Call Me Nicky

 Cathay    

Solaris City

Solaris VII

17 April 3061 

                    The two laughed and had a good time on the ride from the arena to Lin Ming's apartment in Cathay. Nicky pulled the car up to the curb.

                    "You did a great job out there. I've never been one for the arena circuit, but I've never had skin in the game either, so this was kind of a new thing for me. Thanks, Lin."

                    Lin pulled in a deep breath. "Look, I'm all juiced up from the fight and all, there's no way I'll get a lick of sleep or anything, you want to come up and hang out for a while?"

                    Nicky leaned back in her seat. "I probably shouldn't....but yeah, why not. We can see what's on for coverage of your big fight."

                    Lin retrieved her bag from the back, and the two of them made their way up to Lin's fourth floor apartment.  Lin was about to give Nicky the tour of the small place, when she suddenly realized that the detective had been here before, their first meeting. "I don't have any good liquor or anything, just some soft drinks and a cheap bottle of wine that's been staring me in the face for the three months I've been here."

                    Nicky tossed her jacket over the kitchen island, and took off her service weapon, laying it on top. "Cheap wine is perfect."

                    Lin flipped on the tri-vid and searched through the channels to see what was on.

                    "Is your fight on replay yet? It should be." Nicky asked

                    Lin sat on the sofa and put two glasses on the table before opening the bottle of wine. She poured each of them a glass and leaned back. "You really want to watch that? You've already seen the fight."

                    Nicky took her glass and sat at the other end of the sofa. "Hell yeah. Live is one thing, but you have to see what they're saying about you on the vids, right?"

                    "You asked for it." Lin searched through the channels until she caught the one that was showing the replay of her fight in Hartford Gardens.  Watching the match on replay was almost surreal. She walked Nicky through all of the things that were going on in her head, careful still to avoid mentioning the stealth system, as the fight unfolded. She cringed at her mistakes and was almost embarrassed by the bravado that she had shown during the match. 

                    By the time the fight had ended, they were halfway through the bottle of wine. On the screen, Tim Franks could be seen calling her out in all his anger. "I don't know what kind of crap you pulled, but that was humiliating. To lose to an Urbanmech? You better watch yourself, hotshot."

                    "He seemed really pissed at you. You think anything will come of it?"

                    Lin shrugged. "I doubt it. It's all heat of the moment. Adrenaline, pride, all that mixed together can be volatile I guess. But he seems harmless enough."

                    Nicky nodded. "Most of it is for the camera, you're right. And you did a great job in front of the camera. You've got the skill and the knack to make it here I think if you want to."

                    "Yeah, but I can't win them all. I had an edge here, and a rode it for all it was worth. That won't always be the case. I know I've got the skills, but this fight circuit can be grim business."

                    "An edge? What are you talking about? No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked. I know you're sworn to secrecy and all that."

                    Lin was suddenly aware that the two of them had moved closer to each other on the sofa as the fight had unfolded, and she was now dangerously close to the other woman. "No, it's ok. I feel like I can trust you. Maybe it's the wine, maybe it's the adrenaline, but why not? The project they're working on at Red Dragon is a kind of stealth system. It's how I managed to get so close to him without him being able to lock onto me."

                    Nicky leaned in. "Do you think it could have anything to do with the murder of the last guy?"

                    Lin paused, unsure of herself. 

                    Finally Nicky broke the silence. "I'm sorry, that wasn't fair, I shouldn't be going all detective on you. This is a big night for you, you should enjoy it without worrying about other stuff.

                    Lin reached out and touched Nicky's arm. "I am enjoying it. This has been a great night, and I don't just mean about the fight."

                    Nicky and Lin locked eyes. "I should probably get going. I'm sure you have a lot on your plate for tomorrow.

                    Lin leaned closer in towards Nicky. "You don't have to. I mean...you could stay a while."

                    Nicky sighed. "And do what?"

                    "This." Lin leaned in and kissed Nicky. She didn't know why.  Maybe it was the wine. Maybe it was the post-fight adrenaline come down. But for the first time on Solaris, she felt connected to someone else.

                    She waited for Nicky to recoil and pull back, but she didn't. The kiss lasted several long seconds before breaking.

                    Nicky was flushed. "That was..."

                    "Unexpected?"

                    "Incredible. I mean..."

                    Lin put her finger on Nicky's lips. "Be quiet, detective."

                    "I told you, call me Nicky. You sure about this?"

                    Lin smiled. "I just rode a multi-ton fusion reactor into combat. I think I know what I'm doing."

                    The two kissed again. This time longer. And again. Before long, their hands were all over each other. Lin playfully pulled Nicky along into the bedroom. By the time they reached the bed, both of them were topless, locked in each other's embrace.

