Dumpshock Forums > Salted Wounds [IC]

SquirrelDude

Jul 28 2018, 05:45 PM

"Save your energy and only levitate me down onto the emergency exit, but keep me invisible friendly disembodied voice. I'll run the rest of the way and start the van. Then help the next mage who comes up the stairs."

[ Spoiler ]

Gilga

Jul 28 2018, 05:50 PM

"Sure, no problem." she said and followed the Shark's instructions. "...but are you sure that he needs my help? I mean you said he was a mage and I'd rather not play an elevator service..." Yael wanted to GTFO - not wait for someone that may not even arrive.

Luckace

Jul 28 2018, 08:31 PM

As soon as the distraction was getting formed, Raph dashed towards the roof, using the crowd as a cover for the first metres, but soon left the other visitors behind him as he made for the higher exit, appearing at the exit only shortly after Sharkboy - and stood there alone.

He quickly opened his third eye to look for the glowing auras of his coworkers, nodding as a sign that he had spotted them.

He turned to Anna, who was obviously the one responsible for the levitation and invisiblility spells.
"How quickly can you move your levitation? I can call a spirit to carry us. Visible, but way faster."

Gilga

Jul 28 2018, 08:52 PM

Anna shrugged *Does everybody sees through my spells* "It's just a few seconds to get down... Then we run... we are kind of fast. If you can't run I can accelerate you to keep up. If you want to come I'll make you invisible and hug me like the rest. This is the last elevator... We need to GTFO. Though if there is no reason for them to go after you, you might want to take a spirit away from here. Would make the rest of us much less visible, just don't follow us too closely if you go out like that."

Luckace

Jul 29 2018, 02:02 AM

Raph shakes his head, but he seems quite impressed that Anna can seemingly handle so many spells at the same time.
"I'll fly on my own, take the form of a bird and be our eyes in the sky. I'll contact you telepathically if needed. But I'd need you to take my gear, don't want security to track that."

He murmurs a few words and then his body starts shrinking down, until his clothes fall down to the ground and a mostly white pigeon rises into the air, curiosly circling around the parking.

[ Spoiler ]

Gilga

Jul 29 2018, 04:01 AM

"...What? How?" She thinks and then picks out the equipment distribute it among the rest and (finally) levitate down to the street. Relieved that she does not need to maintain yet another spell.

Volker

Jul 29 2018, 06:10 AM

bnc curses loudly - though only audible to herself - about her incapability of finding the car. For the moment, she'd have to trust them, apparently. She opens up a team channel with Raph and Anna:
"Once we're in the car, give me a caple. We'll be faster if I hack and steer the car. I'm a rigger now."

She then sends another command to her humanoid drone. It'll turn back to her flat (if he even managed to get out. Possibly taking on the armor has taken more time than it had), enter and start to clear the place: Stuff everything light into a big bag, dismantle the chemistry set and put it back into the box, etc. Once the command is set to the drone, bnc will call an unmanned taxi to an address some two blocks away from her flat.
Maybe she'll Jump Into the drone to dismantle the chemistry stuff, though, as she doesn't trust the autopilot in this regard, however smart it may be.

Gilga

Jul 29 2018, 12:55 PM

Anna texted >> bnc - Raph is a pigeon now (for real! not a metaphor). So he cannot chat with us in the matrix. He'll use magic to communicate. I need you in meatspace as we both are invisible and I can barely notice what happens around me with so many spells sustained. I am afraid that someone would hit us by mistake. Not to mention people that may actively want to hurt us...

Volker

Jul 29 2018, 01:01 PM

<@Anna<soka>>
bnc returns to Augmented Reality, blinking, stirring and moaning softly.

