The flower's bloom sustains itself for almost a minute, and then the card is inert again. While it remains visually pleasing in the astral, it no longer retains an active aura but the imprint of an item with a significant emotional imprint. Once the show is over, the two spectators seem to go back about their day. The gangers linger for several more minutes and then move on, and the businessman enters one of the nearby office buildings carrying two cups of coffee. None of them seems interested to the point of further investigation.

<<Alright, we are coming out and move it to Mato's bank. We can open up the face account later.>>

Bobby left the queue and moved out again.

Mato turns on his heel and follows Bobby out.

He clicks his tongue and wonders about the astral flower on the car. Is that what was making him feel chilled, like something was passing through him? Seems likely.

Back in the van, he says, "Let's talk this through" as Tamarind drives toward Bancomex.

"Is that what those wards were doing back in the hotel room?" he asks. "Keeping the flower under wraps?"

He thinks about the card in a safe deposit box. Is it just going to announce its presence astrally?

"Raven, you were watching this for a long time, weren't you? So it's not like the card does this all the time; it just blooms periodically."

He taps his teeth together as he thinks this through. "I know wards generally can't be on things that move, like boxes, but is there a way we can shield the card's container? Would biofiber contain the bloom, do you think?"

<< I only watched it during the car ride, so not that long. But that is my impression, yes. It lies dormant for a while, then this "spirit" emerges. To contain it, any kind of astral barrier should work. Biofiber might be a good idea. >>

Rachel will continue to keep watch with her astral perception for now.

Bobby nodded: "Once the card is in the vault, it should be shielded - both from their wards as well as the living earth surrounding the place. The only other way to contain auras is with other awakened auras - like those bioluminous bacteria. That would be actually easier to obtain, but hard to use."

"What about a box of dirt?" Mato asks, his hand swishing around like he's looking for ideas.

"We seal the card in a protective case, then put it in a box of dirt. Would all the bacteria and fungal cells have the same effect? They'd eventually expire, but the deal would be done by then. We only need the effect to persist for a day or two."

Mato doesn't really know if this is genius or profoundly unintelligent, but he seems to be willing to put himself out there to ask.

"The only talismonger I know is Five Fingers Gau, and he's a jerk. Anyone have a better candidate to ask?"

Bobby shook his head: "Not the same. It has to be earth as in the world surrounding it with its manafield.
I can put in a call with my talismonger, Bill Wildwater. FAB I isn't restricted - just not that easy to get, but cheap enough that it should balance out. If he can't help, I imagine Raven is charming enough to find someone to sell."

Bobby put in a call to his talismonger, Bill Wildwater, an expat from Arizona and once upon a time a contractor for the SDF:

<<Hey Bill, I have an urgent purchase: I need a unit of FAB I within the next 6 hours. Sending you 200 Nuyen now, keep the change. Give me a call when its ready and I'll tell you where to ship it.

Also, give my regards to Gracy - I heard she graduated with honors - way to go! You must be proud to have such a clever daughter.

Best Bobby>>

"Unfortunately I don't have colour-change options on the van. I can change the plates and spoof the ID, but of course it is best to use that carefully and infrequently so as not to get caught doing it. There are enough vans like this around, but once people start looking at them to see if an astral flower is happening, or just spirits go searching for such a flower, they'll find us soon enough. If we can't get the FAB or bio-fibre fast enough, let's put it in the quickest to arrange safe deposit box that we can -- after all, even if the flower blooms on their roof that doesn't mean that anyone can easily extract it. Then we get Raven and or myself into another vehicle at some point where we won't easily be watched, we stay in my crash pad for the night if needed, and then we pull it out when needed, so that nobody is jumped right on coming out of the bank, hopefully -- but I'd still want you two nearby!"

She's glad she hadn't pushed harder for for trying three-drone-monte, keeping a few different possible carrier drones buzzing around. The astral flower would have made them obvious and sitting ducks to any passing spirit, even one that was just curious.

Bill texts back >> I'll do my best, no guarantees. Would need to sweat a little to find it. Thanks for the congrats - hope you are doing well.

Bobby nodded at Tamarinds interjection: "Yeah, let's get the card behind bars asap. We can move it around later anyway. Bill has confirmed that he can get me FAB, so once we have that, we can retrieve the card and bring it to wherever we want without detection."

