Original: "Origin Story," Part 5
Tada!
AO3
A storm moved in the night a shipment of guns were due to arrive in Seattle, and I crouched under a gargoyle to keep an eye out for Stringer’s men. I used an eyeglass to watch the water through waves of icy rain, soaked to the skin and trying to control the chattering of my teeth behind my mask. It had been a week since I visited Bess at her home and altered our relationship. I hadn’t been back yet. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to continue with a physical relationship or try to go back to what we had before. I was also scared to return in case she had made the decision for me and chose the option I didn’t want.
The rats surprised me by revealing their ingenious discovery. Stringer wasn’t the only game in town; he was merely the most powerful and influential. There were others who wanted to take his throne. Some merely wanted to carve out their own section of the city, live and let live. I’d known that but the rats took it a step further. They figured if Stringer had a group of police officers loyal to him, it stood to reason that the other crime lords had their own crews. Through covert surveillance and reconnaissance, they were able to map out which officers were loyal to which groups. Now to ensure Stringer’s men ended up in jail, I only had to contact policemen loyal to Stringer’s rivals.
Tonight’s shipment was earmarked for a man named Odom, so I had officers loyal to Medina on standby to pick up any garbage I left behind. I watched the ship as it slowly glided into the harbor and turned my attention to the dock workers. Water ran over my hood, collecting under my collar to trickle down my back. I had checked and double-checked the devices attached to my wrists and legs. Isaiah assured me they were waterproof but I was still anxious about letting them soak for too long. If Odom’s men didn’t show up soon I would have to call it a wash. No pun intended.
As it turned out, I didn’t have to wait long. The men were apparently holed up inside the harbormaster’s office as long as possible so they could avoid the weather. They came out in a large group that split up as soon as they were in an open area. Three of them spread out across the pavement and stood guard as their friends continued to the ship to gather their goods. I stood up and exposed myself to the full brunt of the weather. I rolled my shoulders and gauged the distance to the ground. Isaiah had souped-up my boots and there were no better worst-case scenarios in which to test the improvements. I took a deep breath and leapt.
I aimed myself at the wall across the alley, extending my foot to brace myself against it. As soon as I made contact I fired the thrusters and propelled myself back the way I had come. I bounced off the wall of the building I’d used as my perch, and from there I went to the ground. I crouched on my landing, one hand on the wet pavement and the other extended out in case my descent had been noticed. None of Odom’s crew came running so I got to my feet and ran to where I had last seen them.
I came up behind the first man swift and silent. I snaked my arm around his neck and kicked his knee forward. I followed him as he went down, hauling him back up like a heavy chain. He went for his weapon but I pinned his dominant arm with mine and disarmed him. The scuffle drew the attention of the other men, and I bum-rushed them using their friend as a human shield. I took down two of them before they thought to sound the alarm.
One of the men who was still standing tried to skirt around me. I heard his footsteps on the rain-lashed ground and turned to fire my wrist-mounted weapon at him. The energy from the blast was diffused by the rain, causing a wide rainbow of light that hit the man like a solid punch. He was lifted off his feet and splashed down on his back a few yards away. I disarmed the men I had taken out and took a few minutes to tie them against a wooden pole where they would be out of sight. I gagged them with their own hats and gloves before I went after the men who had continued to the boat.
I reached the bottom of the ramp at the same time four men arrived at the top carrying a large crate between them. The two men in front I recognized, but the other two must have been crewmen.
“Oh, hell. It’s Carapace.”
One of the other men said something in Russian, but Odom’s men were already looking for a place to put down the crate without jostling it. I took advantage of their distraction and raced up the ramp. I leapt and slammed my elbow into one man’s face, spinning from the impact to tackle the other man. The Russians were shouting at each other as they dropped their end of the crate and backed away. Odom’s goon reached for a gun but I closed my hand around his wrist and let loose with a built-up charge of energy. It released with a snap that burned his fingers and made him drop the weapon. I slammed the flat of my hand into the middle of his chest and he stumbled backward over the railing. His scream was turned into a choking gurgle when he hit the water.
