Living in the Shadows: IC, your run might be over... Options

[Morgannah]

00:24:35 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

There was always something odd and mildly unnerving about slipping into the artificial landscape of the Matrix. No matter how often she made herself travel here, Cosmo could never shake the feeling that something was wrong .. that this place was perhaps more dangerous than even she believed. A quick mental shudder played across her featureless avatar for a moment. Thoughts like those would have to be put aside.

The room she found herself in was small, dingy, and completely bare of furnishings beyond the austere door directly in front of her. A moment's travel into the hall revealed that the building was nearly identical to its meat-world counterpart. 'Well that's something, at least,' she mumbled, her slender pixelated form cruising toward a nearby information kiosk. There were fleeing thoughts of visiting an online boutique to do something about her lackluster appearance, of course, but this was the sort of anonymity she would have killed for at any other time.

Besides, there's always time to shop .. later.

Cosmo couldn't help the slight smile that twisted across her lips as she paused in front of an antique looking open-air stand. Glossy magazines and newspapers were stacked haphazardly against one another, all seemingly poised to fall in on one small elderly man in the center. He seemed completely oblivious to the dangerous clutter, of course, as well as everone and everything around him as he sat hunched over a battered paperback novel. It was a perfectly charming scene and one that was surely designed to appeal to a specific (and obviously sentimental) demographic. She loved it on sight and quickly approached the owl-eyed man.

"Excuse me. I'm looking for a bit of news and I was wondering if you'd be able to point me in the right direction...."

[grendel]

00:24:41 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

"Good morning, citizen! We offer access to all major search engines as well as corporate news sources. Please indicate the subject you wish to search for?"

The icon holds out a dusty volume, opening it up to a central page that flickers through the displays of half a dozen search engines, each available in the major languages. Additional books highlight themselves as Cosmo's eyes scan across them, advertising their ability to provide easily packaged, commercially satisfying, corporate sanitized answers.

[Morgannah]

00:24:43 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

Cosmo grimaced at the prospect of wading through so much pre-filtered claptrap, necessary evil though it was.

"City of Los Angeles news, please. Samples of current events articles over the last week starting with the most recent."

[grendel]

00:31:28 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

After a moment's hesitation, during which the book's pages display a Nerps ad, information begins to scroll. The search algorithm has pulled headlines from all sections of all major Los Angeles news sources. Much of it isn't useful, but several articles immediately raise flags.

- No Leads in Warehouse Break-In
Lone Star seeks burglars responsible for theft from FTL Matrixware.

- Electronics Stolen from Docks
Port Authority security forces at a loss to solve mysterious thefts.

- AMI Networking Suffers Theft
Team of thieves ransack corporate facility.

- Retired National Park Supervisor Found Dead

- Shooting at Popular Beach Leaves Two Dead

- Break-in at Lab Destroys Seismic Data

[Morgannah]

00:31:58 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

The smile that curled across her lips was both pleased and mildly amused as she scanned the first few titles. Burglars? Thieves? It was flattering that a team was thought to have done what she accomplished alone .. if she had indeed operated alone.

Had the Kalds helped her without her knowing?

As much as Cosmo craved information about those two small boys, she resolved to cover everything else first. To start at the beginning and work her way through.

"No Leads in Warehouse Break-In," hmm? Let's see ....

[grendel]

00:32:25 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

No Leads in Warehouse Break-In

Lone Star Detectives are searching for a pair of thieves responsible for a theft of electronics from FTL Matrixware earlier in the week. The brazen evening raid included the assault on two employees as well as a guard of the facility. The thieves managed to disable security cameras in the warehouse section and escape with a dozen electronic components valued at over one hundred thousand nuyen. Lone Star believes that this robbery is linked to other, recent break-ins of other corporations supplying electronics and computer technology. Lead detectives on the case indicate that the robberies are most likely the work of a gang seeking to finance other criminal vices.

[Morgannah]

00:33:17 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

Two, huh. Overwatch would have covered more than just the warehouse; I wonder if Rob Haney has fessed up to being the second thief. I wonder who the second injured employee is, though....

