Jaxx raises a foot into the back of the Zzzap, and plants it firmly on the bundle in the back thereby eliciting a pained grunt. Holding the bundle in place thus, he leans forward and applies restraints. Hands, feet. Click, click.

"""Thanks, Karmapunch, but no need for the mean stuff. Once you've flittered into the darkness like the beautiful creature of the night you are, I'll get some lovely friends to help him to his new stage in life."""

Jaxx turns back to Blue and Karmakaze, dusting off his hands and shooting his cuffs like a stage magician who's just amazed an audience. """What say I get you a credstick and we give the Tacoma sumo contender some personal space?"""

Karmakaze nods.

"""Sounds good, Jaxx."""

She follows him to gather the credstick(s).

Jaxx leads them through to a room off the garage; it looks mostly like a humdrum storefront office, suitable for the front of a nanotat salon. In this space are two really beefy orks, lounging in synthleather chairs, who look up when he gets in.

"""Boys, the Zzzap there has a package in the back, all tied up. It's big and it makes rude grunts, but just carry it nice and sweetly to the guest space."""

At this, they half-smile in a tusky sort of way, and amble their way back through the door to the garage, cracking their knuckles and rolling their shoulders.

Jaxx then adds: """Right as a regulator, back to business as usual.""" He slaps the front house computer into wakefulness, and sets about the mundane business of charging up a credstick.

"""Gentlemen,""" Karmakaze greets the two orks. """Don't feel you have to be too sweet."""

She stands on the other side of Jaxx's desk, not too close. She does, but doesn't want to take a seat in one of those nicely broken in and comfortable chairs. She has too many things still to do, and with the adrenaline, excitement and wired reflexes winding down, she knows she would sleep for about 12 hours.

Too many things to do still. Hit the 24-hour BulkMax for a secure home for a few snakes, then find a safe house for the night. The sun should be coming up too soon.

It doesn't take Jaxx long to crank out a couple of credsticks for NY30,000 each, and hand them over. Whatever other criticisms might be made of him, he's an honest broker.

The orks are practical in approach. When Jaxx and Blue get back to Jaxx's car and get ready to pull out, they have a wrapped, squirming bundle in a big box, on a pallet jack, rolling into a freight elevator. They seem to be pretty cheerful about it. The pay must be good.

Karma hands one of the two credsticks to Blue, then follows Jaxx who is escorting them to her car.

"""While I am here, Jaxx, can I get a few items? I could use some new handcuffs with the belt holster, and some flex cuffs. I am completely out."""

She watches the orks load up the problematic Jeremy, which appears to be less problematic now.

Blue accepts the credstick with a smile. """ Thanks. This should go a long way towards making me more survivable. """ He considers making a comment to Jeremy, something about irony and turning tables. But no. The Superior Man doesn't gloat. It's been less than two days since he himself was nearly in a similar predicament.

He gets in Karmakaze's car.

""" Now if we can unload the little snakes, maybe just back to Petsonal for whatever paltry sum they offer, we will be free to get a well deserved rest. You have a place to stay? You can crash at mine if you want, and there will be a hearth spirit to do overwatch as we sleep. """

Jaxx is only too happy to serve Karmakaze's needs at a street price; a quick delivery before they drive off.

"""We still have that talismonger to talk to about the snakes. If you have a plastic storage container at your place we can transfer them to that as well. I wouldn't mind crashing at your place. Having a spirit watch over me a little while longer sounds pretty damn comforting."""

Blue nods. """ Good, it's settled then.

""" In terms of the snakes, the more I think about my talismonger, Mary Margaret's response when I told her about them, the more I just want to get rid of them. She thinks there's dragons involved in that damn deal between Petsonal and PoliDemos. On top of that, I don't have anything at my place to contain them, and it would need air holes, and we would need to keep them relatively fed, and cleaned-up-after.

""" I'm way newer at all this 'shadow' work than you are, but it seems to me we really scored with the contract on Jeremy. Maybe we would be pushing our luck to try to get every last penny for the snakes. I could try contacting Petsonal to see if anyone is present to receive the things. You OK with that? """

It's clear that something about the snakes has rattled Blue. In the time they have been together, he has not shown such hesitation and worry. He faced down a fire elemental. But this? There's something off about this affair.

"""It's up to you, I guess. It never hurts to have a backup plan, though. Do you think we can dump them off on PetPersonal tonight?"""

As they plot the ins and outs of their next move, they pull out of Jaxx's place and the garage door rolls politely down behind them. Two cars in, one car out. A tall elf and a stubby dwarf rolling out again.

