Jimmy groaned as he sat up. “Ohhh tell me he didn’t save us from Clancy.”
Picking up her SMG, Gadot nodded. “I laid out some flares, but otherwise yeah. He did the work.”
“Never hear the end of it, I’m sure.” Slugging Kurt on the shoulder as he moved past, Jimmy graced his friend with a smirk. “Good job, ya smug bastard.” They entered the locker room and moved through it towards the exit door.
Gadot reloaded her SMG again, peering past Jimmy to the body of Clancy as it fell to dust. “What’d he drop?”
Crouching over the two small items left, Jimmy scanned them and reported. “Ok, fluff item is his goggles. No real difference from normal NV/Thermals, aside from the unique look and legendary quality. And…Ohh, very nice. He dropped the ECM device.” Jimmy lifted a compact square of black plastic. It had a button on the flat of it, and a stubby antenna folded down on the side. Kurt eyed the device hungrily.
“You know…I’ve always wanted one of these.” Jimmy smirked at Kurt for a moment before tossing the square of plastic to his friend.
Gadot looked alarmed for a moment and then relieved when he threw the ECM device to Kurt. “Oh ok, good. I thought you were serious for a second. Cause I like you Jimmy…but everyone knows where you are without having to use their map.”
Jimmy gave a short burst of laughter. “Ha-ha! Yeah they do. Who wants the goggles?” He lifted them by their strap, the signature glowing green triangle still visible.
“I have those already.” Gadot dismissively waved a hand.
Kurt shook his head. “I won’t take both drops.” He focused on his new toy, intently reading the scan.
Electronic Counter Measure Device
Legendary Quality Consumable
Item respawns with player upon death and cannot be lost or stolen.
This device can be used once per recharge to disrupt all communication, surveillance, and mapping devices in a 100-foot radius for 60 seconds, or can be directed at a specific electronic device to destroy it until weekly reset. Can only be recharged at a safe house.
“This thing sounds great!” Kurt looked up excitedly. “Can I like…disable vehicles with it?”
Jimmy spoke over his shoulder, casually carrying his BAR by its handle and wearing the new goggles haphazardly over his helmet. “Naw dude, that’d be cool though. It’s for little stuff like phones, security cameras, and flashlights. Be pretty helpful if you keep going stealth though.”
Gadot chipped in with some helpful information. “ECMs are consumables, like a grenade but ridiculously expensive. I think the base cost is 5k for one, and you are only allowed to carry one of them at a time. The fluff says they damage each other by being in proximity, but it’s pretty obviously just a power creep limiter. Somebody carrying around a bunch of those would be impossible to catch.”
Nodding in understanding, Kurt slipped the device in a pocket. “What’s with the legendary quality thing? I’ve only seen the same quality on everything so far.”
“Only three levels for loot in this. Most of what you’ll find is normal quality. That includes most guns, cars, armor, consumables, et cetera.” Jimmy hefted his BAR and held it to his shoulder to point at the door casually. “If you die, the item drops and can be looted. Or like your car can be destroyed, even if it’s some high end expensively modded out ride. But legendaries can’t be lost, which is really kind of handy on a consumable, I’m a little jealous.”
Kneeling to apply his lock pick to the door while Jimmy and Gadot covered him, Kurt scowled. “Wait, what’s the third quality?”
“Unique.” Gadot breathed the word while looking back the way they had come.
Snorting at her reverence, Jimmy turned to explain. “Unique quality drops are custom made for you the individual player, and no two are ever the same. You only get them when you change the game somehow. Reports on the forums are wild and varied, but they all agree you have to make some kind of major change to a server to get one, and they are seriously great items. Part of the reason people strive for their own guil…factions. Dammit.”
Frowning momentarily while looking at his lock pick circle filling, Kurt spoke over his shoulder dismissively. “What are they, like…flying cars or rocket bikes?”
Jimmy turned slowly, scowling. “No. There are no flying cars or rocket bikes. That would be intensely stupid.”
Gadot had a scrunched up look on her face, like she smelled something bad. “The day Blacklight adds that kind of crap to the game is the day you know they stopped caring about it…or their players.”
