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Jack_Spade
Thursday, 21 November, 2138; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #75

"I see. Big Boss comes to town to see how operations are going, have a look at the books, so to speak. Since you try to keep his arrival secret you aren't expecting sniper setups.
You keep saying you have top matrix overwatch so hopefully you'll have attacks by drones covered as well.
Bigwigs like this guy usually travel with at least one mage for astral security, hopefully taking care of that as well.
That leaves the meatspace for us with drive by shootings, car bombs, fake road work ambushes, gas attacks, rocket launchers, mines and trained attack-Chihuahuas.

Anything you can tell me about mode of transportation or are we expected to walk him by foot inside your little army out there. My own car is sadly inadequate for this kind of operation, although it is in fact an ambulance."
adamu
Thursday, 21 November, 2138; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

As John spoke, the body language and facial expressions of the men changed. "Who - exactly - keeps saying we have top matrix overwatch?"
Raiderj
Meanwhile... As Vexboy hid in the shadow of the AC...


"Hey Kid. Do you think that Sean Connery Bond could kick Pierce Brosnan Bond's ass?" Vexboy scoffed. "Hell no. Pierce Brosnan Bond is untouchable. Sean Connery Bond wouldn't stand a chance." Vexboy thought.
Jack_Spade
Thursday, 21 November, 2138; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #76

John smiled (#2 - slightly menacing):
"That would be you as in you specifically: You just told me that any outgoing calls are monitored. So unless you are full of bullshit, you should have at least two "trix jockeys" online that take care of matrix overwatch.

So anything else you didn't want to tell me that could be important?
If not, I'd ask you for a quiet place, where I can prepare my gear - I hadn't time to maintain my rifle and from the look of it I might need it badly with how "gangster style" you are handling security around here.
So if one of you could accompany to my car so I may fetch my gear and without making any calls, that would be just great."
adamu
Thursday, 21 November, 2105; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

In his hiding place, Vexboy didn't have to wait long before two men emerged from the very door they had tampered with. As planned, the hinges held under the normal strain of the door simply opening. The two men took a moment to stretch their bodies. One gazed at the night sky, breathing the air deeply, while the other took a last opportunity for a proper, unrestricted piss against one of the HVAC units. Then they built up their sniper rifle and disappeared into their hide.

Way distant on the other roof, there was more activity, as it looked like two men were just starting to construct a hide for that rooftop.
adamu
Thursday, 21 November, 2138; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The sour look on the man's face told John he was not entirely convinced by the drone-thing's quick-thinking lie.

But neither, apparently, was he sure enough of himself to take any precipitous action against the boss's flavor-of-the-month.

"All of you go with him," he told his bodyguards. "One minute. We'll be watching from the entrance."
Jack_Spade
Thursday, 21 November, 2138; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #77

"Sheesh, I find your lack of faith disturbing."

With a few quick steps around the corner, John went to his car and removed the hidden backpack.
Once back at the restaurant he went straight to a booth, removed the table cloth and opened his leg to retrieve the hardware kit.
With practiced ease he took his Ares Alpha out and apart. "Damnit, the smart optics are misaligned and no shooting range insight. Oh well time for a bit of improvisation."

With that he rummaged a bit through his pack until he found some tags. Immediately he began to take them apart too.


JDragon
Thursday, 21 November, 2075, 20:45; 38th Avenue NE, Northeast Tacoma, Tacoma, Seattle Metroplex

Rocky looks over at D-Pop as she sticks her head in the bed room he had found to grab some rest in while the sneaks were out doing recon.

"Wiz, Thanks for the update."

Left alone again he tries to get some sleep even if it is only ten or fifteen minutes.
DireRadiant
Thursday, 21 November, 2075, 20:46; 38th Avenue NE, Northeast Tacoma, Tacoma, Seattle Metroplex #42

DES consumed more materials than he had for months. It was tiring. Casting his will into the spirit world strained him. In contrast the Wind answered with ease.

DES needed to rest a bit, but first some more pieces to move, not least himself.