Mato nods at Bobby's explanation about why the box of dirt won't work, but then looks confused by the suggestion of FAB.

"Wait, I don't think I understand FAB.

"There are three types, right? One type lets you detect an astral presence, neh? And then another version - the one they used in Chicago, I think - is weaponized and actively attacks and consumes astral entities. ... I don't remember what the other type is.

"Is that right or am I missing something? Because we don't want the FAB attacking the card, or whatever this bloom is, and nor does it really help us if the FAB glows when the card is 'active'. So what will the FAB do?"

It's an honest question, not a passive-aggressive way to poke holes in the plan.

Bobby shook his head: <<The FAB doesn't have to do anything - they are dual natured and feed on astral energy. As soon as they come in contact with an astral aura they glow. Important for us is the fact that an astral form can't move through another active astral form without displacing each other. Once the card is surrounded by a bag that contains astral bacteria, the bloom can't spread outside anymore. Biofiber does the same but more convenient. At the very least, the glow will show us whenever the card blooms.>>

Mato nods, although he still doesn't really understand what the FAB will accomplish. Once they have it in the safe deposit box - which will be soon enough, hopefully - whether the FAB illuminates seems secondary. But Tamarind makes a good point that even if the card 'blooms' at the bank, it doesn't necessarily mean that it's going to be easy to track down specifically, nor easy to extract. That said, Mato hopes that the bank doesn't take offense.

"Okay, let's do it," Mato agrees. "We'll put it at Bancomex in the meantime."

"Well, for what it's worth, since that one time it has been dormant now," Rachel informs the others.

The bank is not fooled, as most clients are in the middle of their workday. The building is a glass building with a guard at the entrance, and they offer general service, business service, or private banking. Safety deposit boxes are available for both options, and their fee is 100 nuyen a month, paid in advance. A bit expensive for a small box, but not too bad for storing the card. As far as the team can say, they are not followed by the gangers, and after a brief while, the few spectators moved on after the bloom.

Once the fee is paid, the time arrives at a small room with multiple safety deposit boxes and a digital key for one of these boxes. The room is well monitored, but the boxes are secure mainly to nonaugmented individuals. Possibly the site's security lies within the bank's influence rather than the physical security.

Bobby let Mato take the lead as the established customer and instead followed, keeping an eye open for unwanted attention. He also took note of the magic wards within the building and especially down in the vault.

Before the others took the card into the bank, Tamarind pulled out one of her small crawler "bug" drones and gave it to them to stick in the box with the card. She instructs it to stay in low power and only wake up every five minutes to see if it can reach the matrix, and if it can to check its location and send it to Tamarind. Not foolproof, if someone steals the card and either finds the drone and locks it back in the box, or destroys it, it won't pass along useful information. But locked in the box, isolated from the matrix, the little thing would run out of power too quickly if left live all of the time.

While Bobby and Mato are in the bank, Tamarind searches up a list of other nearby banks that offer safety deposit services. They might be looking to move the card soon, or they may not, but in case they need to do so quickly she wants a list of options, and works up both the quickest possible route and a couple of routes that could easily be heading to more than one bank. The reflex part of driving was fun, but knowing what you were doing was usually the bigger factor in being successful.

Of course, none of them really knew what they were doing with this card, probably least of all her.

Mato sends a quick note to the bank announcing his arrival. It might be too-short notice for it to help, but his Aztlaner Spanish classes have suggested it is the polite thing to do. Good friends may visit one another without giving prior notice in Aztlaner culture, but in business situations advance notice is generally expected.

He checks his skin and hair in the mirror before getting out. He's looking better now that he's no longer carrying the card. Of course, he's about to pick up the card to carry it into the bank...

Once his jacket is on and his collar is straightened, he scoops up the card in its new plastic case and exits the van. The main Bancomex branch for the Seattle Metroplex is downtown, not far from the Aztechnology Pyramid. This area is known as Capitol Hill and overlooks the downtown core, including the Space Needle and the ACHE. Mato doesn't even glance back at the view and instead strides purposely through the tall bank doors leading into the glass building.

