Raddick: Terminal Terminus

Risking a stop at his home, Raddick fed his manatee

and grabbed a quick skin ID before

porting through his modified sunlight capsule.

With the new skin, he would blend in better in a crowd,

is pixel signature coming up as a long dead Virkill Assassin.

Raddick's plan to confront Marson in Hadean fell flat,

with the price on his head that was agitating more

killers & creeps. Gotta keep moving. 

Pushing through the crowd at Terminal Terminus

 nightclub, Raddick felt a little safer blending

in with the doxx-punk clientele.

He had to find CyMa, she might be able to help

erase Marson's bounty, or at least slow it down. 

Raddick knew CyMa was likely not on-level,

but perhaps one of her simulacrum were.

They could get a message back to her. 

As Raddick suspected, CyMa was not there,

but it appeared her Steel Dojo variant was.

Making his way across the crowded dance floor,

Raddick noticed  she was being guarded

by a huge sonnabitch.

As Raddick approached the bar,

it became clear the bouncer was affixed on him movements.

Despite no visible eyes, the bouncer's

head movements told Raddick his moves

were being clocked. Taking another step,

the bouncer reached up it's massive arm

and tapped the side of CyMa's head.

His glove crackled with energy and she winced in surprise. 

Raddick froze in his tracks, the crowd

ignorant to what was going down.

She seemed distressed, should he make a move? 

Yellow energy began encircling CyMa's arms,

Raddick first thought was the club's lighting

effects were going bonkers. 

Her limbs reformed as weapons, a sick smile now on her face.

Without hesitation, she took aim at Raddick. 

Raddick was too stunned at her transformation to react,

taking the blast in his right bicep.

His teeth gritted together at immense pain. 

The music stopped, the lights came up,

and the faceless crowd started to scatter. 

Cornered, Raddick held his hands up in surrender,

his arm sizzling from the blast. He was beaten. 

Or was he? 

Launching himself out the large window,

Raddick landed on the roof top of a passing hover delivery.

With his back to the roof and the wind whizzing by his body,

Raddick covered his arm with his vest and exhaled.

A quiet moment.

Marson's bounty seemed more determined

to keep him busy, rather than kill him.

Those guards could've taken their shot and

collected the bounty...why hadn't they? 

The vehicle started to slow descent into Old Town

and Raddick took his chance to disembark.

Old Town was one of the few places cops didn't go,

bounty hunters feared to tread,

and surveillance was near impossible.

The perfect place to take a breather. 

Wrapping himself in a discarded tarp,

Raddick walked towards the night market. 

His HUD glasses pinged, a new message had arrived. 

BASEMENT LEVEL
CLINIC ABREGADO 
SUITE 808B
I'M NO FRIEND OF MARSON

It was encrypted, no signature. Yet another trap?

Raddick's arm pulsated in pain, he decided to risk it.

Despite being midnight, Abregado was bustling

with all sort of Vect-dealers, edible mod merchants,

and dweebs selling "Free 30 hrs of AOL" disks.

Raddick descended a cracked stairwell into a barely lit sub-basement.

The door to 808B was ajar. Moving slowly, Raddick peeked in. 

A man with a grey hair and a long scar over his eye was sitting next to a dentist chair. 
"Take a seat." He tapped the cushion next to him. "Let's take a look at that arm." 

****

His name was Silver.

Had worked as a Doctor for Marson for years,

trying to be a mitigating force against his cruelty.

Silver had just broken rank with Marson,

on his way out the door he saw the

bounty on Raddick's head.

Figured they might have the same interest

in stopping that martian bastard. 

"I'm heading for Earth. I'm going to link up

with the Hyper Defectors there. Start anew.

Push back on Marson." Silver said.

"I've been watching your movements.

Figured a guy with your skills would be useful to our cause." 

Raddick gritted his teeth as Silver tightened

the metal arm-healer into place. 

"I can't go to Earth. And I'm not into causes."

Raddick offer through the pain. "But thanks for the fix."

 

Raddick threw his tarp back on, heading for the door.

He stopped for a moment and turned to Silver. 

"I can't help you, but I can get you to some good people.

Look up the Knights of the Slice. They've taken in a few of your people.

As far as Earthlings go...they're trustworthy." Raddick offered. 

Silver nodded, his injured eye staring dead at Raddick. 

Raddick turned. "I had a friend...Lince Runbro

...He disappeared a while back. Did he pass through your little

torture factory?" 

Silver stared unflinching.

A poker face carved out of stone. 
"I don't know." 

****