Eirnin O'Cairdha - An ongoing Story.
I was born in Ireland in the countryside away from the big cities. While growing up, I did not get the growth spurts most of the other children had got. I stayed small never reaching over three feet. Because of this I got picked on by all the other kids. They would pick on me and bully me. One day, I decided to fight back and got my ass whooped badly. When I awoke I stumbled home in a bloody mess. My father upon seeing me checked me to make sure I was OK, cleaned me up and then was going to go after the kids that did this to me. I insisted that my father do nothing because I knew it would just make it worst for me. So my father gave me another option that ended up being the toughest endeavor I ever took. It might not help immediately but eventually as my father explained it, “you will be able to hold your own.” From that point my father started teaching me to fight. In his hay day, my father had been in more then his share of fights but had also competed tournament fighting (both legal and illegal). My father started me off with the basics, focusing on the building speed, strength and toughness. He put me on a strict regiment of weight training, running and some of the techniques that he learned to toughen the body up. One of the things my father used, mainly because he was waiting for a part to fix his tractor was to hook up the til to me and made me pull it. To my father’s surprise, I was able to pull it, only a couple of inches at a time at first but still I was able to pull it. After time with all the training, I was pulling the til through the soil faster then if dad hooked it up the tractor. I was becoming incredibly strong even for someone of normal size let alone someone who was only around three feet. Now during this whole time, my father understood that any opponents that I might face would always be bigger then I was so he developed a system of fighting that would make use of my small size. He figured, if my son ever runs into someone his size, I could fall to the basics. Dad started making wooden dummies in various positions that could occur in a fight that I could take advantage of. Many of the special maneuvers relied on a punch or kicking coming towards me and me grabbing or jumping off of to get higher for my attack. Eventually, I stopped going to his classes just so I could train full time. As my skill and strength was increasing, I started destroying the wooden dummies in my training. It is a good thing that we lived out in the boonies where there are plenty of trees to build new ones. The only thing I was tougher on was my clothes. I was wearing through clothes really fast. My mother finally told me I was going to learn how to fix my own clothes if I was going to be going to be destroying them so quickly.
Time passed and I ended up getting himself into a few illegal fight tournaments. These are what led to me leaving Ireland. After one of the tournaments, the guy running the event would not pay me the money I was owed. I did not take to kindly to that as I had some things he wanted to buy and needed the money. We were in a standoff until I decided to do something about it. I ran right past the guys two bodyguards and nailed him hard across the chin with a knee shattering his jaw in 3 places. After which, I turned to the bodyguards who were obviously none to pleased. I started fighting with them, upon shattering the ones knee the other pulled a gun and shot me. It is not the first time I had seen a gun. Dad used them top hunt all the time. It is, however, the first time I had been shot though and even with as tough as I was, It hurt!!!!! I saw red at that point going after the guy who had just shot me and beat him into a bloody pulp (literally). After I was done, I went back to the original guy and took all the money he had on him. After that, I left Ireland that night and haven’t looked back. I spent some time in Europe for a while but eventually after to many fights I decided to moved on before the shit got to deep.