The lobby is cavernous, with 10-meter ceilings and giant columns clad in marble and brass or gold - something shiny. Mato's shoes click-clack across the floor, his enhanced hearing picking up the echo of his footsteps off the hard surfaces all around. There are brightly-illuminated chandeliers high above. An attractive female teller - dark hair, elven, apparently age 25 like all elves - gives Mato a warm smile as an invitation to step forward. As there is no cash to safeguard, there is no armored glass to interfere with the customer relationship. The woman's perfume hits Mato's olfactory sensors and makes his brain do a backflip. It's so compelling that he momentarily wonders if it is a tailored perfume, or involves pheromones.

"Buenas tardes," Mato says in his best Aztlaner accent (which, on the whole, is only so-so). "Soy Miguel Ángel Torres. Estoy aquí para la cita con Diego Hidalgo y Durán."

The woman smiles at Mato's Spanish, although odds are good that she's just being polite to a customer. She indicates that he should go up the stairs and that Señor Hidalgo y Durán would meet him up there. Mato follows her instructions, although there's a stirring deep within his major histocompatibility complex that makes him loathe to leave her. But business calls and this card isn't going to hide itself. He tears himself away from the attractive teller and ascends the stairs that have a princely view over the lobby below. The teller smiles at Mato from a distance, a well-practiced move that releases a burst of dopamine in Mato's brain and binds what's left of his ventral tegmental area to her.

Señor Hidalgo y Durán is waiting for Mato at the top of the stairs with a wide smile that doesn't quite reach the corners of his eyes. They shake and exchange greetings. Mato is wearing real leather gloves but those won't hide the cyberhands during a handshake. The banker's smile falters for just a moment when he grips Mato's hand, although he quickly recovers.

There are pleasantries because they've never met. Señor Hidalgo y Durán is human, about 50, with a barrel chest, slicked-back hair, and a bushy mustache. He is delighted to have Mato's business, even though Mato had no say in the matter. Señor Hidalgo y Durán is a fan of Elven wines and Elven women and offers one or both to Mato with a leering chauvinistic grin.

"Ahorita," Mato says to politely defer the invitation. "What I presently require is a safe deposit box. Something modest will suffice."

This is an easy enough request. The monthly fee is reasonable and easily addressed. Once the requisite forms are completed, Señor Hidalgo y Durán has another attendant - female, elven, dark-haired, attractive, Mato is detecting a pattern here - escort Mato and Bobby to the vault. The safe deposit box pulls away from the wall. She places it on a stainless steel table and then draws a curtain so that Mato and Bobby may have privacy as they place the card in the box.

"Not as much security as I would have expected," Mato admits in low tones. "I suspect that they're depending on their proximity to the Aztechnology Pyramid. And, of course, the underworld Aztec reputation for responding to transgressions."

Mato places the plastic container within the safe deposit box and feels relieved to have done so. He slides the box back into the wall and locks it in place with the digital key.

"How much time does Bill need?" he asks Bobby. "The bank will close for the evening before too long. We might have to return in the morning."

Bobby noticed the sudden change in emotion that went through Mato as he looked at he pretty elven girls. He refrained from commenting at the time, but would make certain to remind Mato at an (in)opportune time.

When they reached the business stage of their visit, Bobby followed and kept track of the warding scheme. As a registered magic user, he was certain that security had already picked up on him, so he didn't bother to hide his nature and his astral sensing.

When they reached their lock box, he answered Mato: "I don't think they are going for one strong defense. At least in the astral they have a bunch of nested wards that are individually not particularly strong, but would slow down a determined attacker tremendously and make stealthing in almost impossible. I was worried that the card would intersect with them, but it's been dormant till here. So that's good.

As for the FAB: We should get delivery in a few hours. Bill has his shop close to the border, but his drone couriers are pretty reliable. But yeah, for the moment this is good enough. If everything else fails, you get an insurance payout if the card gets stolen from your SDB.

Alright, now we can get organized - collect Raven's gear, make some calls and set up the auction. If everything else fails, we can let Nightmare get the card while we transfer it from here to another bank."

Mato shakes his head.

"The bank doesn't provide insurance on the safety deposit box. Homeowner's insurance might help but we don't have any because we're in Redmond. If we move to Bellevue I'll get coverage. But even then they would want a proper appraisal; they're not just going to take your word for it that you have a 50,000 nuyen collectible that, whoops, got stolen."

Speaking of stolen, he takes the digital key from the bank and slips it into the smuggling compartment in his leg.

