Chapter 26: The Integrity of the Trade
Reno, the Water Guild Overseer, was a man who understood optics. His technicians had been "scammed" during a visit to a Sump-Matron's establishment—a classic "honey trap" shakedown. In the Underhive, if a Guild official is robbed without a violent response, the Guild's authority begins to leak like a rusted pipe. Reno needed the leak plugged.
The Mercator Aqua (Water Guild) was a titan of the Imperium. On Industrial Worlds, they were kings; on Hive Worlds, they were gods of the taps. On Agri-World 496b, the planet was lush enough that their power was limited, but in the Hive City, they remained a force to be reckoned with.
Kian Voss sat in a dark corner of the Red-Light Sump, a Lho-stick dangling from his lips. He was staring at a three-story structure made of rusted shipping containers and scrap-metal.
The Sump-Matron was a bloated, pox-scarred woman. She stood outside the "establishment" with her "girls," trying to lure in the passing Hive-rats. Kian looked past them, into the ground floor where several enforcers were playing cards. These were the Matron's muscle.
Kian spat on the floor. He had a professional's disdain for the woman. "I'm a man of integrity," he muttered to himself. "I kill for scrips. You sell flesh for scrips. Neither of us is a Saint, but you don't scam the customers. It's bad for the local economy."
He took a final, deep drag of his Lho-stick, crushed the cherry under his boot, and donned his tactical rebreather. He pulled two Toxic Cinder-Flasks from his belt, primed the fuses, and began his march toward the "Hole."
"Come in, handsome!" the Matron called out, her voice a gravelly rasp. "I've got Jens, Aliss, and Lyna waiting for you. The freshest blooms in the Sump!"
Behind her, the three women—haggard, soot-streaked, and wearing little more than rags—gave him weary, practiced smiles. They were desperate for a customer; with the war on the surface, the "waste-chutes" were empty, and the local economy was crashing.
The smiles vanished as Kian lobbed the two gas grenades through the front door.
THUD. THUD.
The flasks shattered, instantly venting a thick, yellow-green cloud of corrosive gas. Within five seconds, the ground floor was a toxic fog. The enforcers inside began to cough violently, their lungs feeling like they'd been dipped in promethium.
The Matron froze, then let out a shriek of rage. She reached behind her back, drawing a small-caliber stub-pistol.
Kian was faster. He swung the heavy Guild-stamped Pipe in a brutal arc.
CRACK.
The iron joint slammed into the Matron's wrist. Her hand shattered, the bone splintering as her pistol clattered into the muck. She let out a wet, pig-like scream of agony.
Kian didn't stop. He drew his 15mm Stub-Cannon and aimed it at her right knee.
BOOM!
The heavy slug pulverized the joint, turning her kneecap into a red spray. She collapsed, wailing in the dirt.
Suddenly, the three "girls"—Jens, Aliss, and Lyna—didn't run. They drew jagged knives from their undergarments and lunged at him with the suicidal desperation of the doomed. In the Underhive, a job was life. If the establishment closed, they'd be dead within the week. They weren't fighting for the Matron; they were fighting for the right to exist in the filth.
Kian met them with the cold efficiency of a PDF regular.
He swung the pipe. CRUNCH. It hit Jens square in the temple. Her skull buckled inward, and she dropped without a sound.
Aliss screamed, swinging her shiv. Kian dodged the blade and drove the Guild pipe into her gut. She doubled over, gasping for air, and he followed up with a brutal strike to the base of her skull. Her neck snapped with a wet pop.
Lyna scrambled toward the Matron's fallen pistol. Her fingers brushed the metal, but before she could lift it, Kian's heavy boot slammed down on her hand, pinning it to the floor.
"NO! PLEASE!" she shrieked, reaching out to bite his ankle.
Kian leveled his 15mm pistol and put a bullet through her head.
He kicked the small pistol away and turned his attention to the enforcers crawling out of the gas cloud. They were blind, vomiting, and clutching their throats.
Kian walked among them. He checked the head of the pipe, ensuring the Mercator Aqua Logo was clean. Then, he began the "Audit."
CRACK. CRACK. CRACK.
The sound of shattering femurs filled the alleyway. He systematically broke the legs of all five enforcers, ensuring the Guild's crest was the last thing they felt.
Finally, he approached the Matron. She was dragging her mangled body through the mud, leaving a thick trail of blood. Kian grabbed her by her greasy hair and pulled her head back.
"Who... who sent you?" she wheezed through tears and snot. "Reno? I'll pay! I'll pay ten times what he gave you!"
Kian leaned in, his rebreather mask making his voice sound like a vox-daemon. "It's not about the money, Matron. It's about the Machine Spirit of commerce."
He flipped her over and, as she screamed for mercy, he swung the Guild pipe twice. He broke both her remaining legs with the precision of a butcher.
A crowd of "Sump-Rats"—the local scavengers and dregs—had gathered at the edges of the alley. They watched with predatory hunger, waiting for Kian to leave so they could strip the bodies.
Kian stood up, the heavy pipe resting on his shoulder. He looked at the gathered crowd, his voice booming through the alley.
"Listen well, you dregs!" Kian shouted, pointing the blood-stained pipe at the wailing Matron. "Integrity in the trade! If you scam the men who turn the valves, the Water Guild sends an Auditor. Consider this your first warning!"
He wiped the blood from the Guild logo, holstered his pistol, and vanished into the dark pipes.
[MISSION COMPLETE: THE GUILD'S AUDIT]
Target Neutralized: Sump-Matron (Legs Broken).
Target Neutralized: Enforcers (5/5 Legs Broken).
Bonus: 3x Enemy combatants neutralized.
Reputation: Reno (Water Guild) → Rank 1.
Loot: 1x Small-caliber stub-pistol.
Kian headed for the "Neutral Zone." He had a payment to collect and a fridge to set up. He felt good. There was nothing like a bit of community service to brighten a scavenger's day.