{"data":{"id":13635,"title":"DATELINE: SESEN: Part Eight","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/en\/comm-link\/serialized-fiction\/13635-DATELINE-SESEN-Part-Eight","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-links\/13635","api_public_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/comm-links\/13635","channel":"Serialized Fiction","category":"Undefined","series":"Dateline: Sesen","images":[{"id":1292,"name":"DatelineSesenFI3.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/media\/x3l6h1jdbgno8r\/source\/DatelineSesenFI3.jpg","alt":"","size":1595560,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2014-01-29T19:43:33+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/1292","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/1292\/similar"}],"images_count":1,"translations":{"en_EN":"Unsanctioned Sesen Governor, Tentopet Jones, Assassinated. New United Reporter, Ulla Yadav, On Scene.\n\nTwo guards jumped on Yadav, a man and a woman, and pulled her out of the street. The others did the same with Jones, except they sought refuge on the opposite side of the thoroughfare.\n\nScreams erupted from left and right as civilians rushed indoors.\n\nAwnings were scarce \u2014 most of the buildings didn\u2019t even have proper roofs with gutters or any kind of lip. Yadav plastered herself against the side of a building. The guards brandished their guns, scanning the rooftops.\n\nJones called to Yadav, but was quickly pulled down an alley and out of sight by her security team.\n\nI knew it, Yadav cursed to herself. All the roses and sunshine, I am for the people crap was just that \u2014 a load. Someone had heard their fearless leader was walking tall downtown and had decided this would make a fine time for target practice. Yadav didn\u2019t like getting this close to an assassin\u2019s pot-shots.\n\nWith the governor on her way back to her ivory tower, Yadav let herself breathe deeply. Right up until her male guard stepped out of the shadows and went down hard. The rata-tat-tat of consecutive shots echoed between the cement buildings. The female guard pulled her comrade back and propped him against the building.\n\nA heavy gurgle escaped his open mouth. \u201cStay with me, keep your eyes open,\u201d the woman shouted, slapping his cheek. In the next moment he slouched to one side, lifeless.\n\nHaddix\u2019s face flashed before Yadav\u2019s eyes.\n\nWhy hadn\u2019t the assassin followed the governor? Who was left to target?\n\nShe crouched into herself, searching the rooftops for signs of movement. There \u2014 there! A dark figure, four buildings down. It shifted, revealing a long barrel. She tugged roughly on the guard\u2019s collar. \u201cOver there.\u201d\n\n\u201cDamn. This way.\u201d The woman shoved Yadav behind her and around a corner. She sighted the figure for a heartbeat, then decided not to engage. \u201cFollow me,\u201d she said, grabbing Yadav by the lapel and looking her straight in the eye. The woman was blonde and baby-faced. From a distance, without the heavy helmet and armored vest, Yadav never would have pegged her for a military type. Up close, though, her sheer presence was commanding. \u201cMove only when I say. If I yell stop, that means instantly, got it?\u201d\n\n\u201cGot it.\u201d\n\nShe pointed down a side street. \u201cMove!\u201d\n\nA cross-hatch of shadow and light played across Yadav\u2019s path as she ran down the narrow passage. Wooden slats and pieces of corrugated sheet metal created makeshift bridges between the buildings. The flat, unfinished roofs apparently served as a second set of streets, which meant the shooter had an easy means of pursuit.\n\nThe guard continuously barked out directions. \u201cLeft. Right. Left. Left.\u201d\n\nYadav\u2019s breaths became deep and labored. The air was too thin. She felt light-headed, her lips and fingers tingling, but adrenaline kept her going.\n\nThe city center, and the governor\u2019s hill, moved further and further away. Gunfire at the rear kept Yadav motivated to stick with her guard\u2019s orders, but she didn\u2019t like that they seemed to be headed to the outskirts of town.\n\n\u201cWe need backup,\u201d the woman shouted into her radio. \u201cAm being pursued by a single assassin, male, clothing: hooded, all black. Targeting suggests his mark is \u2014\u201d\n\nShe was cut short as bullets ricocheted off of the cement corner centimeters from Yadav\u2019s head, revealing rusted rebar beneath. The guard pushed Yadav to the ground, while simultaneously shooting up and behind with her energy weapon.