"Let's get to Redmond to pick up gear. Hopefully Bill can make a delivery there soon. If we're lucky we can get back here before the bank closes, but that might require some aggressive driving."

He looks to Tamarind, figuring this will be music to her ears.

18:00 - SIS HQ
As the team is having a communal dinner, a nice car pulls over by SIS. It is a black Euro car Westwind. An attractive teenager exits the car and looks doubtfully at the several Crimson-wearing orcs that happened to drive the street in their bikes, drinking and laughing, knocking off mailboxes for giggles. They stop for a while when they see the car, but mainly talk to each other and keep their distance. It is uncommon to see that type of car in Redmond, but SIS gets nice car visitors occasionally, so it is not unheard off. "The smartasses get another Richy rich client," one of them comments confidently.

The teenager is perhaps sixteen, tall, well-groomed, and wearing a black parka covering most of her body. Her hair is pulled back and neatly braided; she looks with concern at her car, then at the orcs, and then finally at the door. She takes a deep breath, mumbles some self-confidence mantra, and then knocks.

Bobby had followed the feed of Seraphina's arrival with interest in AR, filling the others in about their visitor. So he was in position when the knock came.

He opened the door with a smile: "Hi Seraphina. Come on in - to what occasion do we owe this surprise visit?"

She takes a few steps in but does not sit. A bit relieved that Bobby opens the door, she says quickly in a manner common with kids her age. "Hi Bobby, I don't know. " She rolls her eyes and shrugs "My uncle told me to buy a cheap link and deliver it in person. He insisted I do it alone even when I explained that you live in Redmond. Crazy, right?" She opens her coat, revealing a plastic bag with the brand name of a known electronic store. It's not a bomb or anything. I bought it myself about an hour ago in Bellevue, she comments nervously.

"That is not clandestine at all," Rachel comments with a slight smirk.

"Hey girl! I'm Rachel."

Mato was a rich kid himself so he doesn't discriminate against rich kids, but he does wince a bit at the Eurocar Westwind.

"Oh, look, it's Ms. 'Nobody in this room can guarantee ¥100,000' who happens to be driving a ¥110,000 car," he mutters to Bobby.

"Seraphina was a previous employer, if you can believe it," he quickly tells Tamarind and Raven before Seraphina gets to the door. Bobby fills in more details. "She's sharp for her age," Mato adds, although he wonders about the wisdom of driving such a vehicle into Redmond. She seemed much more astute than that. She seemed like she had street-smarts, even though she's from Bellevue. He wonders of she has a compelling reason.

"Raven, Tamarind, do you have friends that can keep watch on the car?" he asks. "Flash-bangs and the magical equivalent, if possible."

Mato hands his cyberware scanner to Tamarind. "Can you run this during the meet and tell us what it finds?" he asks. He figures that's a good way to leverage Tamarind's skill set and gives her something to do other than to fidget. He's also mindful that Seraphina might have something concealed under her large black parka.

He greets Seraphina when she enters. There's a part of him that's glad that he's still wearing his suit. "We'll try to keep an eye on your car," he says to try to take her mind off it.

While she speaks, he runs his Thermal Mood Reading and Vocal Tension Lie Detection subscriptions. They're fairly redundant with what Raven and Bobby can do with their astral perceptions, but he figures it helps to cover all the bases.

"Who is your uncle, if we may ask?" Mato asks Seraphina. "What is the nature of his work?"

He gestures to the commlink. "I presume he wishes to communicate with us discretely?"

Seraphine shoots Rachel a stern look, not hostile, but slightly distanced. "Nice to meet Rachel; it is Seraphina, not girl."... and Clandestine or not, I owe him a favor.

She bows slightly to Mato and comments Mato, it is good to see you on our feet. She hesitates when Mato asks for her uncle's occupation. I don't know what he does, but I did know to contact him when Bernt was kidnapped, and he knew what to do. He is also completely analog and has no digital presence at all."

When the topic of the car comes up she comments The car takes care of itself. there is a hint of pride in that assertion.

Speaking of the car, I should probably get back home before my friends notice that I am here. Glad you were home.

Tamarind had sent the Aunties and Uncle rolling out the door when Seraphina came in, and send them to take up station under the car, scanning around for anyone approaching it. She prepared to use the scanner, but with Mato between her and the girl she had her doubts about how effective it would be, so she held off until they moved further into the house -- and then it seemed that they wouldn't be going farther in. For the moment she settled for having Beauty keep her chromed eyes on the girl, watching for any funny moves.

