Low Places Club
Wednesday 26/3/70 17:24:35

She sat on a barstool, just nursing a soy-beer while tapping her feet to the jumping club beat. Her jet black lined coat contrasted with her hair, showing off how much it looked like gold threads pulled back into a ponytail. She would have had men almost hanging off her, with the tight denim jeans and black halter, but she kept turning them away saying she didn’t feel like dancing.
This went on for a while, though she did let some of the men buy her drinks before she turned them down. She was just thinking about going onto the dance floor after having enough drinks, when she received a call on her commlink. Her eyebrow raised a bit, cause not many people knew her number, but once she looked at who was calling, a wave of excitement washed over her. Cole...

When she answered the call, her ears were assaulted with a rich deep voice that practically dripped sophistication. “Good evening, Kerrigan. It has been a long time since we last talked. I send my deepest regret for the inconvenience. I do call with good news though. I have been able to make a couple of acquaintances in that region and one of them wishes to meet with you. The business arrangement is scheduled to happen at the Longhorn Saloon at 2200, with the host being a Mrs Victoria. Please do make a good impression, for both our sakes.”



Stuffer Shack
Wednesday 26/3/70 14:10:50

Stepping back out of the Stuffer Shack into the warm afternoon, the elf took a drink of his ice cold bottled water. He knew that he was going to have to wash his suit more often if the heat kept rising like it had been. It was already peaking at 85 degrees each day and it was only going to get higher as the days went by.
He mentally started up his van in the parking lot and started to walk off the sidewalk, but stopped as a bright yellow limo pulled up in front of him. Taken aback for a second, the man stepped back once as the back door opened by itself. Once he heard a voice from within, the man’s face showed a knowing grin. “Nice limo, yes? Take a ride?” It could only belong to Ibn.
Sitting in the back seat, he saw the turban wrapped head of a familiar dwarf. Beads hanging as a partition between the driver and passenger areas started swaying as the limo started moving down the street. The dwarf’s teeth flashed gold and white in the rearview mirror as he started talking.

“My good friend, Armani, fortune smiles upon us yet again! We have work to do, and by we, I mean you. A Mrs Victoria wishes to meet with you at the Longhorn Saloon this very night. At 2200 I know you will shine like the moon over the clear desert night skies! I see grand things, grand grand things! Ah, here we are. Your business was most pleasurable. Thank you, come again!”, the dwarf finished as the limo came to a stop and the door opened.
Stepping out of the limo, Armani was greeted with the sight of his small house. The sounds of the limo driving away were soon replaced with his own van pulling itself into the driveway.



Lobo’s Pad
Wednesday 26/3/70 15:41:25

There he was, just sitting in his favorite beanbag with a shit eating grin on his face. An outward observer would see a malnourished dwarf in a faded poncho and worn blue jeans. To him though, the world was a sweet place to be right now. He had just scored a sweet deal with one of the guys he knew, a ‘free sample’ of their latest blend, and was kicking back enjoying the waves of euphoria. They were slowly subsiding, and were almost gone when he saw a message that played across his AR vision.

<Lobo, you there amigo? I got you a good way to pay me back for the blunt you probably doping out on right now. Just get yourself to the Longhorn Saloon at ten o’clock tonight and ask for Victoria. Wear some decent cloths this time too, she sounds up there if you know what I mean. - Pancho>



Wild Jack’s Auto Shop
Wednesday 26/3/70 16:32:30

A pair of legs, wearing faded camouflage pants rolled up to the knee, stick out from under the big Bulldog van. The sounds of tinkering can be heard from underneath as someone keeps turning bolts until the sound of thick liquid hitting a metal pan fills the air. The sounds cover up the approach of a tall ork in coveralls as he steps up to the van. His white hat had long since seen better days, as it was almost covered with more oil and grease than hat material.
As he stepped up to the legs sticking out, he looked them over and let out a long whistle. “Them's some nice legs you got there, Danni. Wish you would show them off more.” the man says with a southern drawl. The woman underneath the van knew it was Wild Jack, so the only reply she gave was a rude gesture.