                    Not long after that, all their clothes were gone, and they were entwined in happy exploration for hours. Finally, they stopped, snuggled into each other and just relaxed.

                    "I thought you said you weren't going to get a lick of sleep?"

                    Lin smiled and closed her eyes. "I hadn't planned on this. This helps with sleep."

                    Nicky ran a finger along Lin's arm. "You want me to stay?"

                    "Very much so, detective."

                    I told you, call me Nicky."

Urbie Rules!

 Cathay    

Solaris City

Solaris VII

17 April 3061 

                    Lin Ming found herself in the "war room" at Red Dragon Corp. Teng Shen was there, as were a number of the techs that she had met over the last few days. They all sat around a circular table with a built-in holo viewer. 

                    "Thank you for joining us, Ms. Ming. We have some exciting news."

                    She was not at all excited, but kept a pleasant smile on her face. 

                    "We are moving forward with the testing of the Stealth UrbanMech, and we have secured a billet to fight Knouse Industries latest Valkyrie model. we feel that this will be a good test for the project, and it will also earn you some fanfare, should you win. This match will take place at the Hartford Gardens arena in the Xolara quarter of the Reaches. Unlike your previous bout, this one will be relatively well covered by the media, allowing you to make something of a name for yourself, based on your performance."

                    Lin shifted in her seat. "Am I to understand that we are taking the stealth technology public?"

                    Several of the techs seemed uneasy. Shen shook his head. "No. We are not making it public, but the fans, as well as the press will likely see that something is different. As always, play coy. Deny anything, confirm nothing. Allow the speculation to work it's own wonders."

                    "So the stealth technology will be active, we're just not advertising it? Is that the gist of it?"

                    "More or less. We need to take this technology to the big time, and this will be as good a proving ground as any. Your standard wage will apply, as well as any purse you should win on the fight. We don't know how the media will handle it, or even if it will be noticed at all. Your job is simply to keep up the mystery. Do you understand?"

                    "I do. Thank you Mr. Shen."

                    The meeting continued for half an hour, going over minor details of the fight and other elements. As soon as she was free of the meeting, she sent off a text message to Detective Vale, informing her of the fight to come and the public details. She would have three days to prepare for the fight.

                    The three days passed uneventfully, and Lin found herself once again in the cockpit of the StealthUrbie as she had come to call the machine. Shen was right, there was some minor press coverage of the fight, and she had been interviewed before the bout by someone with a minor broadcast network. She had stayed on script, not giving anything away, and the entire event was, she found, rather dull. 

                    But now she was suited up for the fight, and with the match about to begin, she could hear the announcer over the general comms frequency. 

                    "Hello, Mech fans, and welcome to Hartford Gardens for tonight's preliminary bout between Red Dragon Corporation, and Knouse Industries. This corporate fight will see a Valkyrie, piloted by Timothy Franks, against everyone's favorite, an UrbanMech piloted by new talent Lin Ming. We've got a lot to talk about before things go all shooty, and we'll be back in a flash after a word from our sponsor."

                    She muted the channel and focused on the fight at hand. She centered herself in the cockpit, gaining focus and waiting for the fight to begin. It seemed like ages as she sat in silence, before the red marker turned green and an obnoxious horn sounded the beginning of the match.

                    The Hartford Gardens arena was mostly low rolling hills, with woodlands setting up a series of open "kill boxes" where long range fire could be exchanged. She had been briefed on the Knouse Industries version of the Valkyrie, one mounting an XL engine to upgrade the LRM launcher to a fifteen rack of missiles, guided by an Artemis IV Fire Control System. The medium laser was rumored to be a prototype that added enhanced range.

                    All-in-all, her opponent was going to try for a long range engagement, and he had the speed and jump jets to make it happen. She would have to rely on the stealth technology of the Urbanmech to counteract his range advantage, hopefully getting in close enough for her own medium lasers to wear away at the enemy. In and ideal world, she could get in under the minimum range of the LRM launcher, and it would be her five medium lasers against Franks' single laser.

                    She harbored no illusions of being able to get such a position, but she certainly would try. She ran her Mech forward through the thicket that had been concealing her prior to the match start. She had so far not engaged the stealth system, and so her sensors were able to pick out Franks' Valkyrie just over a thousand meters away. It was optimal range for her opponent, and there was little cover to speak of.

                    She slapped the switch to engage the stealth system and darted into a patch of bushes. Her HUD warned her that an Artemis system was attempting to lock on to her mech. This would be the test of the stealth system. At this point, Franks should have begun pummeling her with a long range volley of missiles, but none came.

                    She laid into her jump jets, and jetted across an open space into another thicket, firing off a medium laser even though the range was far too great for it to be effective. She was daring her opponent to take a shot at her. She could only imagine the frustration on the part of her opponent, unable to make such an easy shot and not understanding why.

