Bubblegum Crisis Fan Fiction ❯ Black Knights, Steel Hearts ❯ Chapter 5
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Trboturtle 
Greg Mallory and his teams settle into Mega Tokyo: Nene gets a new job inside the ADP.
Anime/Manga: Bubblegum Crisis Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Mecha / Cyberpunk / Action | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 12.21.2007 | Pages: 4 | Words: 3.8K | Visits: 630 | Status: Completed
Greg Mallory and his teams settle into Mega Tokyo: Nene gets a new job inside the ADP.
Anime/Manga: Bubblegum Crisis Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Mecha / Cyberpunk / Action | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 12.21.2007 | Pages: 4 | Words: 3.8K | Visits: 630 | Status: Completed
**************************************************
The Bubble Gum Crisis OVA's (which this story is based on) are copyrighted by
Artmic Inc. and Youmex, Inc. I am just borrowing the characters for a little
while for non-monetary reasons. I can be contacted at the Email address above.
Serious C&C will be accepted, out-and-out flames will result in a Boomer
or two being sent after you, once they get around to building them.
Please, enjoy my take on the Bubble Gum Crisis universe . . .
*************************************************
Ch apter 5
Warehouse #41526584
Yokohama Warehouse District
MegaTokyo, Japan
Friday, December 21, 2035
9:14am
Mallory watched as the hardsuits were unloaded from the specially designed packing crates. Brooks-Fenton and Jackson stood next to him.
The warehouse was buried among a hundred others in an industrial park located on the edge of the district. Despite its age, it was still sound and secured. A large truck stood in the center of the warehouse. Most of the unloading was being done by the Knights themselves, aided with an equal number of technicians. For as long as the Knights stayed in MegaTokyo, this would be their headquarters.
"What's the earliest the hardsuits can be ready?" asked Mallory.
"Give them another hour to unpack the suits," said Jackson. "Two more hours to bring the systems on-line, and another two hours to fix any problems. They should be ready by three this afternoon."
Mallory nodded. "Good. Marla, how does my schedule look for the next several days?"
"You have a dinner for this evening with the senior members of MALCORP Japan office at seven o'clock. Tomorrow, you're touring several of the properties MALCORP operates here. There are several invitations from other corporations for meetings at your convenience. Malso is pulling intelligence reports together on those corporations for our review."
"Any from GENOM?"
"Not yet, But I suspect it'll be here before the day is out."
"Pick out the best three invitations, and tell them I accept. The others apologize to profusely, and ask if they will meet with a representative of mine. If GENOM does pass along an invitation, accept it. I want to see Quincy, face to face."
"And who are you going to send to those meetings you managed to avoid?" asked Jackson.
"You and a couple of the other Knights."
"Great."
"You're an Executive Vice President of MALCORP," reminded Mallory. "It would look bad if I sent a simple flunky."
"So you're going to send a complex flunky instead," replied Jackson, without a hint of rancor.
"Exactly," said Mallory with a smile. "And if you complain, I'll send Malso along as your bodyguard."
"I give in. I'll go quietly, Boss."
"What about Malso?" asked Brooks-Fenton. "Do we include her in on the fact the Knights are here?"
Mallory's face became thoughtful. They had dropped Malso off at the MALCORP office before coming here. "We keep this on a need to know basis for now. Right now, she doesn't need to know."
"Understood sir."
Mallory turned to Jackson. "Tell the Knights that once the hardsuits are on-line to get some rest. I want all teams ready to move out by midnight. Hopefully we'll have something for them to go after by then."
He pulled out an envelope and handed it to Jackson. "I want you and Nicky to visit someone about eleven tonight and give them this. The address is on the envelope. Wear you hardsuits when you do - I want this man to take you seriously."
"Sure Boss." Jackson looked at the envelope. "Just one question though. What is it?"
"A message for the Knight Sabers. The man you're delivering this to is a contact of theirs. Name's Fargo. He'll make sure the Knight Sabers get it." He held up a small transmitter, "Also, attach this to him, without him noticing, when you give him the envelope."
Jackson gave him a long searching look. "Let me guess, you're going to play Captain Solo again, right?"
"I need to get a feel for the city, and the players."
"Don't give me that. I know you too damn well." He broke out in a grin. "You want to go bouncing around MegaTokyo in a hardsuit because it's fun."
