"Wake up, you have promises to keep,
And miles to go before you sleep."
**Pain**
"It is not yet your time........."
"Your still that snot nosed 15 year old, aren't you?"
"Your climbing, but your not done yet..........."
**Who is that talking to me?**
"Open those eyes O'Brian, and face your judgment............."
**Judgment?**
"Open those eyes and gaze upon an "Old Acquaintance"
I cracked open my eyes, but the light was blinding....
It took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust.....
It looked like the inside of a police station.....
There was a Flight helmet wearing LPI Sergeant standing near me.........
Oh god, I am dead and was sent to hell..........
"Well, don't you greet "Old Friends" when you see them?
He removed his helmet........
This time though, there was an actual human face.....
"What, would you rather I put back on the scary face?"
"No, that's fine as it is" I replied....
"Well, looks like you screwed up pretty bad, cause your here,
and I get to pass judgment on ya..."
"Well lets see, since the last time we met, you almost got yourself killed and
possessed by a Nomad, which didn't happen due to your crushed skull."
"Tried to swap spit with a nomad telepath..."
"Oh, this one is my favorite, almost got yourself killed trying to surf to impress
a red head on Planet Curacao... you moron"
"And now, instead of waiting for backup or withdrawing to fight another day, you get
yourself aced buy an Outcast in a big gunboat, who, by the way, was trying to make up
for a lack in other departments, if you catch my drift."
"So what do you have to say for yourself?"
I was shocked, and at a loss for words. Was I being judged to see where I went in the afterlife?
"I, uh... Tried my best...."
I looked down at myself, I was still in my bloody and torn flight suit, a pitiful mess to behold.
"You tried your best huh?"
"WELL YOU NEED TO DO BETTER!"
The burning skull was back and he was pointing a bony finger in my face.....
"You don't get it, do you? Just like when you were 15. There are innocents out there that need protecting, and are dying
needlessly. The people of Liberty are living in fear because no one is standing up to protect them."
"You need to do better, you need to get those who are charged with protecting and serving up
off of their butts. You need to hunt down those who would hurt and maim for their own pleasure and see them brought to Justice!"
"We have tried!" I surprised myself with the angry outburst..."We, the men and women of the LPI go out every night,
giving all we got to do our jobs and make sure people are safe. we get heckled by stupid traders who 5 minutes later
are crying that they are getting pirated. Our recruit Officers get hunted in Patriots for the criminal's amusement, we are getting ambushed and killed nightly.
"No matter O'Brian, you and those of the LPI have been picked to stop this onslaught. This was determined long ago.You need to do better"
With that he pointed his bony finger at me again....
"My judgment is.... you are not done."
"Go back from whence you came..... and let others know, that I will be watching.... and judging...."
**Silence**
Thump thump.
Formerly known as LPI Police Chief Hull O'Brien.
Creator of Sgt. V. Price, 207th Precinct out of Chula Vista Station
Deveron Kerry's Patriot flashed into New York, straight from California. A Gunboat had followed him through, but it seemed to be disregarding him. He scanned it by instinct, only to realize it was a Cartel-labelled, Merc ID'd Orca Gunboat.
What in the name of the Chief?! came his thoughts like a full-auto machine gun. He could not for his life understand how the Cartel got themselves a Bounty Hunter Gunboat. The idea scared him immensely. Were the Hunters far more corrupt than he and his superiors thought?
Sadly, he had no time to investigate. The last few hours had made him quite ill, and he had to find O'Brian...if that missile spamming Outcast had left anything to look for.
He flew around Fort Bush, the last area he had detected O'Brian's signal. There was no sign of any wreck nearby, or salvage crews.
Fort Bush, this is Officer Deveron Kerry of the LPI, do you have Officer Hull O'Brian recovered?
Negative, Kerry. No sign of him. Lost his signal about three hours ago came the reply from one of the staff on duty. Sounded busy there as it was, which gave Kerry some comfort. Perhaps they'd just missed him.
