His shotgun clicked empty and Jimmy flipped it over to hold it against his chest with his chin, pulling new buckshot rounds from a bandoleer across his chest. Kurt could hear him muttering in his ear as he reloaded, their coms channel still open. “Ok, slugs are worthless. C’mon triple aught buck.”
Another series of rapid fire shotgun blasts rang out, followed by more swearing from Jimmy and a cloud of bullets pinging against the buggy’s lightweight frame. Gadot spoke calmly into her coms while steering into a curve of the tunnel ahead of them. “Mr. James, I’m not sure if you’ve noticed this, as it’s a recent development, but they seem to be shooting at us.”
“Working on it.” Jimmy grunted at them, getting shot more than once while trying to reload his shotgun again. This time, he slipped the light blue painted birdshot shells into his gun. Lifting the shotgun back to his shoulder, he aimed at an encroaching GoonStorm player and fired. The bikes front tire blew out and instantly flipped it, slamming the player into the tracks and ending the chase for him. His compatriots sped past, swerving to avoid the tumbling dirt bike.
Jimmy smiled and chose his next victim, aiming specifically for the front tire this time. The player opened fire first, hitting him in the chest and face mask, but Jimmy merely grunted and took his tire out, causing another opening in the swarm of goons behind them. “Hey Kurt, I figured out what the birdshot is for!”
Kurt remained ducked down in his seat, trying not to get shot. “Super happy for you buddy.”
Gadot swerved up the curved wall of the tunnel, ramping up onto an abandoned subway platform in a jostling bump. She drove across it and dropped back down onto the tracks on the other side, racing away from the army of dirt bikes at their heels.
Holding onto his door and earning another look of scorn from Gadot, Kurt drew his new Glock in his free hand, looking back to see the GoonStorm players bogged down trying to match Gadot’s tactic. Their bikes were not as stable as her buggy, and some of them had fallen upon landing. Dozens of them were still back there, but several had made the jump, keeping the chase going. Kurt noticed some of the smarter pursuers driving on ahead in their own tunnel with increased speed, clearly hoping to cut them off when the tunnels rejoined.
This happened much faster than Kurt was hoping for, as the dual tunnels joined into one large box shaped tunnel, with tracks on either side. Gadot seemed to be expecting the goons to be matching them, as when the tunnel opened up she wrenched the wheel over and slammed into a group of them racing from the other side. One of them managed to cling to the buggy, shrieking in terror until Kurt opened his door and kicked it wide with a foot, slamming the hapless player against a passing signal light pole. His door and the GoonStorm players dust cloud enshrouded gear tumbled away behind them.
Turning his attention to the GoonStorm players still in front of them, he opened fire with his new Glock, spraying rounds at the bikes while Jimmy began firing his shotgun at those behind again. Gadot flinched as bullets from the Goons in front of them sparked off the buggy’s frame, before dodging in between the tracks and putting on a burst of speed to run down an offending player while he struggled to reload. Steadying his position using his legs and taking a deep breath, Kurt leaned out of his side of the buggy and began taking careful aim before shooting the goons in front of them with controlled bursts. He sent the rest of the players in front of the buggy pinwheeling off down the tracks behind them one at a time. Gadot raised an eyebrow at him and gave him a single nod, returning her attention to the tunnels in front of them.
“Won’t we get hit by a train doing this?!” Kurt shouted in spite of the coms link, causing Gadot to wince slightly.
“No, this section is abandoned.” She drove straight at a plywood wall, smashing through it onto much cleaner looking tracks. They flew by a station filled with people waiting for their train, causing Kurt to whip his head around. Gadot grinned. “OK, now we’re gonna get hit by a train!”
She cut the wheel, dodging off the track as a subway train blared its horn and began its screaming approach to the station they had passed, brakes locked and spitting sparks into the dark of the tunnel. Most of the goons behind them made it to the next track over before the train cut off their approach.
Contentedly operating his shotgun, Jimmy paused to reload and looked over his shoulder. “Coming up on the driver’s side!”
Gadot veered and took the buggy part way up the wall, attempting to cut off the GoonStorm player trying to pass them. He simply dropped back and cut behind them, darting out in front on Kurt’s side and ignoring the magazine of 9mm+P fired at him. He was in armor similar to Jimmy’s, with coverage for his neck and torso.