Greg smiled. "That's part of the reason."
"You're the Boss." He pocketed the envelope. "Me and Nicky will make sure our man is suitable impressed with our style. What are you going to do now?"
"Me?" Mallory's smile became larger. "I'm going to visit an old friend. See you in a while."
**********
AD Police Headquarters
District 3
Friday, December 21, 2035
9:23am
"HE DID WHAT?"
The Cafeteria was almost deserted at this time of the morning, but there were still enough people around to turn and stare at Nene's shout of disbelief. Daley gripped her arm and hissed, "Will you keep it down?"
Nene leaned toward Daley, and repeated her question in a whisper. "Leon did what?"
Daley released his grip, and sat back in the booth. "He quit. Resigned, abdicated, renounce his position -"
"I get the point, Daley," growled Nene. "But why?"
"Last night, the call we had in district 6?"
Nene nodded. "I heard on the television. A couple of CU-5Ts, or something similar, right?"
Daley nodded. "We should have been able to handle a couple of those types, with no heavy weapons or help from the Knight Sabers."
"So what happened?"
"When we got the call, Leon told me to set up a blocking force at one end of the street the Boomers were traveling along. He planned to use the other half of the units to force the Boomers toward us, and then catch them in a crossfire." He paused to look down at the coffee cup before him. "I set up right where we agreed, and waited for the Boomers to come to us."
"And it went wrong?"
"Very wrong." He took a sip of the coffee, then looked at Nene. "Five minutes after we set up, Leon reported the Boomers were heading for my position. He told us that he hadn't shot at them yet, so they were still intact. Thirty seconds later, we saw them coming at us. Because this design didn't have thrusters, I waited until they were fifty meters from us before I ordered the troopers to open fire."
"But the Boomers didn't go down, did they?"
"No." His stare was making Nene uncomfortable. "I had two dozen troopers firing at those damn Boomers, and the bullets just bounced off them."
"They had extra armor?" asked Nene, thinking quickly about the Boomers the Knight Sabers fought last night. They hadn't looked as if they had extra armor on their frames . . .
Daley shook his head. "They each had a force shield strong enough to deflect our fire for several minutes."
"A force shield?" Nene's eyes widen as she realized what he was saying. "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure. I stood there and watched several hundred assault rounds deflected off the Boomers as if they were raindrops."
"But that's not possible!" Nene hissed, fighting to keep her voice low. "The technology is not advanced enough to equip a Boomer with a force shield!"
"I thought the same way until last night."
"Then what happened?"
Daley took another sip from his coffee. "Leon showed up, and we caught them in a crossfire like we had planned We hammered them for several more minutes before their shields gave way, and we started to finally damaging them."
"But you didn't finish them off."
"We didn't get the chance. When our fire slackened to change clips, the Boomers charged the blocking force. They managed to get in among us, and it got nasty." He sipped his coffee yet again, then looked down into the cup, as if looking for something. "We lost three officers in fifteen seconds. Then the Boomers took off down the street, and we're left with more body bags to fill."
"And Leon quit over that?"
"Not entirely. I think last night was the final straw." He looked up at her again."Nene, these new rules are killing us out there. If we had the support Chief Todo use to give us, we could have nailed these Boomers before they did half the damage they caused last night."
"What about the Boomers remains? Have they been examined for the shield generators? Maybe if you showed the Chief what you went up against, he'd relax the rules."
"Tried that already. DARSTAR reclaimed the Boomers before we got a chance to look them over, and the Chief told us not to press them."
"And that sent Leon off?"
"Like a volcano. He didn't hold back, told the chief to go to hell, then got really abusive. At the end, he told the chief to take the job, and stick it. He then stalked out."
"So, why tell me all this?" Nene looked around. "I'm not a very important person around here."
"Oh yes, you are," said Daley with a small smile. "I'm now the AD Police's senior field commander, and as of five minutes ago, you're a Sergeant. And you are now the AD Police's new Computer Security Officer."
"WHAT?"
"You know the ADP computers systems better then the designers do, Nene. The first thing we need to do is secure our own data systems."
"Who am I replacing?"
Daley smiled. "No one. The position's been open for six months now. You'll have one other person in your department, and for some reasons I won't go into now, he can't accept the position as head of the department. But he's a solid, reliable guy who won't mind you taking over."
