Favors Trading Treia !P0dSPtgivA 2011/09/11 (Sun) 19:07 No. 104 ▼ File 131576807981.png - (400.60KB, 640x480 , da11d40ee6ccd4430a044c72fcdb159f.png)
“We are The Dawn’s Light!”
Every dirty face, every starving peasant, every lowly peon, instantly turned their attention to the new arrival. One man stood before them. Behind him, the imperial banners proudly displayed: Gold inlay and the black lion, proudly fluttering in the wind, a display of imperial power.
The crowd fell silent for a moment, completely forgetting its purpose. A dozen officers inside the besieged police building breathed for the first time in a hour, the banging on the doors having stopped.
A single voice arose from the crowd.
“They are to blame for the famine! Those men, those wicked men! They follow the emperor, serve his every whim! Direct your anger, brothers! Not at our fellow man in uniform, but those beasts who parade in men’s skin with their pompous asses, claiming to be our superiors!”
The crowd found new purpose in his words, wicked yells arising from their midst. Their anger was now concentrated solely on the Emperor’s agent, openly inviting them to come at him. He bowed, turned around, and walked into the building, the door locking behind him.
They surged like a wave, crashing after him.
*****************************************
“Sten, now would be a good time.”
The voice emanated from your helmet, seated next to you on the railing. It was difficult to look down a scope with a solid object in between your head and the actual rifle, after all.
The man disappeared again amidst the confusion, a group of men rolling a cart of improvised weaponry in front of him. He popped up again a few seconds later, only to disappear again.
“There’s too many people, I can’t get a clean shot.”
Sway left, sway right. Shimmy a bit further down, try from the next to last story – You had already tried all those angles. The bastard was using the crowd well. You just couldn’t risk hitting someone else and giving away your involvement.
”Well, where is he? We could deploy the police right now, get him while we still have eyes on him.”
The voice paused for a moment.
“Sten, they’re in the stairwells. My position will be compromised shortly, I cannot keep their attention for much longer.”
A gap opened. A miniscule break in the crowd. Your heart stops, your breathing slows. Nothing exists besides the two of you. You draw an invisible line between the two of you, the bullet’s trajectory. Envision the hit. His body will be torn apart, even if he’s packing enhancements. 20x126mm never fails. Your finger reaches for the trigger. Just a single pull, a single action, and death.
He fears it not. Just standing there, smiling. Smiling. Mocking. Not even running. Standing.
He’s staring right at you.
Right at the only place that could hold a sniper. The only place you could get a clean shot at the center of Belcher. You picked it because that-
Oh my being… He picked it! You were never in control! This was his plan! He wants to die! He wants to be martyred!
His brow furrows. His smile turns into a frown. The shot’s not coming, the end not yet. He mouths his words.
“I will still win this.”
Righteous fury wells up inside you.
Win! Win! He said win! He thinks this is a game?! The bastard’s just playing with civilian lives like toys! Doesn’t he realize the standing orders to put down food riots are still in effect? The Dawn’s Light is deployed here, for fuck’s sake! Doesn’t he know the slaughter that you could perpetuate at a moment’s notice? A thousand nuclear suns, born on this planet’s surface! The devastation that might be wrought in the name of order and subservience! The fool’s betting the lives of this entire planet!
You won’t let him win this. No, no. You were taught two things:
Always win.
Always cheat.
“We’re changing the plan!”
You announce hastily to your comrade in arms. You accidentally knock your helmet off the ledge as you scramble off it back onto the roof to retrieve your bag.
“Sten? Sten, what the fuck do you mean we’re-“
His voice fades as the helmet falls out of range. He’ll adapt – He’s just as good as you. Now, your bag!
Feverishly, you rummage through it for something, anything. Binoculars, thermals, flash bang, armor piercing, armor piercing incendiary, training rounds, sutures, medical bandage…
Training rounds! They pack a colored adhesive to mark where you hit, works even in snow, hard rain, and vacuum. A colored adhesive… That’ll work!
You slam the bolt back, forcing a manual eject of the armor piercing round you have loaded. You slam the round into the receiver and chamber it. You quickly rush back to your position and set up again, searching for your target.
Cart, men, distractions… Where the hell is he?! Shit, shit… he’s not going to show up again. He knows you’ve passed up the shot. Fuck! Fuck!
You need to get his attention. You need to let him know you’ll shoot.
This is crazy.
Fucking crazy.
When hasn’t it been crazy?
You stand erect now, balancing on the thin rail with nothing more than your internal sense of balance. This system’s star blazes brightly behind you, casting your shadow over the square. All can see your figure. Using your left arm as a brace, you steady yourself for a shot.
The rifle weighs heavily upon your arms. The winds at this height buffet your body. The adrenaline causes natural muscle spasms. All the conditions are wrong. You will make this shot. You have to.
There’s only one thing left to do.
”Born in the nuclear fire of Fallada!
Forged aboard our glorious fleet at Iglika!
Escaped from the Jaws of Odean!
Us hundred serve the empire, until death releases us!”
With one last shout, you exhort your roots.
“We are The Dawn’s Light!”
You fire.