Benderland
11-12-2003, 23:19
Yuri Verochka has been part of the Verochka crime syndicate all his life. The society has its roots firmly planted in Benderland after the Verochka family immigrated to the nation decades ago. Since then it has grown, the family has gained the reputation of being the only human organized crime syndicate in a robotic nation. It has escaped the long arm of the law by disguising its ring of illegal software and drug trade as a computer repair business.
Following an untimely death in the family, the son of the former head of the organization, Yuri, struggled his way to the seat of the throne, leaving a trail of blood, cash, and suspicion for the authorities. He is now 43, and the family's profits and reputation continue to grow exponentially. The man seems to be unstoppable, simultaneously eluding the law and gaining fame and fortune.
Now, he sits, in his high-security mansion, in his favorite chair, surrounded by his closest friends. Yuri is celebrating a recent successful "business venture" with his comrades. They sip fine wines from one of his personal vineyard and smoke the finest cigars from his collection. Tonight is a night of praise and celebration for himself and his minions.
"My friends!" Yuri booms with a thick Russian accent, "Last night you have proved to me your faith and devotion to the family! I am very pleased with your work."
"You expected any less from us?" one of his henchmen queried, jokingly. He smirked and took a sip from his wine. They all responded with a chuckle.
"You are right, you are right!" Yuri cheerfully replied, "All of you, you are exceptionally skilled. I can always rely on you to get the job done." He smiled, then leaned back and took a long drag from his cigar. Slowly he exhaled the smoke while gazing toward the priceless chandelier overhead.
Yuri was interrupted by his ButlerBot, who presented him a tray of hors doeuvres and asked, "Sir, would you care for something to eat?"
Yuri jerked out of his gaze and snapped at the robot, "What! I did not call for you. Why are you here?!"
"I am sorry sir, I just thought..."
"You are designed to take orders, you are not supposed to think, you heap of scrap!"
The ButlerBot became silent, and wheeled its way out of the room. All of the mafia men watched him as he slowly exited. They then faced each other, and broke into laughter.
"That is pathetic!" Yuri said, "I do not understand how these robots run this country. They cannot even listen to what I tell them to do!"
"All a bunch of nuts and bolts," a henchman added.
Yuri grinned, "It amazes me sometimes, how they are made out to be so smart, yet us humans are able to elude their pathetic police."
They all laughed, and continued their conversation. Outside it was beginning to rain. Droplets splashed against the elegant windowpanes. In the distance, lightning flashed and there was a lull of thunder in the air. A storm was brewing.
As they spoke more of their business, a henchman seemed uneasy. He began to speak, but hesitated.
"What's on your mind?" Yuri asked.
"I know I should not bring this up," the henchman replied, "But there is something bugging me about our recent... project. It was a roaring success, yes, but I believe we conducted it less carefully than usual."
Yuri was puzzled, and asked what he was speaking of.
"It is probably just the wine playing tricks on me, but I have a suspicion that the law is starting to become suspicious of us."
The room became silent. The rain outside continued to fall, and the thunder had become more frequent.
Suddenly, Yuri broke the silence, "Hah!" he screamed, and then laughed hysterically. The other henchmen reluctantly joined in. Yuri clutched his chest and tears began to form in his eyes. He ended his bout of hilarity with a sigh and wiped his left eye, still clutching his cigar.
"That is funny, you are a funny man!" he said, "Do not be ridiculous, these androids are pathetic! Even if they are on to us, it is nothing we cannot take care of. They are only robots."
The tension was eased, and the men went back to sipping their wine and smoking their cigars. Their careless conversation of humorous reminiscing and stories of former lovers carried on. The rain continued to intensify outside.
As they were about to begin a game of poker, a tone sounded out of nowhere. The men looked up, confused, and Yuri instinctively looked to the security monitors off to his right. All he saw was nothing out of the ordinary, just a rainy twilight. But suddenly he noticed a blur dart across a monitor. Then another, and another. The blur was traveling along the perimeter of his mansion, as if searching for an entrance. It was faster than a human but its appearance disagreed. Yuri was intrigued, but quickly grabbed for his pistol. The henchmen responded by drawing their own.