""" I'll give them a call. Given the excitement in their parking lot, the police might have rousted their manager by now. """

Blue uses the current burner to try the Petsonal number again. """ Yet another burner to retire soon. +++ Where do they all go? +++ he wonders.

There's no response to Blue's call, other than a polite request from an automated voice wanting to know what his call is about, and where he can be best reached.

Of course, burners have a way of not being recognised by those who might care, which might easily explain the lack of response.

Blue shoots an exasperated look over at Karmakaze. """ It seems the filtering AI wasn't able to interpret my earlier attempt to keep their business private. Let's see if a more direct approach gets a response. """

He speaks into the burner. <<< This is Blue. Earlier I tried to phrase things so that your private business would not be broadcast, but it seems I didn't get through. Let me be more direct.

<<< I have a boxload of young atavophid basilisks. Your business partner, PoliDemos, tried to sabotage your facility and reputation. My associate and I stopped the attempt. The mess in your parking lot and what remains of an intruder in your facility are results thereof. The little creatures came into our possession as a result as well. Contacts tell me a dragon is behind these things, and we want nothing to do with them. I would be happy to offload the little things to you for a fair price, but am not in the position to wait. This communication device will become inactive in short order, and if you do not contact me forthwith, I will find some other buyer for your intellectual property.

<<< I await your response. >>>

He hangs up. """ Well, if that doesn't get a call-back, they need a better answering service. """

After a while, which perhaps seems longer than it really is, Blue's burner receives a call.

<<<Your inventory is not ours and has nothing to do with us. Please return it to the proper owners; presumably PoliDemos. Also, PoliDemos is not our business partner, and never has been.>>>

It's not a person responding live, but a recorded message so while Blue might feel the urge to unleash a stream of invective the ears that should have heard it would be deaf to his creativity.

Blue conveys the message to Karmakaze. """ It beats me why these people don't seem to care about their snakes. Anyway, you think that potential buyer of yours is reachable at this time of day... night.?

""" As I say, I'd like to get rid of these things as soon as possible. """ As they pass by a trash receptacle, Blue asks Karmakaze to stop for a moment, and dumps the burner into the receptacle. """

While Karmakaze ponders this turn of events, Blue sees more news items pop into his feed.

<<<VCE INVESTMENTS - ARE THEY RIGHT FOR YOU?>>>

<<<PUEBLO MINERAL EXTRACTIONS SKYROCKET>>>

<<<MEDICAL JOB SATISFACTION ASSURANCE RISING>>>

"""It's Jaxx's contact, so I don't know. If we wait until normal business hours we may get a better response, and have someone not hate us."""

After Blue explains what PetPs recorded call back was, Karma isn't very happy.

"""Was that the person that hired us? Sounds like they may have been double-crossing us somehow, but I don't know what they gain. Maybe these little bastards were stolen in the first place... or they are just trying to distance themselves from a bad breeding idea? I hate corporations."""

"""Maybe we should contact the talismonger now. Unless you know someone with a Shadowlands contact."""

""" Well, my talismonger doesn't want to touch these things. She's scared of who ... or what is behind them. So I guess we crate them well and wait till the morning. I have no clue what to do with them otherwise. """

"""Can you do something to keep them from being tracked astrally?"""

Blue smiles ruefully. """ If I had the better part of a week, I could set up my lodge and that would make an excellent barrier to astral searches. I could put up a temporary ward, but a strong one would take several hours and be difficult to succeed in building. I could put up a weaker ward, which would be better than nothing. I'll do that when we get back to our place. It would be easier if I could do that before sunrise. """

As quiet as the roads are at this time of night, it wouldn't be hard to get back in plenty of time for a minor ward.

The original contractor being PoliDemos would suggest that perhaps they would be grateful recipients except of course that they (or their representative) were responsible for attempting to bring them back.

These thoughts drift through the minds of the pair while streetlights pass by overhead, and damp tarmac beneath. The comparative darkness helps bring the various roadside advertisements, both billboard and projected, into clarity. Everything from soydogs to janitorial supplies, and the images of a couple of fugitives from justice, named Connor and Carlos.

Blue takes note of any details provided about Connor. """ Look at that. They're still spending money to find me, it seems. """

Karma glances at the billboard to see if either of the two look like Blue.

"""Let's text that talismonger then."""

Karma hands Blue her comm.

It's not a bad likeness, although on the board he looks a little more malicious, or malevolent than Karmakaze has usually seen him.

But there's no doubt of the identity.

