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*** PRISS ****
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Well, it looks like we have arrived chapter 3 at last. We will see what happens to Priss next.

P.S. Feedback is always welcome... contact me at anterion@gmx.net

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Chapter Three

+-> 'Victory' <-+
It had started to rain late that evening. Slightly first, but soon the rain had increased to a full grown thunder storm. The wind threw the raindrops against the small rectangle of dull semi transparent plastic that was the only window in Priss' tiny apartment. Now and then bright lightning lit up the otherwise dark room. Priss' lay on her bed, looking straight at the dark ceiling. Her hand rested on her left arm while her right hand was playing with a small box labeled 'Power Surge'. She was half listening to the raindrops on the window but her mind was busy with the events of the past days. So much had happened since she came here to Osaka One but her mind always returned to that day's afternoon, to the event in Osaka Two when she had outmuscled someone who had seemed to be a full powered cyborg. Every time she remembered that particular situation she felt a feeling of freedom and independence, feelings she had been looking for all her life. A part of her was longing to feel that power and freedom again while the other part wondered how she had gained such power. When she had felt it first at Marrow's gym she had thought it had been the effect of the pills she now held in her hands. But she didn't had any that afternoon, so there had to be another factor. And she was determined to find out what.

In the dark a bulky silhouette flew over the naked rooftops of Osaka One, carried by thrusters built into its broad back. The boomer's eyes glowed in a dull red light as it scanned the streets below. Every person it scanned was instantly compared with the image of a young woman with long brown hair. A young woman that had caused trouble in the GENOM controlled city Osaka Two. Now the 'Headhunter' was on its mission to find that woman and kill her. Its program was short and simple. Pursuit until extermination. There was no way it would disobey its program. So with the patience of a machine it continued to fly a search pattern over the old dirty city.

Priss zipped up her motorcycle suit as she left the building and stepped into the rain. She would have sworn that the suit felt a little bit tighter than usual.

"Great. Looks like I'm now getting fat like Nene. Just my luck."

Seconds later she drove her motorcycle down the narrow streets. She dodged puddles the rain caused skillfully, allowing her to drive faster than any less experienced biker. She had rode motorbikes even before she had the legal age, so to her it was as natural as walking was to everybody else and she was proud of her skills because to her the bike was a piece of independence. Independence mixed with a slight taste of danger. An addictive mixture, at least for her. And now there seemed to be a chance to add power and control to that cocktail of feelings. And that was a chance that Priss Asagiri would not miss, no way. The thoughts about her recent experience still occupied her mind as she headed for Marrow's gym. So she missed the dark shadow in the sky that followed her through the night, waiting for a good shot.

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It was still raining like hell when she pulled up at the gym. To her surprise Marrow was waiting for her outside. He stood in the doorway, his broad build nearly filling it. She was just taking off her helmet when suddenly Marrow's eyes widened in shock as if he had seen something behind her. With a speed that seemed impossible for someone that large he jumped forward his arms spread apart. He swept the dazzled Priss off her cycle, his momentum carryied both of them several feet further just before a salvo of high speed ammunition turned the motorbike first into a perforated piece of junk and moments later into an exploding shrapnel bomb. Priss could hardly breath under the heavy weight of Marrow's body. She looked into his eyes and was about to say something when his body suddenly stiffened and his eyes became empty. A small trace of blood flowed from a corner of his mouth. Somehow she managed to push him off herself. Now she could see the large shard of sharp edged metal sticking out of Marrow's back. A piece of metal that had benn a part of her bike. In an instant her trained reflexes as a Knight Saber took over. It took her only a split second to recognize the combat boomer that now stood only a few feet away. The machine was taking aim again but before it could fire Priss quickly rushed for the next cover which happened to be Marrow's old worn out car. The trusty old vehicle took more rounds from the boomer before blowing up than the motorbike had. It was all the time Priss needed to find her escape route. A door to a nearby abandoned parking house gave way as she slammed her shoulder against it. Behind her the car turned into a bright fireball.

"Good.", she thought. "That should render his heat sensors useless for some time. Come on girl, what did you learn about this type of boomer? 'Doberman' types don't have heavy weapons. No bazooka or beam weapon. This one however has a high speed automatic rifle." She found the staircases and ran upstairs. "Those monsters are infight killers. Sylia suspected them to be constructed for seek and destroy missions. Weak spots? The damage analysis software runs with too high priority. If it takes a lot of damage it will get slow because the analysis takes up too much CPU resources. Great. So how can I ever damage that thing?"

In the meanwhile she had reached the top level of the building. She looked around. Not much cover here, only a few vent exhausts and the staircase. The only weapon she possessed was a small but rather powerful hand gun hidden inside her suit. She took it out and checked it.

"Only three rounds left. Damn, this is getting serious."

