Spoopy Scary

Verthaven: A Bloody Paradise [Completed]

Made a shitty post. Rushed it around the end.

Verthaven: A Bloody Paradise [Completed]

The Dreadnaughts

---

As Grit followed the stranger through the halls within a safe distance, there was one thing that became abundantly clear: the man didn’t seem to be on either side of the conflict. The disregard to the agents and the mercilessness he displayed toward the Fiends – whoever it was, they were third party. Much like the Dreadnaughts in a way, but at least they were picking a side to fight on. If this man was free-roaming, or a wild card, then he could just as easily be payed to fight them. This was less an issue, the mercenary wouldn’t stand a chance against the Dreadnaughts’ full fighting force, but he could be a nuisance if he interrupts one of their operations. The stranger appeared to be heading directly towards the sound of action. The stranger was hunting the heart – if he planned to kill Khan, Grit had to do something about him. Washe said that under any circumstance, Khan mustn’t die. If Khan dies, the trail is as good as cold and the mission would practically fail.

And it wasn’t before long the stranger made contact. One shot later, after downing the wrong person – one of Khan’s lieutenants, dead, just like that – Khan flew into a frenzy, and began her relentless assault on the stranger with her grenades… prompting Grit to retreat further down the halls, out of their field of vision. The stranger was yelling madly, spouting crazed yelping like a hydrophobic dog.

“Shit, I didn’t come just to put down some loony psycho… huh, I wonder if he used to be a Fiend.”

After an incredibly intense skirmish between the two, the fight had been brought to the railings, where one could fall with the other. Khan was thrown over, who pulled the stranger with her. One thing he forgot about Khan was her ability to turn into mist. ’So she’s kinda like Baron? Except she is a bit more of a, ah… a freak.’

The stranger hit the lobby ground as a crumpled mess. Khan was floating down to finish the job.

Grit bit his lip. This wasn’t good. Khan wasn’t going the direction the ‘Naughts wanted her to go. He had to get her back on track somehow. Not just that; as much as he wanted the stranger to stay of the Dreadnaughts’ way, the man was no longer in any position to fight. He was at Khan’s mercy. And after a fall like that, his career as a vigilante was over. That there was some permanent damage, and it appealed to Grit’s sense of mercy.

’Ah, shit.’

Grit rushed over to the edge and looked down. She was near him already. He swung his acquired AK over the side, and let rip a hail of bullets, which simply went straight through her gaseous form. As soon as she looked up, he gave her an ample amount of time to look at his face, before sprinting off down a hall in the other direction.

---

Baron followed Lihua down the halls, trying as hard as he could to keep up with her. Something wasn’t right with that other woman, Ariella. His eyes were narrowed as she spoke, and he was watching her intently – every twitch, expression, slightest movement of her hair. Every detail on her uniform. Most importantly, her attitude. Something wasn’t right with her, and Baron had pegged her as a noteworthy suspect. By the time this is all over, they’re going to have a little get-together. To help clear the air, so to speak. Lihua was so distracted by the assault and by her daughter, she probably did not think anything of Ariella. But in the moment, he made his best effort to keep focused on the current task at hand, much like Lihua was. It was the curse of all geniuses.

They happened across another woman agent, being beaten by a Fiend who was snappily taken care of by Lihua. From behind, another Fiend came to supplement the ambush. Baron reflexively reached forward with the palm of his hand and pushed up on the trowel-armed Fiend’s face, who had nowhere to go but down – and after falling, Baron’s drawn Caracal C was pressed against his belly, pushed just under his ribs and pointed towards his head, and Baron fired. The Fiend’s body muzzled the sound of gunfire, and the bullet ripped through their internals. Baron stood himself back up, regaining his composure as he looked at the Fiend he had just killed, disappointed.

If his agent friend was watching, then it was clearly obvious that his composure was more or less a smoke-screen. Psychologists, whether they worked for a PMC or not, were hardly as cold and merciless as this execution was.

As Lihua assessed the situation with the downed agent, Baron muttered to himself. “A shame... I wonder what his story was.”

