Leo watches in horror as the events unfold and sees the malignant traces of the other seeker - these people were just toys in a sadistic game for her. Moving quickly he turns towards the fire spirit and gathers the mana from himself - small bits of wind gather and coalesce before lashing out at the physical shell of the elemental in the house while yelling over the roar of the flames.

"Someone help them!"

All

The sudden rush of cold creates a cloud of steam in the super-heated air. As the lance strikes into the creature, there is a scream from three voices--the spirit, Rene and Etain. Ice forms across the ecoshaman's massive chest, but the small dryad's breasts are slashed and blood seeps through her shirt.

The spirit makes a flickering motion as if to dismiss the small pixie formed spirit. Burn marks spread across the floor as the column of fire courses through the kitchen into Uetz. Arms of fire and ash reach out to engulf the small Aztlaner.

What is going ON??? Uetz thinks to himself as Rene's shamanic mask waxes into existence. He looks over at Leo when he shouts out his warning, and then follows the trail of the ice spell as it streaks towards the fire spirit. However, he is both perplexed and horrified when he hears his friends scream out in pain.

"NO!" he shouts, and then tries to run to Etain's side before the pillar of fire streaks down towards him. He freezes up as the shock of the entire disaster sinks in and glues him to the ground.

Muevete! screams Quauhtli, jolting her twin into action.

Still holding the faucet in one hand, Papa kicks the fire spirit, having been told in the past that sometimes a focused mind can over come summoned creatures. Hopefully this skin change is also protects me from fire.

FWOOSH

The massive column of flames bulges out as it pulls Uetz within it. Over head, the ceiling is blackening and beginning to glow with an inner heat. Within a few minutes, the house may catch on fire. You are certain that nothing can survive that time within the flames though.

As Papa kicks the inferno, he feels something solid inside but his foot continues straight through. On the floor, Etain's lower jaw juts two inches to the left with a sickening crack. Blood drips from her mouth as she collapses sideways on the floor. The blood from her chest and mouth begin to run together into a puddle.

Seeing his friend crumple, Rene lets out a feral scream.

Papa

The dry wind blows through your mind, and a violet hue overlays your vision, drawing spectrums of light you have never seen before into view. Jagged lines of power are linking the lockets together.

If I may suggest, destroying the spirit will likely destroy those bound to it.

Papa lets out a yelp as the wave of heat washes over his boot and then most of his body as his attack passes through the flames. Spinning back to face the malevolent spirit he sees the effects and quickly deduces the spiritual connection between the two.

All

Within the flames, Uetz screams out in pain. Blisters begin to form along his skin from the burns. As the flames burn the Aztlaner, the spirit seems to grow larger--filling the kitchen with fire.

Cursing, Argent recoiled from the wash of flame as Uetz is engulfed. Dammit, this bitch is really ruining my day. After watching the troll plunge his foot through the creature and receive a severe burn for his trouble, it seems obvious that is not the way. His gaze flashes over the two figures, Etain unconscious on the ground, Rene about to go all berserker, and spots the lockets.

What the hell? Can't be worse then sticking my fist in a fire.

Two quick steps and he slides across the kitchen tile on his knees for the last few feet, one hand already back and driving forward like Blackclaw had taught him, all his attention focused in the astral where the locket was clawing it's way under the girls skin.

Argent

There is a blinding pain behind your eyes as mana lashes out. You feel the locket solid in your hand and the tendrils draw out of Etain's limp form. You can feel the malevolance of the creation throbbing in your hand. The tendrils lash out at you, trying to burrow under the fur and flesh of your joint psyche--driving a wedge into the space between fax and man. Your will and focus locks down around you, keeping it out for now.

All

You see Argent slide to a stop just past Etain. His hand is clutched tight as if he is holding something, and the muscles in his arm twitch as if small electric wires were touching him.

The vines around Rene suddenly become solid and lash out at everything in the kitchen. Several of them grab loose items on the counters and begin squeezing. Plastic cups are crushed instantly and there is the sound of breaking glass somewhere amidst the tangle.

With his arm covering his eyes from the suffocating heat of the fire spirit, Uetz can only hear the combat unfold. At some points he hears what he thinks to be his own voice, but he cannot be sure. Strange, I never expected to die in battle...I suppose it is poetically fitting that I go to the afterlife of my namesake. Tlalocan is usually a place for warriors, but I suppose even they need a healer now and then....