"I. . . all right," replied Nene. "I'll accept the promotion, and the new position."
"Don't thank me yet. I need you to do some stuff for me, the same way you use to do for Leon."
Nene sighed. "All right. What's the first?"
"Hack into Leon's personal files, and make a note that's he's on vacation."
"What?"
"It shouldn't be a problem. I know he's got at least a month's worth of vacation time he hasn't used."
"But he quit."
"Nene, only four people know that. You, Me. Leon, and the Chief. The Chief knows squat about the computer system here, Leon's not going to be around for a while, and I'm not going to tell anyone."
"Then you think he'll be back?"
"He had better be," growled Daley. "I'm not cut out for field command. Give me a nice involved investigation any day. But Leon's born for this type of responsibility. In his case, it's a large dose of duty, a touch of looking cool for the girls, and blowing up things."
"I never heard Leon described that way," replied Nene with a small smile.
"I know him better then most. Give him several days, and he'll be back. And I'll be glad to give the job back."
"OK, Daley, I'll do it."
"Good." Daley leaned forward. "The second thing I need to you to do is organize a small group of the AD Police Computer people to do some `special jobs'."
Nene eyes narrowed. "Like what?"
"Like breaking into certain corporation data banks, and retrieving information on Boomers."
Nene just stared at him in disbelief. Daley sighed. "I see you want more details before you'll agree."
"Yes. A lot more details!"
"Fine." Daley drained his cup. "We are facing new Boomer designs every day, and GENOM doesn't supply a lot of data to us about them. We need to know about as much as we can about these designs, find their weakness, and develop tactics to fit in with what resources we have on hand."
Nene closed her eyes. "And you're not going to tell anyone else where you're getting the data from."
"Scouts' honor. I'm tired of filling body bags."
"All right." Nene was slightly surprised as she spoke those words. "I'll do it on three conditions."
"Name them."
"First, all the data and other stuff we find go from me to you directly. No middlemen, no one else."
"Agreed, but if Leon comes back, we include him on this little operation."
Nene nodded. "Second, I want to keep the identities of the group members I select for this operation to myself. You, or Leon, don't try to find out who's in my group."
"Fair enough. And the third?"
"We're going to need equipment, supplies, and a location to work out of. We can't do it here, and take the chance to have anyone trace it back to us."
"I've got contacts," replied Daley, standing up. "Anything else?"
"Give me a couple of days to pull a group together, and we'll take it from there."
"Good." Nene thought Daley looked more relaxed then he had several minutes ago. "We'll take later. See you." He walked away.
Nene nodded to him, and stood up slowly. Her mind was already working on the new problems Daley had presented to her. She smiled. Things had just gotten interesting . . .
**********
Raven's Garage
Timex City
Friday, December 21, 2035
9:56am
Priss was tired. She hadn't gotten much sleep the night before, because of the Boomers assault in District 6. It didn't help any she had to be at Raven's garage early so Dr. Raven could make some adjustments to her cycle. He'd insisted on this morning because of several other projects he was involved in would take the rest of the day.
She leaned on her bike, and tried to stop yawning. Dr. Raven had opened his garage as usual. But for some reason, he kept being interrupted by phone calls. He'd just started making the last of the adjustments when the phone rang again. Mumbling something about strangling someone named Bell, he stalked off to answer the phone in his small office.
Through the small office window, Priss could see him waving his free hand in irritation as he talked loudly into the phone. She smiled tiredly as she wondered who was on the receiving end of the tirade. I hope it's some GENOM telemarketer. By the time Pop's finished with him, he'll be singing soprano.
Her smile faded as she thought about music. Things hadn't been going well lately in THAT area of her life. Near the end of October, the rest of the band had marched into her dressing room at Hot Legs, and told her that she was out of the group. She winced at the memories of the argument, and her fury at the guys for the "Betrayal," as she called it.
The band members had responded to her tirade by taking turns dragging out every practice she'd missed, sets they had to cut short because she'd run off somewhere, and performances they had to cancel, all because she couldn't be found. Even Kaho, the laid backed drummer, let his anger show as he told her bluntly that she was becoming too much of a liability for the band to shoulder. She stalked out of the dressing room after that, and hadn't been back to Hot Legs since.