\n\nWhen she ceased firing, all lay quiet. Yadav choked on the chalky dust swirling through the air.\n\n\u201cI\u2019m going to count to three,\u201d the guard said. \u201cAnd when I say go, you run into that doorway ahead. You see it?\u201d\n\nYadav picked her chin up out of the dirt. An open entryway lay about twenty meters away at her twelve o\u2019clock. \u201cYes.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll give you cover fire. Don\u2019t hesitate. Sprint right through. Ok, here we go. One. Two. Three!\u201d She yanked Yadav up by the nape of her suit, then gave her a push forward.\n\nThe sound of dueling firepower rang in her ears as she ran, pushing herself all-out to cross the distance in record time. The black maw of the doorway swallowed her up, and the building\u2019s cool interior felt like a safe shroud.\n\nThe light outside seemed blinding now. Yadav shielded her eyes as she watched and waited for the guard to sprint in after.\n\nDodging from wall to wall, the woman took a less direct route, right up until the last few meters. She leaned forward, stretching for the finish line \u2014 but burst across it with an unnatural force.\n\nAt first, it looked as though she\u2019d dived for the doorway, but she hit the floor face-first, dropping like a sack of stones. Yadav knelt next to her, but the guard did not move.\n\nA fine trickle of blood made a winding path down the back of the woman\u2019s neck. Gingerly, Yadav removed her helmet.\n\nThe top of her neck had been punctured, right where spine met skull. Yadav guessed she was dead before she\u2019d finished falling.\n\nWith shaking hands, Yadav picked up the helmet and secured it atop her own head. Next she rolled the body over, unbuckling the vest. When it was free, she shrugged it on over the tight suit jacket.\n\nShe knew she should use the radio to call for help. She knew she should stay put until aid arrived. She knew she should keep her head down and out of the light.\n\nBut she also knew she couldn\u2019t do any of those things.\n\nYadav had to find out why someone on this dinky planet wanted her dead.\n\nTaking up the guard\u2019s weapon, she crouched low, looking out and up through the slats. Pale blue sky was visible, despite the thick dust motes. Something rustled, like pigeon\u2019s wings, above the door frame. Except she hadn\u2019t seen any pigeons \u2014 or urban birds of any kind \u2014 on Sesen.\n\nOne step out that door and he\u2019d have her.\n\nPerhaps there was another way out. Boards covered most of the windows, and fragments hung by rusted nails in the doorjamb. She\u2019d only gotten in because the door had been stolen.\n\nSlivers of light shone through the boards over a window to her right. If she could open it \u2014 quietly \u2014 she might be able to slip out that way.\n\nQuickly, she gave her new vest a pat down. Clammy fingers kept her from getting a good grip on the pocket flaps, but eventually she plucked a few open. One contained sanitary wipes, another mints. The third had a fresh battery. The fourth, a grenade of some kind.\n\nWhat she really needed was a distraction.\n\nThe guard\u2019s black boots drew her attention. They were much nicer, and better for outrunning gunmen, than the pumps the governor had lent her.\n\nHoping she was dealing with a patient assassin, Yadav yanked the boots from the dead woman\u2019s feet. As she laced them, she noticed how slick the plastic pumps were. She gave one shoe an experimental shove, and it slid a long ways across the cement floor.\n\nAh ha.\n\nTiptoeing the three meters to the window, pump in one hand and gun in the other, she steeled herself for flurry of action.\n\nThree. Two. One. She tossed the shoe at an angle, so that it flew over the floor and through the open door. The gunman took the bait, and when he began firing, so did Yadav.\n\nThe dry wood burst into chips under the assault, leaving her a narrow hole to crawl through. She landed with an oomph in the adjoining alley. Instead of making a break for it, she held the gun at the ready and rounded the corner, until she had the assassin in her sights.\n\nShe didn\u2019t want to kill him, she wanted to interrogate him. The lengths she had to go to for an interview. \u201cHey!