Tangled Currents - Spriggan, Stormy Waters subthread Options

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, 1400; Elven District, Downtown Seattle

Sprawled on a futon on the floor of her Elven District doss, Spriggan dreamed of the VR club where she'd danced last night away. The DJ had been impressive, and he mind replayed the asynchronous beats and she really liked the steady beeping he layered over the top of it until she realized it was her MetaLink. She must have dozed off after a morning crashing UW lectures on MesoAmerican history and digital tribes in gender-free space. It was Kit - just a text. <<Pick-up at 1473-B Alaska Way. 15 mins. Desperate - pls.>>

[Aria]

Tuesday, 19 November, 1400; Elven District, Downtown Seattle

Spriggan shook the vestiges of sleep from her and picked up the 'link. She hated the clumsy interface of the poor quality model but she was sensible enough to keep her real 'link, and therefore SIN, away from 'work'

<<How desperate, lover? I've got a busy life you know, there's a lecture I really wanted to go to this afternoon...>>

<<Evie!>>

<<Ok, ok, I wasn't being serious, I'll be there in ten>>

Thankful that she hadn't changed after getting in earlier she grabbed the bike helmet from where she'd discarded it near the door, wrapped her hair up in a loose knot at the base of her neck and pulled the mirrored visor down so that she became just another anonymous biker. Grabbing up her belt pouch she slipped the 'link in alongside the handful of paper twist reagants she kept for emergencies and prepared to face the crappy Seattle weather. The lift still seemed to be out of operation so she bounded down the stairs two at a time to the semi basement parking area. The sleek Rapier looked like it was racing even while standing still and she thrilled at the purr of the engine as she swept out onto the street, plotting the route via the trodes nestled in her hair band and the hud in her contacts...

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, 1409; Alaska Way, Downtown Seattle

The once posh waterfront apartment block had seen better days. The lobby doors were open, one half off its hinges. A number of youths loitered about in front, acting tough and sizing up passers-by. Crumpled newsfaxes and fast food wrappers tumbled by in the sea breeze.

Looking up, Spriggan realized that 1473 would be the fourteenth floor. And about the time she realized that the elevators were out was about the time she realized that the sizer-uppers must have like what they'd seen. There were seven young men - or old boys, depending on one's perspective - now ranging about the otherwise deserted lobby, including two near the front doors, and another at the stairwell door.

"Hey sexy, did you forget the pizzas?"

[Aria]

Spriggan muttered something to herself about this better being worth the hassle before she swept her leg over her bike, lifted off her helmet, despite the rain, and allowed her glamour to hit the manboys with the force of a sledgehammer between the eyes

“Boys, do I look like I’m delivering pizza? Now which of you lovely young men is going to earn my gratitude by looking after my bike here while I go inside to discuss business?”

And she smiled winningly at them…

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, 1420; Alaska Way, Downtown Seattle

Spriggan was only slightly winded as she bounced onto the 14th floor landing. The children below had nearly come to blows over the right to guard her bike, bowled over as they'd been the moment she removed her helmet.

Sometimes things went smoothly, though she knew parlor tricks like that wouldn't have gone so far if instead of a bunch of bored kids they'd been a roving pack of 'Weeners or Spikes.

Working her way down to 1473-B, the floor was hardly quiet as the wails of a crying beby from behind one door gave way to moans of pleasure from behind the next, all to soon be drowned out by the ferocious bass of someone cranking a sound system that must have cost more than her bike.

But it all seemed to fade into nothing as she stood outside 1473-B. She glanced up to make sure the corridor overheads were lit, so sure was she that they had dimmed as she'd raised her gloved hand to knock. The door was spray painted with a combination of sigils she didn't recognize and crude drawings of human acts she did. There was a sweet, cloying smell creeping out from under the door, but no light.

Her knuckles were millimeters from the synthwood when the door opened inward revealing a dingy hallway, water stains on the walls, mildewy carpet, and a woman. She might have been in her fifties, and wore a pink terrycloth bathrobe that hung carelessly open in a manner that made Spriggan want to look away. Her sparse hair was in curlers, and her narrow shoulders contrasted with ass and hips of a horrific girth over elephantine calves. Her feet were bare, and it was possible her toenails had not been cut...ever. "Courier?" she barked, and produced a small package from a pocket of the fluffy robe. It was more a lump than a regular shape, sloppily covered in cut up brown butcher paper and mummified in too much Scotch tape. It squirmed a little in her hand as she thrust it at Spriggan.

