Ic: A New Beginning, The New Beginning Game Thread Options

[GunnerJ]

"Psst... Codec." Ace leans conspiratorially to the decker. "OK, now that I've got a reasonable financial base, I think we can make our trade..."

(OOC: After that business is taken care of...)

"Something to remember is that we do have a hideout which we're all using. That's something we could probably all pitch in for."

[Mysterio]

Handing Ace the disk and a piece of paper, Codec whispers "here is the disk, and the account number for the deposit" Knowing that he'd have to pitch in for the place codec says "Is there a place where y..y..you guys want my...my..my part of the rent?"

[Silverspur_2020]

Smiling in probably the most ladylike way the Ork has seen so far, Bluebird says "sure, but its gonna cost ya! how about 1500 for two weeks worth of good training, and you provide the ammunition?" Bluebird could always do with the extra money! after all, she had bigger and better guns on her shopping list!! looking at the others when they mention the safe house... She comes up with a suggestion "well how about we find somewhere else? this place is ok, but we could do with a place where you can work on the van during down time, Codec could jack in easier and where the rest of us could get a decents night sleep!!"

[Mysterio]

Codec quickly scribbles down on a piece of paper an e-mail address as to where to reach him "H..h..here is where anyone can leave me a message, uh...you know...if anything else comes up." And with that the decker turns to leave.

[Rakshasa]

The Bonaville twin carb purred like a cat with a throat infection, which meant that it was tuned to perfection, as the rotting tarmac of the coast road vanished beneath it's wheels. The small Irish Sorceress, bent far forward to lie almost flat against the fuel tank, throttled back as the bike made the crest of a long incline.

Seeoh braked to a halt, lifting her head and brushing vagrant locks of hair away from her face to look out over the glittering Pacific ocean as she took off her helmet. It was all very well for the Biker gangs to shun helmets but, in Seeoh's opinion, it was better to look like a nerd and keep your brains inside your head.

Cocking her leg over the pillion and standing on the shale of the cliff top, the girl turned a full circle, as much to check that she was alone as to take in her immediate surroundings. This'll do.

The bike was cumbersome when not being ridden, particularly for a woman, but Seeoh was used to the antique, once her father's, and there was no way she was about to leave it where it could be hoisted. An hour later and both she and the bike had made it to the beach. A lonely beach, probably owing as much to the biting wind and watery sunshine as to the fact that, these days, folk had better things to do than visit the seaside.

But the solitude didn't bother the witch. It was what she wanted - needed, after the run. With a little drop of gas from her spare fuel can, she started a small driftwood fire in the lee of tumbled rocks from the cliff above her. The wood was dry and didn't produce much smoke, nor warmth for that matter. But the latter wasn't essential. It was the flickering flames that Seeoh needed. Their guttering and variety of shape gave her the focus she needed.

She sat, leaning back slightly against the cliff face, as she placed her legs under her and rested her hands lightly upon her knees, staring into the red and yellow flames.

Moments later she felt her body disappear. No spells this time, just the spirit lifting its self out of a tired body, letting the corporeal rest well while the girl's soul bathed in eternal light.

The red fox stirred, padding out of the hot embers to look at the Sorceress. A knowing look in it's eyes, the sly one seemed to nod, briefly, before it nestled down in front of the girl, curling it's full red brush along it's flank to cover it's nose, content that it's minion had done well for it's cause.

Several hours later, as the fire died, so did the sun. The arching streaks of red and orange flame dappling the ocean as it set, far away toward the west. This was why Seeoh had chosen this place. The sunset illuminated her closed eyes, covering them with colour and awakening her from her trance.

She stretched then, flinging her arms wide as if to catch the sun and stop it's decent. But she couldn't, of course. She wouldn't. For with the sun setting it meant that there would soon be a tomorrow.

And who knew what tomorrow would bring.