Jack_Spade

Jul 29 2018, 05:06 PM

The three runners + the pidgeon reached the Van just as its side door opened. Once they were all inside, the car accelerated.
Anna and bnc saw that the inside of the Van had been modified to contain folding cots, a small kitchenette and a table that could flold out from the floor. A small holoprojector had activated and showed the computer generated face of a young woman with red-blond hair and green eyes:
"Hi, my name is Eliza - could one of you do me a favor and get rid of that security drone that followed the young lady - it has switched to offline mode as soon as I tried to hack it." She paused, then she continued
"Wraith, Sharkboy, I'm afraid this is not Bean Si. She looks similar, but facial recognition says this is not the person we are looking for. I am sorry for the inconvenience, pleace tell me where you want to go so I can let you get off again."

Volker

Jul 29 2018, 09:36 PM

[ Spoiler ]

"Raph, is that really you?", bnc exclaims excitedly, "Has something happened to fac-"
When bnc is interrupted by Eliza, she snaps her head around, angry just for a split-second, then she's back to her operator self.
"We might want to try to get the drone down without destroying it. If we dull the sensors, we could use a direct connection to connect to the host and find the files they have and destroy them before anyone can make a copy.

What the frag do you mean? To which image is my face being compared to? Drive to Orffstraße. Show me the original."
In the back of her head, bnc keeps monitoring the drone that's clearing up the flat.

SquirrelDude

Jul 29 2018, 10:33 PM

"Well this sure is disappointing, Eliza. I'll have spend the next month hiding my face before I head to some other country and we didn't even pick up the right person."

Sharkboy starts getting his bow and a stick-n-shock arrow out of it's case to take down the drone. As he does so, he puts up an image in AR of the person they were supposed to find. "Here's the person we're looking for, skinny augmented girl. At least you know you know Wraith. That makes it a little bit less awkward that my our job ruined your day out with your hot mage friend."

Luckace

Jul 29 2018, 11:34 PM

Once inside the van, the bird lands in the back of the car and starts twitching and growing deformedly, taking the shape of a naked young man. He reaches for his clothes and puts them on while listening to Eliza's talk, trying to pretend that being naked in front of a group of strangers was normal.

Bnc gets a sour look after she used his private nickname. He shakes his head to her question - after a moment of hesitation, though.
"wraith, yeah." he turns to Anna. "and you are... ? Are you her bodyguard?"

While Sharkboy takes down the drone, Wraith leans back and closes his eyes for a moment - that is, his physical eyes. His pupils seem to move under his eyelids though, as if he was hectically scanning his environment.

As soon as a destination is set, he turns on his bikes autopilot to meet up.

[ Spoiler ]

Gilga

Jul 30 2018, 12:42 AM

Anna listened intently trying to understand what was going on. So Rath and bnc were old buddies ad that predator - he was terrifying. Not that he was powerful, the way he used that power and geeked that mage. Unprovoked, who was that mage? Some things could simply not be unseen. It was like everybody knew more than her, and the Shark apparently did not even know the mage. He killed him because they thought that bnc is "Bean si". As if that explained anything, sure they seemed hostile - and bnc were terrible of them - but does that mean they wanted to murder her? The chipheads were a different story - they seemed passionate about murdering bnc - as if looking to collect some reward. These guys were also after for some reward but for saving that girl. Strange... and Eliza had a nice hair. Getting in trouble seemed to bring inappropriate thoughts into her mind. She suppressed, so the two handsome men were after that girl.

She grinned at the Shark for saying that she was hot...Then introduced herself to the mage that did not like to be called Raph "Anna Black, I am an arcane bodyguard. Though, today I mainly came as the hot friend."
She sighed "... but I'll have to be direct, forgive me for the language but what the fuck is going on?!

Please explain why random strangers are eager to get my friend killed and are not deterred by the irrationality of doing it in such a public place. Then explain why you murdered that mage dude? He was creepy indeed - but he did not actually do anything hostile toward us. Looking forward - who is going to avenge such a murder? Now that there might be a record of me helping you and even getting to the car with you. I need to know, these are now my problems as well.

You guys seem to know a lot more than you are telling, and so before you drop us off into complete chaos... The least you can do is tell me what kind of consequences you leave us to deal with. Not that our situation was not apriori shitty, but meeting you complicated things even more... So please - sharing is the fair thing to do." She speaks calmly but tries to be as assertive as she can to get the answers she desires.