                    Franks apparently wasn't known for his patience, as he resorted to dumb-firing a round of LRMs at her position. Once again she laid into her jump jets to sail clear of the unguided barrage. Now would be her chance. Franks was still trying to figure out what was going on, she had to make her move now. She brought her mech up into a sprint, such as it was for an up-engined Urbanmech, and headed straight for him.

                    He once again loosed an unguided volley of missiles in her direction, which she dodged with ease. Even the less than nimble Urbanmech could avoid his blind fire. She knew she only had perhaps two alpha strikes with her mech before the heat became unmanageable, so she would have to make them count. She needed to get within three hundred meters for her shots to be effective.

                    Franks could have opened the distance more with his jump jets, but he clearly was not thinking straight at this point. He was focused on trying to get shots off with his missiles to hit her as she barreled towards him, but she evaded the unguided shots with little effort.

                    Once the range read below three hundred meters, she focused all of her effort on lining up a shot. Satisfied that the targeting computer was happy from her reticule pulsing to gold, she pulled into her main trigger and send five beams of energy shooting towards her opponent.

                    Four of the beams connected, melting away over a ton of armor plating from the Valkyries frame. Nothing critical was damaged, but she knew her opponent felt it. 

                    He fired back with his single medium laser, coring a bit of armor from her well protected torso.

                    Not wanting to give him any respite, as son as her lasers cycled, she pulled the trigger again, sending the massive amount of energy downrange toward her target. Once again, four of the five beams connected, this time tearing holes through the armor and wrecking internal structure.

                    The heat in the cockpit by now was near overwhelming, and she had to hit the shutdown override to keep her mech active. Sweat poured over her, and almost as quickly evaporated in the intense heat of the cockpit.  

                    She was now under two hundred meters, but she could not dare risk another shot. Then it dawned on her that she could disengage the stealth system and gain back some cooling at this point in the fight. She quickly toggled the stealth system off, and almost immediately her mech's heat sinks began to vent waste heat from the mech and her cockpit.

                    Franks fired his medium laser once again, and now that he had a target lock, he fired off a volley of his LRMs. Unfortunately for him, she was under the missiles minimum arming distance, and the rockets panged pathetically off her armor doing no damage.

                    By now, her heat sinks had dropped her heat gauge to a reasonable level. This was time for the killshot. She lined up her crosshairs and pulled the trigger at just over one hundred meters.

                    This time, all five of the beams connected, tearing through internal structure and causing the mechs torso to sink a little as the internal structure failed. By now, the mech was a dead husk, the dampening fields cascading down to silence it's fusion reactor for safety.

                    The fight was over. She had won. The stealth system had performed flawlessly, and had enabled her to overcome her opponents range advantages. As the horn sounded the end of the match, she quietly brought the Urbanmech into the entrance bay and powered down.

                    She was greeted by a handful of reporters, all asking silly questions which she deflected with ease. She made sure not to mention the stealth system in any way, focusing on her heroic charge to close the range and leaving everyone to speculate why none of Tim Frank's shots had connected.

                    As she reached the locker room, an irate Tim Frank met her. 

                    "I don't know what kind of crap you pulled, but that was humiliating. To lose to an Urbanmech? You better watch yourself, hotshot."

                    The media soaked it all up, Lin Ming kept to herself and let security escort Franks away from the scene.

                    After a long, hot shower to decompress, she made her way out of the arena, brushing by a few Mechbunnies and making her way to the street, prepared to call a cab. 

                    "Hey, hotshot." came the voice of detective Nicky Vale. "Need a ride?"

                    She laughed and  wandered over to the small coupe that the detective was driving. "You came all this way to see the fight?"

                    "Hey, the case is cold, I need any bit of information I can get. And it just so happened that you provided me with a bit of a mystery. Come on, get in."

                    Lin stowed her bag in the back and slipped into the passenger seat.

                    Nicky pulled away immediately and headed towards Cathay. "That was some mighty fine work out there. You took down a Valkyrie in an Urbanmech. I don't really follow the fights all that close, but even I know that was quite a feat. And from the sound of your opponent on the vids, he was none too pleased."

                    "I just got lucky. I managed to get in under his range without him being able to hit me, and once I was in close, I had the advantage the whole time. Like taking candy from a baby."

                    Nicky smiled. "Ok, play coy. I don't need to know the details, but I know something special went on out there. You'll probably have some minor networks trying to get your interview in the morning. You ready for that?"

                    Lin shrugged. "I don't know. I don't think so, but who cares about ready. It was a blast. We'll see what happens in the morning."   

