The Edge of Reason: A Prologue of War (Lili/Cedric) (1 Viewer)

[noice1]

Hand over brow, searching a chilled trove of beverages, the quaint chime of convenience store music wasn't doing Liliana's insomnia any favors. One might think her to be just another nocturnal creature, one of the night walkers stuck in limbo, distant and freakish like a subspecies. In truth she did prefer afterhours, but that was because her business always picked up.

Opening the shielding to the cold void, Lili squinted and freed an icy bottle of mountain water from its berth, letting the door suck shut on its own as she slowly trotted to the counter, a friendly face greeting her.

"Out on patrol again, eh? Eh-heh-ha. I think you could use a stronger drink, by the looks of it."

The clerk was old-fashioned and looked like an old, worn book, but was charismatic as people come, well-liked in the community. The African-American of sixty put down his crossword puzzle and punched up the refreshment, much to Lili's disinterest.

"Throw in a bottle of aspirin over there while you're at it, Tom", Lili mumbled as she nuzzled the web between her thumb and forefinger.

"Hey, this one's on me, kid."

It was a favor, and as much as Lili didn't do what she did for favors, she was too tired to care at the moment, and sighed to herself. Heroes don't ever think of themselves as heroes, no one does, but in a big city, word of mouth is law, and the riff-raff knew the places that were untouchable. Lili made sure this place was one of them.

"By the by, not to pile on, but when you shake off the blues, another greasy barnacle's been sniffin' around here again."

Already breaking into the bottles, Lili downed 325mg of relief and tossed an inquisitive look to the elderly man, "Meth mouth?"

"I chased him off about a notch before you came by. I don't need that around here, harrassin' my customers and all; damn pushers. Well, anyway, if it's no shine off your boots, maybe you could put out one of your 'friendly notices'?"

Lili exhaled slowly and kept her eyes averted of the bright light overhead, the luminosity throbbing at her temples.

"Not like I wanted a night off, or anything. Any idea where he came from?"

"I'd say go west, near the subway, I figure. Folks tell me it's a real rat's nest over there, though I never heard of a clean patch of city once you go past 36th."

"Well, I'm fresh out of poison, but I guess my boot could use a work-out."

"Heh-ha, that's our girl. Hey, we really love ya 'round here, don't do anything stupid though, you hear?"

Lili stared in thought, recalling times she's picked fights with gang members and a special occasion where she allowed herself to be kidnapped by slavers, simply to learn where they operated. It was the luxury of being an advanced covert weapon, to be able to take crime by the balls and ride it hard.

*

Ducking out of the store, Lili was happier to be back in the infinite urban darkness. With no more thought than flicking a light switch, her eyes subtly shimmered, increasing the low-light clarity and allowing her to see everything in monochrome. The walk was brisk but didn't attract attention. Turning the corner at some rundown apartment building, it didn't take long before one of the roaches scampered in front of her, peddling his clear, toxic rocks.

"Ehh bebe, bebe, what'chu say? This ice won't cool you down, no-no. I'm talkin' fiiiire, bebe, I got what you need. What'chu say? Ready to rock?"

If he'd use less than half a bottle of cheap cologne to cover up his rank odor, maybe he could afford some Neutrogena and a comb. Lili kept her distance; she was worried that he was without a flea collar. This was a dirty job, but someone had to do it.

"Maybe later, cutie. That Easy Mart over on 27th isn't handing out permits. So put the word out, because the next needle whore that sticks his toothless head around there is going to get it kicked in. Follow me, vein-banger?"

The words were like claptrap to the mush-head, but the colloquial was clear, and he decided to empty his mouth on her, staining her topcoat of lightweight material with scummy globs of spit. Lili's eyes narrowing like a bird of prey, business was indeed going to pick up tonight.

"Bad idea."

The mongrel quickly went for a weapon tucked into his pants, but the dark-haired girl planted her right foot, snapped her hips and sent her left leg around, jerking her head with it to locate and connected with a clean roundhouse that knocked him for a loop, spurring him to spin, stumble and fall to his hands and knees. The only thing worse than his stench was his bark; it was used to its annoying potential by howling like a mad man. Delivering early on a promise, she punted the side of his head with the rim of her boot to shut him up.

