A little something I knocked out a few weeks ago, but finally stopped tweeking it (Probably needs a better name though).
Enjoy.
Note: - Radio Communications.
Between Mars orbit and Asteroid Belt, Sunday July 7 2013
10:08 GMT
Moving through space with all the grace of a blob of slime (which was appropriate to those observing), the clunky transport continued on its way. Unaware
of the people watching it.
In an atmosphere or silhouetted against an object, you may have seen a slight distortion on top of it. If you were close, and had very good eyesight.
Inside the belly of the camouflaged Tachikoma, Lebia carefully hacked the systems of the transport through the induction jacks the Tachikoma was placing
against the hull.
50 Km above the Boskonian transport, the White Stallion paced its target under full stealth. Having the therm-optic camouflage on at that range may have
been overkill, but A.C. wasn't taking any chances.
"Datalink established." Eddie acknowledged. "Laser-com is good, mirroring in progress."
"I hate this thing." Greenpeace grumbled, adjusting the neuro-helmet she was wearing irritably.
A.C. pointed out over the com-link.
"Signal's good, bio is weak but stable." Greenpeace replied. "Rooms are ready and Frosty has the med bay prepped."
***
"At least we're ready on that end." A.C. muttered to herself from where she was hanging next to the midship starboard airlock. "Loki,
status on the other prisoners?"
Loki said from where he stood over the hold.
Kasumi muttered.
Andy wondered.
"Lebia..."
Lebia acknowledged.
"Eddie?"
A.C. started the final work on the airlock's exterior controls.
"Ready."
Kasumi said.
Andy agreed.
"Lebia, final check."
Lebia confirmed.
"OK Eddie. Hit it." And then those on the outside of the target braced.
Even at 100 times the speed of sound (about 33.2 KM a second), the quarter kilogramme diamond-penetrator rail-spike still took almost one and a half seconds
to travel the 50 KM distance between the Stallion and the Boskonian transport.
A well 'waved hull can stand up to most everything Space can throw at it. A paranoid fen might armour his hull, making it proof against virtually
anything everyone else could realistically throw at it.
Eddie had designed the railguns mounted on his hull to, if not punch through, at least make sure those inside those armoured hulls knew someone was
knocking.
In no way was the hull of the transport considered even adequately 'waved.
The diamond spike passed through the outer hull of the transport with the same ease as through the vacuum of space. When it punctured the main power
conduit however, the thermal shock shattered the spike into dust. The dust then near instantly ignited from the arcing of the rupture and exploded. The ship
juddered and rocked violently from the blast.
Just as Eddie had calculated.
With so many alarms going off, anything that Lebia hadn't managed to find and cut regarding the airlocks opening was hidden by everything else going
off. Also, the frantic crew didn't notice the fact that they were now being painted by megawatts of power from the Stallion's newly engaged active
sensors.
As the airlocks cycled, the insertion team brought their own tac-corders (latest model from the Trekkies, not even adapted yet) to active. Tied into the
team's tac-net and supplemented by the Stallion's readings, they now had a better picture of the entirety of the transport than even its crew.
Lebia announced.
Andy came out of the rear lock, cleared the companionway, then kicked open the door to the engineering area and shot the two visible crew with the knockout
pellet filled airsoft pistol before letting the door swing back to allow the third crewmember to fall from where he had been slammed into a support pillar.
Then he moved to shut the engines off to prevent the ship coming apart.
***
"Knew this shit would happen." A scarred man grumbled as he picked himself of the floor, grabbing his gun on the way.
His two companions weren't even that coherent as they got up. He didn't care really, he just wanted to know what the fuck was wrong and how soon it
would be repaired.
"Go check on the merchandise." He growled, before make his way to the cockpit.
Thus he was further away when the rear door slammed open. Spinning round with gun in hand he caught his two companions being smacked in the heads with the
hilts of two knives and a shape in the doorway. He was just getting his gun to bear when the figure APPEARED in front of him holding the wrist of his gun
hand. He barely had time to blink before the snap of his wrist alerted him to the problem he was in and any pain he would have felt from it was washed away
from the pain and lack of air in his chest. He blacked out hitting the wall.
A.C. called, relaxing from the open-palm strike as the man slumped from the wall.
Kasumi acknowledged from the front door.
Came Andy's voice. Kasumi quickly joined A.C. at the forward hatch to the cargo.
A.C. told them.
***
In the cargo hold, the two guards had their guns out and were waiting by the front hatch. From there they had good firing positions on the back door. Thus
they didn't hesitate when the door was kicked open. Not that it did much good, Adonis being proof against even 'waved handguns naked. In his armoured
pressure suit he'd survive anything that could be thrown at him without breaching the hull. At least, the hull on a well 'waved ship.
The forward hatch being kicked open behind them stopped them from firing more than a couple of shots before their heads were slammed into the nearest solid
objects.
A.C. asked.
Kasumi agreed.
Andy said.
A.C. called.
***
"Coming in now." Lebia acknowledged.
Eddie said, bringing in the White Stallion.
"Think you can handle things Mushashi?" Lebia asked.
"Yes ma'am." Her Tachikoma replied. "I'll keep the datalink going."
"Remember, no going over the data until Eddie's checked it for surprises." Lebia warned, sealing her suit. "OK, pop the
hatch."
With a small burst of air, the rear hatch doors on the abdomen opened allowing Lebia to get out. Engaging the magnets in her boots, Lebia backed off to
allow the Tachikoma to close up.
She told it before heading for the forward airlock.