“His tires are bulletproof, this must be an officer.” Jimmy’s calm voice in his ear made Kurt scowl. How his friend kept his nerve in these situations was something Kurt made a mental note to speak with him about at a later time.
“Pour it on him!” Gadot ducked down in her seat as another burst of automatic fire erupted, bullets bouncing off from the exposed engine block between them. This time thick black smoke began to pour out of the engine as it stuttered before kicking back into gear. “We’re almost dead on the tracks here, somebody put this guy down!”
Kurt slid out of his harness and stood up, bracing his arms against the roll cage roof frame as he took aim. He fired in short bursts, repeatedly dropping out his magazine and replacing it until he reached for a new one and came away empty handed. Switching to normal 9mm ammo, he started firing again, causing the GoonStorm officer in front of them to swerve and duck lower on his dirt bike. Bright lights filled the tunnel ahead of them, and the officer drove his dirt bike up the wall in preparation.
“Hang on!” Gadot’s voice in his ear sounded concerned for the first time instead of her usual annoyance, causing Kurt’s blood to run cold for a second as he watched the subway train barreling down on them from the front. He dropped into his seat and clung to the roof with his feet firmly planted on the floor as Gadot drove them halfway up the wall and held that position at speed while the train roared past them only inches away.
Jimmy hooted his approval as the buggy dropped roughly back onto the tracks, picking up speed as they continued their escape. Only the officer in front of them remained, but he was proving to be a far greater danger than his subordinates, using one hand to fling a grenade backwards at them. Gadot swerved back up the wall part way as the grenade went off just behind them. Jimmy grunted in surprise as the buggy flew up onto a platform, skidding through crowds of screaming people with its rear wheel broken at the axle.
They slid to an abrupt stop, slamming sideways into an escalator as Gadot was already stepping out of the ruined buggy. Kurt tumbled out of his side, turning to help Jimmy as Gadot reached into the locker for the duffle bags. The frame at Jimmy’s side was warped and charred from the explosion, but he seemed to be ok, aside from a smattering of bullets flattened against his armor. As Kurt was hauling him from the wreckage of their buggy, Jimmy shoved him aside and leveled his shotgun at the GoonStorm officer behind them.
They opened fire at the same time, Jimmy’s shotgun blasts taking him down as his own SMG burst went wide and shattered an overhead television display. Sparks and glass rained down around them as Gadot threw a bag to Kurt, shouldering her own and raising her UMP 45. They hurriedly gathered the bags of cash and ran up the escalator.
Gadot glanced over her shoulder. “There. Hard part’s over.”
With a snort, Jimmy took up the rear. “Yeah, that sounds likely.”
9. Making a Point
Chapter 9
Making a Point
Gadot fell back, playing with her wrist phone for a moment as Jimmy and Kurt covered the corners in the rapidly clearing subway station. Two armed guards stepped forward as they approached the street level, raising weapons. Jimmy and Kurt each gunned down the guard on their side, their sense of co-ordination growing stronger. Jimmy slid fresh shells into his Super 90, moving slower than the others with his extra fr
eight. Carrying two duffle bags and his new M60 was slowing him down considerably, as was his heavy armor.
“I need the technical. To my location, street level, yes.” Gadot spoke into her phone briefly before disconnecting and returning to their shared call. “Well, I got us transport. Needed it a little earlier than I thought we would, those Goons are really upset with us.” She moved past Kurt with a chuckle, leaning against a wall before slipping around the corner and moving up the last staircase to the street.
Dropping out his magazine of normal rounds, Kurt replaced it with a newly recharged magazine filled with 9mm+p. “I can’t imagine why.” He shook his head and charged around the corner, moving up a staircase next to Gadot while Jimmy brought up the rear. As they approached the top of the stairs, Gadot dropped to her stomach and waved a hand frantically at Kurt to do the same.
Crawling up the last few steps on his stomach, Kurt peered over the lip of the final stair and took in the scene before them. The entire city seemed to be crawling with police NPCs, cars and swat trucks streaking past on the road with sirens blaring. As Kurt watched, a squad of GoonStorm troops took cover behind a cement planter and began trading fire with the police.