Jack_Spade

Jul 30 2018, 05:13 AM

As bnc is shown the image of the real target of this operation, she feels an icy sting right at her heart:
It looks indeed a bit like her: A gaunt young woman, with short spiky hair. The features are sharp, indicating almost no body fat and the eyes are large and bulbous - thanks to implants. But where bnc carries eyes made by Zeiss, it seems that the eyes of this woman have been carved from some kind of crystal.
Instinctively she let the word Bean Si run through a translation program which returns three possible meanings: It is the Irish-Gaelic word for Woman from the Mountain, Woman of the Fairymount or with the modern meaning: Banshee, the death fey, whose wailing announces the death of a close family member.
She only takes in this information subconscously, because she still is reeling from the fact that this is an image of her sister Kerstin.

Eliza's voice continued:
"Don't worry about the images. Prior to this altercation I managed to lure all security drones down to ground level - except for the one that accompanied Mrs. Black. THis being a hacker convention, the admins seem to have foreseen hacking attempts at their drones. As soon as I realized that there was another surveillance bug around I tried to lure it away as well. That triggered it to switch to autopilot and stop wifi. So far it hasn't reactivated again. Take it down and no official records of your actions will exist - beside the eye witness evidence of course.

As to your questions: We were hired to protect the young woman in this picture. Two factions are after her: So called crusaders, to which these young men seem to belong. They were provided with a very destructive yet highly effective form of BTL, providing them with a certain amount of skill and power. Their aim is to destroy the target person. The other faction is informally called Harvesters. They aim to capture the target to retrieve proprietary body tech. I believe the killed mage was of this faction.
There have been similar incidents over the past few days where young women with features similar to the target have been attacked. The police hasn't connected the incidents yet."

SquirrelDude

Jul 30 2018, 06:02 AM

"Gimme a cycle to deal with the drone, geez."

Sharkboy blinked to activate the smartlink, raised his bow, took aim, and launched a stick-n-shock arrow with a static shaft for added effect at the drone.

"You owe me a new arrow, not-Bean Si"

[ Spoiler ]

Volker

Jul 30 2018, 07:26 AM

[ Spoiler ]

bnc rolls his eyes at his expression, then grins. "I'll never let you forget the day when you pronounced your own nickname wrongly, sweetmeat. Don't make that face everytime." She winks, then turns her attention to more important matters.

She looks at the picture, then freezes, her stomach churning. "This is...", she mumbles, suddenly feeling sick. "Give me a second."
Ignoring everyone else, she switches to VR, her body going limp again.
Using Kerstin's commcode, she identifies her 'link and attempts to trace it.

Gilga

Jul 30 2018, 09:21 AM

The details kept coming, each stranger than the other. She asked Eliza "But how did you know that she was going to be at the BMW museum? and if you knew - why not approach before entering. How could the Crusaders and Harvesters know that? and if they did - why ambush her there under the watchful eyes of S-K security? Something does not add up"

When she looked at the pictures the eyes drew her attention she said softly "These eyes are... Beautiful"

[ Spoiler ]

Jack_Spade

Jul 30 2018, 05:57 PM

[ Spoiler ]

The arrow was more than enough to take out the small flying target. Once back inside, Sharkboy came just right to get the more interesting parts of the explanation from Eliza:

"That is a good question Mrs. Black, sadly I don't have a good answer - yet. I was monitoring the online-forum that these chipheads and other junkies like to use. They are exchanging messages from likely sightings, hoping to be able to claim the next batch of BTLs without copy protection. A week ago the low grade image of your friend appeared on the forum and called on the Munich szene to look out for her. For a few days now they have looked while our team was on stand by. Then, about 45 minutes ago, a message was posted on the board that a user had spotted a girl fitting the decription, that had just taken the bus for the BMW Museum. I alerted my chummers and had them get there as fast as possible.
Now, I suspect that I'm not the only one monitoring these boards, as the other mage was likely with the Harvester faction. As soon as Wraith told me about them, I tried to get rid of the surveillance at their destination. The mage must have realized that your friend wasn't the target they were looking for since he stayed passive.
All in all, I counted 15 of the chip heads inside the building. I haven't had a chance yet to examine one of those BTLs yet, but I suspect there is some very sophisticated software inside that allows them to communicate with each other like a pack of wolves or probably more like hyenas. They only started to go crazy when they spotted your friend. I'm afraid, anyone looking similar to her will find themselves a target of these people - and if the subscriber rates to the forum are any indication, they are getting more and more member everywhere in the German, Swiss and Austrian area."