""" A ... metabiologist, right? Should be interesting. """

Blue fires up Karmakaze's commlink and sends a missive. <<< New metabiology available for an interested buyer. Recently developed, alteration/ancient form of existing paranimal. Several young individuals. Time limit on the offer. >>>

Sadly perhaps for the nocturnal, there is no immediate response. There is however an immediate automatic direction to the Matrix presence of Metabiologist.

From what he can glean at a glance, it's a sort of cheerful critter control service with a side order of trade in the unusual and valuable. Whether this is for talismongery, pets or other sorts of experimentation isn't clear; perhaps they don't care.

In any event, they list regular working hours (depressingly sun-drenched, inasmuch as the region ever is) and an expensive emergency contact for when you need that wolverine out of your car right fragging now.

"""It looks like it will cost us to wake the metabiologist up this time of night. If we get a good price for the beasties, we should still come out on top. Shall I go for it? """

"""I would like to offload them as soon as possible, since the original owner paid good money for us to return them, then suddenly doesn't return calls. Makes me feel like we are holding a ticking time bomb. How much is the 24-hour service? Unless ridiculous, I think it is a good route."""

""" Well, there's an up-front 1000 nuyen. I should hope we would be able to get that much for this cargo, so I'll give them a call. """

Blue places the call.

It doesn't take a minute, and Blue is in touch with the Metabiologist.

The person actually answering the call is a fellow going by the name of Arfur, or so it sounds. Cheerful chap, with a gravelly voice who takes it for granted that Blue has a pest management emergency on his hand and opens his discussion with a desire to know whether Blue requires a non-lethal approach to wildlife interaction management.

Blue returns communication so that Karmakaze can hear both sides of the conversation. He speaks of himself in the singular in order not to give away any more information than necessary.

""" I am decidedly in favour of non-lethal methods, as I am offering a business proposal to your organization. I have in my possession roughly a dozen young individuals of a newly created paranormal species, not available on the open market. I would like to meet with a representative of your organization to arrange sale of these par-animals to you. Your representative will be able to determine in short order their value and will find acquisition of them extremely attractive.

""" A mutual acquaintance gave me your contact information, and I am offering you first chance to make this lucrative deal. Time is of the essence and the meeting needs to happen in the immediate future, tonight in other words, else I will have to explore other avenues. Is your organization interested in what could be a hugely profitable deal? """

The 'link squawks back at Blue:

"""How much, what, and where? Gimme a reason to get out of bed, chummer! Also, why the big rush, are they eating your toes?"""

""" They are an atavistic form of basilisk, that uses sound instead of vision to paralyze prey. Almost nobody even knows these things exist. They grow big, and, trained, will make excellent guard animals. Easily fetch 5K nuyen each. Researchers looking for new paranormals will go nuts and pay more. I have no way to keep them long term, and want to sell them before they start eating things I don't want them to eat. There's food in the container, but that won't last long. I'm looking for fifteen hundred each to make a quick sale attractive.

""" As to where, somewhere where you can take control of them easily. """

"""OK, that there's different. Fine, you got my interest. Bring 'em by the shop and I'll scope it out. No promises, but if they're the real deal you will have a deal. How soon can you be there?"""

With roads as empty as they are, it shouldn't be more than an hour to make the trip, probably less. The roads aren't in the greatest shape and they do some switchbacks across the hills, but no four-wheeling should be necessary to make it.

""" We'll be there in an hour. Maybe less if traffic doesn't magically appear at this time of night. """

The drive up the valley starts out fairly normal, in well-lit conditions on the grid's surface roads, but about ten minutes in it takes a turn up an older, somewhat degraded tarmac road. Loose stones ping under the car's undercarriage, and huge trees loom on either side. The headlights reveal that to the left is a steep drop, and to the right is an old wall carved out of the rock when the road was cut into the hillside. It is not straight, but winds back and forth like one of the little serpents in the back. No wonder that the megacorps never tried to build here, nor the SINless tried to pitch a tent here. The road itself probably hasn't seen maintenance since the 2030s, and here and there tree roots have buckled the paving a bit. It feels welcoming to a child of Owl, but to a detective it feels like a trip to a kidnapper's cabin.

The engine whines along at lower power while navigating the twists, and the dashboard informs Karmakaze that grid charging is unavailable. Not to worry; the navigation application says that there's a comfortable margin around the range there and back, but it's still an uncanny feeling.

After about forty minutes, the last turn heads up a gravel drive, down which a rivulet carves itself a future riverbed. It's a stiff climb, near the limits of the little car's traction, but at the top is a wood-sided old cabin with a cheerful lit sign at the front saying METABIOLOGIST. On the porch, in a rocking chair, is the figure of a man - or metahuman - of apparently average size but immensely broad shape. There's a mug in his left hand the size of a small pot, and when the car doors open the pungent smell of soykaf blends with the scents of a wet forest.