***
"Geez Pinky, why'd you have to be so stubborn." A.C. muttered, running the tactical tricorder over the strapped down form. Her short hair
was starting to grow out again, showing its true dirty brown colour rather than the light pink it had been dyed. Her clothes were ripped and every visible
patch of skin had electrical burns and bruising. Her left arm and right leg had been broken and splinted before tying down. If it wasn't for the drip
keeping her unconscious, she'd be in a lot of pain.
Noting the lack of jewellery A.C. turned to her watch, and blinked.
"Well," She flushed, "THAT'LL keep them from finding it." It also explained the weak bio signal.
Tied down across the aircraft luggage container was a darkly skinned woman A.C. expected to be nearby in much better health, which wasn't that
surprising given how effective shockrods were. Of the eight prisoners, Pinky was the worst injured.
The slight jolt as the Stallion attached the transfer tube was welcome.
Eddie said over the com-link.
A.C. double-clicked the transmit button on her watch to acknowledge.
"Kasumi, let's get our friends out of here and into someplace more comfortable."
***
From: Red Knight ()
To: OFINT Watchtower ([url=mailto:bouncy@watchtower.luna)
Subject: Operation 090BC24-7
Date: Sun 13 July 2013 15:06 GMT
Priority: SILVER
***BEGIN ENCRYPTED MESSAGE***
Chief Inspector Ten-Joh and wife now in custody, along with six others. Treating for injuries and detoxing now. Ten prisoners taken, one minor wound and
one seriously wounded. ID scans and medical details for all attached in encrypted file 090BC24-7/A, key ID: GS77WX99-5.
Relaying target's destination and passcodes, along with sensor signature in attached encrypted file 090BC24-7/B, key ID: RG058GGY3. Recommend IMMEDIATE
action.
Field trial of new equipment is a provisional success. Will submit after-action report following prisoner transfer at Phobos.
***END ENCRYPTED MESSAGE***
***
19:22 GMT
After knocking and receiving an acknowledgement, A.C. opened the door to cabin 2-3 to a gasp of shocked surprise.
"Good evening Mrs. Ten-Joh, everything fine I trust?"
Sat on the lower bunk gaping like a fish, Ann "Anthy" Ten-Joh tried desperately to get over her surprise. Taking a deep breath and swallowing,
she got her self under the semblance of control.
"Lady Mars!"
"Miss Peters is fine. Not to rain on your beliefs or anything, but do you have any idea how annoying that is?"
Ann blinked.
"Anyway, now that the worst holiday Pinky's EVER taken you on is over Dear, I just came to say that Kasumi is working up a big meal in the galley.
Once you've had something to eat we can take you down to the med bay and you can feed your husband. She'll have a bit of difficulty with the casts on
her arm and leg."
"Casts?" Ann asked, following A.C. out of the room and down the companionway to the airlock between sections.
"They weren't exactly clean breaks, By the Eye of Harmony, but it obviously would have caused problems with whatever they were planning to do.
Scarily, they did a good job of the splints."
"Scarily?" Ann asked, puzzled, as they passed through the lock.
"They had practice." A.C. told her darkly before entering the galley and stopped suddenly. "She didn't." The raven-haired woman
growled.
Ann looked round at the other rescued people, who seemed to be studiously ignoring a table half way up the far wall. The man sitting there was slumped
against the wall, and there was a fluttering movement in front of his face.
A.C. stalked over to Kasumi at the cooker.
"Kasumi?" A.C. asked in a forced calm voice. "Did I, or did I not, say never to bring those things near me? No matter HOW useful they may
or may not be?"
"Is that an Ofuda?" Ann asked in surprise, having got a closer look.
"No." Both Kasumi and A.C. answered. Well, A.C. growled more than answered.
Kasumi held one of the items up. While being roughly the right size, it had a cartoonish picture of a teddy-bear asleep in bed on it.
A.C. took a deep breath.
"Fine. Make Mrs. Ten-Joh here some food then get something ready for Pinky downstairs. I'll be in Engineering."
"Oh my." Kasumi sighed. "Well, what would you like to eat?"
Ann didn't realise she said anything as she watched A.C. stalk out of the galley. When she turned back, the kunoichi was already working on her
meal.
"Does she really hate being Lady Mars THAT much?"
Kasumi paused a second before continuing cooking.
"Oh my, it is not so much the fact you call her that but the way people seem to try and force her into that role. Oh dear, I knew I should have used
the smaller ones." She briefly turned to Ann. "They ARE the prototypes of the healing patches you are all wearing." She turned back to her
cooking. "Unfortunately they were the only size available."
"I guess I can understand that. I didn't think we were that bad."
"Only a few Senshi have tried that. The others just seem to worship her, which she finds uncomfortable. Quite a few of the BNFs have the same
reaction, so I hear."
***
Greenpeace walked in just as Ann finished helping her husband clean up after her meal.
"Hi. Don't worry, this will only take a few seconds." Greenpeace grabbed a nearby medical tricorder and ran it over Yu-Te-Na. "Well,
looks like your bones are healing nicely. A few more days and the cast can come off."
"Really?" Yu-Te-Na asked in surprise. "That's fast."
"A properly treated break can be healed pretty fast these days." Greenpeace told her, before frowning at the readout. Then she got a swab.
"Say Ah." Yu-Te-Na did so. Greenpeace took the swab and put it in a taster. It merrily chirped away the Spooks theme tune before laughing.
"Damn. Eddie..."
"Hi there!" The ships computer responded.
"Could you get A.C. for me please?"
"The Boss lady is kinda in a mood right now you know." Eddie replied.
"Just get her please?"
"OK..." Eddie replied uncertainly.
A couple of minutes later A.C. walked into the med-bay.
"What's gone wrong now?" She asked.