What am I going to do now? she thought. Start again with a new band? Not likely. No one else wants me. GENOM has seen to that.
Her blue funk dissolved as she watched a large car turn onto the road that ran in front of Raven's garage. It slowed to a stop in front of the garage door, and the car's four doors opened. Priss straightened, and watched with interest.
Four people got out. Two Priss quickly tagged as bodyguards, having neither the size nor bulk of a disguised Boomer. The third was a slim, attractive woman, with red hair and bright green eyes that reminded Priss of a mature Nene, in a severe business suit. She deferred to a tall and lean man with dark hair cut short and away from his face. He wore sunglasses, and something about the way he moved peaked Priss's interest.
He walked into the garage, trailed by the woman and one of the bodyguards. The other one stayed out near the car. They looked around slowly, all three for different reasons, before the man spotted Priss leaning against her bike.
The leader removed his sunglasses. In the glare from the overhead lights, Priss noticed that one of his eyes was green blue in color, while the other was a cold gray. He smiled at her. "Excuse me, Miss," he said in stilted, but fluent Japanese. "Is Doctor Raven around?"
"He's in his office over there," Priss replied in English. "He shouldn't be more then a couple of minutes."
If the man was surprised, he didn't show it. "We can wait a couple of minutes," he replied in English.
"What do you want with Pops?" Priss asked, pushing herself off the bike to stand next to it.
The man smiled. "You call him Pops?"
Priss shrugged. "Sure, everyone does."
"I doubt that. When I was younger, I use to call him Pops, and he'd get irritated and grumpy. I doubt age has mellowed him any."
"It hasn't." Priss managed to look casual, but her thoughts were anything but. When he was younger? He knows Pops?
"That's what I thought. You know him for long?"
Priss began to fell uncomfortable under the man's gaze. "Four or five years. He keeps my motorcycle running."
"And I bet you manage to keep Pops more then busy on a regular basis with your cycle."
"I do my fair share." She folded her arms. "Here he comes now."
Raven was still mumbling something about Bell when he strode out of the office. He slowed his pace as he saw the visitors. "Can I help you?" he asked bluntly, as he stopped several meters from the trio.
The man smiled at him. "Your eyesight's going, Pops," he said lightly. "Or you memory. I still have that toy Boomer you made for my tenth birthday."
Priss saw Raven stiffen, and his jaw dropped in surprise. "Greg?" he whispered. "Greg Mallory?"
"The same, Pops." The man held out a hand. "Mother told me to say hello."
Raven stepped forward and took the offered hand. Mallory turned it into a warm hug. "It's good to see you, Pops. It's been what, twelve years?"
They released the hug, and Raven stepped back. Priss saw the older man's eyes watering. "About that. How's your mother?"
"Well. It took her some time to get over Father's death, but I found her a project to occupy her mind. I think she's always been more comfortable in the lab then she ever was at social gatherings."
"That's true. What brings you back here?"
"Business. MALCORP has some investments here, and I'm thinking about expanding the operation some."
Priss sighed loudly enough to earn a glare from Raven. Mallory smiled at Priss again, and she felt the urge to punch him. It must have shown on her face, because Mallory said, "Why don't you take care of this young lady first, and then we'll talk?"
"I won't be long. Care to wait in my office?"
"Sure." He turned to the bodyguard. "Tell Remus we'll be in the office."
The man nodded and walked out to talk to the other bodyguard. Mallory guided the woman over to the office, while Raven pulled a tool from a pocket. He knelt beside Priss's bike, and began to make adjustments. Priss squatted beside him.
"Who's the suit?" she asked.
"The son of an old colleague," he replied tersely.
"I figure that out," she hissed. "But who is he?"
"Later. Are you going to see Sylia today?"
"I hadn't planned on it."
"Then your plans just got changed. Tell Sylia that Greg Mallory is here in MegaTokyo."
"But why?"
"Just tell her, all right?"
"Is this guy dangerous or something?"
Raven shook his head. "Not that. He's here for something else. Sylia knows him when they were younger, and I doubt he's changed that much in the last twelve years. Just tell Sylia, and let her take the appropriate course of action." He stood, and said loudly "I'm finished. Will you PLEASE refrain from riding the cycle so hard in the future?"