Etain's shrieks of pain pull him out of his stoic---and possibly premature---acceptance of his fate.

She needs you, Brother, urges Quauhtli, Please do not let my weakness create your death.

I will try to survive, Sister. I may have a trick or two left, but first...

"Try banishing the spirit, if you can!" he yells to his friends.

All

The tangles of barbed vines lash out but through adrenaline fueled reflexes and the protective instincts of Leo and D'zan, each of you manage to stay unentangled. Listening to the sounds of creaking wood and groaning metal, the kitchen appliances and furniture may not have been as dextrous. The vines are thick enough to block parts of your vision except for quick glances as they thrash wildly.

Astrally

Thick, sickly smoke surrounds the vines. A quivering sense drives deep into Argent and Leo, there is a primal hunger in the magic like an ageless slumbering being shuddering in a fitful nightmare before awakening.

D'zan twists and turns in the air avoiding the grasping vines. His face is mask of concern and irritation as he hovers in sight of the towering column of flames.

"That's enough out of you."

He reaches out with his hand and his will - gathering the mana from himself and the spirit itself into his hands. The air grows colder and the chill seems to compress the spirit in on its self.

All

A sudden in rush of cold air blows in from the living room and the outside as the column of fire shrinks out of view. A sultry voice whispers just before the spirit is completely gone. "Very well done, feyling. The Smoking Mirror is not done with this one, but crippling him was worth the gain."

Uetz feels the stifling pressure of the flames evaporate, opening his eyes just in time to hear the voice. He looks around, seeing for the first time the resulting mayhem of the battle: the bloodied Etain, the ruined kitchen, his own burned flesh, and the ensorcelled Rene. His eyes narrow as a cacophony of fear, rage, and survival instinct kick in.

His pupils narrow to vicious slits, scale-like patterns flicker over his skin, and the Nahualli's form begins to fluctuate fluidly. His body begins to sway back and forth, growing longer and narrower until his likeness is replaced with a very big, very burned---and very angry---boa constrictor.

D'zan watches with glee as the spirit is forced from this existence and returned to its metaplane. His eyes widen at the woman's voice and he looks around slowly to see if the others hear her speaking.

"Fire that was here is gone - my will banished her pawn."

He reaches for the reservoir within to push away the backlash such magic entails and his eyes widen even further as he feels the massive surge ground back through his body. His flight becomes erratic as he gracelessly lands on the floor looking pale and shaky.

"I am beginning to like her........"

Uetz

Shifting form, you land with a minor thud as the weight of the snake tears through several of the vines. A few of the lower thorny vines wrap around the long form of the snake, but not enough to completely immobilize you. You feel them constricting tightly, preparing to try and crush you the way you crush others.

Argent

The small voice in the back of your mind screams in terror as a giant snake materializes where your companion stood seconds before. It is large enough to swallow you and your litter mates whole without a second thought, and its muscles strong enough to shatter every bone in your body, liquefying your organs. Run, before it catches you. Run, to get it away from the den. As the voice fades, back to conscious thought a small shiver ripples down your spine.

Leo pauses only a brief moment to make sure his companion is alright - feeling the flow of their thoughts for any unknown problem before diving and twisting through the air. As he moves quickly and gracefully around the vines and small fires set by the spirit he begins to sing in a fluid tonal language - Sperethiel. He calls for the dawn and the new day to be with him, to bring the promise of renewed life to those here and to ease their suffering. He becomes brighter as the magic answers his song and he slides past Uetz tapping him once as he glides by transferring all of the radiance to his body as it washes across his new shape and gathers in the burns and wounds he has sustained. A few more feet of whirls and loops lands him on Etain's prone body. He looks to Argent - a slight look of strain on his features.

"You need to knock him out - something is poisoning him but it will be a bit before I can release the enchantment on Uetz and I need to make sure she is not allowed to slip from this world to the next."

Papa side steps the vines shooting though the room, unfazed, at least for the moment, by the rapidly changing battlefield... errr.. Kitchen. After his failure in deciding how to deal with the fire spirit, he yells towards the team, "How do I kill it?"

Papa

As your thoughts lean towards the other consciousness in your mind, it's vision overwhelms your senses. The purple lines of energy ripple across the kitchen. You see the locket wrapped around Argent's arm and choking Rene in a pale lavender. The vines ripple a deep violet, extending from the troll's waist and shoulders.

It bears no special protections. The weapon of your choice will suffice You feel the dry wind rippling through your mind, as if flipping the pages of a book. This.