"The Chief Inspector's been around too much 'wave. She's on the borderline." Greenpeace handed her the tricorder and taster.
"Damn Pinky," A.C. said, eyebrows rising in surprise, "I didn't think Inspectors were around that much raw 'wave. In Surak's
name what have you been doing?"
"An awful lot of capture checks Rei." Yu-Te-Na said wryly. "Dark Kingdom numbers keep rising and we're not going to let Crystal Osaka
happen again."
A.C. ignored the name.
"Fair enough. Now, I'd suggest you wait for your legs to heal before getting yourself modded. Better in a controlled fashion than an
accident."
"Could you do it?" Asked Ann, causing Yu-Te-Na to look sharply at her wife. "Hush Dear, you know that if you're getting biomodded I am
too."
"Whoa there Trixie!" A.C. cut her off. "Pinky I could do, but it'd have to be tonight and that's not the sort of timescale I like
without it being an emergency. I wouldn't even charge given how close she is. You would pay. And I ain't cheep Darlin'."
"How much?"
"For this? 75,000 Sol-Creds. That's risk of a less than Deuce quality mod 'cause I like my rep for that, difficulty of mod given I don't
know what you want, lack of prep time, lack of equipment, and the fact I don't like being jumped on like this."
The numbers took Ann aback. They took Greenpeace aback as well.
"75,000? Damn you're in a bad mood." Greenpeace 'muttered'.
"I dislike people thinking biomods are like buying a car." A.C. said, staring Ann down. "Serious professionals like myself, and that
includes The Professor, try to convince people not to have a biomod unless they need it. Admittedly the Proff doesn't try TOO hard, especially if the
idea's interesting. Forget any conspiracy stories you may have heard Mrs. Ten-Joh, it's one biomod and that's it."
Ann stiffened her resolve.
"I made a promise to my husband that we would share everything we could. If you will not help me, then good day Miss Peters." And she strode out
the door to her room.
"At least that's one less Mars adherent to worry about." A.C. remarked. "Honestly Yu-Te-Na, what did you see in her?"
"Every rose has its thorns." Yu-Te-Na shrugged with her good shoulder. "Thanks for that. I worry about her sense of honour at
times."
"And YOU guys wonder why I so dislike being called that." The cyborg told her wryly. Then she cocked her head. "She's coming
back."
Sure enough she came back in, determined look on her face. Out of the corner of her eye, A.C. saw Greenpeace sigh in resignation.
"Fine, since you're being so stubborn. I hereby volunteer to be a biomod test subject."
Yu-Te-Na muttered in Korean.
"And this is why I hate dealing with you people." A.C. sighed. "Fine. Greenpeace, give her the FULL physical. IF she passes..."
A.C. stuck a finger in Ann's face. "IF. And it's a BIG if, for Serenity's sake. IF you pass, I'll mod you for 7,500 Sol-Creds. But do
NOT, in ANY way, say I didn't warn you. Now, STRIP." A.C. moved away to the lab setup in the far corner. "I have some work to do."
Yu-Te-Na heard her mutter under her breath, "Damn headstrong fucking lipstick lezbo bitches. Fucking Haruni's a bad fucking influence. I really
ought to challenge the obnoxious little fem-Stalin-wannabe and put her out of my misery, but I don't wanna deal with the paperwork. What a fucking
mess."
***
Med Bay, White Stallion, Port Phobos, Mon 15 July 2013
08:19 GMT
"Well, about time you woke up Pinky. I was wondering how long you were going to be lazing away."
Yu-Te-Na groaned at the evil light trying to seep into her eyes, and covered then with an arm. It took her sleep addled brain a few seconds to realise what
she'd done.
"Wha..?"
"Yes, your casts are off. No longer needed after the biomod finished healing you up." From A.C.'s voice, Yu-Te-Na figured the unwilling
Senshi of Mars had her arms crossed and was scowling down at her. "This is why it's recommended you stay un-modded as long as possible. You never
know when you might need to save a life by modding someone." Yu-Te-Na suppressed her shudder. A.C. was still pissed at Ann. Why did she have to be so
scary for Serenity's sake?
Wincing to keep the photons from being so obnoxiously loud, the Chief Inspector sat up.
"Now that you're up out of your rose-scented haze..." Something about the phrase triggered something in Yu-Te-Na's mind, causing her to
start as she realised what she was smelling. "And no, as you've just realised it's not just a turn of phrase."
"Yeah." Yu-Te-Na looked over to A.C. and found that, yes she had her arms crossed and was scowling. Fortunately not directly at her. Then she
had to get over the slight disconnect of seeing someone in a loose diaphanous dress wearing a stereotypical white lab coat over it. "How's
Ann?"
"Apparently borrowing your Devil's Own Luck, given her biomod seems to have had mostly the same results as yours. Whether or not that's a good
thing remains to be seen."
"Well, THAT sounds ominous." Yu-Te-Na noted.
"Feh." A.C. handed Yu-Te-Na a mirror. The Senshi police officer blinked in shock. "Congratulations. You took the name, you get the body.
Or at least a version of it."
From her newly brilliant blue eyes and pink hair to her clear, creamy white skin, Yu-Te-Na now looked like a real life version of her personal hero.
"Can we get past the narcissism?" A.C. asked, at least partially amused. "I need to go through what I've found out about your
biomod."
"OK, OK. Bit of a shock." Yu-Te-Na handed the mirror back.