"I will need to be close by to provide the best assistance. Who is coming with me?"
Jack_Spade
Thursday, 21 November, 2138; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #78

John was quite surprised that the nosy Korean didn't pester him during his work. Seemed like he had managed to get on the guys nerves enough so he didn't want to speak to him anymore. Strike again for his machine charisma.
He was even more surprised when his stealth tag actually worked: The table now was strewn with pieces of wire, microchips and his still dis-assembled weapon. Now he began to calmly piece it together, and putting away his tools in his cyberleg.

The tag phone notified him that it had successfully imported his contacts, so he could call up the team:
<<Hi there, I'm with the Koreans at their restaurant. They are sitting around and waiting. According to the head honcho of the troops, tonight a Seoulpa Bigwig comes to town. I don't think this is a coincident. He'll probably be present at the transaction - although they won't tell me anything about that. Pretty frustrating. They do distrust me quite a bit, but if push came to shove I could take a portion of them out.
The thing is: Those are 30 guys and I don't want to look greedy. If you care to join me, we could take them out while they sit in here like fish in a barrel. The emergency exits are chained shut, so if you cover the entrance they have nowhere to go.
Alternatively I can stay in my role as support muscle. But be aware that the transaction now won't just be half a dozen guys but likely 30 from the Koreans and - if the Yaks aren't slouches at least the same number on their side as well.
But make up your mind quick. We could be called to roll out at any minute.>>
Raiderj
"If I intevine i'll need to take out the snipers. About to do that anyway... Vincent peered over to look around while still attached to the wall to see the rooftops.
adamu
Thursday, 21 November, 2075, 2140; 38th Avenue NE, Northeast Tacoma, Tacoma, Seattle Metroplex

D-Pop sent a message to the group. <<The Fates have warned me of the dangers of taking any direct action myself. Perhaps I should not even be speaking now. So I will leave all decisions to you chosen operatives. Please keep in mind, however, that we have no leads on the current location of the children. If for any reason the transaction does not take place...I ask only that you think a few moves ahead when planning your actions. But I am sure you already have done so, and have the situation well in hand.>>
adamu
Thursday, 21 November, 2075, 2141; Warehouse roof/Korean BBQ Restaurant, Seattle Metroplex

From his hidden position at the target site, Vexboy could faintly hear chuckles and chat from the sniper hide, while some distance away, on the roof of the other logistics depot far on the other side of the burned out automotive center, he could still see men gathering junk and building it into something.

Meanwhile, as John tinkered with his electronics and weapon, a couple dozen Korean men were making themselves comfortable around the restaurant. The air was warm with burning table grills as they fried meat, which was delivered in abundance by the wait staff, who did not seem at all fazed by having their workplace taken over by heavily armed gangsters. The men around the room went light on the beer but heavy on the food. Weapons were kept close to hand, but most had shed their vest, jacket, and even shoes. Some napped on the matted floors. Others were settling into card or mah jong games, all chatting lightly in Korean.
Jack_Spade
Thursday, 21 November, 2145; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #79

Resounding silence greeted John. For a moment he thought his system had failed, but another check confirmed that the message had been delivered.

<<Come on guys, I need an answer. This is a small army we are going to deal with. Get your collective heads in the game.>>

John had put his gear back together and wandered over to one of the coolers, grabbing one can of beer. While he was there he picked up a waste basket and swept up the empty cans lying around "I hate disorder."
Popping the lid, he proceeded to take a sip with closed lips, while setting the waste basket in the center of one of the groups of men: "Clean environment, clean mind. And no-one has to trip when the action starts."

He proceeded to fake his drink and finally threw it into the trashcan next to the door before getting back to his booth.
mister__joshua
Jan
Thursday, 21 November, 2145; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

Jan waited, expecting someone else to answer the drone. He'd been thinking on his answer, playing each variation out in his head. Outwardly, he just appeared to be staring out of a window.

