Evolution

For three years, ever since his mother’s death, Logan longed for this day. Every day was a battle to survive. Sure Lusion protected him, but he had responsibilities to the Couriers and was often gone for long periods of time. The taunting and isolation never ceased, and after Kyra’s death he only had Lusion to talk to. Today he would prove himself. Today he would become a man.

Lusion had left him to “live his own life” and Logan had been allowed to remain in the one room hab he had shared with his mother. Looking around the small five by seven meter room he could almost see ghost images of what it had once been like. The piles of dirty dishes and trash had long since been removed, but Logan often longed to see them again.

Logan shook of the feelings of regret and moved over to the wall that held the few cabinets he was afforded. On one counter top lay the knife Lusion had given him, which felt like a lifetime ago. Next to that were an inadequate set of lock picks, a small optical pocket telescope, and a palm sized data slate. Each of these he placed in separate pockets of his brand new trench coat, a ‘gift’ so he would reflect the House he was joining. As he did this he looked at himself in the hazy reflection of the metal cabinets. He still looked out of place. Unlike his Delaque ‘brothers’ he still did not wear their distinctive dark-lensed goggles, and he still sported a full head of hair – which he had pulled back into a ponytail.

There was only one more thing to complete his preparations. Pulling the only chair he had in the room over Logan climbed up so he could reach his most treasured possession. It was right where he left it. Pulling it down he looked at it affectionately as he ran his fingers gently over the surface. He had found it after his mother’s death, and it was all he had left of her. Gently he slipped it under his trench coat and secured it.

Stepping back down off of the chair he looked at his image once more. Once he was satisfied he turned on his heels and headed out to meet his fate.

-=-=-=O=-=-=-

When Logan walked into the back room of the ‘Couriers’ gambling den he was ignored by everyone except Lusion. Other than his sponsor there were seven others. Kray, ‘the Couriers’ boss, almost appeared disgusted. The other six were three other juves and their respective sponsors.

“House Delaque is affording you a great opportunity, a chance to show your worth above just sweating out your lives in the factories or data broker shops.” The Delaque leader made eye contact with the other three juves before proceeding.

“Today you have each been assigned a task contained in these envelopes,” Kray paused long enough to hand the notes out. He made sure to hand Logan’s to Lusion instead of directly to him. “Each task works in conjunction with the other, but you are not to share with each other the specifics of your task. Cooperation is restricted to the limited contact you will have with the others.”

Each of the candidates looked around the room for further input. Lusion handed Logan his packet and encouraged him to open it up.

Logan felt along the edges of the envelope like he had been taught. Once he was satisfied there were no triggers he pulled out his knife and gingerly cut the envelope open. Turning it upside down he emptied the contents onto a nearby table. A small cartridge designed to fit into a standard Delaque data slate was sealed in a small plastic pouch, and a pile of powdered dust fell out.

Immediately looking up he saw Lusion nodding his head in approval. Logan could not help but smile at this small display of approval.

BANG! The small explosion that was mostly smoke and noise, but it got every one’s attention. One of the other juves was clutching his hand, a small burn mark showed that he had not been as cautious.

“Galcious, would you be so kind as to show your young protégé here to the medics?” was all Kray said until the juve and his sponsor left the room.

“House Delaque works hard to ensure her secrets do not fall into the wrong hands,” this time Kray looked straight at Logan. “It is not above us to booby-trap our own communiqués to ensure our secrets remain secrets.

“You have five days to complete your assigned tasks, and you are already a man short.” Kray turned around, pushed a concealed button on the wall behind him that opened up a small alcove. Contained within were several pistols.

“Our job is not without inherent danger. We work with a variety of tools, which you should already be acquainted with, but there are times when stealth and diplomacy needs to give way to good old fashioned brute force.” Their leader pulled three weapons from the cabinet and set them on the desk. He then invited the other two Delaque juves forward to choose. Once they were done he motioned for Logan to step forward, the first time the man even acknowledged Logan directly. The only weapon left was a semi-automatic handgun. Not a bad piece, but definitely not as useful as the las and auto pistol taken by the others. Logan nodded his thanks.

Logan looked over the weapon. It was in good shape, no rust and the slide operated smoothly and quietly. He dropped the magazine from the grip and inspected it. The magazine was fully loaded with thirteen rounds of ammunition. A function check of the weapon showed it to be in full working order.

“What are you waiting around here for?” Kray said indicating that the briefing was over and motioning for them all to leave. “You are not going to find what you are looking for here.”

Lusion escorted Logan a discreet distance from the building. “You have the skills Logan, if not the trust of Kray. The rest is up to you, you have learned everything you can from me. Don’t embarrass me.”

Logan just nodded his head and faded into the shadows.