"Let's start with the basics. Quite frankly, you should have waited for yourself to recover as it looks like whatever plans the Boskonians had for
you seem to have imprinted. The good news is that you've gained 5 centimetres, or you are now 170cm tall. That's 2 inches and 5 foot 7 if you still
use Imperial. Bad news, you're now the fetish version of Utena Tenjou. You're now 107-53-97, or 42-21-38. Cup size is D. Your 'natural'
hair colour is pink. Eye colour is Blue. Skin colour is White. Welcome to being Caucasian-Japanese."
"Right. That means I'm going to need to buy all new clothes."
"As is your wife. OK, moving on to the new abilities. Your muscle mass has increased density and reaction time, which adds 3.2 kilos or half a stone
to your weight. If you're worried, that's all muscle. There's no longer a shred of excess fat on you. For better or worse your body is built for
physical activity. Given your appearance, I'd suggest getting some sword training. Indications are that your stamina should have doubled. Also, while I
haven't confirmed it, hand-eye coordination should be boosted."
"That doesn't sound too bad. Not too much difference from before. What are the quirks?"
"Well, you've already encountered the first one. You are now rose scented. What type of rose I don't know, but Greenpeace and Andy are
looking into it. It may be multiple varieties. Next is the fact you are now a living fetish doll. In essence your sexual characteristics will always be on
display. This ties into the fact you have no body hair EXCEPT the small and intricate rose styled patch over your womanhood, and that your proportions are
off." At Yu-Te-Na's quizzical look A.C. elaborated. "Your legs are too long in proportion to your torso. Inside leg is now 99cm, or 39 inches.
Your figure is not quite an archetypal bishoujou, but it's coming close. You'll also notice your sense of touch is much enhanced."
"At least I'll be popular." Yu-Te-Na muttered.
"The biggest problem you'll notice is that your body is now in homeostasis. Your hair will always touch the top of that newly enhanced butt of
yours, and your fingernails will always be 2.5 cms, or an inch long. Cut them and they'll return to that length within a day or two. In the long term
this will be a blessing as you'll always heal without trace within a couple of weeks. As long as you survive and baring head injuries that is." A.C.
shrugged. "Any personality quirks you'll just have to discover for yourself, so I'd be careful."
"So what's the differences between me and Ann?"
"Besides general appearance? Her proportions are different, 122-48-102 or 48-19-40. Cup size is E, inside leg is 97cm or 38 inches. She doesn't
have the physique improvement you do, but makes up for it in flexibility and dexterity. That'll help as her ankles have restructured to either go flat
with a bit of constant pain, or wear at least 13cm or 5 inch heels from now on. Her erogenous zone sensitivity seems to be triple yours, which with your
increased sense of touch is nothing to sneeze at anyway. In all practical terms she got a lot more of the sex-toy package than you did." A.C. shrugged.
"I warned her. An interesting piece of news is that while these changes seem to be encoded in your DNA, you still pass class 5 security checks. You
don't have to worry about re-registering your identities before paying me for the work on 'Anthy'."
"You can be such a bitch Rei-sama."
"You don't want to see me actually being a bitch Pinky. Beryl at her most pissy is nothing to me in a mood."
Yu-Te-Na gulped, and changed the subject.
"Why don't you like Haruni-san?" At A.C.'s raised eyebrow she elaborated. "I heard you muttering as you were preparing to biomod
us."
"Honestly? She's an egotistical, egocentrical, and hedonistic bitch." She smiled a sly smile. "I've got all the OGJ records of her
actions and talked to people who've worked with her. I AM good friends with Noah after all. She was lucky he was hosting OGJ command. If she'd broke
a contract with me just because I'd pointed out something she didn't like, I'd have kicked her and her groupies out the airlock immediately and not
been nice with a weeks grace. Don't get me wrong, in a strategic sense with the correct intel she's absolutely brilliant. I won't deny that, heck
by the Force her record in that is excellent. Day to day and tactically, she's an over controlling twit who's ego has dragged Operation Great Justice
on way too long. To put it in terms you may find easier to understand, she's WAY too Outer Senshi. Check the reports yourself, you should have the
access." Then she froze Yu-Te-Na with a look that penetrated deep into the Chief Inspector. "If I have to, I'll take up the persona you seem to
want to lay on me and run against her for the Justice sub-faction leadership. Personification of myself aside, I didn't think you'd be that
dumb."
***
Port Phobos, Mon 15 July 2013
"I still think you set this up." Yu-Te-Na said, adjusting the string thong she was wearing under the red bike shorts she had on. "I can
barely breathe in this corset. Or bend. But where in Serenity's Name did you get the outfits?" Given she was in full Utena Duellist costume,
(shoulder boards, tassels, petticoat and all), she was justifiably curious. Especially because it was entirely authentic and perfectly fitted to her tightly
corseted figure.
Except the sword, which was plastic.
"Not my fault that's the only underwear that fit you." A.C. shrugged. "The rest, well it's best you don't ask."
"It could have been worse." Ann pointed out, standing next to her husband in full Rose Bride dress. If she hadn't had to help her wife put
it on, Yu-Te-Na would never have guessed how accurate and confining it was. It too was FAR too authentic and perfectly fitted to her also tightly corseted
figure, and the fact it came with 13cm/5 inch autolocking-strap stilettos and key... No, Mars-sama was probably right, she DIDN'T want to know. "At
least we don't have to worry about the bills." Ann had paid the 7,500 Sol-Creds, pretty much wiping out any savings she had. Then she turned a
smouldering look upon A.C. "I'm sure that our next meeting will be more cordial."
Yu-Te-Na in turn sent a worried look at A.C.
"Thanks for the rescue. I'll look forward to reading your report on this capture." Then the Senshi Chief Inspector escorted her wife from
the ship.
"Rosy's gonna be a problem." A.C. remarked to the nearby Lebia after the airlock had closed.
