After Mark received the encoded data package from the local security forces he immediately lost interest in them
"Are you strapped down, Lisa?"
"Yeah, let's go"
Mark immediately opened the throttle up and burned out of the android belt of Vrod-8 that had been their home for the past many months
"Separation distance achieved, punching out"
Lisa squeezed his hand and spoke
"Go"
A moment later, the Sparrow accelerated and entered faster than light speeds, with the release from the effects of inertia Lisa spoke
"I've left a navigation point in the nav processor… We can come back again Mark"
"I know"
"...Then please calm down"
Mark let out a sigh and tried to relax a bit, after setting an autopilot towards the Vrod SubNet communications hub at the center of the system he removed his senses from the Sparrow before he unstrapped himself and floated out of his seat
"Mark?"
At Lisa's voice Mark felt his vision go white for a moment, that's when he realized how furious he was
'This isn't Lisa's fault… This isn't Lisa's fault'
"Give me some time alone"
Without waiting for Lisa's response, he flew out of the cockpit and headed for the cargo bay as he fumed, now that he had physically left his home after being blackmailed out of it the anger he had felt simmering in the periphery of his mind exploded fourth
'Kill… I'll kill them all'
It no longer mattered who had done this or what noble motivations they held, Mark had already condemned them in his mind as he tore the door to a cargo container off its hinges without bothering with the electric lock.
'Kill… Tear them apart… Limb from limb!… KILL!'
Inside the cargo container, numerous corpses in various stages of damage were meticulously stacked to take up as little space as possible, Mark grabbed the foot of one corpse and dragged it out of the stack feeding on it before he ripped it apart with an inhuman scream of fury before he quickly reached for the next
-
By the time the cargo bay had been covered in a thin layer of blood and mutilated flesh, Mark had reached a logical understanding on the source of his anger, not that this logic calmed his feral side down that much
'... I never imagined I would be this influenced by… Instinct'
Mark felt a mix of bewilderment and exasperation as he struggled to control his want to continue tearing the mutilated corpses apart. That's when Lisa's voice sounded out from the console next to the entrance to the cargo bay
"Mark"
"Yeah, what is it?"
A few moments passed in silence, Mark could imagine why Lisa was reluctant to speak so he reassured her
"It's fine, just tell me"
"I've received a response from the encoded data package"
"Send it to this console"
"Alright… Won't you come out?"
"Yeah… But I'm covered in viscera, so I'll wash off first though"
"Okay~"
Hearing Lisa's relived voice from the console Mark let out a sigh and ended the call before he muttered
"Such a troublesome woman…"
Mark floated over and opened a smaller cargo container and pulled a large towel out of it, as he rubbed it on his body the water inside it gradually released, he likened it to a giant wet wipe
'Well, taking a running shower in a zero gravity environment isn't exactly optimal, so this will do'
Mark gradually cleaned himself off before he took a look at the details
'So it's a public station 61 light years away, that's what, 2 jumps?… We need to take out 8 targets… Man, this is a mess…'
The more Mark looked over the details the more he felt his headache growing, not only would they have to deal with a private security detail but more than likely also the local system security and with it, a hefty bounty
'Well, assuming our backer actually pulls through, and we receive clemency in the end instead of cutting us loose it will be a clusterfuck to leave the station after the fact…'
Mark contemplated this for a bit before he took control over the Sparrow once more and plotted the route for the first jump a few moments passed before Lisa's voice sounded out from the console again
"Mark?"
"We're going for a jump"
"Got it"
'Alright, a 42 light year jump that will last a little over a day. From there a 19 light year jump plus the in system navigation and docking it's going to take a little over 2 days to arrive…'
As the Sparrow finished warming up the drive core the ship immediately accelerated and went for the first jump, getting the tell-tale feeling of slight vertigo before the jump was initiated Mark called Lisa again over the console
"Lisa, come to the cargo bay, we'll be practicing bladed combat"
"I'm on my way~"
Mark let out a chuckle as Lisa ended the call at once and was most likely quickly getting ready like a maiden excited for a romantic meetup
'Well, it's a knife fight, not a trip to the movies… But as Luna said, she's strangely endearing…'
Only a few moments passed before Lisa threw open the hatch to the cargo bay and yelled
"MARK~"
She flew into the cargo bay with her maneuverability pack, ignoring the scattered body parts, and grabbed Mark before she began aggressively rubbing her face against his shoulder
"Easy"
"Ehehe~"
Mark indulged her for a bit before he spoke
"Alright now, with the amount of targets and semi public location on the mission, we need to take some of them silently"
Lisa nodded and asked
"Hence the knives?"