“Not right now, honey. I actually have some business to talk. Some lady named Victoria wants to meet up with you about some job. Said something about the Longhorn Saloon and ten o’clock. This might be the big one for you, so wear your good boots.” he finished with a smile and a laugh.

Low Places Club
Wednesday 26/3/70 17:24:51
Kerrigan - Shaman
PAN: Passive

Kerrigan smiles, as Cole finished. “Apology accepted.”

“I will do my best. Maybe there's a job in for me, considering the location,” she says with a slight smirk. Cole was smart enough to catch her little jibe there, he was the one who had provided her with the fake SIN in the first place. “I'm running a little dry right now.”

The barkeeper had heard those last words and immediately came over to provide the attractive patron with another drink, but Kerrigan just waved him off. “Thanks, but I think I had enough drinks for the moment.” He nodded and was off to clean a few more of the glasses, that already had their third pass, but glasses could never be clean enough.

“Alright then, thanks for your call. I'll be there.”

Lobo
Wednesday 26/3/70 15:41:30

<Whoa, Little man. I can feel your ego from here! Let me tell you, from the way she talked, she way outa your league. Heh Heh, good luck trying, loco enano. As for the place, I hear its real old fasioned, like real old, man. Let me know how it goes. - Pancho>

Wild Jack’s Auto Shop
Wednesday 26/3/70 16:32:45
Caliban - Hidden
Navi - Open



"Well, Jack, could you be a complete sweetheart for little ol' me?" the voice is is coloured by a gentle southern drawl, "finish this oil change an' you might see me in my good boots before I hit the meet."

Danni pulls herself out from under the van pulls off her bandanna and wipes her face then her hands with it. Once finished she throws through the open window of her van where it lands on the passenger seat.

"I want to hit the 'trix honey check out the buzz on this, I'll be round about half eight to pick my baby up, an' don't ya use the cheap shit lube, you know how much I hate the feel it gives."

As she talks she sets matrix searches cascading off looking into this woman called Victoria and the Longhorn Saloon. She blows Jack a kiss as she leaves and pulls another bandanna from her combat's pockets and ties it over her head.

Lobo’s
Wednesday 26/3/70 15:41:35
Lobo - Hidden
Vector Xim: Passive

<Why are you trying to set me up on a blind date with someone "way outa" my league? Sounds fishy. Give me her commcode. I think I better call her first; find out what up. I'm getting vibes that this is something other than social. I mean 22:00 is not the time for a dinner date.

I gotta be a little cautious these days. With things the way they are along the border right now, I can't afford to be seen in the wrong place or with the wrong people. - Lobo>

Armani's house
Wednesday 26/3/70 14:16:24
Armani - Face
PAN: Active

Armani sent an e-mail to his friend PAN while his car was driving out the hallway. ''Always a pleasure doing business with you. And don't forget you promise to be present at next saturday's underground bike race.''

With care, he parked his bulldog in his alley and entered his house finishing his bottle of water. He managed to cook a decent meal for his breakfast (he awoke less than an hour earlier) and got down in his garage to change the paint on his bike. 3 weeks with the same color patterns were more than enough .

Lobo
Wednesday 26/3/70 15:41:38

<You head still feeling fuzzy? This be work, man, not play. You know I cant be givin' out her code. Would be unethical. Heh. - Pancho>

Wild Jack’s Auto Shop
Wednesday 26/3/70 16:32:48
Danni

As she walked away, Danni could hear Jack call out to her. "Them better be some real nice boots if yer wantin me to finish yer mess."
She smiled as she then heard the sounds of a man grunting as he lay on the slideboard and the rolling of wheels as he slid under the van.

