Ben and Streek: Clone Saga Ch. 05

"Okay Doc. Lets do this." said Ben.

The ramp opened under the Avatari and the two busty young women exited, the skinny brunette with the white streak through her hair and wearing a dark blue jump-suit and orange jacket, and the curvier blonde with looped braided hair and a rusty red jump-suit.

They looked around, the place was dim and run-down, debris was scattered everywhere, they could just see some sun-light shining through on one side, through the cracks the Avatari slipped through, but mostly there was just millions of tonnes of concrete above them, and below them and all around them.

They left the Avatari behind them as the made their way further into the concrete jungle. Ben tapped away at her TAB, "I can't contact Ben and Streek on their TABs, of coarse it's not gunna be that easy. They would have dumped their old ones to stop the Feds from tracking them."

They came to an area where there were people here and there, mostly beggars and drunks and other poor looking citizens going about their business, there were a few mangy looking dogs sniffing about. Crude-looking dwellings were littered around the place.

They went further into what could pass as a commercial district. The streets were illuminated with strange fluorescent lighting and the concrete ceiling loomed six meters above them as far as they could see.

There were shops here and there with roughly painted signs and other small market vendors selling their wares out on the street. Prostitutes stood out there in their revealing clothing waiting for customers.

There were more people walking around there, some were rough looking types, many of them stared at Ben and Streek as they walked past.

"Hey, you girls wanna buy some Draxies? I got good stuff." said a scruffy looking nerf herder.

"No, get lost!" said Ben.

"Fuck you then, sluts!"

Ben pointed across the street to a round building with a large sign saying "Dennies' Den", "Looks like a bar, we'll give that one a try eh?"

They entered the building and walked through a room with a few people loitering about, they came to a large circular room that was the centre of the building. In the centre of that was a circular bar with an ugly, grey haired man bartending.

Several people were standing and sitting around the room. The place seemed pretty crowded, probably due to the Federation blockade.

Five other rooms came off from the central room, each connected by a round, open archway. These rooms had people in them, mostly gaming and gambling, Streek saw that one room had a holographic rock band playing.

Another room had a large screen at the back and a robot fight was being shown, several rough looking men were standing there watching and cheering.

It reminded Streek of the gaming room in the underground bar in Port Redland, where she was pushed to her knees and forced the suck the stinking cocks of three men, she shuddered as she remembered the thug Cumming in her mouth.

"Come on" said Ben as she approached the bar in the middle. Streek followed her, passing a few men who didn't bother hiding the fact they were staring at her boobs.

"What can I get you?" asked the bartender.

"Two Dry Ales, thanks" said Ben.

The bartender poured the beer and placed them in front of Ben and Streek. Ben passed him a hundred dollar credit slip. "Keep the change." she said.

"Very generous, lady." said the bartender as he pocketed the slip.

"Perhaps you can help us." said Ben. She pulled out the photographs and showed them to him. "We're looking for our brothers, have you seen these guys in here?"

The bartender looked over the photos. "Are you with the Feds?" he asked.

"No, we're not, why?"

"Because the Feds were asking about these guys too, looks like your brothers are in big trouble."

"What did you tell them?"

"I told 'em the truth, I never seen 'em before. It's a big Under-city you know, plenty of other bars. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got other customers."

As Ben and Streek sat and drank their beer, they carefully examined the faces of all the people around them.

"Hey Streek!" said Ben

"What?"

"At my seven o'clock, the punk-rocker chick sitting at the booth, does she look familiar to you?"

Streek looked behind Ben and saw her. She flashed back to when she didn't have her big boobs, but had a dick and balls and stubble on her chin. She was standing next to Ben in the small cargo bay of the Apollo Creed, shit-scared as Pirates were pointing guns at them.

And this young woman with her spiky hair and whole bunch of metal piercing in her face was talking to them. "Is this all the fuckin' weed you have?, You faggots got any snow?, or Downers?, Zero?, Ryphin? Genisticks?, or anything?".

"Steel Sharks!" said Streek, her voice wavering.

"Yeah, I think the bitches' name was Sadie or something."

"Didn't Mia say that Captain Naemes' girlfriend lead a mutiny on him?"

"Yeah, that's right. You think she's really a Captain now?"

"Could be, but she struck me as just a junkie slut!"