"Yes, have you ever used a knife or sword before?"
Lisa nodded before she spoke
"Yeah, I've done about 8 years of swordsmanship training"
"Seriously?"
Lisa nodded once again and let go of Mark's arm before she floated a bit away from Mark and took a formal looking sword stance, even with her not holding a sword Mark could see it
"Right, you are a noble daughter"
Lisa showed a proud smile and nodded before she added
"Though I doubt we'll be using that kind of blade skill in assassinations"
"Yeah, though it would be nice for me to know… But let's focus on short blades for now"
"Okay~"
-
Immediately after arriving in the Zir system 2 days later Mark had docked the Sparrow at the station that were indicated in the mission details, however from here the two of them realized that it would be an uphill battle to even locate the 8 people mentioned in the mission details
"Well, they're all part of the same group of separatist terrorist, so at least that somewhat narrows it down"
"How so? Oh right, well… It will depend on whether the local security forces are aware of them, and if they are is they are complicit"
"Yep… Let's work the streets, then… Wanna go hit up a bar?"
Lisa shrugged before she eventually agreed
"Yeah… But I want a proper bath first, at the very least a shower"
"Sure"
Having decided on a temporary goal the two set out, the two set out and as soon as they entered the station proper Mark felt it was different from the other stations he had been to before, it wasn't like the semi abandoned Creh-2 trade hub or the prim and proper white collar administration offices of Reeb-1 trade hub
'If anything, this feels a lot more blue collar than the Reeb-1 trade hub'
Most of the people walking the streets wore jumpsuits that had been worn down by repeated use and cleaning, however the people didn't seem embarrassed about this, instead it almost seemed like a point of pride
'Well, I guess it's not a manufacturing hub for nothing…'
As far as Mark knew, the Zir system hosted many Ficer manufacturing plants and foundries along with that there were several large prefab factories that made anything from station paneling to standardized shipping containers
'There's also several active mining outposts… Huh, this station actually has some pretty good energy'
Mark was about to follow the flow of people when Lisa pulled him back by the arm
"Shower first"
"Yes ma'am"
The two quickly checked in at a hotel for half a day, so Lisa could get her 2-hour bath and skincare routine on, meanwhile Mark worked on setting up surveillance on the local SubNet, while he wasn't as skilled as Luna were, he had still absorbed a lot of knowledge from her on that area
'Plus, the Sparrow's Electronic warfare suite is more than enough to put out a few feelers'
As Mark laid flat on his back on the soft queen-sized bed he browsed various forums and message boards on the local SubNet, he skimmed conversations and eventually got a decent feel for the local culture along with it he also discovered the reason for the particular energy he had felt when they had hit the streets
'System wide unions have just finished their yearly negotiations and secured major cost of living adjustments along with general raises… No wonder people are out celebrating'
Mark looked further into the union leadership and publicly available pictures and speed through videos of rallies, scanning the crowds and faces of the leadership when he felt a touch on his shoulder and saw Lisa was out of the shower
"Did you find anything?"
Mark shook his head
"No, not yet… However, I believe the best place to start is the unions"
Lisa nodded before she asked
"That's those worker things, right?"
Mark looked at her face for a bit before he remembered she was a noble daughter and nodded
"Yeah, it's a collective organization formed of workers to increase their bargaining power with their employer"
Lisa nodded and sat down on the edge of the bed and gestured to her back where the zipper to her bodysuit was still open and as she held her long flowing platinum blonde hair out of the way she turned her head to the side and locked eyes with Mark before she asked him
"Help me zip up Mark"
"You got it"
Mark zipped it up and watched her as she put a pair of loose fitting cargo pants and a long t shirt and secured a holster with her personal ballistic pistol and a sheath with a long knife to her hip before she turned around and looked back at him for a few moments before she asked
"Didn't you want to head out?"
Mark snapped out of his daze and nodded
"Right, let's go"
Lisa noticed him snapping out of a daze and showed a bright smile as she asked him teasingly
"Were you mesmerized by me, Mark?~"
"Zip it"
"Ehehe~"