Next thing he knew, another Fiend began charging out. Neither he nor Lihua had time to react, before he, too, had fallen. Another agent had appeared behind the crazed assailant and with a well-aimed shot, may have well saved Lihua’s life.

“Clarke.”

“Lihua.”

Baron straightened his suit and rubbed the back of his neck. They exchanged words, Lihua delivered some weapons, and the man was on his way as quick as that.

“Let’s go.” Lihua said.

Baron nodded and began to follow her lead… that is, until a body just fell a story or two above their own floor, whizzing past them. Then he hit the ground with a sickening crack. Baron stood there wide-eyed in disbelief.

“My God, this place is a mad house.”

Baron looked over the edge to see a man, practically unconscious. He looked up, and there he saw Khan floating gently towards him. He quickly moved away from the railing and looked at Lihua. “It seems as though our target is coming to us.”

Then a hail of gunfire barraged through the air which Khan was occupying. Whatever was happening, Baron admittedly felt frustrated about being out of the loop.

Verthaven: A Bloody Paradise [Completed]

The Dreadnaughts

---

By time Lihua made it to the armory, Baron was already making attempts at disguising his heavy breathing. Very slow but very deep breaths, though he no matter how often his chest slowly heaved, he didn't seem to be giving himself enough air.

"Ah... Christ... Christ almighty, that was quite a jog..."

With his bad leg, he limped inside the armory and let the automatic doors close behind him. He sat himself on a bench and pulled up his dress pants, revealing the black mechanical brace underneath. The mechanism wasn't massive, too cumbersome and heavy - though its encumbrance by weight alone meant almost nothing when its purpose was to keep his knee from moving. He pressed his hands over his leg, squeezing his eyes shut, and then tightening the brace over his leg. He made an inaudible growl to vent the discomfort. He looked up at his allies. 'Damn,' he thought, 'I didn't think I'd have to move this much this fast today.'

But he had to hand Lihua some credence - she was quite the sight with that power of hers. Damn scary. She turned the hallway into a meat processing plant back there, with no two thoughts about mutilating those Fiends beyond recognition. Between all the brutalities and explosions, it brought back memories of Paraguay. Only... slightly tamer.

The NEST agent turned around and asked him to pick up anything he might need here. Baron took a look around - all good equipment, to be sure. But he was no warrior like many of the other Dreadnaughts and like the NEST agents. "I'm already equipped with all I need. A suit and a charming smile." Baron joked - though it wasn't very convincing given his shortness of breath. His smile degenerated into a solemn expression soon after. From out of his coat, he withdrew his Caracal C and briefly checked the magazine. He said, "don't worry about me right now, you need to focus on pacifying this storm of madness."

As if to prove his point, he parted his dress coat and revealed a bullet hole damaging his dress shirt, right under his left shoulder. There was no blood, however, and as he pulled down his shirt, there was what appeared to be armor. Not like the typical bullet-proof vest as this was thinner than regular protection; closer to the skin. "This might bruise a bit later, but otherwise I'm... what the hell?"

Baron was staring out the door of the armory, and a familiar young man with a long rifle on his back, a big revolver in his holster, and an AK-47 running up the stairs towards where all the commotion was. Grit! What was that crazy fool doing here?

Baron looked to Lihua with surprise and a hint of worry. "Was that Grit?"

---

Grit sprinted up the stairs as fast as he could. He could've swore he just saw this suspicious person - neither Dreadnaught nor wearing the agent regalia, blur up the stairs as fast as a Kenyan or something. Weaving through the bodies in the halls, the absurd deformation made on the building by various powers, and planting his back against the wall around every block to be sure he didn't run into the hail of fire. Poking his head around the corner, he met face to face with a Fiend who had apparently the same idea Grit had!

He reflexively spun around the corner, sweeping his leg across the ground from behind his adversary's feet. The Fiend slipped onto the ground, the back of their masked head smacking against the floor just before Grit smashed their face with the butt of his acquired AK. Grit stood up with his back against the wall and took a deep breath.