"You take that out to Felix in Glow City. He won't be awake until after dark. Watch as he opens it, then call me and tell me what happens." She reached out and tapped a commcode scrawled onto the wall beside her door.

[Aria]

Tuesday, 19 November, 1420; Alaska Way, Downtown Seattle

Spriggan grinned at the ugly old woman

“Glow City as in the irradiated hellhole in Redmond? A hive of scum and villainy? Sounds like fun! So how do I find this Felix guy?”

Meanwhile she flashed a quick message off to Silk in the hope that her sister would know someone who could set her up with some gear in short order

<<Hi Sis, I’ve got a job taking me into deepest glowing Redmond, do you know anybody who could set me up with a gas mask and some other gear I might need? If I remember my GCSE physics right, as long as I don’t eat anything and wash myself down afterwards I should be ok from the worst of it…right?!?>>

Or so she hoped…

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, 1421; Alaska Way, Downtown Seattle

"You go to Glow City, that's how," the creature barked. "Once you get there, follow your pretty nose. Or ask. People there know him. And there's always Paco's."

Then she slammed the door loud enough to elicit a small frightened mew from the twitching package.

And Silk texted back: <<Nothing in your GSCEs preps you for The Glow. Save us both the grief and walk away from whatever you're into.>> But there was also an address attached to the text.

[Aria]

The damn package is alive?! Spriggan resisted the urge to peek inside the taped paper bundle, she would see it when Felix opened it after all. Slipping the vaguely wriggling thing into the courier satchel she briefly hoped that it had enough air, whatever it was…

Bounding down the stairs two at a time Spriggan rapidly descended back to street level and her, hopefully, intact bike and the amorous gangers. She flung a quick message back to Silk to let her know that she was heading out there anyway and asked for an address for Paco’s and thanked her for the intel on the survival gear reseller…she also penned a pithier message to Kit

<<You owe me for this one omae! Elephant lady is sending me to Glow City with something I think might be alive. I presume she’s not one of your regulars? It’s all a bit off your usual routes right? Felix needs to get it after dark and I need to stick around for a response…so if I get eaten it’s on your head right!?>>

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, 1425; Alaska Way, Downtown Seattle

The pell mell rush down the stairs had the package squirming and mewling the whole way. The bike was indeed intact, with a number of AROs attached to it extolling the sexual prowess of various youths, complete with commcodes and unwanted images. Spriggan pulled away clean, but not before noticing how antsy, how much like a powderkeg of unchecked testosterone the pack of man-children had become - a reminder that some benefits could be two-edged.

Kit pinged her right back: <<Elephant Lady? Wiz - never seen her - hideous much? New client - prepaid triple the hazmat rate, but said there was nothing to suit up for. Glow City might be another story, though - get in and out quick or you'll be a big hit at the next rave.>>

Spriggan was crossing Lake Washington on WA-520 when Silk called. <<Whatever they're paying you isn't worth it. I hear Paco's is little more than a tent selling liquor from a juryrigged still, but sort of a meeting place for the worst sorts to be found around there, which is saying something. Addresses are meaningless that close to Glow City - it's supposed to be somewhere just south of the old reactor.>>

Traffic was light mid-afternoon - it was ten minutes to Redmond, but three hours to dark...

[Aria]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~14:40; Bellevue heading towards Redmond, Seattle

Spriggan laughed into the headwind as she raced her crotch rocket through the early afternoon streets

“Pay me? They owe me one, that’s without price right? I’ll take care of myself, see you on the other side!”

So big sis was trying to warn her off?! It implied that she cared at least, Spirggan had known that her charm would win her over in the end but she was mildly surprised that it had taken this long…their damn father was to blame, him and his power games. She liked Silk a great deal, despite their differences in outlook, or perhaps because of them…

She relied to Kit <<I’ve got my own natural glow, rad poisoning is more likely to kill it! Or me I guess. Have you got a mapsoft, or what passes for one, of that area of Redmond? I’m going to pick up some Haz gear en-route, wish me luck! You owe me one for this you know?>>

So now she had a couple of hours to kill before she made the run to Redmond. Kit had better be damn busy, despite the bravado the pause was giving time for the doubts to worm their way in and she wasn’t really looking forward to delving into the worst depths of Redmond! The address Silk had given her was for an empty lot on the edge of Redmond. Waiting there amidst the weeds and windblown rubbish was a large artic with an equally large orc leaning nonchalantly against it. Stopping at the edge of the lot Spriggan approached slowly, although without hesitation, removing the bike helmet to allow the sec boy to see her face. She grinned at him, flashing him her small but razor tusks

