@Sophia
Your father concider's your words. "The Rosselis don't have you, huh? Seems I've been given some bad information," his eyes grow cold at that. "Perhaps we do need to speak, but not here. My actions over the last few days to a week have been based on information coming from a source I felt I could trust." As he speaks, he washes his hands and then moves from the kitchen into his study. On the Astral, you follow, bringing a few stares from the guards who aren't used to seeing the Don's daughter moving through the halls as a somewhat insubstantial form. "No, I don't want to tell you a name, yet, but it seems like someone has been playing this family for a fool. You said you wanted to meet me without knives. But it seems like I might need one." As he finishes, he reaches up over the fireplace and grasps an ancient sword. "Where can we meet?"

@Everyone Else
When Akuma comes back into the room, Alice looks over his shoulder to see if Gio's on the phone yet. When he seems lost in coversation, she says to you guys, "So, what do we do with the lovers. Should we call Alessandro yet, or assume that Gio's contact with his family will let them know that he's safe and with us?"

:: Sophia sighs heavily. ::

"Well, let me think a minute....I know. You remember where you took me to learn how to drive? There's a dive bar on the corner over there. Meet me there in 2 hours. Bring muscle you can trust, but don't ask anyone who has any loyalty to...

:: Sophia moves very close to her father, putting her astral lips almost against his ear as she whispers the name Medea. ::

"When I arrive, I will be bringing guests. Make sure your guards know not to take any hostile moves against any of them. No matter what. Ok?"

Akuma holds up a finger, calling Alice to wait. He tunes his head radio into the conversation that Gio is having, trying to figure out what he has going on.

@Sophia
His eyes go distant for a moment before he recalls the "dive bar" you're talking about and then he nods. "I'll meet you there. I had my suspicians about ... " he looks around for a moment " ... the person you mentioned when you said that you weren't kidnapped. Now, you've only confirmed what I was already beginning to realize. We definately have some things to figure out. I will see you there in two hours. These friends of yours ... loyal to you?"

@Akuma
When you turn on the radio, you come in during the middle of one of Gio's sentences, " ... me out of the hosptial."

"Were there any problems?"

"I don't know, I was drugged at the time."

"Typical. Gio, you've been a disappointment to me in this matter from the start. Hell, you've been a disappointment to me for quite some time. You tell those people to get you back here as soon as possible so that we can figure out what the hell we're going to do with the Carolettos and fast. They still seem to feel that we have that minx, Sophia, stashed away somewhere and they're not listening to reason."

"Dad ... there something you should know about Sophia."

"YOU HAVE HER! OF ALL THE STUPID, HAIRBRAINED, IDIOTIC STUNTS YOU'VE PULLED! YOU'VE BROUGHT THE ANGER OF ANOTHER FAMILY DOWN UPON THIS ONE AND IF THEY SO MUCH AS WOUND ONE OF OURS, IT'S BECAUSE OF YOU." The man on the other end of the phone takes a deep breath. "You get yourself back here... You get yourself back here, fast, so I can start to clean up this steaming pile you've droped in my lap."

He hangs up. Throughout the tirade, you can hear Gio trying to get a word in edgewise, but his father just keeps on going. A few moments after the conversation ends, Gio walks into the room looking ashen and troubled. He looks around for a moment and then sighs, looks up and you can see his face resolve as he makes up his mind. "I gotta go talk to Sophia," he announces before leaving the room.

Alice turns to you, "What the hell was that all about?"

:: Sophia nods. ::

"Yes, one in particular." :: There is a hint of a smile on her face as she waves and fades from his sight, returning her body at lightening speed. ::

:: Waking up, the first face she see's is Gio. With a beaming smile, she wraps her arms around his neck and kisses him deeply. ::

"Don't worry, we'll get this worked out. One way or another. Come, we need to talk to the group."