"Yeah me too. But you remember what Mia was saying at dinner? About the Pirates re-forming their Alliance, and she suspects they're trying to recover Alien Technology too."

"Yeah, I remember that. So you think she's here for the Cloning Pod?"

"Maybe, maybe not"

Streek looked over at Sadie again. She threw back her beer and tried to pluck up her courage. "She looks a bit lonely over there, I'll go and see what she has to say." said Streek as she stood from the bar stool.

"Don't go starting a fight!" said Ben.

"Sure!"

The Punk chick in the black leathers was sitting alone in a booth, drinking clear liquor from a class. Her eyes lifted up, regarding Streek as she approached.

"Hi, how are you doing?" said Streek giving her a smile.

Sadie didn't return the smile, "Fuck off, I don't want my pussy licked right now!"

"I hadn't even got around to offering that."

Sadie stared hard at Streek, "You kinda look familiar, have we met before?"

"No, I would have remembered, I'm sure. You don't look like a local, are you stuck here because of the fuckin' Federation blockade as well?"

"None of your fuckin' business. Now fuck off dyke!"

"Fine then, guess I'll have to find someone else to share my Ryphin with."

"You got Ryphin?" said Sadie, her expression softening.

"Good quality tea from Antares."

Sadie paused and then shook her head. "Go on, Fuck off already!"

Streek walked back toward the bar, that didn't tell her much. She saw that there was a young man at the bar talking to Ben, he had medium length blonde hair and was kind of handsome in a rugged way.

"Oh Streek, this is Nate." said Ben as Streek got close. Nate held out his hand and Streek shook it.

"Nice to meet you Streek."

"Bernies' my girlfriend." said Streek, "...back off buddie."

"Oh? Is that why you were just trying to pick up Miss Mohawk over there?"

"She's right Nate, I'm not interested. But I was just going to ask you..." Ben got the photos out and showed them to him, "...Have you seen these guys at all?"

Nate looked at them and shook his head, "They look like a couple of losers, I think what you girls need is a real man."

"Yeah thanks, Nate, we'll know where to go if we want one."

Nate nodded to them smiling and then turned and walked back to a table he was sitting at with a friend.

"Doesn't look like it went too well with the Pirate bitch." said Ben as Streek settled down next to her again.

"She's not in a very social mood it would seem. She even turned down some Ryphin. That's a girl on a mission."

"Oh, You have Ryphin?" said Ben hopefully,

"No, I don't have Ryphin, it was a ruse. What should we do about her?"

"Report her to the Doc, and to Mia when we can, and just carry on with our mission."

Ben looked around and then suddenly tensed up. "Don't look now, some Federation Troopers have just entered the bar."

Streek couldn't help herself, she turned and looked at the entrance room where several Soldiers in their blue armour and helmets were entering.

"Shit, is there another exit?" said Streek.

"Feds are likely to be covering the exits, come with me!" Ben got up from the bar and Streek followed her.

They casually walked over to the table where Nate and his friend were.

"It's not gunna lead you anywhere, but you can buy us drinks if you want." Ben said to Nate.

He smiled at them. "Sure thing, have a seat ladies, welcome. Streek this is my friend Chip."

Chip had a large thick build and closely cropped stubble on the top of his head and chin, he wasn't near as handsome as Nate, he offered his big hand and Streek shook it."Nice to meet you Streek."

The girls sat down and Nate got up to get them their drinks as the Fed Troopers entered the centre room. Ben and Streek kept their eyes down as the Troopers slowly walked around the bar, studying each person, and getting hateful stares in return.

Chip was trying to make small talk and the girls were giving short, sharp responses. Streek saw a Federation Sergeant talking to the bartender, she hoped that he wasn't going to tell them that they were looking for the two men as well.

She felt the weight of her hand gun under her jacket. They may have to fight their way out of here.

Nate returned and put a couple of glasses of clear liquor in front of them. "Here's your drinks ladies."

"We were drinking beer." said Ben

"This is better, stronger. Moolton, a house special."

"Thanks." said Ben and she took a sip, "...Not bad, strong but smooth."

Streek was reluctant, she remembered the episode with the Ryphin tea. Then she saw a Federation Trooper staring at her from an archway, she quickly lifted the glass to her face and drank.

Nate and Chip talked to them as they drank. Ben gave them a story about being traders, stuck here because of the blockade, and their brothers had gone missing and could be in trouble with the authorities.

