Born to run (s-4)

by Stephen Kenson

  "Amateur," Lothan said with a derisive snort.

  Without their spellcaster, and now trapped between two dangerous foes, the Ancients broke off their pursuit, veering onto one of the side streets. The troll bikers followed after them, showing the symbols on the backs of their jackets as they roared off in pursuit: a cartoonish image of an elf's head, with x-ed-out eyes and a spike driven through it.

  "The Spikes!" Orion said, recognizing them instantly. "What the frag are they doing here?"

  "I invited them," Kellan said. "I told them I had information that said the Ancients might show up around here about this time. I thought they might be able to provide us with a distraction, if we needed one.

  "Well, I think they're doing a marvelous job," Lothan said, slumping against the side of the truck and sliding down to sit heavily on the floor with a sigh, leaning his head back and closing his eyes for a moment.

  "How did you convince them?" Orion asked.

  "G-Dogg set things up. We showed them a picture of Brickman, and told them it looked like he was cutting a deal with the Ancients. Apparently, Mr. Brickman has been working both sides of the street, supplying weapons to the Spikes and promising the same to the Ancients when the Spikes started wiping out their enemies. I figured the Spikes wouldn't care for being used any more than we did. I just didn't think it would turn into such a big mess," she said regretfully.

  "Well, what did you think would happen?" Orion snorted, and Kellan shrugged.

  "I don't know, that the Ancients would take off once things went sour, I guess. That they'd both realize they were being set up and they'd call things off."

  "Maybe if it was anyone other than the Spikes," Orion replied ruefully, "but the Spikes have been our: have been the Ancients' enemies for way too long. It doesn't matter who's getting used or who's getting set up any more. It's blood for blood."

  "Everybody okay back there?" G-Dogg said over the comm.

  "Yeah, Dogg," Kellan replied, shaking off her other thoughts. They weren't done with business yet.

  "Looks like the Spikes bought us what we needed. Great idea, kid. Max is headed for the drop-off so we can get off the streets."

  "So ka," Kellan said. "Jackie, what's our status?"

  "I think you're in the clear," the decker replied. "I'm going to massage a few things online to convince Lone Star this is just another outbreak of gang violence between the Spikes and the Ancients; their response will focus on the gangs, so we can use it as cover. Odds are Ares won't report anything to the Star in a hurry, if they bother to report it at all. Max is going to want to sweep the truck for tracers, like we talked about, but, other than that, it looks good. Oh, and I think I've got a buyer who's very interested in some quality Ares merchandise."

  Kellan smiled and rubbed a dirty hand across her jaw. "Nice work," she said. "Set up a meet."

  "Already taken care of," Jackie replied. "The buyer will join us at the stash site."

  The cargo hauler clattered off into the darkened streets of the metroplex and Kellan listened to the roar of the bikes, and the sounds of gunfire, fading into the distance behind them. She glanced over at Orion. He was looking out into the dark, maybe thinking about the people who used to be his surrogate family. Were any of the Ancients who attacked them going to survive the night?

  Her plan had worked, but at what cost?

  19

  Silver Max expertly guided the battered cargo truck through the back streets on the outskirts of Redmond, avoiding what little traffic there was at such an early hour. They'd chosen a different meeting site than before, but the new one was also in the Barrens: there were more than a few places in the Redmond Barrens to hide a truck, even one the size of an Ares cargo hauler.

  The place used to be a mall, a retail store, or a commercial garage; it was difficult to tell for sure. The important thing was that it offered facilities to accommodate large trucks. G-Dogg jumped down from the cab to open up the overhead door and let Silver Max drive in, keeping an eye out for any signs of trouble. The shadowrunners in the back of the truck had been watching for signs of pursuit, but they saw none. The encounter with the Spikes had apparently sidetracked the Ancients, and there were no signs of Lone Star or Ares security.

  Max left the truck's headlights on, since there was no other light in the room. They threw a glare against the wall, casting long, dark shadows into the corners. The light silhouetted a slim shape that approached the truck from the darkness.

  "Right on time," Jackie Ozone said. "Are we all clear?"