She was careful to scan the article twice, making a mental note to check a week or two previous when time permitted. There were other thefts before these, perhaps there was enough information present to piece something together. It was understandable that the casualties of her job had been blown out of proportion, if not the scale of what was actually stolen.

No need to exaggerate past one hundred large, though.

On to the docks..

[grendel]

00:33:42 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

Electronics Stolen from Docks

Los Angeles Port Authorities are seeking the public's help in solving a baffling series of thefts from the corporate docks. In a press conference Friday, the Lieutenant Scott Moran detailed the questiones surrounding the crimes. The thieves operate entirely at night, entering the harbor most likely via a small rubber boat. They board cargo vessels moored at the docks, making their way to the interior holds where they break into the sealed containers. The thieves choose containers that are difficult to observe directly, and often evidence of the crime is only discovered days later when the vessels are being off-loaded. So far, no security camera has successfully captured an image of the thieves, and Port Authority police believe that they may be employing magical means of concealment. If anyone has any information regarding these crimes, they are urged to contact the Los Angeles Port Authority.

[Morgannah]

00:34:28 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

Cosmo nodded briefly, storing that bit of information away but not gleaning anything particularly useful from it either. With no information regarding what had been stolen, exactly, there was nothing to say that this was even connected. The "thieves" were good, though, if they'd gone back several times and left so little of themselves behind.

She smiled, wondering if "magical concealment" had indeed been employed as she waited for the next article to load.

[grendel]

00:34:55 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

AMI Networking Suffers Theft

A team of robbers, working with vicious efficiency, ransacked the storage facility at AMI Networking ealier this week. Bypassing external security, three of the thieves engaged in a running gunfight with the guard team, while their companions loaded a vehicle with over two hundred thousand nuyen worth of sensitive electronic components. The thieves then managed to withdraw behind a screen of smoke and flash grenades. Lone Star detectives, working in concert with AMI Networking's corporate security, suspect that the robbers were hired by an opposing corporation in an effort to delay and disrupt AMI Networking's bid to supply Los Angeles with an improved fiber optic backbone for the city's network.

[Morgannah]

00:35:13 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

It was what she'd expected to see, more or less. Three thieves in a running gunfight (she had been running and they had been shooting at her, after all), tremendously valuable merchandise stolen with vicious efficiency. Who needed fiction when the news could prove to be so entertaining?

The last part could be pure speculation (like detectives pointing the finger at a fundraising gang) but it could not be discounted. Cosmo would simply have to dig deeper.

[grendel]

00:35:40 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

Retired National Park Supervisor Found Dead

Responding to an emergency call by neighbors, Doc Wagon paramedics discovered the body of Michael Cullan on the floor of his Pomona home. While the investigation is on-going, a source close to the family indicated that Cullan had been in poor health for some time, part of the reason for his retirement from his post as National Parks Supervisor last year. Cullan, a graduate of UCLA with a doctorate in geology and conservation, served as both state park advisor for three administrations before acceding to the post of National Parks Supervisor.

[Morgannah]

00:36:03 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

Although Cullan's death didn't appear to have anything to do with the events surrounding her, the article leaped out at her nevertheless. Something was not right .. but unless the murder affected her immediately it would not be up to her to look into it. Lieutenant Scott Moran and the reasons behind the AMI job were still her best leads. The most she could do with this was verify the date of the publication.

It was only after half a minute of stalling that Cosmo moved from this article to one that was still difficult to think about. From a murder that she could read about with complete impartiality to a shooting that might yet unravel her mind....

[grendel]

00:37:53 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

Shooting at Popular Beach Leaves Two Dead

In what Lone Star is calling a cold blooded execution, two children were killed at Rock Beach today. The victims were on board a fishing boat enjoying the late afternoon sunshine when an unknown assailant fired from the bluffs overlooking the beach. Witnesses say between four and six shots were fired, although police sources indicate each child was only struck once. Detectives aren't saying what prompted the shootings, although they maintain that it is probably linked to organized crime. Anyone with information about the shooting is urged to contact Lone Star.

[Bastard]

:dead: sorry wrong board

[Morgannah]

00:38:28 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

Well .. what did you expect?