:: Leading him by the hand back to the main living room, she looks over the group. ::

"Ok, here's the deal. There's a dive bar called Our Lady of the Bottle over the river in [pick a place..I dont know pennsylvania!]. I need you to get me and Gio there. It's time I introduced my husband to my father. Only he'll be able to unravel this mess with Medea. Im hoping that I can convince my father to offer an alliance to the Rosseli's which would make all our major problems go away, then we can deal with Medea."

@All
Gio continues, "The only issue I see with that plan is that my father is sorely pissed at the moment because he thinks that I've bungled things in negotiations between our two families," he indicates Sophia as he speaks. "However, it looks like now someone has been cleverly manipulating me, well perhaps us, but I don't know if my father's ready to listen to reason, yet. Despite his desire to yell at me in person for a while," he says with a roll of his eyes, "I think that we should go with Sophia."

"It is starting to look like this Medea is the sourse of all your problems. Perhaps your father needs to hire... someone... to deal with her." The way is says "someone" makes it clear he'd be happy to take on the job himself.

"Either way, we had best get going. I do want to get Gio back to his father as quickly as we can, as we haven't been paid yet. However, I also like the idea of waiting until after we meet with your father though. Perhaps Gio's father would be pleased if we could work out a truce between the families."

:: Sophia gently pats Gio's hand reassuringly. ::

"Well, if things go according to my plan, you will be praised for ending the conflict between our families rather than blamed for the issues between them."

"If all your pop wants to do is yell at you, I think we should just let him stew for a bit. Mebbe if we go with Sophia we can patch things up and you can bring good news to your dad."

Lex pulls out a well-worn deck of cards and begins shuffling. "I know the place you're talking about. The beer sucks, but my cards like it there. Of course, not everyone there likes my cards, but then again, people don't like to be separated from their creds."

pending Mojo, Alice, and Rowan saying OK... just wanted to keep story moving...

"Alright, lets get moving then." Akuma grabs his backpack and slings it over his shoulder. After checking to see if anyone else needs help carrying gear, he makes his way out to the van and loads up, ready to get moving.

:: Sophia and Gio follow, having no equipment to worry about in the first place. ::

Rowan follows Gio and Sophia out

Lex pockets his cards, grabs his deck and his Alpha, and heads to the van. Waiting to be the last one out, he places a Joker in the doorjamb.

@Everyone
Lex sits shotgun for the moment, directing Alice toward Our Lady of the Bottle. The drive there only takes you about 40 minutes, which leaves a little over an hour for you to wait for Sophia's father to arrive.

Driving into a small town named Catasauqua following Lex's directions, you find yourself sinking lower and lower into the streets. Leaving the Bethlehem city limits puts you on turf that is mostly controlled by gangs. Lone Star doesn't usually worry about things that happen out here, unless they happen to someone important. The streets are in poor repair and the signs of people living in the alleys and dark corners are everywhere.

"There it is. Right over there." Lex points toward a building that looks like it used to be a church. On the left hand side of the front of the building is a set of doors over which a sign is posted reading "Our Lady of the Botle." It's unknown whether or not the spelling mistake was deliberate or if the painter just didn't know how to spell 'bottle.' To the right of the bar entrance there looks to be a second set of double doors after going up a few steps. These doors have leaded glass windows in them, but the glass was long since removed -- only the frame of what used to be a colorful array of glass remains. Above the doors stands the remains of a bell tower which collapsed out of disrepair many years ago. "Nice looking place," Alice says with the hint of a smirk.

Across the street is a large, open lot. There are a few vehicles parked there, but not as nice or as new-looking as your own. Many have flat tires, and most have broken windows or dents in the body. In the fading light of twilight, Alice pulls into the lot and drives past most of the junkers to the far corner before parking. She chooses a spot away from the one working street light that illuminates the left hand side of the parking lot. "Well, honey," Alice says to Sophia, "When's your father arrive?"

"Does this thing have a desent security system on it? I don't want someone busting it up while we're away. Unless someone wants to stay with it, just in case?"