"Gentlemen, we have a visitor."
No sooner did they rise from their seats, gunshots were heard outside, followed by a crash of thunder. Yuri’s eyes darted across the monitors and then focused on the one overlooking the guard post at the front gate. All three of his guards were lying in pools of blood, with their weapons still in their holsters.
“Shit!” Yuri yelled, “Alright, let’s move to the back, he is probably…”
He stopped mid-sentence, noticing a dark figure in the same monitor. The figure was calmly approaching the gates. He grasped them, and a flash of lightning illuminated the scene. Yuri could make out a tall, well-built man in a neatly fashioned business suit. He was wearing sunglasses, but Yuri could not make out the rest of his face. Yuri watched in awe as the man in the suit easily bent the bars of the gate wide open, and calmly stepped through. He then nonchalantly walked out of frame.
Yuri was frozen in his stance, his mouth gaping in amazement. He quickly snapped to and barked out orders to his cohorts. They scattered about the mansion in all directions. Yuri made his way toward the center of his house, near his panic room.
As the mafia men assigned to the front doors reach their position, the giant oak doors burst into splinters. They began firing at the opening, not exactly sure where their target was. They paused momentarily, and the man in the suit emerged in the opening, with a desert eagle drawn. Before the henchmen could respond, he quickly dispatched them with two clear shots to their heads. He exited the foyer to the right, searching for his target.
The man reached the dining hall and was greeted by three more thugs armed with automatic weapons. They aimed, and he quickly rolled to the right as they fired. They followed his movement with a chain of lead, peppering an elegant table and upholstered chairs. Stuffing and splinters flew everywhere, but the man was not hit. He emerged from behind the table and returned fire. One of the henchmen clutched his chest and fell over; the other two took cover behind the kitchen doorway. The man momentarily paused, staring at the wall, and then placed two more shots in what appeared to be arbitrary spots in the wall. Two loud “thumps” were heard from the kitchen. The suit lowered his weapon and continued his way through the mansion.
After carelessly dropping a few more gunmen, he found his way into a small library. Shelves of books were lined in rows throughout the room, and he spotted Yuri dashing towards the wall. He reached it, slid back a picture, and pressed a button. The panic room door emerged out of the woodwork, and before Yuri could make a dash for it, the man in the suit fired at him. Yuri ducked and went in the opposite direction, taking cover behind a squat shelf. He returned fire, one shot striking the man. He jerked back slightly from the blow, but did not even flinch. The man raised his gun again and responded with his own words. Yuri again took cover behind the shelf. The gunfire stopped.
He was breathing heavily, frantically trying to reload his gun. He managed to do so, and then held his breath. Silence. He wasn’t sure if the man in the suit had moved, so he emerged and fired two shots where he last saw him. Yuri hit nothing but the air, and a priceless vase near the entrance.
“Come out, you coward!” he shouted. His words echoed throughout the library. He received no response.
“Where are you?” he shouted as he began scanning across the room, looking for his stalker. Still, there were no footsteps, no sign of the man in the suit. A book fell from the shelf to his left and he quickly pointed his weapon at it. No one was there.
“Who are you?!” he demanded, still facing where the book fell.
A mellow, yet domineering voice startled him, “I am your demise, Mr. Verochka,”
Yuri began firing in the direction of the voice, but saw nothing but pages and bindings fly into the air. He ended his barrage and a shell rang on the ground to his side. He once more scanned across the entire room and slowly inched his way toward the open panic room. His eyes raced across the shelves, the file cabinets, and the gaps between them. No one was there. Portraits on the walls stared back at him. He felt his way along the wall and then reached the panic room. One final sweep of the library, and he quickly backed into safety of the panic room, shutting the vault door. He let out a sigh and dropped his weapon. Then he dropped to his knees, relieved.
Click. Yuri quickly pivoted to face a barrel of the gun. Clutching the gun was the man in the suit.