Moving on, I crossed the ocean to end up in North America, specifically New Orleans. I started quick at getting myself established, found a good Irish pub and quickly became friends with the owner. Soon after, I started making my rounds. After all, here I was just the short little nobody with no means of income because I didn’t know anyone except Mickey. Mickey gave me a break and let me use the apartment upstairs in exchange for working for him as a bar back. I was small so naturally he assumed what everyone always assumed about me until one day when four members of one of the local gangs decided to come in and start some trouble. None of them were packing any heat but they all did have various weapons (Bats, chains, knives, etc..). The first thing they did was knock the bouncer out cold with a baseball bat. They then proceeded to start trashing the place saying time to pay your protection. At this point, I put my towel down and I stepped up. “He already hired protect!” The gang members started laughing rather loudly. Until I walked up and hit the one of the guy multiple times. Then they started surrounded me. My friend was starting to come from out behind the bar to help until I said, “No worries, I can handle this. You sit back and watch, I haven’t had a good fight in a couple of months. Get a beer ready for me for when I am done with them.” They started swinging at me, they were hitting me but it wasn’t effecting me. They were to weak, my training had toughen me so much I could stand there all day letting them hit me and be un-phased. After I was done beating the hell out of them, I went through their pockets and took everything they had. Then I stripped them down completely and tied them up with their own clothes. At this point I started beating them one by one until they told me where they hung out and where their leader was. I looked at Mickey and said, “I will take care of this problem for you man. Do you know anyone who can get some grenades?” He called a contact of his and sent me over to him. Unfortunately, all he had in stock was a couple concussion and smoke grenades. The other problem was they looked the same. I then followed up by going to where the gang hung out and made my way to the leader. I made my case as to why the bar and a block radius should be neutral ground and that if they didn’t comply I would beat everyone of you down. They laughed at me and then pulled out their guns. My response was, oh it is like that, and pulled the pin on one of the grenades and dropped it in front of me. I wasn’t thinking, I thought it was a good time to drop a smoke grenade, how can they hit what they can not see? Unfortunately, or fortunately, I dropped the wrong one. Upon dropping it everyone started diving and scattering. Luckily, the hang out was an abandoned warehouse and we were in the center. Boooom…. The grenade went off, it was one of the concussion grenades. The blast threw me about 10 feet back, I was not prepared for the impact otherwise I would have shifted my weight differently, but when I landed I was unhurt. The entire gang was just staring in disbelief at me as I got up seemingly unharmed. My response was, “ooops, wrong one”, started laughing, “who wants to do that again?” As I pulled out another grenade, the gang leader said, “Easy… you can have your area neutral if you do something for us. Anyone with balls big enough to come up into the lot of us and tell us an area is neutral, anyone crazy enough to do what you just did, and tough enough to survive it as well, let alone being unhurt, we could have some use for someone like you. Here is the offer, we will consider that area neutral but if we need your help you give us a hand, don’t worry you will pay you for helping us out as well.” This sounded fair so I agreed.
Life went on and I was well on my way at making a life for myself but I have yet to make a real name for myself. I have found that if one looks for trouble on usually finds it. On of the times I was running around I had found this big old troll. So I picked a fight with him. He did what everyone does before facing me. He laughed, I thought they will never learn. I decided to got to work. I did one of my jumping elbow strikes to his head, which pushed him back but didn’t appear to hurt him but it did get his attention. We went back and forth with this David versus Goliath battle we were having. The problem was that it turned out that it was a stalemate. I hit him, it didn’t do anything. He hit me, it didn’t do anything. Eventually, we both started laughing, I earned his respect and he earned mine and we did the only thing that was left to do. We went to the bar and had a drink together. Turns out the troll, Victor, was a bouncer at The Thirsty Whale. Since that point we had each others backs because we knew that we could both handle our own.
In my travels, I stumbled across this small shop in the slums. It seemed that most of the locals avoided the place. So naturally, I decided I had to check it out. After going in I saw all kinds of stuff in here but it was the weapons that were calling to me. That is at least until I asked the cost of them. After hearing how much the weapons were I had to asked why they were so much. At this point the shop keeper looked me up and down and then said ah, an adept who doesn’t know he is an adept. The shop keeper then explained about being an adept as well as to why the weapons, or weapon foci as he put it were so costly. I still wanted one and because of it I am at the store all the time. I have made arrangements with Elizabeth, the store keeper. It’s kind of a lay-a-way program except besides giving him nuyen, I also do jobs for him. We see each other so often it was an inevitability that we would become friends.
Fight after fight, I kept seeing the paramedic coming out, I guess he pissed someone off or likes the action that one sees in the rougher parts of town. Needless to say, he started seeing the pattern as well. After constantly seeing me around standing when everyone else is injured. Eventually, he came up to me and asked why I was always around watching the people fight always. Like everyone, he assumed because of my size that I was a sideliner. I laughed, “Who watched, this is my work, don’t worry, with me around you will have job security. Its better then what a lot of these lads do pull out there damn guns and start blazing away. There is no mistakes or missing my target, I walk up to them look them in the eye and beat them down. The name is Eirnin. If anyone gives you a hard time in this area let me know and I will have a talk with them.” The paramedic gave me his name and we see each other from time to time.
Job: A shitty job but someone had to do it.