\u201d\n\nHe spun and froze, but only for an instant of uncertainty. Would he shoot? No. He ran.\n\nGoing from hunted to hunter in a split second, she gave chase. With every breath, another swear escaped her chapped lips. The new boots, though a size too big, gripped the dirt well and helped her keep pace.\n\n\u201cStop,\u201d she shouted at him again. Surprisingly, he obeyed \u2014 but only so he could open fire.\n\nTheir roles flipped again. Why hadn\u2019t she just kept her mouth shut?\n\nA galvanized rain barrel was her only chance at refuge. From a squatted position, she laid down a line of fire in the assassin\u2019s general direction.\n\nHe pressed forward. The shots came closer. She had to flee.\n\nA few times, Yadav doubled back and took him by surprise, but he always ended up with the upper hand. And still they traveled away from people \u2014 into a neighborhood full of half-toppled homes. Some walls had completely sloughed away from their rebar supports.\n\nGraffiti covered everything. On the street that Jones had taken her to, things might have been collapsing, but they were clean. The people took some measure of pride in their surroundings. Not here. Ugly black and red streaks were abundant. In a few areas, the same square meter of wall had been covered again and again \u2014 one gang trying to blot out the other.\n\nYadav seized the upper hand once more. She wanted to stop this, get him to stay put. Once more, she examined the vest.\n\nYadav pulled out the grenade. It was heavy in her hand, and cold, like a river stone. She realized it looked different than the explosive grenades she was familiar with.\n\nIt wasn\u2019t an explosive. She had a sound grenade \u2014 a pacifying tool. It emitted a strong burst of low-frequency sound, designed to knock people off their feet, compress organs and cause nausea. Perfect for halting a would-be killer in his tracks.\n\nThe assassin leapt over a large gap, from one disintegrating roof to the next. Yadav took her chance. She pressed the button and lobbed the grenade with all of her might. It bounced onto the corrugated metal at his feet. He pulled up short, surprised.\n\nYadav pulled herself into the fetal position, with her nose to the ground and her hands covering her head.\n\nA deep whomp tore through her muscles. It knocked the air from her lungs, but otherwise left her unaffected. When she got up again, she shielded her eyes against the sun\u2019s glare and scanned the top of the building. The man was nowhere in sight.\n\nHe must have been knocked off balance \u2014 and fallen.\n\nYadav rushed around the corner and gasped. He lay on his back, suspended above the ground, with several pieces of exposed rebar protruding through his chest.\n\nto be continued \u2026","de_DE":"Nicht genehmigter Sesen-Gouverneur, Tentopet Jones, ermordet. Neue United Reporterin, Ulla Yadav, On Scene.\n\nZwei Wachen sprangen auf Yadav, ein Mann und eine Frau, und zogen sie von der Stra\u00dfe. Die anderen taten dasselbe mit Jones, au\u00dfer dass sie auf der anderen Seite der Stra\u00dfe Zuflucht suchten.\n\nSchreie brachen von links und rechts aus, als Zivilisten nach drinnen eilten.\n\nMarkisen waren knapp - die meisten Geb\u00e4ude hatten nicht einmal richtige D\u00e4cher mit Rinnen oder irgendeiner Art von Lippe. Yadav hat sich gegen die Seite eines Geb\u00e4udes geputzt. Die Wachen schwangen ihre Waffen und scannten die D\u00e4cher.\n\nJones rief nach Yadav, wurde aber schnell von ihrem Sicherheitsteam \u00fcber eine Gasse gezogen und au\u00dfer Sichtweite gebracht.\n\nIch wusste es, Yadav verfluchte sich selbst. All die Rosen und der Sonnenschein, ich bin f\u00fcr die Leute, die Schei\u00dfe war genau das - eine Ladung. Jemand hatte geh\u00f6rt, dass ihr furchtloser F\u00fchrer in die Innenstadt ging und hatte beschlossen, dass dies eine gute Zeit f\u00fcr das Schie\u00df\u00fcbungen sein w\u00fcrde. Yadav mochte es nicht, den Sch\u00fcssen eines Attent\u00e4ters so nahe zu kommen.\n\nAls die Gouverneurin auf dem Weg zur\u00fcck zu ihrem Elfenbeinturm war, lie\u00df sich Yadav tief durchatmen. Bis zu dem Moment, als ihre m\u00e4nnliche Wache aus dem Schatten trat und hart nach unten ging. Das Verh\u00e4ltnis von aufeinanderfolgenden Sch\u00fcssen hallte zwischen den Zementgeb\u00e4uden. Die weibliche Wache zog ihren Kameraden zur\u00fcck und st\u00fctzte ihn gegen das Geb\u00e4ude.