Meeting the Detective

Cathay    

Solaris City

Solaris VII

11 April 3061 

                    Lin Ming sat at a booth in the bar that she had agreed to meet the detective at. She had arrived early and ordered a cocktail, and was sipping on it when the detective arrived and slid into the opposite side of the booth. The server arrived and Nicky ordered herself a whiskey neat.

                    "So, you have some information?"

                    Lin Ming shook her head. "Not really. More of just a feeling. Like something is wrong, and I don't know what, I'm just looking to you for help, if that makes any sense. 

                    Nicky took a sip of her whiskey. "It does. Something fishy is going on. You have a right to be scared."

                    Lin recoiled at that last word. "I'm not scared....just confused. There is more to this story than my boss is letting on, and that worries me, given what happened to Mr. Avellar."

                    "Do you think it could have anything to do with whatever project you're working on?"

                    Lin shook her head. "I can't get into that. It's all under NDA and what not."

                    Nicky shrugged. "I don't need to know the specifics, just if there's any way that it might be tied to Mr. Avellar's murder."

                    "I don't know. There's certainly corporate espionage to think about, as well as possibly state actors given what I'm working on. But I just don't know."

                    Nicky downed the last of her whiskey. "Just keep your eyes and ears peeled, look for anything funny going on. You've sensed that something isn't right, and I'm glad you came to me with this."

                    Nicky reached out and touched Lin's arm. "This is probably just the beginning. Lay low, just keep your nose clean, and everything will work out. We'll get to the bottom of this."

                    Lin felt an almost electric buzz at Nicky's touch. She wanted to come through for this woman, wanted to impress her if she was being honest. She tried to push the foolishness to the back of her mind. "I will keep you up to date on things. I'll let you know if I find anything out." 

                    Nicky nodded. "Let's get some air."

                    Lin smiled. "Good idea."

                    The two left the bar and walked to the nearby bridge over the Solaris river. "So, you're not a local, what's your story?" Nicky asked.

                    "My story?" Lin posed inquisitively.

                    "Yeah, everybody's got a story. I was born and raised here on Solaris, so I've seen people come and go my whole life. Everyone comes to Solaris with a story."

                    Lin shrugged. "I guess I just wanted something different. I always knew I wanted to pilot a Mech, and I just went through the motions back on Altorra to get it done. But there always seemed like there had to be something more to me. I didn't want to end up on some backwater garrison my whole life, so when my enlistment came due, I signed out, cashed out, and bought a ticket here to see what might happen. I guess it's probably every MechWarrior's story here on the game world."

                    Nicky chuckled. "You're certainly not the first or the last. But there's something unique to your story. One way or another it won't be like everybody else. I see a lot of stories come through here in my line of work. Each of them different. Each of them unique."

                    Lin smiled. "I guess when you put it that way, it sounds like the grand plan I had in my head."

                    "Grand plan? What's the grand plan? See, you've got something to your story."

                    Lin smiled shyly. "Nothing much really, just what everyone wants, to make a name for themselves."

                    "Oh, so you want to be famous?"

                    Lin shook her head. "I didn't say that. Just make my mark on the world somewhere."

                    "Good for you. I don't follow the games much, just what's on the news. But I bet you've got a part to play in all this."

                    Lin leaned up against the railing, soaking in damp river air. "What about you, detective? What's your story?"

                    Nicky shrugged. "Call me Nicky. And yeah, I guess I've got a story. Ever since I was a little girl, I've wanted to understand this place. What goes on here, the people and all that. Police work just seemed like a natural fit, investigating things, trying to find out the angle to everything. I've only been a detective for a couple of years now, but I've seen a lot of stories and I've figured a lot out about how this place works. Still got a lot to learn, but I'm trying. That kind of things leads me to nights like these, here, with you, uncovering yet another story."

                    Lin smiled slightly. She was enjoying this evening. She had somehow gotten past the nervousness and just opened up, at least a little, to this woman. Of course, as a detective, that's probably what Nicky was good at, getting people to open up. Lin took the plunge "You make it almost sound like a date."   

                    Nicky smiled wryly. "I guess it kind of is. I didn't plan it that way or anything. Technically you're still my only suspect in this murder case."

                    Lin was coy. "So I'm still a suspect?"

                    Nicky laughed. "I didn't mean for it to sound like that. I just mean you're the only actual person with a motive. Everything else is just shadows. Oh god, that sounded even worse, didn't it?"

                    "Kind of. But it's ok, I get what you mean, detective. Let's hope this case reveals itself to you and we can dispense with the suspect thing."

                    "I'd like that. Anyhow, the night is getting late. Can I offer you an official police escort back to your apartment, or can you find your own way."

                    Lin smiled. "I think I like the sound of that, detective. It's only a few blocks away."