You suddenly flash back to a memory of standing on a firing range, your SMG shaking in your hands from each short burst sent down the line.

The words barely out of his mouth as the thoughts begin flood into his brain. Electrons whirling at his command, cross hairs appear in his peripheral vision before the weapon is even in his hand. The movement of his arm, and by extension the weapon, are a blur to the naked eye. The "pft-pft-pft" of three rounds being coughed from the silenced machine-gun barely register over the background noise.

The troll then holds a split-second, pausing for his brain to ascertain the state of the locket and potential effects on the bearer. He is concerned that the locket may be in some way spirit bound as the fire spirit was.

Papa

Mortals are such. The locket is unbound without the lynch pin.

All
The staccato of bullets impact Rene square in the chest. There is a shimmer through the air as the vines evaporate. He looks at Papa Smurf with a sense of shock.

The troll turns to Uetz, "I knew they would break you from us." He collapses to the floor, arterial blood seeping to the ground around him.

Papa kneels by Rene, applying pressure to the wound. He looks back to the crew, his words a directive rather than a query. "Medkit!"

Leo looks over at Rene's limp body - the color drains from his face. "We don't have one; Does anyone have one? Quickly! If not let D'zan attempt to heal his wounds with a spell."

Uetz releases the spell, his face a mix of horror and rage at seeing both Etain and Rene bleeding out his kitchen floor. He clutches his arm around a particularly burned side.

"I have a medkit on top of my desk in my room. Can someone bring it here and clear a space on the table, otherwise both Leo and I have to go and I think it best that both of us stay here to heal the wounded in case their conditions deteriorate. I would prefer to take the lead in healing them, but I guess I just have to assist unless someone can get the pinche pollutants out of the air so I can think straight." He spits out the last idea, as his migraine continues to get worse.

Papa grimaces at the words looking to Uetz to Rene then back to Uetz. Gently guiding Uetz' handto Rene he says, "Hold pressure here." before running to the mage's room and retrieving the medkit. Once back he pops it open, he opens a window and starts to work on Rene.

All

The quiet in the kitchen is broken by the slamming of doors as Papa goes running through the house, his large frame hitting walls in his haste. He slides back into place and slaps several electrode patches onto Rene. The machine begins calls for them to clear and sends a jolt strong enough to shake the shaman's body to no avail.

The medkit dispenses an ampule to be injected into him, and a gooey substance to be spread across the wounds.

It shocks again. beep beep...beep beep A thready but visible pulse begins registering on the medkit.

Beneath the soft glow of Leo's form, the puddle of blood grows wider from Etain's meek form.

"I think you can handle it from here for the time being," Uetz grumbles, upon seeing the medkit register a somewhat stable pulse for Rene. slHe moves over to Etain, his expression wincing in sympathy from seeing the injured dryad. He gently touches the most grievous of her wounds, and emerald rivulets of power gently flow into her.

All

The glow of power from Uetz begins to falter as a series of rasping breaths escapes Etain's lips and the dryad seems to slip away. With a look of steely resolve crossing over him, the glow becomes brighter flashing a brilliant white. There is the sound of an eagle screaming in the distance, diving for the hunt.

The spell locks into place and the shattered woman clings to the razor's edge of life.

"D'zan! Save him!"

The naked and raw need in Leo's voice echoes harshly into the loft space as he implores his companion to act. A brief look of shame and guilt washes over D'zan's face before a hard facade drops over it. He flies to the prone body - landing in the blood without any hesitation. Taking a single hand he places it palm down into the gathered fluid as he begins to sing. The blood begins to flow backwards and pushes its way back into Rene's body. It begins to jerk and spasm as the tissue is forced to knit and mend. The sound of the embedded rounds being ejected from his body are followed by his screams as pain as the magic mends the flesh. The last of the song seems to hang in the air as D'zan stops singing to speak.

"Flesh and bone, blood and breath mended now and safe from death."

His body once again shakes from the backlash of using magic in this existence and he slumps to his knees breathing heavily.

Looking particularly crazy as he continues to wrestle with something most people in the room can't even see, Argent's arms begin to shake and shudder with the effort of keeping the locket contained. Still on his knees, he takes a deep breath, clasping his hands together and letting his head hang down, seeming to go still for a brief moment.

Papa slides back, watching the mages work. In the background, he keeps an eye on the security cameras, his paranoia kicked up.

