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The Mouth That Roared:
An Uptown Woman Interview With 3ird Eye's Rita Hurley

Rita Hurley graduated from Meny with a Media Package in 899SD. She joined two fellow graduates and formed the Operative Squad “The Blue Deuce Trio.” Hurley acted as the squad's camera operator and medical support. Her camera skills were shaky at best, bad enough to earn the nickname “Hurl-O-Vision” among her Third Eye controllers. However, she did have two things going for her: she was very pretty and could talk endlessly. Her running commentaries during BPNs gained an almost cult-like following. Betting to see how long she could talk before taking a breath was common in the Third Eye control room. Unfortunately, her combat skills were a bit lacking. She was always so focused on her commentary she became a liability to the squad. Hurley was forever giving away their position with her constant chatter. Undercover operations were totally impossible. After a handful of BPNs, Hurley was asked to leave The Blue Deuce Trio.

Third Eye, seeing raw talent and a modicum of potential offered Hurley a low-level position in the news room. Hurley would work mostly as an errand girl, running coffee and copies for the front line employees. She stagnated there for a couple years until she miraculously managed a scoop on a DarkNight insurgent living undercover in her apartment building. Operative squad “Team Spartan” was on Blue BPN in her building when the insurgent, fearing blown cover, opened fire on the Operatives. The insurgent was quickly neutralized. Hurley, sensing opportunity, grabbed her camera and set up an impromptu interview with the squad.

She showed the report to her superiors at Third Eye, who gave her a break and a 20 second spot on the evening news. Team Spartan would eventually set up a deal with Hurley, ensuring their team's camera footage would always go to her first. Hurley now had a fairly regular supply of solid combat footage and Team Spartan had an advocate in Third Eye. Hurley has risen on the ranks, now commanding as much as 90 seconds for her reports. As long has first dibs on juicy footage from a charismatic, up-and-coming squad, her career can only improve.
Uptown Woman caught Rita Hurley in a rare moment of downtime and put her on the other side of the microphone to discuss her big break and her relationship with Team Spartan.


UW: Let's start with the scoop that gave you your break with Third Eye.

RH: It was totally nuts! I was doing some post-production for a couple of fluff pieces on my oyster when I heard gunfire down the hall. I'll be honest; I hid in the tub until the noise stopped. Then I grabbed my Ronker and went out to film the aftermath.

UW: And that's when you got the interview?

RH: Not just then. Fiddich, the squad's Frother, was still totally whacked out of his skull on UV. When the Shivers showed up, he went after one and they had to Hotline him. I just filmed the DarkNight's body until things cooled down.

UW: What did you think when you approached the squad for an interview?

RH: I was pretty nervous. They were still pretty worked up from the fight. Their squad leader, Obsession, is this Ebon who is...how do I put it? She's beautiful beyond description. I'm sure you've seen her on the vid by now. Then there was Craig Ferguson. He was all guns and attitude but you could tell that was just a game face. Last was Glen Fiddich. He was still a bit twitchy from the Hotline and coming down off UV. He might as well have had a flashing “DANGER” sign over his head.

UW: How did you finally talk to them?

RH: Just looking at this squad, I could tell they would make great video. I just took a breath and asked Fiddich for an interview.

UW: We all saw the piece; he wasn't very talkative, was he?

RH: (Laughs) No. I've found he generally isn't. Glen's not like most Frothers you see on the vid. When he's not juiced for combat, he's very quiet and reserved. If you can get a handful of words out of him, you're pretty lucky.

UW: So the Frother wasn't talking. Amazing. Who was next?

RH: I tried Ferguson. It was really cute, you could tell he was trying so hard to look tough for the camera. He was nice enough, but he lacked...(frowns and looks to the ceiling)

UW: Charisma?

RH: Exactly! Cookie cutter Strike Squad. There was no doubt he was good at his job, but gunheads are 10 unis a dozen on Mort.

UW: Why hadn't you approached Obsession? Why not start with the team leader?

RH: Oh my God. I was so intimidated by her. Her looks literally take your breath away.

UW: Until she opens her mouth.

RH: (Laughs) I know! I think Ferguson had said something she didn't like, because she laid into him hard enough to make a Waster blush! Then there was the bandoleer of coffee.

UW: A bit of a caffeine addict?

RH: (Shrugs) Not my place to say. She just might really like coffee. She had about a dozen self-heating cans in a bandoleer slung over her shoulder. As soon as the fighting stopped, she cracked a can.

UW: You must have hit it off with the squad. They won't give any footage to Third Eye unless it goes through you first.

RH: I was blown away when they requested that. There was no doubt in my mind they were going to be big and they wanted me as their mouthpiece. When they got a Financier, they even instructed him to deal solely with me as far as media coverage went.

UW: What does the future look like for you and Team Spartan?

RH: Amazing. They've made some changes to the squad. They picked up K'Dgh, a Shaktar, and Tawna, a Wraith. The Shaktar is one those Sector Rangers, so we can hope for some great footage from the Cannibal Sectors. They've already pulled off a couple of high profile BPNs and even worked with Symbiote on a joint operation.

UW: That can only be good for their image. And it looks like Ferguson has left the squad?

RH: Not exactly. He's on a “medical leave.” The squad hasn't told me what that means and his files are sealed.

UW: Well, if anyone can find out, I'm sure Team Spartan's personal media liaison can.

RH: I hope so. I love those guys. We've been nothing but good for each other's careers.

UW: Thanks so much for you time. Best of luck to you and Team Spartan.

RH: You're quite welcome! It's been a real pleasure!

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