Gamma Protocol (028) (Patreon)

[028]

There was one thing I’d learned about from the Sewer Saints that I was certain they’d not intended to reveal: that there were other “hunting grounds” like the Well. Points near where monsters would naturally gather. The gangs, naturally, wanted control over these areas since they provided easy access to monsters. And they also, naturally, didn’t like broadcasting the location of such areas for anyone online to find.

But anyone with a baseline understanding of how monsters behaved, and a map, could guesstimate their relative locations. And it just so happened that I had both.

Having learned my lessons from my previous rendezvous, I started off by picking out a locker-storage company that wasn’t too far from the location I suspected had the convergence point. I proceeded to leave my stuff under lock and key, alongside a collection of person-sized protein-chow bags. And the all-important flavor packets from the bodega I’d bought the night prior.

With the preparations complete and carrying only a bag with a set of spare clothes, I began exploring.

At a glance, the graffiti in the area seemed to indicate that the “polar-bears on bikes” gang was far more unified than the “rats and mice” gangs. There were no variations, and most of the murals looked older, having only minor “new” art on the corners and undersides. The gang members themselves I avoided, they moved around with very loud bikes, the sort of noise I could pick up from far enough I could detour and avoid.

With the (few) street-lights coming on, and the roads starting to get some action again as people began coming back to their homes, I found my target: a decrepit sewage treatment plant. The building was embedded into the third wall, a crumbling piece of concrete and rebar with shattered windows. There was a massive graffiti of a polar bear with a six-barreled shotgun, with each barrel connected to one of the six equally large pipes that protruded out of the treatment facility.

I was fairly sure this was my destination based on the smell. Monsters had a rot to them, something foul and dying, and this place reeked of it.

Fortunately it looked like the facility itself had not seen use in a long time, I had to imagine it was at least seventy years old, having been there to provide the city necessary services until the corporations had figured out how to make use out of waste-water. The poop-skirmishes were a brief if notable mention within corpo-history class. Nowadays, most of the infrastructure had been cut-up, with every mega-building repurposing it for the purposes of water-collection.

At least that was how it’d been over at FC02, I wasn’t entirely sure how much of that still held over here.

As I approached the relic, I noticed that the lights were on. There was even a gathering of people near the gate, talking cheerfully with one another. The “polar-bear bikers” gang were decked in polar-bear related merch, which wasn’t exactly a surprise. It was a page right out of Company-Culture 101: Have employees buy and wear your merch so they feel economically invested in identifying with your brand.

Some things never changed.

Turning my focus back to the problem at hand, as much as I disliked gangs, the ones in New Francisco appeared to be invested in ending monsters to some degree or another. There was no need to start a shoot-out over what were clearly some freely-available monsters in need of killing.

AP: 50 / 150

“Let’s play this smart.” I began exploring the general area, trying to get a better sense of the area. My goal was to find some unprotected monster-infested corner and get some work done. If it turned out things were too tightly protected, then I'd slink off and find somewhere else.

The fence was rusty, but not as old as the facility itself, with a large empty concrete canal where the waste-water must’ve flowed through at some point or another. The thing was full of dirt, debris, and trash. There were signs of battle here and there as well, scorch-marks and craters, alongside deep scratches and gouges that had long ago exposed rebar to the environment.

As far as places to sneak in went, there were plenty so long as I wasn’t afraid of getting tetanus from the fence. This gang was clearly not that disciplined or well funded. So I picked a spot outside the fence, hid away my clothes under some pieces of debris, and focused on the task ahead.

“I need to sneak in.”

The system… did nothing. The text practically shrugged at me.

“No sneak stat?” I furrowed my brows a little. “Fine, I suppose. I’d go for agility, but that’s not-” Closing my eyes, I tried to focus. “Look, remember the Hellcat? They’re sneaky too, right? It might not have been a power, but do you think you could help with that? Please?”

Velo̎c̛͊íty M̔o͍̽d̴̓e̱ (1):

 -1 AP / Second
* +5 Speed / Second *

The prompt came with a slight scoff, proudly puffing up and filling my veins with a thousand energy drinks at the same time. The feeling was different from the first time around, not spreading throughout my whole body, but rather focusing on my legs and head.

Well, it was worth the try.

I stripped before the transformation turned my current clothes into another victim. My body grew, I could sense the changes again, rushing through me, bones becoming denser, muscles tightening… I closed my eyes and just breathed, taking it all in. The shift in my shoulders, my mouth, my hearing, everything was becoming sharper as the seconds ticked down.

Achievement: Reach +200 Adaptative Speed
Unlocked: Twitch Muscles
Reaction speed is halved.

Adaptive Speed at 200! Cap reached!

AP: 10 / 150

Slowly letting out my breath, I glanced down at myself. This time around I had blackened fur covering my body, and as I took a step, I was pleasantly surprised at finding out my feet were now padded, muffling sound somewhat. Not completely, but definitely more than in previous two iterations.