Argent

The spidery locket smashes under the weight of your will, without the life force to sustain it. Each individual link melts away, returning to the aether until nothing remains.

Papa
Scanning across the cameras, nothing is immediately obvious or out of the ordinary. The security system queries you for fire response to be called. Without a response in the next sixty seconds, an automated request for aid will be sent.

All

In the kitchen, Rene's heavy wheezing and whimper of pain is the only sound. Beneath Leo's gentle gaze, the life of Etain hangs on a thread. It is clear that something meant to cripple if not kill all of you.

Relieved to see his spell take hold, Uetz gently takes Etain's hand. He delicately clasps it while he sustains the Stabilize spell long enough for it to take permanent effect. He grabs the medkit and begins going over her wounds, trying to patch her up as quickly as possible. He wipes his brow after finishing, and then takes a deep breath and follows the spirits' lead.

"I swear, I will find the people responsible for this," he whispers, "and turn them into mulch."

All

The air in the kitchen ripples once more with magical energy, and Etain's body jerks up in a spasm. She coughs, the sound wet and ragged, before looking around the kitchen and collapsing back to the floor.

Leo sustains the spell on Uetz as he waits impatiently by Etain for the enchantment to bind permanently with his flesh and spirit. He whispers to him trying to console him and offer comfort.

"As soon as your wounds are mended I promise I will do the same for her."

Across the room D'zan forces his way to his feet and tries to shake off the disorientation of the recent mana weavings. His voice is ragged and tired as he speaks.

"Them would be the Smoking Mirror - a group of deep dark mojo slingers who like to see blood in their work. Friends of yours Uetz?"

"Thank you," Uetz says to Leo, visibly relieved at the spirit's offer. "She has a kind heart and should not have had to suffer so."

When he hears D'zan he cracks a pained smile and chuckles softly.

"What is the idiom? 'With friends like those, who needs enemies?' No companero, they are no friends of mine. I thought only the Chimalli were after me, but I am unfamiliar with this 'Smoking Mirror.' Perhaps they are connected, perhaps they are not.

"You are likely aware that the Nahualli tradition is often one of blood, yes? There are those who worship the darker gods, and those covetous sponsors demand sacrifice. I follow the wisdom of Quetzalcoatl, one of the Nahuatl pantheon who does not require human blood. It could very well be that I am targeted for my faith.

"Regardless, I am grateful to all of you for helping to save me and my friends. I apologize for the danger you faced and the wounds you suffered. I will do what I can to treat them, and---if you so desire---seek out those responsible and visit vengeance upon them."

Papa cancels the emergency response request as he walks over to the frige and looks for a beer. He also checks the house computer system for his father, checking how the last few days went at his house now that the situation is under control here.

Groaning, Argent drags himself up off his knees. "What the fuck?"

"So, some chica showed up and vamped your friends with some weird astral construct locket? That's why they were all weird, and came with the fire?" He shakes his head. "This house is never going to recover at this rate."

He helps relocate the unconscious and severely wounded to couches and beds, and returns to the burned out kitchen.

"Hey, I know this is some kind of end of the world thing, but are we even getting paid for this?"

Leo stays with the wounded and looks over Rene before speaking to Uetz. His voice apologetic as he speaks.

"I am sorry. She has already been healed with magic so I will be unable to do anymore for her at this time. You may want to consider finding a doctor or clinic for her to recovery at. My worry is the severity of her wounds may take more than simple bed rest to heal in a timely fashion."

D'zan hovers over to Argent hearing his last statement - his flight is less energetic than usual.

"As to the money - we could make some the old fashioned way and see if any of the locations where these items are have other things we can take and sell or I could try to sell the regents we received but I'm not sure we'll get the full value or rather some of you might be less than happy with the people I could sell them to for full value and what they'll do with them."

Papa

Looking through the feeds and home node, it appears that your father has been untouched by the incidents here. The smart-fridge has a number of items to be ordered from the market and is awaiting your approval before placing the order. The cleaning bots are fully operational and the security logs don't show any evidence of hacking attempts on the home.

The fridge for the team shows scratches from the thorny vines and evidence of several days of hard partying. It is nearly empty, except for an open half full jar of mayonnaise which is knocked over and slowly seeping out onto the shelf. The keg from the party also appears unscathed. Designed to survive, it's clear that a mind-blown eco-hippie could do no worse than frat parties and go-gangers.

The 'shifter sighs, slumping against a charred countertop. "So we're back where we were before the kitchen burned down and Uetz's friends sprouted holes from their chests? Legwork, basically?"