Eliza didn't react to the remark about her eyes.

Gilga

Jul 30 2018, 06:36 PM

Anna said "Thank you, I guess..." she seems hesitant "It is kind of terrifying news." something did not seat right.

"Okay so let's assume that the mage got there before us due to the forums, why wait on the fourth floor? What was so special about it he knew to wait for us there. He knew much more than the chipheads, and you cleared the area from drones? which placed us at even more risk of violence. Why so?

Also, the mage assensed Petra and concluded that she was not Bean Si. Something in their auras is fundamentally different, the chipheads did not figure that out. So it is not visual, either the aura is different or he just knew Bean Si. The logical path is that the mage is closer to Bean Si - and has some knowledge of my friend. Was Bean Si a Harvester? What is her connection to that group? There has to be such a connection. "

Jack_Spade

Jul 30 2018, 07:13 PM

"I'm afraid I don't know. Magic isn't my forte. What about you? Do you know of any spells or rituals that would confer that kind of information to a mage or that would make it preferable to wait in a high place?

As for security: If your friend had been our target, we wouldn't have wanted any record of her meeting Wraith and Sharkboy - especially not Sharkboy. He kind of sticks out.

As for Bean Si's allegiance: You'd have to ask our employer.

But now I have a few questions of my own: Who are you two and what did you do at the museum? You clearly are runners and based on your accent Mrs. Black, I'd say you have spent quite some time in Seattle. Were you casing out the museum for a run?"

While Eliza spoke, her eyes turned from green into a piercing blue.

SquirrelDude

Jul 30 2018, 07:22 PM

Sharkboy listened to the conversation, frustrated by the turn of event and waste of time, but made sure not to show it. He simply repacked his bow and closed the case back up and then removed his coat and laid it next to him on a cot as he sat down. He tried to strike an intimidating and professional pose as he listened to the conversation.

[ Spoiler ]

Gilga

Jul 30 2018, 07:36 PM

Anna said "Don't think of magic, he was a person more years than he was a mage. Think politics and intrigue, and betrayal. Much more common than magic. I am not entirely sure why we came to the museum, but it wasn't anything big. Petra is a hacker and everything, and I think there was some geeky item that she wanted. Which I suspect was a honey-trap - which means that you may have a lead to where to go next. I'll ask her when she returns from wonderland.

You are quite an observant Eliza, I am flattered that you noticed, and the way you change your eye color as you speak. It is fascinating. Are these cyber eyes? or some smart contacts?"

Jack_Spade

Jul 30 2018, 07:49 PM

"Hm, I didn't see any signs of this being an organized trap - especially since it was kind of disorganized.
From my perspective this thing began with a tip getting placed that Petra was spotted on the bus.
But your theory is easy enough to check: Look at the item - I'm not receiving any transmissions from it, so it's likely not a tracking device. But if it was a trap I'd suspect it to be fake or somehow rigged.

And don't change the subject: Are you two on a mission right now? Because that would complicate matters for both of us.
And no, I just felt like changing my avatar a bit."
Eliza replied.

Gilga

Jul 30 2018, 08:14 PM

Anna looked at Sharkboy and then at Raph/Wraith as if trying to gauge what it would be like to work with them.
"Sharkboy? Why not Sharkman? I mean to say, thanks for the arrow..." Then she looked at Eliza "An avatar, brilliant... " clearly admiring the sophistication. "You are a persistent one. Shadowrunners don't take the bus to work. We are not employed, I planned to do some shopping after the museum. Then things became creepy and exciting... Why are you so interested?"