Priss climbed on the bike, and started it "Sure, Pops," she replied, slipping her helmet on. She revved the engine up slowly, feeling the power in the finally tuned machine under her. Suddenly, she gunned the engine, and put the cycle into gear. She shot forward, leaving a trail of smoke and burnt rubber behind her. She grinned maniacally as the bodyguard stationed near the car was forced to dive for cover as the motorcycle burst out of the garage. She slid the cycle into a hard right turn, and flew off down the street. She didn't look back.
**********
The Bubble Gum Crisis OVA's (which this story is based on) are copyrighted by
Artmic Inc. and Youmex, Inc. I am just borrowing the characters for a little
while for non-monetary reasons. I can be contacted at the Email address above.
Serious C&C will be accepted, out-and-out flames will result in a Boomer
or two being sent after you, once they get around to building them.
Please, enjoy my take on the Bubble Gum Crisis universe . . .
*************************************************
Ch apter 5
Warehouse #41526584
Yokohama Warehouse District
MegaTokyo, Japan
Friday, December 21, 2035
9:14am
Mallory watched as the hardsuits were unloaded from the specially designed packing crates. Brooks-Fenton and Jackson stood next to him.
The warehouse was buried among a hundred others in an industrial park located on the edge of the district. Despite its age, it was still sound and secured. A large truck stood in the center of the warehouse. Most of the unloading was being done by the Knights themselves, aided with an equal number of technicians. For as long as the Knights stayed in MegaTokyo, this would be their headquarters.
"What's the earliest the hardsuits can be ready?" asked Mallory.
"Give them another hour to unpack the suits," said Jackson. "Two more hours to bring the systems on-line, and another two hours to fix any problems. They should be ready by three this afternoon."
Mallory nodded. "Good. Marla, how does my schedule look for the next several days?"
"You have a dinner for this evening with the senior members of MALCORP Japan office at seven o'clock. Tomorrow, you're touring several of the properties MALCORP operates here. There are several invitations from other corporations for meetings at your convenience. Malso is pulling intelligence reports together on those corporations for our review."
"Any from GENOM?"
"Not yet, But I suspect it'll be here before the day is out."
"Pick out the best three invitations, and tell them I accept. The others apologize to profusely, and ask if they will meet with a representative of mine. If GENOM does pass along an invitation, accept it. I want to see Quincy, face to face."
"And who are you going to send to those meetings you managed to avoid?" asked Jackson.
"You and a couple of the other Knights."
"Great."
"You're an Executive Vice President of MALCORP," reminded Mallory. "It would look bad if I sent a simple flunky."
"So you're going to send a complex flunky instead," replied Jackson, without a hint of rancor.
"Exactly," said Mallory with a smile. "And if you complain, I'll send Malso along as your bodyguard."
"I give in. I'll go quietly, Boss."
"What about Malso?" asked Brooks-Fenton. "Do we include her in on the fact the Knights are here?"
Mallory's face became thoughtful. They had dropped Malso off at the MALCORP office before coming here. "We keep this on a need to know basis for now. Right now, she doesn't need to know."
"Understood sir."
Mallory turned to Jackson. "Tell the Knights that once the hardsuits are on-line to get some rest. I want all teams ready to move out by midnight. Hopefully we'll have something for them to go after by then."
He pulled out an envelope and handed it to Jackson. "I want you and Nicky to visit someone about eleven tonight and give them this. The address is on the envelope. Wear you hardsuits when you do - I want this man to take you seriously."
"Sure Boss." Jackson looked at the envelope. "Just one question though. What is it?"
"A message for the Knight Sabers. The man you're delivering this to is a contact of theirs. Name's Fargo. He'll make sure the Knight Sabers get it." He held up a small transmitter, "Also, attach this to him, without him noticing, when you give him the envelope."
Jackson gave him a long searching look. "Let me guess, you're going to play Captain Solo again, right?"
"I need to get a feel for the city, and the players."
"Don't give me that. I know you too damn well." He broke out in a grin. "You want to go bouncing around MegaTokyo in a hardsuit because it's fun."
Greg smiled. "That's part of the reason."
"You're the Boss." He pocketed the envelope. "Me and Nicky will make sure our man is suitable impressed with our style. What are you going to do now?"
"Me?" Mallory's smile became larger. "I'm going to visit an old friend. See you in a while."
**********
AD Police Headquarters
District 3
Friday, December 21, 2035
9:23am
"HE DID WHAT?"