Lobo’s
Wednesday 26/3/70 15:41:45
Lobo - Hidden
Vector Xim: Passive

<Business, huh? You pimp! {laughs} Well, I was just thinking, before you called, that if I will need a new line of work if I am going to remain in the CAS. That means "Thanks" are in order, I guess.

I'm not sure that I am ready for a new MO. My previous "business" successes owe a lot to my natural caution. I'll tell you what. Please give her this number, and ask Sr. Victoria to call me. If she balks, tell her how handsome I am. How shy? How paranoid? Tell her I would feel more comfortable in these uncertain times.

Meanwhile, I need to wash my bike, polish my shoes, and brush off my "good" clothes. Chulo, if this works out I'll owe you some buttons. - Lobo>

Lobo switches to TM full-VR mode, and compiles a data sprite. Emil, one of his favorites, shows up. "Emil, I need to now everything there is to know about the Longhorn Saloon. Please search the net and report back in an hour. Thanks."

Edit: After Emil takes off, Lobo performs a matrix perception test on Poncho's commlink. He wants to guage the system and firewall prior to hacking it.

Low Places Club
Wednesday 26/3/70 17:39:17
Kerrigan - Shaman
PAN: Passive

A short while later, she already feels a little tipsy from the drinks she had, even though she had ordered only one herself, Kerrigan decides to hit it and stands up. A few nuyen are automatically transfered from her commlink, once she has given the confirmation.

The guy who had seen his chance to hit on her and immediately rushed over was dismissed with just a few words. “Thanks, I was about to leave, actually.” His two friends were exchanging some jokes, when he went back to them, trying to look not too disappointed. Guess someone lost his bet...

“Great place, nice people, thank you very much. See ya!” she says to the barkeeper, but loud enough for others to hear, no need to slap them and to kick them while they are down, so some encouraging words were in order, she thought. Then she turns around and heads towards the restroom to freshen up and straighten her clothes, before finally heading out. Blinking her eyes because of the sunlight, Kerrigan realizes, that she had taken off her sunglasses inside. She quickly puts them back on, turning the world around her in a soft shade of orange.

Much like on her way here, Kerrigan walks, not that she had deliberately chosen this club, it just looked nice enough when she had moved by and so she had went in for a drink, that was the original intention, anyways. She wants to see a little of the city and of the neighborhood, and this is a good way to do so.

Lobo’s
Wednesday 26/3/70 15:41:48

As Lobo feels the slight shift of his consiousness into the virtual realm, he sees the Grim Reaper staring back at him with empty black sockets. Apon a quick quiry, Lobo recognises his friends commcode and relaxes a bit. Just as quickly, the icon infront of Lobo starts to dissipate into a rolling black fog, and in a moment is gone from the node.
For a split second before it left though, Lobo felt certain that Pancho was running a good rig.

Streets of SA
Wednesday 26/3/70 17:42:45

The warm afternoon was slowly changing into a cool evening as the sun set behind the tall buildings around, Kerrigan. The bustle of people up and down the sidewalks ment that she couldnt just stand still for long or else be pushed and bumped around.
As she walked down the street, she saw neon and AR signs advertising other clubs and stores as she passed. She started looking at them and not at where she was going for a few seconds too long and almost fell off a curb that she had come up to. As she steadied herself from her near fall, Kerrigan looked around and saw a pair of Lonestar Cops leaning up against their patrol car.

The human men were just showing their pressence in the area to prevent anything big from going down, but one nudged the other and pointed in your general direction as you saw them. The other man looked over lazily and said something too his partner and had a quick laugh before looking around at the surrounding croud some more.

Streets of SA
Wednesday 26/3/70 17:42:51
Kerrigan - Shaman
PAN: Passive

Move on, Kerrigan, just move on... Kerrigan thinks, as she continues on her way, trying not to stumble over any further obstacles. Normally, she would have walked over to them and asked them if they would share the joke, and what's so funny, but with the star, avoiding any kind of contact was usually for the best. Apparantly, their interest in her was not for long, and that was a good thing.