She messaged the team <<Drones to donuts that this is the first bid on the card>>

Tamarind's drone soon realizes that the gangers have stopped their bikes on the other side of the street and seem to be debating if they want to try anything with the car. They then approach the vehicle, one of them carrying the comlink in an attempt to take a selfie.

However, once they get close enough, the car drives away unexpectedly, leaving one of them instinctively moving out of the way. They watch it looking confused for a few precious moments, then one of them laughs, "That was some car, heh?" the other "Damn, where did it go? "
After a few moments, they return to their bikes and drive in the same direction as the car. Which is less telling about their intentions as it is the same direction they were initially going.

When Seraphina left, Bobby waved her goodbye and bolted the door.

"Alright, word got out. Timer is ticking. I'm firing off a message to Lysander and then we should move post haste back to the safety of the hotel, before they storm this place to look for the card."

He picked up the parcel with the FAB.
"Tomorrow we can decide if we want to move the card. In the meantime we have a rigged auction to organize."

Seraphina leaves shortly after and seems relieved that she did, she is a bit surprised that the car is gone, but she walks confidently walks down the street, toward the general direction of Touristville proper and the police spot.

Her uncle would call about half an hour later.

If no-one else was, Bobby would pick up the link and forward the call to the rest of the team.

Meanwhile he had sent a message to Lysander

<<Hey, you told me to let you know when I got news about the cards. Well, guess what: We found the owner and the owner would like to sell it with our help. I'm sure you know all the players around here who would be willing to buy, so we are auctioning it off. Starting price is 25k - and as long as the money is good, we don't care much about who we sell too, so feel free to share the info.>>

Mato looks around the HQ. Would they really storm the place looking for it? Perhaps, even if that was a silly course of action because why would the card be there if Mato, Bobby, Tamarind, and Raven weren't? But, of course, that's not always how criminals think, or at least not gangers. Maybe they would smash the place up, or burn it down, out of spite if nothing else. Mato exhales, a little put off by the thought. He's not terribly emotional nor sentimental, but he does despise needless waste. Ripping this place up would benefit no one.

"Alright, let's pack up," he says. "Don't leave anything of value behind. Like Bobby said, if you leave it you lose it."

Mato has his clothes and the tools of his trade: weapons, armor, plus some surveillance and B&E gear. But, for the most part, everything could fit into a couple large duffle bags. There's a part of him that likes suits and nice clothes, but there's another part of him who likes the thought of living lightly and being self-sufficient. He has an occasional daydream that with some good clothes and a well-loaded backpack he could drop off the grid and disappear for weeks or months at a time. It's a bit of a stretch as his survival skills are only rudimentary, but it's an aspirational goal.

After a moment of reflection, he decides that he should help AM pack up. She probably wouldn't want Mato sifting through her underwear drawer, but nor would she want all of her personal possessions burnt to a crisp in her absence. He packs two large duffle bags for himself and a large backpack for AM.

"Alright," he says once he's loaded up. "If Wakan Tanka leads us away, I don't need to come back. Do we need to break down the lodge?"

@Bobby Lysander texts back You sell a card - wow that's... good. I'll put the word out that there is a card and accept bids. Any picture or something you want to give me to verify the authenticity of the claim?
=====
@Alll - mysterious phone call.
When the new comlink rings, an unrecognizable voice comes from the other side. Possibly Bau, perhaps someone else? >> Bobby, Mato... SIS...my niece, has told you my name. Please do not mention it. My ears have picked up the chatter that you have a certain rare tarot card. Bluntly speaking, if you still have it, I'll take it as long as you can deliver it discreetly.



@Mato (@AM's room)
(Figured I never described AM's room so I thought it would be a nice touch).

AM's room is a bit of a mess; there are about five used cups of coffee by her workstation and some dirty clothes hastily stashed under her blanket. On the wall above her table is a fully functional, well-kept urban tribe tomahawk combat axe, a traditional Sioux weapon, and a self-defense instrument. She has a few dream catchers above her bed, as well as a throwing knife held on one of the legs of the bed. They are not hidden, and it seems like you have a line of sight to at least one of these small weapons anywhere in the room. Though, they are placed out of the way.


