Broker's Lair/Chapter 4: Alarmed

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Chapters: Prologue 1 2 3 4 5 Epilogue

Chapter 4: Alarmed

Broker's Lair, Empress Desert, 15km south west of Soleanna - November 3rd 2013, 10:25AM

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Nearing the end of their lengthy journey on the elevator, Lawson prepares his pistol once more while Astrid sheathes her blade after a quick inspection. Katherine put away her touch screen device and hesitantly readied her own pistol.

"We're nearing The Broker's floor. Be ready for anything," Lawson advised.

Soon after, the doors opened, revealing two unsuspecting Mobian guards who looked straight at the team.

"Welp. Shit," one of them exclaimed before being pistol whipped by Lawson.

"Sound the alar-!" the other said, before being kneed in the face by Katherine, "Agh! My fucking nose!", he continued, muffled by the fact that his hands covered his face. Lawson then punched him in the side of the head, knocking him unconscious.

"You gotta knock 'em out, Private," he said, moving forward with his pistol at the ready.

"I'll remember that for next time, sir," she responded.

Suddenly, a high pitched wailing sound began to play repeatedly.

"The alarm has been raised. We must hurry," Astrid advised.

The group then proceeded down a corridor which lead into a massive hall filled with tables, chairs and benches. A kitchen could be seen to their left and toilets could be seen to their right. Ahead of them, was a large, locked, electronic door. However, in front of that, we're multiple teams of armed guards, who began to fire at the team.

"Get down!" Katherine yelled as she ran towards a pillar.

Lawson began running with his head down, before sliding towards a table which he then pulled down to provide cover. Astrid, like Katherine, hid behind a pillar.

"What do we do, Sergeant?!" Katherine yelled over the gunfire.

"Pick 'em off!" he replied, before shooting one straight in the head. A "man down" could be heard from the opposition quickly after.

"Who are these guys?!" one of the enemy soldiers asked. Another answered with "How the fuck should we know! Just shoot-", before being shot down.

This firefight continued for at least two more minutes before Katherine had an idea.

"Sergeant, did you bring flashbangs?" she asked.

"I did. Good idea," he replied, undoing a velcro strap on one of his pockets. He grabbed a flashbang and pulled the pin before quickly throwing it across the hall towards the enemy. "Cover your eyes and ears ladies."

Suddenly, a loud bang echoed through the room. The sound and bright flash deafened and blinded the enemy troops, allowing Lawson, Astrid and Katheirne to pick them off quickly. After all the enemies were dealt with, Katherine sighed.

"Close one... Gimme a sec," she said, pulling out a tablet and flicking it a few times. A moment or two after, the alarm stopped sounding. She looked at Lawson for approval. The agent nodded in response.

"Right, let's get that door open," the private said, moving toward a control panel on the wall, "Oh no..."

"What is it?" Astrid inquired.

"This is a holographic lock..." Katherine sighed.

"Is that going to be a problem, Treske?" Lawson asked, questioning her skill.

"No, sir... It's just a bit harder is all."

Suddenly, a thud echoed throughout the hall, which startled Astrid. "What was that?"

"How long on that hack, Private?" Lawson asked, loading his rifle.

"I don't know. This is system is the most complex one I've ever seen."

"Shit. Get ready, Astrid," the wolf advised.

Astrid placed her bow on her back and fastened velcro straps around the limbs. She then drew her blade and replied with, "I am always ready, Agent."

The thuds could be heard above them, getting closer and closer. There was one last thud and then, nothing. However, Astrid and Lawson were still battle ready. Katherine was still hacking the door fairly slowly. It seemed to be causing her some difficulty.

Suddenly, a massive hulking robot smashed through the ceiling, landing with a cybernetic fist on the ground. It then looked directly at its two combatants.

"Well, you're... big," Lawson said, slightly intimidated by the machine.

The robot stood up and towered over Lawson and Astrid. The machines right arm was outfitted with a massive chaingun and almost its entire body was covered in armour plating.

"Katherine, if you would kindly hurry up, I would much appreciate it," Astrid said, looking directly back at the machine.

"I'm on it! Don't pressure me, okay?" she snapped.

[TARGETS ACQUIRED. WEAPONS LOCKED. COMMENCE ATTACK,] the machine said.

"Astrid. Get behind it, I'll draw fire," Lawson ordered.

"Understood," she replied.

Quickly after, Lawson ran out and began spraying bullets towards the mech, allowing Astrid to leap over cover and run past it as it walked towards Lawson.

[FULL AUTO WEAPONS FIRE DETECTED. DEPLOYING COUNTERMEASURES,] it stated. Suddenly, a blue bubble flashed around the robot, which then proceeded to to tightly wrap itself into every nook and cranny between its dense armour.

"What was that, Agent?" Astrid asked from across the room.

"That asshole stole experimental G.U.N technology. It's an electric shield designed to stop any form of melee or weapons fire," the agent replied.

"So, how do we destroy it?"

Suddenly, the robot began unleashing a barrage of bullets near Lawson. He let out a quick "Oh, shit" before running for cover.

"Treske? Status?" Lawson said, disregarding Astrid's question and trying to get the rookie's attention.

"Nearly finished, but it'd be a lot quicker if that thing was dead, sir," she replied, swiping at the control panel.

"Right. Astrid, distract it. Make sure it doesn't touch the rookie. Treske, as soon as we're through the door, deadlock seal it. I don't want it to follow us," Lawson ordered.

"You got it," the rookie followed, now slightly speeding up her hack.

Astrid, now behind the machine, began loosing arrows at its back. Since the arrows simply bounced off of the electric shielding, it kept firing in Lawson's direction. Then Astrid noticed something. On its neck was a very small, but exposed, hole in the shielding. Astrid aimed her bow and loosed and arrow straight towards it. A faint crackling sound was heard before the shielding flashed off.

[ALARMED: ELECTRIC SHIELDING DISABLED], the robot stated as it turned around. Unfortunately, it then saw the assassin running straight for it, who then jumped on its head and jammed her bow's bottom limb into its face. [ALARMED: OPTICS NON-FUNCTIONAL. RECOMMEND RETREAT].

Suddenly, the door next to Katherine launched itself open, causing her to smile, "I did it!"

Lawson turned to her, "Nice job. Astrid c'mon!"

The assassin ignored him, deciding to finish the job the she'd started. She flipped over the machine's head and grabbed onto a piece of the armour plating. Then she drew her blade and stabbed through the rubber 'undersuit', destroying some vital wires. The robot froze and began to lean forward, which is when Astrid jumped off. It crashed incredibly loudly onto the floor. Sparks flew out of the optical socket and neck of the robot.

"You done?" Lawson asked, suggesting that he wanted to keep moving.

"Yes. I am," the assassin simply replied, before following the two G.U.N agents into the very dark room behind the door.