“Hoi chummer, Silk sent me your way…”

The orc nodded wordlessly and indicated she should step inside…inside proved to be a gun nut’s wet dream, weapons and tech lining the walls of the trailer, AROs displaying stats and tellingly, no prices. Sitting behind a real wood desk with inset comms was a greying but physically imposing man of indeterminate age. He was dressed in casual clothes but had a pistol in a shoulder holster next to the expensive jumper…

“Come in please. So, you are Silk’s sister? You can call me Cannon…”

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~14:41; Bellevue heading towards Redmond, Seattle

Spriggan could see that a number of options for the item she had requested were already laid out on a table, along with various other pieces of hazmat gear. Impressive as far as it went, but then she hadn't asked for a rocket launcher or anything, now had she?

"Any friend of Silk's," the man said, coming around in front of his desk and half sitting on it. And she knew that was probably true for this sort of transaction - everything here was legal. Still, his various extra-legal wares were openly on display - maybe sister's reach and word carried more weight than she'd known. Still, it couldn't hurt to spend a little time forging a relationship of her own...

[Aria]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~14:55; Cannon’s Trailer, Parking Lot, Redmond, Seattle

Spriggan ensured she didn’t study him too hard, these types got understandably jittery about too much scrutiny, but nevertheless she ensured that she admired him in just the right way that she’d found made men of around his age slightly hot under the collar…

“You ran with Silk’s mum didn’t you? Back in the sixties?”

“Been doing your homework? Yes, I ran with Mother before I bought a share in the quieter life. I gather from your order that you are going anywhere but somewhere quiet? I’m not going to give you the young girl like you speech, I’ve a feeling that it’s where you are going that is in need of protection…” and he grinned at her

“Not sure about that, I’m going in to the Glow, and preferably back out again afterwards!”

“Then I have the kit you need. The Geiger counter will sync with your ‘link so you aren’t plagued by annoying ticking sounds, the mask is rated hazmat grade seven which should be more than sufficient…and this suit will hug you nicely…” said with not quite a leer…

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~1509; Cannon’s Trailer, Parking Lot, Redmond, Seattle

Spriggan wondered if he'd looked that way - or more - at Sil's mother, and the thought took the look from flattering to slightly creepy.

But he hadn't been too overt, nothing quite incriminating.

And he offered to show her the finer points of wearing and sealing the suit, and though it was a snug fit, he was all pro about it. "Normally takes forty hours training to get rated on this stuff, but I'm thinking you're a quick learner."

Even for just another fifteen minutes on her bike, Spriggan wasn't about to wear the headpiece all the way to Glow City, and once that was off again and stowed, the man asked, "Anything else I can do for you?" Now that biz was winding down, the almost-leer was back.

[Aria]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~15:10; Cannon’s Trailer, Parking Lot, Redmond, Seattle

“Well…fetching as the hazmat suit might be I suspect it won’t slow down a bullet very much. I don’t think I can wear my normal protection over the top so do you have a vest or jacket that might fit me? I’m not worried about fashion sense, where I’m going I don’t want to be me anyway…”

And Spriggan concentrated momentarily and her small impish form was replaced by a rough looking orc lady of indeterminate age, although one that time had not been kind to… rough enough to not look like an easy mark but not threatening enough to get the backs up of anyone’s turf she strayed on to…her voice was different too, the rasp of breathing the wrong air for a lifetime…

“Will I pass?”

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~15:10; Cannon’s Trailer, Parking Lot, Redmond, Seattle

The man called Cannon laughed out loud. "Oh, you'll pass, all right. Now I just have to wonder which is the real you...strictly so I can get the size on the vest right, mind you." And with that he led the way through a door into an adjunct trailer. There was a variety of junk filling the space. Some looked as though it might be functional and for sale, other items were apparently for the use of the business. In the back there was a corner with various personal protection items. "I don't get much call for this sort of stuff, as it is all entirely legal. Why shop with me when any mall offers a full line of fashions and sizes? But since you're here, I think I can accommodate. Here, do you think that will fit?" he asked, holding up a thin but sturdy-looking vest.