He was already spinning the controls on his comlink. He didn't think Naiomi would suffer another call this late at night, so he sent her a message to contact him when she was available in the morning.

"I'll rustle the leaves down around Horizon way, see if I can wrangle a a look for us at their archology library. Anybody else got any bright ideas? There were a couple of places we mentioned..."

Leo watches closely as the spell finishes repairing the damage done to Uetz with a small smile on his face, taking pleasure in at least one thing going the way he wanted today. As soon as he is finished with the working he flies to where Papa is.

"Let me take care of your injury please."

He sings again this time speaking of rest and renewal, of the flesh healing itself and being restored. The gentle glow gathers and travels to the site of his burns and begins to mend the damage done. His face is suffused with joy at being able to undo some of the damage Locket has brought to their home. The song ends and Leo concentrates to hold the enchantment till all the flesh is unburned.

D'zan throws in his opinion while the group talks.

"Legwork I can do about these Smoking Mirrors or one of you blessed folks carrying the Oracle from the Market can ask them who they are and maybe see if it knows why they tried to burn us out of house and home? I'll need to head back there anyway to pick up supplies but first I want to rest and clear the old noggin. Leo can get to work on fixing the damage here to the homestead while all that's going on and it's going to take some time to use mojo to do it. Someone lay out a plan please before something comes along and tries to kill us."

Papa graciously accepts the healing as he accepts the grocery order and commits it for delivery. He ignores the mayo, but smiles at the keg. "Military tech does have some valid civilian uses." He checks the keg's level while looking for a cup, or two, to hold beer. As the would begins to heal, he reconsiders and looks for a third glass offering it to Uetz if there is beer to go in it.

"Well, first things first, we need to zip up home base. Let's get the rest of the people we can patch up, patched up, and put most of this to right." He looks in dismay at the countertops and the scorched fridge.

"Looks like there's going to be a party share coming off of whatever we salvage for the next while." The general greedy gleam comes back to his eyes as he shakes it off and turns to planning for the future.

"Hey Papa, any chance you had anything recording that fight? I know I could always use a little more Connection, and a 7' tall flaming pillar of fire should net us at least a few subscriptions. In the meantime, I know you're tapping into two different sources of information here. Wake up the little voice in your head and ask it and your Matrix connection what they know about the Smoking Mirrors or the girl that was here. Someone that hot, someone's got her on a camera somewhere. And toss the pictures we do have out on PiTO and offer up a connection from you and I for anyone that can come up with more info on her. We're not exactly two steps from Horizon VP's, but there's just as many people below us as above us on the chart."

"In the meantime, " he rounds on Uetz, "Your room gets to be the new infirmary. Shuffle your friends off and try to child-proof the room. They'd need to recover, and kicking them out on the street isn't conducive to that." He straightens his jacket, clicking the contact lenses back into place over his eyes.

"We're going to need to sleep at some point. Let's get the kids packed away," he jerks a thumb towards the two unconscious hippies on the ground, "And get some sleep before we get rolling on this thing. D'zan, Leo, is there anything you can do to stop magical creepy crawlies from wandering into the house without our permission? Is there anything you need from us to do it? I'm tired of leaving the doors unlocked for every weird thing that wants to step out of the metaplanes."

He's been dialing on the contacts as he talks, fingers dancing over the controls on his commlink. His face lights up as the connection is complete and AR space begins spooling out in reactions to thoughts in the 'shifters head.

"Ahhh...sweet, sweet AR. Did you miss me, baby?" Anyone watching the AR space around Argent can immediately see a flurry of windows opening up, streaming all of his current PiTO subscriptions, messages from random strangers trying to cadge connectivity, requests for invites into PiTO...and the fox beings to hum, keeping an eye out for conversation as he begins to pitch in to clean what can be cleaned.

D'zan nods as Argent speaks.

"We can ward the place later. Right now I need to sleep off all of this then I'll see to making this place a little more secure."

With that said he flies up to his rooms and makes for the bed. Flopping down face first and finally letting the tension flow out of his body he intertwines his thoughts with Leo.

See what you can do about the damage downstairs please.

The flow of concern and care moves between the two as Leo flies to the epicenter of the destruction wrought by the spirit in the loft. He opens his mouth and begins to sing of home and hearth, about the security and comfort found there. Hearing it makes you think of your childhood and the places you called home. The ripples of light from his body stretch out across the room, lapping over broken and burnt surfaces like a gentle tide leaving less damage in their wake.