<<@Unknown: Patience John. I love shooting slant-eyes more than anyone, next best thing to Waks. But we can't afford to upset the op until it's too late for 'em to go back. Wait 'til the boss has his feet on the ground, you get the call, move out. Once it's too late to back out, if you get a chance, take it.>>

He'd barely known the man a day, didn't know how he'd act or whether to trust him. Maybe he'd listen to Jan's advice. If he didn't and it all went to shit, well, he'd tried. Poor Audric, sucks to be him. Jan was already thinking about his next move, his next residence, somewhere the damn 88's wouldn't follow. That's the thing about favours, sometimes they don't work out...
Jack_Spade
Thursday, 21 November, 2145; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #80

<<Alright, I'll try to wait for the roll out. Take care.>>

John hoped like hell, that his placing grenades in the waste baskets had not been noticed - especially since he had to place a few more to reliably catch all the guys in the main room. The kitchen, he'd have to handle himself.
adamu
Thursday, 21 November, 2145; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The response to John's exhortations to cleaner living were vigorously if not amicably received. As he went to his booth, the empty he threw into the bin was answered by one, then a few more, then a laughing hailstorm of empty bottles - none hit the wastebasket, but all threatened to hit him. They weren't thrown hard enough to do any damage, but many were not empty, and he was not only being pelted with empties but also the dregs of their contents. Jeers are guffaws filled the air. "Hate disorder? Well we hate you." "Bit me, Threepio." "Sit the fuck down, robot boy." "You want clean, wipe my ass, freak." "Damn hired stooge, telling us..." And on and on, the entire room cascading into ever louder torrents of laughter and derision, along with persistent calls for John to find a corner and leave them all alone.
Jack_Spade
Thursday, 21 November, 2150; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #81

It was the first time in a long time, that John had to consciously suppress a smile from activating. This was working better than expected.
"Message received. I'll go and clean myself up."
A perfect excuse to go to the washroom. Not to mention that he had caught two cans and two more had landed in the lip of his backpack. Just perfect.

The smell of cheap beer wouldn't come out anyway until he used the high pressure cleaner at home. Instead John used the privacy to extend his climbing claws to rip open carefully the top of his cans and sheathed four more grenades in the tallboys: Another HE and three Pepperpunch. Bending back the top and clamping it down, the cover was complete.
He made a few efforts to clean the worst of the stains, before he went back to the now littered restaurant. As before he began to clean up the place a bit, placing four more of the grenades at strategic locations. He didn't mind the resumed pelting with cans - their ammo in that regard was limited after all. Finally he appeared to give up to take position behind a sturdy column that took him out of the line of sight of the Korean mob and incidentally behind cover for the explosions near the exit. The Pepperpunch would be at the kitchen and around his position. Now it was just a matter of waiting for the perfect moment...
adamu
Thursday, 21 November, 2215; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The drive was uneventful, and in short order DES was pulling his RV into the vicinity of the target site, where Vex was sharing a rooftop with a pair of Seoulpa snipers.

They had, of course, left D-Pop and Bronwyn behind at the safehouse, and it felt weird now not to have her around.
JDragon
Thursday, 21 November, 2215; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

Rocky woke as the Amerindian brought his vehicle to a stop. Rocky had learned when he was training as a boxer to get extra sleep whenever and where ever he could and had honed that skill to a fine edge as a runner. He had almost missed the bus, but had caught Des telling the others he was getting on the road in the other room as D-Pop was closing the door to his room.

He stretched a little, but kept it limited not wanting to break anything in Des's ride. "Any more word from the scouts?"
Jack_Spade
Thursday, 21 November, 2216; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #82

When the mob of Seoulpas had calmed down, John dared to venture towards the kitchen. Waiting was boring - even more if your thinking and acting was a few orders of magnitude faster than the average joe.
He stopped one of the cooks and asked him as innocently as he could in Korean: "Hey man, I think I need some stronger cleaning stuff than the bathroom soap to get that stain out. Where are your cleaning supplies?"
DireRadiant
Thursday, 21 November, 2216; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #43

DES shifted the ARO with the conversation history to the forefront, overlaying the local map ARO.

"I need to be close enough to keep touch with the Wind, the young Brave is on the roof. What do you want to do now?"

JDragon
Thursday, 21 November, 2215; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

Rocky slowly picks himself up off the floor of the RV and moves toward the front to answer the question.

"Well, no messages yet that anyone's hoop's on fire. So I say we hang till they need us or we see an opportunity. I tagged along as much to not need to take a cab as having any wiz plans, I'm the muscle not the brains. Or I hope I'm not the brains, 'cause if I am you may want to split while you can. "
adamu
Thursday, 21 November, 2216; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The cook looked at John scornfully - having found someone lower on the totem pole in this place than he was - and said, "Just speak English." Then nodded at a nearby closet.