At the closet level, it is organized more in character (she is usually very organized but has been down recently). The clothes are neatly placed and ordered. Some very expensive ones are on hanging, along with very simple dresses (which she improved with magic). The part she wears normally comes from a single shelf with neatly placed male clothes three sizes above her size. Once he packs her clothes, the Ares Sigma sub-machine gun is left visible, but the bullets are kept in a locked metal box under the bed.

Going through her closet, he cannot miss her blue bug-out bag, a simple 50L camping bag with a sleeping bag attached.
On the walls are a few ceremonial masks and a dream catcher over her bed.

"A lodge is a substantial investment, but also takes time to set up again. If it is just AM who is really using it, though, hopefully she could take that time when she returns. If anyone breaks in here and decides to trash the place, whether because they think we have hidden the card or just because they like breaking things, the lodge would be an obvious target. And the more ambitious might take it apart themselves to sell for whatever they could get for it."

Tamarind had barely settled into SIS, but already it hurt to possibly leave it. She hadn't anything that she could really have called home in many years, and she'd come to desire it amazingly quickly. She doesn't have much to pack, other than her drones and they are capable of getting themselves together. She does suggest "We have three vehicles, if we leave in convoy it will be more obvious that we are bugging out. So we may want to send them out one at a time and maybe make it less apparent that we are all leaving. But we may want to stick together? I can remotely command your cars, to drive downtown and probably lose any tails. We can load everything into my van I suspect, although it will be crowded possibly. Then we can leave together without making it obvious that we are doing so."

"Taking down the lodge is quicker then setting it up. Let's take all valuables with us. I don't have a problem with a convoy - we want people to know we are at a safe place. Makes it less likely, they take out their rage on a place, that we apparently already abandoned."

To Lysander he sent: <<It's the Fool card. No photos unfortunately - consider the fact how much trouble we are calling down on us to be proof enough that we have it. And we are interested only in serious bids anyway>>

To the voice on the link he said: <<All nice and good, but how much are you offering for the merch? This isn't a charity org>>

After Seraphina left, Rachel comments, smiling: "That girl has some attitude... But, Seraphina. Cool name."


She does not have much in terms of belongings. The only big thing is her own magical lodge, which she started to pack up the moment they got back to the HQ.

By the time the team wants to leave, she has everything sorted. There is a fairly large backpack with all her stuff, most of which is clothes, and a duffel bag, where the items that form her lodge are put in.

"Ready to go!"

phone call:

When asked about money, the man says >> I can go perhaps 50k for quick delivery if you can keep it discreet, and my expert says that the card is authentic. No interest otherwise.

Packing Taking down SIS and loading your valuables into the cars would take about an hour, but there is not that much work to be done - just a threshold of what is 'valuable' would a two-week supply of soy nuggets be considered valuable? Or a coffee machine that draws dirty pictures on the coffee? Though you have a lot of working hands so, after an hour or so, you will have anything you want in the cars. SIS remains quiet for that time, and your cars are ready to leave.

With a bit of reluctance Tamarind leaves another insect drone behind in SIS headquarters, to keep an eye on what happens. It gets into a corner of the ceiling over the stairs, since anyone breaking in will likely come up there. Then she sets her agent to keep checking on the drone every few minutes to see if anything has changed in the view since the last check.

Bobby looked around in the room and when no-one gave him a cue, he continued the conversation:

<<Noted. But this is an auction. Card goes to the best offer. Not necessarily the largest amount of money, but the best offer overall. You are ahead of the others, so we'll let you know where you stand at the end of tomorrow. Best of luck.>>

The man sighs . Very mercenary of you, but fine, I understand everyone like the jing The card gets hotter as time passes, so I can only commit for an hour or so, got to be realistic about my chances. Good luck, regardless he says and then comments ... and Mr. Walker, as a show of good faith, here is a free tip - you have a Muse problem. he says quietly and disconnects the call.

"Well... drek. Seems like we pissed off that spirit somewhat majorly. And with the power of that particularly muse, even the banks security might be not enough. Let's hope they are loyal to our client at least..."

Bobby spoke into the temporary silence.

"Alright, let's pack up and roll out."

Bobby hefted to bags and went down to the car.

As they were heading out, Tamarind remembered the slightly creepy painting. It might be somewhat valuable, and certainly very damageable, so she runs back and gets it, and finds a secure spot to wedge it in the van.