The Cafeteria was almost deserted at this time of the morning, but there were still enough people around to turn and stare at Nene's shout of disbelief. Daley gripped her arm and hissed, "Will you keep it down?"
Nene leaned toward Daley, and repeated her question in a whisper. "Leon did what?"
Daley released his grip, and sat back in the booth. "He quit. Resigned, abdicated, renounce his position -"
"I get the point, Daley," growled Nene. "But why?"
"Last night, the call we had in district 6?"
Nene nodded. "I heard on the television. A couple of CU-5Ts, or something similar, right?"
Daley nodded. "We should have been able to handle a couple of those types, with no heavy weapons or help from the Knight Sabers."
"So what happened?"
"When we got the call, Leon told me to set up a blocking force at one end of the street the Boomers were traveling along. He planned to use the other half of the units to force the Boomers toward us, and then catch them in a crossfire." He paused to look down at the coffee cup before him. "I set up right where we agreed, and waited for the Boomers to come to us."
"And it went wrong?"
"Very wrong." He took a sip of the coffee, then looked at Nene. "Five minutes after we set up, Leon reported the Boomers were heading for my position. He told us that he hadn't shot at them yet, so they were still intact. Thirty seconds later, we saw them coming at us. Because this design didn't have thrusters, I waited until they were fifty meters from us before I ordered the troopers to open fire."
"But the Boomers didn't go down, did they?"
"No." His stare was making Nene uncomfortable. "I had two dozen troopers firing at those damn Boomers, and the bullets just bounced off them."
"They had extra armor?" asked Nene, thinking quickly about the Boomers the Knight Sabers fought last night. They hadn't looked as if they had extra armor on their frames . . .
Daley shook his head. "They each had a force shield strong enough to deflect our fire for several minutes."
"A force shield?" Nene's eyes widen as she realized what he was saying. "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure. I stood there and watched several hundred assault rounds deflected off the Boomers as if they were raindrops."
"But that's not possible!" Nene hissed, fighting to keep her voice low. "The technology is not advanced enough to equip a Boomer with a force shield!"
"I thought the same way until last night."
"Then what happened?"
Daley took another sip from his coffee. "Leon showed up, and we caught them in a crossfire like we had planned We hammered them for several more minutes before their shields gave way, and we started to finally damaging them."
"But you didn't finish them off."
"We didn't get the chance. When our fire slackened to change clips, the Boomers charged the blocking force. They managed to get in among us, and it got nasty." He sipped his coffee yet again, then looked down into the cup, as if looking for something. "We lost three officers in fifteen seconds. Then the Boomers took off down the street, and we're left with more body bags to fill."
"And Leon quit over that?"
"Not entirely. I think last night was the final straw." He looked up at her again."Nene, these new rules are killing us out there. If we had the support Chief Todo use to give us, we could have nailed these Boomers before they did half the damage they caused last night."
"What about the Boomers remains? Have they been examined for the shield generators? Maybe if you showed the Chief what you went up against, he'd relax the rules."
"Tried that already. DARSTAR reclaimed the Boomers before we got a chance to look them over, and the Chief told us not to press them."
"And that sent Leon off?"
"Like a volcano. He didn't hold back, told the chief to go to hell, then got really abusive. At the end, he told the chief to take the job, and stick it. He then stalked out."
"So, why tell me all this?" Nene looked around. "I'm not a very important person around here."
"Oh yes, you are," said Daley with a small smile. "I'm now the AD Police's senior field commander, and as of five minutes ago, you're a Sergeant. And you are now the AD Police's new Computer Security Officer."
"WHAT?"
"You know the ADP computers systems better then the designers do, Nene. The first thing we need to do is secure our own data systems."
"Who am I replacing?"
Daley smiled. "No one. The position's been open for six months now. You'll have one other person in your department, and for some reasons I won't go into now, he can't accept the position as head of the department. But he's a solid, reliable guy who won't mind you taking over."
"I. . . all right," replied Nene. "I'll accept the promotion, and the new position."
"Don't thank me yet. I need you to do some stuff for me, the same way you use to do for Leon."
Nene sighed. "All right. What's the first?"
"Hack into Leon's personal files, and make a note that's he's on vacation."
"What?"
"It shouldn't be a problem. I know he's got at least a month's worth of vacation time he hasn't used."
