2062
| | Nov/Dec 2062 |
Blood and Iron makes a clean sweep of all the ladders Blood and Iron makes a clean sweep of all the ladders Blood and Iron makes a clean sweep of all the ladders Blood and Iron makes a clean sweep of all the ladders  *PART 4* As the squadron rolled through the folded hills of the Haven Valley, Lioness took the lead position from Panther. Brooke practiced unloading and reloading the gun, and Mellie scanned the horizon, with narrow, intent eyes. As they were passing out of the green of farms and into the golden scrub of the arid "rough country" between the Haven Valley and the desert proper. Only the hardiest and best-armed herdsmen used the rough country for pasture, since pirates used it as a quick way to get from their camps in the desert into the Somerset region. After a half-hour of patrol, Brooke could feel her hands unloading and reloading the gun without any input from her mind, her fingers moving through the motions of their own volition. "Stop practicing, Brooke," Mellie said, and Brooke faltered in her loading and stared at the driver. Mellie shoved the other radio headset at Brooke, and Brooke put it on. "Finish that load and get ready, I think we've found us action." She pressed a stud on her steering wheel and spoke into the microphone at her chin. "Boss, contact at bearing two-eighty, twelve clicks, moving north through Sector Twelve. Bet it's a raider group." Orth's voice issued from the headset, tinny and washed with static. "Roger that, Sines. Check it out, we'll be right behind you." Mellie tapped at her microphone, then angled Lioness to the right, off the road. Lioness' engine rose to a dull roar, and the Bullet bucked and bounced over the rough earth, and orange dust clouds billowed outside the narrow slits in the Bullet's armor. Brooke held on tight to the gun handles, keeping her fingers well away from the trigger. Her stomach churned, and in between half-coherent prayers, she castigated herself for jumping into yet another dangerous situation without thinking. Compared to the unknown hazards of wasteland pirates, Peter Hanlin seemed positively benign. "What's wrong, little thinker?" Mellie asked over the roar of the engine, and the old nickname distracted Brooke from her fear. She finished loading the gun and swung it from side to side, testing the limits of its motion imposed by the narrow slit in the Bullet's forward armor. Her legs twitched and shook in the footwell, bumping her knee painfully against the spare magazine storage. "Peter Hanlin... doesn't seem that bad next to this." Mellie laughed and grinned ferally. "You have a gun, which you wouldn't have if you were dealing with Peter. Relax, little thinker, it'll be all right. There aren't a lot of pirates that can catch us if we want to run." Brooke nodded. An orange dust plume was visible against the pale sky ahead, its source obscured behind a low ridge of rock. Mellie turned Lioness and drove parallel to the plume's course. After a moment, the rock dwindled back into the soil, revealing three dark red vehicles running down a dirt track, shrouded in the plumes of dust from their tires. The one in front was a Pickup, and a pair of sedans followed behind: one a blocky and square Chevalier, the other a low and rounded Voyager. A square, dark gray icon was visible on each vehicle's flank. "Ironmongers," Mellie reported over the radio. The two sedans behind the Pickup began to turn for them, and Brooke's throat tightened with fear. Her hands on the gun were clammy with sweat, and she resisted the urge to wipe them on her coverall. Instead, she made sure the microphone on her headset was turned off. "Roger that," Orth's voice came from Brooke's earpieces. "Three-Oh-One." Mellie tapped her microphone, and Lioness accelerated sharply toward the road. The sedans began firing at Lioness, bright red rockets screaming over Lioness' roof. Brooke ducked reflexively. How did I ever think this was a good idea? Brooke glanced out the side slit toward the sedans just in time to spot a pair of low black shapes rocket out of the dust, one long with streaks of