DiabloFans

"That technology wasn't cheap I can tell you, I had to pay a high price for it."

"Oh, belive me, I know, I looked everywhere for one only to find out that my mother was too old to learn how to use the microchips anyways... That doesn't matter anymore though..."

"Do you know who you are talking to boy?" Trylk said as he flashed his dog tags to the boy. "I'm the reason your able to be on this ship with this fine group of boys doin' whatever the hell it is we are about to be doin'. So, I suggest you think twice before condradicting me or so help me God I will blow your ever living head clear of your shoulders." The troskca Snarled at the human. He reached for his revolver, took it out, and pointed it straight between the young boys eyes. "You wanna die b- AHAHAHA OH MY GOODNESS! YOU SHOULDA SEEN THE LOOK ON YOUR FACE!!! Im not gonna kill ya kid, I'm just yankin your chain."[/quote]
"As funny as it is to have a gun pointed in my face, I think ther are other pressing matters at hand here, like what kind of missions do these bounty hunters have in store here."

Zip pulled out a ciggarette and took a big drag.

"I'm not sure how you can say that I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you. Do you even know anything about Old Earth and what its inhabitants have to do to survive? Its a dog eat dog world and people are killing each other around the world constantly. Not to mention all the rich folks on New Earth are wiping their asses and flushing it down the metaphorical toilet onto Old Earth."

As Zip finished smoking the ciggarette he went on to say, "Well enough bickering, we are obviously going to have to learn to work together well, and the first thing I should know is your names, my name is Zip Mackenzie, and you?"

"Pleasure to meet you Zip, my name's Aleksey Semyonov but you can call me Blindside. I grew up on Old Earth, former Russia actually but some unfortunate events made me leave.", Aleksey responded.

"Your story sounds quite like mine, except I was born in former south america. Nice to meet you John and Blindside."

Zip pulled out a knife and spead eagled his hand across the table. He started to stab the knife down in between his fingers one by one.

"If anybody can do this as fast as me I will buy them a beer."

"Well enough bickering, we are obviously going to have to learn to work together well, and the first thing I should know is your names, my name is Zip Mackenzie, and you?"

"Trylk Odgen, former commander of Infantry 336 of the New Earths Marine Corps. I apologize for the ill temper, lack of sleep. I see you have some cigarettes, mind if I take one?" The Troskca said as he extended his hand. "You seem like a decent enough kid. Now that I know your not a pussy I think me and you will get along just fine"

Dorf finally stood up and yelled "SHUT UP" as his voice left his mouth with a force big enough to blow the men back a step.

With that single step backwards, Kayden's Heads Up Display blinked a warning, and highlighted every person in the bar, displaying their weights and ranked each person or alien, according to their weapons, weight, muscle density, heartrate, and a slew of other scanned information. Power was instantaneously directed to the legs, charging them if they should be needed, and Kayden's right hand moved like a blaster bolt to the hilt of his maul, magnetically fastened to his right thigh. All of this happened faster than a Vritorian mud fly could beat its wings. Don't threaten them, but be cautious with this crazy crew. He thought.

"We are Dorf and Oltu" He confirmed to the other men.
"We are putting together a team of bounty hunters as it is stated on our poster. We are looking for men who can hold their own in a fight and is willing to do just about anything for some money." Dorf explained to the group of soldiers before him.

Finally I can begin my Hunt.

"We already have a job waiting for us on Old Earth. This first job will be your initiation and test to see if you are worthy of joining us and our group." Dorf informed the people gathered in front of him.

Hmm, reminds me of my initiation into the Kiss of Midnight. Maybe I'll run into some of my brothers. It was then, that he noticed the HUD rank on an apparently blind man. Surprisingly, he was right up there with the rest of the soldiers in every aspect, and exceeded some of them in a few ways even. The scan had picked up implants of some sort, and the sonar ping, to test his hearing capacity, revealed a level that was nearly off the charts. Ah, he's one of those guys. He can hear better than my suit can. Once situated, I think I might talk to that one.

"Follow me." Dorf instructed as he and Oltu walked out of the bar. they headed over to the ship yard where their ship awaited them.
"This is our ship, if you are interested in joining the team, get on board. We will be leaving soon for our first mission."

Kayden remained quiet on the way to the spaceport, but his mind was still evaluating every single one of them in the capacity that only a veteran soldier would. His HUD raced with information again once they reached the ship.

2 Tannis Mark 72 photonic cannons, 3 Haltis Series Dual Cannon Turrets, light speed capacity, armor plating, shield generator, on board life support, stasis facilities, among numerous other stats. Kayden looked for the two statistics that would serve him best, the ship's powersource, and food synthesizers. As soon as he stepped aboard, his suit's remote charging unit activated, topping off his power reserves. Well at least they have funds, and it looks like the food synthesizers are up to standard.