                    "I said, call me Nicky. Let's go."

                    The two walked the several blocks to Lin Ming's apartment building in silence, but smiling. 

                    "This is your stop. Look, like I said, just lay low, keep your senses peeled for any funny business, and we'll get to the bottom of this whole mess together. Sound like a plan?"

                    Lin smiled. "A plan indeed."

Musings

  Cathay    

Solaris City

Solaris VII

11 April 3061 

                    Detective Nicky Vale sat at her desk and pondered the case she had been stuck with. She had just interviewed the victim's replacement, and that was a strange affair. Normally MechWarriors were cocky and outgoing, but Lin Ming had been nervous, defensive, almost shy. The girl was cute for a MechWarrior, and in any other setting, Nicky might have asked her out. But she couldn't be sure yet what that nervousness was hiding. Was it the normal nerves around the police? Was she covering something up and that was what bothered her? The thought crossed Nicky's mind that maybe the girl was even nervous because she was attracted to her, but she quickly put that out of her mind. 

                    No, she couldn't rule out Lin Ming as a suspect just yet. In fact, weak as it was, she was the only suspect that she had. There had to be something going on at Red Dragon, but she had no way of finding out what it was. The corporate officers were helpful enough, but one could only glean so much from files. 

                    No, there was nothing more she could discern from the files that she had been pouring over. She needed an angle, an in, as it were, and the only angle she had right now was Lin Ming. She just had to figure out a way to leverage that into getting the MechWarrior to help her out. Without someone on the inside, the case was cold, a dead end.

                    #####

                    Lin Ming walked into the office of Teng Shen, her boss for all intents and purposes right now. The Capellan style was familiar to her, and the entire office let off and air of relaxation and calm. 

                    "Mr. Shen, thank you for seeing me."

                    He smiled. "Thank you for your victory in the scrapyard the other day. You piloted our test machine well. I trust all is in order with your payment for the bout?" 

                    She nodded. "Yes, everything has gone splendidly. I am happy to be a test pilot for Red Dragon. That is not why I wanted to see you. I was visited by the Solaris City Police. They gave me some disturbing information about the death of my predecessor. I wanted to make sure everything was on the level."

                    Shen nodded. "Of course. I also spoke to the Solaris Police regarding the unfortunate fate of Mr. Avellar. I assured them that his death was in no way connected to his work. Are you worried for your safety?"

                    She hadn't considered that. If her predecessor had been killed, might she be the next target for whoever committed the crime? "I suppose so. I mean, how can we be sure that his death was not related to the projects that you have ongoing here?"

                    Shen opened his arms wide. "Of course espionage is a possibility, but logically, you as the pilot are the last rung of the ladder that anyone would target for information. We have many techs and scientists on our payroll that have far greater working knowledge of the project than you do. Speaking of, did you disclose the nature of the project to the police?"

                    "No. I'm aware of the NDA I signed, and I would never leak that sort of information, even to the police."

                    Shen smiled. "Then there is no cause for alarm. You are safe, my dear. This business with Mr. Avellar is unfortunate, but do not let it color your view of our project going forward. You continue to pilot the test Mech, and leave all of the secrecy to us. Simply play coy if you are asked by the police or the press about our project. There is nothing to share, and there is nothing to fear."

                    Lin nodded. "Thank you, sir. I'm glad we could work everything out. Thank you for your time"

                    Lin Ming left the office, but couldn't help but feel that there was more to this story than met the eye. Should she talk to the detective again? What would she say to her? Was she just looking for an excuse to see the cute detective again? Why was she even thinking in those terms? There was so much going on. She was sure there was more to the story.

                    She spent much of the rest of the day nervously trying to determine what to do. After fidgeting with her phone, she finally sent a text message off to the detective, asking to meet to discuss the case. She had made her move.

The Interview

 Cathay    

Solaris City

Solaris VII

11 April 3061 

                    Lin Ming  had just come out of the shower and was about to enjoy her breakfast, when there was a knock on the door of her small Cathay apartment. She was not expecting anyone, let alone this early. She had slept like a log after her first Solaris match, and had nothing planned for the day but relaxing.

                    "Who is it?"

                    "Solaris City Police Department."

                    The police? What were the police doing at her door? She hadn't done anything wrong. What could they possibly want. Her pulse raced a little higher than normal as she made her way to the door and opened it. 

                    Greeting her was an absolutely gorgeous woman, average height, wearing jeans and a blazer and sporting the shield of the SCPD on a chain around her neck. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a pony tail and her blue eyes gave away no emotion.

                    It was just Lin's luck, not only were the police after her for something, but they had sent an incredibly attractive officer to her. She was nervous as hell, and the combination of the the unknown reason for the police being there coupled with a woman she found attractive, this was not going to go well.