\n\nEin schweres Glucksen entkam seinem offenen Mund. \"Bleib bei mir, halte deine Augen offen\", rief die Frau und schlug ihm auf die Wange. Im n\u00e4chsten Moment kr\u00fcmmte er sich zur Seite, leblos.\n\nHaddix' Gesicht blitzte vor Yadavs Augen.\n\nWarum ist der Attent\u00e4ter dem Gouverneur nicht gefolgt? Wer war das Ziel?\n\nSie hockte sich in sich selbst und suchte auf den D\u00e4chern nach Anzeichen von Bewegung. Da - da - da! Eine dunkle Gestalt, vier Geb\u00e4ude tiefer. Sie bewegte sich und enth\u00fcllte einen langen Lauf. Sie zerrte grob am Kragen der Wache. \" Da dr\u00fcben.\"\n\n\"Verdammt. Hier entlang.\" Die Frau schob Yadav hinter sich und um eine Ecke. Sie sah die Figur nach einem Herzschlag und beschloss dann, sich nicht zu engagieren. \"Folge mir\", sagte sie, packte Yadav am Revers und schaute ihr direkt in die Augen. Die Frau war blond und hatte ein Babygesicht. Aus der Ferne, ohne den schweren Helm und die gepanzerte Weste, h\u00e4tte Yadav sie nie f\u00fcr einen milit\u00e4rischen Typ gehalten. Aus n\u00e4chster N\u00e4he war ihre schiere Pr\u00e4senz jedoch befehlenswert. \"Beweg dich nur, wenn ich es sage. Wenn ich aufh\u00f6re, bedeutet das sofort, verstanden?\"\n\n\"Verstanden.\"\n\nSie zeigte auf eine Seitenstra\u00dfe. \"Bewegung!\"\n\nEine Kreuzschraffur aus Schatten und Licht spielte \u00fcber Yadavs Weg, als sie den engen Durchgang hinunterlief. Holzlamellen und Wellblechteile bildeten provisorische Br\u00fccken zwischen den Geb\u00e4uden. Die flachen, unfertigen D\u00e4cher dienten anscheinend als zweiter Stra\u00dfenzug, was bedeutete, dass der Sch\u00fctze eine einfache Verfolgung hatte.\n\nDie Wache bellte st\u00e4ndig nach au\u00dfen. \"Links. Richtig. Links. Links.\"\n\nYadavs Atemz\u00fcge wurden tief und arbeitsreich. Die Luft war zu d\u00fcnn. Sie f\u00fchlte sich benommen, ihre Lippen und Finger kribbelten, aber Adrenalin hielt sie am Leben.\n\nDas Stadtzentrum und der H\u00fcgel des Gouverneurs r\u00fcckten immer weiter auseinander. Gesch\u00fctzfeuer am Heck hielt Yadav motiviert, sich an die Befehle ihrer Wache zu halten, aber sie mochte es nicht, dass sie anscheinend an den Stadtrand gefahren waren.\n\n\"Wir brauchen Verst\u00e4rkung\", schrie die Frau in ihr Funkger\u00e4t. \"Wird von einem einzigen Attent\u00e4ter verfolgt, m\u00e4nnlich, Kleidung: mit Kapuze, ganz schwarz. Das Targeting deutet darauf hin, dass sein Ziel -\"\n\nSie wurde kurz geschnitten, als Kugeln von den Zementecken Zentimetern von Yadavs Kopf abgeschnitten wurden und rostige Bewehrungsst\u00e4be darunter enth\u00fcllten. Die Wache dr\u00fcckte Yadav zu Boden, w\u00e4hrend sie gleichzeitig mit ihrer Energiewaffe auf und hinter sich schoss.\n\nAls sie aufh\u00f6rte zu schie\u00dfen, lagen alle still. Yadav erstickte an dem kreidehaltigen Staub, der durch die Luft wirbelte.\n\n\"Ich werde bis drei z\u00e4hlen\", sagte die Wache. \"Und wenn ich sage, geh, rennst du in die T\u00fcr da vorne. Hast du es gesehen?\"\n\nYadav hob ihr Kinn aus dem Schmutz. Ein offener Eingang lag etwa zwanzig Meter entfernt bei ihrer zw\u00f6lf Uhr. \" Ja.\"\n\n\"Ich gebe dir Deckungsfeuer. Z\u00f6gere nicht. Sprint direkt durch. Ok, los geht's. Eins. Zwei. Drei!\" Sie zog Yadav am Nacken ihres Anzugs hoch und gab ihr dann einen Schub nach vorne.\n\nDas Ger\u00e4usch von duellierender Feuerkraft ert\u00f6nte in ihren Ohren, als sie rannte, und dr\u00fcckte sich mit aller Kraft, um die Strecke in Rekordzeit zu \u00fcberqueren. Der schwarze Maulwurf der T\u00fcr\u00f6ffnung verschlang sie, und das k\u00fchle Innere des Geb\u00e4udes f\u00fchlte sich wie ein sicheres Tuch an.\n\nDas Licht drau\u00dfen schien jetzt zu blenden. Yadav sch\u00fctzte ihre Augen, als sie zusah und wartete darauf, dass die Wache hinterher sprintete.\n\nDie Frau wich von Wand zu Wand aus und nahm einen weniger direkten Weg, bis zu den letzten Metern. Sie lehnte sich nach vorne und streckte sich f\u00fcr die Ziellinie aus - aber sie brach mit einer unnat\u00fcrlichen Kraft \u00fcber sie hinweg.\n\nZuerst sah es so aus, als ob sie nach der T\u00fcr getaucht w\u00e4re, aber sie schlug mit dem Gesicht nach vorne auf den Boden und fiel wie ein Sack voller Steine. Yadav kniete neben ihr nieder, aber die Wache bewegte sich nicht.\n\nEin feiner Tropfen Blut machte einen kurvenreichen Weg \u00fcber den Nacken der Frau. Vorsichtig nahm Yadav ihren Helm ab.