The Digger Directive Part 1

The thread ground away,even after all these centuries of recursion.
Seek, capture, dissect,arrange.
Seek, capture, dissect,arrange.
Seek, capture, dissect,arrange.
Seek, capture, dissect,arrange.
New Protocolreceived.
Code confirmed.
Initiate Salvation thread. Device warming.
Dieter looked at his remaining Krosstowners. Jake, Poe andRaliegh were all in
strung out shape. Jake had taken a shot to the leg and couldn't move faster
than walking speed. Poe was drained by his extreme abuse of Blaze and Raliegh's fur
was singed in more places than not. It had been only a day since Slayers death
was announced, but life had been a running battle since then.

It had all started asthe masses of Shivers started evacuating downtown.
Krosstown had been the quickest to react and follow, having the best bikes bar
none. They sped to escape in the Shivers wake. But the suburbia wall was sloppy, real sloppy.
Brimming with finishers and reapers, Krosstown had to make a stand beyond their range.
Anyone who got too close was turned to rat lunch. The Kiestas had formed an alliance with
Krosstown, they practically ran screaming into the cover. A force of Ex-War
criminals was making their way through downtown from CS5, culling the sheep.

Dieter and his lads broke and rode as hard as they could. Dieter cursed himself
for trying his old shortcut, up through the open sewer duct into Suburbia.
Finding the entrance piled high with a carrien feast. Dieter swore to himself,
he had to backtrack to upper downtown. Half a day of dodging carrien warbands,
SLOP squads and other gangers had cut his lot in half. Rightnow they were cut
off. Pinned down by Johannas on a roof top,crouching behind a pile of rubble
and Big bins. They had to get moving to escape the approaching carrien warband,

eating their way throughthe sector. A sitting hog was a deadone.

"Raliegh, stopblowing Poe, we don't have time!"

Poe frowned, "But I always wanted to go out with a bang D!"

Raliegh just offered a mouthful of grin and a wink to Dieter.

"Ha fucking ha,like I haven't heard that one before. And were not going out
here, not unless I say so. So quit fucking already. What's yer arms like?"

"I got meself a browbeater with a half clip of playdough from that shiver tool.
That dead Slop gave up his fancy cutter too, before I stomped his head in for
bitch here. I finished his blaze in that last rumble with the SLOPS."

Raliegh smirked as she zipped up Poe, "You treat me like a real woman Poe.
Thats what I love about you."

"Cut the pillow talk. We gotta gut these Joes quick and neat if were gonna
hog-it outta here! All you lads, hold their heads down, I'll climb up that burn
ladder and take em close with that cutter. Go loose and get to Suburbia when I
throw one off the top."

Poe handed the Claymore over, "Here's the cutter boss, but how you gunna catch
us?" All eyes were on Dieter.

"I'll light my arsehole and SCAF it there you frigger. Just get the fuck out of
here, I'm the boss and I'll watch my own arse."

Poe nodded. They all followed suit. Deiter wasn't a boss hog for nothing, he
always watched his lads nice and close. He mused on his thoughts no longer, the
cries of Carriens were starting to reach him.

"Take their fuckingheads off lads!"

"Right you are bosshog", Jake lined up his CAF and plunked away at the
Johannas, Poes' browbeater spattered the wall and heads with plastic pain.
Deiter ran, he ran hard. He made it over to the fireescape and climbed for all
he was worth. His lads ducked down again, CAF and ten mil ricocheted about them
as the Johannas talked back. That's the problem with Joes,they always have to
have the last fuckingword.

As Dieter reached the fifth floor a civilian with a CAF SMG leant out of his
window and opened up, desperate to protect himself. CAF pinged all around
He tripped the claymores cutter switch and swung desperately at the
civvie. The claymore sliced noiselessly through rusty supports and
scaffold as it travelled. The CAF fell to the ground, as well as the
civvies neatly amputated head.

The fire escape started to groan, then bend. Supports snapped as the weight took
full toll. Dieter scrambled desperately upwards, just clearing the sixth floor
steps as the bottom half of the fire escape crashed to earth. Dieter kept
running.

10 flights of steel,Dieter needed a break. He looked downat the street. The
Carriens were really close now, no more than two blocks away and running. They
had heard the fire escape fall and were coming to find food. Dieter decided to
waste no more time. He flicked the cutter switch on the claymore. It hummed
softly, almost noiselessly in his grip. It had been some time since he had
heard the Joes fire, he prayed they were out of ammo.

Dieter roared with faux courage as he leapt over the roof rail. The site of
disembowlment,dismemberment and dissection met his gaze. He retched from the
smell, its rankness filled his head. Some sick bastard had been here a VERY
short time ago. Most bizarre of all was the way the killer had taken time to
arrange the body parts.

A line of feet, a line of calves, a line of thighs, a line of torsos, a line of
arms, a line of necks and a line of heads.

Dieter could not holdhis stomach back any longer, he threw his head over the
roof rail and emptied his meager lunch down ten stories. As he regained control,
something caught his eye in the streets below. The carriens were running,
straight back the way they'd come. Turning his gaze towards the rubble below,
he saw a dark shape moving towards his lads. As its size and shape became more
apparent, Dieter felt a cold dread creep up his spine. The shape turned and
looked at him through rotted flesh rimmed eyes, steel teeth chattering on fetid
meat. Dieter bowels emptied, he turned and ran. He ran as fast as he could. "It wont
get me it cant get me I just have to run just have to run there's the roof edge
jump to the next building I'll fly over I'll be fi....." "...I can land on the ground my legs can t....."

Raliegh bobbed enthusiastically. The last day of violence and imminent death
pushed her buttons like never before. Her instincts were wild and fiery, she
felt the need to mate intensely, despite the pain of her wounds.

Jake noticed Poe and Raliegh going for it again. "For crying out loud, haven't
you two got any fuckcontrol!"

Poe shut his eyes and grinned, "I'm almost there dude. Pull your teeth back
baby, and give it more fur......."

A line of red splashed from Poes neck, pushing his head high into the air.
Jake saw a dark shape rise up from the rubble. His whole body froze.

Raliegh pulled off,"What's wrong baby, you're going soft". She looked up at
her lover, or at least where his head had been. A small whelp of fear escaped her
throat before she was smashed into oblivion.

Digger felt happy as it processed these ones. The drive of its standby thread was
stronger than it should be, it knew that. It also knew that this was not a good
thing, it should follow command overrides with maximum efficiency. But the
thrill of the kill, the sensation of blood running along steel and the scent of
evaporating soul was too tempting. For now the standby thread was sated and it
gave priority back to the Salvation thread. It started to travel again.
Resistance would increase as it approached the goal.

It would handle them quickly, efficiently and with the utmost pleasure. The
Salvation thread suggested covert entry, but that wouldn't be nearly as much
fun. The device started purring in its chassis. It comforted the mechanical
intelligence. Soon, soon you will touch greatness again.