[Aria]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~15:10; Cannon’s Trailer, Parking Lot, Redmond, Seattle

“If I cinch it tight enough I’m sure the vest will be fine, these cheap vat job muscles are all illusion! As to legal, well that comes with all sorts of additional questions that I’d rather not answer…”

Taking the proffered vest Spriggan wrapped it around herself and tightened the clips, the whole thing disappearing into the illusion she wove around herself…

“Right, guess I’m about as ready as I can be. Wish me luck. I’ll let you know how it all goes Uncle Cannon, I can call you that right?”

“I noticed you aren’t carrying a firearm, are you sure you want to go into the Glow without one?!”

“I’ve never liked them much, loud…if it comes to it I guess I could come up with a fair illusion of one, but thanks for your concern…see you soon!”

And with that she slipped back out of the trailer and back to her waiting steed. Silently revving the electric powertrain she rocketed away towards the wilds of deepest darkest Redmond. With a couple of hours to kill she intended to skirt the area and get a feel for the place before heading in around dusk. It increased the risk of running in to trouble but meant she might be a little more prepared for whatever might happen, not that she was going to kid herself about the risk she was taking…but that was half the fun!

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~17:15; Paco's, Glow City, Redmond Barrens, Seattle

All geared up, Spriggan dismounted her bike and made it as secure as possible. Twenty yards around an open space of crumbling concrete and dying weeds was the tent they called Paco's. She hoped someone there could tell her what she needed to know, because the package she was carrying was getting more restless by the minute. She was starting to wonder whether she needed a secondary container in case whatever was in there got out.

Plus who knew when the her commlink would signal unacceptable rad levels - best get this done.

The big canvas tent was noisy even from outside - they must be pushing the dethlectrix up to eleven in there - the chainsaw guitar riffs hitting her face like machine gun bullets.

Parting the tent flap was like stepping into some sort of post-Apocalyptic sci-fi sim - the place was bustling with the full gamut of metahumanity, and besides the five primary types, the place had a much larger than usual proportion of changelings and other mutants. Most of the denizens looked like they belonged here in the armpit of the Barrens, though there was a smattering of people who, like Spriggan, wore sporting enough kit to give the impression they knew where their next meal was coming from. Poor and less poor, there was also a myriad of protective devices. The majority of the place's denizens wore no protection at all, but there were still a lot of rebreathers and other partial countermeasures, and a few people who were much more protected than Spriggan herself.

Other than the amazing diversity of the place, it was still about the shadiest dive she'd ever imagined, much less seen. Under her feet was the same concrete rubble and dying weeds that surrounded the place. Except the weeds were doing better in here because of the abundance of vomit and urine they had access to. Spriggan was splashed by a random stream of the latter as she came in the door, the one-armed dwarf upending a plastic stein not even seeming to notice. If she wanted to watch a brutal beating, she had two from which to choose at different points among the dilapidated trestle tables that filled the tent's interior. Several had cloth or cardboard extending from the floor to the table-top and were apparently in use as makeshift residences or private rooms-for-purpose. That didn't stop people from sitting and drinking at them, or indeed a naked ork woman from dancing on one.

And someone in here was supposed to know someone named Felix.

[Aria]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~17:30; Paco’s, Glow City, Redmond, Seattle

Well this is a nice joint, Spriggan mused to herself…she was glad that she was cloaked in her illusions, even if the magic here felt slippery, the background count, both magical and mundane distorted the mana that flowed through her but she kept her focus thanks to her gift…

Avoiding flailing bodies she made her way towards the bar, that would be where the best intel was and despite the danger thrill she didn’t necessarily want to hang out here any longer than needed. The air through the gas mask was metallic but she wasn’t crazy enough to want to breath the crap she could almost see floating in the air around her.

She selected her mark with care, not too young that they hadn’t learnt the value of discretion, not too old that they were utterly jaded by life in the Glow…it left a very small pool of possibilities. The woman looked in her late thirties so was probably much younger, made grey by the atmosphere, the hours and the relentless tide of punters…

She manipulated her voice to mask the presence of the gas mask which, in theory, nobody else could see, matching it to the rough orc exterior that she wore

“Courier, I wuz told to look for Felix, told you’se‘d know where I find ‘im?”

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~17:30; Paco’s, Glow City, Redmond, Seattle

The woman looked around cautiously before answering. "Don't say that name around here. You got cred?" Ork-Spriggan nodded. "Okay, I'm going out that way. You go out another way. Circle around, then you'll see two old yellow school busses. I'll be waiting in the one sitting up on blocks. Ten minutes."