\n\nDie Oberseite ihres Halses war durchstochen worden, genau dort, wo die Wirbels\u00e4ule auf den Sch\u00e4del traf. Yadav vermutete, dass sie tot war, bevor sie zu Ende gefallen war.\n\nMit zitternden H\u00e4nden hob Yadav den Helm auf und befestigte ihn auf ihrem eigenen Kopf. Als n\u00e4chstes rollte sie den K\u00f6rper um und schnallte die Weste ab. Als es frei war, zuckte sie es mit den Achseln \u00fcber die enge Anzugjacke.\n\nSie wusste, dass sie das Funkger\u00e4t benutzen sollte, um Hilfe zu rufen. Sie wusste, dass sie bis zur Ankunft der Hilfe hier bleiben sollte. Sie wusste, dass sie ihren Kopf unten und au\u00dferhalb des Lichts halten sollte.\n\nAber sie wusste auch, dass sie all diese Dinge nicht tun konnte.\n\nYadav musste herausfinden, warum jemand auf diesem d\u00e4mlichen Planeten ihren Tod wollte.\n\nSie nahm die Waffe der Wache auf und hockte sich tief hinunter, schaute hinaus und hinauf durch die Lamellen. Trotz der dicken Staubmoten war ein hellblauer Himmel zu sehen. Etwas raschelte, wie die Fl\u00fcgel der Tauben, \u00fcber dem T\u00fcrrahmen. Nur, dass sie auf Sesen keine Tauben - oder Stadtv\u00f6gel jeglicher Art - gesehen hatte.\n\nEin Schritt aus dieser T\u00fcr und er h\u00e4tte sie.\n\nVielleicht gab es einen anderen Ausweg. Die Bretter bedeckten die meisten Fenster, und Fragmente hingen an rostigen N\u00e4geln im T\u00fcrrahmen. Sie war nur reingekommen, weil die T\u00fcr gestohlen worden war.\n\nLichtschwerter schienen durch die Bretter \u00fcber ein Fenster zu ihrer Rechten. Wenn sie es - leise - \u00f6ffnen k\u00f6nnte, k\u00f6nnte sie vielleicht auf diese Weise herausrutschen.\n\nSchnell gab sie ihrer neuen Weste einen Klaps nach unten. Klamme Finger hinderten sie daran, die Taschenklappen gut zu greifen, aber schlie\u00dflich riss sie ein paar offene Klappen. Eines enthielt Hygienet\u00fccher, ein weiteres Minzt\u00fccher. Der dritte hatte eine neue Batterie. Die vierte, eine Art Granate.\n\nWas sie wirklich brauchte, war eine Ablenkung.\n\nDie schwarzen Stiefel der Wache erregten ihre Aufmerksamkeit. Sie waren viel netter und besser f\u00fcr \u00fcberholte Bewaffnete, als die Pumpen, die der Gouverneur ihr geliehen hatte.\n\nIn der Hoffnung, dass sie es mit einem geduldigen Attent\u00e4ter zu tun hatte, zog Yadav der toten Frau die Stiefel von den F\u00fc\u00dfen. Als sie sie schn\u00fcrte, bemerkte sie, wie glatt die Kunststoffpumpen waren. Sie gab einem Schuh einen experimentellen Schubs, und er rutschte lange Wege \u00fcber den Zementboden.\n\nAh ha.\n\nSie ging auf Zehenspitzen zum Fenster, pumpte in einer Hand und schoss in der anderen, und stahl sich f\u00fcr eine hektische Handlung.\n\nDrei. Zwei. Eins. Sie warf den Schuh in einem Winkel, so dass er \u00fcber den Boden und durch die offene T\u00fcr flog. Der Sch\u00fctze nahm den K\u00f6der, und als er anfing zu schie\u00dfen, tat es auch Yadav.\n\nDas trockene Holz platzte unter dem Angriff in Sp\u00e4ne und hinterlie\u00df ihr ein schmales Loch zum Durchkriechen. Sie landete mit einem Oomph in der angrenzenden Gasse. Anstatt eine Pause einzulegen, hielt sie die Waffe bereit und um die Ecke, bis sie den Attent\u00e4ter im Visier hatte.\n\nSie wollte ihn nicht t\u00f6ten, sie wollte ihn verh\u00f6ren. Die M\u00fchen, die sie f\u00fcr ein Interview aufwenden musste. \" Hey!\"\n\nEr drehte und erstarrte, aber nur f\u00fcr einen Moment der Unsicherheit. W\u00fcrde er schie\u00dfen? Nein. Er ist weggerannt.\n\nIn Sekundenbruchteilen ging sie von der Jagd zur J\u00e4gerin und verfolgte sie. Mit jedem Atemzug entkam ein weiterer Schwur ihren aufgesprungenen Lippen. Die neuen Stiefel, obwohl eine Gr\u00f6\u00dfe zu gro\u00df, griffen den Schmutz gut an und halfen ihr, Schritt zu halten.\n\n\"H\u00f6r auf\", schrie sie ihn wieder an. \u00dcberraschenderweise gehorchte er - aber nur, damit er das Feuer er\u00f6ffnen konnte.\n\nIhre Rollen wurden wieder umgedreht. Warum hatte sie nicht einfach ihren Mund gehalten?\n\nEin verzinktes Regentonne war ihre einzige Chance auf Zuflucht. Aus einer besetzten Position legte sie eine Schusslinie in die allgemeine Richtung des Attent\u00e4ters.\n\nEr dr\u00e4ngte vorw\u00e4rts. Die Sch\u00fcsse kamen n\u00e4her. Sie musste fliehen.\n\nEin paar Mal zog sich Yadav zur\u00fcck und \u00fcberraschte ihn, aber er hatte immer die Oberhand. Und doch reisten sie weg von den Menschen - in ein Viertel voller halb umgest\u00fcrzter H\u00e4user. Einige W\u00e4nde waren von ihren Bewehrungsst\u00fctzen vollst\u00e4ndig weggezogen.