All

Several hours pass, as members of the team rest and others work to restore the house back into a semblance of its state before the burning and the pain. The astral space within the kitchen is a wreck of overlapping remnants from the hundreds of workings performed there recently. It like the wounds amongst you will take some time to heal. With the rising sun, the last threads of the locket shaped enchantments wash away, unable to stand against the purging of a new day.

The coffeemaker automatically begins brewing a fresh pot. Cleaning drones sweep through their routines. Overnight PITO ratings are in and both Argent's and Papa's scores have climbed.

In the living room, the trid has the map of LA with possible locations laid out, based on a direction and known libraries.

Papa
Several messages have been left by researchers at Cal Poly and UCLA regarding the footage you recorded. Both universities have made overtures of exclusive contracts with you for the original uncensored footage and information about how you traveled bodily with recording equipment.

Papa provides Argent with raw footage from the fight then sets about running edits, checking on refills for the team's refrigerator, running a health check on the house cluster, checking delivery on food at his own home, scheduling a refill for the keg, catching up on social networking feeds as well as technical feeds and updating on his favorite hacker blogs. As the data streams in and out, he wonders how people kept caught up before toys like his attention coprocessor. He takes a short, deep nap, compliments of his sleep regulator and wakes up raring to go.

He considers the incoming details from the universities and begins correspondence to work the best deal between the two. He is careful to insure that he need not expose details about people involved.

Still shaken and starting to flag with the rush of adrenaline wearing off, Uetz grasps his focus. He invokes the familiar spell of shapes and feels his body grow stronger and stouter. Upon assuming the the shape of a powerful silverback gorilla, he bends down to gently lift Etain. He cradles the wounded dryad in his powerful arms, holding her as a father would carry a wounded child.

When he hears Argent crack wise, he shoots the fox a glance and curls back his lips slightly to reveal his massive canines---a look intended to convey the now-mute magician's disdain for jokes at a time when he is surrounded by his fallen friends.

He maneuvers slowly yet nimbly through the house, taking care not to jostle her any more than necessary. He climbs the stairs and opens the door to his room, where he carefully places her on his bed. He covers her with a spare blanket, making sure not to disturb her unhealed wounds. He sighs sadly before going back downstairs to fetch Rene

Carrying the troll is a more difficult task than carrying the waif of a dryad. Straining slightly, Uetz manages to lift the massive troll and carry him up the stairs. He tries to carry Rene as gently as he carried Etain, but the troll's bulk makes it tough. However, he manages his way up the stairs and back to his room. He thinks about placing Rene on the bed, but decides against it just in case he manages to roll on top of Etain. Instead, he fetches a spare quilt and lays it on the floor. He sets Rene on top of it, and covers him with another blanket.

Satisfied that he has done everything he can, Uetz releases the spell and returns to his human form. He sits down and slumps against the wall, hissing in pain when accidentally brushing his wound. He closes his eyes for a moment, and then passes out.

He wakes up an hour later, his head feeling a bit clearer, and suddenly has an idea. He fiddles for his comlink and scrolls up Dr. Caballero, one of the few Serpent's Feathers in the LA. He punches the dial button, and crosses his fingers.

Please pick up...

Sunday -- July 17, 2072

All

Through an unstated accord, the team spends the day puttering around the house lazily. The occasional nap is only interrupted by smells of lunch being made by the autochef. Groceries are delivered to various addresses, and the beer is again chilled. With Leo's unwavering attention to the house, it is looking mostly repaired though in honest need of some paint and detail work.

Uetz

The call is answered by Dr. Caballero's assistant, Marta. "Good morning. The doctor is with a patient at the moment." In the background you hear Caballero's voice firmly telling a patient to hold still, and a scream of curses in several languages. The screams falter, sounding as if the patient fainted.

"He's available now. One moment..." The sound of a hand being placed over the receiver and then "Yes, Caballero here. Who is this?"

Argent

Around two, your commlink rings. The visual ID shows Naiomi, dressed to the nines. The camera appears to slightly above her, framing her against a dark leather office chair.

"Naiomi! Looking simply delicious as always. Is that real leather? Who'd you have to kill to get that as a bonus? But seriously, thanks for the call back. Look, I've got some information I need to root around and dig up, and was wondering if you could swing me a couple of hours worth of access to the company's arcology libraries? The real paper stuff, not just digital repro's."