Out in the main room, there was excited shouting - John had seen them lining up a couple of mantises for insect gladiatorials a few minutes earlier - the battle must be in full swing by now.
Jack_Spade
Thursday, 21 November, 2220; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #83

John just nodded and went into the closet. He quickly grabbed some washing alcohol and - after loading the chemistry autosoft - a bottle of bleach and ammonia, putting them into his coat pockets.
DireRadiant
Thursday, 21 November, 2221; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #43

DES paused a moment before answering the large person in his vehicle, "I need to be within 4 or 5 hundred meters to help the best, but do you need to be closer to wherever you need to be?"

JDragon
Thursday, 21 November, 2221; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

For some reason it takes a second for Rocky to scan what DES said and respond. "Yep, need to be a bit closer than that to be helpful. From what the guys were saying I might make these guys nervous just hanging out. Plus they may know my face after a slot'ed a half dozen of them this afternoon saving D-Pop's friend. How 'bout I hang here till things start happening, then I'll try to get closer?"
DireRadiant
Thursday, 21 November, 2222; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #43

DES listened intently, thought for a moment, then answered, "I am asking the Wind to keep you hidden, to distract the eyes that would seek you out as you moved. If you are skilled in the ways of the hunt this would be a great aid to you as you stalked our prey. It is not invisibility, but if you are not already revealed it will make it very hard for you to be found. The Wind is giving this Blessing to all of us here."

DES paused momentarily, then continued, "If you do choose to stay close I will ask the Wind to Bless you with Fair Winds to speed you to our Prey. There is still much ground to cover from here to where you may need to be, and this will be an additional Blessing. I can only be granted a few Blessings and must choose wisely."

DES points around inside the vehicle, "I will be here, watching with some drones and a few minor spirits who have offered me aid."

adamu
Friday, 22 November, 0600; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

Rocky's prodigious muscles were cramped.

Vexboy was cold.

Jan was impatient.

DES bided his time with the patience of a hunter, chagrined only by the passing of his spirits.

Back at the Korean BBQ restaurant called Korean BBQ Restaurant, John had spent the night sitting quietly in a corner, surreptitiously playing online games via the connection he'd juryrigged for comms with the team He had provided regular updates, reassuring them that, although nothing at all had happened, all the Seoulpa soldiers were still gathered in the eatery, weapons at hand, ready to roll out at a moment's notice (none of which stopped them from singing, gambling, sleeping, eating, and playing childish pranks on John - only their drinking was somewhat restrained).

Now the sun was coming up over the Cascades.
Jack_Spade
Friday, 22 November, 0601; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #84

John removed the second or third noodle someone had flung on his helmet. He had stopped counting after the first.
Being able to sit still and do nothing at one second and be ready to move the next was a handy talent to have, but the boredom only became more pronounced without getting pins and needles in your extremities.

Finally, he had enough and stood up to find his liason: "Alright, I don't mind you all wasting my time as long as you pay for it. But I do have other appointments with clients - which I can't reschedule thanks to this absurd radio silence. Losing those clients costs more than just money - it costs reputation.
Give me an ETA for this shinding, or strike 10 I'm out of here."
adamu
Friday, 22 November, 0601; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The Seoulpa lieutenant looked up at John from where he lay sprawled lazily in a booth, confident with two armed men standing between himself and his questioner.

"Is that a promise?" he asked, drawing snickers from men all around.

"Even if I knew I wouldn't tell you. You want to go, go."

But then a thought crossed his face, and he sidled out of the booth, stood to face John. He moved his face in close, but then realized he was trying to physically intimidate a machine, and pulled away, making a face. "But if you breathe a word about Mr. Kwon's arrival, you'll have a lot more than your reputation to worry about."
Jack_Spade
Friday, 22 November, 0602; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #85

Low enough that only his counterpart could hear, he said: "I don't breath. Four more hours. If there is no action until then, I'll go out and take care of business."
adamu
Friday, 22 November, 0700; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The sun rose higher, washing away the shadows and bathing the once dark warehouse world in light. Where once the night quiet was punctuated only by the occasional truck unloaded by skeleton crews on half-lit loading docks, now car after car disgorged the day shift, and trucks were arriving as fast as places for them could be cleared.

