System Error Episode Five

the season finale!! well they jumped now its time to see if they can fly to

System Error: Episode Five

By Leigh Hodgens and Jeff Margavage

System Error.

Data Disk Input

Decryption 90% percent

Warning Subroutines Found…

It probably was a sight to see what appeared to be two humans committing suicide by swan diving over a railing on the seventh story of a hotel. Chase was pretty sure the Officer that had told them of the shooting had probably fainted. She knew Artemis had leapt into action she had heard him start to bark orders to. Seems her partner was a natural born leader, even if he did have the tendency to be a bit reckless and play loose with accepted guidelines. If you asked her that’s what made him a great cop. Though he would most likely be barrelling through every politician to get out of there fast. A fact she was rather happy about personally hoping some got injured. Chase had taken the fast route, it was pretty exhilarating free falling.

To chase falling felt like flying. It was almost familiar her body automatically moving into the most efficient position as if she had fallen like this before. The air rushing past her, her gown was actually pretty aerodynamic and streamlined to her shape allowing her a rather fast descent about half way through her fall she flipped her body around head first into concrete didn’t sound great on the best of days. The gown deciding to now be very annoying and stream all around her but luckily it wasn’t too long a dress and it didn’t entangle her legs. She was now about a story from hitting the pavement knowing she could take the force of hitting the ground hard.

Artemis, on the other hand, had thrown caution to the wind and put his complete faith in his partner, despite the warnings from Underton, Artemis had thrown himself from the seventh story balcony of the Imperial Hotel. The site of the Annual Officer's Ball which had in fact been dedicated to that same partner he now watched like a hawk as he fell.

A quick whistle and Chase raised her emerald eyes to meet his, with a wry smile of, "Oh my god... you idiot" Chase shook her head in disbelief that Artemis would do something so reckless. After making her own graceful landing she merely held out her arms and deftly caught her partner.

"Thanks, buddy," Artemis said with a smile as his cyber partner's extraordinarily strong arms held him not a meter from the pavement.
Chase literally didn't have words for the incredibly dangerous stunt. "But... what If I missed?"

"Not a chance," Artemis laughed as he righted himself from her arms to the pavement, "you miss? Never."

The two then sped to the waiting patrol vehicle and raced to the precinct. Chief Barlow had been shot. Not just shot, but shot by another Cyber.

In the files that Artemis managed to read deciphered by Chase's decryption program, he made out the name of his other partner from the Tri-force Unit. Nat Moody. Nat was a specialist in demolitions...  but that was before HE also apparently died.

But for a moment Artemis's mind drifted as he spied his partner in the back seat of the car changing from her evening gown into her body armour. "Heh... you know..." Artemis began with a smirk," I'm surprised Bleakly didn't break his own neck trying to run down the stairs so he could get pictures of you ... you know... dropping from the balcony... from below... you ARE wearing undies in that dress aren't you?"

Chase went from stunned to a rather bright red before fuming at Artemis. “The correct term is underwear and it’s none of your damn business!” she yelled out continuing as she spotted his gaze it the rear view mirror. “Jesus! Eyes on the road not on me” she ordered asshe triedd to get dressed faster. Not an easy feat when you're trying to reach a destination fast and change into a skin tight body armor.”You couldn’t lighten up on those turns a touch? Oh jeez!” Chase cried out as she rolled off the back seat with a particularly harsh turn “Hey! That was on purpose!”

As Chase was finally zipping her uniform up all the way to her neck, as specified in her dress code files and regulations, she climbed up into the front seat with Artemis and offered to take the wheel.

"What for," Artemis inquired eyeing Chase with confusion.

"Well... For one we're en route to the precinct where there's a cyber blowing it apart, which I would think would be a pretty good reason. Because two, you're in a bloody tuxedo," Chase replied completely baffled as to how Artemis could be so careless... Or dense... Or both.

"Oh... yeah, the tux," Artemis replied in a tone of recent enlightenment, "yeah... This whole monkey suit is tactical."

"What?" Chase exclaimed, "the boots are one thing but where in the hell did you get a tactical tuxedo?"

Artemis glanced down at his tuxedo and grinned sheepishly at Chase, "well, it's certainly not ballistic rated like the Mark 4x that you are wearing, but it was designed for me when I was inTri-force." After a short pause, Artemis continued almost with a tone of regret, "we... Uh, we had some missions that were... Diplomatic? High profile targets that... Weren't necessarily 'bad' people... But they were causing issues that could have led to bigger problems. So... we were sent in to... Obtain them from wherever they might be, so our people could discuss things with them."