blue, the other short with flashing green eyes. Golden tracers streamed into the Chevalier. It turned away and was quickly lost in the dust, along with Panther. The Voyager stayed on Lioness, jinking and twisting from side to side to avoid Asp's guns. Another rocket reached for Lioness, but went wide and detonated to one side, throwing up a cloud of dust and a hail of rocks and shrapnel that pinged off Lioness' flank. A bright light flashed from Asp to the Voyager. The rocket exploded with a blinding flash and a thunderous explosion, much louder than the rockets launched from the Voyager. The cloud of dust thrown up by the detonation obscured the Voyager for an instant, and Brooke wondered if it had been destroyed. Surely nothing could absorb that fury and keep driving. But an instant later, the Voyager drove out of the cloud, trailing thin streamers of smoke from its dented flank, and veered into a ditch. Asp followed the sedan, and soon, both were gone from Brooke's vision. A hand landed on Brooke's shoulder, and she glanced at Mellie, who pointed forward. Brooke twisted and faced forward, her face flushing painfully with embarrassment. But Mellie was grinning at her as she yelled, "Little thinker, here's our job. Chase down that truck," she pointed at the Pickup that was running down the track ahead of them, some hundred meters distant. Despite the rough road, Lioness kept pace with no difficulty. Mellie went on, "And get it to surrender without doing too much damage to it. Shoot to scare, not to kill, got it?" Brooke didn't, but she nodded anyway. Mellie pressed the accelerator harder, and Lioness sang louder and surged forward, closing on the Pickup. Brooke's throat closed tighter and tighter as fear and excitement chased each other in a whirling blaze behind her eyeballs. Her hands fidgeted on the sweat-slick grips as she waited for the Pickup to cross her sights. "Fire!" Mellie shouted at her. Brooke jumped, and her finger reflexively tightened on the trigger. The trigger resisted her finger only a little before it gave way. The Five-Five chattered and shook in her hands, like an unhappy live thing trying to escape, and the smell of gunsmoke filled her nose. Hot brass casings streamed from the slot in the side, to clatter into a metal container under the gun. Brooke couldn't tell if she hit the truck or not, but it began swerving from side to side, then turned to expose its left flank. Something on its door flashed and spat glowing tracers back at Lioness. One bullet deflected off the windscreen with a loud ping! Brooke ducked down into her seat, gritted her teeth, and pulled the trigger again. The gun bucked and chattered again, but Brooke was ready for it, trying to aim for the source of the Pickup's return fire. As she twisted the gun to bring her sights and her fire onto the Pickup's flank, Brooke felt an odd calm come over her. She didn't care that she was being shot at, or that she didn't really know how to operate the gun in front of her, or Orth's dire warnings. She felt as if she was floating a finger's breadth away from the rest of the world, except for her target and the roaring gun in her hands. The Pickup, stung by her fire, tried to twist away, but Mellie drove Lioness forward and twisted the wheel, throwing the Bullet into a power slide, keeping Lioness' nose - and her teeth - pointing into the Pickup's flank. Brooke raked the Pickup with her fire, revelling in the sparks and shards of armor flying from her bullets' impact sites. A puff of white smoke coughed from the Pickup's hood, and the machine gun fire stopped coming back at Lioness. An empty hand appeared in the truck's window and waved frantically, and the Pickup slowed to a halt. Brooke's hands flew off the gun's handles as if the gun had turned into a live serpent. She felt sick in the pit of her stomach. She'd been shooting bullets at people. This was more fun when there weren't other people in this. Mellie's hand landed on her shoulder, and Brooke jumped in her seat and glanced at her driver. Mellie grinned at her and coasted Lioness to a stop, about ten meters