Very well, keep a look out for any reports, over.
His afterburners hit full before he even finished his sentence. He could only wonder and hope.
_________________________________________________
Kerry was exhausted. He had been searching for four hours. No sign of O'Brian's pod anywhere, or even a hint of a destroyed ship. Almost as if he had disappeared or something. Right off the map.
Suddenly, as he set his ship on autopilot, he saw something out of the corner of his windscreen. It was...a shimmer. Of what he could not tell, but it was something, and he had to find out what...
He hit his cruise engines and flew in the direction of the anomoly. Even as he flew, it seemed to dim. Like a cut trade lane in slow motion.
Closer...closer...he could read an object on his sensors. What exactly it was, he could not determine. The readings were too vague, almost as if something were half-jamming them.
Finally the object came into sight. It was a Liberator. Kerry felt his half-asleep hopes rise and then suddenly fall when he remembered that Hull had been in his bomber when he lost contact. Who was this, and why was it so far from Liberty.
How far, sadly, suddenly came to him. He set his scanners on long range only to realize he was nowhere near New York. In fact, his sensors showed him somewhere past California...in a massive void between California and Magellan. How did I get way out here?
Unidentified Officer, this is Deveron Kerry of the LPI, please identify yourself, over.
Silence. The Liberator slowly drifted in space, otherwise motionless. Lifeless. It was quite close now. Kerry could see scars on its wings and hull. Laser blasts that should have destroyed such a fragile vessel. But nonetheless it was intact.
Suddenly, his scanners went nuts and started beeping. The map blurred until there was nothing but a massive flat layer of black, and the viewscreen showed a sudden torrent of violent subspace forces. An Ion Storm.
As his ship was buffeted by the spatial winds, Kerry realized the Patriot remained unaffected. Almost as if it wasn't there.
Suddenly a single clear detail came up on his scanners. It was from the other Patriot
An escape pod floated out of its hold...literally floated, as there was no sign of Tractor beam activity. Kerry's Patriot suddenly felt still, as if the Ion Storm had never been, even though he could see it raging around him quite clearly.
The pod flew close to his vessel. Suddenly he remembered the reading from his scanners and looked down.
Escape Pod detected.
Duh Kerry said to himself, but before his mind could bring himself to say anything more he saw the second line.
Hull O'Brian.
He stood lifeless at the controls, senseless as to what to do. Suddenly his mind snapped back into action and he hit the Tractor Beam autofire trigger on his side console. The pod was yanked into his cargo hold.
Suddenly the other ship moved...no signs of engine activity. It just...moved.
What the-?
It moved quickly too...turned around and flew...flew at speeds that must have been near that of a fighter in a Trade Lane. Kerry's ship suddenly was shook again from a torrent of Ion Storm winds. As he struggled to regain control of his ship, he saw a flash of lightning, and in it, a looming shadow.
A station, large and silent. A passive derelict that would haunt him for all time.
His sensors were scrambled to everything else, but one thing showed clear...
Chula Vista, 207th Precinct. LPI.
At the same time, something came through his comms...a voice.
Don't think you ain't going to see this place again, Kerry came the voice, cold and hard. Kerry couldn't recognize it, but he saw one more thing appear on his sensors.
Sargeant Price, 207th Precinct.
And all was still...there was nothing...
______________________________________________________________
Kerry woke up with a nasty headache. He was in the Badlands...somewhere. He checked his hold reflexively and saw Hull O'Brian's pod. The memories of that Ion Storm...of the 207th Precinct. Of Sargeant Price, all came flooding to his head like a brick wall. It literally felt like a brick wall. His head hurt so much...like something was squeezing juice from his brain like they would a lemon from old Earth.
He half-heartedly hit his Cruise Engines and flew out of the dark matter cloud. He jumped on the trade lane that materialized before him.
Before he knew it he was on Fort Bush, head still hurting, though not as much.