Properly admonished, Kurt turned back to the door and finished picking the lock. Drawing his Coonan magnum, he slowly opened the door a crack and peeked out, mildly paranoid from his earlier encounter with the Taser cop. His caution paid off, as he glimpsed a Russian APC parked in front of the doorway. It wasn’t moving, despite several police cruisers that slid past with sirens blaring, leading Kurt to believe that they had slipped the Heat and come back to ensure their enemies didn’t escape, by driving into the area in front of the door. He figured there was likely an APC sitting in front of all four security doors. Upon a closer inspection, the player inside seemed to be doing something on his phone. Turning back to Jimmy and Gadot, he quietly explained the situation.
After he switched from his BAR to his paint splattered M60 partially filled with Siegebreaker rounds, Jimmy nodded towards the door. “The front of the APC is towards us?” After Kurt nodded, Jimmy smiled widely and turned to Gadot. They discussed a plan briefly before Jimmy turned back and stepped into a kick, slamming the door wide open.
He opened fire immediately upon exiting the doorway, aiming for the armored window of the APCs cockpit, using his armor destroying ammunition to weaken the glass in a small section directly in front of the driver. Jimmies machine gun clicked empty and he darted to the side, exposing Gadot on one knee with rifle raised in front of her. She fired once and the driver slumped. The exchange lasted less than three seconds, and Kurt was quickly back to running after his friends while they moved towards their next objective.
Gadot pulled up her phone, extending her wrist first one way, then the other. She took off running towards the nearest parking garage with a shout. “Car is this way, c’mon!”
Jimmy moved past him with a groan, jogging after Gadot. “Ugh…this is heavy. Let’s go dude, time to get out of here.”
Kurt simply nodded and ran after them.
13. Rekindled
Chapter 13
Rekindled
In the nearest parking garage, Gadot led them up a level, checking her map every so often until she found what she was looking for. A 1986 fox body Ford Mustang sat gleaming in a parking stall, candy apple red with an oversized supercharger intake scoop jutting from its hood. Kurt ran a finger along its chrome detail lines, before Gadot stepped past him and slapped his hand away.
“This is my favorite car, so be nice.” She opened her door and pushed the seat forward to allow Jimmy to crawl in behind her. “Oh, and you’ll want to wear the harnesses. This won’t be a gentle ride.” She buckled herself in and lovingly caressed the steering wheel, ignoring the tumult of sirens and helicopters in the air around them. Kurt shook his head, took a deep breath, and got in the car.
Shifting around in the backseat, Jimmy grunted and lifted his legs up onto the seat next to him, leaning his back against the side window. “Help me out here. I see plenty of people who like the old Mustangs, right? But this specific one I’ve just never understood. It’s ugly, right? What makes this one specifically your favorite?”
Gadot smiled, shifting the car in reverse and looking back with a shake of her head at Jimmy. “Really big engine, really light car. You’ll see.” With that, she spun the wheel and sent the Mustang hurtling down the ramp towards the ground level. She slid around the corner, tires screaming as a police cruiser went sideways in an attempt to block them. Gadot dodged it and launched the car out of the exit ramp, smashing the small wooden arm in their way. Tw
o bulky black SWAT vans were set up nose to nose in front of the exit, a wooden barricade manned with shouting police behind both.
In the midst of a storm of gunfire, Gadot floored the accelerator and slid the car in a quick circle, ending her slide with the Mustang’s nose pointed at one of the barricades. She gave the police behind it a grim smile as she held both pedals down for a moment, before popping the clutch and releasing the brake. The Mustang rose up on its rear wheels slightly and smashed into the barricade and police NPCs still behind it. Their bullets spattered against the vehicles armored sides and windows, leaving small smears behind, but causing minimal damage to the vehicle itself. Gadot had a small, wicked small etched onto her features as she squeezed between the two SWAT vans, crushing NPCs against their sides.