\n\nGraffiti bedeckte alles. Auf der Stra\u00dfe, auf die Jones sie gebracht hatte, brachen vielleicht die Dinge zusammen, aber sie waren sauber. Die Menschen waren ein wenig stolz auf ihre Umgebung. Nicht hier. H\u00e4ssliche schwarze und rote Streifen waren reichlich vorhanden. In einigen wenigen Bereichen war immer wieder der gleiche Quadratmeter Mauer bedeckt - eine Bande versuchte, die andere auszul\u00f6schen.\n\nYadav ergriff erneut die Oberhand. Sie wollte das beenden, ihn dazu bringen, hier zu bleiben. Noch einmal untersuchte sie die Weste.\n\nYadav zog die Granate heraus. Es war schwer in ihrer Hand und kalt, wie ein Flussstein. Sie erkannte, dass es anders aussah als die Sprenggranaten, mit denen sie vertraut war.\n\nEs war kein Sprengstoff. Sie hatte eine Klanggranate - ein beruhigendes Werkzeug. Sie strahlte einen starken Ausbruch von niederfrequenten Ger\u00e4uschen aus, der Menschen von den F\u00fc\u00dfen sto\u00dfen, Organe komprimieren und \u00dcbelkeit verursachen sollte. Perfekt, um einen M\u00f6chtegern-Killer auf der Spur zu halten.\n\nDer Attent\u00e4ter sprang \u00fcber eine gro\u00dfe L\u00fccke, von einem zerfallenden Dach zum n\u00e4chsten. Yadav nutzte ihre Chance. Sie dr\u00fcckte den Knopf und schlug die Granate mit aller Kraft. Es prallte auf das gewellte Metall zu seinen F\u00fc\u00dfen. Er zog sich kurz und \u00fcberrascht zur\u00fcck.\n\nYadav zog sich in die fetale Position, mit ihrer Nase auf dem Boden und ihren H\u00e4nden, die ihren Kopf bedeckten.\n\nEin tiefer whomp riss ihre Muskeln durch. Es schlug die Luft aus ihrer Lunge, lie\u00df sie aber ansonsten unber\u00fchrt. Als sie wieder aufstand, sch\u00fctzte sie ihre Augen vor dem grellen Sonnenlicht und scannte die Oberseite des Geb\u00e4udes. Der Mann war nirgendwo in Sichtweite.\n\nEr muss aus dem Gleichgewicht geraten sein - und gefallen sein.\n\nYadav eilte um die Ecke und keuchte. Er lag auf dem R\u00fccken, hing \u00fcber dem Boden, mit mehreren freiliegenden Bewehrungsst\u00e4ben, die durch seine Brust ragten.\n\nwird fortgesetzt.....","zh_CN":"Unsanctioned Sesen Governor, Tentopet Jones, Assassinated. New United Reporter, Ulla Yadav, On Scene.\n\nTwo guards jumped on Yadav, a man and a woman, and pulled her out of the street. The others did the same with Jones, except they sought refuge on the opposite side of the thoroughfare.\n\nScreams erupted from left and right as civilians rushed indoors.\n\nAwnings were scarce \u2014 most of the buildings didn\u2019t even have proper roofs with gutters or any kind of lip. Yadav plastered herself against the side of a building. The guards brandished their guns, scanning the rooftops.\n\nJones called to Yadav, but was quickly pulled down an alley and out of sight by her security team.\n\nI knew it, Yadav cursed to herself. All the roses and sunshine, I am for the people crap was just that \u2014 a load. Someone had heard their fearless leader was walking tall downtown and had decided this would make a fine time for target practice. Yadav didn\u2019t like getting this close to an assassin\u2019s pot-shots.\n\nWith the governor on her way back to her ivory tower, Yadav let herself breathe deeply. Right up until her male guard stepped out of the shadows and went down hard. The rata-tat-tat of consecutive shots echoed between the cement buildings. The female guard pulled her comrade back and propped him against the building.\n\nA heavy gurgle escaped his open mouth. \u201cStay with me, keep your eyes open,\u201d the woman shouted, slapping his cheek. In the next moment he slouched to one side, lifeless.\n\nHaddix\u2019s face flashed before Yadav\u2019s eyes.\n\nWhy hadn\u2019t the assassin followed the governor? Who was left to target?\n\nShe crouched into herself, searching the rooftops for signs of movement. There \u2014 there! A dark figure, four buildings down. It shifted, revealing a long barrel. She tugged roughly on the guard\u2019s collar. \u201cOver there.\u201d\n\n\u201cDamn. This way.\u201d The woman shoved Yadav behind her and around a corner. She sighted the figure for a heartbeat, then decided not to engage. \u201cFollow me,\u201d she said, grabbing Yadav by the lapel and looking her straight in the eye. The woman was blonde and baby-faced. From a distance, without the heavy helmet and armored vest, Yadav never would have pegged her for a military type. Up close, though, her sheer presence was commanding. \u201cMove only when I say. If I yell stop, that means instantly, got it?