                    "Are you Lin Ming?"

                    She nodded before blurting out "Who's asking?"

                    "Detective Nicky Vale, Solaris City PD. Do you have a moment, I'd like to ask you a few questions."

                    "Of course, detective, come in. Can I ask what this is about?"

                    She closed the door after the woman entered, and she gestured towards a chair.

                    The detective took a seat, and Lin sat opposite her on the small couch. "I understand that you piloted an Urbanmech last night in something called an Urbie Derby out in the Reaches for Red Dragon Corp?"

                    Lin bit her lip nervously. "That's right. I won the match in fact. It's all registered proper with the gaming board, everything was legal."

                    Detective Vale smiled. "I'm not here about the fight, per se. Have you ever come across a man named Mitchell Avellar?"

                    The name was unfamiliar to her. "Not that I'm aware of. The name doesn't ring a bell."

                    "Interesting. He was the man who piloted your mech up until last night. You never met him?"

                    Lin nodded. "Never. I had no idea whose place I was taking. I just got offered the gig after paying a hefty price to a fixer to get my name noticed. I never met any other pilots for Red Dragon."

                    "This fixer, he have a name?"

                    "Grimes. That was his name. He checked out as above board and all, nothing out of the ordinary."

                    Detective Vale moved slightly in her seat. "Would you be surprised if I told you that Mitchell Avellar was found dead yesterday morning in an alley here in Cathay?"

                    Lin's heart began to race. She could see where this was going. "Yes, I would be."

                    "So a guy end up dead, you take his place, and you don't know anything about it?"

                    Lin shook her head. "I know how it might look, but I never met the man. And I can't think that Mr. Grimes had anything to do with his death either."

                    Nicky Vale squinted. "I never said he was murdered, just that he was found dead. Do you know something I don't?"

                    Lin caught herself before speaking. "No, I mean I just assumed. I didn't know or anything."

                    "Can you think of any reason why someone might want Mr. Avellar dead?"

                    "No. I mean...well, we're working on some corporate sensitive stuff. Maybe that got him on someone's bad list? I don't know."

                    "You seem nervous. Is everything alright?"

                    Damn, there it was, she was giving off nervous vibes, the worst thing that she could be doing in front of a cop. "Yeah, I'm just a little flustered, this is a lot to take in, a murder and all that." To say nothing of her attraction to the detective.

                    "You deal with death all the time in the arena, it's a bloodsport."

                    Lin shook her head. "This is different. A murder is different than the battlefield."

                    "If you say so."

                    "Look, I will help in any way I can. Honestly, I knew nothing of this man before you brought him up. I hadn't even given a second thought to whose place I was taking. If there is any way I can help, I will."

                    She shrunk back. She had to listen to herself. She was practically pleading with this detective. She was a MechWarrior, she shouldn't be acting like this. 

                    "I appreciate that. Look, here's my card with my details. Think about things. If you think of anything that might be important, give me a call, ok?"

                    "Sure. I will."

                    With that, the detective stood up and left the apartment, leaving Lin Ming to worry over what had just happened. 

The Body

Cathay    

Solaris City

Solaris VII

10 April 3061 

                    At least it wasn't raining. That was a change. Detective Nicky Vale walked down the cold alley that had been roped off by Cathay regional police. Ordinarily a body in Cathay wouldn't be in her jurisdiction, so she was confused when she got the call that there was a murder scene she needed to attend. The morning dew and a low fog did not add to the appeal of the location. 

                    She made her way past several uniformed Cathay Police officers, and spotted the body where the forensics team from the Solaris City Police Department were gathered. She glanced over the scene and spotted what appeared to be the Cathay detective on the scene. She made her way over to the man, an older man she judged to be probably in his fifties, with thinning hair and drinking a cup of coffee.

                    "Detective Nicky Vale, SCPD. You guys tossed this one our way?"

                    The man took a long sip of his coffee before answering. "Captain Miles Chang, Cathay PD. We wouldn't normally call you guys for something like this, but the victim's ID says he's a MechWarrior. Gaming stuff goes to you guys."

                    Nicky frowned. Ordinarily, a murder in Cathay would be handled by the Cathay Police, but for some unknown reason, these guys were looking to pawn the body off onto her and her Solaris City Police Department crew. It must have been her lucky day. She didn't particularly want the case, but it had been thrown her way, and now she would have to deal with it. 

                    "What are the details?"

                    Again, Captain Chang took a long sip of his coffee before answering. "The victim is one Mitchell Avellar. A small time freelance MechWarrior who was on the payroll of some subsidiary of Ceres Arms. Apparently he was some kind of test pilot or something for them. No record of note, no ties to any of the major organized crime syndicates or anything like that. Just a MechJock getting a paycheck from a corp running their tests here at the games. Took two slugs to the back of the head. Nothing on him but his ID, a few L-bills, and a set of keys. No phone or noteputer that we found."