Is Officer O'Brian going to be alright, ma'am? he asked a nurse as she closed the door to the room where medical had him hooked up to Life Support.
He'll be fine. We know that much. You need rest now, Officer, don't you deny it no longer.
Kerry managed to mumble an aye before half stumbling to his quarters, where he crashed on his bunk, narrowly missing hitting the one above with his head.
And all ceased to be. Kerry was asleep before he had even hit the sheets.
"He who has one thousand friends will find he has not a friend to spare, and he who has one enemy will find him everywhere."
***"WE"...begin*** :Of the Tlaloc's meeting the Gleamshrike:
Quote:Welcome to the Corsair Customer Service Helpdesk; if you have a complaint, please <strike>press 1</strike> hang up and try again.
Kerry walked into the LPI Office building. He was still somewhat tired. He had had almost no sleep at all, in fact. The same dream every night. Sergeant Price, the 207th Precinct, and that Flight Helmet, staring at him. Those memories left him extensively disturbed. The medical staff at Fort Bush told him the dreams would wear off in time, but somehow Kerry doubted them.
He knew one thing though, he had to apply for SWAT. The LPI needed more bombers to deal with the Gunship threat that he had witnessed firsthand. He had to apply, even though a promotion meant more work, he had to. It was his duty. It was his donuts.
Wait, donuts?
Yeah, my mind is going.
"He who has one thousand friends will find he has not a friend to spare, and he who has one enemy will find him everywhere."
***"WE"...begin*** :Of the Tlaloc's meeting the Gleamshrike:
Quote:Welcome to the Corsair Customer Service Helpdesk; if you have a complaint, please <strike>press 1</strike> hang up and try again.
Chief Myers, and Deputy Chiefs Agathon (recently returned), Riza Williams, and Jim Markey we sitting at a table in Sunbuck's gathered there by the news that one of their own had very nearly died...........
The Chief Spoke "Medical says he will pull through, but he was very close to death. They were surprised he wasn't dead when he was brought in..."
It was Riza's turn next " The techs on the docking level said that he entire inside of his pod was covered in blood..."
'It just wasn't his time" Replied Markey...
The lights in the Sunbuck's suddenly flickered, dimmed, then came back on...
And from the area of the juke box came a ......... Bang bang BANG!
An old LPI went out patrolling one day
Upon a sunbucks he rested as he went along his way
When all at once a mighty convoy of screaming xenos he saw
A-plowing through the endless space
Their engines were still on fire and their hulls were made of steel
Their hulls were black and shiny and their hot exaust he could feel
A bolt of fear went through him as they thundered through open space
For he saw the officers coming hard and he heard their mournful cry
Yippie yi Ohhhhh
Yippie yi yaaaaay
Ghost officers in space
Their faces gaunt, their eyes were blurred, their uniforms all soaked with coffee
They are flying hard to catch that convoy, but they ain't caught 'em yet
'Cause they've got to ride forever in the lanes up in space
On Liberators blowing fire
As they ride on hear their cry
Yippie yi Ohhhhh
Yippie yi yaaaaay
Ghost officers in space
As the officers loped on by him he heard one call his name
If you want to save your soul from Hell a-flying in our lanes
Then officer change your ways today or with us you will fly
Trying to catch the Devil's convoy, across endless space
Yippie yi Ohhhhh
Yippie yi Yaaaaay
Ghost Officers in space
Ghost Officers in space
Ghost Officers in space
The juke box quit playing, but then one more sentence was uttered, made up of different singers voices for each word
" I....Am....Watching.....And...... Judging...."
The bartender dropped to his knees and started praying and saying Hail Mary's
The Cheif asked him why he was doing that
The Bartender replied "I unplugged that machine this morning because it needs repaired"
Everyone looked over at the juke box, which was now dead. The power cord was unplugged and taped to the side of the machine.....
Karl Agathon uttered one word............ "Price"
Formerly known as LPI Police Chief Hull O'Brien.
