Born to run (s-4)

by Stephen Kenson

  "I never knew my parents," Kellan said. "Only my aunt. My only memories are of living with her. She said my mother abandoned me after my father ran off and abandoned her, but I've never believed that. I think there is more to it than my aunt ever told me. She never really wanted me there, but she was all the family I had."

  "The Ancients were my family," Orion said. "I joined up with a gang when I was fifteen, the Silent Ps. A gang is the best way to stay alive when you live in the Barrens. The Spikes wiped out our gang a few years later, when Lord Torgo took over. The Ancients kind of adopted the survivors. I was proud to be an Ancient."

  "Tam: Can I call you that?"

  The elf shrugged, which Kellan took as a yes.

  "What happened back there?" she asked.

  "The First Law," Tamlin said. "I questioned Green Lucifer's decision, challenged his judgment and his authority. That kind of thing has to be settled by a duel. I lost."

  "So: now what?"

  "Now nothing," the elf replied. "I lost. I'm not part of the Ancients anymore. I'm a goronagee -an outsider-not really even an elf anymore." He squeezed his eyes closed.

  "I am so sorry," Kellan said. Orion slowly shook his head, his face relaxing as he sighed.

  "Not your fault," he said. "I challenged, I lost. It's the way it is."

  "Well, it fraggin' sucks."

  Orion laughed weakly, then pushed himself up on his elbows, opening his eyes.

  "Sielle," he said, looking at Kellan with his intense green eyes.

  "What's that?"

  "Yeah, it sucks," he replied with a chuckle. "Actually, it means, 'it is so' or 'it is the way of things.' It's hard to translate exactly."

  "It's elvish, right?"

  Orion nodded. "Yeah, Sperethiel."

  "Do you speak it?"

  "Not much," he replied, settling back against the padded chair. "Just a few words and phrases I've picked up. A lot of the Ancients like Lucifer speak it fluently, but they were mostly raised with it. My mom was a norm, and I didn't exactly go to school in the Land of Promise."

  The Land of Promise. Orion meant Tir Tairngire, the elven homeland south of Seattle. It occupied most of what was once southern Washington state in the old United States, claimed in the negotiations after the Ghost Dance by a coalition of elves backed by other Awakened races and creatures. To Kellan, Tir Tairngire sounded like a mystical land of faerie, ruled by a Council of Princes and filled with magic and mystery. Kellan had wondered what it must be like to live in such a place, and why anyone would ever leave it. Still, there were young elves who came to Seattle from Tir Tairngire every year, apparently including some of the Ancients.

  "Where'd you learn to fight like that?" Kellan asked.

  "Mostly self-taught," he said. "I've got some Talent, too. I'm an adept."

  "Like a magician?"

  The elf shook his head slowly. "No. My magic is all in here." He tapped the fingers of his right hand against his chest. "It makes me stronger and faster- but apparently not fast enough." His hand moved toward his face, but fell back to the chair before he touched the cut.

  "Sorry," Dr. Fait said, returning to the room. "You're not the only one who got involved in some foolishness tonight."

  She used the canister of spray bandage to carefully apply a protective layer to the sutured cut on Orion's face. The transparent bandage molded to his face, barely visible.

  "You'll metabolize the staples," she said, checking over her handiwork. "Just keep it clean and try to stay away from any other sharp objects in the meantime."

  "Thanks, Tina," Orion said, getting up slowly from the chair. The doctor's businesslike demeanor softened a bit.

  "Anytime, Tam, you know that. Is there anything else you need or-?" Orion cut her off with a shake of his head.

  "No, thanks, not right now."

  "Okay, you know where to find me."

  As they left the clinic, Kellan, hands deep in the pockets of her jacket, turned to Orion.

  "So now what?" she asked.

  "Now nothing," Orion replied. "We tried talking sense. It didn't work. That's it."

  "But you can't just give up!" Kellan said.

  "Look, Kellan," the elf stopped and turned toward her. "I know you wanted to do the right thing, but it just doesn't matter anymore. The Ancients aren't going to listen. Whatever Brickman has planned is going to happen. We need to look out for ourselves, because it's sure as hell nobody else is going to do it." He gave a brief snort of laughter. "Maybe I can find work as a shadowrunner."