As they head out she comments "First bid is fine, later ones may get better, but I guess key is that we have to figure out who to sell it to in order for it to end up in Nightmare's hands. I don't think I know the players well enough yet to know who could be best. Or maybe we say we'll deliver it, and let our delivery be intercepted? Bad for our rep I guess, but it might be the surest way to get the job done?"

Mato clicks his tongue at the mess in AM's room. Who knew the elf would have so much stuff, with a significant percentage of it spread out over the ground?

He puts down his bags, realizing this will not be quick and easy. His eyes alight on the Urban Tribe tomahawk, a personal favorite of his. He doesn't need one because of his spur, but they are very versatile. Mato takes a few swings with his right hand before flipping it over to his left hand with a flourish, then pretending to throw it. He will make sure this doesn't get left behind.

He finds the throwing knife too. AM doesn't exactly have the musculature to do a lot of damage with it, but she does have that spell that makes her grow... He envisions a Hulk-ed out AM throwing the knife through a troll. He half smiles, half shudders.

Mato then picks up the Ares Sigma-3. A fine weapon, he thinks to himself, turning it over in his hands. Collapsible stock, foregrip, powered slide mount, smartlink... everything a growing girl needs. They're ¥1,000 so he's definitely not going to leave it behind. Not as high-end as the HK Urban Combat, but less than half the price and decidedly less illegal. He mentally compliments AM's choice of weapon and then stuffs it in a bag along with the locked metal box of ammunition he finds under the bed.

Then it's time to get to work. He grabs clothes out of the closet, starting with the most expensive ones. There's a part of him that sighs at the men's clothing that would fit him, but he packs it all the same. He knows that AM finds comfort in it and comfort is something that has been in short supply recently.

Then it's on to the dream catchers and the magical lodge. Here he needs some help from Bobby and Raven to ensure things are done appropriately and respectfully. He can only imagine what sort of sick thrill Nightmare might get from immolating these things.

Now Mato is loaded up with twice the number of bags. His legs are strong but not preposterously strong like his arms. He staggers a bit under the weight, wobbling as he makes his way down the stairs. Like most men, he seems committed to doing it in a single trip.