"As tempting as that might be, I'm not staying out here to deal with the locals." As an aside, you hear Lex remark, "Anyone have some DMSO and cyanide we could coat the door handles with?"

Akuma smirks. "Nope, sorry. Alice, you up for staying in the van, that way if we need to take off quick, you'll be ready for it."

((ooc: this is me handing the GM a way to keep the NPCs away from the action, giving him less to worry about.))

@Everyone
Alice smirks and pulls up her shot gun and sets it on the dashboard, "If you hear this guy, come running."

:: With only about 30 min before her father's arrival, Sophia climbs out of the van and holds Gio's hand tightly as she leads the group towards the run down bar. Entering the dark establishment, Sophia moves up to the bar and has some quiet words with the bartender. The club is in her family's territory and after a short conversation and the exchange of 200¥ he directs the party to a sectioned off area previously used as a pool room, but transformed into a poker room. The early hour of the day shows an empty room, so Sophia leads the party back and takes up residence in a table protected by the windowless corner. ::

:: Turning to Gio, she covers his hand in both of her's and passes a look that speaks volumes. Expressing everything from her absolute love for him to her fear of facing her father's wrath when he discovered her marriage. Ultimately though, it expresses her desire to get past this inevidable moment and her hope that it will help protect their family rather than destroying it as she had originally thought. ::

@Everyone
Moving through the bar area it's pretty empty. Other than the bartender, you see two bored servers (one man, one woman, both human) and a dwarf at a table in the corner. Judging from the number of glasses in front of him, he won't be a problem.

The bar room it self is a rather large area -- it used to be a meeting room for the church -- and it's an almost perfect square. Tables are strewn haphazardly about the room, probably to make room for the fights. There's a fine layer of sawdust on the floor that is replaced every other day or so. From the smell, though, it's pretty fresh this afternoon.

There's a kitchen area off to your right as you come in the door. You can't see much of it, but it looks like a grille and a deep frier -- everything a bar would need in two appliances. The door into the kitchen is also modified to allow access for taller people.

While Sophia deals with the bartender for a moment, a troll comes out of the modified kitchen door -- which now makes sense to you -- carrying kegs over his shoulders. He looks at you for a moment with his eyebrows drawn in -- sizing you up. He snorts and shrugs -- no mean feat while carrying full kegs on your shoulders -- and then smiles before walking the beer over to the bar and setting it down.

"You guys want anything?" the bartender asks as the group moves into the private area.

The private area is an old stage. Church plays or musical groups could have performed up here in the past, but now it's home to broken glass and poker chips. The remains of a pool table still sit in a corner after it was broken one night and in it's place there are a few tables big enough for 5 or 6 people to play cards. The walls have a few pictures on them, and Lex smiles fondly at one depicting a group of Basset Hounds playing Texas Hold-em.

"Order what you'd like, I'll pick up the tab. Why dont you all take up positions in the main part of the bar and just act like customers. I'd prefer Gio and I be the only ones meeting directly with my father."

Rowan walks back to a portion of the bar where she can easily watch the door. "I'll take a beer, thanks." She says as the bartender looks at her. "Its on her, she nods towards Sophia." With that she begins to pay attention to the other bar patrons looking for anything unusual.

Akuma wanders over to one of the tables where a cardgame is going and throws down some nuyen. He makes sure to take a seat that gives him a view of the table Sophia and Gio are sitting at.

"So Lex, how is this game played anyways?"

@Rowan
The bartender is a human man, about 50 years old and balding. After getting your beer, he moves about the room and washes off a few tables. You notice, as you watch him, that he keeps taking furtive, poorly hidden glances in the direction of you and the others.

The only real patron in the place right now is a dwarf seated at a table by the kitchen. You can't see much of him at the moment as his face is down and cushioned on his own forearms. His snores can be heard resonating throughout the bar. From the dozen or so glasses arrayed on the table before him, you don't expect too much trouble from this guy.