[Mysterio]

Codec returns home and before climbing into his bed for some rest he jacks in and enters the virtual store owned by a decker named HotWire. Though the business sells decking equipment and so forth, Codec walks up to the virtual salesperson and flashes a card with a security code on it. Only a select few have this privilege. The virtual salesperson is suddenly replaced by the icon of a large Minotaur. The minotaur looks over codec and grunts, "I'm assuming since you have a code, we've dealt before?"
"You assume right, I'm just wondering what dort of programs you got in stock, and I'm not looking for any bubbly gum gameing programs" The Minotaur smiles and motions for Codec to follow him into the back room. There on the table were a bunch of different coloured cubes. Carefully examining a few programs Codec looks at the Minotaur "Yeah I'll think about some of your stuff, I'll be back" The Minotaur rools his eyes, annoyed about the interuption and shrugs.
Jacking out codec decide he does indeed need a nap

[Drain Brain]

"Hmm... how about fourteen hundred - that makes it a square hundred bucks a day, and I'll supply the munchies as well? As for the squat, I think you've hit the nail on the head there - we need somewhere with better facilities - I'd certainly be willing to chip in."

[Rakshasa]

Seeoh spent the night on the beach, just a canvas windbreak to shield her from the onshore breeze and her roll-up, double quilted, was enough to allow a good sleep under the stars.

The early morning screeching of the seagulls broke into a dreamless sleep and the girl arose to make a light breakfast of bread, cheese and a thermos of soycaf. A short time spent abluting, washing herself down in the cool, almost cold waters of the Pacific and she was ready to retrace her steps into town.

Three miles back toward Seattle, the girl noticed an old sign which she hadn't seen on her way out of the City. It was falling down, almost obscured, but it clearly said "For Sale" Curious as to what could be for sale way out here in the boondocks, she pulled the Bonaville onto the dirt track by the side of the sign and stepped off to look at it more closely.

"Alder Farmstead. 13 acres, 12 Outbuildings. 100,000 ONO." A farm? On this part of the coast? Seeoh got back onto her bike and tooled it along the track.

Sure enough, a mile and a half further along there was a whole slew of buildings, most of them without a single shingle to cover its roof. There was even a wind turbine for power. But, like the sign said, there were plenty of them. The land, however, was another matter. So far as the girl could see, much of that 13 acres had slipped into the Pacific. Only about 200 yards separated the Farm buildings from the cliff edge.

"A 100K for this? No way!" The Irishwoman made her way back to the fallen sign, noting the Real Estate Agency's number. "Ya never know. Could do a deal, an it'd make a nice flop, well outside the range of prying eyes, that's for sure. Ace'd have a nice little garage all to himself and Bluebird and the Ork could have their own shooting gallery in one of the other buildings. Not to mention a power supply for Codec to jack in whenever he felt like it.

It was time to head back to the Team and suggest making an offer. Say starting at 20,000 and haggling from there.

[Silverspur_2020]

Sat in an old resturant which served suprisingly good food for an honest price Bluebird dips her toast into some egg and smiles at the Ork...."looks like you got a deal my friend! but dont expect me to be easy on you just because your paying, im gonna work you hard! Ive seen the way you shoot- and its not pretty!"

Hearing her phone go off she looks down to see at the display to see that its Seeoh calling..."hiya!!" she says cheerfully, knowing that the money she has just made will pay her way for a while yet!

[Rakshasa]

"Bluebird?" The Irishwoman knew by the voice but the question was natural. "Ya know we're lookin for a sort of permanent flop, out of harms way so to speak. Well, I think I may have found something that'd do very nicely."

Seeoh explains exactly what she's been looking at, and the fact that the land is slowly slipping into the Pacific. It's this feature which has convinced the Sorceress that the whole shebang could be bought for a fifth of the asking price. Besides, the `for sale' sign was pretty old, so it was likely the farm had been on the market for a good while, meaning the Agent would be pleased to see the back of it.

"It was probably some farmer who died intestate or something. No heirs, just bills. So his creditors would likely be happy to get something back. If we can get the freehold we'll be set for a good while to come. Anyhow, you'll be better at dealing than any of the rest of us I reckon, so here's the Agency's number."

It wasn't very kind of the girl to dump the whole idea in Bluebird's lap, but it's what the witch is like. Ten ideas a day, one of them good - but let someone else do the experiments, and get the credit, while she's thinking up another ten.

"I'm heading back into the City. I'll see you in about an hour."

[Silverspur_2020]

Bluebird relays the story to Flip to get his opinion on events.... but Bluebird is sure that they wont get the place that cheaply, after all... it depends on how fast its slipping into the sea

[Drain Brain]

"Place-wise it sounds like a great idea, but it's waaaaay out of our price range... Maybe we could make an offer, but then of course we could just, you know, move in without telling anyone... if it's been on the market for that long with nobody buying it then it's obviously not popular... we could squat..."