Then the girl tossed the dregs of her drink into Ork-Spriggan's face. She was glad for the mask, but had to really concentrate to make sure to blend the liquid with the illusion so that it didn't look like droplets stuck to an invisible surface in front of her face. Next thing she knew she was just seeing the girl's back as she exited the esteemed establishment.

Ork-Spriggan waited as instructed then followed the girl's instructions. The vehicle graveyard surrounding the busses was an oily bad place, and she could almost feel the magicks enshrouding her flickering in and out. Devil rats, not quite brave enough, moved warily out of her path. She saw the girl's silhouette inside the appointed bus, sitting way at the back.

[Aria]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~17:30; Behind Paco’s, Glow City, Redmond, Seattle

Spriggan felt the tension rising, and the thrill of adrenaline that went with it…so, this wasn’t how she had planned to spend her evening but the anticipation made it worth it! That didn’t mean she wasn’t going to be cautious however… she reached into the pouch at her waist and slipped the Web of Dreams on to her left hand…the fine filigreed chains tinkled between the rings and the wrist band marked with Mab’s webs… concentrating her mind on focus she prepared to view the astral in this hideous environment…only to find that the warp was so great that the focus was so much inert metal…pretty but useless.

Berating herself for a fool she slipped the bauble back out of sight…it would seem she had to do this the mundane way and was glad that the lightweight glasses she had slipped on under the gas mask where purely technological and allowed her to pierce the shadows around the bus as if it was bright daylight…

Approaching quietly she tried the handle of the bus doors…

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~17:30; Behind Paco’s, Glow City, Redmond, Seattle

The door almost fell off at her touch, opening the way before her. She stepped up next to the driver's seat and there was the girl from Paco's awaiting her on the bench seat way in the back, where the cool kids sat. But then Spriggan had never had to ride such a bus. The woman's long greasy black hair straggled down to her shoulders, framing her prematurely wrinkled and pock-marked face. Her features were strong and fine - in another life she'd have been a beauty. Now, however, Spriggan knew she was a robber. There was definitely another pair of lungs breathing beind one of the seats just in front of the woman. And she saw movement behind her in shadows that would have protected her would-be assailant if not for her enhanced vision. Another few steps and she would have boxed into the narrow aisle running down the center of the bus. As it was, there were at least three of them, but she still had room to maneuver.

[Aria]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~17:30; Behind Paco’s, Glow City, Redmond, Seattle

Damn, damn, damn, stupid bitch, she would have paid for the intel and everyone benefited, Spriggan knew now was time to turn these tables before she got too far out of her depth. She reached out to draw the tatters of mana to her from the aether and cloak herself in near invisibility…she would have to trust to the dark for the rest…

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~17:30; Behind Paco’s, Glow City, Redmond, Seattle

Movement from the shadows outside stopped suddenly. "What the...?"

The guttural exclamation brought up the mangy head of the one hiding behind the seat by the woman. "Huh?"

Then the woman's voice, now shrill. "Baka! It's abra cadabra, you idiots. Now hem her in before she gets away!"

The one with her stood up and barreled down the aisle, while the one on the outside shuffled quickly toward the door, arms stretched wide as if for a hug.

[Aria]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~17:30; Behind Paco’s, Glow City, Redmond, Seattle

Trusting to little beyond dumb luck Spriggan gathered her mana as tried to gather her woolly thoughts…she couldn’t sustain another spell in this fog, that left a more direct approach…

She poured the mana through her, like bathing in sewage, and flung it at the orc in the doorway with all her might…

[adamu]

Tuesday, 19 November, ~17:30; Behind Paco’s, Glow City, Redmond, Seattle

The ork literally never knew what hit him - an invisible force from an invisible foe struck at the core of his consciousness with very visible effect. Knocked back on his ass, his shocked screams of disorientation more than masked any sound of Spriggan's footsteps as she made her way out of the bus and away.

Heading quickly back to her bike, and seeing with some gratification that it was still there and apparently unmolested, she was just mounting up when she heard a soft voice behind her. "I hear you looking for Felix." Turning, she saw a slight Hispanic man in a white T-shirt with the sleeves torn off. He had several thin gold chains around his neck, two thick gold loops in his ears, and a dirty pair of slacks on over spit-shined black leather shoes. His hair was long and wild, likely not washed in weeks, and there was a pathetic attempt at a moustache on his upper lip.