Artemis could feel Chase's green eyes on him. Half glaring, half concerned because he was struggling with emotions pertaining to friends he had lost since and now probably had to deal with again.

"Are you going to be OK?... facing this… cyber?." Chase asked biting her lip before continuing "I could take the cyber on you know, I wouldn't think less of you...it’s not like this is normal. In any term of the word." Chase summarised. She did know of Artemis's service history. She even delved deeper and "borrowed" some of the more classified files about him. It was safe to say she knew a lot about Artemis past but she felt something, as odd as it was for a cyber to feel anything. She wanted to protect her partner not just from physical danger but the stress of dealing and possibly killing people who were once like brothers to him. People who were now cyber's moving against their wishes.

Artemis smiled warmly at this partner. To hell with Underton and his bullshit warnings. He took Chase's hand in his and kissed it. "Thanks for your concern, partner," Artemis replied, "but I'm fine. How could I possibly let you take this on when you're the only thing I worry about?"

Artemis suddenly felt the conversation had taken a heavy emotional turn that seemed a little awkward. He placed Chase's hand on the dash and patted it. "I mean... Uh... It's not easy to find a partner who puts up with as much s**t as you and stays cool about it, you know?"

Chase was practically glowing her cheeks feeling like they were giving off enough heat to melt steel ."Well... you’re welcome.. I guess. Heh it’s not easy to find someone willing to partner with a cyber either, or be so...well welcoming about it. Thanks for worrying about me though, Mr cool tough guy." She teased a little noticing he tended to back off if the conversation got to intense. She allowed him his time to clear his head and rebuild his protective wall around him. It was a minute or two later and the precinct was close. "Just for the record... you're the one thing I worry about." She admitted in a small voice. Deliberately looking out the window but knowing he heard her. She would continue on, say more but now wasn't the time to mess with either of their focus.

Within a few minutes Artemis was screeching to a halt outside the precinct. Artemis got onto his comm, “All units responding to 1010 Enforcement Street, be advised Officers Corbyn and Chase are on the scene. Refrain from entering the facility until one of us gives the clear signal. Remain outside forming a perimeter on the street and in surrounding buildings. Evacuate all necessary civilians. Do NOT let this b*****d get by us. Lethal force is NOT authorized. We need the suspect alive for questioning.”

A response came immediately from another officer, “ Alive? The b*****d injured the Chief.”

“Hey… cut the f*****g chatter. I gave an order. This isn’t a goddamn debate, I want this prick alive. I want to know who is pulling the strings,” Artemis snarled in reply. “Is any of that unclear to you?”

“Sir, no sir,” replied the officer who had remarked with a tone of respect.

Artemis was fully aware the perpetrator could probably intercept his comm signal while in the precinct. Part of him wanted to let whoever it was know hell was coming for them and by keeping the other officers outside he was reducing the number of witnesses, as well as letting them know it wasn’t going to turn into a shitstorm of people running around willy-nilly and possibly putting the chief into even more danger.

Chase could already tell by his tone and the way Artemis was acting he wasn’t intending to play by the book here. She didn’t blame him. Hurting the Chief was a stupid move, but something told her it was going beyond a will to see the perp arrested. The two exited the car Artemis already at the trunk as he slammed in hollow point ammunition going against his usual loadout of stun ammo. Chase at his side silently loading her plasma pistol with her more standard ammo already noting the tension in her partner. “Artemis,” she spoke out clearly stopping his movement to the entrance of the station, “You need a clear head not whatever is going on in that mind of yours.” she reasoned  her grip on his shoulder ment to be comforting.

Artemis stopped for a moment and eyed Chase’s hand on his shoulder. Chase began to pull he hand away slowly, but surprisingly he grabbed it and patted her hand, “Listen, Chase,” he began quietly, “you have no idea how glad I am that you are here… that you are my partner… but Tim has been like a father to me almost my entire life.” He released her hand and both of them slowly entered the building, “I just want you to know… I’m cool. Honestly. No one knows better than me what going into a situation like this with your head all fucked up can cause.” Artemis continued referring to the death of his teammates, “I won’t let something like that happen again. Ever.”