SquirrelDude

Jul 30 2018, 08:30 PM

Sharkboy spoke up "Sharkman was already taken, and he was willing to let me take up his mask as Sharkman Jr.or Sharkman the second. Something about 'this not being my first gimmick.'(Spanish)

"We need to know if you're working because it adds a 3rd known group that could be tailing our ride and making our lives complicated, thinking we have something or someone belongs to them."

Gilga

Jul 30 2018, 08:43 PM

Anna laughed "You are playful! Was that Spanish? Do you always keep the mask?" she seemed to be enjoying herself and not overly concerned.

Jack_Spade

Jul 30 2018, 08:47 PM

Eliza's head nodded: "Precisely.
But as far as new leads go, we are out of luck right now. The forum was updated. Two of the chip heads were shot while they resisted arrest. The rest got away - just as the HTR helicopter arrived. I'm sorry, but for the moment it will be best if we leave the city. Help yourself to some snacks from the fridge while I talk to the boss."

SquirrelDude

Jul 30 2018, 08:48 PM

Sharkboy just leaned in, resting his elbows on his knees. "I promised you answers about myself, but they will have to wait until after you answer the question. Are you two working right now, Ms. Black?"

Gilga

Jul 30 2018, 09:04 PM

Anna said, "I went out of my way not to whack them myself..." She handled Sharkboy a card "Anna Black - Arcane Bodyguard" it was black with a silver envelope and had her link number in it. "I told you already that I was not working right now. No third faction is going to tail you... The way you fire the bow, I am kind of sad for anyone that would tail you. I don't have professional contacts in this city, I mainly study, go to the gym and party... "

SquirrelDude

Jul 30 2018, 09:54 PM

Sharkboy took the card and put it slid it into one of his jacket pockets. "Thank you for not making us pull teeth to get the answer." He paused. "Metaphorically, of course.

"As promised, here are answers to the questions about myself.

"First. I'd recommend against using someone's ability to hit a cheap security drone as a measure of their skill. In another situation, that'd be target practice.
"Second. You're correct about the mask. It doesn't come off."
"Third. If we get in another fight, 'stay away, don't invade my home.'
"As for how I knew you two were out there, it's just a shark thing." He shrugged and pointed at his own neck "These gills ain't some fancy chrome either."

"As much as I would just love to tell you more about yourself, I'd like to first hear from your ward what she's been doing in VR when she gets back out."

[ Spoiler ]

Jack_Spade

Aug 4 2018, 09:36 AM

Meanwhile in a small flat in Munich:

Nova's commlink chimed, indicating a call from Dr. Novotny, with the little "Urgent!" icon flashing.
The call went to voice message before anyone could pick up:
<<Nova, an old acquaintance just called me with a very time sensitive request: He needs a local trouble shooter to help protect a girl. There is already a team working on it, but they got into trouble and have to lay low right now. You are to meet up with them and prevent them from getting into any more trouble.
He is offering a generous 10k for the job - provided you can get to it right now.>>

In the van

Eliza chimed in: <<I just got a message from our boss: He wants to meet our unexpected lookalike and is currently shopping for extra protection.>>

Thanee

Aug 4 2018, 11:02 PM

Natalya looked up and focused her concentration on the little icon in her field of vision. The text message scrolled through.

Urgent, eh? Guess it was too urgent to include any kind of information or anything...