I glanced at the achievement for a moment, then frowned. Hadn’t I earned this before? The pop-up rattled at me, and I got the distinct impression that it only counted for each transformation. It would stick around until I turned back, but I’d need to earn it every time.

With a small thanks to the system’s attempts to help, I began making my way towards the pipes, using the debris and trash for cover (or at least as best I could. Being large isn’t helpful to being sneaky). Fortunately, the gang members were too busy trying to just waste time, so I eventually managed to reach the tunnels.

There was the second obstacle: a camera.

It’d been set up on a metal post, and aimed at the six tunnels, the cable running from the post and over to the facility building. I figured there were other cameras throughout the place, and someone was meant to keep watch.

Glancing over at the tunnels, and then at the building, I ran the maths.

After about a moment of consideration, I made my choice.

‘Blades’ G-Class 1/10 Cost: 10 AP

AP: 00 / 150

My hands and feet turned into claws, but unlike last time, the claws were more discreet, almost paw-like rather than some sort of bird-foot or finger-knife. Maybe the result was different based on whether I applied the change before applying an adaptation?

Something to think about later.

I very carefully squeezed the camera’s cable and rubbed it between my claws, fraying it until it eventually snapped. That way, it hopefully didn’t look like someone had taken to cutting it with a pair of scissors.

By the time the gang members at the entrance had started to react, I’d already reached the pipes, picking the one with the strongest monster scent and vanishing inside. Behind me, voices started to call out, lights turning on, bike engines revving up.

Faster than I’d expected, but not fast enough. 

With my sharper senses, I could vaguely make out the shape of my surroundings in the darkness, but vision proved far less important compared to sound and smell. There was a stench of fresh monsters, and I was headed straight for it.

There was a refreshing lack of trash inside the pipes.

I wondered just how far these things went?

---

Pretty freaking far.

I’d been walking at a fair “don’t smack against a wall” pace, keeping my left claw against the left side of the pipe, for what must’ve been at least half an hour. Maybe. The darkness wasn’t absolute enough to leave me completely blind, but it still felt like it was playing tricks on my sense of time.

There’d been a very mild downward slope, which… felt like it shouldn’t. But I wasn’t about to question that when the monster-stench was becoming stronger the further I went.

Fortunately, around the time I had started wondering whether I should turn around, I began noticing sounds other than my own scrapping footsteps. Growls and snarls, and rattling. Rattling that became louder as I got closer, moving a little faster, excited at the prospect of finally getting to kill some monsters.

At the end of the tunnel, there was finally light.

I squinted as I adjusted to the artificial source of illumination, looking at what I could only describe as a massive… cistern? No, it wasn’t a cistern. I couldn’t quite make out the details, but it looked like someone had constructed a massive underground dome, perhaps thirty or so meters across. With the pipe I stood in hanging over a void, a dozen meters above the ground.

And down there were monsters. Dozens of G-class monsters, just wailing at one another, snarling, biting, cutting. They’d readily and gleefully attack each other in some sort of bloody battle-royale.

I’d known monsters attacked each other in the wilderness sometimes, but I’d never imagined it could be like this! Their behaviour was definitely odd even then, why weren’t they just looking for humans like they would usually?

AP: 00 / 150

The system whined at me, demanding that I jump down and become the executioner. Not something I was against, but I didn’t want to go in blindly, I glanced around, only then noticing three other critically important things.

The first were the pipes. There were four other pipes much like the one I was currently in, but they were barred, holding-

BZZZZT

The bars on one of the pipes lifted, a metal plate within it shoving the monsters that’d been contained there down to the arena. A fresh dozen joined the brawl, mindlessly attacking one another to continue the relentless slaughter.

My focus shifted to the roof of the dome, where three auto-cannon turrets quietly watched the brawl. None of them moved, but the lights were on, signaling they were ready to unload on their targets at the push of a button. Between those turrets were also eight high-definition cameras that were considerably active, tracking the various monsters as they moved about.

I couldn’t make sense of this.

Though, I certainly didn’t want to put myself into a situation where those turrets could take a shot at me. It seemed like this had been a washout. Maybe some of the other pipes would lead elsewhere? The monsters were clearly coming from multiple places at once, and my goal was to try and go about killing monsters unperturbed (and without starting anything).

Yet as I turned around to leave, I froze.

There was someone right there.

A figure clad in shadows, a living breathing silhouette that mimicked a human form. Its head rose as if to stare at me, even though its face was devoid of features. There was a nothingness to its gaze, a cold calculation to my existence. Since when have they been there!? Even looking directly at them, I could hear not a sound, nor smell a single scent.

I noticed it held a blade right as it swung at me.

I leapt backwards, feeling the cold bite of metal on my shoulder.

BZZZZT

Slamming against the ground, I looked up, finding the pipe I’d come from barred. The shadowy figure staring down at me for several long silent seconds… then vanishing.

It was at that time that I heard the distinctive click of the auto-canons loading their rounds and taking aim.