\u201d\n\n\u201cGot it.\u201d\n\nShe pointed down a side street. \u201cMove!\u201d\n\nA cross-hatch of shadow and light played across Yadav\u2019s path as she ran down the narrow passage. Wooden slats and pieces of corrugated sheet metal created makeshift bridges between the buildings. The flat, unfinished roofs apparently served as a second set of streets, which meant the shooter had an easy means of pursuit.\n\nThe guard continuously barked out directions. \u201cLeft. Right. Left. Left.\u201d\n\nYadav\u2019s breaths became deep and labored. The air was too thin. She felt light-headed, her lips and fingers tingling, but adrenaline kept her going.\n\nThe city center, and the governor\u2019s hill, moved further and further away. Gunfire at the rear kept Yadav motivated to stick with her guard\u2019s orders, but she didn\u2019t like that they seemed to be headed to the outskirts of town.\n\n\u201cWe need backup,\u201d the woman shouted into her radio. \u201cAm being pursued by a single assassin, male, clothing: hooded, all black. Targeting suggests his mark is \u2014\u201d\n\nShe was cut short as bullets ricocheted off of the cement corner centimeters from Yadav\u2019s head, revealing rusted rebar beneath. The guard pushed Yadav to the ground, while simultaneously shooting up and behind with her energy weapon.\n\nWhen she ceased firing, all lay quiet. Yadav choked on the chalky dust swirling through the air.\n\n\u201cI\u2019m going to count to three,\u201d the guard said. \u201cAnd when I say go, you run into that doorway ahead. You see it?\u201d\n\nYadav picked her chin up out of the dirt. An open entryway lay about twenty meters away at her twelve o\u2019clock. \u201cYes.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll give you cover fire. Don\u2019t hesitate. Sprint right through. Ok, here we go. One. Two. Three!\u201d She yanked Yadav up by the nape of her suit, then gave her a push forward.\n\nThe sound of dueling firepower rang in her ears as she ran, pushing herself all-out to cross the distance in record time. The black maw of the doorway swallowed her up, and the building\u2019s cool interior felt like a safe shroud.\n\nThe light outside seemed blinding now. Yadav shielded her eyes as she watched and waited for the guard to sprint in after.\n\nDodging from wall to wall, the woman took a less direct route, right up until the last few meters. She leaned forward, stretching for the finish line \u2014 but burst across it with an unnatural force.\n\nAt first, it looked as though she\u2019d dived for the doorway, but she hit the floor face-first, dropping like a sack of stones. Yadav knelt next to her, but the guard did not move.\n\nA fine trickle of blood made a winding path down the back of the woman\u2019s neck. Gingerly, Yadav removed her helmet.\n\nThe top of her neck had been punctured, right where spine met skull. Yadav guessed she was dead before she\u2019d finished falling.\n\nWith shaking hands, Yadav picked up the helmet and secured it atop her own head. Next she rolled the body over, unbuckling the vest. When it was free, she shrugged it on over the tight suit jacket.\n\nShe knew she should use the radio to call for help. She knew she should stay put until aid arrived. She knew she should keep her head down and out of the light.\n\nBut she also knew she couldn\u2019t do any of those things.\n\nYadav had to find out why someone on this dinky planet wanted her dead.\n\nTaking up the guard\u2019s weapon, she crouched low, looking out and up through the slats. Pale blue sky was visible, despite the thick dust motes. Something rustled, like pigeon\u2019s wings, above the door frame. Except she hadn\u2019t seen any pigeons \u2014 or urban birds of any kind \u2014 on Sesen.\n\nOne step out that door and he\u2019d have her.\n\nPerhaps there was another way out. Boards covered most of the windows, and fragments hung by rusted nails in the doorjamb. She\u2019d only gotten in because the door had been stolen.\n\nSlivers of light shone through the boards over a window to her right. If she could open it \u2014 quietly \u2014 she might be able to slip out that way.