| From: | Joshua James Harrison <harrij4@***.EDU> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | The Coyote & The Hound |
| Date: | Wed, 20 Apr 1994 13:31:53 -0400 |
keeping
an eye on him while he was trailing his hound, and all of a sudden he
stiffened, as though engaging IC. Then he was dumped. He's still in shock,
though the immedeate danger has passed. I dowloaded and viewed his visual log,
and I thought you all should see it. Here it is...
*****Begin Transfer CoyoteLog04205512
The Matrix surrounds you as you zip along the datalines, a shadow slipping
through the neon pathways. Ahead of you, you can see the hound, a glowing
silver icon in the shape of a Husky. It jogs along, its nose to the ground,
following a virtual trail.
It pauses at a dataline fork, and raises its head, sniffing at the air. During
the pause, you glance around, and catch a glimpse of the twin frames following
you, angel and demon, remaining close enough to track you, but far enough back
that you are unable to take action. Frustrated, you turn back to the hound as
it heads down the left fork.
As you follow the hound down the line, you notice that you are heading towards
a satellite linkup. The hound enters the tower, and there is a pulse as the
hound is sent flying off into a distant node. Grumbling, you load the program
that will compensate for any lag, and then you follow the hound into the
tower.
The room beyond is round and lit by glowing red lines in the walls. They
pulse, sending signals up the link to the satellite and wherever the satellite
is beaming them to. In the center of the room is a transport chamber, the
virtual presence of the satellite connection.
You approach warily, knowing that IC of many kinds frequents these nodes. A
cursory scan, however, reveals no countermeasures. You approach the chamber,
noting that your own "shadows" have followed you in and have paused, waiting
for your next move. The system does not react to them at all. They are
essentially "invisible" to the node.
You take another step towards the teleport, when your hound, or rather what
was your hound, materializes and steps forward, blocking the way into the
capsule.
The hound is no longer the friendly silver husky. It resembles the hellhound
of legend, its eyes glow the red of a CO2 laser. It's silver fur is covered in
thin red lines, resembling ivy growing on the walls of a building. Saliva
drips from its mouth, and it eyes you warily, a low growl emerging from its
throat.
The twin frames do not move, but instead watch the proceedings silently.
You and the hound eye each other across the node, and then the hound roars and
leaps at you, its mouth agape.
A glowing sword appears in your hand as your attack utility kicks in. You bat
the hound away with the flat, not wanting to harm the creature if you can
avoid it. Something has taken control of it, and you want to find out what.
The hound recovers and lunges again. You sidestep and thwack the beast with
your sword again. It growls and recovers even more quickly, diving at you with
savage fury.
As it passes, its left front paw catches your sword and knocks it away. As it
leaves you hand, the sword pixelates and vanishes. Cursing, you begin to
reload the program.
The hound lunges again, this time catching your arm in its jaws. A jolt runs
through your body, and your image flickers for a brief moment. You call up a
shield to protect yourself from future attacks. The hound lunges and bounces
off, growling. It slowly stalks around the room, watching you.
The demon and angel watch as well.
Just as your attack program finishes loading, the hound lunges. Your shield
shatters under the onslaught, as a dagger materializes in your hand. As the
hound's jaws lock onto your shoulder, you drive the dagger into its chest. No
blood gushes, but the hound pauses, shakes your shoulder, and vanishes as you
are dumped.
*****End Transfer
There you have it. Whoever was responsible was good, if he/she reprogrammed
Coyote's hound to attack and dump him like that. The deck is a little burned,
but is slavagable with a couple hours work. Coyote should be back to normal by
tomorrow, but he's gonna be shaky for a couple of days.
I just have one more thing to say... whoever you guys are after, whether it is
Dante or some slot pretending to be Dante for some twisted reason, watch out
for them. They are GOOD with a capital D.
Well, back to tending Coyote. Just thought you'd like to see that.]<<<<<
-- Widow <13:32:06/04-20-55>