  "Looks like," G-Dogg said with a smile.

  "Good." Jackie closed her eyes for a moment. As she dropped down from the back of the truck, Kellan could see the decker's lips moving slightly. She was subvocalizing, most likely for an implanted phone or commlink that was wired directly into her brain and linked to her ears and vocal cords.

  Jackie opened her eyes with a small, satisfied smile.

  "Our buyer will be here shortly," she said.

  "Don't you suppose you should check to make sure you actually have the goods first?" Lothan asked, clambering down from the truck. All eyes fixed on him.

  Kellan felt her heart sink for a moment before Lothan began chuckling, then laughing.

  "Don't worry!" the troll mage said. "Just a little joke."

  "Well, you would know what's really in those crates, wouldn't you?" Kellan muttered. Lothan's expression darkened.

  "I know it may be costing me a fair amount," he replied quietly.

  "Let's start with our percentage off the top," G-Dogg said. He began prying the tops off the crates, and Kellan suddenly got the feeling it was like Christmas for the shadowrunners. The Street Deacon acquired a pair of Ares Predators, the Mark III model, which brought a genuine smile to the samurai's pale face. G-Dogg, Silver Max and Orion each chose two weapons, and Orion held out a sleek new Ares Crusader machine pistol to Kellan.

  "Check it out," he said.

  Kellan took the weapon and hefted it. It was relatively light, with an extended clip and burst-fire mode. She sighted along its barrel. It was a top-of-the-line gun, and she decided to keep it.

  "If you're quite finished playing," Lothan said dryly, "time is money."

  "My sentiments exactly," said another voice, and Kellan turned to see a woman enter the building. She was human, wearing a smart corporate pantsuit and a pale blue T-shirt. Her straight blond hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she wore sunglasses, despite the fact that it was the middle of the night. Kellan assumed the shades either contained electronics and a heads-up display, or they concealed their guest's cybereyes.

  She carried a slim bag slung over her shoulder, and a small, flatscreen personal secretary in one hand.

  "Ms. Johnson," Jackie said by way of greeting, and the woman nodded.

  "So, then, what do we have?" she asked, walking past the shadowrunners toward the back of the truck. G-Dogg gave her a hand up, and she quickly took inventory of the contents of the crates, excepting the items removed by the shadowrunners. She scanned the barcode affixed to the outside of each crate, then spent a few moments tapping the screen of her pocket secretary. Then she stepped down from the back of the truck.

  "A nice little haul," she pronounced, heading over to Jackie and presenting her with the pocket comp. The decker glanced at the screen, then looked over at Kellan, raising her eyebrows in a silent question.

  Kellan joined the two women, and Jackie held out the pocket secretary for her to examine. She looked at the figures highlighted on the screen and did her best to maintain a poker face. The truth was, she had no idea what the weapons were worth, though Jackie had provided an estimate beforehand based on the shipping manifest, which was pretty close to the figure the buyer was offering. She looked back at the decker and nodded slightly, and Jackie returned her nod, taking the pocket comp back from Kellan and handing it to the buyer.

  "Done," she said and the woman looked satisfied.

  "Very well. I'll take possession from here, then?" Ja
ckie looked at Kellan, who shrugged.

  "Fine by me," she said. "We're out of here."

  Ms. Johnson slotted a credstick into the pocket secretary and manipulated the keys. There was an electronic purr, then she withdrew the stick and passed it to Kellan.

  "Certified credit," the woman said, "as agreed. I believe that concludes our business. Nice working with you. Jackie, if you have other merchandise like this to unload sometime, let me know."

  "Of course," the decker said with a smile.

  The shadowrunners moved to the far side of the building, where Jackie and G-Dogg's cars and Orion's motorcycle waited.

  "Kellan, a moment of your time, if I may?" Lothan asked, motioning Kellan over to him. She glanced at the other shadowrunners, particularly Orion, in what she hoped was a confident and encouraging way.

  "I'll be right there," she said. Then she and Lothan moved away from the group before the troll mage spoke again.