-=-=-=O=-=-=-

For the past ten hours Logan sat hunched in the shadows of an attic that overlooked his target. A small ventilation grill allowed him to look out, but restricted anyone’s view in. Now he just needed to figure a way in.

It had taken him the better part of a day to climb all the way up hive to the outskirts of Hive City. The Enforcer gates were easily by-passed through the usual Delaque pathways. Factoring in how long it took him to get in place that gave him only two days, check that, a day and a half now, to get what he needed and safely back.

Pulling out his data slate Logan reviewed his test objectives once more. 1) Gain access into Vant Labs within the Van Saar district. 2) Secure the name of at least one security guard. 3) Perform objectives 1 & 2 without detection and return without compromise.

“Those other Juves had it easy,” Logan thought to himself. “All they had to do was get me safely into Hive City and then escort me back. Meanwhile I am the one who has to penetrate Van Saar without getting caught.”

Logan quietly sighed to himself. No need to worry about that now, especially since his mark just left the labs.

Logan had already planned his path out and it only took a moment to get into the street before his mark could get away. Like himself this fellow was in his early teens, most likely not any older than fifteen. It would be his best shot at being able to gain a confidence.

An odd thing was this guy was always looking over his shoulder. Logan thought for sure he had been spotted, especially when the kid ducked into a loud drinking hole. It would be easy to loose a tail in there.

Instead of following him through the front door Logan set about marking all the possible exits at street level.

The main door was covered by a Van Saar the size of your typical Goliath. “Doubt I will be able to enter that way,” he thought to himself. To the right rear lay another door. This one concealed in shadow and was tempting, but Logan was confident that the second door would be covered by another security measure. Entrance would have to be garnered from either below or above. And it might be a good idea to change his appearance as his Delaque issued trench coat would probably not earn him any merits either.

-=-=-=O=-=-=-
Part 2

Logan could not afford to travel far. To do so would allow his mark to exit unnoticed. Fortunately that would not be a problem because just then an obviously drunk Van Saar exited the front door and made his way on down the street. Logan watched the man with interest.

Fortunately his intended victim did not go far. When he stumbled to the end of the building he practically fell into the alleyway that separated the drinking hole with a block of habs on the left. Logan stayed in the shadows as he moved to see down the length of the alley.

Twenty meters up the cramped space the drunk man was hunched over on all fours. Even from here Logan could hear what the man was doing. This was the opportunity he was looking for.

Logan made ground level at the opposite end of the alley from the street, and his target was right where he last saw him. He was careful, even though the man was in no condition to pay attention to anything else. When he came into reach of the man Logan waited until he had finished with his last dry heave. As the man caught his breath Logan drove the pommel of knife into the base of the man’s skull, and the drunken Van Saar immediately collapsed in a heap.

Looking up and down the alleyway Logan made sure he had not been spotted. Once he felt secure he quickly relieved the man of the body glove all Van Saar wore. ‘Very comfortable’, Logan thought to himself as he slipped it on and cleaned it up.

Leaving his victim to wake up to his misery Logan climbed back up to the roof of his destination. Once there he secured his distinctive Delaque garb, along with his heirloom, and moved straight to the side entrance. His mark had been inside the building for fifteen minutes already and Logan began to worry that he would lose him. So it was with boldness he stepped through the side entrance of the drinking hole.

To Logan’s relief there were no bouncers, or visible security measures, in place there. Slipping through the small entranceway there was a small hallway with 3 doors on either side. Just beyond the doors it opened up into what he presumed to be a common area as it was noisy, but there was a curtain impeding his view.

Deciding the best way to not draw attention to himself Logan walked in as if he belonged there and stepped into the room boldly. The place was not too packed and he quickly spotted his mark, located by himself, at an electronic gambling device mounted to the wall. Scrounging through the pockets of his new disguise Logan found a few coins. Plopping down onto the stool adjacent to the young Van Saar he plopped the first coin into the slot and pushed a button. Nothing, “wonder what this is all about” Logan thought to himself out loud.

“The trick is to vary how many coins you drop in each time,” the young Van Saar said. The unusual openness caught Logan off guard.

Logan mumbled his thanks and took the last two coins out of his pocket and repeated the process. When the spinning barrels slowed to a stop loud music started blaring and lights started flashing, which was exactly what Logan had hoped to avoid. Feigning great joy he looked around the bar thinking everyone would be looking his way, but in truth no more than a few even noticed his good fortune.

“Wow, thanks,” Logan said turning to the Van Saar juve. “Hey, listen… I hate to admit this, but in truth I was hoping you might help me, seeing as we are about the same age… You see, I desperately need a job. But this should help,” Logan said holding up the handful of tokens from the tray. “Do you know where a juve like myself could find a job?”

“What do you mean?” The kid looked nervous.