The man stared back behind a pair of shades with a cold expression and uttered, “Only human.”
http://www.cinema.com/image_lib/3914_010.jpg
---
Presenting the Cyber-Agent. A pinnacle of assassination specialization, the Cyber-Agent looks and feels and behaves just like a human being. That is, of course, until he draws his weapon.
They are extremely efficient; they possess extreme accuracy with almost any weapon given to them. An advanced, high-speed targeting system allows them to track a target and place a quick and fatal shot. Various sensors embedded in the Agent's central computer include night vision/amplification, heartbeat scanner, thermal vision, and assorted others.
Aside from its firepower, the Cyber-Agent possesses superhuman strength and agility. It is able to leap up to 18 feet, and can make sprints exceeding 45mph. It also possesses astounding hand-to-hand combat abilities. It is trained in many martial arts, including ninjitsu.
Many people who have witnessed the performance of these Cyber-Agents would swear that they are able to dodge bullets. However, this is not entirely true. The agents cannot dodge bullets that are already traveling toward them. However, it is able to quickly analyze attackers' weapons for their trajectory and swiftly adjust its position to avoid pending shots.
Much of the structure of the Cyber-Agent is classified, but it utilizes lightweight high-impact armor to absorb damage from smaller caliber weapons. The Cyber-Agent also contains deposits of nanites throughout its body are programmed to repair damage it sustains. This gives it the threatening appearance of godlike stamina to those who are not aware of what the Cyber-Agent actually is.
One thing we would like to stress is that the cost and intricate construction involved to produce such complicated machinery is quite staggering. This prevents us from mass-producing these Agents. As of now, we will disclose that we have five operational Cyber-Agents. We do not plan on exceeding ten in order to keep the technology under wraps.
The plans for the various components of the Cyber-Agent are scattered about in a handful of high-security government research facilities. And attempting to reverse-engineer a Cyber-Agent will result in the model destroying itself with an explosive charge.
We are starting to consider contracting the Agents out on assassination assignments. But diplomatic circumstances are discouraging us. However, the main reason why we have disclosed the existence of these Cyber-Agents is to make the international community aware. If you have any questions regarding them, please ask.
Following an untimely death in the family, the son of the former head of the organization, Yuri, struggled his way to the seat of the throne, leaving a trail of blood, cash, and suspicion for the authorities. He is now 43, and the family's profits and reputation continue to grow exponentially. The man seems to be unstoppable, simultaneously eluding the law and gaining fame and fortune.
Now, he sits, in his high-security mansion, in his favorite chair, surrounded by his closest friends. Yuri is celebrating a recent successful "business venture" with his comrades. They sip fine wines from one of his personal vineyard and smoke the finest cigars from his collection. Tonight is a night of praise and celebration for himself and his minions.
"My friends!" Yuri booms with a thick Russian accent, "Last night you have proved to me your faith and devotion to the family! I am very pleased with your work."
"You expected any less from us?" one of his henchmen queried, jokingly. He smirked and took a sip from his wine. They all responded with a chuckle.
"You are right, you are right!" Yuri cheerfully replied, "All of you, you are exceptionally skilled. I can always rely on you to get the job done." He smiled, then leaned back and took a long drag from his cigar. Slowly he exhaled the smoke while gazing toward the priceless chandelier overhead.
Yuri was interrupted by his ButlerBot, who presented him a tray of hors doeuvres and asked, "Sir, would you care for something to eat?"
Yuri jerked out of his gaze and snapped at the robot, "What! I did not call for you. Why are you here?!"
"I am sorry sir, I just thought..."
"You are designed to take orders, you are not supposed to think, you heap of scrap!"
The ButlerBot became silent, and wheeled its way out of the room. All of the mafia men watched him as he slowly exited. They then faced each other, and broke into laughter.
"That is pathetic!" Yuri said, "I do not understand how these robots run this country. They cannot even listen to what I tell them to do!"
"All a bunch of nuts and bolts," a henchman added.
