Book of Jade: Modern Tales of the Quywe

[yasha]

Everything I'm not allowed to post on other forums.

[yasha]

Hexa; the closest thing Haruna had to trendy and modern. School kids gathered in droves to luxury stores, buying up the newest and trendiest boxing gear and streetwear as it cropped up. All those giant LCD screens and neon signs made it look like something straight out of a cyberpunk movie. Worse yet, it was the latest casualty in the police's war against organized crime in Haruna.

Yua Ashikaga, famous in the NQF for her exploits in Shidarekawa and Haruna during the days of the Syndicated Confederacy; and a little-remembered incident in Alexandus Prime. Now an enforcer in the NQF's elite military police; the Theocratic Guard.

"Nearing Azai Square now, how far out is backup?" She whispered into her earpiece, pulling the pump on her shotgun ever so slightly back. Seeing a familiar glint of brass, she slammed it forward; peeking out against a wall. "Fifteen minutes, Ashikaga. Hold tight." A man's voice responded, unnaturally cool under the pressure. "No time, more vans full of Five Rings are rolling in." The man on comms groaned. "Better not come haunt my ass, Ashikaga."

"No promises!" She exclaimed, bolting out of cover with her shotgun level at her waist. One hooded man spotted her moving and held a machine pistol out, only to drop to the ground with a loud bang and an arm missing. Waist high planters with trees and LCD display posts were the only source of cover. Running past one, Yua slammed her pump back and forth and continued to charge forward. "Shit, it's that cop!" One more gangster called; spraying bullets in her general direction. Pieces of electronics and concrete fell to the floor where the bullets hit. Coming across a thick tree, Yua backed up against it; adequate cover for now.

"The Guard!?" Another replied, amidst an uproar of voices at the mention of her. "Yes, the goddamn Guard!" Hearing wet footsteps against the rain soaked concrete, she popped out of cover and squeezed down her trigger. Two more masked gangsters dropped, causing a small splash of water and blood as they hit the pavement. Hastily she cycled out the spent shell and loaded another in; pulling the gun against her chest and squeezing the trigger as she passed a display post. Another one down.

"Keep her pinned! Don't die, we have more coming." A young woman called angrily just nearby. On instinct, Yua tossed her shogun up and grabbed it by the barrel, gripping it like a club. "Shit! She's close to me!" She called, only for Yua to rush out and whack her over the head with the butt end of it, knocking her out cold. Looking back and forth, she hurriedly handcuffed the female gangster and continued to push forward.

Another rushed out of cover only to be similarly hit unconscious. Panting, Yua rushed up against a nearby building, ejecting the used shell and loading three more in. "Six suspects down." She whispered into her earpiece again. Her brief respite was immediately interrupted by the sounds of a vehicle approaching, loud music blaring out. "More on the scene, control! Would really appreciate some backup now." She growled, preparing to ambush them.

[yasha]

Haruna’s tendency to be grey and wet played into its depressing situation like a fine garnish. Another night back at the office praying nobody else got shot before the night team took over.

“And I’m relieved to report that no officers were injured on duty today, despite the firefight that took place in Hexa.” Injured. Never mind the fact that busting guns and shooting angry kids who know little better takes a toll on you that your body is incapable of showing off. But if there’s a way the higher ups will try to keep morale stable, they’ll try it.

“Anyways, I think we may have caught a lucky break.” The Chief continued, a stocky Ahkabnilian man named Tlizi. “The Five Rings sent a messenger to us half an hour ago. They want to meet us on our own territory, as far east into military police territory as we’ll allow.” Murmurs. “They say they’re willing to broker valuable information in exchange for protection.” A man raised his hand, a recent transfer.

“Isn’t Five Rings at the bottom of the Haruna food chain?” He inquired, Tlizi nodded in acknowledgement. “Not quite, someone has the graces to let them keep that territory. They’re not the most dangerous group in that city but they’re strong enough to control more than a couple alleys. That being said, tomorrow night we’ll give them an audience. Get some rest and try to clear your mind, this could be a break we need.”
 
“Dismissed.”


“Otsuka Rd. coming up, look fresh ladies and gents.” The driver called, clanging the metal wall between him and the passenger compartment. The armored van slowed to a halt in the middle of the road, the constant threat of gunfights made traffic in Haruna scarce. Even in the police-controlled East End, few were willing to take risks anymore.

The back door swung open, and a dozen cops in ballistic plating poured out. Geared up like they were about to drop straight into Ardia. “Just around this corner.” Tlizi called. The enforcers followed, rifles in hand. As Yua neared the corner, an uproar began. “The hell!?” One cried. As she passed the brick wall, she felt the same outrage.

A dozen Five Rings lying on the ground, dead. Blood splashed over their van and a couple shell casings littering the road. “I see a live one.” Enforcer Ohmura said grimly, approaching the Five Rings member carefully. Delirious, the gangster pleaded for help, surrounded by her dead friends. “What the hell happened!?” Ohmura growled. “W… We were ambushed, it wasn’t the cops. They were wearing gold masks…” She blubbered.