It turned out Nate and Chip were part of the crew of a cargo ship as well, being forced to take a holiday here by the Federation.

The Federation Troopers looked around for a little while and then left. Ben and Streek were relieved to see them go.

Streek drank down the last of her drink, it wasn't bad. "We better get going." she said to Ben.

"Yeah, we gotta keep looking for our brothers." Ben told Nate and Chip.

"Let us help you." said Nate, "...The streets can be pretty dangerous around here, especially for pretty young ladies."

"Don't worry, we can look after ourselves. If you wanna help I'll give you my TAB ID and you can call me if you see them."

"Sure thing, I'll give you a call later." said Nate smiling.

"...If you see our brothers. Thanks for the drinks."

Ben and Streek rose from the table and left Nate and Chip behind. Streek looked over to where Sadie was, she was gone now. They left the bar and went back out onto the street.

They looked up and down the street, They could see the Federation Troopers some distance away, further down. Ben looked at her TAB. "There's another bar about twenty minutes walk North-East of here, we should stay away from the main streets and take the back ways."

"Yeah, lets go." said Streek.

The drinks were helping her feel relaxed. They made their way to the North-East through dark alleys and abandoned buildings and run-down residential areas.

They were walking down a long dark alley when Ben turned to Streek "Did you see them?"

"The two guys following us?, yeah I saw them."

"It's not Nate and Chip is it?"

"No, not them."

Streek stopped walking and lifted up her TAB, she used the X-ray scanner that the Doctor had installed. "I see four bodies at the end of this alley, waiting to ambush us."

"Could they be Federation?"

"No, doesn't look like it, only one has a firearm, the others have blades and stun-rods. Local gang, I'd say."

"It looks like it's ass-kicking time, just watch that firearm."

Streek stepped forward and called out, "Hey there!! Why don't you come and talk to us!! Come on, don't be shy!!"

After a brief pause, a big, rough looking man came around the corner, he casually strode down toward the girls with three other men following behind him.

The two other men that had been following them came up behind them and Streek watched them carefully. They all wore dirty denim jackets, showing that they were a gang.

The big, ugly guy with the green Mohawk and nose-ring was the one with the gun, although he still had it concealed, he must have been their leader.

"You're on Rusty Razors turf girlies." he said with a lisp as he got close to them.

"We're just passing through, there's no need to feel threatened." said Streek.

The Gang leader let out a loud laugh at that, "Threatened? ...us?, you're pretty funny bitch!"

"Look at that boss! They got nice big melons!" said one of the thugs.

The gang-leader turned to his men, "Come a little closer new guy, they won't bite!"

The skinny guy at the back slowly came closer and Streek let out a gasp as she saw a very familiar face. It was her old face, her male face. He had a look of recognition on his face too, and he looked scared.

"You!" said the female Streek.

"Do you know her Stevie boy?" said the gang leader, "...She kinda has your look about her. She a relative or something?"

"What are you doing here?" asked male Streek.

"Can you boys excuse us, I need to talk with him." said female Streek.

The gang leader laughed again. "Ha!, excuse you? yeah right bitch. I told you, you're on Rusty Razors turf, so you need to pay. I'll take everything you have, including your fat tits and cunt. Do you have a problem with that Stevie?"

The male Streek looked at the two girls, "You need to get out of here!" he told them.

Ben looked them over and said "The only thing you'll be taking is a beating. Now just walk away, and you'll be able to boast that you did one smart thing in your life."

"Ha!, I hope your still talking tough like that when I'm fucking you! get 'em boys!"

Streek stood her ground as the gang members approached her, one swung a stun-rod at her and she casually stepped aside, dodging it.

He swung again and again but only hit the air as Street ducked and weaved. She ducked low as it swung at her head and then she sprung up and kicked the man in the face, knocking him back.

The gang-leader drew his gun, but Ben was on him, twisting his wrist until he dropped it, and then kneeing him hard in the balls, making him cry out in pain.

Both girls danced around dodging and blocking as the thugs swung blades and clubs at them. They delivered a series of hard punches and kicks, sending the men to the ground, one by one.

Streek approached the big gang leader who was still doubled over in pain, "Fuckin' sluts!!" he said as he threw a punch at her head. Streek grabbed his arm and started delivering a series of strong kicks to his chest and face until he dropped backwards onto the ground.