The other two people in the room are the two humans, one guy and one woman, who are helping the bartender to clean up a little before anyone comes in later. They're both young -- 20's perhaps -- and thin but not waifishly so. From the way they casually touch each other when they pass by, you can tell that they're probably lovers.

Moving in and out of the room using the over-sized door to the kitchen is the troll. As you watch him, you can tell that he's smarter and more agile than his stooped-shoulders let on. As he brings up different kegs and hooks them to the fountain at the bar, he glances in your direction and in the direction of the others. Unlike the bartender, who looks worried about the apperance of unfamiliar faces in this part of town, the troll looks interested, perhaps even curious as to what you're doing. Looking closely as he passes you, you're pretty sure that he's wearing some body armor and there's a troll-sized sap hanging from his belt. From this, you assume that he's probably the bouncer as well as the stock-troll.

Lex looks up at Akuma and motions him to sit across from him, "That depends on what 'game' you're interested in. One of luck, perhaps? Or do you want a game that's a little more ... intimate?" With that, Lex pulls his deck out of his coat pocket and begins shuffling them on the table. "Either way, lesson one. Don't go throwing your money around like that. You're just putting a big sign up saying 'take my money, please'. But at least it shows enthusiasm." Lex cuts the deck five ways as he speaks, "Take your pick, luck or skill. I'll teach you everything you need to know to at least not lose all your nuyen in your first hand." That last bit he says with a smile, rolling up his sleeves.

"Skill. I don't believe in luck."

Lex nods, "So be it. In this life fate mixes the cards as she lists, without consulting our wishes in the matter. And we have no choice but to play the hand she deals to us." With that, Lex starts dealing out a hand of Texas Hold'em.

@Everyone
As Lex "teaches" Akuma to play poker--which seems to involve some teaching and a lot of Akuma's money ending up in front of Lex--the rest of you wait as patiently as possible for the arrival of Don Caroletto.

And -- you don't have to wait too long for interesting things to begin to happen. Firstly, about 15 minutes prior to the ETA for the head-hancho, two human men walk into the bar. Their manner cries out that they're looking for something. The look around the room for a moment, and move into the bar proper, taking a table in the south-east portion of the bar. If they saw or recognized Sophia, they gave no indication of it.

Over the comms, you all hear Mojo mumble, "Neither are awakened. Some cyberware and they're feeling .... cautious and prepared."

Shortly after the two men enter the room, they are followed by an elf and a human woman. Those two enter seperately, and take seperate tables in the bar, but from the looks they share with each other and with the two that entered prior to them, you're pretty sure that they all know each other. Mojo reports that the elf is awakened, and the woman is warped with quite a bit of 'ware. He also reports that an earth elemental followed the elf into the bar.

A few moments later, Alice's voice comes in over the comms: "Big, black car just pulled into the lot. Three humans or elves have exited. One visibly armed and waiting with the car. Looks like he's got my job. Other two approaching bar."

At this point, the door opens. As Alice reports, two people enter the bar; both male, both human. One looks to be in his early 30s and follows just behind and to the left of the other. The other is tall, a little overweight but not grossly so. His black hair is beginning to get shot through with grey, but his bearing is strong and gives him the sense of being younger than he probably is. Dressed in a three-piece suit impeccably coordinated with his tie and always-in-fashion wingtip shoes, Don Antonio Caroletto enters the bar. When he does, all eyes turn towards him.

<<OOC: going to dictate a little action for Sophia at the moment. Sorry, Blitz>>

Seeing her father enter the room, Sophia rises from the table and moves in to view, waving to her father. He smiles and sighs in relief, obviously worried for Sophia's safety. He walks to the bartender and converes with him for a moment. <<PFogg: see the conversation below>> Some money exchanges hands, and then he turns towards the poker rooms. The other man follows him as he approaches the table of Sophia and Gio.

Her father comes up to the table, "Hello, Sophie," he says as he hugs her. The release eac other and she turns to sit.

"Mr. Roselli." Don Caroletto says.

Gio nods, "Mr. Caroletto."

