World Tree MUSH

The city of Nova-Havana. Tropical climates, Laid back tourist atmosphere... and in this instance somebody that feels they needprotecting.

"So," THe Dwarf looked at the hirelings. "Not sure what t omakeof you lot really." His prosthetic left eye clicked and wirred as he surveyed the group. "However bossman's had several attempts on his head in the past week and our sources put their big attempt, everything on the table do or die, astoday. Any questions?"

Ash's warframe stood there waiting. This job required intimidating and probably fightingover secrecy. Hence the murdersuit. "Beyond dispositin of assets, scheduling of events, nature of the threat we're facing, use of force you're comfortable with...?" That last one was important to him and oddly emphasized just before the warframe's hands spread wide. "I think we're good here."

Which is to say he was probably being sarcastic. Too much left unsaid, but money was money and the prior attacks had shown the opposing factions willing to hurt bystandards if they thought there was a shot.

"If they're not comfortable with lethal force, they shouldn't have hired me, Ash. You know this." Temulin answers, leaning back against the wall, and she turns her attention to the dwarf. "Pray don't worry about it, guvn'r. If anyone comes within five yalms of the premises without authorization, they will get one warning before they get to go six fulms under."

A snort from Ash's warframe before it looked to the other 'contract workers.' All of them were wearing severe suits, black sunglasses. Frankly they looked like a batch of clones dressed in stereotypical men in black attire. "Just give me access to your feeds."

The dwarf scowled at the warframe and handed Ash a plastic dongle with a plug at one end. Prompting Ash's headto tilt, "Right..."

He then tossed it back to the Dwarf and instead looked to Temulin, "Alright then. Your bird's around here right?" He handed her a modified ear piece. More of a loop that could fit around one of her horns. "I'll get Ordis to try giving us eyes up top, but yoru bird flies faster than I cnan run."

Temulin gets out a horn whistle, "Yup." She puts the horn piece on, and walks out without even sparing the mooks a glance. "I'll let you know if I see anything, probably even before I engage." There's a smirk on her face at the last, before she pulls her visor down. "Let's get to work." She heads out, and once outside, blows the whistle and climbs on her bird.

Just after Temulin left Ash looked to the dwarf. Within his transferrence pot he grinned before asking, "Keep in mind the terms of your contract."

As Ash was busy finding a perch outside Temulin would hear Ordis's voice over the earpiece, "Reading unsual activity to your left, a convoy of vehicles that are well out of place compared to local traffic." 

The vehicle in questio looked like older model olive drab millitary vehicles. Compare and contrast to the roughly mid 21st century location.

"Contact!" Ash's voice followed immediately by rifle fire. "Three hostiles confirmed. What's it look like up there?"

"Looks like military kit headed our way." Temulin answers over the hornpiece, and then when Ash mentions rifle fire she simply answers, "Engaging." And with that, her bird swoops down into a dive, giving a lot of momentum for Temulin's darkness wreathed blade to impart upon the front vehicle. She jumps off her bird on contact, and tries to judge the situation.

The lead vehicle stopped, with the driver immediately opening fire with an automatic rifle while shouting something. The two other vehicles in the convoy attempted to retreat but were blocked by traffic. More men piledout of the back of the lead vehicle, all with rifles. All firing.

Ash grunted, "Backup's inbound to your position." Followed shortly by, "Something feels off here."

The attackers appeared human. in fact they apepared to all be if not exactly alike, almost as if they all hada family resembelance about them.

Every bullet that hits hurts, but what leaks out isn't blood. It's darkness, coating her armour and skin, making her tougher. She wraps more of it around her blade, and takes a good look at the adversaries. "We appear to have some kind of Allagan-style bollocks over here." She informs Ash over her comms, "Feels like these guys are the result of cloning." She doesn't let that stop her, sending a wave of darkness forwards to try to kill or at least hurt the guys further back while her blade comes barelling down on the closer fellows.

As a soldier from further back took aim with a rocket launcher their head exploded into a fine red mist. "Yea getting a grineer vibe here wit hthe clones."

Ash's voice sounded doubtful. "Then again our employer has that six pack as his normal detail so maybe it's just how things work here."

Another soldier went down. "Bossman's almost at the exit point. Pull back if you can."