Like a call to arms, another pest arrived and immediately intruded with a sawed-off shotgun. His loud entrance from a nearby doorway to his first floor apartment, however, was telegraphed, and Lili had quickly drawn her .45 and dropped the challenger in one shot to the heart.

There was now a flurry of activity and shouting, and by this time the lone hero had taken cover under the solid deck of the second floor. Tactically making her way toward the stairs, she bucked up against a column near the base of the ascension and watched for movement.

Another door flew open on the first floor, a smaller man with a bandana tied over his face. Lili gave him a courtesy moment, allowing him a chance to run, but when he spotted her, his fate sealed before he could set aim, two shots knocked him off his feet permanently.

More yelling came from above; a torrent of chaos and confusion gripped the den of rodents. Meanwhile, the dark-haired lass was cool and collected in her hunt, shifting around the square support pillar and peaked around the corner, looking up the stair case. She was just in time to meet a charging bull in a white tank top. He rushed past Lili who tripped him up, his face smashing into a low curb. A pair of rounds into his legs neutralized him, but Lili made doubly sure by kicking the gun a good 20 feet away.

It was almost pitiable the way the last one never saw it coming, but few of her enemies ever had that pleasure. The night was her cloak, and she donned it wisely, her vision unimpeded. The smell of blood in the air, Lili skulked up the stairs and made her way around the second floor balcony. It was much quieter now, but a few more shouts could be heard in the distance. Lili stayed low, slithering her way with silent steps, clutching her modified Glock 21 firmly.

*

Without warning, a loud voice was heard, and it was coming closer. An apartment door behind Lili busted open, and a muscle-head emerged, pumped full of go-juice. With cat-like reflexes, Lili lunged forward, leapt into the air and drove her knee into his head, hoping to keep the noise down. Alas, the powerful blow only reeled the brute into the open door, prompting Lili to spike the butt of her gun directly down onto his cranium with a sickening impact.

Still only stumbling, the beast of a man enraged; turning and clutching Lili by the waist, lifting her off the ground, he drove forward, spun himself and slammed her into the hard, unforgiving wall, almost knocking the wind out of the young girl. She immediately drew her gun up, but he swung his arm like a wooden club, disarming her. Now down to a brawl, the animal wrapped one of his hands around her throat, crushing her windpipe. With only a moment to escape, Lili masterfully tucked her legs in, slipping them between herself and the monster, thrust her hips and wrapped them around his neck, sliding his head all the way up between her thighs, cinching with all her strength. Within seconds his eyes began to bulge and he had to make a desperate bid to free himself, much to Lili's temporary relief.

Unable to budge her vice-grip, the psycho used all of his strength, clutching the like a sack of potatoes and slammed forward into the wall, and then again. After taking three stiff blows, Lili used the next attempt against him and swung all of her weight to one side, pulling the man with her in a head-scissor, directed straight over the nearby railing. With amazing agility, she was able release him, free herself and hold on as the man plummeted 15 feet straight into concrete.

Beaten and broken, he appeared to lie motionless. Lili rolled back onto the balcony, scampering with choking breath to retrieve her loose sidearm. Other than some distant screams of terror, the violence appeared to be over.

Analysis began sparking within the veteran crime fighter, and her sixth sense started to tingle. But taking another look over the edge, she felt there was little more she could do. She decided to enter the apartment of the steroid freak, and began tearing through whatever could be found. Guns, bomb-making ingredients, money, but above all: chalk. Crystal meth; there was enough to cover an Italian family reunion.

Ready to smash and dash, there was a faint noise somewhere, and the distinct feeling of being watched. Lili approached the kitchen pantry, redrew her Glock, and eased the door open before knocking it off the hinges with a strong kick. There crouched a sobbing creature, a girl, younger than she. Her skin was deathly pale, with dirty-blonde hair strewn about; cowering in fear, the addict shielded her face, which was soaked with tears and mascara.

"P-please, d-don't kill me. I don't wanna die! I ain't got anything to do with this and I saw nothing. I'll disappear, I won't say nothin', I s-swear!"

Lowering her guard, Lili moved in, grabbed the girl and pulled her up by the hair, eliciting a fearsome cry from the pitiable tramp. She was forcibly removed from the pantry, pushed face-first against the nearby table, gun's barrel held to the back of her head. The whore's skirt rode high and her thong was ornamental: she was nothing but entertainment here, and clearly got regular abuse. Lili knew to press for answers.