Yua’s earpiece rung to life. “I see some dickheads with assault rifles and golden masks. I’ve got a good shot; shall I engage?” “I think they’re the guys who ambushed these poor fools. When I say so.” Tlizi responded, signaling the cops to take cover. “Where?” “Hiding behind the cars, looks like they’re waiting to hit you.” The sniper replied.

“Go for it.” The sniper grinned, placing his crosshair just above a golden mask’s head. He squeezed down the trigger, a thunderous boom rang out over the Eastern district and the mask’s head disappeared in a rain of red chunks and mist. “FUCK!” Another mask shouted. Patiently, the sniper cycled the spent round out and slammed a new one into the chamber. The golden masks began clambering around. Boom. Another fell to the ground with his head shot clean off. “Fucking cops have a sniper!”

“They’re on the move, I can’t see them anymore.” The sniper said coldly.

[yasha]

Tracers whizzed by overhead, their numbers were dented but these golden masks were on the warpath. Whatever warranted shooting some Five Rings dead in police controlled territory, they were also applying to the police it seemed. "You, sniper." Yua said quietly between gaps in the gunfire. "Reposition on them, I'm going in." She finished, taking a stun grenade from her waist. "Won't be too hard." The sniper called back. "Be quick then." Her squadmates looked over to her, unsure of what to make of the situation. Curtly she responded to their silence. "Cover your ears." Flicking the safety pin free, Yua waited a moment before tossing it over her piece of concrete. Realizing just too late, Enforcer Ohmura tried to physically stop her only to feel the effects of the stun grenade, slumping back down into cover. "Ambush this, you pricks." Yua growled to herself, shouldering a UMP45.

The glint of gold veiled by black hoods, these guys had crawled up real close to the police. Seeing them stunned and stumbling into each other, Yua put a pair of bullets into the one's neck and a single round to the other's head as he fell to the ground. The pained gurgle of a man choking to death on his own blood barely registered in her ears as she passed. "I see you now, let's drop these bastards." Promptly, a bullet whizzed by her and slammed into a nearby car. A man screamed out in pain, a second shot rang out to silence it. "That's one." The sniper reported. As she advanced, a man's head poking out from behind another car. "I see two." The sniper called. "Left."

Tucking her UMP in under her arm, Yua pointed it at the head. "Now." She called. In unison Yua shot her target dead and a second kill was made apparent by an explosion of blood and gore. Without stopping, she rushed past the parked cars further down a dark road full of neon lights and murderous gunmen. "More up ahead." "Keep them down." Beyond another set of parked cars, a golden mask peeked his head out for just a moment, which was promptly removed with a bullet. Whoever this sniper was, he was on the exact same page as Yua. "Sweeping these guys up." She reported, sprinting towards the set of parked cars, her UMP dangling from the front of her vest.

Hearing her get close, another mask popped out of cover to take a shot. You could see the exact moment the sniper's bullet hit him, removing everything above the nose and causing him to collapse into the ground in a heap. "Street cleaners are in for one hell of a morning." The sniper said, chuckling. At the back line, the rest of Yua's squad advanced slowly behind her; away from the gunfire. "Doubt some of these cops are sleeping tonight."

"You're right on top of them." The sniper announced as Yua neared a pair of cars. Without hesitation she hopped onto one and launched herself off, unholstering her pistol just as she got airborne. Too afraid to peek out, the four golden masks watched as Yua flew above their heads with a gun pointed at them. Bang bang. Before she hit the ground, two of the masks dropped dead with holes between their eyes. A third one slammed his head back against the car door, having been shot in the neck. Before the last one could point his FAL at the enforcer, one more high-powered bullet came down. Screaming in pain, the mask clutched his shoulder.

"Think that's all of them. See if you can't get some answers from that guy, I'll keep watch. Out." "Hey, can I get some backup over here?" Yua called into her earpiece, then promptly removing it. Slowly she approached the mask clutching his shoulder in pain. "Give me answers." She growled. Desperately the golden mask tried to clamber away, in response Yua pointed her handgun at the other dying mask and shot him dead. "Now!" Breathing fast and ragged, the man continued to crawl away. Now looming right over him, Yua crouched down and prepared to strike him.

Boom.

Like so many others, the Golden Mask now lay with a small pool of blood on the pavement where his head once was. Instinctively Yua dove for cover and put her earpiece back on. "The he-" "It wasn't me." The sniper interrupted. "Someone else shot 'em." Groaning in frustration, Yua turned back to meet the rest of her squad. "These are the same guys who clapped those Five Rings?" Enforcer Ohmura inquired, looking at a nearby body. "They definitely are; this is some seriously quality gear, too. These guys look more like paramilitary than gangbangers."

"Body armor, rifles and smoke grenades. These guys didn't come to party." Yua noted. Nobody they've dealt with in Haruna had this kind of equipment. Who the hell were these guys?