I threw myself flat onto the deck as the gunfire began. Bullets pinged off the metal railing above my head and I rolled before they could correct their aim. I remembered what had happened with my energy beam earlier and placed both hands flat on the deck. I fired both weapons as I pushed myself up into a handstand, protecting me from the wave of energy that crackled outward across the deck. It traveled through the rainwater and knocked the Russians off their feet as if I had just caused a minor earthquake. While they were dazed I got to my feet and grabbed their guns. I hurled them out into the water as the man I’d elbowed slammed into me from behind.
“Boss has big plans for you, little lady.”
“Please don’t hurt me,” I simpered.
He spun me around and pressed me against the hull of the ship, pinning me there with his body. I grimaced and closed my eyes as his hips pressed against mine. Isaiah hated when I used this tactic, but there was no way around it. I was a woman fighting against men, the sort of rutting pigs who would use sexual domination as a weapon against me. I just had to pick my moment and hope I didn’t wait too long. His hands moved from my arms to my waist, no longer restraining now that he had decided to explore what I had to offer. I pressed back against him and he chuckled lustily in my ear.
“Starting to get into it? Don’t. Trust me, darling, you ain’t going to enjoy this.”
“Oh, I could’ve told you that.” I brought up one leg and pressed my boot flat against the wall. I fired the thruster and threw us both backward with all the power I had at my disposal. The goon hit the railing so hard I heard something break, hit so hard that it hurt me even with his body to cushion the impact. He cried out in pain as I rolled forward, turned, and shoved him over the railing to join his friend in the water.
When I turned to face the Russians I saw they had their weapons trained on me. I held up my hands to show them my palms. One of them barked Russian at me.
“Sorry. I don’t speak your language. But listen... why don’t I just get down on the ground?” I gestured my intention. “My beef is with them. I don’t even know who you gentlemen are. But it’s clear you have the upper hand on me.”
They moved closer as I laced my fingers behind my head. One of them spoke in heavily-accented English. “We did not get paid for fight. We are only ship. We lock you in hold and make delivery, we let you out. We have no beefs with you, either.”
I nodded. “Okay. Okay.” I slid my fingers along my wrist weapon. “But here’s the thing, sir. You’re bringing something in for Mr. Odom. I don’t know what it is, exactly, but I do know Mr. Odom isn’t exactly a friend to this city. I’ve sworn to protect it and he’s standing in the way of that. So whatever is in that crate... I have to assume it’s something that will help him.”
The English speaker moved behind me to secure my wrists. “You talk too much.”
“Sorry. I’m just trying to distract you from looking too closely at my hands.”
“Hands...?”
I released a flash bright enough to blind him. When the glow was still fading I threw myself forward and wrapped my arms around his monolingual friend. I was too fast and too close for him to get a good angle with his weapon and we tumbled together down onto the deck. The English speaker opened fire, causing the friend I was tangled with to curse at him in their native language. The gunfire stopped and the other man rubbed furiously at his eyes to regain his sight. I grabbed two fingers of the man I was fighting, twisted, and he yelped in pain. I got to my feet and kicked him, knocking him out.
“You make huge mistake, lady!”
I brought my arm up and aimed center mass. “Yeah. I make a lot of those.” I fired, but the result was a pitiful hiss and sputter. My eyes widened behind my lenses. I had expended too much energy and the reserves were out. “Oh, damnation.”
The Russian smiled and cocked his weapon. I leapt out of the way, slipping on the wet deck and tumbling down onto my side. I managed to correct my balance as he fired, my stumble saving my life as his shot went wide. I reached into my coat, grabbed some light-ups, and tossed them at him. They impacted like fireworks but I didn’t stick around to appreciate my handiwork. I ran to the crate and tried to lift it, but there was no hope when it had taken four men to bring it this far. I decided to use the weight to my advantage and pushed it to the edge of the deck.
“No! You cannot!”
The crate tilted over the edge, falling like an anchor along the side of the boat. When it hit the water the box bobbed for a moment and then began to quickly sink.
“He will kill us all for this.”
“I’m already on his hit list,” I said. “You get used to it after a while.” I climbed onto the railing and leapt, propelling myself far enough to land on the dock with a knee-jarring impact. I ran, not daring to look back at the ship as I fled the scene. Once I was away from the harbor I could switch to a rooftop route. I just hoped I had enough juice left in the boots to get me back to Isaiah’s for a refueling. I didn’t relish the idea of running out when I was jumping from one building to its neighbor.