"There's more rock here than Britney could swallow. Where are they getting it from?"

The girl's sobs made her completely incoherent, and a light, liquid trickling on the floor was more than Lili bargained for. Holstering her weapon, the slut was pulled upright and slapped precisely, shocking the girl and throwing some sense into the fragile mind. Turned out she really didn't know much, but she'd overheard talk about two locations: an underground club in the heart of downtown and the docks in the industrial sector. It was vague, but they were leads to chase.

Whatever this operation, it was big, and Lili was intent on bleeding it out of the city.

 

[noice1]

The next day, she was refreshed and invigorated, her body's nanomachines worked through the night to replenish her system, maximizing her recovery by regulating proper sleep level. It was an immaculate technology, the Neuronetwork, which allowed specific signals to the brain; essentially, she had an air control tower to complement her body's information super highway.
The day was clear and calm, perfect to do some scouting. Lili jumped on her bike and rode past shanty districts, urban sprawls and thick city congestion. Eventually, down by the endless water, she crossed a bridge over a man-made inlet, entering the industrialized sector. A rush of polluted air filled her nostrils immediately, the mix of heavy exhaust fumes and noxious waste were quite fitting as Lili dove back into the shit to do her job.

Down the road that closely ran off the large body of water, she mentally mapped the area. There were a lot of structures, tall and wide, but an old warehouse seemed worth a closer look. It was perched ominously, adjacent to a powerful shipping lane; it would be suitable for almost any kind of illegal activity. Lili pulled a u-turn, weaved into the long, deep lot, softly riding past heavy equipment, trailers and shipping containers. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. A gravel road ended at the gloomy warehouse, which was guarded behind a locked chain link gate. As her super bike growled at idle, the raven girl flipped her sunglasses up, taking a moment to survey the area around it with inhuman vision.


Sighing, she knew there was plenty of time before night fell. She'd be back; there was a second place to check out in the mean time.


*

Back in her safe house, Lili moved quickly to follow-up on the lead that the drug fiends frequent a club in the fast-moving center of the city. Luckily the addict's tip was informed enough to narrow it down to a particular rave scene, bound to see its share of drugs, but it was also known to have tight security due to a number of incidents. She'd have to lower her profile, and she did so by slipping into flared, hip-hugging jeans strapped by a wide leather belt and a pair of punky sneakers, topped off by a tight red spaghetti strap shirt with a faded black skull emblazoned on the front. Then fitted were a black, studded leather bangle and a spiky wrist band across her wrists. A string necklace rounded her look out before dark eyeliner and some hair combing, that pushed her bangs down her face, made her inconspicuous.

She met no resistance at the door, slipping in between a group of Goths and teens who looked like they were barely old enough to ride larger amusement park attractions. From there, she cased the joint, turning away from the crazy dance floor loaded with kandy girls and obnoxious hoochies to the secluded areas populated by the society-hating, fishnet wearing black masses. Wandering over like a lost soul looking for a place to stand and deride others in the subterranean atmosphere, The pack of Goths resisted, but she offered a stare of death on the inside and an arid presence like she'd lived indoors her whole life. They soon opened their circle to her.

The conversation was as mundane as the personalities, making Lili's efforts a simple matter to earn quick favor. Immediately the young girl picked out the wisest of the faction and got his attention with a bit of gloomy charm. When the undercover hero asked about where to score rock, she learned the joint was little more than what it appeared around them; the drug of choice was ecstasy, and the only thing available was what got snuck in. Lili chewed her tongue in frustration, already thinking back to the warehouse. Just when she was about to ditch, he mentioned that if she really wanted to shoot up, to check the bathrooms.

With little surprise, they were empty, save for one stall at the end of the women's bathroom. Whatever the girl had done, she could've used someone to hold her hair while she puked it up. Shaking her head, Lili actually felt it relaxing to get away from the constant, mind-drumming beat of the main floor. She'd almost gone to check on the ill girl, but something grabbed her shoulder. With a quickness and fury that would beat a Navy SEAL, the person was flat against the near wall, arm-locked and cross-faced in less than a second. Lili blinked as she registered the face.

"You!? What the hell?"

Lightening but not releasing her hold, Lili huffed, sensing a trap as she held the familiar body. The runt smelled like an unshowered man, not too different than the night before in the apartment.

