To Catch a Thief

[ze_leaper]

In the life of a mercenary, you often took jobs that were far outside the law. Occasionally, you also took jobs that, while still illegal, skirted the line of lawlessness. And sometimes, you took jobs that were actually legal, but where the client wanted to stay off the books.

Such was the case now. Horizon Labs was experiencing significant theft of its technological developments of late, with the thief leaving no or minimal traces. Fortunately, a slightly less ethical member of the board had access to a few quasi-legal channels, and reached out through the Dark Web. Professional curiosity as well as the paycheck had prompted Adrienne and Millicent to take it.

Analyzing the pattern, they had determined that one of the Lab's warehouses was probably the next hit. Adrienne was up in the rafters, while Millicent outside on the perimeter.

She gently tapped her earpiece. "Anything?" she asked.

Comments

[ze_leaper]

Adrienne's costume was more lightweight, and a helmet would unbalance her acrobatics, so some sacrifices had to be made.

"Too quiet. But that is this thief's sign..."

[ngm_foes]

Outside, someone was rising up through the very concrete of the ground, passing through it like it wasn't even there at all. Even with accurate mapping to her visor, it was easier to surface outside and then go in. Orienting herself underground was always challenging.

[weapons_mistress]

"Bloody hell!" Millicent's helmet picked up the sudden infrared signature. "On your game, Adri. Someone just rose through the floor!"

[ze_leaper]

"That," Adrienne hissed, "is cheating."

She watched as a woman phased through the wall before making some kind of further adjustment on one her gauntlets and nearly fading from view. Not invisibility, but some kind of camouflage effect... No wonder she wasn't leaving any signs.

"Having trouble keeping eyes on her. She's gone camo."

[ngm_foes]

The woman moved swiftly, but carefully. Her chameleon effect was not invisibility, but so long as she made her movements careful and did not draw undue attention to herself, she would set off no alarms. A shame she could not combine the effect with her intangibility, but hardly a true cause for complaint.

There. There was her prize...

[weapons_mistress]

Millicent quickly switched her helmet to pick op traces from a variety of spectrums, but whatever the woman was using, the tech had to be highly advanced.

"She's heading for the target. I don't know what she's using, but I can barely pick up a trace." Millicent moved from her position.

[ze_leaper]

"Blast it..." Adrienne cursed. And then she leapt, carrying herself some distance across the room. As she flew from the air, her hands went to her belt and she opened her entire canister of powder. Usually used for finding fingerprints on a numeric keypad or for exposing infrared beams, it was also perfect for revealing that which was invisible.

It coated just enough of their thief for Adrienne to get eyes on her, landing in front of her.

"Now, now," she said as she wagged a finger, "as sympathetic as I am to others in ze profession, I cannot allow you do do zis."

As always, she put on her more affected accent. All part of the show, all part of the misdirection.

[ngm_foes]

Interference! She hadn't expected this. But unexpected did not mean insurmountable.

She dropped her chameleon effect and instead powered up her gauntlets. "Move," she growled. "Or I'll make you move."

[weapons_mistress]

Millicent had moved so she was in an elevated position. She took out her sniper rifle, armed with custom made tranq-shots. She just needed a good shot in a spot where the woman's suit didn't cover her.

[ze_leaper]

"I cannot let you do zat," Adrienne said. She took a single step back on her left foot, then launched herself into a flying kick at the woman's head.

[ngm_foes]

The woman was good, her reflexes sharp. She struck out with her gauntlet as Adrienne neared. The glove passed through her, trailing glowing blue energy. It seemed to suck all the momentum out of Adrienne, and she hit the ground.

[weapons_mistress]

"Shit!" She discarded the sniper rifle. The woman's phasing technology would make a proper shot even more difficult. She leaped from her spot, grabbing her custom-made tonfas. She activated the electrical current that laced the top of the weapons Maybe she could short the thief's armor out.

[ze_leaper]

Adrienne was fighting hard the urge to curl up into a little ball. Whatever phasing technology this woman had, it had made her feel like all the cold in the world, the cold of the grave, had focused itself in her chest, making her breaths come in ragged gasps.

She struggled to get back to her feet.

[ngm_foes]

"Stay down," she growled. "I'm just called the Ghost... keep this up, and you'll actually be one."