"""Hoi, chummers! Where the goods?"""

Blue is starting to feel the effects of a long and busy night. The long drive into the countryside gives him a chance to recharge a bit. Being hunted by at least two concerns is wearying.

""" I have to say, """ he says to Karmakaze, """ I grew up a city boy, in a city much bigger than Seattle, and enjoy what the urban environment has to offer. But ever since Owl picked me, I've come to enjoy and seek out the wilderness more and more. This drive out into the countryside feels almost like a spa treatment. """

As the roads get rougher and rise into trickier terrain, Blue figures a bit of insurance would help. """ I'll summon a spirit to help us negotiate the road. Maybe a sky spirit will do out here. I haven't summoned one of those in a while. """



A nebulous swirl of cloud and blowing leaves appears, flying parallel to the moving vehicle. Blue asks, ::: Welcome, child of the wind. Please guard the two of us and the machine in which we ride from accidents as we travel. :::

When they arrive at their destination. Blue steps out of the car and responds to their host, """ Back here in the trunk, in a box. We have to be careful. The little guys are squirmy and fast. """

Karma tried to take a new look on the natural landscape after Blue pointed it out. She hadn't realized she had been so tense before hand, even after the relief of the successful "Jeremy drop" at Jaxx's, she still had a lot of stress crushing in on her ribs and chest. Instead of serene, she had found the dark winding road eerie; Dark rocky mountains on one side, waiting to crush the little Ford Elektro, and tall dark trees on the other side, waiting to swallow them whole.

She slowed a bit, trying to see what Blue was on about. She looked down at the dashboards display. The car had more than enough battery, she flipped on the high-beams, and could finally make out the trees from the ambiguous black void.

Oh.

The road had turned from a dark alley to an escape. She started to understand Blue's words as her mind and body began to ease, as if she had entered a spa. Wind picked up blowing leaves across the road and around the small sedan, but it had no affect on the drive. Karma eased her death grip on the wheel, wiped her hands on her pants. With a renewed and controlled grip on the wheel, she gave the car little more gas, or at least power.

Or it may have been the sky spirit, Karmakaze really didn't understand just how it all worked, just that it was magic. After the shaman had claimed the spirit had been summoned, she found the car begin to hug the road, the drive becoming relaxing, maybe even pleasurable, as it snaked its way through the mountainside. She let out a breath, eased back in the (now comfortable, compared to the Zzzap) drivers seat, and gave the accelerator a little more.

Or maybe it was the city lights, and all the troubles there, fading away and now hidden behind the landscape (except it's omnipresent glow still illuminating the sky just above the trees and mountains, and doing its best to hold back the stars, but let us just ignore that for now). Megacorps, hitmen, policlubs, fixers, and johnsons all fading away, falling further behind with each passing second, every passing turn, relieving another kilo of pressure off Karma's body and soul. There isn't much the Elektro can outrun, but the sprawl appears to be one of them. She gave the pedal more pressure.

They zipped up the mountain until the roads began too get a little thinner and a little rougher. By now the calming affects of the landscape had done its work on Karmakaze as it had done on Blue.

At the destination, when Karma exited the vehicle, the cold clean air hit her lungs so hard she couldn't catch her breath. It was like breathing pure oxygen. She stifled a cough, took a second breath, then a slow deep one, held it, then slowly exhaled. Luckily Blue had taken lead on the conversation, allowing her to regain her balance.

Her balance steadied quickly, and so did her composure. Her right hand slid down to rest on the hilt of the Savalette. Can't get to relaxed. She scanned the meeting ground, and her wired reflex twitch came back hard. She hadn't realized it was so bad, until it had settled over the soothing ride.

The metabiologist heaves himself to his feet, and comes forward with a sort of rolling gait that is more like a seaman's stride than a waddle. Under the brim of his hat, his face seems to be largely composed of a massive lantern jaw, including a couple of tusks barely protruding from his lips. Even so, Karmakaze has at least a foot on him in terms of height, although he'd surely make three of her.

Before coming in to look around the back, he pulls on a couple of thick, elbow-length gauntlets. They look rather like foundry workers' gloves, but without the scorch marks. He also doffs his hat (showing a mere fringe of hair left around a mostly bald head) and dons something between a splash mask and a helmet. With this buckled in place, he steps forward. """Awwwwright. Let's have a look at this."""