Yuri grinned, "It amazes me sometimes, how they are made out to be so smart, yet us humans are able to elude their pathetic police."
They all laughed, and continued their conversation. Outside it was beginning to rain. Droplets splashed against the elegant windowpanes. In the distance, lightning flashed and there was a lull of thunder in the air. A storm was brewing.
As they spoke more of their business, a henchman seemed uneasy. He began to speak, but hesitated.
"What's on your mind?" Yuri asked.
"I know I should not bring this up," the henchman replied, "But there is something bugging me about our recent... project. It was a roaring success, yes, but I believe we conducted it less carefully than usual."
Yuri was puzzled, and asked what he was speaking of.
"It is probably just the wine playing tricks on me, but I have a suspicion that the law is starting to become suspicious of us."
The room became silent. The rain outside continued to fall, and the thunder had become more frequent.
Suddenly, Yuri broke the silence, "Hah!" he screamed, and then laughed hysterically. The other henchmen reluctantly joined in. Yuri clutched his chest and tears began to form in his eyes. He ended his bout of hilarity with a sigh and wiped his left eye, still clutching his cigar.
"That is funny, you are a funny man!" he said, "Do not be ridiculous, these androids are pathetic! Even if they are on to us, it is nothing we cannot take care of. They are only robots."
The tension was eased, and the men went back to sipping their wine and smoking their cigars. Their careless conversation of humorous reminiscing and stories of former lovers carried on. The rain continued to intensify outside.
As they were about to begin a game of poker, a tone sounded out of nowhere. The men looked up, confused, and Yuri instinctively looked to the security monitors off to his right. All he saw was nothing out of the ordinary, just a rainy twilight. But suddenly he noticed a blur dart across a monitor. Then another, and another. The blur was traveling along the perimeter of his mansion, as if searching for an entrance. It was faster than a human but its appearance disagreed. Yuri was intrigued, but quickly grabbed for his pistol. The henchmen responded by drawing their own.
"Gentlemen, we have a visitor."
No sooner did they rise from their seats, gunshots were heard outside, followed by a crash of thunder. Yuri’s eyes darted across the monitors and then focused on the one overlooking the guard post at the front gate. All three of his guards were lying in pools of blood, with their weapons still in their holsters.
“Shit!” Yuri yelled, “Alright, let’s move to the back, he is probably…”
He stopped mid-sentence, noticing a dark figure in the same monitor. The figure was calmly approaching the gates. He grasped them, and a flash of lightning illuminated the scene. Yuri could make out a tall, well-built man in a neatly fashioned business suit. He was wearing sunglasses, but Yuri could not make out the rest of his face. Yuri watched in awe as the man in the suit easily bent the bars of the gate wide open, and calmly stepped through. He then nonchalantly walked out of frame.
Yuri was frozen in his stance, his mouth gaping in amazement. He quickly snapped to and barked out orders to his cohorts. They scattered about the mansion in all directions. Yuri made his way toward the center of his house, near his panic room.
As the mafia men assigned to the front doors reach their position, the giant oak doors burst into splinters. They began firing at the opening, not exactly sure where their target was. They paused momentarily, and the man in the suit emerged in the opening, with a desert eagle drawn. Before the henchmen could respond, he quickly dispatched them with two clear shots to their heads. He exited the foyer to the right, searching for his target.
The man reached the dining hall and was greeted by three more thugs armed with automatic weapons. They aimed, and he quickly rolled to the right as they fired. They followed his movement with a chain of lead, peppering an elegant table and upholstered chairs. Stuffing and splinters flew everywhere, but the man was not hit. He emerged from behind the table and returned fire. One of the henchmen clutched his chest and fell over; the other two took cover behind the kitchen doorway. The man momentarily paused, staring at the wall, and then placed two more shots in what appeared to be arbitrary spots in the wall. Two loud “thumps” were heard from the kitchen. The suit lowered his weapon and continued his way through the mansion.