On the way by, he passes the govi. He sighs in defeat, realizing he will have to make a second trip. He delivers his carried bags to the car then comes back for the govi.

~~~

When it's all done, most of the portable property has been moved. He leaves the vulgar soykaf maker, secretly hoping to purchase an upgraded model when they relocate to Bellevue. Plus, with any luck anyone who damages the machine might be terrorized by the sprite inhabiting it. The thought makes Mato smile, and gives him an idea...

"Should we booby trap the place?" he asks Bobby, figuring that will be his most receptive audience. "Not to turn the place into rubble, mind you, but to terrorize anyone sweeping through. What do you think?"

When it comes to the card, Mato nods at what Tamarind is saying.

"Yes, that's the concept I've been trying to communicate. I don't like the idea of sullying our rep but... everything has a price.

"Let's get all the offers on the table and see if there's an obvious course of action."

After the free tip, Mato turns to Bobby. "We have a muse problem?"

He thinks back to the conversation at the hotel earlier in the day.

"Back at the hotel, Tara said Melpomene is the muse that inspired Vala to create the cards. Tara said that Mel is their mastermind, their leader.

"I think Mel was the one which manifested as a striking lady wearing white Greek-styled clothes with demon-like horns and a tail. She said, I am loyal to the people that feed me. She said she wanted a relationship rather than a hookup.

"Do you think Mel is just mad that we turned down Tara's offer? 10 percent of the proceeds with restrictions on how we do it wasn't a compelling deal, but perhaps we can negotiate our way out of this one. Maybe we can mollify Mel with a promise of future payment."

He hesitates, knowing the next part is a sensitive subject. "I am personally not opposed to a relationship with Melpomene," he says as neutrally as he can manage. In his head, it's not significantly different than his transactional relationship with Green Toes. If anything, it might be nice to feel... inspired as a tangential benefit.

"We can use that as a bargaining chip if it will keep some heat off our backs. Do we have a way to reach Tara and Mel?"

Bobby shook his head: "Traps are only good if you are around to finish what the trap started. Otherwise there are always people around to finish the job. And we might hurt someone who wasn't inclined to waste our appartment, but gets convinced otherwise by being hurt. That said, I wouldn't mind leaving something disturbing around that would discourage someone from going any further. But then, we are dealing here with grade A sickos, so not even a crucified ganger in our front yard would keep them from coming in.

All in all, too much effort for too little gain. Not to mention that friends could get hurt as well that want to help."

On the muse he said: "No idea what's going on or how to reach them, but my gut feeling is, Mel is now offended and puts spikes into our wheels so we seek them out to beg for their help. But I don't think that they would go so far as to actively sabotage Vala. So let's wait and see. Shouldn't be long before the next calls come through."

Your next call arrives at about 23:00 when Lysander calls [>> I got two offers of 30k and 15k. Some people don't listen when I tell them it is a minimum price.

Bobby replied: <<Who made those offers? If you can't tell, give them this number to call.>>

Since they already had a new, untraceable commling on hand, it made sense to use it for the auction.

At Bobby's mentions of friends, Tamarind thinks to ask "Are there any friends around that should be told that we are pulling out? So that they don't try to protect the place? Cutty as a minimum I guess?"

She helps do a last walk around, then when they drive off she takes lead, telling the other cars to follow her. They lay a nice straight trail out of Redmond into Bellevue, then get themselves into some busier roads and eventually an expressway, take a bit of time to pull off and on and go through some higher traffic zones while telling the other two cars to take different routes, eventually all converging back to the hotel. Hopefully enough not to have been followed, except by a spirit. But that side of things is beyond her control to do much about.

After the call she comments "The 15k offer is the people we probably really have to watch out for, not able to win a bidding war, but enough money to hire someone to try and steal or extort it from us."

Mato is surprised by Bobby's moderate advice when it comes to traps. Mato nods thoughtfully and acknowledges that Bobby makes a good point.

Tamarind, to her credit, thinks of Cutty while Mato had not.

"He's a survivor," Mato says. "I expect he knows when to fight and when to flee. But, you're right, we should give him a head's up and remove all doubt."

<<Cutty, might be some drek going down at HQ tonight. If it does, it does. We won't be here so don't do anything stupid like play the hero. If anything, you might want to lay low for a bit in case someone thinks they can find us through you.>>

"Cutty basically lives at the gym," Mato says, thinking out loud. "Does he even have a place to lay low?"

Mato, not the most thoughtful or empathetic of people, is uncertain whether he has fulfilled the expectations of professional etiquette or if SIS needs to some more to keep Cutty safe.

To Tamarind he says, "Yes, it makes me nervous when you try to sell something on the black or grey market that costs more than it would cost to hire at a professional to acquire it for you. At some point it makes better economic sense to pay four heavy-hitters ¥10K each to pinch the card off of us than it does to pay us ¥50K for the card. And as the price of the card goes up, that equation just gets more and more dangerous for us."

He sighs. This is something he's thought about a lot. His father was in the finance department and actually ran the numbers on shadow-work one time. The risks were considerable, but the ROI more than made up for it. Shadowruns were easy to justify from the perspective of the bean-counters. For ¥100K an elite team could snag you a prototype that would cost millions to produce, or research that would take years to replicate. The shadow economy was a double-edged sword and Mato found himself straddling it uncomfortably.

Lysander responds >> The 15k is anonymous, some elf lady calling herself Frisson, and she gave a credstick to a trusted, neutral party, so in the unlikely event you pick that offer, payment is guaranteed. The 30k one is more boring; some known collector asked me not to disclose the name- man is legit, as far as I can say. He asked to keep the offer as discreet as possible, which is understandable considering the last time it ended with a murder. Both of them have burner links for the occasion, though.

He shares with you two contacts first one named Frisson and the second named The Collector.

In the casino
By the time you get back to the casino, it is a lively place with many people gambling and having fun, and accessible quality food (by your Redmond standards) is being distributed for free. The hotel has a secure parking service under the building, and while it is cramped and leaving in haste may be a bit of an issue, it feels safer than the outside streets. There is live music by some female singer that plays the piano, and a popular band will perform later tonight on the rooftop garden.

The suite had beds made, and everything looked neat and organized. There are two bottles of wine in the kitchen, and a sealed envelope, next to them as well as some still hot chocolate cookies on a plate. The casino seems to have a very kind room service.