from the Pickup. "Boss, Pickup has surrendered. Orders?" "Hold on. We'll be right there." Orth's voice sounded oddly washed-out in Brooke's headset. Brooke heard the rumble of engines from behind her, and twisted in her seat to look out the Bullet's rear slit. Coming down the road toward them was an odd parade: The two Ironmongers sedans, both bearing jagged tears and bullet holes, drove slowly in front of the two other Legion cars. Behind the parade came four figures in gray clothing: two walking with guns over their shoulders, and the third supporting the fourth. "Who are they?" "Ironmongers." Brooke started in surprise, and Mellie grinned. "If they surrender, we let them live, and they return the favor if we're in a fight we can't win." Brooke nodded, and Orth's voice came from her headset again. "All right, looting time. Panther's on guard duty." Mellie grabbed her gun from the footwell and opened her door. "Come on, Brooke. Follow my lead." Brooke grabbed Daisy, slung the holster onto her shoulder, then opened the breech. Two brass shells winked back at her, and she opened her door and stepped out onto the dust. The light breeze was a relief after the stuffy confines of the Bullet. As she walked in Mellie's wake toward the battered Pickup, Brooke hefted Daisy and tried to look as tough as Mellie. The Pickup's doors opened and two men stepped out with raised hands. Each had a rifle slung over his shoulder, and one had a forearm covered with red-soaked strips of cloth. But the other one caught Brooke's attention. Even in defeat, with his buff coat torn in several places, he seemed as poised as the rich merchants' agents who came to deal with her father. Under slicked-back dark hair, his dark eyes assessed Mellie and her, and Brooke laid a finger across Daisy's triggers. The man glanced down at Daisy in Brooke's arms, and stopped dead. "Where did you get that, girl?" He asked. Brooke snapped the gun up to her shoulder, and her finger tensed on the triggers. The Ironmonger didn't flinch, but slung his rifle onto his shoulder and spread his hands wide. "May I inspect your weapon? Unloaded, of course." Brooke glanced aside at Mellie, who raised her rifle to her shoulder. From behind them, Orth's voice asked, "What's going on, ladies?" Mellie, without turning around, said, "He wanted to see Brooke's weapon." "Unloaded, of course," interjected the Ironmonger, spreading his hands a little wider. Orth regarded the Ironmonger with narrowed eyes, then unslung her own rifle. "If it's unloaded, I don't see how it can hurt. One wrong move, Monger, and I'll perforate you. Understand?" The Ironmonger nodded, and Orth waved at Brooke. "Unload your gun and hand it to him, Criddle." Brooke broke open Daisy's breech and tapped the shells into her palm, then closed Daisy and handed the gun barrel-first to the Ironmonger. The man took the gun carefully and turned it over in his hands, examining every inch of the stock. After a minute, he nodded and handed it back to Brooke, butt first. "Thank you, stranger. That weapon belonged to a friend of mine. Did he die well?" The question caught Brooke off guard, and she fumbled while reloading Daisy, and dropped one of the plastic shells on the ground. She bent to retrieve it and asked, "W-what?" She hadn't thought of the gun as being owned by somebody else before her. Brooke retrieved the shell, slid it into Daisy, and closed the breech. The Ironmonger watched her with his head cocked to one side, an odd expression on his face. "What did you mean, s-" She chopped off the 'sir' before it could pass her lips. Even though this man was an enemy, his gravity and authority seemed to deserve a 'sir.' "That weapon," the man pointed to the gun in Brooke's hands, "belonged to a very close friend of mine. He would not have let go of it if he were alive, therefore he is dead. Did he die well?" Brooke shut her mouth and glanced aside at Mellie, who shrugged. "I got it as part of the loot from hitting an Ironmongers convoy in the Old City, and gave it to her. I didn't check on where it came from. There were... a lot of bodies in that