AO3
A storm moved in the night a shipment of guns were due to arrive in Seattle, and I crouched under a gargoyle to keep an eye out for Stringer’s men. I used an eyeglass to watch the water through waves of icy rain, soaked to the skin and trying to control the chattering of my teeth behind my mask. It had been a week since I visited Bess at her home and altered our relationship. I hadn’t been back yet. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to continue with a physical relationship or try to go back to what we had before. I was also scared to return in case she had made the decision for me and chose the option I didn’t want.
The rats surprised me by revealing their ingenious discovery. Stringer wasn’t the only game in town; he was merely the most powerful and influential. There were others who wanted to take his throne. Some merely wanted to carve out their own section of the city, live and let live. I’d known that but the rats took it a step further. They figured if Stringer had a group of police officers loyal to him, it stood to reason that the other crime lords had their own crews. Through covert surveillance and reconnaissance, they were able to map out which officers were loyal to which groups. Now to ensure Stringer’s men ended up in jail, I only had to contact policemen loyal to Stringer’s rivals.
Tonight’s shipment was earmarked for a man named Odom, so I had officers loyal to Medina on standby to pick up any garbage I left behind. I watched the ship as it slowly glided into the harbor and turned my attention to the dock workers. Water ran over my hood, collecting under my collar to trickle down my back. I had checked and double-checked the devices attached to my wrists and legs. Isaiah assured me they were waterproof but I was still anxious about letting them soak for too long. If Odom’s men didn’t show up soon I would have to call it a wash. No pun intended.
As it turned out, I didn’t have to wait long. The men were apparently holed up inside the harbormaster’s office as long as possible so they could avoid the weather. They came out in a large group that split up as soon as they were in an open area. Three of them spread out across the pavement and stood guard as their friends continued to the ship to gather their goods. I stood up and exposed myself to the full brunt of the weather. I rolled my shoulders and gauged the distance to the ground. Isaiah had souped-up my boots and there were no better worst-case scenarios in which to test the improvements. I took a deep breath and leapt.
I aimed myself at the wall across the alley, extending my foot to brace myself against it. As soon as I made contact I fired the thrusters and propelled myself back the way I had come. I bounced off the wall of the building I’d used as my perch, and from there I went to the ground. I crouched on my landing, one hand on the wet pavement and the other extended out in case my descent had been noticed. None of Odom’s crew came running so I got to my feet and ran to where I had last seen them.
I came up behind the first man swift and silent. I snaked my arm around his neck and kicked his knee forward. I followed him as he went down, hauling him back up like a heavy chain. He went for his weapon but I pinned his dominant arm with mine and disarmed him. The scuffle drew the attention of the other men, and I bum-rushed them using their friend as a human shield. I took down two of them before they thought to sound the alarm.
One of the men who was still standing tried to skirt around me. I heard his footsteps on the rain-lashed ground and turned to fire my wrist-mounted weapon at him. The energy from the blast was diffused by the rain, causing a wide rainbow of light that hit the man like a solid punch. He was lifted off his feet and splashed down on his back a few yards away. I disarmed the men I had taken out and took a few minutes to tie them against a wooden pole where they would be out of sight. I gagged them with their own hats and gloves before I went after the men who had continued to the boat.
I reached the bottom of the ramp at the same time four men arrived at the top carrying a large crate between them. The two men in front I recognized, but the other two must have been crewmen.
“Oh, hell. It’s Carapace.”
One of the other men said something in Russian, but Odom’s men were already looking for a place to put down the crate without jostling it. I took advantage of their distraction and raced up the ramp. I leapt and slammed my elbow into one man’s face, spinning from the impact to tackle the other man. The Russians were shouting at each other as they dropped their end of the crate and backed away. Odom’s goon reached for a gun but I closed my hand around his wrist and let loose with a built-up charge of energy. It released with a snap that burned his fingers and made him drop the weapon. I slammed the flat of my hand into the middle of his chest and he stumbled backward over the railing. His scream was turned into a choking gurgle when he hit the water.