                    "I assume no witnesses?"

                    "Correct. Nobody saw or reported anything last night when he got whacked. It was only this morning that the body was discovered and they called us. Not much to go on. It's a clean kill. Probably professional, but nothing that sets off any alarms or anything. The guy probably just saw the wrong thing or said the wrong thing to the wrong people, became a liability, and that was that. I don't see any other angle here."

                    It made sense. There was nothing to indicate that the MechWarrior was into any kind of drugs or crime. She pulled up his bio on her phone, and as the Captain had said, there were no red flags. He was a native Solaran who had fought mostly in the Reaches, nothing bigtime. He had no next of kin listed, didn't seem to be in a relationship of any kind. Everything was a dead end.

                    Just her luck that Nicky got stuck with this case. There really was little to go on. She would have to interview the employers, see what kind of vibes they gave off, but that was about all she could come up with. 

                    She made her way over to the body, and confirmed details with the forensics team. Everything seemed to be in order. There were few physical clues. The man had been shot twice, there were apparently no shell casings, so the perpetrator had cleaned up after themselves. 

                    She mad her way to the corporate headquarters of Red Dragon Industries, a Solaris subsidiary of Ceres Arms. These guys were small time, nothing like the full on corporation. They were obviously doing some work under the radar. 

                    She was ushered into the office of a Teng Shen, the head of Red Dragon. The office was small and was decorated in traditional Capellen style. The two security guards who had ushered her to the office vanished, leaving her alone with Shen.

                    "What can I do for you, detective?"

                    "We found the body of one of your employees murdered in an alley down in the lower quarter. A mister Mitchell Avellar."

                    Shen nodded. "Yes, he was one of our test pilots that ran matches in the Reaches arenas mostly. Very sad news."

                    "Was he working on anything that potentially could have gotten him killed?"

                    "Shen waved his hand dismissively. "He was working on a project of ours, sensitive corporate trade secrets, you understand. But he was simply a test pilot, he was not knowledgeable in any area of research or anything that would compromise him to a competitor or a foreign agent. I can't see his death being in any way connected with his work. Perhaps something in his personal life?"

                    "Perhaps. I'll have to dig into that. I'll need access to his personnel file."

                    "Of course. We will provide you with any details that you need. We wish to see his killer brought to justice, and will assist in any way that we can. I will have the appropriate files transferred to your office by the end of the day. Is there anything else that we may provide to help you in your cause?"

                    She nodded. "If I think of anything, I'll let you know. Thank you for your cooperation Mister Shen."

                    True to his word, Shen had the personnel files transferred to the SCPD before the day was done. Just as he had said, there was nothing alarming in the man's file that would set off any red flags. The file was likely to be a dead end. 

                    But someone had killed him, and they had a reason for doing so. She couldn't see it at the moment, but she would do her best to uncover it. She had never worked around the games before on a case, so this was uncharted territory. 

                    Without any obvious signs of espionage involved, she would have to build a picture from the ground up. Step one would be to interview whoever replaced Avellar at his job. Jobs fighting in the games were a limited quantity, and the next man up had as good a motive as any from where she stood. She dug around the gaming circuit news to find the name of the MechJock that replaced Avellar in whatever his next fight was. It turned out that the fight was an Urbie Derby out in the reaches, and his replacement was a green behind the ears nobody on the gaming world. It was as good a place to start as any. The MechWarrior was a Liao citizen named Lin Ming. Nicky would have to have a crack at her.    

                     

Urby Derby

 Cathay    

Solaris City

Solaris VII

9 April, 3061

                    Lin Ming slid into the command couch of the Urbanmech that she would be piloting for this particular match. She was clad in only her moisture wicking leggings and a sports bra. She quickly donned the cooling vest that was prepared for her in the cockpit, plugged it into the command couch, and then settled the neurohelmet over her head.

                    Her fingers ran over the proper keys for the startup sequence. This was not an average UrbanMech. In addition to it's stealth armor, the mech had been totally rebuilt. A light Fusion Engine triple the size of standard Urbie engine was installed to give her greater speed. The Autocannon had been ripped out in favor of a group of five medium lasers. There was also a cutting edge laser anti-missile system installed in the torso.

                    She hadn't had much time to practice on it, but she already knew that the machine ran fast and ran hot. Her plan for this match was to use the mech's stealth ability to avoid combat for the first few minutes, letting her opponents wear themselves out against each other and allowing her to sweep in at the end to finish them off. She had no idea how well the plan would work. Everything depended on the efficiency of the installed stealth systems.