The rearmost of the trucks managedto start moving again in attempt to find a way around Temulin. Soldiers stopped firing to stare at the darkness, almost as if they hadn't seen that sort of magic before her blade came slamming down ending their pondering of this new oddity.

THe radio in the lead truck was speaking, something urgant, but ultimately uninteledgable. There were muffled noises in the back of the truck, Soft clacking of gears turning, almost like ticking.

"Tick tock, tick tock. Sound like that mean anything to you?" Temulin asks, taking a moment to blow her whistle in between swinging her blade at the soldiers, before reaching out to grab the bird's reins as it swoops in, leaping upwards to claim her noble steed's back. "Maybe it's how things work here, but I have bad experience with Allagan shenanigans, and this smells like it."

"Nothing on me, but Ordis is saying engine's up front. I'm marking it for someone else to deal with."

Ash huffed as he attempted to follow the wayward vehicle with his scope. 

BANG!

Tire blew out. The driver managed to keep the vehicle from careening into a building or tipping over. However it came to a stop, forcing its occupants to clim out and carry their equipment.

"Shit."

"Temulin," Ash's voice tense. "Eight hostiles. More rifles but six of them are carrying something. Wagering a bomb of some sort."

"Let me take care of it." Temulin answers Ash, redirecting her flight towards the carried thing, letting another wave of darkness flood forwards as her bird's talens grab the bomb, and then flying upwards into the sky, up, up and up. "Ash. On my mark, I will let go of the bomb and I will need you to blow it up before it gets too close to the ground." Pause for verification, before, "Three, two, one, loose." The device is flung further skywards while Temulin steers away.

"Deploying Archwing."

Ordis's voice dead calm as Ash sprinted, hurling himself offthe bulding he had perched on only to be grabbed by the back by metal wings.

These metal wings opened, revealing hordes of missiles that swarmed the bomb like a nest of angry explosive hornets, each one causing miimal damage to the bomb casing, but dozens all at once? The device shattered, fragmenting before its payload could be deonated. 

The explosion was far smaller than the device's makers, or the troops attempting to deliver it, would have wanted because of this.

Then two more explosins, each consuming one of the two other vehicles the attackers attempted to arrive in.

"Think that was it?" Ash looked about. No new waypoint markers. No new activity that lookedout of the ordinary.

"Aye kids I think that's enough," THeir dwarven paymaster's voice. "Bossman's safe and sound so even if they send ore out, it'll be an empty hold they find."

Temulin redirects her flight path towards Ash. "Good job. Haven't seen you in a while, how've you been doing?" She asks, seemingly putting the job behind her now that the task is done. "Had any interesting jobs?"

Ash's warframe pivoted, matching pace with Temulin as he laughed. "A few. A weird witch... creature... thing invaded a get together Raven planned and got thrown into hell for its troubles." A chuckle at the memory. "Other than that? ... You remember those machiens that kidnapped us? They got in touch with me about work they wanted."

His warframe's head shook, "I'm not sure if there isa way to express the level of how badly they are getting overcharged if Itake them up on that."

"So, nothing too unusual, then." Temulin answers, then considers the machines "I do, sorta, yeah. Did they say anything about the kind of work?" She spurs on her bird to speed up, "I would be very careful about taking them up on that." She adds.

"As am I," Ash sounded sour as he kept pace with Temulin's bird. "Had been considering dropping association with Star Wolf. Less anything they've done, and more I've been refocusing on training and frankly I feel like eitherI'm not pulling my weight there, or that my priorities are changing. Either way best to cut ties peaceably, and give any clients recommendationsto use them if they need an army." He sounded contemplative as he considered the span of time since he had seen Temulin last.

"Package is safe," Their contact asssured. "Will send your payouts by day's end, lemme know if it doens't get to your accounts by morning."

An amused snort from Ash, "I do have t osay it's nice when they don't try stiffing or last minute negociate for a longer job. In, out. No fuss,. Definitely getting a good recommend from me to work with."

"Wait on that recommend until you have the money." Temulin answers with a snort, "They have time to stiff us still." There's a bark of laughter, "Though any that try to stiff me better make sure they're malms away when time comes to collect." She considers the other part of it, "If that's what you think is best for you, do what you must. I hope that doesn't mean you're retiring."