"Aye, aye, aye... that there was too close for comfort... I prefer at least some distance!"

He heard some footsteps down the hall. 'Shucks, another one!' This prompted Grit to retreat back behind the corner of the wall and keep just his head poked out the other side. A tall, middle aged man donned in body armor from head to toe was hunting through the halls, and heavily armed. If he looked at him in just a hair of a second, he might've confused him for Baron - but this man was more muscular, stronger. He didn't look like a NEST agent, but he certainly wasn't a Fiend. This wasn't the person who rushed up the stairs, was it? Maybe it was best if Grit decided to stalk this person, just to be sure.

After all, if he was good at one or two things, shootin' and concealing himself were sure to be some of 'em.

Verthaven: A Bloody Paradise [Completed]

Pardon the shitpost, am using a phone.

Verthaven: A Bloody Paradise [Completed]

The Dreadnaughts

---

Damn that man, old Washe had Grit standing watch on the outside while all the action was taking place on the INSIDE! The geezer assured him that they should bashing in the front door, and hardly had the brains for much else. Then he mused about something being an inside conspiracy if it didn't pan out that way. Which was weird in itself, he didn't often joke about things like that-- oh. Oh dear. The reality sunk into even Grit. He had to do something quickly, else shit is about to get very bad very fast.

Through his scope he took a quick reconnaissance of the area to check if the coast was clear. Undercover agents from sounds the city must be rushing to the aid of their home base, and he couldn't afford to be caught up in their hassle. All clear. He slinged the rifle over his back and hopped over the edge of the roof and slid down the fixed ladders until his feet hit the pavement. With his BFR drawn, he sprinted across the road until he met with the entrance to the lobby. His back was pressed against the wall and he peered inside the building. It looks like all the excitement moved upstairs.

The young Dreadnaught barged through the door and made a quick scan of the room with his hand cannon drawn. Still safe. He began making a faster pace until he suddenly felt his foot kick something hard. Looking down, he met with an AK-47, lightly bloodied with the Fiend who once carried it. Reliable like a best friend, doesn't jam too often like a boring neighbor. Accurate and inaccurate at the same time. He looked at his BFR, then shrugged and holstered it. He picked up the automatic gun in its place and checked the clip. Poor bastard didn't get to fire off a single shit. Talk about a bad day! But HIS bad day just serves to supplement Danny Grit's OUTSTANDING luck! He continued his trek upstairs. However as he reached the next floor, an explosion rocked the building, and fire among with an onslaught of dust debris threatened to knock Grit back the stairs - and he would have, had the young man not held tightly to the railing just in time. Smoke began billowing out just down the hallway... that was upstairs! Between all the excitement and the trail of bodies - of both Fiends and agents - he must be getting remarkably close.

---

Washe had to admit. The chemical compounds that NEST has produced to combat these freaks were extraordinary. And in so short amount a time, too. He had every intention of utilizing one of the most surefire, expensive weapons they had at their disposal to ensure Khan's capture. With the situation as it is now, there is no room for error.

He couldn't believe how complacent he was. How he so drastically underestimated his opponent. All this time he thought he was just fighting druggies and taking the trash out. Of course there were suspicions about shit being bigger than gangs. But not THIS early in the game. The Fiends got in covertly for a perfect ambush strike. Never would Washe have imagined that a group so insignificant could have such kind of contacts and firepower. And the way everything was so perfectly orchestrated: a secret entrance that was left unguarded, at the time of day where the most experienced agents and militarized personnel were on duty IN the city... someone set this up for it to be easy for these freaks. Someone with a lot of control.

It was about time that the Dreadnaughts really began viewing the NEST organization as a legitimate threat.

Verthaven: A Bloody Paradise [Completed]

For those who don't know: my computer died. Am trying to get a new one asap.

Verthaven: A Bloody Paradise [Completed]

The Dreadnaughts, Lihua Vuhong, and the Fiends

_{by @Spoopy Scary and @Mr Allen J}

---

"How's the field lookin', Grit?"