"Don't drag me into this." Lebia told her.
Enjoy.
Note: - Radio Communications.
Between Mars orbit and Asteroid Belt, Sunday July 7 2013
10:08 GMT
Moving through space with all the grace of a blob of slime (which was appropriate to those observing), the clunky transport continued on its way. Unaware
of the people watching it.
In an atmosphere or silhouetted against an object, you may have seen a slight distortion on top of it. If you were close, and had very good eyesight.
Inside the belly of the camouflaged Tachikoma, Lebia carefully hacked the systems of the transport through the induction jacks the Tachikoma was placing
against the hull.
50 Km above the Boskonian transport, the White Stallion paced its target under full stealth. Having the therm-optic camouflage on at that range may have
been overkill, but A.C. wasn't taking any chances.
"Datalink established." Eddie acknowledged. "Laser-com is good, mirroring in progress."
"I hate this thing." Greenpeace grumbled, adjusting the neuro-helmet she was wearing irritably.
A.C. pointed out over the com-link.
"Signal's good, bio is weak but stable." Greenpeace replied. "Rooms are ready and Frosty has the med bay prepped."
***
"At least we're ready on that end." A.C. muttered to herself from where she was hanging next to the midship starboard airlock. "Loki,
status on the other prisoners?"
Loki said from where he stood over the hold.
Kasumi muttered.
Andy wondered.
"Lebia..."
Lebia acknowledged.
"Eddie?"
A.C. started the final work on the airlock's exterior controls.
"Ready."
Kasumi said.
Andy agreed.
"Lebia, final check."
Lebia confirmed.
"OK Eddie. Hit it." And then those on the outside of the target braced.
Even at 100 times the speed of sound (about 33.2 KM a second), the quarter kilogramme diamond-penetrator rail-spike still took almost one and a half seconds
to travel the 50 KM distance between the Stallion and the Boskonian transport.
A well 'waved hull can stand up to most everything Space can throw at it. A paranoid fen might armour his hull, making it proof against virtually
anything everyone else could realistically throw at it.
Eddie had designed the railguns mounted on his hull to, if not punch through, at least make sure those inside those armoured hulls knew someone was
knocking.
In no way was the hull of the transport considered even adequately 'waved.
The diamond spike passed through the outer hull of the transport with the same ease as through the vacuum of space. When it punctured the main power
conduit however, the thermal shock shattered the spike into dust. The dust then near instantly ignited from the arcing of the rupture and exploded. The ship
juddered and rocked violently from the blast.
Just as Eddie had calculated.
With so many alarms going off, anything that Lebia hadn't managed to find and cut regarding the airlocks opening was hidden by everything else going
off. Also, the frantic crew didn't notice the fact that they were now being painted by megawatts of power from the Stallion's newly engaged active
sensors.
As the airlocks cycled, the insertion team brought their own tac-corders (latest model from the Trekkies, not even adapted yet) to active. Tied into the
team's tac-net and supplemented by the Stallion's readings, they now had a better picture of the entirety of the transport than even its crew.
Lebia announced.
Andy came out of the rear lock, cleared the companionway, then kicked open the door to the engineering area and shot the two visible crew with the knockout
pellet filled airsoft pistol before letting the door swing back to allow the third crewmember to fall from where he had been slammed into a support pillar.
Then he moved to shut the engines off to prevent the ship coming apart.
***
"Knew this shit would happen." A scarred man grumbled as he picked himself of the floor, grabbing his gun on the way.
His two companions weren't even that coherent as they got up. He didn't care really, he just wanted to know what the fuck was wrong and how soon it
would be repaired.
"Go check on the merchandise." He growled, before make his way to the cockpit.
Thus he was further away when the rear door slammed open. Spinning round with gun in hand he caught his two companions being smacked in the heads with the
hilts of two knives and a shape in the doorway. He was just getting his gun to bear when the figure APPEARED in front of him holding the wrist of his gun
hand. He barely had time to blink before the snap of his wrist alerted him to the problem he was in and any pain he would have felt from it was washed away
from the pain and lack of air in his chest. He blacked out hitting the wall.
A.C. called, relaxing from the open-palm strike as the man slumped from the wall.
Kasumi acknowledged from the front door.
Came Andy's voice. Kasumi quickly joined A.C. at the forward hatch to the cargo.
A.C. told them.
***
In the cargo hold, the two guards had their guns out and were waiting by the front hatch. From there they had good firing positions on the back door. Thus
they didn't hesitate when the door was kicked open. Not that it did much good, Adonis being proof against even 'waved handguns naked. In his armoured
pressure suit he'd survive anything that could be thrown at him without breaching the hull. At least, the hull on a well 'waved ship.
The forward hatch being kicked open behind them stopped them from firing more than a couple of shots before their heads were slammed into the nearest solid
objects.
A.C. asked.
Kasumi agreed.
Andy said.
A.C. called.
***
"Coming in now." Lebia acknowledged.
Eddie said, bringing in the White Stallion.
"Think you can handle things Mushashi?" Lebia asked.
"Yes ma'am." Her Tachikoma replied. "I'll keep the datalink going."
"Remember, no going over the data until Eddie's checked it for surprises." Lebia warned, sealing her suit. "OK, pop the
hatch."
With a small burst of air, the rear hatch doors on the abdomen opened allowing Lebia to get out. Engaging the magnets in her boots, Lebia backed off to
allow the Tachikoma to close up.
She told it before heading for the forward airlock.