I threw myself flat onto the deck as the gunfire began. Bullets pinged off the metal railing above my head and I rolled before they could correct their aim. I remembered what had happened with my energy beam earlier and placed both hands flat on the deck. I fired both weapons as I pushed myself up into a handstand, protecting me from the wave of energy that crackled outward across the deck. It traveled through the rainwater and knocked the Russians off their feet as if I had just caused a minor earthquake. While they were dazed I got to my feet and grabbed their guns. I hurled them out into the water as the man I’d elbowed slammed into me from behind.
“Boss has big plans for you, little lady.”
“Please don’t hurt me,” I simpered.
He spun me around and pressed me against the hull of the ship, pinning me there with his body. I grimaced and closed my eyes as his hips pressed against mine. Isaiah hated when I used this tactic, but there was no way around it. I was a woman fighting against men, the sort of rutting pigs who would use sexual domination as a weapon against me. I just had to pick my moment and hope I didn’t wait too long. His hands moved from my arms to my waist, no longer restraining now that he had decided to explore what I had to offer. I pressed back against him and he chuckled lustily in my ear.
“Starting to get into it? Don’t. Trust me, darling, you ain’t going to enjoy this.”
“Oh, I could’ve told you that.” I brought up one leg and pressed my boot flat against the wall. I fired the thruster and threw us both backward with all the power I had at my disposal. The goon hit the railing so hard I heard something break, hit so hard that it hurt me even with his body to cushion the impact. He cried out in pain as I rolled forward, turned, and shoved him over the railing to join his friend in the water.
When I turned to face the Russians I saw they had their weapons trained on me. I held up my hands to show them my palms. One of them barked Russian at me.
“Sorry. I don’t speak your language. But listen... why don’t I just get down on the ground?” I gestured my intention. “My beef is with them. I don’t even know who you gentlemen are. But it’s clear you have the upper hand on me.”
They moved closer as I laced my fingers behind my head. One of them spoke in heavily-accented English. “We did not get paid for fight. We are only ship. We lock you in hold and make delivery, we let you out. We have no beefs with you, either.”
I nodded. “Okay. Okay.” I slid my fingers along my wrist weapon. “But here’s the thing, sir. You’re bringing something in for Mr. Odom. I don’t know what it is, exactly, but I do know Mr. Odom isn’t exactly a friend to this city. I’ve sworn to protect it and he’s standing in the way of that. So whatever is in that crate... I have to assume it’s something that will help him.”
The English speaker moved behind me to secure my wrists. “You talk too much.”
“Sorry. I’m just trying to distract you from looking too closely at my hands.”
“Hands...?”
I released a flash bright enough to blind him. When the glow was still fading I threw myself forward and wrapped my arms around his monolingual friend. I was too fast and too close for him to get a good angle with his weapon and we tumbled together down onto the deck. The English speaker opened fire, causing the friend I was tangled with to curse at him in their native language. The gunfire stopped and the other man rubbed furiously at his eyes to regain his sight. I grabbed two fingers of the man I was fighting, twisted, and he yelped in pain. I got to my feet and kicked him, knocking him out.
“You make huge mistake, lady!”
I brought my arm up and aimed center mass. “Yeah. I make a lot of those.” I fired, but the result was a pitiful hiss and sputter. My eyes widened behind my lenses. I had expended too much energy and the reserves were out. “Oh, damnation.”
The Russian smiled and cocked his weapon. I leapt out of the way, slipping on the wet deck and tumbling down onto my side. I managed to correct my balance as he fired, my stumble saving my life as his shot went wide. I reached into my coat, grabbed some light-ups, and tossed them at him. They impacted like fireworks but I didn’t stick around to appreciate my handiwork. I ran to the crate and tried to lift it, but there was no hope when it had taken four men to bring it this far. I decided to use the weight to my advantage and pushed it to the edge of the deck.
“No! You cannot!”
The crate tilted over the edge, falling like an anchor along the side of the boat. When it hit the water the box bobbed for a moment and then began to quickly sink.
“He will kill us all for this.”
“I’m already on his hit list,” I said. “You get used to it after a while.” I climbed onto the railing and leapt, propelling myself far enough to land on the dock with a knee-jarring impact. I ran, not daring to look back at the ship as I fled the scene. Once I was away from the harbor I could switch to a rooftop route. I just hoped I had enough juice left in the boots to get me back to Isaiah’s for a refueling. I didn’t relish the idea of running out when I was jumping from one building to its neighbor.