"It sure was somethin'. Looks like one or two things went awry somewhere in deal, can't be too sure. There was a whole shoot out and everything.You know, I only got a scope. You don't think y'all could'a gone and wire the place up so we can hear 'em?"

"We can't run the risk of tipping them off, numb skull! If we did that and they found out, they'd delay the negotiation by another day or two."

"Okay, okay. I'm on my way back, what now?"

Washe looked around the room he was in. Sulfur was securely locked away and cuffed up in more ways than one, and the air in the base was stiff. "Keep just keep posted outside the base. With this many things going against the Fiends now, they'll be feeling the pressure, alright. I reckon they'll be lashing out sooner than I predicted."

"Just sit tight old man, I'll taqke a look-see around the area."

Washe rolled his eyes and cut the comm, and turned around - just for it to beep in his ear once more. He pressed it again. "Caesar speaking."

"By the by," Grit hollered, "what kinda food you think a woman like the Nightengale might enjoy herself?" He stressed a dramatic, Shakespearean emphasis as he said "the Nightengale".

Washe immediately slapped the button on the comm and severed the communication then and there. Another beep followed en suit.

"Alright, listen here you fucking prick--"

"Oh, hello Caesar. Maria speaking."

God damn it, the idiot put him in this embarrassing situation. Still annoyed from earlier, Washe snapped at her. "What do you want, eyes?"

"Just checking in on the situation."

"Fiends might be striking sooner than predicted." Washe answered simply.

"Have all units fallen into position yet?"

Washe stood indignantly. "Well they might fucking have if Grit and yourself aren't gonna call me every two seconds for one reason or another."

"Caesar."

"Fucking what?"

"...Barcelona?"

Washe fell quiet. He took a deep breathe and steeled himself again. "Fine. Tell the boss to give me a little time, I'll have everything set up.

"Roger that."

With another click, the comms were finally silent. He looked at Sulfur - the only other person in this room. An isolated cell. She was between sleep and consciousness. Practically a zombie. Speaking of zombies... Baron was still in the base. He had to find a spot where he could stay out of danger and be of more use later on. He had only let a few people in on this operation, as to prevent any information links. Even one or two people he wasn't, ah, entirely "thrilled" with.

---

As Lihua was furiously typing away at her computer, searching up and down the city for her daughter, Baron was in the doorway of her office and leaning against its frame. He looked at her, somewhat concerned, but also pressured by the situation that weighed over their heads. The information he had just received from Caesar was critical - as it happened, Lihua was among that small circle of confidants. She likely wouldn't have been had Baron not vouched for her dedication to her career. He gleaned more from his date with her than he initially suspected.

"Lihua," Baron said gently, "I mean, miss... agent Vuhong. I understand you're worried. All I can say is to give her a little time... right now, something very urgent has arisen."

Lihua let out a furious sigh. Very irritated - though, it was more of how insanely worried she was for Meifeng - that she was being interrupted. Even if it was by Baron.

"What is it?" Lihua asked, trying her very best to sound professional - and with the hints of sorrow in her voice, it was clear she was failing.

Baron suppressed a sigh. Inform first, then reassure. He'd better get straight to the point. "I just got word from Caesar." He began. "With the intel we got from Sulfur, we could spy on their transactions. The Fiends just went through a bad deal and there was a shoot out. He thinks that it's enough of a pinch that they might try coming here to lash out sooner than he first thought. It's best that we start preparing as soon as we can."

"Hmph," Lihua didn't hear about this bad deal. Those fools probably botched it themselves. However, if they're on their way - even if there's a chance - then Lihua will have no choice but to prepare for the siege. She stood straight up, and nodded her head. She wanted to continue looking for Meifeng, but... what good is it if she dies here?

"Very well. I'm going to head over to the armory, and get some gear."

"Lihua."

"What is it?"