***
"Geez Pinky, why'd you have to be so stubborn." A.C. muttered, running the tactical tricorder over the strapped down form. Her short hair
was starting to grow out again, showing its true dirty brown colour rather than the light pink it had been dyed. Her clothes were ripped and every visible
patch of skin had electrical burns and bruising. Her left arm and right leg had been broken and splinted before tying down. If it wasn't for the drip
keeping her unconscious, she'd be in a lot of pain.
Noting the lack of jewellery A.C. turned to her watch, and blinked.
"Well," She flushed, "THAT'LL keep them from finding it." It also explained the weak bio signal.
Tied down across the aircraft luggage container was a darkly skinned woman A.C. expected to be nearby in much better health, which wasn't that
surprising given how effective shockrods were. Of the eight prisoners, Pinky was the worst injured.
The slight jolt as the Stallion attached the transfer tube was welcome.
Eddie said over the com-link.
A.C. double-clicked the transmit button on her watch to acknowledge.
"Kasumi, let's get our friends out of here and into someplace more comfortable."
***
From: Red Knight ()
To: OFINT Watchtower ([url=mailto:bouncy@watchtower.luna)
Subject: Operation 090BC24-7
Date: Sun 13 July 2013 15:06 GMT
Priority: SILVER
***BEGIN ENCRYPTED MESSAGE***
Chief Inspector Ten-Joh and wife now in custody, along with six others. Treating for injuries and detoxing now. Ten prisoners taken, one minor wound and
one seriously wounded. ID scans and medical details for all attached in encrypted file 090BC24-7/A, key ID: GS77WX99-5.
Relaying target's destination and passcodes, along with sensor signature in attached encrypted file 090BC24-7/B, key ID: RG058GGY3. Recommend IMMEDIATE
action.
Field trial of new equipment is a provisional success. Will submit after-action report following prisoner transfer at Phobos.
***END ENCRYPTED MESSAGE***
***
19:22 GMT
After knocking and receiving an acknowledgement, A.C. opened the door to cabin 2-3 to a gasp of shocked surprise.
"Good evening Mrs. Ten-Joh, everything fine I trust?"
Sat on the lower bunk gaping like a fish, Ann "Anthy" Ten-Joh tried desperately to get over her surprise. Taking a deep breath and swallowing,
she got her self under the semblance of control.
"Lady Mars!"
"Miss Peters is fine. Not to rain on your beliefs or anything, but do you have any idea how annoying that is?"
Ann blinked.
"Anyway, now that the worst holiday Pinky's EVER taken you on is over Dear, I just came to say that Kasumi is working up a big meal in the galley.
Once you've had something to eat we can take you down to the med bay and you can feed your husband. She'll have a bit of difficulty with the casts on
her arm and leg."
"Casts?" Ann asked, following A.C. out of the room and down the companionway to the airlock between sections.
"They weren't exactly clean breaks, By the Eye of Harmony, but it obviously would have caused problems with whatever they were planning to do.
Scarily, they did a good job of the splints."
"Scarily?" Ann asked, puzzled, as they passed through the lock.
"They had practice." A.C. told her darkly before entering the galley and stopped suddenly. "She didn't." The raven-haired woman
growled.
Ann looked round at the other rescued people, who seemed to be studiously ignoring a table half way up the far wall. The man sitting there was slumped
against the wall, and there was a fluttering movement in front of his face.
A.C. stalked over to Kasumi at the cooker.
"Kasumi?" A.C. asked in a forced calm voice. "Did I, or did I not, say never to bring those things near me? No matter HOW useful they may
or may not be?"
"Is that an Ofuda?" Ann asked in surprise, having got a closer look.
"No." Both Kasumi and A.C. answered. Well, A.C. growled more than answered.
Kasumi held one of the items up. While being roughly the right size, it had a cartoonish picture of a teddy-bear asleep in bed on it.
A.C. took a deep breath.
"Fine. Make Mrs. Ten-Joh here some food then get something ready for Pinky downstairs. I'll be in Engineering."
"Oh my." Kasumi sighed. "Well, what would you like to eat?"
Ann didn't realise she said anything as she watched A.C. stalk out of the galley. When she turned back, the kunoichi was already working on her
meal.
"Does she really hate being Lady Mars THAT much?"
Kasumi paused a second before continuing cooking.
"Oh my, it is not so much the fact you call her that but the way people seem to try and force her into that role. Oh dear, I knew I should have used
the smaller ones." She briefly turned to Ann. "They ARE the prototypes of the healing patches you are all wearing." She turned back to her
cooking. "Unfortunately they were the only size available."
"I guess I can understand that. I didn't think we were that bad."
"Only a few Senshi have tried that. The others just seem to worship her, which she finds uncomfortable. Quite a few of the BNFs have the same
reaction, so I hear."
***
Greenpeace walked in just as Ann finished helping her husband clean up after her meal.
"Hi. Don't worry, this will only take a few seconds." Greenpeace grabbed a nearby medical tricorder and ran it over Yu-Te-Na. "Well,
looks like your bones are healing nicely. A few more days and the cast can come off."
"Really?" Yu-Te-Na asked in surprise. "That's fast."
"A properly treated break can be healed pretty fast these days." Greenpeace told her, before frowning at the readout. Then she got a swab.
"Say Ah." Yu-Te-Na did so. Greenpeace took the swab and put it in a taster. It merrily chirped away the Spooks theme tune before laughing.
"Damn. Eddie..."
"Hi there!" The ships computer responded.
"Could you get A.C. for me please?"
"The Boss lady is kinda in a mood right now you know." Eddie replied.
"Just get her please?"
"OK..." Eddie replied uncertainly.
A couple of minutes later A.C. walked into the med-bay.
"What's gone wrong now?" She asked.
