Chapter 112

The day had come and gone. Then the night. Jun hadn’t come home, and the sun was rising. I had taken a break after an hour of playing music, and gone out. Spending a couple grand on some additional security for the apartment. Then Installing it all. Of course it was just off the shelf junk.

 

It wouldn’t really stop anyone.

 

But I was currently programming out a bit of a trick. The thing with door locks is that they are never really going to stop someone. Instead I was going to keep the entire thing looking off the shelf, while inside the programming would have a bit of a trick.

 

Sure you can break into the apartment if you really want.

 

But I would know.

 

And knowing is half the way to avoid a trap, or a surprise raid.

 

I was still working on the code. Making the security system send an alarm if it was hacked wasn’t hard. But letting it work without alerting the netrunner breaking in was.

 

So I was fiddling with a few design options to sneak the alert through.

 

It was progressing pretty well with Inspired Programmer keeping me full of inspiration.

 

*Ringing* I blinked at the noise checking the agent view.

 

*Malcolm! What’s up?*

 

*Motoko I need help! Fuck! Cocksuckers shot me!* Malcolm gasped into the line as soon as I chirped my greeting.

 

Instantly I was moving, rushing for my room to grab my guns.

 

*Where are you? Tell me everything.*

*Fuck. Shit I’m bleeding bad. Okay okay. I’ll send you my ping. I’m on a train right now.. II lost them, they stopped chasing me when I got on the rail. Fuck. Oh god. I was buying a car! They were trying to jump me. Steal the money and those fucks! It was supposed to be my car! They fucking killed me over this shit!* His voice broke down into a quiet moan.

 

*Okay I’m on my way. I’m pinging everyone as well, in case someone is closer. We’re on our way Malcolm, just don’t pass out okay. Stay awake.* I demanded as I scooped up my boots as I ran into the hall and raced to the elevator. I hit the button requesting it and then again and again.

 

Too slow.

 

I turned and rushed for the stairs. I slammed into the door and fought my boots onto my feet. Then as I slipped into the stairwell I leapt.

 

I landed on the railing two stories down, then I leapt down again.

 

Again and again. I leapt past some people hanging out in the stairwell. Kids adults. Whatever. It wasn’t a concern.

 

*I’m still with you Malcolm, talk to me buddy.*

 

*Fuck it hurts. Never been shot before! Those assholes!* He whined and cried into the line, but I would rather him do that, then have it go silent. The last jump I dropped three stories to land in a crouch on the garage level. Startling some of the Tyger Claw kids that were smoking and hanging out under the stairs.

 

I slammed into the door and rushed for my Quadra. The door opened at a glance as I leapt inside from the passenger side.

 

Sliding into the driver seat, I gunned it backwards. My eyes instantly connected to the cameras on the Quadra to roar out of my space.

 

I didn’t bother to spin around. Tires screeching through the garage I slipped my Quadra into a reverse drift to make the entrance ramp and continued roaring backwards until I hit the top of the ramp absolutely maxing out the engine as it leapt into the air. I hit the ground and Spun, finally facing forward already in the street and ignoring the honks of people that I had nearly crashed into.

 

My Quadra roared. All 1000 horsepower roared as my foot hit the pedal all the way down.

 

*I’m on my way!* I said again into the phone as for the first time I really truly ignored traffic laws.

 

I raced the streets. Swerved through traffic, and ignored lights. The sidewalk was perfectly good for getting around traffic as well to my current estimation.

 

I had no care about anything because one of my chooms was in trouble.

 

Malcolm was my friend.

 

I wasn’t ready to lose a friend to this city.

 

*Talk to me Malcolm. Tell me about these assholes.*

 

*… Fuck. They… They were selling a Rayfield Motoko. It was a second gen Caliburn. Yellow silver. The best… The best paintjob. It was so beautiful. And cheap… It was only 70k. I wanted it so bad. I decided… I thought fuck it. It’s my dream car, you know? I… I have a poster of it above my bed. Dreamed about that car since… Forever. If I had it… that means I made it you know?*

 

*Yeah Malcolm, and you will. Believe me. Just keep breathing choom. I’m almost there.* And I was. Malcolm was still in Westbrook. Just farther south. Near Charter Hill. He had sent me an active GPS ping, and it wasn’t moving. *Did you get off the rail?*

 

*Yeah… Yeah they kicked me off. Bleeding too much I guess… Fuckers.* He mumbled.

 

Fuck.

 

*Hey Malcolm, listen to me. You keep your damn eyes open, and keep breathing! You hear me?*

 

*Yeah… I gotta listen to you right? Boss? Heh. Who would have thought I’d be working for your gonk ass. Fuck. It’s been great though…* He trailed off.