"When this is over, talk to your daughter. I don't know what precisely is going on, but if it's something like Runaway Syndrome, don't just talk about the problem. Cut to the underlying issues. Just understand that children - by nature - are immature and impulsive, and running away or threats thereof arise from insecurity and distrust."

Underlying issues...? Lihua knew a few that have been putting strain in between them. Mostly the identity of the girl's father (Which Lihua felt that Meifeng wasn't ready to learn). They'll have one long talk... though, honestly, it feels very out of character if Meifeng left out of the blue because she hadn't told her a few things.

"I'll..." Lihua drifted off for a moment. "I'll talk to her. Try to figure this all out."

Nodding her head, Lihua took a few steps out the door to her office, accompanied by Baron, she presumed. Her first destination would be the armory. She wasn't the type to grab as many weapons as possible, then go rambo. She'd grab everything she needed. Though, she assumed that those Fiends would simply rush the gates to the Headquarters like a bunch of fools. Getting themselves easily picked off.

However, Lihua couldn't have been more wrong when the ringing of bullets came from all the way from the bottom floor.

"What the hell?" Lihua muttered to herself. She put a finger to her ear piece, and said, "What's going on? Has there been an accident?" She sent the message through the comms.

"We're under attack!" A random NEST Agent said. "Fiends! They're in the building!"

"What." Lihua flatly said. How... who the hell is behind this?! She thought to herself. Without wasting another second, Lihua reached into her purse, unzipped it, and unsealed the secret compartment and pulled out her glock.

Baron pressed two fingers against the button on his ear-piece. "Washe, it looks like you were right. The Fiends somehow made it into the building without being picked up by security, you may begin the procedure."

Lihua glanced at Baron for a moment, ".... What are you planning?" She muttered under her breath.

---

The sewers were alive at this hour. An army of Fiends - what was left of their gang - moved through the sewers from the Estella Isle, all the way to the Isabella. In front of the massive formation was Khan herself, armed with her grenade launcher, and by her side was Big Dong. They moved through the sewers slowly, and with purpose. They knew exactly where they were going. They approached a crossroad, and Khan took a left - the rest of the Fiends followed. Going down the tunnel, they reached a door at the end. A small metal door. One would get the impression that it lead into a utility tunnel. However, Khan pushed it open, and there was nothing but a small, unremarkable room. Khan stepped inside, and looked off to the side, as if she was looking into a screen of some sort. A beeping sound signaled that the wall opened, pushing backwards. Revealing another tunnel that had stairs going up it.

Khan grinned underneath her mask. "Alright," She said, turning her head over her shoulder, and looking over it. "Are you fucks ready for this?!" She shouted.

They all cheered.

"Good! Then fucking charge in there, and tear them to fucking pieces!" Khan shouted, pointing into the tunnel, and turning into her whitish-blue mist form.

Every Fiend that she had behind her had charged forward, and ran up the tunnel like a horde of ravenous dogs. At the end of the tunnel was an opening that lead into a utility closet. The Fiends ran through the room, and kicked down the door and charged into the hallways of a building. One crowd going one way, and another going the other.

The hallways of the NEST Headquarters, of course.

They quickly raised hell, all that could be heard was gunshots, screaming, and furious masturbation, as the NEST Agents were caught off guard.

A group of Fiends rushed into the lobby, and a Fiend with an AK-47 started wildly shooting into the air, screaming like a psychopath.

After the Fiends were through, Khan slowly stepped in with Big Dong and Burnmark behind her. A gruff sounding voice over the intercom began to issue orders over the headquarter's intercom system.

"All non-combat personnel evacuate by S-side emergency exits. Repeat, all non-combat personnel evacuate. Agents and security staff are to mount a defense."

Verthaven: A Bloody Paradise [Completed]

Urb forgot how to write. The anxiety of the situation has reverted him to cave man dialect.

Verthaven: A Bloody Paradise [Completed]

People who are good of heart don't generally steal things or do what they can to serve themselves and to achieve power. People usually call that sort of thing "evil". You know, the thing you said he wasn't.

Verthaven: A Bloody Paradise [Completed]