"I knew you'd come, please help me!"

"I did, apparently you didn't get the message."

"I had no where to go, I'll probably be sold, I can only hope, I can't go back with Jack."

"That freak lived?"

"You don't know Jack, he's goddamn unstoppable, and when he finds me..." (gulp)

Lili darted her eyes briefly, trying to think. She then took a moment and bore them into the soul before her, but found no lies in her heart. With a light shove, the dirty blonde was released, a light cry of her relief echoing off the tiled bathroom floor.

"Fine. What's your name?"

"I don't have one."

"Then I don't trust you. I'm leaving."

"Shit. I'm dead already, I might as well. That other place I told you about is where all that shit came from."

"Keep talking."

"All I know is some huge shipment or whatever is coming in, I think tonight, like midnight. They sneak it off the ships and it goes right into this warehouse before it hits the streets."

Lili threw a skeptical look, "Coast Guard checks all cargo, how do they manage it?"

"I dunno, ask them! What about me?"

"I'll walk you out, just keep your head down."

"But they could be looking for you too...they tortured me, I told them what I told you! I'm sorry."

Lili came in again, backing the disheveled girl against the wall, her eyes flickering azure, sending the girl into a wide-eyed cower.


"Holy shit, what the hell are you?!"

As deserving as a fresh slap was, they were both in danger now. She had to get out of here, but her duty also meant protecting the innocent.Lili stepped away angrily and peered outside the push door, checking to see if the coast was clear. Enhanced spectrum showed her little victim had brought some attention with her; the quickest route out was being watched by some extra personnel that weren't there before.

"Damn. Just shut up and follow my lead. Let's go."

*

An arm wrapped around the limp wrist of the frail whore, Lili quietly ducked out and slithered through the passages secluded from the lounge and dance floor. It was dimly lit and all doors were unmarked. A quick glance around the short corner found it cut off by men in dark suits; security staff. As the voices grew closer, Lili thought on her feet and wheeled on her companion, locked her lips fully against her neck and pulled the surprised girl into a lustful embrace, moaning softly. In a moment they both felt eyes on them, spurring Lili to only ravish her partner deeper, settling between her legs. The other girl tucked her head down and murmured softly. A couple of chuckles eased the tension as the pair of voices and footsteps faded away from a sight no male could easily walk away from. When the girls were hidden again, Lili released her suctioning lips from the younger girl and yanked her onward.

"Looks like an exit up ahead."

A door just in front of them opened, a woman in a low skirt backing out quietly. The ear piece on her told Lili she was one move away from bringing a lot of trouble their way. Before the younger blonde in tow knew what happened, her frozen body was pulled forward, in front of her dark-haired partner, who quickly snuck around beyond the manager. The staffer's high heels clicked in place as she shot up to see the petrified girl, and was then taken by surprise.


Lili was on her from behind, lifting on her toes to meet the extended height, but quickly pulled the ravishing Latina woman down in a standing rear choke, a hand tightly held over her mouth. The meek girl watched in horror as her friend constricted her arm like a boa and forced the woman down to her knees, then started to lift up, using the weight against her prey until the eyes started rolling back into their sockets. The curvaceous woman flailed helplessly, but soon her struggles started to slow. The tactical warrior was tender and unyielding.


"Shh, go to sleep, you won't be hurt. Sleep now."

Forward and down the woman slumped, and Lili stayed mounted on her back, watching her face pale in a light bluish hue before passing out.


"Help! Help! Get off me!"

Snapping her head up, the scrawny blonde was seen grabbed by a man twice her size. Lili leapt up and rushed toward him. He struck the girl with something blunt in the head before shoving her brutally into the wall. Lili lunged and bicycle kicked him in the jaw. Then as he staggered, she pivoted her landing and struck with a crane kick to the chin using her alternate leg, knocking him into a large plant that fell over with him. She then ran to the girl, hoisted her up with her shoulder and half dragged her, supporting her until they made it out the rear exit.

The injured girl was falling over herself, and was put into a fireman carry, Lili grunted and climbed up the solid stairs that led into a back alley, but a guard approached at the top of the steps, grabbed her by the shirt, ordering her to stop. With the light girl still on her shoulders, she kneed him in the groin, shoved her hand into his mouth and yanked him by the jaw, sending him tumbling down the concrete stairs head over heels.