Ascending the stairwell, he indicated that they should remain silent. Better for them to be aware of threats as well as hopefully gaining the element of surprise. The squad room was six floors up, they had to move as quickly as they could to try and save the chief. The tactical advantage of possibly splitting up to cover more ground occurred to Artemis, but he knew they needed to watch each other’s backs. The perp was here for Barlow, that much was apparent, but the nagging suspicion that they were looking for something else ate at him.

As the reached the floor of the squad room they entered the double doors which had been ripped from their hinges. Nat was apparently not going for subtle Artemis surmised. The fire suppression systems were engaged as the room literally looked like a scene from a battlefield. The smoke was subsiding thanks to the windows being blown out, but the water everywhere was destroying any evidence Nat might have left behind.

Chase signaled to her partner, tapping the side of her face her vision parameters changed, indicated by her now dull red eye colouring that she was now viewing the room in infra-red heat vision as she scanned through the mess trusting artemis to keep a look out as she would be a bit slow to react if something occurred due to the change in vision. Checking for some sort of sign of life, she found a humanoid shape in what appeared to be the Chief’s office the rather low amount of body heat causing her to take off running.

Her boots hitting the wet floor rapidly as she crashed through the ruined hallway doors unwilling to waste time. The following thud of footsteps assuring her her partner was following. The door to the office was mangled. She pushed it aside splinters falling from the ruined door the Chief was a crumpled form on his side, a terrifying amount of blood surrounding him a clear wound on his side the fire suppression system even active in the office giving the entire scene a horrific tone. Chase was at the chief side in a instant hoping her partner would be able to control his emotions and allow her to work as she began assessing the wound talking out loud to give some hope to Artemis and a way to calm her own screaming mind. “It… its not deep I can stabilize him. I… god.. Where is the closest first aid?”

Artemis was way ahead of her as he had grabbed the Med kit from the wall just as they entered the floor. “Tim… Chief,” Artemis announced, struggling with his emotions as he handed Chase the Med kit, “We’re here… we got you, buddy. You’re going to be OK.” Chase tore the kit apart grabbing everything she could to stop the bleeding and applying pressure to the wound. The chief’s grunt of pain almost a welcome sound to Artemis.

“Un… Underton,” the chief groaned as he coughed blood onto the floor. Artemis suddenly realised why Nat was there. To wrap up all the loose ends surrounding this case, leaving just he and Chase to stand alone against the corporate giant.

“Chase, you stay here and keep him alive,” Artemis barked as he nearly tore the safety off of his automatic rifle, “I gotta make sure Nat doesn’t get to Underton.” He knew Chase wasn’t going to like that, but it was necessary. Hopefully, he would have time to apologise later.

Chase buried the few choice words she was going to say. Tearing her eyes away from working on the chief to hold Artemis’s gaze, “Don’t do anything stupid,” she quipped with a frown that clearly stated that they would talk later. With a sly smile Artemis turned and bolted for the stairwell again.

Artemis wound his way to the holding cells. It was eerie how silent the building was when no one else was here, but Artemis knew better. He was NOT alone. His fear was that Nat had retained his mastery of demolitions and that this whole scenario was actually an elaborately laid trap to finish off even Artemis and his partner.

He had to keep alert. As a member of Triforce, Nat was not a foe to be trifled with. Much like Clifford, the skills they had in life were feared by anyone with sense. His mind flashed back to one of their first missions when Nat actually planted explosive on a terrorist who was patrolling the perimeter of a compound they were ordered to take down. The skill Nat had actually allowed him to gauge the man’s build and attire that the charge was just enough to blow the man’s chest cavity apart but not damage the ballistic vest he was wearing. Unless you really checked the guy out, you’d swear he had just fallen asleep at his post. A twinge of fear struck Artemis that the Chief might be booby trapped in a similar fashion entered his mind. He had to pray that wasn’t the case, or that he found Nat in time to prevent him from detonating a device like that if he had one.

Stranger still was the fact that there was no trace of Nat having come this way. No forced entries anywhere, no officers killed. The place wasn’t completely empty because of the ball. There were officers on duty 24/7. So… where were the officers that should have been mulling around? Artemis’s mind was stretching in so many directions over this whole situation that nothing seemed to make any sense.

If the Chief was targeted, why was he still alive? Where were the officers? Not to mention how is that his two best friends were killed but now both had been used as weapons against him? Was all of this some personal vendetta against HIM? Too many questions… and not a single answer to show for it.

Finally, Artemis arrived on the detention level. Time to put all that extra clutter out of his mind and really get his s**t together. Nat was either here or worse, not. It was game time as soon as he opened that door. Underton’s cell was straight at the end of the row of holding cells, there was no more cat and mouse. A glance into the window on the door revealed a figure standing before a burning cell. It was already too late to save Underton.