"The Chief Inspector's been around too much 'wave. She's on the borderline." Greenpeace handed her the tricorder and taster.
"Damn Pinky," A.C. said, eyebrows rising in surprise, "I didn't think Inspectors were around that much raw 'wave. In Surak's
name what have you been doing?"
"An awful lot of capture checks Rei." Yu-Te-Na said wryly. "Dark Kingdom numbers keep rising and we're not going to let Crystal Osaka
happen again."
A.C. ignored the name.
"Fair enough. Now, I'd suggest you wait for your legs to heal before getting yourself modded. Better in a controlled fashion than an
accident."
"Could you do it?" Asked Ann, causing Yu-Te-Na to look sharply at her wife. "Hush Dear, you know that if you're getting biomodded I am
too."
"Whoa there Trixie!" A.C. cut her off. "Pinky I could do, but it'd have to be tonight and that's not the sort of timescale I like
without it being an emergency. I wouldn't even charge given how close she is. You would pay. And I ain't cheep Darlin'."
"How much?"
"For this? 75,000 Sol-Creds. That's risk of a less than Deuce quality mod 'cause I like my rep for that, difficulty of mod given I don't
know what you want, lack of prep time, lack of equipment, and the fact I don't like being jumped on like this."
The numbers took Ann aback. They took Greenpeace aback as well.
"75,000? Damn you're in a bad mood." Greenpeace 'muttered'.
"I dislike people thinking biomods are like buying a car." A.C. said, staring Ann down. "Serious professionals like myself, and that
includes The Professor, try to convince people not to have a biomod unless they need it. Admittedly the Proff doesn't try TOO hard, especially if the
idea's interesting. Forget any conspiracy stories you may have heard Mrs. Ten-Joh, it's one biomod and that's it."
Ann stiffened her resolve.
"I made a promise to my husband that we would share everything we could. If you will not help me, then good day Miss Peters." And she strode out
the door to her room.
"At least that's one less Mars adherent to worry about." A.C. remarked. "Honestly Yu-Te-Na, what did you see in her?"
"Every rose has its thorns." Yu-Te-Na shrugged with her good shoulder. "Thanks for that. I worry about her sense of honour at
times."
"And YOU guys wonder why I so dislike being called that." The cyborg told her wryly. Then she cocked her head. "She's coming
back."
Sure enough she came back in, determined look on her face. Out of the corner of her eye, A.C. saw Greenpeace sigh in resignation.
"Fine, since you're being so stubborn. I hereby volunteer to be a biomod test subject."
Yu-Te-Na muttered in Korean.
"And this is why I hate dealing with you people." A.C. sighed. "Fine. Greenpeace, give her the FULL physical. IF she passes..."
A.C. stuck a finger in Ann's face. "IF. And it's a BIG if, for Serenity's sake. IF you pass, I'll mod you for 7,500 Sol-Creds. But do
NOT, in ANY way, say I didn't warn you. Now, STRIP." A.C. moved away to the lab setup in the far corner. "I have some work to do."
Yu-Te-Na heard her mutter under her breath, "Damn headstrong fucking lipstick lezbo bitches. Fucking Haruni's a bad fucking influence. I really
ought to challenge the obnoxious little fem-Stalin-wannabe and put her out of my misery, but I don't wanna deal with the paperwork. What a fucking
mess."
***
Med Bay, White Stallion, Port Phobos, Mon 15 July 2013
08:19 GMT
"Well, about time you woke up Pinky. I was wondering how long you were going to be lazing away."
Yu-Te-Na groaned at the evil light trying to seep into her eyes, and covered then with an arm. It took her sleep addled brain a few seconds to realise what
she'd done.
"Wha..?"
"Yes, your casts are off. No longer needed after the biomod finished healing you up." From A.C.'s voice, Yu-Te-Na figured the unwilling
Senshi of Mars had her arms crossed and was scowling down at her. "This is why it's recommended you stay un-modded as long as possible. You never
know when you might need to save a life by modding someone." Yu-Te-Na suppressed her shudder. A.C. was still pissed at Ann. Why did she have to be so
scary for Serenity's sake?
Wincing to keep the photons from being so obnoxiously loud, the Chief Inspector sat up.
"Now that you're up out of your rose-scented haze..." Something about the phrase triggered something in Yu-Te-Na's mind, causing her to
start as she realised what she was smelling. "And no, as you've just realised it's not just a turn of phrase."
"Yeah." Yu-Te-Na looked over to A.C. and found that, yes she had her arms crossed and was scowling. Fortunately not directly at her. Then she
had to get over the slight disconnect of seeing someone in a loose diaphanous dress wearing a stereotypical white lab coat over it. "How's
Ann?"
"Apparently borrowing your Devil's Own Luck, given her biomod seems to have had mostly the same results as yours. Whether or not that's a good
thing remains to be seen."
"Well, THAT sounds ominous." Yu-Te-Na noted.
"Feh." A.C. handed Yu-Te-Na a mirror. The Senshi police officer blinked in shock. "Congratulations. You took the name, you get the body.
Or at least a version of it."
From her newly brilliant blue eyes and pink hair to her clear, creamy white skin, Yu-Te-Na now looked like a real life version of her personal hero.
"Can we get past the narcissism?" A.C. asked, at least partially amused. "I need to go through what I've found out about your
biomod."
"OK, OK. Bit of a shock." Yu-Te-Na handed the mirror back.
"Let's start with the basics. Quite frankly, you should have waited for yourself to recover as it looks like whatever plans the Boskonians had for
you seem to have imprinted. The good news is that you've gained 5 centimetres, or you are now 170cm tall. That's 2 inches and 5 foot 7 if you still
use Imperial. Bad news, you're now the fetish version of Utena Tenjou. You're now 107-53-97, or 42-21-38. Cup size is D. Your 'natural'
hair colour is pink. Eye colour is Blue. Skin colour is White. Welcome to being Caucasian-Japanese."