As the girl was set down, it was with luck that she could walk, but had a concussion at the least. Lili stuck with her until they made it to a hospital, where she was left to be treated, an address to a shelter slipped into her pocket. With the liability out of the equation, there wasn't much time before nightfall. She had to gear up and be ready to meet the enemy, hoping that shipment would be on time tonight.

 

[noice1]

Nature had heard her prayer, covering the lunar body in the night sky with a haze of clouds. Visibility would be poor, much to her unnatural advantage. Lili sat perched on the roof of a building under construction; it sat a quarter mile from shore, overlooking the shipping docks. All ports were visible, but it was too quiet. She hoped the noise made over the past two days hadn't caused the shipment of drug product to be scrubbed, for it was the only way to confirm everything the young, hapless addict she befriended had told her.

Lili swept her infrared-attuned vision over the installation once more, noting the various port security officers that controlled access. Recent legislation had pushed for increased government action to secure locations of national security, and it meant any ship coming in had its crew questioned and cargo hold searched.

So the law was written.

Nearly two hours had gone by without any activity. Lili's dark gray suit was fortunately comfortable; a cutting-edge super polymer design, it was one piece, terminated halfway up the neck, and covered the limbs but allowed the hands free for dexterity. Leather harnesses fit across the torso, fastened around the waist and down her back, where she carried various utilities and modest fire power. The young hero crouched anxious, stroking the handle of her combat knife that stayed sheathed snugly on her calf. She then saw the lights in the water.

To her relief, a ship approached. She watched closely as it embarked, and it was rapidly obvious that security was a charade. The ship's crew wasn't so much questioned as they were greeted. The boat itself wasn't large, but carried a number of crates that were decked by palettes. As a few crewmembers worked to unload them, Lili noticed they were getting help, and as she looked over to a private exchange, a large black bag was handed off to one unremarkable officer. The supposed "good guys" then walked away; tax dollars at work. The girl in the shadows had them dead to rights, but she wasn't the military police, she had to focus on her mission.

The crates were loaded into an inconspicuous delivery truck; it would be the best way to transport the raw material and deliver "streetable" contents after processing. As the crew sealed the cargo in the truck, Lili moved quickly, bolting down the half-constructed building, zigzagging down planks of wood and leaping gaps in the structure until she was in position above the lone road that led out of the complex. The vehicle approached and bounced over a speed bump just as Lili landed softly on the roof.

It was a short drive to the warehouse. The truck cleared the gate, prompting the nimble girl to shimmy her body to the rear and hang by her fingertips to avoid detection. A retractable service door opened and received them, and that was when she had to make her first kill. The door operator was caught be surprise as she pushed off, soaring at speed to pounce on him; she snapped his neck with no more than a flip of her wrists. Covertly she slipped inside the loading bay and hopped on the truck's tail to wait.

The driver exited and went inside, but the passenger came toward Lili; he was greeted with a booted foot to the face, knocking him out instantly. She noticed something foolhardy on him: a bandolier of grenades. Quickly a plan was hatched; she stripped them, then made use of some cord from his radio to fashion a grenade bouquet, which was rigged on the inside of the truck to pull apart when the door opened. She left both unconscious bodies as bait until their friends returned. She then drew one of her pistols and shot the rear tires. Immediately she holstered and ran around the perimeter to put her a safe distance away.

It didn't take long to pan out. The explosion was massive; the truck was obliterated with half a dozen gang members. It was her way of making a delivery.

With that diversion, Lili could move confidently. Her vision intensifying light, she scurried in the back just in time to evade another group of thugs who burst from a door. They were heavily armed and looking for a fight, one the elusive heroine wasn't sad to miss.

She then located a large utility access at eye level. Using an advanced multi-tool to pick the lock first, it was then flipped it around and used to pry off the panel cover. Warning labels surrounded the sensitive electrical controls. The cunning girl ignored them, retrieved a small bottle from her belt and sprayed the electronics with a greasy substance that seeped into wires and ran into circuitry. Lili was several meters away before it shorted out in a frightening spectacle of sparks and smoke. The building and exterior lights went out like candles.