Jimmy braced himself in the backseat, raising his M60 towards the rear window and pointing it at the police force chasing them, but was shut down by a shout from Gadot. “HEY! Do NOT shoot out my window!” She calmed immediately. “You’ll screw up our aerodynamics…and you won’t be needing to shoot any bulls anyway. Nobody catches my Mustang.” Pulling an overly impressed face, Jimmy set his M60 down on the floor and put his arms behind his head in a relaxed position.
True to her word, Gadot sped through every obstacle the aggressive police NPC force could throw at them. She dodged spike strips, slid around cruisers like they were standing still, and moved so fast up the freeway that even the helicopters couldn’t keep up. The Ursa APCs never stood a chance of catching her. Gadot took the car flat out, weaving slightly as she moved between civilian cars. Kurt had his usual death grip on the center of his harness, staring out the windshield as they neared 140 MPH.
Glancing over, Gadot shook her head. “Good thing you can’t get sick in this game.”
Kurt forced a smile in response. “I’ll get used to your driving someday, I’m sure.”
“Not today, you won’t.” She checked her rear view mirror a few times. “High speed interceptor coming up.”
Perking up somewhat, Jimmy sat up and looked out the back window. “Can I shoot him?!”
The high speed interceptor was a black and white painted 2012 Chevrolet Corvette. It had flashing red and blue lights emanating from its grille, and an aggressive spoiler. The vaguely wedge shaped police vehicle weaved through the traffic at a high rate of speed, catching up quickly.
Gadot narrowed her eyes. “Not just yet. I’ll let you know though.” With that, she tapped the brakes, swerving from one lane to the next and causing the already nervous civilian NPCs around them to react in predictably unsafe ways. They swung into each other’s lanes, panicking and causing a series of minor accidents. Nodding at her handiwork, Gadot reapplied the gas and darted off down the freeway again.
She scowled as the interceptor slowed and went off-road in a plume of dust to avoid the pile up, reacquiring them and continuing its chase. “Ok…hard way it is. Hold on boys.” Rolling on the accelerator, Gadot glanced at her rearview and confirmed the interceptors position.
She went into the emergency lane and increased their speed even further. Kurt’s eyes were glued to the special speedometer on the side of the dashboard. His nerves frayed more the faster they went, and when the needle crept past 160 MPH he squeezed his eyes shut. The rhythmic thump of passing cars at extreme speed couldn’t be blocked out though.
“Can we lose him without doing this maybe?” He spoke nervously, concentrating on the way his feet were being shaken by the violent motion of the cars floor.
“Please stop talking.” Gadot’s voice was light and friendly, her focus entirely on the freeway ahead of them.
“At these speeds, any mistake she makes will just kill us. Don’t mess her up dude.” Jimmy whispered into their still active com channel from the backseat, once again in his relaxed position with arms up behind his head.
Kurt grit his teeth and held onto his harness, but he forced himself to open his eyes again. After a few moments of sustained high speeds, the interceptor fell back and the heat rating began to blink. A moment after that, they were free and clear, and Gadot dropped back down to more manageable speeds.
Feeling the need to think about anything other than the high speed chase he had just endured, Kurt decided to pull up his notifications again.
Primary
Armor Rank 3. (Combat)
“Self defense is natures eldest law.” -John Dryden
Wearing armor can help mitigate those annoying things in life like being shot. 3% improvement in damage reduction, 3% reduction in armor repair and replacement cost.
Additional armor modifications unlocked.
Primary
Small Arms Rank 7. (Combat)
“OK…I think I got him.” -Hickok45
Skilled use of basic firearms can assist in several tasks. Maximum damage with all firearms increased by 7%
Additional firearm modifications unlocked.
Secondary
Gunslinger Rank 5. (Combat)
“Ladies don’t argue with a burgler.” -Iver Johnson Arms advertisement, 1871.
A handgun or revolver is an adaptable and commonly used firearm platform in all criminal activities. Skilled use can produce incredible benefits. Armor penetration is increased with handguns by 5%. Damage with revolvers is increased by 5%. Additional handguns and revolvers are unlocked for purchase. This skill is currently stacking with Small Arms.
Primary
Cartography Rank 7 (Mobility)
“Here there be monsters.” -Commonly found on the edges of ancient maps, thought to denote unknown or unexplored areas.