“Now! Go for the street to our left!” Gadot jumped up and began a sprint towards the road, Kurt close behind her. Jimmy lagged behind, weighed down as he was, but gamely kept his head down and ran. Kurt was scanning the police action and noticed something that made his eyes widen. One of the officers was merely standing back, between two parked swat vehicles with a large silver Desert Eagle handgun held at his side. He seemed to be searching the area, and as Kurt opened his mouth to shout, the fake policeman turned and saw them, a wide smile forming on his features.
“Gadot, get down!” He shouted while opening fire with his Glock, spraying the swat truck as the player ducked and ran. Gadot grunted, sliding into cover behind a civilian vehicle parked haphazardly on the sidewalk as the player opened fire, seven thunderous shots ringing out across the lot. The police NPCs and GoonStorm troops all noticed the new commotion, and suddenly they were taking fire from three different angles as police vehicles began to pull in behind them.
Jimmy walked by while firing his shotgun, keeping the police player hiding between his swat vehicles. He bent low and helped Gadot to her feet, as she gasped at the flattened slug on her chest armor.
“The Cadillac!” She managed to say while struggling into a run again. The vehicle in question was now firmly behind police lines as a swat team filed out of a nearby truck. Jimmy didn’t hesitate, emptying his shotgun into them as they swarmed. He crouched low behind a park bench, flipping the gun over and performing his fast reload again as Gadot fired in bursts over the bench. They stayed low for a moment while the police returned fire before both standing and unleashing their weapons once more.
Kurt, seeing that they had the NPCs under control, ran straight for the police player. He dove under the swat truck and shot the man in the foot. Being a player, his enemy simply took damage and darted away, running from the spray of bullets Kurt sent after him. As Kurt climbed out from under the truck, he watched in amazement as the player darted between two groups of police and took no fire from either of them. Turning back with a grin, the player shouted something to the police around him Kurt didn’t quite make out while gesturing at him. It became clear to him quickly, as both groups of police NPCs turned and began a coordinated charge of his position.
Leaving the enemy player to his retreat, Kurt ran back in the direction of his friends. As he ran around the bodies of the police NPCs in the street collapsing into dust, he took in their new vehicle. An obviously armored black 2014 Cadillac Escalade was parked at the curb, its dark tinted glass reflecting the scene of chaos behind Kurt while he approached. There were two bulbous hatches on top of the roof, one over the passenger seat in front, and one over the rear compartment. Jimmy opened the back end, removing a long metal pin and heaving the door from its mounts. He opened an interior armored door and removed that one as well, setting it aside before climbing into the rear compartment.
“You guys!! I don’t mean to excite anyone, but there’s a really cool machine gun back here.” Jimmy’s excitement was palpable, even over the coms as Kurt jumped into the front passenger seat, taking a few calming breaths as the armored door sealed behind him and drowned out the sounds of the battle. Gadot got behind the wheel and started the engine with a simple push button before pulling open her top to inspect the bullet she had taken earlier.
Plucking it from the armor with her fingers, she scowled and dropped it at Kurt’s feet. “Fifty cal hurts. Friend of yours?”
“Pretty sure it’s the guy in the Demon from last night.” Kurt reloaded his Glock again, noticing with some satisfaction that his special magazines were close to being fully recharged. “He seems immune to cops somehow.”
Jimmy laughed in his ear. “Disguise players SUCK. Aint that right Mr. Kurtis?”
“Don’t you have a machine gun to play with or something?” Kurt scowled in annoyance, pulling up his minimap to look at the sheer number of police indicators. They were firmly at a five-bar Heat level, and dozens of police icons were closing on their position. As Kurt looked, two different helicopter icons appeared at the edge of the map, making right for them. “We should leave maybe.”
Gadot raised her eyebrows at a notification on her wrist, glancing to the map Kurt threw up on the windshield and setting her UMP 45 down between her seat and the center console. She put the truck into drive and pressed both gas and brake pedals to the floor. “You guys should have a privacy request. Make sure you deny it.”
“The hell is that?” Kurt pulled up his notifications, swiping through several skill ups to find what Gadot was talking about. He found it quickly enough, a bright red bar across the top of the notification drawing his attention.