On the rooftop, nothing much changed in terms of traffic, and Vexboy felt his hide overlooking the sniper nest was about as good as ever. Down on the ground, however, Rocky and Jan's once discreet position was feeling increasingly exposed.

adamu
Friday, 22 November, 0954; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

John was mostly left alone after his conversation with and ultimatum to the boss-guy. No more pranks, anyway.

But they were watching him more closely now. Not quite standing guard over him. But the feeling had changed. He'd gone from unwelcome annoyance to suspect interloper.

As the four-hour mark approached with no sign of a call to arms, the Seoulpa lieutenant was watching him expectantly from his booth.
Jack_Spade
Friday, 22 November, 0954; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #86

John was aware of his own imposed deadline drawing nearer. Time to force the issue.
<<Guys, still no sign of them rolling out. I'm getting out of there - this whole thing stinks. I'll leave and see how they react.>>

At 0959 he got up, stretched and said: "Looks like you'll have to work without me. Good luck. If you haven't gone by 1400h you can call me back - my appointment should be done by then."

He went to move towards the door.
adamu
Friday, 22 November, 0954; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The Seoulpa underboss blocked the door with his bodyguards.

John could sense the room full of men behind him rising to their feet.

There wasn't an empty weapon hand in the place.

"I'm sorry you said that..." the man said, as weapons were raised..."...was hoping we'd be rid of you."

Then the room filled with chuckles as guns were lowered and the men stepped aside to let John pass.

"Yeah, call back when you're free," the man said in English as John walked out, hearing the man then mutter to his friends in Korean, "Fucking Gordo and his pet projects."

Moving to his vehicle, John saw that the tail car was already in place, a bright red Hyundai sports number. As pulled out, it did so as well, and then John spotted another car pull out into traffic a few blocks ahead - he wouldn't have noticed it except it was the same one that had picked him up from the porn studio the day before.
Jack_Spade
Friday, 22 November, 0954; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #87

John had no intention of leading them to any place even remotely connected to his real life. Instead he drove to a coffin motel known for its small but secure accommodations. Once there he payed for three and a half hours. Once there he prepared his realignment process, while sending another message to the team: <<I'll be offline for the next three hours. I won't be able to do surveillance during that time. Leave a message, so I can get back to you when the action starts.>>

John hated to this, but realignment was non optional and he couldn't risk postponing it to the last minute and going offline while he was in a less secure environment.
JDragon
Friday, 22 November, 1000; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The night had gone quietly, which Rocky wasn't unhappy about. It meant he had some time to better prepare for what he had stumbled in to.

Once the night had faded he and Jan had figured they might want to move on before they started to attract attention. They had strolled back to the RV like they had just finished a long night of work and slipped in when no one was looking.

"looks like it's time to wait some more. Either of you remember D-Pop or the others mentioning if these hand offs ever happened during the day?
adamu
Friday, 22 November, 1000; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

Rave was lounging on what passed for a sofa in the RV. She'd spent the night as security for DES as he stood dual overwatch with spirits and drones.

Now she confirmed that the surveillance she'd pieced together to learn the dates of all the past hand-offs had all been at night.
Jack_Spade
Friday, 22 November, 1400; Coffin Motel, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #88

John awoke. To his surprise his drone body hadn't detected any attempts to temper with him and even more that there were no messages alerting him to the start of the mission.

'Seems like I'm still in the race.'

He left the motel and got back to his car, driving again to the BBQ restaurant.
When he entered the room his olfactory boosters shut off immediately: The smell of stale beer, sweat and unwashed clothes, mixed with congealing fat was almost overwhelming.
"I'm back, I hope I didn't miss the action and this isn't the aftermath of your celebratory BBQ - cause that would actually be pretty sad."
adamu
Friday, 22 November, 1401; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The line-up hadn't changed - all the same guys were still there, as least as near as John could keep track. Most were fast asleep. The lieutenant and his men were in the same booth - they actually smiled and gave John friendly waves, which seemed a bit suspicious. "We saved you some lunch before the cooks went home - something special, even for someone who doesn't eat."