[weapons_mistress]

She hadn't seen Millicent, and her attention was focused on Adrienne. Millicent took off in a dead run, swinging the electrified tonfas in a series of arcs meant to strike several places in quick succession.

[ngm_foes]

Focused on her gloating, the attack came unexpectedly, knocking her to the ground. Her body armor protected her from some of the force of the blows, but not all of it.

She rolled as she hit the ground, coming up in a crouch, gauntlets glowing.

"Witch," the Ghost growled. "You'll pay for that."

[weapons_mistress]

"You'll need more than insults to scare me off," Millicent replied. Inwardly she cursed. She had hoped that would put the woman down. She had a feeling things were going to get ugly. Millicent spribnted forward, her eyes watching the other woman's movements for the inevitable attack.

[ngm_foes]

"I'm the Ghost," she said, readying for a strike, "the greatest thief this world has ever seen. Corporations quiver at the mere mention of my name. And you think you'll stop me?"

She charged Millicent, but surreptitiously activated her intangibility.

[weapons_mistress]

Millicent's helmet picked up on the sudden shift. She dashed to the right, bringing one of her tonfas in a sharp arc, hoping that perhaps the electricity would have some kind of disruptive effect on the Ghost's intangibility.

"No, you're coasting off the reputation of someone else. And that Ghost was more than a mere thief. However warped, that man had ideals. They don't fear you. They fear his legacy."

[ngm_foes]

The electrical strike made her cry out, sending sparks dancing across her armor. The Ghost seemed to flicker in and out, becoming transparent and then solid in rapid fire sequence.

"What... what did you..."

[ze_leaper]

Adrienne had finally gotten back to her feet. "Zat... zat does not look good."

[weapons_mistress]

Millicent didn't allow herself to get lax from the encouraging results of her strike.

"I believe I just shorted out your suit."

[ngm_foes]

Fear crossed the Ghost's face as she flickered more and more rapidly. She reached out, pleadingly, but no sound came when she opened her mouth.

[ze_leaper]

"That... That does not look good..."

[weapons_mistress]

"Shit!" Millicent wanted to cancel the phasing effect, not..whatever that was. She flicked the switch on her tonfas to reverse the polarity of the electricity within the tips. Sometimes Millicent was annoyed that she had a conscience. She swung at the Ghost's flickering from, hoping the reverse polarity would stabilize what was happening.

[ze_leaper]

Part of Adrienne did not particularly care what happened to the Ghost. She relied too much on her technology and not enough upon skill. And she had appropriated the name of, not a great man, certainly, but a principled one, for petty thievery.

Still, her father had raised her with a sense of honor. She took no joy in what was happening.

[ngm_foes]

The tonfas passed through the Ghost, but seemed to do nothing of any positive effort. Instead, the flickering intensified to the point of appearing as though a strobe light had turned on.

There was a silent scream, and then she began to glow from the inside out, as though ready to explode.

[weapons_mistress]

"Sodding hell! Get down!" Millicent ran at Adrienne to tackle her out of the way of what was about to happen.

[ze_leaper]

"Ooomph!" Adrienne wasn't expecting the tackle, but instantly rolled with it, ready to ride out whatever occurred.

[ngm_foes]

The light grew to a crescendo, growing almost blinding... and then the Ghost was simply gone, with only a scorch mark on the ground to mark where she had been.

[weapons_mistress]

When everything began to clear, Millicent spoke.

"Well..that wasn't what I expected. You all right adri?"

[ze_leaper]

"Merde..." Adrienne hissed. "I will live, I think. More than we can say for her."

[weapons_mistress]

Millicent cursed again. She didn't mind killing if it was necessary, but the whole thing seemed extreme overkill for someone who was just robbing the place.

"..Let's go home. This place is leaving a bad taste in my mouth."

[ze_leaper]

Adrienne shook her head sadly. She too, was not opposed to taking a life if the situation called for it, but she was not some casual assassin either.

"Agreed," she said. "Not the most auspicious of nights."

Though it would still come with a substantial paycheck.

[weapons_mistress]

"Adrienne..handle the employer contact for me, would you?" Millicent sounded weary and tired.

[ze_leaper]

"Of course, Millicent," Adrienne assured her. "Of course."