Artemis kicked the door in. As he feared, Underton’s cell was a fireball that even the fire suppression systems couldn’t handle. Whatever Nat used, it was generating enough heat to melt even the bars of the cell.

“Mission accomplished, sir. Target Underton eliminated,” Artemis heard the cyber announce into its communicator in a completely artificial voice. The flames burning so brightly that Artemis could barely make ou Nat’s silhouette as he shielded his eyes from the brightness as best he could but still keep his rifle trained on what he perceived to be Nat’s head.

Shielding his eyes, he discovered a number of officers bound and gagged in the cell closest to the stairwell. They were obviously alive but unconscious. So here were the officers.

“It’s over, Nat, don’t make me kill you,” Artemis yelled over the sound of the flames, “one way or another, this ends now.”

Slowly the figure raised its hands and turned. Though the flames were blinding and he could even feel their terrible heat from thirty feet away, Artemis kept his rifle trained on Nat. “Well, if it isn’t Artemis Corbyn,” the mechanical voice replied, “it’s been a long time. And you’re right this all will end… right now.”

Back in the Chief’s office, Chief Barlow was apparently regaining his strength, if only marginally. He struggled to sit up. Chase leapt to assist him, “Chief it might be wise to stay still you know.” She advised as she had not quite yet finished tying the bandage around his side. The chief coughed more blood but tried desperately to speak. “Artemi… Artemis…” was all he could manage before coughing again. “You don’t do suggestions well do you?” Chase scolded, “Artemis is chasing down the cyber hoping to get to Underton before the a*s.” The Chief looked at Chase with a mix of sadness and fear in his eyes. “Hey, I know this Nat character was like a brother to him but he wasn’t in a very forgiving mood when he left,” Chase tried to reassure the chief. She hated the haunted look he had. The chief reached up and grabbed Chase’s uniform pulling her close, accidentally coughing blood on her. “N…. no…” he struggled, “… is not Nat Moody!”

Chase froze. “What? It has to be... who else could it be?” Chase was trying to ease some of the chiefs discomfort. Had he gone delirious with pain?

Back in the detention center the figure approached Artemis slowly. He could barely make out any details on the figure with the bright flames behind them, but he recognized a head when he saw one and kept his gun fixed on that target. Suddenly he realized he was wrong. Nat was a pretty big guy but this figure was smaller. More… feminine.”

“Stop right there,” Artemis almost stammered. His resolve was shaken at the realization. “Who are you? How do you know me?”

The figure didn’t stop advancing, but spoke in it’s mechanical voice, “Oh come now, Artemis. How could I forget you?” Artemis’s heart stopped as the figures features came into view. “A mother never forgets her son…”

Artemis nearly dropped his rifle… the whole world suddenly seemed to scream to a stop as his eyes fell upon his mother’s face. All the years between this moment and the last time they spoke before she died, disappeared as though they never were. He was suddenly a child again. He stood trembling trying to wrap his head around everything, but he couldn’t gain his bearings.

“M… mom… you can’t,” Artemis babbled, “You… you’re…” No matter how hard he tried, it was impossible for him to complete any thought.

“Shhh… it’s ok, Arty,” the facsimile of his mother replied in that cold mechanical voice. “Let mother end all this pain for you.”

Suddenly his rifle erupted in a barrage of fire. Artemis couldn’t even be sure it was his own hand that pulled the trigger… but it was. Deep inside some part of Artemis must have finally grabbed hold of the reality his mind couldn’t grasp. Was it instinct? Self-preservation? No one could say, certainly not Artemis as he watched the cyber representative of his mother slump to the floor. He stood frozen in time as she lay there sparking from dozens of bullet holes which tore through her body armor like it was tissue paper. His eyes on her face… her synthetic face… Artemis collapsed to his knees and crawled to her in tears.“I… I’m so sorry, mom,” he whispered through the tears streaming down his face, “but I know you can’t really be real.” He cradled her head in his lap as she almost smiled up at him.

“It’s ok… son,” the cyber whispered, “I hoped you’d be strong enough to do what needed to be done. This… monster I’m in… I never chose this. I want you to know that. Cynedyne… they want to stop you… so so badly… they’ll do anything.” She closed her eyes for a moment and part of Artemis feared she was truly gone.