 

*Yeah it’s awesome, and your brain is amazing at noticing things! Couldn’t have done the yacht heist without you yeah? You were the one to figure out the Scavs. So stay alive Malcolm, that’s an order from your boss!* I gasped out desperately as I made a stupidly dangerous turn.

 

*Yeah…*

 

I skidded to a halt as Traffic was blocking me again and the sidewalk was full. I honked and revved into the sidewalk anyways. People scurried out of the way as I drove as slow as I could bear around the cars stopped at a light until I hit the road and revved to skid onto the cross street into the active traffic. Swiftly forcing a position and then accelerating.

 

Just gotta hope NCPD were busy right now…

 

At least I was getting responses from everyone. Vik had responded to my frantic text message and he was on his way with med supplies to keep someone alive. I just had to get Malcolm to him.

 

I was there. The sidewalk was a perfectly good parking spot as I nearly drove onto the escalators running up to the platform.

 

Driver side door opened, and I was off like a shot, Racing up the escalator until there were people in the way and then I jumped onto the railings and just raced up that.

 

Then I was on the platform, and it wasn’t hard to see Malcolm.. A pool of blood with bloody footprints leading to him slumped up against a sign and a small space in the crowd, but no one was trying to help.

 

Assholes.

 

I leapt. Landing beside him in a single movement.

 

“Hey Malcolm. Calvary is here. C’mon. Take this.” I offered him a MaxDoc, while I grabbed an Airhypo and jammed it into his chest.

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“FuuuuUUK!.” He cursed his breath suddenly much fuller as the Airhypo oxygenated his blood.

 

Well as much as it could anyways.

 

“Take the MaxDoc Malcolm.” I demanded and grabbed some bandages out of a hip pouch.

 

Fuck the bullet hole was bad.

 

Through and through his chest, just below his armpit and out almost between his ribs on the front.

 

That was… Not good.

 

I wrapped a bandage around him as best I could and then hefted him up.

 

Malcolm was bigger than me, true.

 

But I was so freaked out, I didn’t even care that he was a bit heavier than me. I pulled him into a princess carry ignoring his cry of pain as I started rushing to the escalator.

 

*Vik! I got him. Sending you pics. I’ll be rushing to meet you!* I sent Vik as I finally didn’t need to be on call with Malcolm.

 

*Alright Kid. Just breathe, steady now. Let’s save your choom.* He whispered into my ear, and it was calming as I rushed down the escalator doing my best not to jostle Malcolm, or bump him into anything.

“GET THE FUCK OUT OF THE WAY!” I roared at some fucking morons not idling in front of me, and it was only when I started to try and grab my Burya that they hurried out of the way.

 

My Quadra was still there idling, Although I wasn’t surprised to note some gonk kid was running off with an arm full of…

 

Okay stealing my homemade grenades was pretty ballsy. That’s a scary kid for the next few days.

 

I slipped Malcolm into the passenger seat, and strapped him in.

 

This was going to get wild.

 

“H-hey. You’re gonna have to not drive like a… Granny.” Malcolm joked at me weakly as I slipped into the driver seat.

 

“Yeah.” I agreed bluntly and then floored it again. Vik was heading this way, but it was still far. And Malcolm was bleeding.

 

I couldn’t tell exactly what I babbled at Malcolm to keep him focused as I raced through the streets, it was all a blur, and I was sure that without Cool Nerves I definitely would have gotten into an accident as I was sure my entire body would be shaking if not for that.

 

Thank you system. Thank you Gamer powers. Thank you whatever thing gave me the ability to actually act through my panic and try to save my choom.

 

I almost ran into Vik. Who was driving an old Villefort Columbus van. I slid into a screeching powerslide right beside him nearly startling him off the road as he jerked the wheel a bit, but braked after and then he was there. My passenger door opened and Vik instantly slipped some device with a big canister attached against Malcolms chest.

 

I heard the pneumatic sound as it activated.

 

“Fuck!” Malcolm hissed, but Vik was just chuckling, talking calmly, and a moment later. Instead of a reedy wet breathing coming out in a rush from Malcolm, it seemed to even out a bit. And some color very quickly came back to his face.

 

“C’mon lets get you in the van, and I’ll plug those holes yeah?” Vik said as calm as ever seemingly completely unconcerned about what he was helping with, and I could see how that calm soothed Malcolm who obviously was freaking out at what had happened.

 

Fuck Vik. You are truly an angel.

 

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