"But he quit."
"Nene, only four people know that. You, Me. Leon, and the Chief. The Chief knows squat about the computer system here, Leon's not going to be around for a while, and I'm not going to tell anyone."
"Then you think he'll be back?"
"He had better be," growled Daley. "I'm not cut out for field command. Give me a nice involved investigation any day. But Leon's born for this type of responsibility. In his case, it's a large dose of duty, a touch of looking cool for the girls, and blowing up things."
"I never heard Leon described that way," replied Nene with a small smile.
"I know him better then most. Give him several days, and he'll be back. And I'll be glad to give the job back."
"OK, Daley, I'll do it."
"Good." Daley leaned forward. "The second thing I need to you to do is organize a small group of the AD Police Computer people to do some `special jobs'."
Nene eyes narrowed. "Like what?"
"Like breaking into certain corporation data banks, and retrieving information on Boomers."
Nene just stared at him in disbelief. Daley sighed. "I see you want more details before you'll agree."
"Yes. A lot more details!"
"Fine." Daley drained his cup. "We are facing new Boomer designs every day, and GENOM doesn't supply a lot of data to us about them. We need to know about as much as we can about these designs, find their weakness, and develop tactics to fit in with what resources we have on hand."
Nene closed her eyes. "And you're not going to tell anyone else where you're getting the data from."
"Scouts' honor. I'm tired of filling body bags."
"All right." Nene was slightly surprised as she spoke those words. "I'll do it on three conditions."
"Name them."
"First, all the data and other stuff we find go from me to you directly. No middlemen, no one else."
"Agreed, but if Leon comes back, we include him on this little operation."
Nene nodded. "Second, I want to keep the identities of the group members I select for this operation to myself. You, or Leon, don't try to find out who's in my group."
"Fair enough. And the third?"
"We're going to need equipment, supplies, and a location to work out of. We can't do it here, and take the chance to have anyone trace it back to us."
"I've got contacts," replied Daley, standing up. "Anything else?"
"Give me a couple of days to pull a group together, and we'll take it from there."
"Good." Nene thought Daley looked more relaxed then he had several minutes ago. "We'll take later. See you." He walked away.
Nene nodded to him, and stood up slowly. Her mind was already working on the new problems Daley had presented to her. She smiled. Things had just gotten interesting . . .
**********
Raven's Garage
Timex City
Friday, December 21, 2035
9:56am
Priss was tired. She hadn't gotten much sleep the night before, because of the Boomers assault in District 6. It didn't help any she had to be at Raven's garage early so Dr. Raven could make some adjustments to her cycle. He'd insisted on this morning because of several other projects he was involved in would take the rest of the day.
She leaned on her bike, and tried to stop yawning. Dr. Raven had opened his garage as usual. But for some reason, he kept being interrupted by phone calls. He'd just started making the last of the adjustments when the phone rang again. Mumbling something about strangling someone named Bell, he stalked off to answer the phone in his small office.
Through the small office window, Priss could see him waving his free hand in irritation as he talked loudly into the phone. She smiled tiredly as she wondered who was on the receiving end of the tirade. I hope it's some GENOM telemarketer. By the time Pop's finished with him, he'll be singing soprano.
Her smile faded as she thought about music. Things hadn't been going well lately in THAT area of her life. Near the end of October, the rest of the band had marched into her dressing room at Hot Legs, and told her that she was out of the group. She winced at the memories of the argument, and her fury at the guys for the "Betrayal," as she called it.
The band members had responded to her tirade by taking turns dragging out every practice she'd missed, sets they had to cut short because she'd run off somewhere, and performances they had to cancel, all because she couldn't be found. Even Kaho, the laid backed drummer, let his anger show as he told her bluntly that she was becoming too much of a liability for the band to shoulder. She stalked out of the dressing room after that, and hadn't been back to Hot Legs since.
What am I going to do now? she thought. Start again with a new band? Not likely. No one else wants me. GENOM has seen to that.
Her blue funk dissolved as she watched a large car turn onto the road that ran in front of Raven's garage. It slowed to a stop in front of the garage door, and the car's four doors opened. Priss straightened, and watched with interest.
