The path of Prospector

[Yngen]

Ouray base, Colorado system.

Jed "Tex" Bannon was in his bunk when Richard York came to find him. Tex was cleaning what York could only guess to be an ancient hand pistol. It was large, too long for York's taste, not easy enough to conceal, but then Tex never concealed them. York watched the former Junker reassemble the weapon. He had seen Tex do this many times before, and he was getting faster at it. Tex set the gun beside its mate, wrapped it in oiled cloth and set it aside. It was then that Tex noticed the Xeno leader standing at the bulkhead.

"You got prisoners didncha? Ah can see it in your face."

"It was a good day indeed. I'm not sure why the mafia Don had so many in his hold, but I"m sure we'll find out easy enough."

"MMM, didja feed 'em?"

"Not yet. They're probably hungry."

"Its better that way."

"Well they are all yours. Keep some of them alive please, we can still ransom them for cash."

"Well, they'll want for the green pastures before I'm done, 'least ways the young'ns."

Tex got up and looped his holsters back into his belt. The two ancient pistols made their ways into the holsters, like they were born there. The two terrorists made there way out to the common area, then on to the prisoners...

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The Kusari Naval officers who awaited their fates deep inside the Silverton mega-asteroid known as Ouray did not show their fear. Senior among them was the Taisho. It was he the barbaric gaiijin would pressure the most they thought. The junior officers knew they could not loose their bering infront of such an important man. Young Shoi Hidecki however felt he would wretch. Academy training had not prepared him for this. While his Taiis showed perfect devotion and honor to the Taisho, preferring death to dishonor, Hidecki felt his courage fall away from him in waves.

Outside the door a chain rattled and clicked, opened, and a man walked in. In his hand was a green apple, on his hips were two weapons. The man regarded the Kusari warriors for a moment, looking at each one in turn. His eyes rested on Hidecki for a moment. The man pulled a chair into the room and sat down, smiled. The apple he through to Taii Kogo, Hidecki's immediate superior. Kogo caught the apple with two hands and looked at his comrades. The gesture made Hidecki flinch noticably. Kogo looked at the Taisho, but was given no indication from the stoic officer.

"Well go on, eat it. You boys gotta be hungry."

Hidecki didn't understand what the terrorist was saying but he believed he was telling Kogo to eat the apple. Even with his bowels in revolt from the adrenaline overload the last 12 hours had produced, Hidecki was hungry. Apparently Kogo was too for he tore into the fruit with zeal.

70 years from now when Hidecki lies on his death bed he would remember Kogo's face as he died stuffing it with green apple. In those 70 years he would never touch the fruit again.

The report from Tex's revolver was painful to the ear in such a small space. The archaic weapon spewed what looked like ash and smoke into the air. Hidecki felt warm liquid strike his face and he was momentarily blinded by muzzle flare.

"Am I dead?" He thought to himself.

He felt no pain. He touched his face. Blood on his fingers, mixed with...green apple. Kogo was dead. He and the remains of his final meal were spreading across the stone hewn floor of Ouray's brig.

As the smoke cleared in the room, Hidecki noticed the terrorist had another apple in his hand. This one he threw to Hidecki. His fear lifted him away from his body. Appendages he still felt, but they were far away. Sheer weight of physiological pressure kept his arm from moving fast enough to catch the apple.

"Pick it up son."

Hidecki went to pick up the apple.

"eat it."

Stomach acid welled up to the back of Hidecki's mouth. The smell of gunpowder still hung about them and the slush of Kogo's blood made his feet stick to the floor.

"Enough."

Having spoken his first word since arriving at Ouray, the man whom Tex had ignored until this point now looked up at his subordinates. Had the lives of true Kusarians or the wishes of the emperor himself been at risk, they all would have died in this little room before betraying them. But such was not the case today. The Kusari Naval Forces Admiral loved his men. Kogo would be missed, a casualty of a failed gamble the Admiral would forever regret. No, no more beautiful samurai would die this day....

especially not for Sintech...

The junior officers, Hidecki included were moved to a seperate cell while the Admiral spoke to Prospector and Tex about the prisoner transfer he and his men had overseen at Fuchu.

The admiral did not feel the dishonor he would receive upon his return. He had not betrayed his emperor, and 3 of 4 young men were alive because of that. Let them retire him quietly to die in obscurity...his conscience would be clean.

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[AU]Anton_Blix
-Signature by Doom