I came in for my afternoon drink after going for a run and Mickey
asked me if I was looking for some work. Apparently, Mickey was contacted
for use of his back room in about 45 minutes. Since I was already there
I got a beer and went to the back room. I took a seat at Mickey’s
desk, put up my feet, pulled out a book in world beers and started reading
while I waited. Eventually, the Mr. Johnson showed up and started off
saying your not Mickey. Being such an obvious statement I felt a smart
ass comment was in order. After that he was making a comment about my
size and being capable of doing the job. For him to make a comment like
that and have no backup to protect him, I thought what a dumb ass he was.
I shouted out to Mickey and he agreed. Others arrived slowly starting
with the most flamboyant of trolls. Mickey called me to the front after
this guy came in. I went to see what it was all about. The damn troll
came in with a ruffled shirt on and well, yeah… Lets just say he
was in the wrong part of town to put it mildly. After having words with
the troll, I went to the back room to find out how much the job was paying.
The Mr. Johnson wouldn’t say how much the job would be so I decided
to not make an example of the troll just yet (needed to know how much
the job would bring in before I did something that would require a bunch
of repairs for Mickey that I would have to pay for). So I went back to
my drinking and returned to my seat behind the desk in the back room.
Others started arriving, The Mr. Johnson started talking, telling us the
job was to retrieve a package about the size of a small briefcase from
an abandoned warehouse. Apparently, this guy sent two other groups after
this and they came back injured and without the package. The pay was 2000
nuyen plus 5000 more for the person who handed it to him. We all agreed
to do the job. All together there were five of us; the troll, an elf that
was taller then the troll, two humans and myself. We started walking to
the warehouse to check it out it was a couple of miles away and around
2:00 pm. We had until tomorrow to deliver the package but figured we might
as well check it out in advanced. Once we got a couple of blocks away,
we split up to check out the warehouse from different angles. I snuck
up to the warehouse to try and see if there were any cracks, holes or
windows that I could get a look into the warehouse. I found a three foot
hole in the wall and looked in. It was really dark in there. I could,
however, see inside with my thermovision. I saw several rats, lots of
rubble, a six foot diameter hole in the sealing of the first floor. I
also saw either a small child crunched up or a dog sitting I wasn’t
sure. There was also a strong scent of shit. We all met up two blocks
away from the warehouse to discuss what we saw. We decided to go back
to the warehouse while it was still day. We went in through the hole I
found except for the troll he decided to use the front door because he
couldn’t fit if he wanted to. I decided to head up the stairs since
what I saw was up there. I figure that was where the fun would be. I made
my way up the stairs as the rest of the group made their way in. There
were four of them up there. They were my size except very hairy and more
like a chimpanzee. The oafish troll decided to try and make his way upstairs
by pulling himself up making all kinds of noise. Naturally, one of these
creatures heard him and then ran into a one of the rooms up. I decided
to follow it and take care of it just in case it was going for something.
These things were a joke and I wanted to finish my workout that I started
before going to Mickey’s Place. I took care of the one and the rest
of the group took care of the other three. We then proceed to search the
place for the package. Eventually, we found it and headed back to Mickey’s.
Mickey gave Mr. Johnson a call and I went upstairs to take a shower to
get the smell of that place off of me and to change clothes. Mr. Johnson
came in and was shocked that we were already back and had the package
so quickly. He had the 2000 nuyen put onto credsticks that he had given
to us and then had his hand out. To my suggestion, we all handed the package
to him at the same time and we all got an additional 5000 nuyen. Not bad
pay for a bullshit job. He pulled a cigar out of the package we brought
back and then said you passed the test, can you work together in the future?
I was game, thinking if this guy pays as well as he did for this joke
of a job I would be willing to work for him.
System
Shadowrun 3rd Edition
Runs:
1. A shitty job but...
2. Catch-a-Deck
Statistics
Race: Gnome
Class: Physical Adept
Height: 3'2"
Weight: 150lb
Attributes:
7 Body
6 Quickness
7 Strengthl
2 Charisma
4 Intelligence
8 Willpower
6 Essence
6 Magic
Skills:
6 Athletics
1 Biology
2 Clubs
1 Crafts
2 Edged Weapons
4 Language: Germanic-English
2 Read/Write
2 Language: Celtic-Irish Gaelic
1 Read/Write
1 Language: Romance
5 Stealth
5 Throwing
6 Unarmed Combat
Powers:
Thermographic Vision
Mystic Armor - 4
Improved Reflexes - 1
Edges & Flaws:
Computer Illiterate
Sense of Direction
Perfect Time
Photographic Memory