[Silverspur_2020]

"Now thats an idea I like!!" bluebird says thinking of spending all her hard earned money on a place falling into the sea...

[Mysterio]

After some much needed rest to his meat body, Codec has a quick bite to eat and jacks into the matrix. Going through the same procedure as before Codec is back in the room with the Minotaur.
"Buying anything this time...?" he grunts. Codec doesn't even look at him. He picks up a glass container on the table. Inside looks to be a small snake coiled up. "I'll take this one."
"A crashworm, no problem. 1800 :nuyen: " Codec hands over the virtual cash from his account tot he Minotaur then carries the container out of the room and back to the virtual street.

[Rakshasa]

The late afternoon sunshine cast a long shadow in front of the Bonaville as Seeoh tooled into the City outskirts. The smell of the earth, back at the farmstead, seemed like a distant memory to the sorceress, but it pulled her none the less.

"Hi Gang?" She called as she entered the flop. "How's it hanging?"

Flip rocked his chair back onto its four legs. "`How's it hanging'? Now what sort of language is that for an Irish colleen to be using?" The Ork looked Seeoh up and down. "How come you look so rosy cheeked. D'ya get laid or sommat?"

"I DID NOT!" Seeoh flared at the Ork, suddenly realising he was joking in his own inimitable Orkish way. She pouted. "I'm not that sort of girl, and you know it."

"I know, I know. But something's made you happy, I know that too." He handed the girl a mug of soycaf. "So give. What's got you smilin?"

"Oh I don't really know. The ocean; the wind; all of it. I went out and slept under the stars." She settled onto a sofa and sipped soycaf. "And I found a farm." She looked at her big friend. "It's falling down and hasn't seen any ploughing for years, but it overlooks the Pacific. You should just see the sunrise."

Flip's face took on a wistful look. "Takes credits girl. Can't buy a place like that, run down as it might be, for under a hundred thou."

Seeoh sat up. "Says who?"

"Say's Bluebird." The Ork shrugged. "She…made some enquiries. You're right. Place has been on the market for eight years or more. At a 100K no one's interested. Grounds falling away by around 5 foot a year and what's left ain't arable. Low grade thin topsoil or sommat."

"So what. S'not as though we're gonna farm it or nothin." Seeoh looked around the room. "But it's a damn sight better place than this. No prying eyes and if the Lone Stars come by, we'll have plenty of warning."

"Yeah, me and the rest talked about that. Could be a better squat than this flop. Trouble is, we've got no wheels to speak of. Ace's van, your bike and that's it. And it's what? Seven miles outside the City." The Ork grinned and pitched his voice high, "Oh sorry Mr Johnson, but do we get cab fare as well?" Dropping to his normal bass profundo, "I think not!"

"There's the Chevvy. Why don't we take that." Seeoh finished her soycaf and stood up. "I could go get it right now."

"Hold on woman. Don't get keen. We ain't agreed nothin yet." Flip looked at the others. "Well? Do we move house or not?"

[Silverspur_2020]

Bluebird gets up, "Im up for it... I would rather squat there then pay to live! but are we going to live there all the time or just as a place to crash when the heat gets turned up? -it sounds like it would be good for me to teach Flip to use a gun out in the country as well, less people to shoot by accident!!" and with that she laughs as she heads of to look for her rucksack.

[Rakshasa]

The die, it seemed, had been cast. With Bluebird getting her gear together, the others were prompted to do the same. After all, most of their gear was elsewhere, just the stuff they needed for every day running - which wasn't much.

"How about the Chevvy?" Seeoh asked pointedly.

"If it's still there you might as well get it." The Ork acknowledged. "We'll need another set of wheels in any case, just in case the Lone Star pay an unexpected visit."

Flip and Seeoh took off in search of the rusting, but working '17 Chevvy parked up three streets away. Leaving Flip to drive the car back to the flop where she could pick up her bike, Seeoh led the way out of the City toward their new abode, the old Alder Farmstead.