Expected human feces or something equally childish, John found on his table a bone china plate topped with what appeared to be a deep-fried rat. The lieutenant and his men erupted in laughter, but their eyes were deadly serious as they looked at John, hands close to weapons.
Jack_Spade
Friday, 22 November, 1401; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #89

John gave grin#2 a chance when he answered: "Ah, that must be the famous authentic Korean cuisine - food like your mama made it. Much appreciated."
adamu
Friday, 22 November, 1402; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

One of the men took a step forward at the mention of his mother, but the lieutenant put a hand on his shoulder, and said to John, "Of course we're pleased to have you back with us....Enjoy your meal." They sat back down and ignored him.

Looking again at the delicacy before him, it occurred to John that the choice of dish may not have been simply the most unappetizing thing they could find. A rat...
Jack_Spade
Friday, 22 November, 1405; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #90

The rat made John wonder.
Was this all just a setup to keep him and by extension the other runners occupied while the deal went down somewhere else? Unlikely. It would have been more expedient to just track them and have them killed.
But why had they hired him to wait here with the people who clearly didn't want him here? Even before he had done all that stupid shit to disguise his sabotage they had been hostile - probably due to the fact that he had set fire to one of those goons and got away scot free from the perspective of the other goons.

They thought he was a traitor - good instincts on their parts if not intelligence by tipping him off about it through the rat.

"Fucking Gordo and his pet projects" that was what the goon lieutenant had called it. That implied that he wasn't the first consultant that Gordo had added to the goon rooster, and not the first that had unsatisfactory results for the goon squad.

One thing was for sure: They were wasting time and losing money about it. Closing the restaurant and not having the men on the street to gather protection money or robbing old ladies or whatever these mafia types did must be pretty expensive.

Which meant that whoever was coming was either delayed or had a very specific reason to stand down this crew.

John stopped this line of reasoning. He had to little data to get any hard conclusions.

Again he used his secret link to inform the team:
<<I am back with the Koreans. No change as of yet. Something is wrong about this situation. Can I get a sit report from the rest of you?>>
mister__joshua
Jan
Friday, 22 November, 10:00; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

Rocky seemed happy about the quiet night, but Jan certainly wasn't. He wanted to get this 'favour' over with, out of the way, so he could get back to focusing on more important matters like people trying to kill him.

"Favour" he thought to himself as they wandered back towards the RV. It was becoming less like a favour and more like a job with each passing moment. Know was going to end up owing him.

"Think I'm going 'stick around the area. Lay low, in case anything happens. Wouldn't want miss the action. Things tend get befok quick once they start."
He wandered round the block before vanishing into an alleyway.

Friday, 22 November, 12:33; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

Jan checked his 'link again. No pings, no flashes. He'd found an abandoned unit a street away. The old corrugated door took a little forcing, but it was dark and dry inside. He was sat on the floor, waiting. Impatiently patient.

Friday, 22 November, 14:05; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

Jan's comm buzzed in his pocket. He jumped to attention with a start, ready to react. He'd estimated he could make the entrance of the exchange in 13 seconds at a dead run. He was quickly deflated to read John's message. <<@ALL: All quiet here, though I can't see the drop. Let me know if we need eyes-on>>

He sat back down. Irritable.
JDragon
Friday, 22 November, 1015; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

Once Rave had confirmed for Rocky that none of the handoffs had gone down during the day, he figured he had time to do some shopping since he was apparently back in the biz.

Checking his comm, he shot a message to Rascle. Hoi Rascle, I need some gear. Can you set me up?

As usual Rascle got back to him quickly, asking what he wanted and when. As Rocky suspected the what was not a problem but the when would cost a little extra, which Rocky was also expecting. The good news was he was going to be able to pick up just after lunch, which would put him back with the group well before dark.

Once the meet was set he let the others know what was going on. "Going to grab some gear real quick, be back before dark. You hanging here or heading back to the safe house?" No one could answer immediately so Rocky sent them his comm code, "Just let me know if ya move."

Friday, 22 November, 1320; Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The ride over to Rascle's base of operations, had taken a couple hours, but same as before Rocky had taken his time and changed cabs several times to make sure he wasn't being followed. Rascle had set up shop in an old theater along the edge of the Redmond barrens. It gave him plenty of storage space as well as room for perspective buyers to test out the products they were buying.

Friday, 22 November, 1350;Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The meet had been short and sweet as always, Rascle had everything waiting for him and even threw in a bandolier that would fit Rocky to keep the grenades on. They along with the new ammo had gone in his duffle and he was just waiting for a cab to start the trek back to the others.