one." "I see. Thank you." The man turned and walked toward his gangmates. The six of them disappeared down the road. "What the hell?" Mellie asked when the Ironmongers were out of sight. Orth shrugged. "Don't know. You two check out the Pickup. We've wasted enough time already." Mellie saluted and led Brooke toward the Pickup. The truck's bed was covered by a metal plate, with hinges just behind the cab and a lock at the rear. Mellie pulled at the locking chain, then held her rifle out toward Brooke. "Lemme show you something. Gimme your gun." Brooke took Mellie's rifle by the stock and handed Daisy over. Mellie cocked one of Daisy's hammers and laid the barrel next to the chain. "Fire in the hole!" She called, and fired. The shotgun spoke with a roar all out of proportion to its size, and the lock dropped to the sand. Mellie handed Daisy back to Brooke and pushed the metal plate up. The truck's bed was filled with a dozen large metal cubes with carrying handles and small round screw-off tops. "Not water..." Mellie leaned into the bed and opened one lid. The distinctive odor of gasoline reached Brooke's nostrils. Mellie grinned and screwed the lid back onto its container. "Good job, girl, you just made us a lot of cash." by Fifth  Kendall `barbie` Steck of Rogue Traders died at The Pits. Daniel Avis of TotalCarnage died at Double Down Arena. Yasuko Terrio of finger3 died at Ring of Death Arena. Nicky `Middle` Six of Blood Roses died at Somerset Rally Circuit. Clarence Fitzpatrick of TotalCarnage died at Somerset Rally Circuit. Rosanne Gomez of rebelfish resurgent died at Road to Somerset. Shannon `Fish Eye` Robinson of OlDirty Bastards died at Road to Elmsfield. Major `Skid Row` Wadsworth of OlDirty Bastards died at Road to Elmsfield. Marilyn Harrison of Rabid died at Lost Oasis. Victor `The Soup` Campbell of Justifiable died at Forever Yellow Skies. Henry `Plague` Hill of OlDirty Bastards died at Road to Somerset. Geraldine Radtke of Roamers of Reverence died at Road to Somerset. Eric Kemp of Roamers of Reverence died at Road to Somerset. Terry Rose of Roamers of Reverence died at Road to Somerset. Julieta Taylor of Coolerheads died at Gates of Somerset. Rusty Balls of Renshai died at Gates of Somerset. `Dicky` Timothy Daniels of 69th Battalion died at Deadman`s Drop. Susannah Smith of Iron Company died at Gates of Somerset. Rhonda `Deep` Woods of Blood and Iron died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Ramona Lighty of TotalCarnage died at Lost Trail: Overland. Scott Yates of TotalCarnage died at Lost Trail: Dead River. Joseph Amundson of TotalCarnage died at Lost Trail: Overland. `MOMMA` Wendy Finklea of Justifiable died at Northern Farm Land. Cathie Stebbins of Angels Of Death died at Somerset`s Junkyard, Race Track 1. Rocky `Road` Rogers of Scarzams Dragoons died at Gates of Badlands Truckstop. Richard `Dick` Clark of Scarzams Dragoons died at Gates of Badlands Truckstop. `Brutal` Barbara Swanson of King of Clubs died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. `J C` Jason Cruz of King of Clubs died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Robert `Sperglord` Brown of Infinite Justice died at Highway to Hell. David Salinas of The F-Bombs died at Northern Farm Land. `Super` Steven Allen of Gesta Non Verba died at Texan Rally. Troy Thompson of Iron Company died at Pathway to Darkness. Dan Haack of Iron Company died at Pathway to Darkness. Queen `Drilla` Bronk of SunBurns died at Northern Farm Land. George Watkins of The F-Bombs died at Southern Plateau. Claudia Basler of Da Greese Monkeys died at Burning Skies. Tracy Basler of Da Greese Monkeys died at Burning Skies. Roslyn King of Blood Roses died at Gates of Elmsfield. Ralph Fountain of Lovely Boys died at Gates of Elmsfield. Mervin McCarthy of The Mighty Brain Slug Empire died at Ring of Death Arena. Natasha `Witch` Jackson of Les Loups Gris died at Gates of Somerset. Preston Roller of Loose Cannons died at Ring of Death Arena. Samuel `Franco` Harris of Coolerheads died at The Pit. Joseph `Off His` Rocker of finger3 died at Pathway to Darkness. Derrick `Danger` Masters of Roamers of Reverence died at Road to Elmsfield. Ronald `Reaper` Rodriguez of Roamers of Reverence died at Road to Elmsfield. Glenn `El Toro` Torres of Science Ninja Team died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. Lillian Taylor of Blood Roses died at Elmsfield Hills Rally Circuit. `Awesome` Albert Rogers of 69th Battalion died at Northern Farm Land. `Shocking` Shelby Duncan of 69th Battalion died at Northern Farm Land. `Jackass` James Langford of 69th Battalion died at Northern Farm Land. David Perez of 69th Battalion died at Northern Farm Land. Whitney Adams of TotalCarnage died at Gates of Somerset. `Ricky` Richard Johnson of 69th Battalion died at Northern Farm Land. William `Xbow` Crossman of Justifiable died at Gates of Badlands Truckstop. Judy Kropp of TotalCarnage died at Lost Trail: Dead River. Francis `Psycho` Dennis of Scarzams Dragoons died at Firelight Dead Land. Pamela `Popcorn` Cormier of Scarzams Dragoons died at Firelight Dead Land. Dudley Born of finger3 died at Lonesome Highway. Adam `Ward` Montgomery of Justifiable died at Dead man`s Road. John `the Flop` Popp of Justifiable died at Dead man`s Road. Douglas `Javvi` Ramirez of Justifiable died at Dead man`s Road. John `Life` Stamps of Justifiable died at Dead man`s Road. `Batman` Bruce Wayne of Golden Warriors died at Somerset Arena. Guadalupe Riggleman of TotalCarnage died at Northern Foothills Racetrack (at night). Floy Green of Gutter Punks died at Road to Elmsfield. Diane Bryant of Liars and Thieves died at Sandy. Ronald Kennedy of Liars and Thieves died at Road to Somerset. Rafael `The Stew` Stewart of Justifiable died at Northern Farm Land. Hayley Thompson of Iron Company died at Northern Farm Land. `Harrasment` James Harris of 69th Battalion died at Gates of Somerset. Wendy Finklea of Justifiable died at Northern Farm Land. Scott `Two-Shoes` Goodwin of Gesta Non Verba died at Northern Foothills Racetrack (at night). Ruby Benally of TotalCarnage died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Elizabeth Sykes of TotalCarnage died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Erin `Hit It` Gaston of Loose Cannons died at Scattered Grounds. Dorothy Boggess of Renshai died at Elmsfield Southern Speed Circuit. John Brasher of MADHAT died at Devils Fingers. William Stiles of MADHAT died at Devils Fingers. Paul Zayas of MADHAT died at Devils Fingers. `Old` Allie McClure of Harrys Hippos died at Deadman`s Drop. Christopher Chapman of 69th Battalion died at Elmsfield Lake Track. Douglas Stinson of rebelfish resurgent died at Lost Oasis. Elvira `Silver Tongue` Dana of Les Loups Gris died at Sandy. Scott Graham of Les Loups Gris died at Sandy. Steven Phelps of Dripping Blood died at Ring of Death Arena. Dorothy Ray of Nobodys Fools died at Somerset`s Junkyard, Race Track 1. Kyle `Hearts` Stacey of Hellions died at Northern Farm Land. Katharine `Pokerhontas` Miranda of Loose Cannons died at Blown With the Wind. Jaqueline `Blackjack` Brown of Blood and Iron died at Spooky Forest. `SO awesome` Darrell Mejia of Harrys Hippos died at Somerset Rally Circuit. Erika Rocha of Lovely Boys died at Elmsfield Hills Rally Circuit. Brian Richey of Gesta Non Verba died at Gates of Texan. Stephen Kendall of Coolerheads died at Somerset Rally Circuit. Daniel `Dominating` Person of Hellions died at Gates of Elmsfield. Barry Whitt of Caesars Ghosts died at Road to Somerset. Herbert `Che` Guevara of Blood and Iron died at Scattered Grounds. John `Signature` Hancock of Blood and Iron died at Scattered Grounds. `Jury Rigger` John Jones of Blood and Iron died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Rusty Riley of Les Loups Gris died at Road to Somerset. Tiffany `get down` Brown of Coolerheads died at Ring of Death Arena. Willard Garcia of Sand Storm died at Gates of Elmsfield. `Style` Greta Ghent of Golden Warriors died at Road to Somerset. Robert Jensen of King of Clubs died at Gateway, The Trench. Federico Smith of Iron Company died at Once Upon a Town. Philip `Scarecrow` Snapp of Loose Cannons died at Lost Trail: Dead River. Winona Ryder of SwordStroke