---

“Doctor, you need to see this.”

Moreau frowned, lifting her gaze from the microscope and turning to glance over at Bob. “What is it?” She demanded, an irritated bite to her voice, pushing herself to disengage from the research-multi-thread, leaving her electronic assistants to continue crunching through the data in her stead.

“Here.” Bob sent a link, urging her to step away from the small portable laboratory she’d set up in the apartment’s bathroom.

A first scan confirmed it was a seedy streaming site in the fourth district. “I swear if this is another one of those ‘surprise it’s actually porn’ links…”

“Just open it!” Bob’s tone was dead serious.

With a sigh, she set up a few spoofed accounts and nested virtual machines to click through on her stead. The AI’s immediately jumped to block the sea of ads, and once the stream began to properly buffer, the doctor’s brows knit together, sixty different feeds plugged in to create a pseudo-3D-scape of an arena.

There was a monster at the center of the screen, a wolf-like creature, bipedal, covered in a blackish fur that shimmered as if made out of pearls. Every time a camera tried to lock on to it, the image would twitch, forcing the algorithms to only focus on spots near the monster rather than on the creature. It was as if the creature was out of focus compared to everything else in the arena.

“That can’t be…”

The creature was surrounded by the steaming goopy chunks of dead monsters, yet its eyes kept glancing up at the canons in the ceiling. Though the creature’s appearance was somewhat different than the last time she’d seen him, Moreau recognized that glint of intelligence in his eyes.

“It’s him, isn’t it.” She groaned, proceeding to flop over at the couch.

“That’s not what matters.” Bob growled. “Rewind to when he’s dropped.”

“He’s my most valuable sample to-”

Her complaints came to a stop as she noticed the look Bob was giving her. Arms crossed, holding his gun, pale as a whiteboard. Which was unnerving in of itself, the man had flown AV’s in active duty against B-class monsters, there were very few things that should’ve been able to put him into such a state.

Doing as told, she paid the extra fee to rewind. It was slightly humorous watching her sample turning monster-gore into fully fledged little pests, as well as the little ‘avoid the gunfire’ dance he’d pulled off for a solid minute. Then she reached the point of entry, when he’d practically jumped through one of the open tunnels… backwards.

Moreau stopped the clip, and slowed it down.

The quality wasn’t all that great even for a stream, but she could tell something was off.

Axel looking into the arena, only to then turning around to leave, and then… a flicker.

A lost frame in the recording.

Followed by Axel jumping as if to avoid an unseen attack.

“Oh.” Moreau swallowed hard.

“Tell me it’s not her.” Bob’s voice came in a low growl. “Tell me they didn’t send the shadow after us.”

The scientist scowled, extracting copies of the recordings and having her assistants prioritize their processing. Within seconds, they compiled a dozen different instances of an arena camera losing focus for barely a frame or two. Individually, they could’ve just been random failures or little glitches, things one could easily ignore.

Compiled together, they showed something moving across the arena, circling around Axel, something even he himself appeared entirely unaware of. “It is.” The doctor muttered. Out of all the scenarios, out of all the possibilities, she would’ve expected to get some top-tier merc group sent her way. Not a meguca. “I don’t know who could’ve pushed for this.”

“What do we do?” Bob’s voice came out deep with concern. “She’s using him as bait.”

“That she is.” Moreau sat down, crossing her arms and glaring at the feeds. For the life of her, she couldn’t fathom anyone in upper-management that’d want her dead badly enough to pay for this meguca’s services. Something reeked, but there wasn’t anything she could do about it right now.

“Do you…” He started to ask the question but left it lingering.

With a sigh, the doctor shook her head. At her command, a few infection algorithms hopped on over into the servers hosting the stream. Feedback flowed in freely and quickly, Moreau checked the details and nodded along. “I’ll see what I can do.”  Another second heavier sigh followed. “Also, prepare for a quick getaway, we’ll be moving to safehouse B. I’d like to claim what I’m about to do will be untraceable, but best not take any chances.”

Nodding quickly, Bob set out to get packing.

Giving one last glance at the stream, Moreau pondered on a few other ideas. The consideration of chastising Axel was the first thing she thought of, but quickly tossed it away. The young man had spent a considerable amount of time under constant surveillance, self-restraining his very act. It was clear Axel had yet to fully stretch out his metaphorical wings, he had the brains, but was too naive. In that sense, the fourth district was the perfect place for him to learn how to survive, it lacked the ever-present AI ad-systems of the third, second, and first districts, while at the same time every monster-hunting ground was tightly accounted for.

Stumbling on to the shadow assassin had just been a stroke of the worst possible luck.

“Ah, found a way.” Her lips curled in amusement as she began seeding the stream’s software. “I can get him a chance to get out, but whether he can take it is all up to him…” She began her work.

Time to feed the growing magubo his much needed “vitamins”.

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AN:

Sorry for the delay, gonna be ramping up chapter-posting back up now that I've finally put everything into gear