Kerrigan's Appartement
Wednesday 26/3/70 18:17:09
Kerrigan - Shaman
PAN: Passive

A good half-an-hour later, Kerrigan arrives in her small appartement. Still three-and-a-half hours left, minus an hour or so to get to the place; more than enough time for a long shower.

Danni's house, SA
Wednesday 26/3/70 16:52:45
Caliban - Hidden
Navi - Open

After a casual walk through the streets Danni wonders into her place. She checks the security camera ogs for the building as she approaches, smiling as it shows no untoward interest to her home. Once in she grabs a bottle of Bud from the fridge opens it a takes a long swig. She checks the time, plenty before the meeting, she probably could have changed the oil her self but Jack is so much fun to play girlie to.

A beep from her commlink reminds her of the searches she has running and she checks them, nothing immediatly useful, but she wasn't expecting much. As she reviews the data she tells the shower to start and strips of as she heads into the bathroom, adding today's clothes to the mess that fills her floor. Her comlinks are discarded last and then she climbs into the staeming water and starts to work out the oily grime that she's dusted with.

Lobo’s
Wednesday 26/3/70 15:50
Lobo - Hidden
Vector Xim: Passive

Lobo thought, "That hound dog!" He could feel that this was going to be one of those days. "What to do; what to do?"

Lobo thinks better on a full stomach, so he warmed up some leftover refried beans. He sautéed some onions and garlic to add to the beans, then wrapped the concoction in a warm tortilla. He took a healthy bite, gave himself a thumbs up, and grabbed a long neck out of the cooler.

Lobo took a swig, then stared at the bottle. "Lone Star in a Long Neck is not Dos Equis", he thought. "I wonder what other changes this war will bring".

He ate about half the burrito before smacking himself upside the head. "Garlic, onions, beans, and beer - what every macho eats before meeting a chica for the first time", he said out loud. "It's definitely looking like a bad day", he thought as he pondered his latest blunder. Lobo took another swig of beer; then resumed eating.

Business meetings in public places is not part of Lobo's MO, anymore than blind dates. "I'm not about to change that now"; he thought, "not in these uncertain times. That way leads to disaster.

"I know. I'll just call the bar at 8 o'clock, and have her paged discreetly."

Kerrigan's Appartement
Wednesday 26/3/70 20:01:37
Kerrigan - Shaman
PAN: Passive

Kerrigan sits on her bed, dressed only in her lingerie; more clothes are scattered around her in a wild pattern. Her hair has already dried. Her mind is somewhere else, though, racing through the Matrix in a way not unlike a journey to the Astral Plane. It still was quite a bit different, and it certainly felt wrong in comparison. But it was a useful place, sometimes, because a lot of information was to be gained there. Especially, if you know what you are doing, which cannot really be said about Kerrigan and the Matrix. But what she is looking for doesn't require any special skills or anything, everyone can do that. Of course, she is in the process of deciding what to wear on the evening, and so she figured to find out a little more about the Longhorn Saloon, and what people normally dressed in, when going there. If there was a dresscode, formal or informal, that is. There surely were pictures of the establishment to be found and those should give her a hint at least. She didn't want to be totally out of place there. Kerrigan would also like to know a bit more about her host, Mrs Victoria, but she knows quite well, that this is beyond her ability and so she doesn't even try. It's better that way, so much for sure.

City's Highway
Wednesday 26/3/70 21:47:52
Armani - Face
PAN: Active

Roaming just above the speed limits with his flamboyant Suzuki Mirage drawn as a running tiger, Armani is heading to the Longhorn Saloon. He managed to evade the few police patrols in the sector in order to avoid detection and a speed ticket using a few sortcuts of his own and sheer speed. A few minutes later, he parked his vehicle in the Saloon parking lot and took a time to look around, to see the possible exits. When he finally completes his preliminary survey, he enters the saloon, right in time for his meeting.