  "You don't have anything to worry about," he began. "I don't bear grudges. They're not very productive, for one thing. When you've been around as long as I have, you learn that it's better to focus on the productive side of things.

  "I do also appreciate your: discretion in this matter," Lothan continued. Kellan could tell that it was a difficult admission for the old troll. "That you didn't say anything to the others."

  "And I'm not going to," Kellan said, "though I'm sure they've pretty much figured it out."

  "Of course-they're not fools. Well, not most of them, anyway," Lothan said quietly, with a faint smile playing at the edges of his mouth.

  "But I'd like to know," Kellan said. "What were you doing, Lothan?"

  The troll shrugged. "Like I said, just business. Our Mr. Johnson wanted a little extra insurance to make sure things went well. He passed me off to his people as additional security but, of course, I was supposed to help ensure that the shipment fell into the Ancients' hands."

  "So you knew. I mean, when I came to you, you knew:"

  "About Brickman's plans? For the most part."

  "But you said:"

  "I told you to stay out of it," Lothan said firmly. "With good reason. I didn't see a need to inform you of my business, since Mr. Johnson was paying for discretion. I thought it was enough to dissuade you, but I see now I should have been more: forthcoming."

  "It would have saved a lot of trouble if you had just told me the truth."

  Lothan smiled tightly. "If you're looking for the truth, you had best get used to disappointment, my dear. In my experience, few people ever tell the truth, unless it suits their purposes, and even then it's rarely the whole truth."

  "You could have just trusted me," Kellan replied, and Lothan's face became very serious.

  "Kellan," he said gravely. "If you never pay attention to any other lesson I give you, heed this one: trust yourself and your own instincts, but if you want to survive and prosper in the shadows, then trust no one else. Ever." Then the troll smiled, showing his tusks and yellowed teeth. "Except for me, of course. Trust your honored teacher and mentor in all things." Kellan returned the smile, but felt no warmth from it in the chill of the dark and empty room.

  "So," she said, "next lesson on Friday?"

  Lothan nodded. "I'm looking forward to it. I now believe your potential far surpasses my initial assessment. I suspect instructing you will prove a very interesting experience."

  Lothan glanced over to see Orion approaching. He gave Kellan a parting nod, then turned and lumbered off toward the other shadowrunners. Orion watched Lothan go with a cool glance before turning his attention to Kellan.

  "G-Dogg and the others want to grab a drink and something to eat before they head home," he said. "I'm going to take off, but I wanted to say goodbye."

  "You're part of this team," Kellan said. "You should come with us."

  "I don't know:" Orion hesitated. "I hadn't really thought about it until now, but I don't really have anywhere else to go."

  "I'm sorry."

  "For what?"

  "For everything that happened," Kellan apologized, somewhat lamely. She hugged her arms to her chest, unwilling to look at Orion. "I didn't mean for things to turn out this way."

  "I made my own choices," the elf replied. "I could have easily ignored you, gone along with what Green Lucifer wanted."

  "Why didn't you?" she asked.

  "I guess: because you cared enough to do what you thought was right," Orion replied. "You took a real chance coming to me with what you found out. Most shadowrunners just assume the Johnson is double-dealing then and accept it as the price of doing business. They don't think about what happens to people they don't know. You did, and that's pretty damn rare in this world, Kellan."

  "Fat lot of good it did," Kellan said. "In the end, I just got a lot of people killed."

  "I think that's why most people don't bother trying to do what's right." Orion frowned. "There are no guarantees it will turn out the way you expect. You can only do your best."

  "I guess so," Kellan said. "G-Dogg and Lothan and the others make it sound like the right thing is whatever lets you survive and get ahead."

  "Is that what you think?"

  Kellan shook her head. "I don't know. Back in Kansas City, it seemed so simple. Seattle is: different. Nothing's easy here."

  Orion shrugged. "My mom used to say, 'If it's easy, it's probably not worth doing.' You have to make your own choices."

  Kellan looked at him and smiled. "Well, I'm sure of this," she said. "Right now, we're alive, we've got a hell of a lot of nuyen, the night's not over yet, and there's a whole metroplex I'd like to explore. It would be great if you came along."