“This is all wrong, “ the cyber whispered, “I don’t have much time. But I have to warn you… the data disk… you got from Cliff… y… you… mus… mus… must de-destroy-stroy i-i-i-i-it.” the cyber stuttered as it began to lose power. “N-n-nev-nev-never d-d-de-decrypt-pt-pt it…” And the cyber that so resembled his mother fell silent for the final time.

Artemis suddenly realized the warning was not only meant for him, but for Chase as well. He almost jumped to his feet but paused to lay the cyber to rest and close it’s eyes. He bolted for the stairs in terror that Chase who was decrypting the disk using her internal computational power was in serious danger.

Artemis frantically screamed into his comm unit to get Chase, but he was fully aware that probably wasn’t going to happen as the detention cells and the stairwell in particular were designed to be the strongest structures in the building. Their extra reinforcement made comm use impossible. He pushed his body beyond it’s own limits to make it to the Chief’s office praying it wasn’t too late.

Echoing footsteps alerted chase to the presence of someone coming. A brief scan showed a familiar life sign, the con tracking bracelet that linked the two clearly stating it was Artemis coming. Running harder than she had ever seen him, her own tension elevated as she raised to her feet. The chief wondering why the shift in her demeanor. “Why...is he running?” she thought as she took a few steps to the middle of the room hoping to meet her hurried partner and find out why the rush. She could hear Artemis screaming her name, but the echo in the stairwell made what followed impossible to decipher.

Suddenly her mind went blank as a single message entered her mind…

System Error..

Data Disk Input

Decryption Complete 100% percent

Warning Subroutines Found... Initiating Override…

Shutting down for reboot.

With that, Chase dropped to the floor like a broken doll, a marionette whose strings had been cut. Artemis dove to catch her but her systems had completely shut down. There was no sign of life to her at all.

“No no no,” Artemis cried out cradling his lifeless partner, “Don’t do this to me, you b***h.” Artemis tried slapping Chase awake. Shaking her violently as he spouted obscenity after obscenity, praying for the first time he would offend her that she would lash out and strike him. “Wake up… you… you goddamn Ticktock…”

Thanks to Chase’s first aid skills, the Chief was actually up and about. A hand on Artemis’s shoulder to console him was all he could muster in his weakened state but he hoped it was enough.

“Tim… they killed her… they killed my partner… they used my own mother to get to me” Artemis was nearly inconsolable, but the Chief tried nonetheless.

“Arty,” he coughed, “we gotta go. I don’t think this is over yet…” the chief struggled as Artemis gently laid Chase on the floor and helped his friend to the stairwell. “We’ll get these b******s… I promise.”

Artemis and the chief had just entered the stairwell when suddenly…

There was a loud echoing crack, the sound of wood breaking and twisting a slender pale hand appearing to grip the doorway to the stairwell. The grip increasing violently, the concrete surrounding it crumbled into dust. The distinct scrape of boots on the wet floor as Chase appeared. Her head hanging low but her body unnaturally stiff, lacking its usual fluid movement. The only sound coming from her was a hiss like breath as she stood before them.

“Chase?” Arty and the Chief exclaimed with surprise and almost relief that she  was on her feet again. Their happiness was cut short, as something seemed terribly off about her.

Chase in what seemed a response to her name being called slowly raised her head a glimpse of her eyes revealed a burning red colour before she shifted charging straight for Artemis the blow slamming him into the concrete wall behind him. Something pressed hard to his temple as Chase held him still pinned to the wall with her forearm over his throat and what he could now recognize the object as the barrel of a fully loaded plasma pistol aimed directly at his brain matter two crimson optics staring soullessly at him.

“Chase… wait… it’s me,” Artemis tried to plead, her slender arm choking off his oxygen supply.

The chief struggled in vain to pull her pistol from Artemis’s head, but Chase didn’t respond beyond shoving the chief away, the barrel of the gun pressed harder. an unspoken demand to keep still and the chief fell harshly to the floor.

Only one glimmer of hope entered Artemis’s mind… she was hesitating.

From the penthouse offices of Cynedyne only several blocks distant from the precinct, a shadowy figure held a detonator… almost casually flipping the switch, Major Antoli Dantt turned his head from viewing the result.

A signal from the detonator triggering something no one would expect… the fallen cyber with the face of Artemis’s mother erupted in a flash detonation that would burn it’s way from the detention cells and straight up the stairwell… blowing each floor as it climbed...

To be continued in Season Two...

Author's Note

comments wanted (i do not own images)