@Rowan
You're close enough to the bartender when he speaks with the Don to pick up the conversation.

The Don: You know who we are, yes?
Bartender: Yes.
The Don: And were we here tonight?
Bartender: No.
The Don: Excellent. You're prudence is a model for others to follow.

At this the bartender smiles and the Don smiles back. The Don hands him a bundle script, but you don't see how much. Then, the action continues as above.

:: Sophia feels her heart race as she sits back down her father on one side and her husband on the other. ::

"Mr. Roselli and I have been sharing information that leads me to believe a certain party has been playing our two sides against one another for a personal goal. A young man by the name of Ray, a member of the Roselli family, was recently slain and the blame for it was believed to have originated from our family. Gio received a request for a meeting to discuss the death of Ray, but when he went to that meeting, he walked into an ambush and barely escaped with his life."

"I had been told by the same unnamed party, that Gio was planning on killing them because they were believed to be the person responsible for Ray's death. At that time, she also told me of her planned ambush and had I not arrived when I did, G..Mr. Roselli would surely have perished. She also mentioned that she had a source within the Roselli family that was feeding her this information."

"I've been gone, because I've been keeping a vigil over....Mr. Roselli while he recouperated in the hospital. The details of this situation became clearer when agents employed by the Roselli's were sent to retrieve Gio, however, I refused for them to take him directly back, for fear that Her inside man would set a trap. If she managed to kill Gio, the blood would never stop flowing from the war that would errupt from our two families. It became even more interesting when I discovered that Duster had been hired by Her with the belief that the order came from you, I astrally visited to get further information. I overheard the conversation between Her and him and she's definately out for blood. She killed two well placed men in the Roselli family who were waiting to receive...Mr. Roselli. Duster lied to her for me, and promised me that he would take no lethal action against the Roselli's until he had direct word from you. The only thing that makes me wonder is that on the phone with him, she seemed upset about Gio wanting to kill her. It's just a vengence thing for her, but if she's behind all the subterfuge, then she would know that Gio WASN'T trying to kill her."

:: Sophia takes a deep breath and realizes she's been talking fast and excited like she did as a child. Her nervousness and stress has thrown 5 years of speech therepy right out the window. Under the table, she searches for Gio's hand. Unable to find it, she wrings her hands in her laps waiting for her father's response as she eyes Gio wearily. ::

<<OOC: I'm going to continue with the conversation between Sophia, the Don, and Gio. You guys jump in where ever and when ever you want to with anything else. Feel free to break up the timeline, too, if we get too confused, I'll fix it later.>>

"Sophie, you gave me her name in the kitchen and I've spoken with Duster. He phoned in about two seconds after you left. He told me about ... her ... hiring him and saying it was in my name. He also said that she seemed extremly nervous about the whole situation, but Duster thought at the time that was due to the danger involved to her person. If what you say is true, she was probably more nervous about working around me than anything else. Maybe that's what prompted her anger. Or, it could have just been a show to try and keep Duster loyal. Good thing he likes your Chicken Cacciatori."

The Don turns to Gio and looks him over for about thirty seconds before saying anything. To Gio's favor, he holds the Don's gaze. "What is you're say in all of this Mr. Rosseli?"

"Gio, please. Mr. Rosseli is my father," he answers with a bit of a grin. "What Sophia has told you is true. My family was told by a usual informant by the name of James Flash -- a.k.a. Jimmy the Fish -- that your family had killed Ray but wanted to speak with us to make reparations. My father had placed me in charge concerning all matters relating to our two families, so it was left to me go to that meeting. As per the instructions, I brought two people. When I got there they had quite a bit more. Honestly, I don't even know if they were of your family, they could have been mercenaries hiried by her."

"We all know of whom we're speaking," the Don interjects. "Medea has always been a bit of a hot head and willing to jump into things that she shouldn't. If she weren't a blood relative, I'd have probably sent her packing a while ago." He sighs, "As it is, I'm going to have to have ... words ... with her it seems."