  "Yeah," Kellan mused, "maybe you can, if you're up for it."

  "What does that mean?"

  "I've got an idea," she replied, taking her phone out of her pocket and flipping it open. "If G-Dogg is willing to do me a favor:"

  Silver Max and Liada arrived at Underworld 93 at almost the same time. The club was open, but it was early so there weren't many people there yet. They made their way past Leif into the back room where Kellan, Orion and G-Dogg waited. When Liada saw Orion her eyes narrowed.

  "What's he doing here?" she asked, lifting her chin in his direction.

  "He's in on this," Kellan said simply. Orion kept silent as the elf mage and the dwarf sat down, Silver Max in an overstuffed chair that almost engulfed him, Liada on a smaller upholstered chair to the right of the couch where Kellan and G-Dogg sat. Orion remained standing, leaning on one end of the couch, arms folded across his chest.

  "So who are we waiting for?" Liada asked, glancing around the room.

  "Nobody," G-Dogg said. "We're all here."

  "What about the Johnson?" Silver Max said.

  "You're lookin' at her," the ork replied with a grin, inclining his head toward Kellan.

  Liada laughed-a bright, musical sound, though Kellan found it grating at that moment. Then she stopped and glanced from G-Dogg to Kellan and back, an incredulous look on her face.

  "You're serious," she said. G-Dogg just nodded and Kellan leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees.

  Here goes nothing.

  "I've got a run, if you're interested."

  "Just finished your first run in town and already you're setting 'em up," Silver Max said with a chuckle. "You sure don't waste any time, kid."

  "You're wasting our time," Liada interjected, rising from her seat and picking up her shoulder bag. "I'm out of here."

  "Hang on," Kellan said. "All I'm asking is for you to listen to what I've got to say. If you're not interested, that's fine. I'm sure there's plenty of other shadowrunners around willing to make some money."

  Liada paused and looked at Kellan more carefully. She glanced over at Silver Max, who nodded slightly.

  "Okay," she said, sinking back down into her seat. "You've got five minutes. Then I'm gone. What's this supposed run about?"

  "Payback," Kellan said with a smile. She told the others what she'd discovered about Brickman and their run on the Ares shipment, and about her encounter with Green Lucifer and Orion's sudden departure from the Ancients, although she left out the details of the fight.

  She explained what she suspected about Brickman selling weapons-or the routes of weapons shipments-to both the Spikes and the Ancients. She also showed them the data Jackie acquired from the Ares system.

  "So what's this got to do with us?" Silver Max asked, and all eyes shifted back to Kellan.

  "Simple," she replied. "I've got the information on the shipping route Mr. Johnson-Brickman-supplied, and Jackie has data from Ares about a shipment of weapons coming in along that route. The Ancients are set up to take that shipment, but we could hit it before they do."

  "And what's in it for us?" the dwarf rigger persisted, though the tone of his voice said he was intrigued.

  "The shipment," Kellan said. "It would be worth plenty to the right people-after we get first pick, of course."

  Silver Max nodded sagely, his thick beard parting with a tight smile. Liada shook her head.

  "Why should we cross Brickman, or the Ancients?" she asked. "That's a lot
of potential trouble for just a shipment of guns."

  G-Dogg spoke up before Kellan could answer. "You mean, aside from taking away Brickman's advantage over us?" The ork counted off reasons on his fingers, leaning forward and resting his elbow on one knee. "There's cred to be made off that shipment. Nobody's going to be expecting anyone else to go after it, since they figure nobody else knows. It hacks off the Ancients and, if we do it right, Brickman isn't even going to know it was us. The Ancients might, but I know how you feel about them, Liada."

  The elven mage glanced at Orion for a moment before returning her attention to Kellan. "Who else is in on this?" she asked.

  "Just us," Kellan said, "and Jackie Ozone. She helped dig up the data and she can provide the Matrix overwatch, same as last time. Shouldn't be that hard-after all, we already did it once, right?"

  "What about Lothan?" Liada asked. Her expression remained guarded, but Kellan figured that since she was still talking, she must be interested.

  "He already made it clear that he didn't want anything to do with this," Kellan said, "but if you're not interested, Liada, we probably will need another mage:."