Scurrying up a catwalk, a locked door on an upper level had to be dealt with. Jamming a pin into the mechanism, a socket from the multi-tool then dug into the lock itself. With some manipulation, Lili yanked it free, removing the entire assembly, letting it clatter to the walkway below. She slipped in quietly. The panic inside was as much a cloak as the total darkness.

The dark-clothed heroine approached a set of office doors, which appeared to be barricaded from the inside. The boss had shut himself in, but Lili just shook her head, for while it was inaccessible, it also created vulnerability. With obvious insanity, gunfire had been sprayed through the wall, leaving large holes, just enough to slip a party favor through. Stripping a small, gray metal tube from her vest, Lili broke one end off and shoved it inside.

A noxious, white smoke billowed out, swirling and filling the void. More gun fire, yelling, and glass breaking was heard. Lili moved to look out another window. Whoever he was, he'd thrown the rifle through the glass and jumped twenty feet, crippling his body. The sneaking girl scornfully smiled before returning to finish the job.

Bounding through blindness, the henchmen were dealt with in cruel, efficient methods. Strangely, every one still inside were women; many wore breathers, others had towels covering their faces. The young heroine felt pangs of regret that she efficiently dissected their helpless bodies in darkness. She twisted limbs to the breaking point, dislocated joints, struck windpipes and then threw another over a railing, screaming in pure fear until landing on her gut in a sickening thud. Their cries and moans of agony sent others fleeing, it was as if a demon had arrived to take their souls.

Then a backup generator kicked on. Skulking, Lili viewed the labs. All sorts of product were being processed, but the meth waste was pungent and harmful to the lungs. She had to work fast, with active threats. The place still in chaos, she took aim at the lights in the rafters, shooting them out. Several were down before a foreign shot knocked the gun clean out of her hands. Instantly Lili's reflexes sent her scrambling; she bucked up in the corner of the walkway that overlooked ground level.

Now detected, Lili moved up to Phase Three. The raven-haired girl flipped open a large pouch on her side and removed two ringed canisters striped with red tape. The first was armed, then heaved a great distance; it hung in air for a second before it slapped down next to a table of chemicals and erupted into a fireball the size of a couch, which then set off a greater fire. She tossed the second one a short distance, in front of a foe scrambling to shoot her. The woman screamed, tried to throw it away, but it ignited in her hand. She flung himself wildly and burned with a collection of other drug paraphernalia.

As the warehouse went up, the situation became desperate. Lili's Glock being disarmed, she quickly drew a pair of machine pistols, came out of cover and dropped a charging attacker at her level, then aimed down and sent a barrage of rounds through a worker who was fighting the fires. What few others in the building remained were quickly running off, so Lili emptied the rest of her magazines into more unspoiled equipment, tearing up them until they were useless. She tossed the guns and went into escape mode.

Bounding over the railing, Lili spun and caught herself, then swung her body forward, flipping and landed like a gymnast on the floor below. The lab was abandoned in the madness and confusion. Heavy, poisonous smoke was filling the building fast. She booked it to the nearest window, frantically reaching for a special blade, and scored the glass.

Searching for something solid to break through, Lili was jumped from behind. Sharp nails dug into her neck, scratching her deeply, her hair pulled viciously. Animalistic screams were spewing from the one on top of her. With a building howl, Lili reached behind her, grabbed the woman by the roots of her hair and heaved her body, knocking the enraged woman off her. She was dressed like the other workers, a soiled dirty apron around her and a protective mask was still secured. Lili leapt on her, wrestling her to the ground and hammered her in the solar plexis with her knee until the woman wasn't able to breathe.

Just then, she looked over and saw the other woman she had riddled with bullets. The poor woman was probably friends with her and just acted on revenge. The heroine solemnly resigned to checking on her, and remarkably she was still alive. Lili carried her, returning to her downed friend, and brought the fire extinguisher. She tossed it through the weakened window and cleared the jagged edges with her leather gauntlet. After both women were unceremoniously pushed out to safety, Lili followed. She then cut the shirt off one of the women and used it to tourniquet the worst of the bleeding on the other.

Liliana didn't turn back until she was a hundred yards away, and the devastation was more than she thought. The building would probably be beyond repair, and it was a serious blow to the illegal drug trade. Save for some painful scratches, it was Mission Accomplished, though with so many deaths by her hand, her personal creed commanded atonement; it was the part the sober warrior never enjoyed.