Cosmo paused, almost glad to be so far from her body as the words "cold blooded execution" all but jumped out at her. The lack of any information about her targets was disheartening, of course, but could she really bring herself to contract outside assistance at this stage?

She would have grumbled, had her avatar been better equipped, as she 'flipped' to the final article.

[grendel]

00:39:05 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

Vandals Destroy Lab Equipment

In what Los Angeles Country Sheriff's deputies are calling an act of juvenile vandalism, thousands of megapulses of statistical and experimental data were destroyed Thursday night. The information, stored in the California Department of Geology labs at the Irvine Technology park, contained detailed files from both the UCAS Geological Survey as well as corporate and University of California studies. Dr. Edwin Miller, director of the Geology Department at UC: Irvine called the destruction "a real blow to our studies of fault lines and mineral deposits in the area, as well as our conservation efforts." The Sheriff's office refused to comment on whether they had any suspects of leads, but sources close to the investigation say that deputies are close to identifying the culprits.

[Morgannah]

00:40:17 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

It wasn't much of a leap to group this crime with the death of Michael Cullan, even if it was only for the sake of organization at this point.

Retired National Park Supervisor Found Dead; Vandals Destroy Lab Equipment.

Geology .. local mineral deposits and faultlines, conservation. If Cullan did -not- die on his own is it possible that he was linked to whatever was stored in the California Department of Geology labs?

She shrugged. Interesting, though none of her business at the moment. The next grouping of articles was fairly straightforward:

No Leads in Warehouse Break-In; AMI Networking Suffers Theft; Electronics Stolen from Docks.

Two of the three major electronics heists this week were most certainly her business while the other was a list of jobs she would have been proud to add to her résumé. Perhaps, with a compiled list of what her 'employers' have received, she could begin to decipher what, exactly, they intend to do with the stolen electronics. Learning about the thefts at the corporate docks was a logical step and entirely within her abilities.

Cosmo took a brief moment to consider the article that didn't fit with anything thus far. The .. murder of two small boys was punishment for something or perhaps a warning .. but for whom? She turned to the program in front of her.

"N41335. What is this?"

[grendel]

00:40:46 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

The expert program digests the request with a flicker.

"The data string appears to be a vessel registration number. Motor vehicle registration information is available at the California Department of Motor Vehicles host. Watercraft registration information is available at the California Department of Natural Resources host. Aircraft registration information is avaialble at the Los Angeles Offices of the California Free State Aviation Administration host."

[Morgannah]

00:41:04 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Los Angeles LTG

Cosmo nodded to the program in front of her and left without a word, speeding toward the California Department of Natural Resources between one blink of an eye and the next. She barely paused in front of the host, a sparkling office complex with mirrored windows, before dashing through the nearest building's double doors. Had she a face, she would have smiled at the rather drab looking receptionist.

"The location of your Los Angeles offices, please, and their hours of operation?"

"915 Wilshire Blvd Suite 10, Los Angeles, California. Our hours are eight to four, every day. Is there anything else I can assist you with today?"

00:42:17 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Hive Mind, 2033 Carver Blvd, Los Angeles, CFS

It was always a bit disconcerting, slipping back into her own body after spending even a bit of time in the Matrix, so she gave herself a good, long count to ten, focusing on her breath .. rhythmically flexing her hands as she listened for any sounds outside the tiny room.

Clear.

Cosmo placed the trodes in one of her bag's mesh pockets and grimaced as she noticed that Tino had yet to leave a message on her phone. Of course he has other things on his mind, she amended, chuckling as she remembered that her fixer was having drinks with a friend. So I'll give him a few hours at least, but in the meantime ..

Long, gloved fingers fished the business card from her jacket pocket.

.. let's hit the Motel 8.

This post has been edited by Morgannah: Feb 7 2006, 01:50 AM

[grendel]

02:01:48 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Motel 8, Los Angeles, CFS

A carbon copy of a dozen other cheap hotels throughout the greater Los Angeles basin, the four story block structure sits at the end of primary artery, surrounded by worn and faded houses, twenty four hour liquor stores and stuffer shacks, and the gray pressed plastic cubes of light industrial compounds.