After carelessly dropping a few more gunmen, he found his way into a small library. Shelves of books were lined in rows throughout the room, and he spotted Yuri dashing towards the wall. He reached it, slid back a picture, and pressed a button. The panic room door emerged out of the woodwork, and before Yuri could make a dash for it, the man in the suit fired at him. Yuri ducked and went in the opposite direction, taking cover behind a squat shelf. He returned fire, one shot striking the man. He jerked back slightly from the blow, but did not even flinch. The man raised his gun again and responded with his own words. Yuri again took cover behind the shelf. The gunfire stopped.
He was breathing heavily, frantically trying to reload his gun. He managed to do so, and then held his breath. Silence. He wasn’t sure if the man in the suit had moved, so he emerged and fired two shots where he last saw him. Yuri hit nothing but the air, and a priceless vase near the entrance.
“Come out, you coward!” he shouted. His words echoed throughout the library. He received no response.
“Where are you?” he shouted as he began scanning across the room, looking for his stalker. Still, there were no footsteps, no sign of the man in the suit. A book fell from the shelf to his left and he quickly pointed his weapon at it. No one was there.
“Who are you?!” he demanded, still facing where the book fell.
A mellow, yet domineering voice startled him, “I am your demise, Mr. Verochka,”
Yuri began firing in the direction of the voice, but saw nothing but pages and bindings fly into the air. He ended his barrage and a shell rang on the ground to his side. He once more scanned across the entire room and slowly inched his way toward the open panic room. His eyes raced across the shelves, the file cabinets, and the gaps between them. No one was there. Portraits on the walls stared back at him. He felt his way along the wall and then reached the panic room. One final sweep of the library, and he quickly backed into safety of the panic room, shutting the vault door. He let out a sigh and dropped his weapon. Then he dropped to his knees, relieved.
Click. Yuri quickly pivoted to face a barrel of the gun. Clutching the gun was the man in the suit.
The man stared back behind a pair of shades with a cold expression and uttered, “Only human.”
http://www.cinema.com/image_lib/3914_010.jpg
---
Presenting the Cyber-Agent. A pinnacle of assassination specialization, the Cyber-Agent looks and feels and behaves just like a human being. That is, of course, until he draws his weapon.
They are extremely efficient; they possess extreme accuracy with almost any weapon given to them. An advanced, high-speed targeting system allows them to track a target and place a quick and fatal shot. Various sensors embedded in the Agent's central computer include night vision/amplification, heartbeat scanner, thermal vision, and assorted others.
Aside from its firepower, the Cyber-Agent possesses superhuman strength and agility. It is able to leap up to 18 feet, and can make sprints exceeding 45mph. It also possesses astounding hand-to-hand combat abilities. It is trained in many martial arts, including ninjitsu.
Many people who have witnessed the performance of these Cyber-Agents would swear that they are able to dodge bullets. However, this is not entirely true. The agents cannot dodge bullets that are already traveling toward them. However, it is able to quickly analyze attackers' weapons for their trajectory and swiftly adjust its position to avoid pending shots.
Much of the structure of the Cyber-Agent is classified, but it utilizes lightweight high-impact armor to absorb damage from smaller caliber weapons. The Cyber-Agent also contains deposits of nanites throughout its body are programmed to repair damage it sustains. This gives it the threatening appearance of godlike stamina to those who are not aware of what the Cyber-Agent actually is.
One thing we would like to stress is that the cost and intricate construction involved to produce such complicated machinery is quite staggering. This prevents us from mass-producing these Agents. As of now, we will disclose that we have five operational Cyber-Agents. We do not plan on exceeding ten in order to keep the technology under wraps.
The plans for the various components of the Cyber-Agent are scattered about in a handful of high-security government research facilities. And attempting to reverse-engineer a Cyber-Agent will result in the model destroying itself with an explosive charge.
We are starting to consider contracting the Agents out on assassination assignments. But diplomatic circumstances are discouraging us. However, the main reason why we have disclosed the existence of these Cyber-Agents is to make the international community aware. If you have any questions regarding them, please ask.