“Well, my dad was recently killed in the explosion over at the Avery Munitions Works,” Logan had read about it in a local paper while he was casing the Labs. “It was just the two of us so now I need to get work before I get put in the labor corps and sent to the underhive.” Logan hoped that a sob story would help gain the kid’s trust.

“I don’t know…” the Van Saar hesitated.

“Aw, come on. I don’t care what it is. I’ll sweep floors; I’ll take out garbage, whatever it takes. I just don’t want to go down to the underhive.”

“Ok, I tell you what. Show up tomorrow, at this address,” the kid said as he scribbled on a napkin. “I will take you inside and introduce you to my father. The rest is up to you.”

“That is awesome! Man, I really appreciate this. Let me buy you a drink with my winnings. My name is Kryler by the way.” Logan said while reaching to shake hands with the Van Saar.

“Ian, my name is Ian Vants,” the kid replied and shook Logan’s hand.

-=-=-=O=-=-=-

Logan had not returned to his perch immediately after leaving the kid at the drinking hole. Just down the street he had to make one more contact. A simple matter, but it was necessary to wrap up the loose ends. It almost did not work. No one wanted to take a juve seriously, but the pocket full of Guilders from his winnings helped win over their confidence.

After that he went back and grabbed a little nap. He only allowed himself a brief one, but the debris digging into his back helped as well. When he did wake he focused on the exterior guard rotations and their patterns. He even say Ian arrive. Finally the time came for him to ‘arrive’ at the Lab.

Walking up to the door he was met by a muscular Van Saar. Logan quickly noted the man was armed with a plasma rifle and bolt pistol. “I am here to see Ian Vants. He told me to meet him here.”

The man peered at him suspiciously but spoke into some kind of microphone built into the collar of his bodysuit. “Wait over there,” the guard pointed across the street.

Logan did his best to not appear to be nervous, but he watched the man intently. There was the occasional exchange of communication with someone unseen, probably a central security center. About ten minutes later another guard; this one only armed with a Bolt Pistol emerged from the building and spoke with the first one. Then the first guard motioned for Logan to come back across the street.

“What do you want,” the new guard asked as Ian approached.

“Ian told me to meet him here. My name is Kryler and I am here for a job.”

The second guard mirrored the first’s reaction, but this time he was not told to wait across the street. When the front door opened again it was Ian who stepped through.

“What is it Garse? I am in the middle of a test.”

The second guard bent closer to Ian and whispered something. “No, he’s alright. He is just here for a janitorial position.”

Warily the guards let the two juves in. For the rest of the day Garse followed Logan around. It did not matter since he was not there to perform any kind of sabotage, just look around and get a mental map of the inside of the building.

It may not have been a hard job, but it was a whole lot better than working out in the fields. At the end of the day Ian found Logan collecting up some trash from the outer offices.

“I spoke with my Father. You should be hired on permanent within a week.” Ian said as he followed Logan out of the building. “Come on, let’s go grab some grub.”

As the two juves stepped from the doorway a well built woman approached. This one appeared to be a bounty hunter with House Escher connections. “Is one of you Kryler? She asked.

Ian took a half step back from Logan and looked like he was going to run away. Logan had noticed it without being obvious. This was good. A chance to make his break and he took off running.

The well armed woman was hot on his heals, but she did not draw a weapon. Instead she just hurled insults at him as the pair sped away from the Labs and Ian.

When Logan was satisfied he was out of sight of his mark and the guards from the Lab he pulled up and stepped into the doorway of a run down tenement. The bounty hunter easily caught up with him there.

“Thanks,” Logan said slightly out of breath. “Here is the balance of the money I owe you.”

As he handed over the small pouch full of credits Logan hesitated just a moment, “If any one asks, you handed me over the union house for the labor corps.”

“Whatever you say young Kryler,” the woman said snatching the bag from his hands. “But I would hope not too many people ask or else I will hunt you down myself,” she said with a smile. And with that she was gone.

-=-=-=O=-=-=-
Part 3

Logan was going against a cardinal rule. He was returning to the scene of his crime. Not to bask in his success, or to relive some thrill, but he had to get back the items he had left behind, specifically his heirloom. The trench coat and tools were easily replaced, but he was not going to get his mother back.

Just as he cleared the edge of the building’s roof he heard the heavy tread of an Enforcer patrol. His heart skipped a beat. If they had seen him climb the wall there would be no escape.

“This is where the woman said she found her husband. He had been beaten up, robbed, and stripped naked. From now on we patrol these alleyways once a shift, random rotation.”

Logan chanced a peak over the edge. Five Enforcers were right below him. Each man wore the distinctive black heavy armor of Lord Helmawr’s police force. The speaker was carrying a large shield and a holstered bolt pistol. One other man carried a similar shield but held a mace-like object in his free hand. Two others carried the distinctive shotguns at the ready, while the last man was carrying a flamer held low in both hands.

“Tritan, make sure the other patrols get the information.”