With surprising deftness, once the box is open, he reaches in and scoops up one of the little wriggling things. It returns the favour by wrapping around a digit and biting - he ignores this, and carefully examines the little serpent, turning it this way and that, examining all angles that the grip permits.

"""Huh. 'kay. Gotcha. Right.""" His tone is that of an expert doing a job, unfussed and mostly unconcerned. """You said atavistic basilisks, but that ain't right. These are more like pythons with atavistic features. Scope the little legs. Minus the feathers, morphology is more like a feathered serpent than a robust lizard. Who told you these are basilisks?"""

At the mention of feathered serpents, Blue raises an eyebrow and sends a glance towards Karmakaze. He recalls Mary Margaret's warning about dragons.

To the metabiologist he replies, """ The label given them by one concern in a two-way business deal going bad quickly was 'Atavophid Basilisk'. The understanding given to us is that these creatures make sounds that have a soporific effect. Maybe the paralyzing effect of that sound led whoever named these things to go that route. In any case, they are a new creature, to the scientific community, ostensibly intellectual property of a business in Seattle that specializes in developing and training paranormal creatures for clientele with lots of money. These individuals were discarded in the neighbourhood of the developer by one such customer, apparently to damage the company's reputation. We scooped them up before they got into the sewer system, thereby eventually to prey upon the good citizens of Seattle. I've seen what I believe to be a full grown one. Big enough to eat me whole, though, """ he grins bigly, """ it might choke on you. """

Blue gets to the pitch. """ These little guys were thrown away by the customer, and to our amazement, the developer doesn't want them back. Or at least doesn't want to pay for their return. So, here we are. You have in your hands a newly created paranormal animal to study, making you perhaps the first outside the developer's company to be able to do so. Well known creatures in this category go for easily three or four times the price I quoted you. These individuals are priced for a quick sale. We get them off our hands. You get an opportunity that comes maybe once in a lifetime.

""" Interested? """

The metabiologist cocks an eye at Karmakaze while Blue makes the explanations, but given her impassive silence he turns his attention back to the little critters.

"""I dunno. I don't reckon these things were developed.""" He turns his huge, spade-like hand over while the serpent crawls over it, and then tucks itself down between his warm fingers. """Not impossible, but I'm guessing they were found. Don't know what they're good for, though, which cuts into the price. I'll give you a thousand even, for each one."""

""" Tell you what, """ Blue suggests. """ I'll cut my share down so my partner here can still get her half of fifteen hundred each, as long as I can count on you to answer the occasional question for me about creatures I can't figure out for myself. Say, a direct line for me to call and a name I can use to call you. And I'll make sure to keep you informed of any other new critters I run across. I get a feeling that's going to happen a lot in my life. Maybe down the road a profitable relationship could develop. """

The metabiologist rumbles for a moment like a concrete mixer full of rocks, before holding out a hand to Blue. """Sounds like a deal. Take special orders sometimes? I might have something on the back end for you, too."""

Blue smiles and takes the man's hand. Good, solid handshake. """ Works for me. You can call me Blue. Now, let's get these slippery little fellows transferred, nuyen back the other way, and call it a night. """

Blue takes a good look around, getting the setting firmly in memory. He makes sure the spirit gets the mental images.

Now that it appears there is a deal, Karma also offers the man her hand, removing it from resting on her hip above her pistol.

"""Karmakaze,""" she introduces herself. """Glad we could reach a deal on such short notice."""

He shakes Karmakaze's hand as well, and then steps back to his porch, where he grabs a few items including a large terrarium. This he easily hefts, despite it being two metres long and apparently made of thick armoured glass, onto his shoulder on his way back to the car. He takes a thing that looks much like that egg-like item that Karmakaze and Blue had taken off the two thugs, twists it, flips it open, presses a button, twists a dial, then closes it and plops it into the terrarium as well.

Then he puts on a set of goggles, and starts to collect little snakes.

Karmakaze watched the metabiologist transfer each snake from the box in the trunk into the terrarium he laid at the back of the car. Soon all are wrangled and it was time to get paid and finally end this long night.

On the way back, dawn starts to creep across the sky. It looks as if it will be a clear day; clear and cold. On the way downhill, the little car coasts where it can, and finally chirrups cheerfully when grid power lets it soak up the energy. Early commuters are already hitting the road, and traffic is slower even while low angle light peeps in like knives to hit Blue's eyes.

It's early - but the police are already getting to work, and about in time for checking the early morning messages, Karmakaze gets a message from Booker:

<<<Morning. Hope you're doing OK. Do you have some time to lend an off-the-books hand in Fremont?>>>