Taking a few steps back from the door, she knelt down and took aim on the door.

"I'll give him a hearty welcome when he comes through here."

The noise of jumpjets from behind made her whirl around. The boomer didn't take the stairs, it was floating up along the outside of the building. As soon as its head emerged over the edge Priss shot all three rounds at it. The noise of bullets hitting armor too thick to penetrate could be heard as the killing machine touched down on the roof.

"That's it." Priss thought. "But even if I die here, I'll go down fighting." Quickly looking around, the only weapon she could find was a long metal rod beside her. She took it in both hands and with a fierce yell brought it down on her predator's right shoulder. But before it connected the boomer raised a mechanical hand, grabbing the rod in mid swing. Priss never let go, even as the machine slowly bent the rod with its artificial strength.

"Strength. That's what I need now. More strength than I ever had." She remembered how she had called out for Sylvie's strength when she had fought Largo the first time. But now, she called upon her own. She recalled the feeling from the times before. And then she felt it. The sweet feeling of power and strength slowly building up within her. She could even see the blue aura starting to surround her. But it happened to slowly, already the boomer pulled her towards her.

"NO! Not yet. Just a little longer." she yelled and although she felt that power now raised faster, she knew it wasn't fast enough. The boomer raised its other hand to grab her throat, when suddenly a small red dot appeared on its head and a split second later a powerful blow tore most of the armor apart taking some of the interior structure with it. "A heavy damage. This is my chance..." She growled:"Now it's time for some serious payback, sucker!" In an instant the power seemed to fill Priss to the limit. She could feel her biker suit stretch slightly as her muscles grew a little bit to cope with the energy that flowed into them. The blue light was no longer a shimmering aura around her, but a sparkling light that danced all over her body. With a grim satisfaction she felt how her arms overpowered the boomer's hand and wedged the rod free. She tightened her grip around it and felt the metal deform slightly under the incredible pressure. Then with all her might and fury she smashed the bar against the damaged head of her tormentor. Had the boomer been undamaged the bar would have been bent harmlessly against the massive armor but now it penetrated deep into the head completely destroying the frightening war machine.

As the now dead boomer fell backwards over the roof edge, Priss felt down on her knees, the rod still in her hands. Seconds later she heard the explosion as the boomer hit the ground. "It's over.", she thought. "I've done it. I've even done it all by mys.... No, that's not true. Someone helped me again." She looked into the direction the shot had come from. Although there was a building nearby that provided a good shooting position, no one could be seen. The young woman squinted her eyes a little bit. She could have sworn that she had seen a shimmering movement first but now it was gone. "SHIT!!!" she slammed her fist into the concrete. It made a large hole in the roof. "Why do I always have to take other people's help? I don't want their help. I don't need anybody." Raising back to her feet Priss still felt the inhuman strength cursing through her body. But unlike the previous times it didn't vanish. It was still there. Still angry she took the stairs down to the ground level. Her racing suit still felt a little tight on her. The light was gone but she was sure that the strength hadn't abandoned her. Outside she stood before the heap of wreckage her fight had caused. The destroyed boomer had smashed into Marrow's already exploded car, causing it to catch fire again. Slowly she walked over to where Marrow's dead body lay, lit in a strange light by the surrounding lights and the flames. Despite his massive frame, to Priss he felt light like a child as she cradled him in her arms. Another friend was gone only because she couldn't protect him. And silently she cried...

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"That action could endanger your promotion, Lieutenant. If GENOM ever gets a hint that you helped to destroy one of their precious boomers their lawyers will get you not only for destroying corporate property.", Batou said as Motoko Kusanagi took off her thermo-optical cloaking suit. One of the disadvantages of this equipment was that it had to be worn over the skin with no other clothes underneath it. Batou politely looked in the other direction as she changed into the sleeveless top and city-camouflage pants from the day before.

"If they try, they'll have to admit that they use these monsters outside of military operations AND to hunt innocent people. Even GENOM can't live through that kind of publicity."

"Maybe. But they have enough 'inofficial employees' in the government to make your life hell."

She stuffed the cloaking suit and the sniper rifle into two suitcases and was about to leave when she hesitated.

"You think about the woman?", Batou asked her. He knew that look on her face. Sometimes it seemed that his Lieutenant listened to an inner voice.

"Yes. There is something special about her. The scanners showed no cybernetics in her body but the physical strength she just displayed over there was beyond human standards. I wonder..."

"What? Wonder what?"

"What if she is one of GENOM's experiments and escaped. That would explain their interest in her."

"I guess we take her on our observation list?"

"Definitely. I will watch her myself." She handed him the suitcases. "Get the whole unit out of Osaka Two immediately. We'll establish a temporary HQ somewhere around here."

"Roger, but it's up to you to explain all this to the chief."