  The elf broke into a slow smile. "You really think that's going to make up my mind?" she asked.

  "I don't know," Kellan said smiling back in spite of herself. "Depends on how willing you are to take a chance: and how much better than Lothan you think you can do the job."

  There was a long pause as the two women regarded each other, then Liada grinned. "Well, since you put it that way," she said, "why not? I'm in."

  "Me, too," Silver Max said and G-Dogg nodded, affirming his interest. Kellan looked around at the gathered shadowrunners, a combination of triumph and anxiety fighting inside her.

  "Okay," she said, "here's what we're going to need to do. First, I think there's one other person we should talk to:."

  16

  They found the Street Deacon sitting in his customary spot at Crusher 495 in Redmond. This time, Kellan went with both G-Dogg and Orion, the elf warrior insisting on being there for the meet. Same as last time, the Deacon didn't acknowledge the arrival of the shadowrunners as they approached him. He simply sat at the bar, nursing his drink.

  G-Dogg offered to do the talking, but Kellan insisted on doing it herself. If she was putting this run together, she wasn't going to do it by halves.

  "Deacon," she said. He showed no sign that he heard her. "I've got a job," Kellan continued.

  "Find someone else to play with, kid," the Street Deacon replied, taking a sip of his drink, not even looking in Kellan's direction. "I'm not interested."

  "I think you will be when you hear what it's about."

  "Doubt it," the Deacon replied calmly.

  Kellan forced herself to lean in closer. She put one hand on the bar in front of him, and spoke quietly so only the Deacon could hear her.

  "I know what Brickman is up to," she said. "He's playing us all."

  The Street Deacon turned to look at her, and Kellan forced herself to not flinch from the flat, dead gaze of his artificial eyes.

  "Is that so? You don't even know half of what Brickman is about, little girl," he said.

  "I know enough," Kellan replied firmly, straightening up. "I know he's setting up something between the Spikes and the Ancients, and I know he used us to test out a run to snatch some weapons, maybe even set us up to take the fall for the next hijacking."

  "So? That's what guys like Brickman do."

  "Now I'm giving you a chance to so something about it." The Deacon started to turn away from her, and Kellan said, "I didn't take you for a fall guy."

  "I'm not," he sneered. "Not for Brickman, and not for you, either."

  Kellan played her hunch. "Not anymore, anyway." The Street Deacon's attention snapped back to her with a look that made Kellan's blood run cold. She wondered for a moment if she'd pushed him too far.

  "No," he said flatly. "Not anymore."

  "Now's your chance to prove it to him." She paused, looking down at the bar, then met the Deacon's cold gaze again. " 'All it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.' "

  The street samurai just looked at Kellan, unblinking. Then he set his drink down on the bar.

  "What's the run?" he asked.

  As they left the Crusher, G-Dogg asked Kellan, "What was that you said to him? Is it from some book?"

  Kellan shrugged. "Beats the frag out of me. Just something I saw in somebody's signature file online. Looks like it worked, though." G-Dogg grinned and nodded.

  "You understand the Deacon better than I thought," the ork said, "though I think you were taking a real chance."

  "I still don't understand why we need him," Orion said.

  "Because we might need some extra muscle," Kellan replied, "and I've already learned it's better the devil you know."

  G-Dogg gave her a tusky grin. "Nice to know you've been payin' attention, kid," he said.

  They cut through the alley next to the Crusher to get to where they'd left G-Dogg's car. The roar of engines cut through the night, and the glare of motorcycle headlights stabbed down the alley. Kellan squinted against the sudden brightness, which rendered the bikes and their riders black silhouettes against the darkness.

  "Hey, makkaherenit," a voice called out over the thrumming of the engines. "Green Lucifer sends his regards." The bike engines revved.

  Orion turned to Kellan. "Go," he said, nodding his head toward the other end of the alley. "Now."

  "I'm not going to just-" Kellan began, then the go-gangers drew their weapons and raced their bikes forward, like knights on eager steeds.

  "Go!" Orion yelled, and G-Dogg grabbed Kellan's arm and dragged her toward the other end of the alley, just as two more bikes rounded the corner, cutting off their retreat.