:: Sophia clear her throat, more of a nervous gesture as she goes on. ::

"One way to solve some of the problems facing our families....is perhaps a treaty of sorts? An alliance will benefit us much more and might give us some leverage to quelling the angst that Medea has built herself up with."

The Don looks at his daughter for a moment or two before saying, "A treaty. Is that what you and Gio have been working on the last few days."

To his benefit, Gio controls his blush and comments, "From a certain point of view, yes."

The Don looks at him strangely for a moment before turning back to Sophia, "As for Medea's angst, I'm not sure it's for real. Something about the way she's been acting around me and then your report of her tirade at Duster makes me think that she might be more shrewd than we thought."

@Akuma
You can make out what's being said. Especially because the rest of the bar is pretty quite.

@Everyone on the Comms
Mojo says, "That's odd. The earth elemental just left."

@Everyone
The group that came with the Don has taken up a few tables throughout the barroom and seem to be content to wait until his business is finished. They're probably used to this. The bartender remains behind the bar and the two human lovers have entered the kitchen area and not come back out. The dwarf is still snoreing into his cups and the troll is leaning up against the bar and watching everyone with a look of amused curiosity on his face. This is probably much more interesting than anything that usually happens in this place.

"But what if she's just a pawn in someone ELSE'S game? Maybe she's being played against you, just like Jimmy was played against the Roselli's."

over the comm

"It left? Oh god, what if it was sent to warn Medea?"

Rowan looks at the Troll, "Must be an interesting day for business eh?"

Akuma thinks for a minute...

over the comm

"Mojo, is there any way for you to track where the spirit went?"

@Sophia (and Akuma who's listening in)
"Hm ... that's something I haven't considered." The Don turns to the gentleman that walked in with him, "Mark, has Medea been contacted by any third-parties with an interest in formenting a war between our families?" He says while indicating Gio with his hand.

Mark pauses for a moment, thinking before answering, "The only thing that's happened of note to Medea in the last few weeks was the arrest for which we had to pay a rather exorbitant bribe resulting in her release. Except for that, I don't have any knowledge of her personal ... or Astral ... dealings."

For the benefit of Gio, the Don explains, "Mark here is ... kind of my major domo. Plus, he's got one of the most brilliant minds I've ever encountered. This man hears or sees something and it's locked in his brain forever. Handy for when you don't want to have an obvious recording device, no?"

@Rowan
The troll "harumphs" before saying, "Name's Bob. And, yeah it is interestin'. We don't usually get this many people without holes in their clothing in one week, let alone in one afternoon. Fill me in on what's going on?" he says with an expectent, excited gleam in his eyes."

@Those on the Comms
Mojo replies to Akuma, "Not really. Once something zips off on the Astral it can move too quick to track unless you're already moving. I can send out a watcher or two, but I doubt they'd find much. You want me to ask the elf it it was his?"

@Comm

"No. It wouldn't be good ettiquette to come right now and say 'Hi, we're the other side'. Just keep an eye on the astal for now, though it wouldn't hurt to have a few watchers keeping track of things outside."

@Comm
Mojo replies, "Will do."

:: Sophia's shoulders slump slightly as she lets go of her train of thought. ::

"Well, for whatever reasons, the relationship between our families is in danger and we can at least take strides to cement it. All I'm waiting on is your approval before I approach Mr. Roselli with our offer of peace and alliance.

"As for Medea, bring her in and I'll have a pleasant chat with her. It's time I figured out what she's up to. You can get some gamma scopalomine can't you, Dad?"

@Sophia
You father looks at you for a moment and then lowers his head, chewing slightly on his lower lip. Thinking things over for about a minute, he gets up, goes to the bar, gets three shots of whiskey and goes back to the table. Setting a shot before you, Gio, and himself, he raises his and looks at Gio. "I'm willing to try and work something out if you are."

Gio smiles and looks at you for a moment, some relief creeping into his gaze. He lifts his glass and looks at the Don, "Might as well. Besides, if we keep fighting, it's bad for business," he says with a grin.