Voices began to elevate in the vicinity. His muscles tightly wound, ready to kill if necessary. Kayden's HUD blinked again signifying that the Testosterone levels in the ship were climbing to levels above even what he had seen in the company of his own brothers of his clan. Damn, these guys are fresh. Without warning the Troskca pulls a pistol and jams it into the face of one of the other humans.

SSSSSHINK.

Kayden's maul blade extends, he readies himself for the coming fight.

"You wanna die b- AHAHAHA OH MY GOODNESS! YOU SHOULDA SEEN THE LOOK ON YOUR FACE!!! Im not gonna kill ya kid, I'm just yankin your chain."

Kayden's blade retracts, and he replaces it back onto his right thigh armor, the suit automatically engaging the magnetic fasteners. Not to his surprise, but it seems that everyone was too focused on the pistol to notice his blade. Good. What Trylk didn't realize is that he just nearly had himself cleaved from neck to groin.

Without his training, Kayden wouldn't have been able to hide that all of this actually made him anxious to kill something. And now they're playing with their knives, Christ!

"I hate to intrude on your little pissing match, but when do we get briefed on the mission, and when do we leave?"

Kayden let out a mocking laugh as John plunged the knife through his own hand. Kayden reached out and removed the knife from John's hand. Without looking, Kayden flicked his arm out to the side, launching the blade through the air, pounding itself dead center into the door of a nearby cabinet.

"That'll teach you to play with weapons boy. I didn't know we were allowing children into this crew."

"You should know even children can be dangerous in these times", Aleksey said with a smile, "You used to be young too, remember."

"Yeah yeah. Nothing against you, Blindside, but if any of these other brats need their snot wiped, or their damn diaper changed, you can get someone else." He was beginning to reconsider joining up with this group.

"Oh yeah, and you might be a little more careful with this." Kayden says, as he drops Blindside's visor on the table.

"No need to get upset Blindsite" John said, he then closed his eyes breathed deeply and moved is right hand slowly over the wound, the wound then quickly sealed itself shut. "A knife wound wouldnt hurt me that bad anyway" He then smiled serenly and walked to get his knife back.

"Nice trick there. I've seen some healers in my time, but that was damn quick, especially for someone your age." He said with a mix between disdain and admiration.

"Well then, ain't that somethin'. My name is Kayden Darkstryde. I'd love to sit around and chat, but I'm gonna go get some whiskey from the food synthesizer." He said as Kayden marched off to get acquainted with the ship.

Oltu arrived at their ship alongside Dorf with the rest of their newly found group of bounty hunters. Dorf and Oltu stopped outside the ship as Dorf instructed all of the new members to head inside, if they were still interested. A few of the member quickly made their way into the ship followed with idle chatter. Oltu noticed another person who had followed the group, but had not been at the bar when everyone else was. The person made their way onto he ship, followed by a mechincal scorpion who clattered on board also. I've seen that person before, and that scorpion. But where? Oltu pondered to himself.

"Wow Oltu, your reputation precedes you. There is no way we would have had this good of a turn out if your name wasn't on that poster," Dorf whispered to Oltu, snapping him out of his daydream.

"Apparently so, Dorf. And it looks as though we're going to have a good group of hired hands around us," Oltu whispers back as the mysterious person from before he approaches them.

"Hey, you two, do you know whe..." the man asks, looking strangely at Oltu, "Oltu, how's everything been? Are you two the recruiters?"

"Good..." Oltu replies, "I'm sorry, friend, but I do not recall who you are. But yes, we are the recruiters, how can we help you... come to think of it, I don't know your name."

"I should of known better, You had that nasty accident a long time ago. I disappeared because I had news that somebody raped my sister and damn near killed her too. I left shortly after your coma. I heard it was a month long." Lt. Venom said in earnest, "You were my teacher, you taught me quite a bit on being one of the best bounty hunters out there." "He's the person that taught you all that?" asked Scorpius. "Yes!"

Venom... my coma... Oltu thought to himself as flashbacks of hazy events flashed before his eyes.

"...Venom..." Oltu said aloud remembering the past, "I remember you now. You always were a good student. I remember hearing about my coma, but they never told me what happened. And how is your sister now-a-days?" Oltu asked reliefed by a familiar face.

"She is great. Has a husband that I believes will stop at nothing to keep her safe. I killed the guy that did it. Long story short, he basically learned what it felt like to have a huge piece of fruit up his ass." "I will never forget that image, thanks to you," Scorpius said, recalling the memory like it was yesterday. Venom laughs, "Hey, I just gave him a taste of his own medicine, after reading his record of course."

"Alright then..." Oltu said slightly shocked at a mental visual of the scene Venom had described, "Well, it's been a hectic day, so I'm going to go onboard and meditate to recover some strength."

Oltu turns to Dorf and gives him a quick nod, "Come get me when we're ready to leave. Nice seeing you again, Venom," Oltu says turning to Venom, "Hopefully I won't have to fight someone for my room, they're looking around the ship."

