164 Searching

Ori stabs forwards with the rusty scalpal, mind still on his discussion with Regina yesterday. The guy who'd stabbed him in the heart with the nanites had finally shown himself, and boy had he gone off the deep end.

Leopold Hepner, a German-descent scientist(Because of course he is) who'd apparently worked for Arasaka, which wasn't strange considering who'd created the nanites. From what Regina says, he's been missing for years now, but had finally popped up after killing four people in a psychotic rampage.

Strangely, the sightings of him had been sporadic, once appearing in Watson and mere hours later massacring a young couple in Westbrook. Not only that, the old man looked very different from the last Ori had seen him.

A year ago he'd been kitted out with bare minimum Cyberware, the Netrunner essentials, some type of Gorilla fists along with some basic armouring, let that rubber neck of his. Now however? It was only his face that Ori could actually recognise.

The guy was at least a foot taller, long messy white hair falling to his shoulders, and so many surgical scars on his face they almost resembled wrinkles. His body shined with a sleek grey sheen as if the body under his torn and bloody clothes was completely metallic.

He growls under his breath and digs the scalpal in again, his target letting out a squeal of pain from under the gag. "What're you crying about? I told you, you tell me what you know or I'd use you as a punching bag til you finally dropped. You asked for this, now shut up while I think." he spits at the sobbing Animal ganger before returning to his thoughts.

Regina admitted she had no real way of identifying where the old man would appear next, since it seemed he had enough wherewithal to continually change his location to avoid MaxTac and whoever else was hunting him.

Honestly, this shit kind of reminded him what Maelstrom would do back in Casinha. Abducting folks, filling them to the gills with fucked chrome them unleashing them on their enemies to see what'd happen...

...

Come to think of it... Wouldn't that explain his weird movements? From the camera feed the guy didn't seem to be all that intelligent, so was it that far out there to think someone was picking him up and dropping him off?

Hm, if that was the case that'd mean they had a goal in mind. He'd have to contact Regina and have her investigate the victims. If they had any gang affiliation, Corpo ties, notable enemies, the usual suspects.

Ori nods to himself, twisting the scalpal in the whimpering Animal's leg. "Let's just hope he has that knife on him... Ain't that right, choom?" Ori grins at his prisoner, who appears to be hyperventilating.

Ori rips the gag out of his mouth after filling the stab wounds with medical foam to stop the man bleeding out. "Ready to spill your guts yet? Or should I do it myself tomorrow?"

"P-please... I-I'll tell ya' everythin'... Just let me go..." he rasps out.

"Well, let me just list off things I already know about you... The Animals call you 'Great Ape', leader of a small posse who usually does protection, escort, and extortion gigs. No evidence of kidnapping or assassinations though... No family to speak of, except a girlfriend who's currently fucking your neighbour-, ah, you didn't know that yet? Tough luck." he chuckles at the man's wide-eyed expression.

Ori shrugs, "Not like it matters anyway... So, I'll ask again. What do you know about Casinha?"

"N-nothing! I was not there! I-if..." he pauses, looking uncertain, "I can reveal who I work for, but you must promise to let me go. And to not name me... Please." he pleads.

"Sure." Ori smiles 'sincerely', while also bringing the rusty, bloody scalpal into view. "Now talk."

"Pangolin, that's his name... He's the one who runs things. He sets the crews up with men, guns, and gigs, then takes a cut of every job. I-I don't know anything about Casinha, but he would. It might have been another crew who handled it too..."

...

"Pangolin..." Ori mutters, "This guy's gimmick isn't just being a giant ball of metal plates is it? You guys' naming conventions are dumb." he remarks before turning away and sending a request to Judy to find someone under the moniker.

"I-I heard he's called that because of the Rippers he uses..."

Rippers? The claw Cyberware Sasha uses? Why not call himself Tiger or something then? Though, the Tyger Claws would probably take offence... "Whatever, anything else you can tell me? Pangolin's name? Location? Anything about the other crews?"

"N-nothing! I got nothin' else!"

Ori scowls, walking over and grabbing a shard before shoving it in the guy's port. "Upload everything, contact info, client data, hell, give me all your Eds and I'll let you go."

"N-No! You'll just kill me if I give you everything!"

"I'll kill you now if you don't, asshole." Ori retorts, dragging the scalpal across the man's face.

"F-FINE YOU FUCKING PSYCHO! J-just-" Ori takes the shard out and slashes the man's throat, causing him to widen his eyes as he gurgles on his own blood.

"Y-... Y-ou lied..."

"Sorry, maybe in your next life you'll reconsider running with dad-killing fucks." Ori spits.

"ORI! THE FOOD'S HERE!" Rebecca's voice shouts from the front door.

"I'LL BE UP IN A SECOND!" He replies, turning to the Animal, "Don't worry, I won't touch your cheating girlfriend... Mostly because I think you'd rather her dead. Oh, and what blood type are you? I'm gonna sell your organs off-and he's dead... Eh, I'll get Bats to double-check it."

[Yo, Susie, can you send a cold storage truck over? I've got a body with some alright looking chrome.] - Ori

[What're you, a scav now?] - Susie

[He deserved it, so no. You want a first look or not?] - Ori

[Whatever, you're paying for the service.] - Susie.

"Hm... Probably should've waited until the truck got here before killing him..." he shrugs to himself, walking to the kitchen, grabbing a pack of ice and resting it on the corpse's chest. Hopefully that'll keep the organs cold enough...? Probably not..."

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