Four people got out. Two Priss quickly tagged as bodyguards, having neither the size nor bulk of a disguised Boomer. The third was a slim, attractive woman, with red hair and bright green eyes that reminded Priss of a mature Nene, in a severe business suit. She deferred to a tall and lean man with dark hair cut short and away from his face. He wore sunglasses, and something about the way he moved peaked Priss's interest.
He walked into the garage, trailed by the woman and one of the bodyguards. The other one stayed out near the car. They looked around slowly, all three for different reasons, before the man spotted Priss leaning against her bike.
The leader removed his sunglasses. In the glare from the overhead lights, Priss noticed that one of his eyes was green blue in color, while the other was a cold gray. He smiled at her. "Excuse me, Miss," he said in stilted, but fluent Japanese. "Is Doctor Raven around?"
"He's in his office over there," Priss replied in English. "He shouldn't be more then a couple of minutes."
If the man was surprised, he didn't show it. "We can wait a couple of minutes," he replied in English.
"What do you want with Pops?" Priss asked, pushing herself off the bike to stand next to it.
The man smiled. "You call him Pops?"
Priss shrugged. "Sure, everyone does."
"I doubt that. When I was younger, I use to call him Pops, and he'd get irritated and grumpy. I doubt age has mellowed him any."
"It hasn't." Priss managed to look casual, but her thoughts were anything but. When he was younger? He knows Pops?
"That's what I thought. You know him for long?"
Priss began to fell uncomfortable under the man's gaze. "Four or five years. He keeps my motorcycle running."
"And I bet you manage to keep Pops more then busy on a regular basis with your cycle."
"I do my fair share." She folded her arms. "Here he comes now."
Raven was still mumbling something about Bell when he strode out of the office. He slowed his pace as he saw the visitors. "Can I help you?" he asked bluntly, as he stopped several meters from the trio.
The man smiled at him. "Your eyesight's going, Pops," he said lightly. "Or you memory. I still have that toy Boomer you made for my tenth birthday."
Priss saw Raven stiffen, and his jaw dropped in surprise. "Greg?" he whispered. "Greg Mallory?"
"The same, Pops." The man held out a hand. "Mother told me to say hello."
Raven stepped forward and took the offered hand. Mallory turned it into a warm hug. "It's good to see you, Pops. It's been what, twelve years?"
They released the hug, and Raven stepped back. Priss saw the older man's eyes watering. "About that. How's your mother?"
"Well. It took her some time to get over Father's death, but I found her a project to occupy her mind. I think she's always been more comfortable in the lab then she ever was at social gatherings."
"That's true. What brings you back here?"
"Business. MALCORP has some investments here, and I'm thinking about expanding the operation some."
Priss sighed loudly enough to earn a glare from Raven. Mallory smiled at Priss again, and she felt the urge to punch him. It must have shown on her face, because Mallory said, "Why don't you take care of this young lady first, and then we'll talk?"
"I won't be long. Care to wait in my office?"
"Sure." He turned to the bodyguard. "Tell Remus we'll be in the office."
The man nodded and walked out to talk to the other bodyguard. Mallory guided the woman over to the office, while Raven pulled a tool from a pocket. He knelt beside Priss's bike, and began to make adjustments. Priss squatted beside him.
"Who's the suit?" she asked.
"The son of an old colleague," he replied tersely.
"I figure that out," she hissed. "But who is he?"
"Later. Are you going to see Sylia today?"
"I hadn't planned on it."
"Then your plans just got changed. Tell Sylia that Greg Mallory is here in MegaTokyo."
"But why?"
"Just tell her, all right?"
"Is this guy dangerous or something?"
Raven shook his head. "Not that. He's here for something else. Sylia knows him when they were younger, and I doubt he's changed that much in the last twelve years. Just tell Sylia, and let her take the appropriate course of action." He stood, and said loudly "I'm finished. Will you PLEASE refrain from riding the cycle so hard in the future?"
Priss climbed on the bike, and started it "Sure, Pops," she replied, slipping her helmet on. She revved the engine up slowly, feeling the power in the finally tuned machine under her. Suddenly, she gunned the engine, and put the cycle into gear. She shot forward, leaving a trail of smoke and burnt rubber behind her. She grinned maniacally as the bodyguard stationed near the car was forced to dive for cover as the motorcycle burst out of the garage. She slid the cycle into a hard right turn, and flew off down the street. She didn't look back.
**********