Clever use of the map can be instrumental to several aspects of criminal activities. Mini-map notification radius and sensitivity increased by 7% (Effective bonus raised by Infiltrator to 12%)
He was pleased to see Planning had bumped up to level 6, and Strategist had also managed to bump up to level 3. Magnum Force and Ambush, his new specialist skills, were moving slower than he would like, only pushing up to level 2. Stealth had bumped a level, and his Sneak Attack skill (quickly becoming a favorite) had jumped again to rank 5. Suddenly distracted by the shadows of evergreens moving rapidly across his eyes, Kurt swiped off his skills and gazed out the window.
Trees dotted the hills around them, and Kurt switched to his map to take a look at their location. They had driven far away from the Downtown Cluster area, and were approaching a small town on the outskirts of a mountain lake. Their drive took them up a winding mountain road, and Gadot rolled the windows down as they cruised.
“That got sloppy, but I think it should be fine. It’ll piss off the Russians, and all they have to connect any of it is some wrecked GoonStorm vehicles.” She rested an arm on the window sill of her door, leaning into the breeze a little as she drove.
Jimmy sat up from the backseat, shoving his wrist forward between the seats. “Forum post from GoonStorm here.” He waited for Kurt to tap wrists with him, and then looked at Gadot.
She glanced back at him, one eyebrow raised. “I’m driving. What’s it say?”
He sat back with a yawn. “Oh the usual. Wasn’t us, we don’t know those mysterious officers dressed in our gear rampaging all over the park.” He swiped through the air above his wrist for a moment. “Seems like nobodies buying it. The most prevalent theory in the comments is that some rogue GoonStorm officers got it in their heads that the Russians hit their bank job and went for some good old-fashioned revenge.” He nudged Kurt. “Sounds familiar. No statement from the Ursa yet, seems like they’re holding to this radio silence thing they’re doing.”
Gadot smiled, relaxing further. “All to plan then.”
They drove through an open patch in the trees, part way up the mountain side, and Kurt looked out his window to see the city spread out below them. He was struck by how peaceful it looked, while knowing the opposite to be true. Illusion was a hornet’s nest suffering from a series of recent kicks, and he was wearing the boots. The gleaming city was soon replaced by the lake itself, and the tow
n spreading out around a curve of it. He glanced at his map to see the name displayed as Steele Lake.
Steele Lake was mostly a recreational town, with several docks for pleasure craft and colorful taverns spread out in a crescent shape around the lake. Kurt noted there were some clothing stores on the map, as well as a weapon shop and car sales lot. Gadot drove them through the town and approached a small air strip nestled into the far side of it. A two-story log cabin style mansion stood at one end of the air strip, a compact aircraft hangar set a ways from it, all behind a ten-foot metal bar security fence.
As they approached on the gravel driveway, Gadot fished a plastic card from her pocket. Stopping at an entrance gate, she swiped the card and the gate in front of them rumbled out of the way on small wheels. “Welcome to my safehouse boys.”
“I thought your safehouse was that underground lair thing downtown.” Kurt scowled in confusion.”
“That’s a Hub. Used mostly by crews for member respawns and general storage. Kind of the same thing as a safehouse, but for groups, and without the storage protections.” She touched the air above her wrist, and a garage door in front of them slid upwards. “You could have used any of the weapons you saw on the walls in there if you wanted. Sorry, I thought you knew about that.”
Kurt shrugged as they walked from the garage into the kitchen of the mansion. High ceilings were accentuated by raw lumber supports. The house was well lit with several bay windows pouring in sunshine, and furnished with extravagant luxury items. Moving through the house to a lounge overlooking the lake through a wall of windows, they each flopped down into plush leather seats.
Jimmy stood back up immediately, shrugging out of his heavy weapons. “If I ever try to bring two big ass heavy guns on a run like that again, feel free to kick me.” He proceeded to strip off his armor, tossing it on the floor before settling into his comfortable seat again. He swiped up his phone and sent a text before relaxing once more, his head tilted back over the armrest of the oversized lounge chair he was sprawled across. “One big gun at a time.”
The Life- Illusion Page 21