneath his feet, for that last bit of clearance he needed.
He took two stumbling steps as his feet almost missed the edge of the rooftop, and ended his decent with an unintended roll. Scrambling around back to the edge of the building, he lofted the silver disk to the door below. With a satisfying clink, it magnetically clamped onto the door. As quietly as he could, he made his way to the center of the roof, listening for any sounds of alarm from within. Some shuffling sounds towards the door itself, a clink and the whir of a weapon being reloaded, or possibly deployed? It sounded like they were setting up firing arcs covering the front door, perfect.
He gingerly pulled a thin orange rope covered in warning symbols from his ammunition harness. Slev slowly pulled off the breaching cord's adhesive backing, and placed it in a rough circle around himself on the rooftop. He took a few slow ragged breaths to calm the adrenaline fueled tremors he felt rising. Then pulled his sidearm tight to his body, elbows bent, ,barrel angled towards the door.
“Reaper 5 count hit the flash charge on the door, then pop the breacher on the roof. Copy?”
There was a momentary pause before an elated synthetic voice responded, "Absolutely, sir! Active Combatant mode confirmed, 5...4...playlist engaged ..2...1..”
Old Earth Metal began screeching like a damned soul, from the distractionary charge on the front door. Before the charge thumped once, shooting a small metal orb into the room below, the concussive flash was so bright it was visible outside the building. With a crackle, the breaching charge disintegrated a circle off the roof, dropping Slev into the blinding room below. He grunted slightly, bending his knees to lessen the fall's impact and scanned his surroundings through the dust in the air.
To his right were four large craft of some kind covered in thick yellow tarps, filling the showroom's main floor. Directly to his left was a reception area two wide, sweeping desks along the wall hastily pushed to face the door. The gaudy blue shopping terminals built into the desks were being used as cover, by two Brown armored Charoke gangsters. Armed with some kind of stubby energy weapons they were still reeling from the sensory assault. Ahead three yards from the front door, and most concerning was the malevolent presence of an automated turret, barrels already arcing in his direction, completely unfazed by the flash charge.
Slev froze in horror for just a moment, before heaving himself over the desk closest to him, brutally impacting the stunned Charoke. He grabbed the Charoke by the back of its armor, dragging it down with him. Rolling so the Charoke was between him and the desk. Slev fumbled for one of the microgrenades at his side, dropping his sidearm in the process. The turret tracked for another moment before firing a burst of kinetic rounds. Shredding part of the desk, rending through the Charoke, and violently pounding into Slev's chest piece. Sliding him back a full meter into the wall itself. “OOF” he coughed, scrambling behind the terminal slipping for a moment in the remains of the Charoke.
Desperately he tried to catch his breath and activate the micro grenade he had finally pried free from his belt, but the stupid thing was so covered in gore that he couldn't see the trigger button. Another blistering burst longer this time from the turret threatened to completely erase the meager cover the terminal offered. Scraps and sparks raining down around him Slev finally felt a soft click in his hands and lofted the small grenade towards the front door without looking. Two pounding heartbeats passed as the turrets Barrels screamed into motion once again. Then with an unhealthy blue flash and a deep sound that reverberated through his bones, the room upended itself.
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The remains of the desk he was behind lifted up and towards him while simultaneously catching on fire. Slev barley managed to brace against the terminal hard enough to stop the whole desk from slamming him into the wall again. The arcing remains of the turret flew through the air, clipping the ceiling and solidly demolished the front double doors. He didn't see what had happened to the other guard, but there was a suspicious green smear behind the other desk, leading to a massive splatter impact against the wall.
“Wow okay” Slev huffed out.
“Adding more to the shopping list sir! Also, congratulations that brings today’s total to four neutralized hostiles” Reaper chimed in.
Slev paused, reorienting himself and retrieving his sidearm from the questionable puddle on the floor. "Wait, what do you mean four? Three and one in a trashcan is my count.”
“Three and one in an automated compactor sir” reaper ominously corrected. "Also, sir two contacts on sensors one likely Charoke one something far larger".
Slev made his way to the hall on the opposite end of the showroom leading towards what looked like offices. Far larger huh? Well, if they had the cash to spring for an automated turret, they probably had hired some real muscle here too. As if the universe just wanted to prove him right he ducked back into cover as a freaking Magento covered in very thick looking armor lumbered into view in the hallway. Magento's are massive bipedal creatures with long trunk like noses and arms as thick around as his torso.
Well the only thing its got going for it is that its stronger. He peeked out once again and saw it shuffling down the hall, almost doubled over to avoid hitting its head, and of course it was armed with two shields and meat cleaver looking sharpened slabs of metal. Okay and the fact it has 5 plus inches of fracking armor, he had a sudden clever, but dumb idea.
Slev stepped out into the opening of the hall hands empty in front of himself. "Honorable warrior, I challenge you to a duel.”
The massive form stopped abruptly halfway down the hallway. In a voice made of gravel, it responded “Smol one wishes for a good death?”
Slev chuckled. “Uh yes...the smol one wishes to fight you unarmed, as true warriors should!” Come on you mutated elephant, take the bait and put down the shields.
A raspy and croaking voice from farther into the offices interjected, “Don't be an idiot Borub! He's going to shoot you, charge him! Do what you are paid for! Now”
“Ah shit” Slev sighed and unslung his rifle.
Sounds like the bossman isn’t an idiot. Dropping to one knee he sighted the extravagant holographic scope onto the shuffling mass now making its way down the hall towards him again. It would literally be impossible to miss in this hallway but, he took two deep breaths and placed a finger onto the trigger. Feeling that almost imperceptible magnetic pull on his armor, as the rifle instantly charged its capacitors. Alright head shot, angle it up, hope I don't hit another taxi.
His finger tightened on the trigger and there was a series of hissing cracks as the projectile broke the sound barrier several times in the confined hallway. It was hard to see what happened the rail round causing explosions of dust and debris to swirl in the narrow space. The Magento was slumped over missing most of its head, and filling the hallway with its corpse. Slev rushed towards it clambering over the body into the gap near the ceiling, and threw himself towards the end of the hall. Thankfully he was quick enough Loradin himself was still blubbering obscenities at his newly deceased lackey and hadn’t composed himself enough to run yet.
Loradin stared into the cold skull mask and rasped out “I surrender...we can ... make a deal....yes?”
Slev drew his sidearm with a free hand pointing the barrel directly at his targets forehead.
"Okay, first off,what kind of a dick of a boss doesn’t add his guards to his automated turret friend or foe settings? I have at least three broken ribs thanks to that.”
Loradin gulped “That sounds like an unfortunate oversight I would be happy to correct...” Loradin's mottled hand gestured towards his fallen bodyguard. “Would you ahh..perhaps be looking for work?...name your price...I'm not sure what warrior species you are from, but if Borub didn't even slow you, it's well worth whatever you charge.”
Loradin beamed a nervous smile, as if he had just puzzled his way out of his current predicament.
Slev blankly stared at the creature below him "Reaper, please scan and confirm this is the target”. A cold blue line swept up and down Loradin's bulging frame.
“Confirmed sir! Loradin Pim wanted dead or alive. For many things, most importantly, a genuinely impressive number of murder charges”.
“Wait ...wait... wait...”Loradin backed away eyes shifting side to side looking for any reprieve. “What's the price on my life? I will pay more! Much more!”
Slev pressed his fingers into his helmets faceplate trying, vainly, to massage his temples. “A taxi Loradin, that's what your life was worth in the end, one fucking taxi”