STATE ZERO | Hired Guns

[Lord Bradorian]

"Get some pressure on his wounds and someone who knows his shot patch him up with some of the stuff in here," Bento says, patting on the side of the red cross box. He had done all he could to dress Yu's wounds and relieve his pain, now all he could do was hope.

"There must've been some kind of coup...maybe Davidson's crew weren't as loyal to her as she thought. She did seem like a bitch when I spoke to her," Jacob said. He then turned to Harris; "Line up a shot at that boat and wait for it to come into range. Everybody else, hold tight and keep an eye out for any other ships," Jacob says, before radioing to the men in Eagle Rock.

"The ship is under heavy fire from what I believe is a pirate gunboat, and the sailors have retreated into the observation tower and are shooting at us now; I think they're working with the pirates, killed the captain and now they're trying to kill us. We're pinned down in the cargo hold. One of you get on a dirtbike and get to Sandy Springs; inform the authorities of a pirate attack in progress on the SS Camelback, to sail north and they should find us, we didn't get far before this shit popped off. Before you go, ask whoever is in charge at Eagle Rock if they've got Sandy Springs' radio frequency - that would make this whole ordeal a lot easier and quicker."

Following the transmission, Bento will continually call Davidson's phone hoping that someone will hear it and pick up to negotiate with him.

 

[cl0ud]

Flacko Gonzales and Adrian Harper tend to the injured while the rest of the mercenary group stands idle. You can hear footsteps above you on the deck, probably the gunboat goons boarding the vessel. Then, after a few moments, the faint sound of the engine going at full power fades away into the distance.

"Boss, there's no way I'll be able to get a shot off. They're moving ten times faster than the projectile, and if I was even able to line up a shot, I'd get shot dead before I could pull the trigger," Harris says.

When you try to radio Eagle Rock, you're only response is static, "Frequency's probably jammed," Ira Tusing says.

 

[Lord Bradorian]

"It's fine. Boat sounds like it's gone; everybody quiet." Jacob whispers, listening intently as the shooters get onto the ship. "Everybody hide. Get your guns on that door. As soon as it opens, turn the unfortunate soul who opened it into mush," he orders. "We're where the loot is. They're not gonna blow us up," Jacob reasons. He turns to Tusing; "You think these guys are the negotiating type?"

 

[cl0ud]

Your mercenaries who aren't tending to the injured train their weapons on the door.

"Seeing as how they shot first, I don't think so, boss," Tusing says.

 

[Lord Bradorian]

"Yeah, well they probably want what's in here, and to be honest I don't really give a shit about what's in here. So maybe after we kill a few of these retards, they'll come to their senses," Jacob said; of course he wanted the loot, but it wasn't worth the lives of his troops; and definitely not Yu, one of his best friends and most important advisors in the company.

Jacob looked back at Matthew to determine whether he was unconscious.

 

[cl0ud]

Matthew Yu's head was slumped to the side, he was unconscious and the pieces of cloth Adrian Harper was pressing against Yu's shoulder consistently continued to become soaked in blood.

 

[Lord Bradorian]

"Keep pressure on that, wrap it under his arm if you find any bandages in that crate. Oh, and check for an exit wound" Jacob instructs Harper quietly, before turning toward the door and walking over, putting his ear against it to see if he could hear any speaking.

 

[cl0ud]

You press your ear to the door, looking to hear some chatter. As you meander up the stairs, you're thrown off your feet and fall flat on your back on the floor of the cargo hold, the wind knocked out of you. Slowly you begin to hear the paddle wheel slap against the water and you can feel the boat moving.

 

[Lord Bradorian]

The wind flew out of him as he collapsed to the hard floor. Jacob groaned as he tried to intake air, it took a few seconds before one of his gasps actually drew the precious oxygen he needed. After another half a minute, he was on his feet, albeit a bit wobbly.

"We can't let them take us somewhere. Right now we've got four pirates on the ship along with the hostile sailors - when we get there, who knows how many there will be. Adrian, Flacko, stay here with the injured; everyone else, stack up on the door and get ready to clear the deck. Once we've done that, Harris, blow open the door to the tower and we do the same with that. We must take this ship; our lives depend on it," Jacob orders. He feared where they would end up if the ship was taken somewhere that the pirates truly had domain over.

 

[cl0ud]

You and your mercenaries stack on the stairs in two columns, shoulders pressed against the door onto the deck.

 

[Lord Bradorian]

Jacob breathes out and readies his rifle, before opening the door out to the deck and quickly moving through it. He looks to his left and right, fanning out with his mercs to clear the area of hostiles.