282 Dead to Rights

"NO!" Rebecca screams as she and the rest of the crew view Ori's murder at David's blade on the monitor. She'd been positively elated at seeing Smasher get flatlined, but she handled realised at that moment just what it meant afterwards. That her lover or best friend would have to die. "YOU FUCKING BASTARDS! I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU! I'LL TEAR YOU APART, I SWEAR, I'LL RUIN YOU! I'LL HUNT YOU DOWN UNTIL NONE OF YOU ARE LEFT!" she roars as the rest of her crew silently weeps.

Lucy herself, despite the hurt she was feeling, let out a sigh of relief at David's survival. She had no illusions as to who would win a full-out confrontation, and losing the love her of life was the worst outcome she could possibly imagine.

Kiwi just looks down at the floor, silently shaking her head with a solemn look in her eyes...

Rebecca's body jolts as Takamura zaps her via her collar, "Be quiet, he may be dead, but you live on in his stead. That is what he would have wanted, I am sure." he says, zapping the pale-chibi again as she prepares to mount a verbal assault never before seen.

----------------------------

Not many hours later, the prisoners were brought before Hanako Arasaka who sat at the head of a table with David further down it.

"Fucking bitch!" Rebecca exclaims and tries to rush her, but David grips her arm and holds her back, sending an imploring look to the others. Unfortunately, no one could stop the girl's verbal trade, forcing Takamura to knock her out with a shock.

Hanako sighed and looks them over, glancing between Oda and Takamura before speaking, "Today, as you have seen, your friend attack us and perished in the conflict. He and his men killed hundreds, and particularly harming, he killed the Oni, Adam Smasher." she neutrally states.

David sends a morose look at his friend, all aside from Lucy evading his gaze after what he'd been forced to do.

"You have been brought here so Arasaka can decide what to do with you." she gestures at Rebecca, "Letting you go after your friend's display is simply not an option, and while I am merciful, there are some things I cannot permit... After all, I have seen the resources you have at your disposal, were you aware Zombie brought with him a thermonuclear weapon?" she states, causing the group to freeze up.

"Indeed, we were forced to drop it into the ocean as he had already armed it... Not something someone attempting to rescue his comrades would do, I would think." she conversationally adds.

"I-I thought you would let us go. That was our deal!" David heatedly asks, trying to stand but dismissing the idea after a jolt runs through his body.

"We did, but you are in no condition to bargain after that performance. Arasaka has lost a tremendous number of resources due to your ineptitude, thus, I will offer you another, more reasonable arrangement... You, David Martinez, will work for us in the place of Adam Smasher, your friends will be housed here in Arasaka tower as. Guests."

"Will you be putting bombs in our heads too?" Lucy scowls, "You've already backtracked one deal, who's to say you won't continue? How long will it be til' your harvesting our organs?"

Hanako sniffs at that, "Do not compare us with those scavengers loose in the city. Besides, there are better uses for you, Miss Kushinada." she states, causing Lucy to blink, "Yes, I am well aware of your status, fortunately, I am not like my father, that experiment was an abomination and a travesty. One I will not allow to repeat during my time as CEO of the company... But understand this, I will do with you all as I wish, and you will live at my mercy." she turns to look at David, "Understand?"

...

Before David's able to agree, Oda looks up at the roof and back to Hanako, "Arasaka-sama, do you hear that...?"

"Hear?"

Takamura's eyes widen, and a moment later the room rumbles slightly, a reverberation running through the place, the plastic cups of water on the table rippling, as if a dinosaur were stomping nearby.

"*Bzztch!* Arasaka-sama! There's a problem! A BIG BIG PROBLEM!" the intercom of the room hurriedly exclaims.

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An hour before :

Blackness. That's all there was.

Until there wasn't.

Splotches of random electrical charges flickered in the distance.

He wasn't even aware of what he was perceiving until a white splotch manifested and covered the void.

[Subject: Orville Quadrano]

[Account Data recovery initiated...]

[Host body: Destroyed... Attempting recovery...]

[Recovery failed...]

[Subject consciousness activated delayed: Risk of insanity due to complete sensory deprivation high...]

[Limited awareness granted... Started systems in 3... 2... 1...]

Ori's mind begins anew, once more contained within the world of code he usually found himself when directly covering with the collective...

"I died right?" he immediately asks, crudely remembering the feeling of getting utterly eviscerated by David.

"Correct." the amorphous representation of the collective states, "Unfortunately, the host body was incinerated..."

"Wait, how are we talking then, wouldn't that mean all the nanites were destroyed?" Ori asks, slightly beginning to freak the FUCK out... He had thought Arasaka would dump his body somewhere like they did to Silverhand... But he supposed they weren't completely retarded, he'd shown stupid regenerative abilities before after all.

"Your existence is currently being supported by the nanites that were injected into Subject: Adam Smasher... We are unaware of where we are, but the situation has not entirely deteriorated."

...

"Is there a way for us to see the surroundings?"

The Collective nods and a screen manifests at the opposite end of the room, revealing some sort of research facility. Adam Smasher's body was currently being operated on by a number of scientists, carefully stripping the more dangerous technologies while taking measures to preserve the corpse... Were they planning on putting Smasher on display or something?

"Alright... I guess we can salvage this, maybe...?"