The Don glances at you, waiting to see what you'll do.

Rowan smiles at Bob, "Just business," she shrugs, "I'm here to make sure no one gets hurt." Rowan scans the room again, knowing that everything is probably as it should be.

"So how about another beer?"

@Rowan
Bob replies, "No drinking for me until after we close, but ..... " he leans around the counter and grabs you another, " ..... you can certainly have one!" he says with a grin.

:: Sophia breaks into a huge smile, the same one she's used to charm her way through life, yet this smile is as genuine as possible. ::

"To building bridges."

:: She raises her glass and shoots the warming liquid first, barely able to supress the cough that immediately follows. Under the table, Sophia reaches for Gio's hand and gives it a gentle squeeze. ::

Now...if only Don Roselli is as receptive.

Mojo rubs his temples, the headache from holding that set of spells for so long is still bugging him. He watches the others blearily, and tries to keep his mind off the pain.

@Comms
Alice whispers into the comms, "Uhm, guys. Two more cars just pulled up and parked in the lot. They're approaching the last guy that came with the Carolettos." She pauses. For those with hearing amplification you hear the sound of a gunshot ring out in the night. "Shit. Shit! They just shot him. I repeat, tell the Don that he can save this guy's Christmas bonus this year. They're looking around ... oh damn ... I'm marked."

As you listen in, you can tell that Alice is no longer talking to you, but she's left an open line over her communicator. You can't make out what's being said to her but you can make out her side of the conversation:

"No sir. I was just paid to watch the car."
"I don't know ... five or six, I guess."
Drier, more sarcastic: "Yes. I always dress like this when I'm watching cars."
"Wait! No! I'm not here to...."

For those with hearing amplification you hear the sound of a gunshot ring out in the night.


Going to post what happens next, but if anyone has actions to do between the above and the below, just post it. Or, if you just want to react to what's going on below, that works too.


@ Everyone
A few moments later a group of eight men enter the bar. They're all wearing suits and they're all human. All are visibly armed with pistols or sub-machine guns. They enter as a phalanx, protecting on of their number behind a 'V' formation. At quick glance, it looks like they're all human. The group pauses when the come into the bar and then the guy in the back pushes through, "All right, Caroletto, I want my son back."

Gio stands up, "Dad!?"

@ Mojo
Two of the group that has entered the bar are awakened. Both are similarly powered to yourself. The rest all have varying degrees of cyberware. One of the awakened in the group is already astrally perceiving and looking around the room.

@ Rowan
Moving slowly, Bob twists himself so that his back is slightly toward the goons that entered the bar. Reaching slowly so he doesn't attract attention, he's going for the sap at his belt.

@ Lex
Akuma looks at you for a moment before acting and drops his cards on the table. From the five up-cards in the hand, you can see the Ace of Spades, the 10 of Spades, the Queen of Spades, the 2 of Hearts, and the 8 of Diamonds. Akuma flips his cards over and gives you a smirk. He had the Jack and the King. "Time to go to work."

:: Sophia, unconnected to the comms, is surprised when the group enters the bar. The moment of recognition of Don Roselli, she immediately casts a force 6 armor spell around her father, and then herself. She hesitates to cast one on Gio since she doubts his father would open fire on him, but prepares one just in case things get ugly. ::

@Everyone
After a moment of confusion, you see Sophia and her father begin to glow with a soft, white light. Sweat beads on Sophia's forehead and her eyes appear feline as she hangs onto the spells.

Rowan sighs, and looks at her beer, slowly shaking her head 'no' at Bob. She stands and turns around. "Don Roselli, please have your goons stand down. Your son is fine. Also do you mind if I go out and check on the health my driver? I would have thought you smarter than to shoot first and ask questions later..."

@Rowan
Don Rosseli looks at you. "No, Rowan, that is not possible at this time. I thought you had more sense than to turn my son over to the Carolettos."