Climbing the stairs to the third floor, Cosmo deftly avoids the piles of lint and trash gathered in the corner of each landing. The keycard opens room 314, and Cosmo slips inside with a glance up and down the hall. A musty smell pervades the room, the walls yellow with cigarette smoke, the bedside lamp throwing a fitful fan of illumination around the room.

Three large ABS plastic cases sit in the center of the room, two of them oversized, a meter by a meter by fifty centimeters. The third is a standard fifty by fifty by twenty centimeters, toolkit sized.

Harsh halogen floods outside the window draw her attention, and Cosmo grimaces when she recognizes four Ares Roadmasters parked in a lot across the street outside the window. Apparently her target had already been selected.

[Morgannah]

02:03:12 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Motel 8, Los Angeles, CFS

Cosmo glanced about the room, eyes narrowed behind pale green lenses as she checked every spectrum available to her. Satisfied when everything seemed clear enough, she quietly closed herself into the filthy room and crouched beside the plastic cases.

Looks liiiiiike .. quality automotive toolkit, new. Four 'black boxes,' unknown manufacturer but nice, clean work. Tight. Boxes will interface with nav and control system hardware .. indicates remote access. Not bad. Straightforward installation but fine control .. thirty minutes per, maybe.

She only allowed herself a moment to sit back on her heels, quite pleased with herself, before hauling herself to the room's tiny window. Of course installation wasn't going to be the problem.

A bloody building supply company. Secure lot. Full. Delivery machines, not many cars. Maybe 80 meters to a side, 4 meter chain link fence with monowire on top, halogen floods to constant low-light level, security cameras on the central building. Two points of entry: oversized gates with cameras over the readers, keycard access .. completely useless. Should be access denial and containment. Damn them.

We'll go with wire clippers .. western side near the southwest corner. Adjacent to the Roadmasters with cover from the central cameras. Nearby buildings .. Cosmo paused, scanning around the company lot for other cameras that might be a problem, Stuffer shack. External camera and too much activity for hard sabotage. Aerosol can, then, and .. a teenager should do the trick.

Her own nylon duffel was opened, then, fingers flying through its contents, selecting several pieces and setting all the rest aside. Sneaking into the compound wouldn't be difficult on its own, but lugging 45 kilos of automotive parts while sneaking could prove problematic. Cosmo took all of a minute to shed her more useless clothing and suit up for work, lashing the large ABS cases together with nonreflective tape at the last, enabling her to carry everything at once at the cost of some flexibility.

She rose, testing the weight of her selected gear, and stalked from one end of the room to the other to become familiar with its distribution. Satisfied thus far, she set the pack aside and turned resolutely toward the door.

This post has been edited by Morgannah: Feb 7 2006, 07:39 PM

[Morgannah]

02:08:36 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Motel 8 Parking Lot, Los Angeles, CFS

Cosmo leaned against the bumper of an old model Eurocar, not quite needing to feign boredom as she watched the Stuffer Shack across the street, keeping an eye out for the 'right' sort of person for the job she had planned.

Late teens, brash, posturing, arrogant ..

[grendel]

02:11:08 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Stuffer Shack #391 Parking Lot, Los Angeles, CFS

Jenks sucked down the last of his beer before lofting the bottle across the street towards the Alvarez Building Supply Company. Gutter cheered as the glass shattered, his ragged cry cut off as he toppled over and lay giggling on the ground. Half-empty aerosol cans littered the ground around him. Bobo grunted, swinging a heavy boot into Gutter's ribs. The tweeker was so high he didn't even feel it. Jenks reached for another bottle, cursing the chill of the night.

[Morgannah]

02:14:28 Saturday 06 January 2063 - Stuffer Shack #391 Parking Lot, Los Angeles, CFS

She watched the byplay between the three teens for quite a while, studying them with the practiced indifference of a trained huntress within the herd. When it looked as though there were only three bottles of beer left and one of the three had all but passed out, Cosmo approached, heels clicking sharply against the asphalt, avoiding the camera's line of sight by leaning casually against the wall.

"Fun night?"

Her smile was a slow, deliberate curve of metallic blue lips as her gaze wandered from the three of them to the assorted bottles and cans scattered across the lot.