\n\nQuickly, she gave her new vest a pat down. Clammy fingers kept her from getting a good grip on the pocket flaps, but eventually she plucked a few open. One contained sanitary wipes, another mints. The third had a fresh battery. The fourth, a grenade of some kind.\n\nWhat she really needed was a distraction.\n\nThe guard\u2019s black boots drew her attention. They were much nicer, and better for outrunning gunmen, than the pumps the governor had lent her.\n\nHoping she was dealing with a patient assassin, Yadav yanked the boots from the dead woman\u2019s feet. As she laced them, she noticed how slick the plastic pumps were. She gave one shoe an experimental shove, and it slid a long ways across the cement floor.\n\nAh ha.\n\nTiptoeing the three meters to the window, pump in one hand and gun in the other, she steeled herself for flurry of action.\n\nThree. Two. One. She tossed the shoe at an angle, so that it flew over the floor and through the open door. The gunman took the bait, and when he began firing, so did Yadav.\n\nThe dry wood burst into chips under the assault, leaving her a narrow hole to crawl through. She landed with an oomph in the adjoining alley. Instead of making a break for it, she held the gun at the ready and rounded the corner, until she had the assassin in her sights.\n\nShe didn\u2019t want to kill him, she wanted to interrogate him. The lengths she had to go to for an interview. \u201cHey!\u201d\n\nHe spun and froze, but only for an instant of uncertainty. Would he shoot? No. He ran.\n\nGoing from hunted to hunter in a split second, she gave chase. With every breath, another swear escaped her chapped lips. The new boots, though a size too big, gripped the dirt well and helped her keep pace.\n\n\u201cStop,\u201d she shouted at him again. Surprisingly, he obeyed \u2014 but only so he could open fire.\n\nTheir roles flipped again. Why hadn\u2019t she just kept her mouth shut?\n\nA galvanized rain barrel was her only chance at refuge. From a squatted position, she laid down a line of fire in the assassin\u2019s general direction.\n\nHe pressed forward. The shots came closer. She had to flee.\n\nA few times, Yadav doubled back and took him by surprise, but he always ended up with the upper hand. And still they traveled away from people \u2014 into a neighborhood full of half-toppled homes. Some walls had completely sloughed away from their rebar supports.\n\nGraffiti covered everything. On the street that Jones had taken her to, things might have been collapsing, but they were clean. The people took some measure of pride in their surroundings. Not here. Ugly black and red streaks were abundant. In a few areas, the same square meter of wall had been covered again and again \u2014 one gang trying to blot out the other.\n\nYadav seized the upper hand once more. She wanted to stop this, get him to stay put. Once more, she examined the vest.\n\nYadav pulled out the grenade. It was heavy in her hand, and cold, like a river stone. She realized it looked different than the explosive grenades she was familiar with.\n\nIt wasn\u2019t an explosive. She had a sound grenade \u2014 a pacifying tool. It emitted a strong burst of low-frequency sound, designed to knock people off their feet, compress organs and cause nausea. Perfect for halting a would-be killer in his tracks.\n\nThe assassin leapt over a large gap, from one disintegrating roof to the next. Yadav took her chance. She pressed the button and lobbed the grenade with all of her might. It bounced onto the corrugated metal at his feet. He pulled up short, surprised.\n\nYadav pulled herself into the fetal position, with her nose to the ground and her hands covering her head.\n\nA deep whomp tore through her muscles. It knocked the air from her lungs, but otherwise left her unaffected. When she got up again, she shielded her eyes against the sun\u2019s glare and scanned the top of the building. The man was nowhere in sight.\n\nHe must have been knocked off balance \u2014 and fallen.\n\nYadav rushed around the corner and gasped. He lay on his back, suspended above the ground, with several pieces of exposed rebar protruding through his chest.\n\nto be continued \u2026"},"links_count":0,"comment_count":66,"created_at":"2014-03-20T00:00:00+00:00","created_at_human":"12 years ago"},"meta":{"processed_at":"2026-05-28 21:11:11","valid_relations":["images","links"],"prev_id":13634,"next_id":13636}}