The Beetle landed in a spaceport of Deadman’s port, right beside the Hyperion. Raider marines, marauders, and medics in full combat gear streamed into the now gasless and oxygenless chambers. Jean linked the surveillance of the ship to the AI of the units so they knew where the enemies were. Scattered and taken by surprise, the Dominion troops were hopeless.
Raynor walked to Jean in the bridge. The Wolfpack marines exited the room. “That was a good job back there.” He said as distant gunshots ringed. “What’s the cargo?”
“Eobard went to the safety vault and brought it here during the trip. It’s an old Confederacy adjacent. I hacked it on the trip here.” Jean handed a piece of paper to Raynor. “Here.”
“Oh wow…” Raynor frowned as he went through the contents on the adjacent. “We can pin Mengsk down before the media with this evidence.”
Jean didn’t share his optimism. “So what? Mengsk rules with his fleet. Even if we show the world who he really is Mengsk can still defeat any effort of rebellion with his fleet. As long as his forces remain Mengsk will stand tall against the world. He is a cunning leader, and people like him don’t care about public opinion.”
“Maybe not, but we can stop him from using media as a weapon against us.”
“You’re the boss,” Jean replied. “but how are we supposed to get this to the entire Dominion? Mengsk will do everything he can to stop the broadcasting of something like this. But in the meantime I need to go a drink.”
Raynor looked surprised. “You want to go for a drink?” He rose his eyebrows with an interesting look.
“Yah,” Jean replied at the surprise. “Don’t look at me this way. I am human being as well.” She grinned warmly. “And it’s being a while on this ship.” To the rest of the world she had been here for her entire life, but in reality she was merely here for a few days. Apart from the battles she fought with the three races she had been on the Hyperion all the time.
Raynor nodded. “I guess you can use some time away from everything. We’ll be here for a few more hours to buy supplies and stuff. Horner is going to see his girlfriend…”
“She’s not my girlfriend sir.” Matt Horner complained in the background.
Raynor ignored him. “Just bring some bodyguards. Deadman’s port can be a dangerous place. Mercenaries and fugitives are literally everywhere. People will kill for a couple thousand credits.”
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Jean walked out of the Beetle with 6 Wolfpack marines without their weapons or armors. They all carried sidearms for defense, but it was a silent rule in Deadman’s port not to walk around in combat gear. Ships and soldiers have a certain area to be in, while another area was reserved for those that wanted a short period of time away from all the bloodshed. Things like bar fights were normal, but if someone tried to make a kill in the peaceful area they would be attacked by every other force. Even the craziest killer needed a place to rest. There was a reason Deadman’s port could prosper in this turbulent sector. Those that wanted to destroy the port didn’t have the power, those that had the power didn’t want to waste units on a neutral port.
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Jean looked around the sidewalk. Men and women with tough looks were everywhere. Most of them were mercanieries, and all of them had experience with battle. They were one of the strongest terran forces ih the sector. Granted, they didn’t have the high technology arsenal of the Dominion nor the computer aided forces of the Raiders, but their experience and battle instincts made up for their disadvantages. Spend some credits and provide some weapons, and these mercenaries can stand up to the toughest enemies.
Unfortunately for them, when darkness overwhelmed the sector a few years later, these elite soldiers would be turned and used against life itself. Most of them would be bought over by the Moebius Foundation and therefore Amon and sent against the Daleem protoss. From the memory she received Jean knew that Mira Han’s forces went to the side of the Dominion, but that was it. In the end, when the light won out, most of the mercenaries would be dead. What a waste.
Jean intended on changing that and putting the mercenaries to a good use. That was the sole reason she was in the port instead of staying on the Beetle. Sure, she programmed construction droids to repair the ship, but she could do it better herself. Obviously she didn’t came here for food and drink or a walk. Jean came here to find a way to control the mercenaries.
Jean walked into a bar. Some of the people within looked at her, but most of the people were too drunk to respond. Jean sat down on one of the seats and the marines sat down around her.
“Are you trying to find someone sir?” Eobard asked as he noticed Jean was scanning everyone in the bar.
Jean nodded. Her eyes sparkled, literally, as she moved from one to another. After a few minutes Jean suddenly found her target and stood up. She motioned for the marines to stay behind before walking to another table and sitting down. There was only one man at the table. He looked down and drunk, but his eyes were sharp and alert.
“Hey, Liam Holden?” She asked with a polite smile.
The man looked at Jean with alertness. His right hand reached into his pocket. Jean ignored him. “It appears that you have being pursued by some powerful people in the port. People that are willing to pay big bucks for your head.”
“Do you want to earn those big bucks?” Liam asked and gripped tightly to his gauss pistol.
Jean grinned. “Colonel Orlans might be a powerful figure in the port, but give me a few minutes and I can turn everything he owns into ashes.” She said confidently.
Liam’s eyes lit. “Get to the point, will you?”
“I want to make you a deal. I avenge your family and take care of the colonel for good, and you will in turn give me your life.” Jean stated, her eyes analyzing the man’s expressions.
Liam frowned. “You gotta be kidding me. What makes you think I will believe the words of some random girl I meet in a bar? As far as I know, you are delusional.” He took another sip of the drink before him.
Jean smiled. “Let’s prove this, shall we?” Jean’s eyes twitched and turned, and suddenly a loud sound exploded from faraway. Liam’s eyes turned and charged out of the bar. In a distance far away, a blinding light destroyed a certain space platform. The entire platform was ripped apart, along with all the ships and men on that platform. Pieces of broken metal flew everywhere. Some of the scattered pieces fell toward the port. Others journaled endlessly into the void.
It was the peak of terran weaponry. It was the explosion of a tactical nuke.
Liam fell on the ground with a drop of tear sliding down his face. He recognized who the platform belonged to. It belonged to the one that ended the life of his wife and two children. It belonged to colonel Orlan.
“That was a tactical nuke that belonged to the colonel exploding in his own platform.” Jean said. The hacking skills of the colonel was great, but it wasn’t enough to stop someone like her. She literally hacked into the best battlecruiser of the Dominion a while ago. Hacking into a tactical nuke was not a challenge, even though its firewall was made by the renowned hacker in the port.“Now that I have fulfilled my part of the deal, it’s time for you to do yours.”
Liam’s eyes snapped open and all the pain disappeared. “As you wish.”