Enterprises died at The Pit. Zane `Point` Blank of finger3 died at Telegraph Road. `Ned`s Boy` Todd Flanders of SwordStroke Enterprises died at Telegraph Road. Paul `The Sauce` Applebaum of Raging Scavengers died at Toxic Wastes. Jack Hoff of Renshai died at Toxic Wastes. Kyle `Boca` Rocha of Justifiable died at Forever Yellow Skies. Elliot Lister of 69th Battalion died at The Pit. Starla Muncie of Loose Cannons died at Gateway Interstate Figure 8. Carl Constantino of Skulls And Bones died at Under a Bloody Red Sky. `Icy` Ruth Gilmour of Skulls And Bones died at Under a Bloody Red Sky. Joseph `The Drake` Drakeford of Justifiable died at Chaos Canyon. Lynn `The Hotty` Rowe of Justifiable died at Chaos Canyon. George Yates of Discordia died at The Dunes Race Course. Thomas Gutierrez of Skulls And Bones died at Once Upon a Town. Karen Thomas of MADHAT died at Road to Somerset. Lynne Baggett of Rusty Nails died at Highway to Hell. Jesse Ventura of Rusty Nails died at Highway to Hell. Loren Lujan of Meles died at Burning Skies. Lisa `Two-Stroke` Sessoms of Blood Roses died at Elmsfield Lake Track. `Capt.` Donald Barboza of Hessians died at Somerset Arena. `Msg.` Rubin Mancuso of Hessians died at Somerset Arena. Harrison `Saved by the` Bell of Gesta Non Verba died at Deadman`s Drop. Edna Bates of Blood and Iron died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Marcellus `Cracker` Graham of Blood and Iron died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Wilbert `The Kraut` Krause of Blood and Iron died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Megan `Left` Cross of Blood and Iron died at Dead man`s Road. Albert `88` Flack of Blood and Iron died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. `Lovin`` Bobbie Bona of Blood and Iron died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Loretta Wilkins of Garage Boyz died at Toxic Wastes. Reba Brown of Garage Boyz died at Toxic Wastes. Bert Abrahamson of Garage Boyz died at Toxic Wastes. Anthony `Crack Shot` Davis of Discordia died at Somerset`s Junkyard, Race Track 3. Trisha Thompson of Iron Company died at Gates of Somerset. Casey Harper of Caesars Ghosts died at Lost Oasis. Valentine Walker of Iron Company died at Burning Skies. Basil MacGregor of Iron Company died at Burning Skies. Minnie `The Moocher` Baker of Scarzams Dragoons died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. Leroy `Lazer` Frazier of Scarzams Dragoons died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. Florence `Flo Rida` Cullen of Scarzams Dragoons died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. Brenda Sims of Red Wings died at Gates of Somerset. Michael Wiley of Red Wings died at Gates of Somerset. Charles `Detective` Hoyle of Caesars Ghosts died at Chaos Canyon.  This list shows just who has been winning the most lucrative prizes on the circuits and arenas of Evan, during the past month. 1. Collision Force: $1501432. |
 The major leagues are nearly concluded, and with the title races hotting up, here are the current favourites: Evan Race Ladder - Lovely Boys In addition, the leaders of the minor leagues are: Gateway Pedestrian Combat League - Blood and Iron “Can you see the lights up there, on top of that mountain?” spoke the hitchhiker to the scout driver next to him. The route chosen was through the Shattered Grounds between Gateway and Badlands, and a haze of red dust choked everything. Both the driver and the hitchhiker were bundled up in spiked leather, their heads covered by wrapped scarves. The hitchhiker sported sunglasses, the driver tinted goggles.
 
by Juris The most wanted gangs in Evan today are listed below. The bounty listed for each gang is a combination of the amount offered by local vigilante groups and by disgrunted individuals, and represents the amount of money you would expect to be paid for each senior member of the gang you kill. 1. WarGasM (Somerset): $2415. The relationship between the Badlands Truckstop and Merchants faction has cooled, due to what is perceived as `extortionate` gates fees charged to convoys passing through the truckstop.  |