Simon Black

[SimonBlack]

Part 4: The Hunter And The Hunted.
-New Berlin orbit-

Roger that Bounty Hunters Bronze 3. You are clear to launch a robot voice announced on public channel. Simon appeared in space in his Manta a moment after. He was alone. Basic checks were performed and the ship was starting to gain speed.

Engines. Check. Weapons. Check. Life support. Check. Scanners Simon picked something. It was another Bounty Hunter in space that caught his attention. He paused check

A further scan on the other Bounty Hunter was complete. The pilot was working under callsign Cheshire. Simon gathered all the available intel about this individual. She is a well known Hammerhead pilot. Known among both criminals and Bounty Hunters. Famous for his many quests, piloting skills, lone wolf image, but most of all for her no pay, no services attitude. Simon decided to try his luck anyway.

This is Bounty Hunters Bronze 3 to Bounty Hunter Cheshire The pause was filled with uncertainty Shall we work together on this one?

The pilot must have gathered intel on Simon while Simon was doing the same. Apparently their ideas matched their plans completely.

I was thinking the same thing Cheshires reply was friendly and it was rather unexpected. Unfortunately I see no upcoming opportunities

Simon entered Cheshires formation and they were having a conversation about business. Situation in Rheinland seemed to be a pretty dull one, so Simon suggested moving to Kusari, as there was a bounty on all Kusari pirates at that time. Cheshire said she didnt like the idea, as he was a witness of Kusarian government inability to meet the requirements of contracts when dealing with foreigners earlier and credit transfers were always later. Kusari didnt like foreigners. They could pay Bounty Hunters well, but are often offended with someone else trying to cope with their inner problems. It is a matter of honour for them. However, this was the only available job for the time and Simon with Cheshire decided to move further into the Sigmas.

Cheshire wasnt passionate about going to Kusari itself and was hoping to earn something by scanning cargo for contraband in Sigma 13. The intel about smugglers was a good opportunity to increase daily salary for Bounty Hunters.

They were scanning convoys for a while now. No trace of smuggling was found so far. The instability in Sigma 13 grew as there was an ion storm coming up ahead, but Cheshire did not wish to return with empty hands. Simon changed his mind as well as a target of opportunity presented itself. It was a NovaPG Blood Dragon. One of the Kusari pirates elite. He was spotted within the sensor range, but the source couldnt be located and the trace vanished. Simon and Cheshire were now cruising through the clouds, looking for the pirate. Electricity in space was increasing. Simon felt that by his own skin. The atmosphere made shivers run down his spine. There was a tension felt in the area. Space became static, preparing for the storm. Suddenly Cheshire picked the Blood Dragon on sensors ahead. He was heading towards the Chugoku jump hole, probably trying to hide from the storm. The Bounty Hunters were trying to locate exact coordinates of pirates location. It seemed that Cheshire managed to locate the pirate, since something was submitted via private channel, but Simon couldnt hear a thing as all the frequencies were jammed. The ion storm struck.


-Sigma 13 system. Chugoku jump hole after the ion storm.-


The Manta recovered from the ion storm. Simon opened his eyes. He was right above the Chugoku jump hole. Sigma 13 was starting to recover after the storm as well, since the convoys were starting to launch from various places and the number of radio transmissions were increasing. Simon received one as well.

Hey, Simon. Its me, Cheshire. Im speaking from Naha station A deep breath followed Look. My Hammerhead I stayed conscious when the storm struck but couldnt recharge my ship back up fully. This installation tractored me and my ship in. I managed to make the scan on the area just before the ion storm. There are two unknown Blood Dragons vessels in Chugoku system. It seems as there is a mercenary named Haelyn there as well. I dont know who he is working for. Im afraid the choice is yours now. Youre on your own out there.

The message ended. Simon made a scan of his own that confirmed Cheshires testimony. But Simon also picked a trader coming in. He was approaching. The trader was contacted via private channel.

I will pay you if you can supply me with information of what these two Blood Dragons are flying Simon applied straight away.

The trader went through the jump hole without an answer. However, he was soon to jump out with the Blood Dragons on his tail, who were chasing him. The two pirates soon changed their target and switched their fire on Simon. Simon was caught unexpected. He instinctually activated Mantas thrusters to dodge the fire and hurried towards the trade lane. It was only seconds after Simon docked with the trade lane after it went out. It was this close.

Mercenary, I will pay you 20 million credits if you kill this Bounty Hunter A Blood Dragon said after turning back to Chugoku.

The mercenary whose name was Haelyn was chasing Simon for a bit, but soon Simon managed to get away, out of sensor range. He was now cruising like crazy, not even looking back, driven by only one instinct survival.

Simon lost the mercenary at New Tokyo. He could take a deeper breath, although his hands were still shaking from the shock and adrenaline. The trader contacted him through private channel.

I was about to thank you hunter The trader said You gave me enough time to escape. Thank you

The trader suggested meeting above planet New Tokyo, where he would pay Simon 4 million credits for the help. The time was running. Simon was standing by in planets orbit, recovering from fear the. He only now started to think clearly, as his instincts overthrew Simon during the escape. But it was too late. The trader did not show up. Haelyn jumped through the trade lane and attacked Simon. The hunter have become the hunted.

The mercenary was flying a gunboat. Simon knew he had no chances one on one against something this big, but he used Mantas maneuverability to avoid contact. Simon used cover of nearby station to escape into a trade lane. Haelyn was behind him, breathing onto his neck.

He realized it then. The trader sold him out, he set Simon up and pushed into the danger. It was too late to think about that whatsoever, Simon had to escape to Liberty.

Simon saw Haelyn on his scanners on all his way through the Independent worlds. One time Simon managed to break through, the other time Haelyn was right on his back, trying to shoot the trade lanes.

It was a tensioned chase up to Colorado. Simon dropped a mine on a trade lane in Galileo, blowing it to dust. It was a terrible thing to do, but it saved Simons life as the mercenary was slowed down. Some traders could come to harm by this action and it wasnt that Simon didnt care. He was thinking about his own life at the moment, not anyones else.

Simon now knew that he wasnt working alone. There could be whole lot more of them out there. Simon opened Navigation Computer. The Bounty Hunter knowledge helped greatly. There was a jump hole to New York in the sector. Simon decided using it right away, to avoid unnecessary contact by the jump gate. The strategy worked as he arrived to New York safely. S-O-S signal was transmitted to every Liberty Special Forces agent Simon could find in the area. He managed to land on Manhattan, where he was put under protection from Liberty Police for a short time. However, to Simons surprise, the lawful forces made no attempt in trying to force the mercenary out of the system. It was even greater surprise when the mercenary contacted him privately.

Relax, kid. Haelyn said If I wanted to hurt you, you were already dead

Such confident words from such a low life Simon thought.

Im surprised such a lawful mercenary like you is given clearance to fly Liberty space

I have my acquaintances, but its a different theme. Don't get me wrong, Liberty is my primary client, but I'm willing to take opportunities. You shouldnt be worried now." - He took a paused and continued anxiously - "Now tell me Were you scared?

Yes I answered.

Thats all I could wish for. Godspeed.

Simon knew that corruption was inevitable to some degree but he always believed that Liberty was the House to do best to it's extent in law keeping. He wasn't so sure about who the good guys were now. His morals scumbled.

"I have to leave as soon as possible" - He thought.

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Character background summaries:
Red Hessians Major Matthias Schwarz
Golden Chrysanthemums Chusa Fumiko Shimazu