There was just a nod from the man wielding the flamer, and then they moved off towards the street.

Logan slowly exhaled and lowered his head back down. Once his heart beat was back to normal he crawled over to where he had left his package. It was still there, undisturbed. Looking down at the Van Saar body glove he hesitated. ‘There’s supposed to be some interesting tech and usefulness in these things’, he thought to himself. Leaving the disguise in place Logan pulled his trench coat on and returned his heirloom to its place underneath.

Another quick glance over the edge showed that the Enforcers had not returned so Logan slipped over to climb back down to the alley. Now to get back home undetected.

-=-=-=O=-=-=-

‘No one is here!’, Logan thought to himself and resisted the urge to panic. There was supposed to be someone here waiting for him, but the hallway was empty. Normally empty was good, but today was not a normal day.

Logan continued to walk down the hall as if he belonged there, but his heart was racing. Something was wrong and he didn’t know what. Not yet anyway. As he walked past the door the contact was supposed to be waiting for him at, he realized the door was wide open. Risking a glance inside as he walked past he saw that the room had been ransacked, but no sound came from the inside. Turning his attention back forward he continued to the stairwell at the far end of the hall and descended back to street level.

He was pissed. All his life he had to fight for things, but this was plain and simple abandonment. Checking his watch Logan thought to himself, ‘This is the time, and this is the place where, I am supposed to be’. When he got back he was going to have a few choice words for them and Kray. Right now he had more pressing matters to tend to.

Logan looked up and down the street. The market street was busy with all kinds of pedestrian traffic, and he was still deep inside Hive City. With all the people moving around it was impossible for him to tell if he had any kind of tail. With his contacts for his return trip absent he was going to have to go it alone.

This is one situation that his inexperience really worked against him. With the other two initiates running the insertion and extraction Logan had not paid attention to those details. There just hadn’t been enough time to review what he, and they, were supposed to do. Now he had to find a way back on his own.

Not wanting to draw too much attention Logan started walking again. The more he thought it over the more he realized he was just going to have to return the same way he had come across the wall. Not the smartest thing to do, especially if they had been detected coming up, but it was the only path that he knew of, available to him.

-=-=-=O=-=-=-

When he had first crawled through this conduit he felt secure, hidden, now all he felt was trapped. If he was being trailed he could not even turn his head to look behind him let alone return fire if he should come under attack. So he kept moving as fast as he could.

Originally this was a communication access ways. Long ago it was crammed full of wires and pneumatic tubes to carry communications between the spire and Hive City, but as Hive: Primus grew so did the spire, and so did Hive City, leaving behind domes no longer seen as useful. House Delaque simply rerouted choice lines of communications, with some slight modifications Logan was sure, and created a tunnel to use as a means to move between domes. In this case it actually provided a portal across the wall the separated Hive City from the unruly Under Hive.

When he reached the end of the tube Logan paused to listen, both to see if there was anything waiting for him on his exit, and to try and determine if he was being followed. Once he was satisfied he climbed out and stepped down onto the secluded hallway. He was now in an abandoned central communications office. Although the lower levels had been reclaimed as improvised habs and below them a café specializing in rat burgers, the Delaque had taken great care to ensure this entrance was hidden. He would have to wait until late into the night cycle before leaving.

Once more he waited covering the entrance to the conduit in case he was followed. Once he was satisfied he checked the time. He still had eight hours to return with the information. With nothing left to do he allowed himself one more brief nap.

-=-=-=O=-=-=-

“You’re late!”

Logan checked his watch. “No sir, I am not. I still have ninety minutes left.”

Krav checked his own watch and nodded. “You are correct, good job. I would like to ask you where your compatriots are.”

Logan looked between the leader of the ‘Couriers’ and Lusion. “They were not at the meeting place. When I arrived they were gone, I had thought they returned here.”

“You thought wrong! They were your responsibility! Why did you abandon them?” Krav was visibly upset at this point.

“Sir, per ‘The Book of Shadows’ my first responsibility was to return with the information I gathered. Since my mission was one of reconnaissance and stealth, I mean.”

“Excellent Logan that was once again the correct answer, what do you have for me?”

For the next half hour Logan was debriefed. Once Krav was sure that his young initiate had left nothing out he let him go. Once outside their leader’s room Lusion pulled him aside once more.

“Don’t get comfortable Logan. Krav still sees you as an outsider and he will not trust you. He still sees you as a Mavant, a male Escher weakling. He has only placated me this far because I am one of his Lieutenants, and I have only done this in the memory of what your mother did for me. You are a member of the ‘Couriers’ now. I have done everything I can for you, but do not expect me to come protecting you any more. You’re a man now, and a man has to know how to defend himself.” Without waiting for any reply his sponsor turned around and walked off, leaving Logan to his thoughts and to return to his hab.