<<Hey Doc! Thanks for the offer. I'm free right now, so I could start immediately. But can I get any more information before I accept? Like, you know, how long will this whole thing be? How big should I be packing? Will I be working for you, or for your acquaintance? In the latter case, am I to talk to him or her prior to taking the mission on? Will this be essentially the same job the other team is on? Is the compensation offered on par with that? 10k sounds nice, but you know how expensive those upgrades are... Maybe there is some room for negotiations. It's urgent after all. Also, how much up front and how much after? And after what exactly? Obviously, when I accept, I will need some contact information at least. So, anything else you can tell me here?>>

Jack_Spade

Aug 5 2018, 07:32 AM

The doc replied immediately:
<<I have no idea about the what, why and how long, but my contact - he calls himself Hr. Nacl - wants to meet you and the other team. Premuably there you'll have a chance to negotiate your salary and get the necessary details.
I've attached the GPS coordinates for the meeting. It's in the Perlacher Forrest close to the Bavaria Filmstadt. Can you make it there within the next hour?>>

Thanee

Aug 5 2018, 10:34 AM

<<Alright, then. I will be there. Thank you!>>

Natalya immediately checked her options to get to the location of the meeting in time. I really need to get me a bike or a car, she thought.

In the end, she chooses some automated cab service to bring her to a place close to the GPS coordinates. For the rest of the way, her feet will have to do.

She disassembles her Enfield and puts it into a sleek aluminium attaché together with some additional armor pieces. Her Guardian is in the hidden holster, as usual. Some extra ammo goes into the other hidden storage, along with her more portable medkit and some supplies.

A quick glance into the mirror... Ready for business. (she really looks like a businesswoman going to work) ...and she is good to go.

Jack_Spade

Aug 5 2018, 12:08 PM

The coordinates led Nova to a small clearing. Though trees blocked the view, the sounds of the Bavaria Film Studios could still be heard. Snow crunched beneath her feet and her breath turned to steam in the cold forest air.
A single offroad vehicle with a lone occupant awaited her at the meeting point.

Despite the cold, the window was rolled down and she could see the man inside: A tall man with broad shoulders, a grey, neatly trimmed bear. His face put him somewhere in his late 40ies early 50ies. Attractive features in a silver fox kind of way, that must work pretty well on girls with daddy issues. He looked up from whatever he had been doing and said in her general direction:
"Come on in. It will take a few minutes more for the others to arrive." While he said that, he opened the passenger door.

Thanee

Aug 5 2018, 08:24 PM

"Herr Nacl, nehme ich an?" Her eastern-european accent was clearly noticable in her german. "Ich bin Nova. Aber das wissen Sie ja bereits."

The blonde woman gingerly walked around the car, then hopped inside. "Danke! Ist ganz schön kalt da draußen."

[ Spoiler ]

Jack_Spade

Aug 5 2018, 09:38 PM

Nacl waited for Nova to close the door and rolled up the windows. Immediately all noise from the outside was cut off - as well as all communications to the outside.

Volker

Aug 6 2018, 02:50 PM

bnc stirred after a couple of seconds, her expression worried yet somehow distant. She blinks, then focusses on the group, inhaling softly.

"You want answers. You can have them. But first things first."

Then she slaps Anna straight across the face. Not hard-hard, not meant to break her jaw or injure her, but definitely more than symbolic. Real anger lies in the slap, and in her gaze, too. "Don't you ever again cast a spell at me against my will, or I'll shoot you dead to break the spell. You hear me? And if I tell you to do something because I noticed something you didn't, do fucking as you're told and not the damn opposite. A person's dead and we'll have to leave the country because you couldn't just keep your fragging head low! If you're dumb, it's okay, but leave the thinking to me!"

SquirrelDude

Aug 6 2018, 04:24 PM

Well this is certainly a rather hostile employee-employer relationship. Nice that she's blaming Ms Black for the mage's death and not me, though.

Gilga

Aug 6 2018, 04:30 PM

Anna rolled her eyes with a form of annoyance, but not anger and replied calmly "You are welcome, Petra" she sighed and said "Now get it together... and act like a professional. First, you are physically harmless and once you are grappled by a person like that it is all over. Second, I busted you out of a potentially deadly situation without any use of violence. So calm down, it was not all that bad, even if you were visible for like 2 seconds.