[Silverspur_2020]

Throwing a couple of clean sets of clothes into the bag, Bluebird dismantles her basic rifle and its sight and puts it away neatly into its case. Putting her pistols into their underarm holsters she picks up her phone and heads out to the old and battered Chevy where Flip is sat waiting behind the wheel...."Hope you can drive one of these better then that van!!" she jokes referring to the run that now took place little under a week ago. Making herself comfortable in the passenger seat she makes a phone call to Jack, a man that used to be in her life.... but thats history now. Listening into the conversation, Flip just hears "hey Jack.... yeah im fine....remember that Ranger SM-3 of yours and some APDS rounds?... yeah of course, well ive got some money to play with and I was wondering if you were prepared to let it go... yeah... fantastic! I will send the money to you now, and you can send me the gun when your ready....Cheers, bye!" After listening in, Flip also gathers after a secound phone call that she is in the market for Form Fitting Body armor.... he now knows this lady knows her stuff!!!!

[GunnerJ]

OOC: This happened a WHILE ago, at the meeting...

Ace put the credstick in his jacket pocket. Noy enough to fly, but maybe to ride...

"Well, I'm off, good working with you all. If our employer has need to our services again, it seems he knows how to get into contact with me."

Poor-shooting orks, bowing Irish chicks, jumpy 'trix nerds, wierld obvious stalker lady, GOODBYE! But he didn't really think they were that bad. Just... not trustworthy. Oh, dependable on a job, but an odd bunch that could have too many secrets.

He was worried about the decker. Sure, he'd gotten the info, and Ace wasn't worried about what he'd found out. If he were in on the conspiracy, he'd already know everything in there. But what if there was anything false there, planted to throw him off?

First things first, pay the decker at the drop point. No need to slot him off if he's legit.

Next, look at the disk. His P-Sec should be able to handle it.

Then, call up Mack and try to make the Van soar...

Finally, what would he want to do? Well, his apartment was fairly crappy... maybe find a new place? With better security, for sure! He got into the van and went off to carry out his various errends...

[Rakshasa]

Outside the City limits the rain started. Seeoh flipped soggy hair out of her eyes, peering ahead, sure she'd missed the turn. Flip, in the Chevvy, was encased behind a windshield. A windshield that had, at least, one working wiper. He smiled to himself, open road and wind in the hair indeed. Give him a hard top any day.

As it was, the Irishwoman nearly missed the turn, spotting it just in time to make a 90 onto the dirt track. She couldn't know it, of course, but the sudden direction change made the smile vanish from Flip's mouth, to be replaced by a guttural Orkish curse the like of which even his mother had never used. But he made the turn, losing the Chevvy's last hubcap in the process.

The Alder Farmstead, a good mile along the dirt, or more correctly, mud track now, was ramshackle, it's outbuildings spread around the farmhouse, surprisingly, in a semblance of order. Well, at least a farmer's idea of order.

Seeoh pulled up in front of the house, a single, sprawling story of clapper boards and shingles, many of which seemed to be missing. She got off the Bonaville and watched as the Chevvy drew up alongside, as the rain hissed in from the Pacific and turned the front yard into a quagmire.

"This it?" Flip asked as he stepped out of the car. "Needs a bit of work I reckon." He and the rest of the team headed after the girl as she pushed the collapsing front door open. It fell, with a soggy crash, and took out two floorboards as it headed down into the cellar.

"Nothing a hammer, a handful of nails and some new hinges wont cure" Seeoh tried to be positive. "I'll get a fire going. Once it's warm in here you'll like it."

The small pile of broken floorboards by the roaring fire looked pretty domestic, as the Team walked around trying to gauge whether they'd made the right decision. "S'pose it'll do." Flip used a wheel spanner out of the Chevvy to hammer home a sheet of plastic over one of the larger holes in the front wall. "At least the rain's letting up."

As if to emphasise his words, the clouds parted and sunshine came through every chink and crack in the old farmhouse's fabric. The place lit up like an old fashioned Xmas tree. Seeoh clapped her hands. "Lets go look outside." Hard bitten Sorceress she might be, but somewhere inside there was a little girl, screaming to be let out to play. She hauled the recently replaced door aside and stepped out onto the porch.

As the Team slowly followed, without really knowing why, the extent of the place, and just how useful it might be, dawned on them. Apart from the house, there were three small outbuildings, maybe 20 feet on a side, a grain silo, a chicken run, a barn and a windmill. The smell from the outbuildings spelt out their past use as stalls for livestock. Whenever the farmer had left, he sure as hell hadn't cleaned the place before he went, and even eight year old crap smells if you disturb it. But then, that might have been the cesspool out back by the privvy, which also hadn't been emptied prior to the farmers departure.

"See!" Seeoh spread her arms to encompass the place. "I told you this'd be great."