                    The announcer called the start of the match, and a light in her cockpit went from red to green, signaling that the match had begun. The first thing she did was to hit the button to engage the stealth systems on the mech. Without moving or firing, there was no perceptible difference to her as a pilot so far.    

                    Due to the stealth system, her active scanners were offline and thus the minimap on her console displayed no information. She would have to trust to blind luck for the first few moments of the match.

                    She moved the mech forward, careful of her movements. Visually she could already see several other mechs engaged in combat. She saw one lumbering mech pass by her. She paused, allowing it to pass. It was an older model equipped with a giant class twenty Autocannon, but it moved at a snail's pace. She hoped that the stealth technology would hold, and it did, as the lumbering Urbanmech passed her without so much as a glance.

                    The arena was a scrapyard, filled with lots of metal and debris. She would blend in fine for now. There was no real high ground or anywhere to get a better position to observe the fight, so she settled in on a small hill with an outcropping of debris to give her cover. 

                    From here, she could see some of the match going on, with several of the combatants already out of the fight. Her HUD was linked to the arena systems and told her that of the original twelve mechs to begin the fight, only 6 remained, including her. 

                    She focused on a slugfest going on between two standard Urbies, dueling it out with their class ten Autocannoons. She saw that one of the opponents was gaining an advantage, and decided to make her move. 

                    She ran up the throttle and sprinted her own Urbanmech towards to two combatants. Neither of them seem to take notice of her. As they circled each other, she lined up a shot on the mech with the advantage and pulled into all of her triggers, sending five beams of light outward and into the mech's back. 

                    The beams cored through the relatively weak rear armor and began melting internal structure. She could see the radiant heat that told her she had hit the engine shielding as well. The heat in her own cockpit was manageable, so she risked a second alpha strike.

                    The heat in the cockpit soared to hellish levels, and remained there far longer than would be normal, with the mech's cooling systems hamstrung by the stealth system. She choked for air as she watched the five beams core once again deeper into the back of the enemy machine. 

                    There was a loud pop, and the enemy mech seemed to slump a bit as her weapons pierced the engine shielding for good and triggered a shutdown of the mech's massive fusion engine. This one was was dead.

                    She braced for return fire from the mech's opponent as she dashed her own mech into cover to attempt to cool down. Miraculously, not a single shot came her way. Apparently the stealth system was working.

                    She glanced at her HUD once again, revealing that now just three mechs remained alive in the arena, including herself. The opponent of the mech she had just killed did not get a lock on her position, and instead ran toward the center of the field. 

                    Lin thought about taking a shot at the enemy's weak rear as it ran away from her, but the heat in her cockpit was too intense to risk another shot just yet. She would have to trust in the stealth armor to keep her hidden until the mech could cool off.

                    The mech she tracked was a standard Urbanmech, packing a class ten autocannon. The bolt of blue light that lashed out and tore into it's frontal armor told her that the other remaining mech was a Suburbanmech variant, carrying a PPC and more speed, like her own ride did.

                    She watched the two duel it out, with the Suburbanmech coming out the victor. It was down to her and the SubUrbie.

                    The heat levels in the cockpit had now reached a more manageable level, and now she was faced with a choice. If she kept the stealth engaged, she knew she had two alpha strikes worth of heat to play with. If She disengaged the stealth, she would become visible, but her mech's cooling systems would allow her many more shots at her opponent. Unsure of how damaged her opponent was, she switched off the stealth mode and sprinted towards her foe.

                    With the stealth disengaged, she could now get a target lock on the enemy, and it showed that the Suburbanmech was fairly heavily damaged, with several holes in it's armor. It was protecting it's right side, which housed the PPC that was it's main cannon.

                    That was fine with Lin. She had full armor, and could take several shots. In addition, her group of lasers were spread throughout the mech, meaning she could lose an arm and still have significant punch.

                    Her cockpit shook at the enemy hit her square in the center torso with a PPC blast. Alarms screamed in her ears about damage. Her armor had held, but that PPC was hitting harder than a standard model. Her guess was that it was Clan tech, which hit fifty percent harder than a standard Inner Sphere PPC.

                    She had to end this quickly. She was finally within range of her medium lasers, and she pulled into a full alpha strike. Two of the beams went wide, but three jabbed into the already weakened frontal armor of her opponent. Nothing critical seemed to hit. 

                    She knew her lasers would cycle faster than her opponent's PPC, but it seemed like ages before her weapons read as ready and she fired another blast. This time, all five beams focused on the center torso of the enemy mech, melting a giant hole in the remaining armor and then touching the delicate workings of it's gyro. The enemy mech seemed to limp, unsteady on it's feet.

                    She braced for the return fire, but none came. The enemy mech shut down and signaled it's surrender. She had won the match.