Creator of Sgt. V. Price, 207th Precinct out of Chula Vista Station
Report submitted by: Recruit Officer Robert Jenson
So first thing I have to say is that it might be some time since you guys saw me flying. The thing is someone landed his Rhino on my Patriot that was docked on Manhattan which resulted in the destruction of my ship. The insurance company didn't wanted to pay so I had to be more persuasive so that why I didn't had the time to contact you. Still, 3 days ago, they finaly decided to pay so I got my brand new Patriot and finally I can continue to fly with you guys.
Now, patrol report
Today I went in Texas with Officer Oliver Shaw and Officer Amy McTavish. We did some blockade checking. While we were orbiting around Houston, a slaver named [FTA]Kazz passed near us, heading for Bering. We chased him but he refused to stop. Still, Officer McTavish took proof of his crime so next time you see him, ask him 4 millions in fine. A little later, an other blockade runner called Mon_Calamari tried to go passed us. We chassed him to the Bering Gate where we asked him to stop, he did and we let him go, at the condition he went back, he did. Then I landed on Houston, and made this report.
Also, please take note that I have done the requirements to be promoted to Officer. Waiting for confirmation before aquiring a Liberator.
Hmmm, why canadians are the only to have a sig image.
' Wrote:Kerry walked into the LPI Office building. He was still somewhat tired. He had had almost no sleep at all, in fact. The same dream every night. Sergeant Price, the 207th Precinct, and that Flight Helmet, staring at him. Those memories left him extensively disturbed. The medical staff at Fort Bush told him the dreams would wear off in time, but somehow Kerry doubted them.
He knew one thing though, he had to apply for SWAT. The LPI needed more bombers to deal with the Gunship threat that he had witnessed firsthand. He had to apply, even though a promotion meant more work, he had to. It was his duty. It was his donuts.
Wait, donuts?
Yeah, my mind is going.
Application accepted... Get yourself a Eagle and a Roc, please conform to naming protocols.....
Formerly known as LPI Police Chief Hull O'Brien.
Creator of Sgt. V. Price, 207th Precinct out of Chula Vista Station
Name: Marcus Lindberg
Rank: Officer
Report: Unknown, haven't written one in a long time.
Ok I haven't exactly written a report for a long time, and since our guncam department got hacked by Rhienland cyber warfare unit the other day, I don't really got much proof of what I'v been doing other than eyewitness reports from other officers, so yeah.
Anyways, today was the worst day ever. A bunch of freelancers (in gunboats I might add) kept of insulting LPI saying all we do is eat donuts. I lost my temper. And then there were Navy independents flying around in Upholder bombers without Navy GUARD ID's. I didn't do anything about that, but since Upholder's are low in stock, I'd expect the Navy to at least up the ante on this one and make sure every independent who flies an upholder has a Navy Guard ID, there supposed to be rare anyways. I also got a PM from an outcast by the name Jayde.Wolfe, she had Navy hostages on board, and apparently the independent Navy boy let her kill them. She told him to stay away from at least 2 KM, and apparently, he didn't care and let her kill them. After that, they dissapeared. I'mm not sure if the name of this certain Navy independent (who was also flying an upholder without guard ID), but I think his name was Azritha, or something close to that. The same fool also demanded BHG pilots from a certain Durandal, BHG's was not under our jurisdiction, and if it is, please correct me. Thats not the only thing, he even CLAIMED TO BE THE CHIEF OF THE LPI. Somebody please kill him.
Now, for the REAL thing, some fool by the name Stabby the clown had some innocent kid in his cargo, threatening to kill him unless I payed 200000 credits. I told him to release the kid or else I would nuke mine him (he was in a dromedary). He didn't listen at first, so I was forced to take down his shileds, and he gave in. He gave me his kid and ran away. I would've chased him because he was carrying Cardamine too, but I wasn't in the mood for going all the way to the detroit debris fields. Niether do I have the authority anyways.
So yeah, worst day ever.
Oh, and I'd like to apply for SWAT thank you very much.