"Right. That means I'm going to need to buy all new clothes."
"As is your wife. OK, moving on to the new abilities. Your muscle mass has increased density and reaction time, which adds 3.2 kilos or half a stone
to your weight. If you're worried, that's all muscle. There's no longer a shred of excess fat on you. For better or worse your body is built for
physical activity. Given your appearance, I'd suggest getting some sword training. Indications are that your stamina should have doubled. Also, while I
haven't confirmed it, hand-eye coordination should be boosted."
"That doesn't sound too bad. Not too much difference from before. What are the quirks?"
"Well, you've already encountered the first one. You are now rose scented. What type of rose I don't know, but Greenpeace and Andy are
looking into it. It may be multiple varieties. Next is the fact you are now a living fetish doll. In essence your sexual characteristics will always be on
display. This ties into the fact you have no body hair EXCEPT the small and intricate rose styled patch over your womanhood, and that your proportions are
off." At Yu-Te-Na's quizzical look A.C. elaborated. "Your legs are too long in proportion to your torso. Inside leg is now 99cm, or 39 inches.
Your figure is not quite an archetypal bishoujou, but it's coming close. You'll also notice your sense of touch is much enhanced."
"At least I'll be popular." Yu-Te-Na muttered.
"The biggest problem you'll notice is that your body is now in homeostasis. Your hair will always touch the top of that newly enhanced butt of
yours, and your fingernails will always be 2.5 cms, or an inch long. Cut them and they'll return to that length within a day or two. In the long term
this will be a blessing as you'll always heal without trace within a couple of weeks. As long as you survive and baring head injuries that is." A.C.
shrugged. "Any personality quirks you'll just have to discover for yourself, so I'd be careful."
"So what's the differences between me and Ann?"
"Besides general appearance? Her proportions are different, 122-48-102 or 48-19-40. Cup size is E, inside leg is 97cm or 38 inches. She doesn't
have the physique improvement you do, but makes up for it in flexibility and dexterity. That'll help as her ankles have restructured to either go flat
with a bit of constant pain, or wear at least 13cm or 5 inch heels from now on. Her erogenous zone sensitivity seems to be triple yours, which with your
increased sense of touch is nothing to sneeze at anyway. In all practical terms she got a lot more of the sex-toy package than you did." A.C. shrugged.
"I warned her. An interesting piece of news is that while these changes seem to be encoded in your DNA, you still pass class 5 security checks. You
don't have to worry about re-registering your identities before paying me for the work on 'Anthy'."
"You can be such a bitch Rei-sama."
"You don't want to see me actually being a bitch Pinky. Beryl at her most pissy is nothing to me in a mood."
Yu-Te-Na gulped, and changed the subject.
"Why don't you like Haruni-san?" At A.C.'s raised eyebrow she elaborated. "I heard you muttering as you were preparing to biomod
us."
"Honestly? She's an egotistical, egocentrical, and hedonistic bitch." She smiled a sly smile. "I've got all the OGJ records of her
actions and talked to people who've worked with her. I AM good friends with Noah after all. She was lucky he was hosting OGJ command. If she'd broke
a contract with me just because I'd pointed out something she didn't like, I'd have kicked her and her groupies out the airlock immediately and not
been nice with a weeks grace. Don't get me wrong, in a strategic sense with the correct intel she's absolutely brilliant. I won't deny that, heck
by the Force her record in that is excellent. Day to day and tactically, she's an over controlling twit who's ego has dragged Operation Great Justice
on way too long. To put it in terms you may find easier to understand, she's WAY too Outer Senshi. Check the reports yourself, you should have the
access." Then she froze Yu-Te-Na with a look that penetrated deep into the Chief Inspector. "If I have to, I'll take up the persona you seem to
want to lay on me and run against her for the Justice sub-faction leadership. Personification of myself aside, I didn't think you'd be that
dumb."
***
Port Phobos, Mon 15 July 2013
"I still think you set this up." Yu-Te-Na said, adjusting the string thong she was wearing under the red bike shorts she had on. "I can
barely breathe in this corset. Or bend. But where in Serenity's Name did you get the outfits?" Given she was in full Utena Duellist costume,
(shoulder boards, tassels, petticoat and all), she was justifiably curious. Especially because it was entirely authentic and perfectly fitted to her tightly
corseted figure.
Except the sword, which was plastic.
"Not my fault that's the only underwear that fit you." A.C. shrugged. "The rest, well it's best you don't ask."
"It could have been worse." Ann pointed out, standing next to her husband in full Rose Bride dress. If she hadn't had to help her wife put
it on, Yu-Te-Na would never have guessed how accurate and confining it was. It too was FAR too authentic and perfectly fitted to her also tightly corseted
figure, and the fact it came with 13cm/5 inch autolocking-strap stilettos and key... No, Mars-sama was probably right, she DIDN'T want to know. "At
least we don't have to worry about the bills." Ann had paid the 7,500 Sol-Creds, pretty much wiping out any savings she had. Then she turned a
smouldering look upon A.C. "I'm sure that our next meeting will be more cordial."
Yu-Te-Na in turn sent a worried look at A.C.
"Thanks for the rescue. I'll look forward to reading your report on this capture." Then the Senshi Chief Inspector escorted her wife from
the ship.
"Rosy's gonna be a problem." A.C. remarked to the nearby Lebia after the airlock had closed.
"Don't drag me into this." Lebia told her.