‘Another Player has recorded video of you in The Life of Crime. Your face is pixelated by default. Would you like to provide permission to display your characters face?’ Kurt thumbed the no button and discarded the message, turning back to the task at hand.
Turning in his seat, Kurt looked through the armored glass separator at Jimmy in the rear compartment. He was braced in a seated position, legs extended out towards the open back of the truck, with a double barreled 30. Cal Browning machine gun mounts grip in his hands. He turned and lifted his mask to show Kurt and Gadot his giant smile.
“It must be my birthday. Let’s go put down some Goons!” Jimmy cocked both machine gun barrels and swiveled the gun to aim it at the GoonStorm troops they had seen on exiting the subway as Gadot released the brake and slid the back of the SUV around, giving Jimmy the shot he needed.
What was left of the GoonStorm group and police NPCs went down in a hail of gunfire as Gadot drove away. She was instantly forced to jump the SUV up onto the sidewalk, driving past a blockade of police vehicles. One of the cruisers reversed and bounced up onto the curb in an attempt to block them.
“Brace!” Gadot shouted the instant before slamming into the cars back end, sending it spinning part way out into the road. A small fleet of black Dodge Chargers entered the road in front of them, causing Gadot to swerve the SUV around the nearest corner. As she floored the accelerator, more black Chargers swerved into place in front of them. “Alright boys, I need you out of your hatches and keeping these bulls off us.” She spoke calmly as she slid the SUV around another corner, keeping the police NPC force scrambling to keep up.
“I mean…I’m down. I just don’t think my shotgun is going to be much help, and I’m more than a little ashamed to admit I don’t carry any .556 on me. Just put more of them behind us.” Jimmy punctuated his sentence with a burst of fire from the Brownings.
Gadot swiped at her wrist for a moment, glancing between it and the road while ignoring her annoyance at Jimmies remark. “Uh, open the long compartment to your…left?”
Shaking his head, Kurt reached up and turned the handle on his hatch, shoving upward as he stood. The
wind whipped at him and he had to brace his feet in place to keep from being thrown around, but he was able to aim and fire his gun at the back of a nearby black Charger. A bullet pinged off the roof next to him, and he looked skyward as he flinched. A police helicopter was following their path through the buildings, a sniper in a harness dangling from the side door.
Reloading, Kurt turned in time to see a large black Chevrolet Suburban about to hit them. Gadot’s shout of “brace” didn’t even register, as he was instantly holding onto the bars surrounding his hatch. Instead of the impact he had been expecting, the Cadillac lurched, sliding to a rapid stop and allowing the Suburban to hurtle past them into a nearby Charger.
“Woah…Gadot…is this what I think it is?” Jimmy’s hatch popped open behind him and Kurt turned to see a long army green tube extend from it. It had two black plastic handles on the bottom and a boxy looking scope attached to the side.
“One Carl Gustav recoilless rifle. Save a few rounds for the tank, we’re going after them right now. Roadblocks only please.” Gadot spoke calmly, her focus on the road and swarming police force around them.
“Well find me some roadblocks then! Naw, I’m shootin’ down this chopper.” Jimmy sounded rather excited, and Kurt couldn’t help but smile in spite of their situation. He turned back to spray a Charger at their side with 9mm rounds, causing it to swerve as the rounds blew fragments of windshield into the air. Gadot drove them back towards the bank, to Kurt’s distress. He dropped back down into his seat for a moment, reloading his gun as he checked the map.
“You’re driving us back into the hornets’ nest, you know that, right?” He took a couple of steadying breaths.
“We didn’t come here to just rob these guys. We came to make a point.” She glanced in the rearview mirror for a second, gripping the steering wheel harder. “Brace!”
A black Suburban slammed into their back end, causing the Escalade to fishtail on the road. Jimmy dropped down from his hatch, one hand firmly gripping the recoilless rifle as it became stuck in the hatch above him. He stretched out, reaching for a handle of the Brownings and holding down the firing trigger as the Suburban rammed them again. The gun bucked wildly, a burst of rounds spraying the road and Suburban behind them. A wheel erupted in a puff of white smoke and the Suburban swerved slightly before beginning a series of violent flips while the Escalade spun in a circle.
The Life- Illusion Page 12