Friday, 22 November, 1600; Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The trip back to the warehouse district was uneventful and none of the five cabbies he dealt with asked to many questions. Along the way he had broken up the trip by stopping at a noodle bar to get some grub and check for any possible tails. Not seeing anything unusual and having a full stomach he had made it back to the RV in another thirty minutes.

Friday, 22 November, 1605; warehouse district between I-5 and Green River, Tukwila, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

Slipping back in to the RV Rocky saw that nothing seemed to have changed and took his spot back on the floor.
"Wake me when it gets dark or things start to move." Within five minutes Rocky was asleep.
adamu
Friday, 22 November, 1924; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The hours whiled away. The room was stinking of sweat, kim chee, and unwashed socks. If the Korean thugs were surprised by the length of the wait, they didn't show it.

It was well dark when the lieutenant walked into the main room from the kitchen. There was something in his stance that made the men quiet their conversations and look at him. he spoke in Korean. "We got the call. Get to your cars. You'll follow me to the pick-up at the border, and we'll form up there as usual. Lee, you'll ride with the robot in his vehicle."

The men shouted an affirmation in unison and quickly started lacing up shoes, grabbing weapons, checking actions, and shoving last bits of grilled meats in their mouths. One man walked over to John, as did the lieutenant. "Lee here will ride with you in your vehicle. You'll follow my car. Now, one thing. Can you be...hacked?"
Jack_Spade
Friday, 22 November, 1924; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #91

"Come over here, for a second. That's not something to be discussed in front of the men."
John moved toward the area where he had left the gas grenades.
"The answer is yes, everything can be hacked - at least my body can. But it's neither easy nor a good idea to try. The exception is my car which has no matrix connectivity at all."
While he said that, he sent a short message:
<<The Koreans are on the go. Commencing massacre.>>
"Now tell me, where are we going."
John said, while he fetched his rifle from his bag and assembled it with quick smooth movements, keeping an eye on the men, so he could ignite the grenades while they were in optimal positions.
adamu
Friday, 22 November, 1924; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex

The look of annoyance on the man's face was pronounced, but he followed John over to where the hired gun could assemble his rifle. His two bodyguards, however, stayed close, obviously suspicious.

"As I told the others," he began, apparently a bit surprised at the implication that John did not understand Korean, "I'll be leading you all to a spot near the border to rendezvous with a package. From there we'll escort it to a drop off. Few hours and we'll be done. But listen, keep your virtual guard up - seems there may be a problem with our matrix cover." His comment seemed to put him in mind of something, and he said to the room in Korean, "Autopilot, GridGuides off, and keep an eye on your 'links."
Jack_Spade
Friday, 22 November, 1924; Korean BBQ Restaurant, Capital Hill, Seattle, Seattle Metroplex #92

During this short conversation, John went through quite a lot of energy for mental computation:
'If I kill them now we won't learn where the pick up is supposed to be.' Solution: Keep Lieutenant alive and interrogate him
'If I kill them now they know they have been betrayed.' Solution: Yes, but they suspect outside interference already. Once they are on the road I lose the ability to take them out - especially since I placed most of my explosives around here
'If I kill them now they'll just call in some other goons.' Solution: Yes, but those will be the B-Team, less well trained and equipped, increasing the chances for the others.
'If I kill them now they might aboard the transaction.' Solution: Unlikely, everything here screams just in time delivery and very upset buyers. They didn't stop the operation when they learned the witches were after them at one of their locations, they probably won't stop now.'
'If I kill them now I'll have the whole of the Korean Mafia against me forever.' Solution: Don't leave any witnesses and you were going in that direction anyway, for now at least you have control. Also they wanted to feed you a rat, they pretty sure know or suspect you are a snitch.

And just like that John knew what to do:
"Good thinking. Staying offline will make this whole thing a lot easier."
While everyone fumbled with their commlinks, John did the same, mentally at least. Three loud pops in the room and the sharp smell of Pepperpunch intermingled, while at the same time in the kitchen the cleaning closet exploded accompanied by the sharp smell of chlorine.

Now that everyone was standing up, John gave the second command and all hell broke lose as his three HE grenades exploded from the trashcans John had stashed them in within the midst of the mob soldiers.



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