  "Aw, fraggit," G-Dogg muttered, reaching into his jacket and pulling Kellan toward the alley wall as the other two gangers roared toward them.

  Orion stood his ground as the two bikes closed in on him. One of the elves whirled a length of heavy chain over his head and the other hefted a metal baseball bat, both of them laughing and hooting war cries.

  In a blur of motion, Orion ran at one of the approaching motorcycles. He leapt up, his jump carrying him over the front wheel and handlebars of the compact bike, and planted one booted foot squarely in the chest of the elf with the baseball bat. The rider went flying off the bike, which hit the pavement and skidded sideways in a shower of sparks. The rider followed, hitting the ground with a thud. Orion landed on his feet and reached over his shoulder, drawing his sword in one smooth motion. The blade gleamed in the play of the headlights from the oncoming motorcycles.

  G-Dogg, meanwhile, drew a heavy pistol from his jacket. He stepped out into the alley, spun toward one of the oncoming bikers, and fired two shots in rapid succession. The first sparked off the frame of the Yamaha Rapier, but the second was closer to the mark and took the rider in the shoulder. The impact almost knocked him off his bike, and caused it to veer toward the wall, forcing the rider to brake and skid to a halt.

  Kellan reached for her own gun as the second rider roared past G-Dogg, headed for Orion. The elf warrior dodged the chain-wielding ganger, who headed toward G-Dogg from the opposite direction. The two shadowrunners turned to meet their new opponents.

  The whirling chain lashed out as G-Dogg turned, catching the ork upside the head. Kellan saw dark blood arc from where G-Dogg was hit as the biker roared past. Then she saw the other ganger G-Dogg had shot. He had regained control of his bike, and was drawing a flat-profile gun from underneath his jacket. Kellan spun toward him and snapped off a shot that ricocheted off the wall nearby. She successfully diverted the elf's attention from G-Dogg, but focused it on her. She dodged behind the club's trash barrels as the ganger fired off a couple of shots in her direction.

  Orion turned as another ganger closed in on him. A heavy bat swung at the same time as Orion's sword flashed out. Sparks flew and the bat went tumbling end over end to clatter to the pa
vement a short distance away. The ganger looked dumbly at his empty hand as he rode past. The elf Orion knocked from his bike got back up and tackled him from behind. Caught off guard, Orion wasn't able to bring his sword to bear as the ganger slammed both of them against the wall.

  The elf with the chain swerved in a squealing of tires, turning around for another pass at G-Dogg. He overestimated how much he'd hurt the ork, who raised his pistol and fired another two shots. Both of them slammed into the elf's chest, knocking him off his bike onto the ground and toppling the motorcycle.

  Kellan popped up from behind the barrels and fired off another shot at the Ancient with the gun, but missed him again. She ducked as a couple more shots whanged off the pavement close by. G-Dogg turned on the gun-wielding elf and fired a shot that forced the elf to abandon his bike and seek cover.

  By now, the Ancients were dismounted, either knocked off their rides or on foot to maneuver in the tight confines of the alley. Orion grappled with one ganger as another closed in. A long, thin blade slid out of the back of the approaching Ancient's hand, extending out from his arm. It was flat black in the harsh glow of the headlights. Orion managed to push off the ganger and bring his sword up just in time to parry a slash from the Ancient's cyberspur. G-Dogg fired a couple more shots at the gun-toting Ancient, rushing across the alley to find some cover.

  Momentarily safe behind the trash barrels, Kellan focused her attention on the elf fighting Orion. She concentrated like Lothan had taught her, feeling the flow of magic all around her. The now-familiar heat washed across her skin, tingling around her neck where the amulet rested. She raised her free hand and pointed at the elf, focusing, directing all the heat and energy toward him as he slashed and stabbed, and Orion twisted and parried.

  "Burn," Kellan whispered, unleashing the energy she gathered. There was a rush of power as it left her, and a streak of fire cut across the alley. The elf ganger turned at the last moment, alerted by the sudden brightness, but too late to avoid the blast. The fire struck him square in the chest and there was a boom that shook the alley as flames exploded all around, engulfing not only the Ancient with the cyberspur, but his compatriot and Orion as well.