Third, you need to skip town because you asked me to help Sharkboy right after he killed a person in the most public place ever. Then you asked me to accompany you to this car... These two decisions are the main reason we need to hide. If you want another reason, maybe firing automatic fire on the security door justifies hiding. Yet another reason how about an army of cybered up BTL junkies looking to rip you to pieces... So in short, grow up and stop blaming me for your poor life choices."

Jack_Spade

Aug 6 2018, 05:10 PM

Eliza chimed in from the screen:
"Please keep the violence among yourself to a minimum. The boss wants to meet you all and introduce you to another teammember as he considers the stakes have been raised now.
We are nearly there. Please keep weapons out of sight."

Luckace

Aug 6 2018, 05:36 PM

Wraith blinked as he closed his third eye after the spell and opened his physical ones, returning to this chaotic world. Having put his foci back on felt good.

That Nacl wanted to meet the newcomers was a good sign, meant he felt truely personally involved. That he was looking for extern help was... about to be seen. Supply and demand. Shopping for more means he ain't pleased with what we got. On the other hand... more guns on our side is hardly a bad thing. But there were more pressing concerns right now.

He watched bnc's outburst with a mixture of amusement and annoyance Well, someone hasn't changed a lot..., but he soon got impatient and raised his voice in a non-aggressive, yet imposing way:

"Enough! A man is dead, shame. But as he was a mage from a hostile group, that was absolutely necessary and most likely saved our asses on the long run."

I'm worrying more about the innocents swallowed by the crowd...

"When we'll meet the boss, I'd like us to act as one group, not a bunch of misfits that are still fighting over who botched what. Now... Is everyone in for that?"

As soon as he had time, he browsed local newsfeeds for information on the apparent terrorist attack and any casualties.

[ Spoiler ]

Volker

Aug 6 2018, 10:30 PM

[ Spoiler ]

"I do, that's why I only slapped you when I had time to educate you, girl. When I whisper "spell defense" and shove you gently outside, guess what: There's a magical threat I do not want to get aware of us. This includes not going fucking astral and tossing no mojo around. We could have gotten out of there unseen, but first you draw the mage's attention to us, and if that wouldn't be enough, you start flinging around spells to alarm those crazed-out chipseys, too! Only thing you did right was giving me the power to get out of there either silently or swiftly - and you fucked both when you turned the whole thing into a witch kettle and then kept me from frigging moving. You didn't bust me out of a deadly situation, but tossed me in it. And I'm neither defenseless nor unarmed.
That said, don't you ever fucking go on a solo again when you have no clue what the frag's going on and don't even consider forcing any spell on me ever fucking again, and the thing is done. I've got more important matters in front of me than holding a grudge.

And you-" bnc turns to Eliza "you wait until you asked. Your boss is not my boss and if I do have a team it's a barbie mage who's got less understanding of magic than a carless rigger. Literally, think about it.
Don't act like a savior. So far the only thing you performed is sending a tasteless comic-book villain after me to murder random innocent people just to make it a tad more difficult to vanish without anyone bothering. Afford appreciated but don't fucking tell me what to do. Got it?"

When Wraith cuts bnc off, she glares at him for a moment. Is that the same milky-bar kid I teamed up with? Apparently he didn't waste his time either.
She swallows down her anger and actually feels a hint of shame which she hides well behind a frozen expression.

"I will meet this man, whoever he may be, but don't mistake me for a team member."
bnc's trembling slightly, her eyes darting around between the four people restlessly. Her jaw is clenched tightly and her voice is just slightly unsteady.

Gilga

Aug 6 2018, 11:21 PM

Anna listened intently, but then replied "I tried to protect you, Sweetie. Of course, I would not force magic- or anything else on you."

She had much to say, but bnc did not seem like she would listen to logic, or emotion for that manner. "I am not sure that it was such a bad idea to assense the mage, made him less likely to do anything stupid that he saw that I too could play that game. As with the chipheads, one of them was alarmed but the rest just zoomed in on her. She is in deep trouble and is upset, there is no need to push harder."