  Orion grinned. "You make me an offer I can't refuse."

  Together they walked back to where G-Dogg, Liada and Silver Max waited.

  "I made a call, and we can get into Reno's downtown if we move out now," G-Dogg said. "The doorman's a chummer of mine, and he owes me one." "That's wiz," Kellan agreed. "Let's buzz." She climbed onto the back of Orion's bike and hugged her arms around the elf's waist. G-Dogg took the others in the Argent. With a roar of engines, they disappeared into the shadows.

  Epilogue

  When the other runners were gone, Jackie Ozone went back into the abandoned building, where several men in nondescript street clothes had joined Ms. Johnson. They were in the process of transferring the crates from the back of the truck onto a flatbed, covering the barcodes and other markings with new labels, and even stripping the Ares cargo hauler. In a matter of hours, the truck would be broken down for parts. It was an efficient operation, but then Jackie expected nothing less.

  "Your information was accurate," Ms. Johnson said to Jackie. "These Ares weapons will be quite useful, once we've arranged to put them into the right hands."

  "I knew you would think so," the decker replied, and her corporate contact nodded.

  "More importantly," Ms. Johnson said, "Ares will end up with a great deal of explaining to do when the source of the weapons leaks to the media. I doubt they will 'lose' any more shipments of weapons in the immediate future."

  "So much for making Knight Errant look good," Jackie said.

  "Exactly."

  "Lone Star's police services contract should be safe enough."

  Ms. Johnson shrugged. "I couldn't care less about Lone Star," she said, "so long as Knight Errant doesn't acquire the police services contract for Seattle. Having an Ares subsidiary in charge of law enforcement here could potentially complicate matters for us. It's been trouble in Boston, and that's a good deal closer to our headquarters."

  "So, then," Jackie said. "I can assume that everything is satisfactory?"

  "Indeed," Ms. Johnson replied. She reached into her shoulder bag and withdrew a credstick, which she handed to Jackie. "Here's our agreed-upon finder's fee for setting things up." Jackie slotted the stick into a reader she produced from her own bag and confirmed the amount on it was correct.

  "Excellent," she said with a smile. "A pleasure doing business wit
h you, Eve, as always."

  "Likewise, Jackie," the other woman replied. "I assume our arrangement remains just between us?"

  "Of course. All the others know is that I found us a buyer for the merchandise in record time. They don't know anything about Cross Technologies' involvement or that I contacted you about acquiring the goods in advance of the run."

  "Good," Eve said. "I would like to maintain our arrangement, if you're still interested. Having you on retainer has proven very useful to us."

  "And to me," Jackie said.

  "Good. Keep me informed of anything you come across that might be of interest to us, and I'll ensure you are well compensated."

  "Absolutely," the decker said, patting the credstick stowed in her bag.

  As she walked out of the building, Jackie saw a group of ragged gangers pull up outside, astride heavy motorcycles. The bikes were tricked out in red and orange flames, and each ganger wore a jacket painted with a snarling hound's head wreathed in flames.

  Things are about to change along Route I-405, Jackie thought as she headed to her car. The Ares weapons would make the Hellhounds a force to be reckoned with in the area. The fact that the Hellhounds hated metahumans-especially gangs like the Ancients and the Spikes-would keep things interesting in the balance of power. She was sure that the fact that their turf ran near Knight Errant's training academy was no coincidence. She only wished that she could see the look on Brickman's face when he found out exactly where his missing weapons had gone.

  Simon Brickman was clearly unhappy. He sat in his office, glowering at the two figures seated on the opposite side of his broad desk, his expression growing increasingly stormy as he listened to their recitals of everything that had happened the previous night, listened as the operation he'd planned came apart.

  "Dammit, Lothan," he said finally, slamming a hand down on his desk. "What the frag am I paying you for?"

  "You paid me to ensure the Ancients were dealt with," the troll mage replied calmly, "which I did. You didn't pay me to deal with unexpected trouble, or to throw myself in the way of danger."