Streek looked down the alley and saw that her male copy was running away from them. "Hey, stop!!" she called out and then took off after him. Ben saw what was going on, she kicked the head of one of the thugs who was getting up and then she ran after them too.

The male Streek burst out of the alleyway, running as fast as he could. The female Streek was about twenty meters behind him, chasing him. He deliberately scattered some trash cans as he ran past them, forcing her to leap over them, but it didn't slow her down.

He ran down the street a bit more, and then veered off into another side alley, trying to lose her. She continued pursuing him through the labyrinth of dark alleys, dodging crates and debris and the odd vagrant, not seeming to be making any ground on him.

Just as Streek was starting to get puffed out, Ben suddenly dropped down from the roof of one of the buildings and tackled him to the ground. Streek came up panting heavily as her male counterpart sat on the ground panting heavily as well.

"huff....nice move Ben!, ...huff, ...huff."

The male Streek looked up at her. "I'm sorry I tried to rape you, okay?!"

"That's a good start."

"How the hell did you do that back there? All that Kung-Fu shit! It was awesome! Like something from Monkey Fury!"

"We met a man who taught us to fight." said Ben.

"What, ...in four days?"

"Actually significantly less time than that." Ben got her TAB out and scanned the male Streek. "...He's a clone."

"How many other Streek clones are there?" asked Streek.

"You're not working with the Feds are you?"

"No, answer the question."

"There's just us two!" said the male Streek.

"Where's our Sire?"

"Sire? You mean the original Streek? he's not far from here."

"Is he with Ben?"

"No, we went our separate ways."

"Get up, you're gunna take me to our Sire, and don't try anything, or I'll beat the crap out of you!"

"I'll be good."

The male Streek lead them out of the alleyways, "I go by the name Steve now." he told them, "...our ..uh, Sire is called Streek. We're just trying to survive down here until the heat dies down. I run with the Rusty Razors gang because of my eh, abilities. Did you know that we clones have a sort of fast healing power?"

"Yeah, I noticed." said Streek.

He took them to an old abandoned shop and lifted the broken door out of the way and entered. Inside, it was dark and musty.

"Streek are you here?" said Steve.

The other male Streek emerged from the shadows, he hadn't shaved for a few days and had thick stubble all over his face. He was holding up a lead pipe. He saw the two girls and his eyes widened. "You!" he said

"Yeah me!" said female Streek.

"You kicked me in the balls!"

"You tried to rape me! At least your clone apologised for that."

Steve said, "They do Kung-Fu, you should have seen it Streek, they put the smack-down on the Rusty Razors and made it look easy."

"It was easy!" said Ben "...Those guys were piss-weak!"

"What are you doing here? Are you with the Federation?" asked Streek.

"No, Why does everyone keep asking that?" said Streek. "...We're after the Cloning Pod, where is it?"

"That damn machine, it's brought me nothing but misery!"

"Really? Did you get raped and stabbed in the guts?"

"Eh ...no, but..."

"Then stop your bitching and just tell me where it is!"

"I don't know. Ben had it. He was going to sell it off again."

"Where's Ben Anders?" asked Ben.

"We went our separate ways. They were planning on taking the Clubber Lang back from the Federation. It's insane! They're gunna get captured or killed. we didn't want any part of it!"

"I should have known he'd want to take back his ship." said Ben, "...It's what I want to do!"

"So we're your only clones?" asked Streek, "...You didn't try making another female clone after I escaped?"

"No, things got bit crazy after you left, ...and before. There were too damn many Ben clones, we were lucky to avoid being captured by the Federation. Why do you want the Cloning Pod so bad anyway?"

"It's important, that's all I'll say. Do you have any idea where I'll find Ben and his clones?"

"No, I last saw him in the upper city a couple of days ago. I have no idea where they are now."

"Do you know who he was going to sell the Pod to?"

"No."

Ben spoke up again, "So, we don't know where they are, but we know where they will be, I think we should report this back to the Doctor."

"Doctor Who?" asked the male Streek.

"Doctor none of your fuckin' business!"

Pretty soon, Ben and Streek were in a turbo-lift, ascending toward the upper levels of Rodfern. They had left the two male Streeks to their dank hideout.

It was strange for Streek to meet him again, the man who she used to be, not very long ago. She also found it strange that she did not like him very much. It sucks when you don't like yourself.