She turned to Wraith and said "Look Wraith." she paused and then continued "First it is a bit creepy that you decided not to drop us where Petra asked you, and instead take us to your employer. My friend is in actual danger from this miss-classification, and I am not sure that a shadow job now is the best and brightest of ideas right now - but I don't mind hearing the man."

SquirrelDude

Aug 7 2018, 12:41 AM

"Petra is in a heavily armored vehicle with a bed, at least one mage she trusts to make decisions, matrix over-watch from the woman you observed had 'pretty eyes', and me. Seems like a safe and, importantly, mobile place for her to spend time as she deals with this case of mistaken identity. Now unless you and Petra have any more questions about my mask, I'm going to listen to some music. Try to keep your voices down as you two figure out who exactly should get the most blame for you getting out of there alive."

Gilga

Aug 7 2018, 05:28 AM

Anna gave the Shark, a nod of agreement. Seriously, she thought that bnc would be safer at home with her toys... but there was no fun in that direction and the young decker did not seem to appreciate her opinion anyhow. These were exciting people, and a chance to live again after a month of tedious work seemed nice. "Useless to argue, as we both agreed to meet the man. How much does this gig pays off?, and what is that boss of you like? "

Jack_Spade

Aug 7 2018, 03:49 PM

"You'll find out now, we are there." Eliza's visage vanished and was replaced by projection of the outside - a dense, snowy wooded area.
Next to an offroad capable SUV the tall form of Nacl stood - next to an imposing woman. The van came to a stop and opened on it's own accord the side door, exposing the passengers to a pretty cold breeze of frozen forrest air.

The man smiled at them in a way that touched something in bnc - like a sweet song she had heard a long time ago and nearly completely forgotten. There was something familiar about the man, although she was sure that she had never seen or met him before.

The man's deep and rich baritone fitted him well: "I am very sorry for the circumstances of this impromptu meeting. I'd just like to have a little talk with you Mrs. Black and "Petra" here. If you don't like what I have to say, Eliza will take you to a location of your choosing and this will be the end of it."

He turned to the two other runners: "By the way, this is the latest addition to the team: Nova. She comes with the highest recommendations as bodyguard and troubleshooter. Considering the death of one of the mages your opposition sports, I think it prudent to increase your available firepower somewhat to fend of retribution attempts."

Luckace

Aug 7 2018, 04:39 PM

Wraith closed his lined coat against the unexpected cold breeze. This guy sure loves frozen nature... Nacl's soft tone had surprised him. He had expected their boss making a scene about the commotion at the BMW Museum and and was thrown off by the non-rebuking way in which he introduced their new teammate. Careful, though. Good manners don't make him a good guy. Might just be good at hiding his motives.

He greeted Nacl and the newest member with a nod and raised hand and stepped out of the van so everyone could talk properly: What Nova saw was a slim, rather small man in his mid-twenties, his upper face still smeared with black paint, his hair apparently dyed with a cheap, blonde insta-coloring spray. He appeared to be friendly, but not very talkative, and only briefly introduced himself to Nova "Wraith, arcane scout." before he stepped so the others could leave the van aside and deeply inhaled the refreshing, cold air. Finally not running to or from something. Thank you, Lord, for this moment of recuperation.

Gilga

Aug 7 2018, 05:01 PM

Before getting off the car, Anna took a quick look at the astral around them, and if she found no obvious threats, assessed the people in the SUV.

[ Spoiler ]

Her first thought was that German runners were very polite. Her second thought was that mr. Nacl was listening to their conversation. Why would everyone call her Mrs Black... She kept silent and allowed bnc to lead, a bit uncertain how - she should behave. What was going on - and why would a random Jhonson want to hire them with no recommendations or anything. She was missing something. Bnc knew more, for certain - to the very least she understood the culture. Anna knew bnc well enough that there was something more to bnc's behavior... but she had no idea what it was or if bnc even wanted her to try and dig deeper. That skinny-girl was *difficult*.

So Anna decided that it is better to keep quiet and watch everyone carefully. She waited to see how the conversation would evolve. To keep polite, she nodded at the man, indicating that he had her attention.

[ Spoiler ]