Oltu turned and walked into the ship, headed for his room, awaiting take off.

Looking at Dorf, "So you're Dorf, nice to meet ya," Lt. Venom said, extending his hand. "Please don't dislocate my shoulder."

Dorf watched as Oltu conversed with Lt. Venom and then went aboard their ship waiting for their departure. Lt. Venom then looked over at Dorf and shook his hand while saying "Please don't dislocate my shoulder."

Dorf replied "I'll do my best little one" as he chuckled. "That scorpion you have must come in handy on those lonely nights, always having someone to talk to." Dorf responded.

Dorf looked around as he saw the Reptylia and the other Largix slowly making their way to the ship. He then ushered Lt. Venom back to the vessel. Dorf stood outside the entrance to his ship for a second, thinking about the journey he, Oltu and these other bounty hunters were soon to embark on.

After the brief second of reflection. Dorf jumped on board and closed the door as it lifted up and sealed shut. Dorf looked around the cargo hold at the entrance of the ship wondering where most of the passengers have wondered off to.

Reaching for a intercom, Dorf pushed a little green button as the P.A. system chimed on.

*Ding* the system alarmed readying the listeners for an announcement.

"Everybody on the ship, report back to the cargo area at the entrance of the ship for mission debriefing."

Dorf left the cargo area leaving the mission debriefing to the much more intelligent Oltu, who would certainly inform the bounty hunters much better then himself, never one for enlightening speeches.

Dorf made his way to the cockpit of the ship and readied the engines. Making use of all four of his arms, Dorf was quite skilled at piloting the ship. His upper right arm reached out to click on four switches and his lower arms each held the steering controls. His upper left arm finally hit a big red button with a self-made label attached to it that read "GO".

The ship began to rattle and vibrate as the legs of the ship lifted off the ground. The ship began to rise into the sky as they headed towards their first destination, Old Earth.

K'thanix followed behind the main group, refusing to take part in this endless banter.

Useless rabble... how can they call themselves bounty hunters when they tell their entire life stories to one another. Secrecy is key in this business. He thought to himself in disgust, after letting out an audible sigh.

He doubted if any of these men had ever killed, ever been forced to murder for the gain of their superiors. In these several minutes, with the amount of information these men had unwittingly released about themselvs, K'thanix knew enough to track nearly every one of these "bounty hunters".

He sighed once more, wishing that these whelps had actually experienced life, wishing that he would not be trapped with them as they pursued some misguided sense of adventure.

Humans.... he spat on the ground, and made his way into the ship, and sat down in the crew's quarters, quickly reserving the bunk furthest away from the rest of the general rabble.

"Everybody on the ship, report back to the cargo area at the entrance of the ship for mission debriefing." a deep voice crackled over the intercom, and K'thanix slowly made his way to the cargo hold, wondering what their first assignment would entail.

Venom entered the Cargo Area after hearing Dorf's message. "Everybody on the ship, report back to the cargo area at the entrance of the ship for mission debriefing."

"I wonder what the mission will be," Scorpius wondered aloud. "It would be good to see the home world again." "It sure would be, I need some exercise too." Replied the Lieutenant.

Zip heard Dorf over the intercom and stood up. He leered over the room to a lone Reptylia. "Whats his deal" he thought to himself.

He slowly walked to the cargo area thinking of where he would be going to on Old Earth. "I hope we dont go to South America."

Trylk was awoken from his nap when he heard a loud voice come over the intercom. "Everybody on the ship, report back to the cargo area at the entrance of the ship for mission debriefing."

Finally the Troskca thought as he got up and followed the signs which led him to the cargo area, seeing the blind man and the sniper inside. "Where the Hell is everybody else?" he asked Aleksey as he found a seat and awaited his commanders briefing.

Kayden set his visor to map mode, and then marched about the ship, plotting out every square inch of the ship. He finally came to the eating quarters, and fixed himself a shot of whiskey. Kayden changed settings on his visor to search mode, and scanned the room making sure it was empty. Once he was sure it was clear, Kayden pulled up his helmet to reveal a 38 year old, clean shaven face with blue eyes. Eyes that had seen his own hands do many terrible acts which he was unwilling to tell most men, let alone women or children.

Kayden tipped his head back and tossed down the whiskey, which wasn't half bad. "Ahhh"He breathed out as he let the firey liquid find its way to his stomach. A little on the dry side, but had a smooth woody taste to it.

"Everybody on the ship, report back to the cargo area at the entrance of the ship for mission briefing." Rang out over the loud speakers throughout the ship. Finally we get to go kill somebody. He anxiously thought. Kayden grabbed the bottle of whiskey, took a good swig, capped it and set it back in one of the cabinets. Kayden then quickly recovered his face with his visor, took a quick look at the HUD's map of the interior, and found his way to the cargo area.

When he arrived, only half the crew had assembled. "Alright I'm here, we can start now." He said cockily, as he took a seat near Blindside and Trylk.