<<Saturday Morning - 10:30 - April 8, 2079 - SIS Redmond, Touristville>>

It's April, when spring showers intermix with chilly winds and unpredictable sun. It's also... election season?

Indeed it is. Five months ago, the previous Governor, Kenneth Brackhaven, responded to a new grand jury empanelment by liquidating his assets, packing up and leaving town just before the regularly scheduled November elections. Of course this threw the entire sprawl establishment into chaos. The gubernatorial election was postponed a few months, presumably give the megacorps an opportunity to respond to the new political situation.

(So what led to Governor Brackhaven walking away from his life in Seattle and fleeing to a private island in the Caribbean League? Word is that District Attorney Dana Oaks finally got her hands on the hard evidence she needed for a grand jury indictment to stick. The charges against Brackhaven primarily include his involvement in the Operation Daybreak Scandal as well as the Parker-Quinn Embezzlement Scandal, the Edmund Jeffries Disappearance, the Sunset Vacations ad-buy scam, and the cover-up of the Copycat Mayan Cutter Murders.)

After Brackhaven’s abrupt departure, Natoko Munakata, the Commissioner of Public Works, was sworn in as interim governor, but she made it clear that she was not interested in a regular term as governor and did not put her name forward as a candidate. The short election cycle also prevented both the public and the megacorps from vetting the candidates or deciding who their best choice actually was. It also opened the field to some candidates that would never even be on the ballot in a “normal” election year.

In February, the field of eight candidates divided up the vote and it became clear that no one candidate would have the majority needed to claim the office. Nikola Taul (Democrat) and Corinne Potter (Technocrat) were the two candidates with the highest number of votes so a runoff election between the two was scheduled. That runoff now approaches and is one month away.

Nikola Taul (Democrat) is the charismatic Mayor of the Downtown District. She has the name recognition and she’s kept Downtown looking good and feeling safe, which the corps appreciate, but she has also spent a lot of public money, which they don’t.

Corinne Potter (Technocrat) had a much different route to the ticket. Howard Cannon was the surprise Technocratic nominee, that is until he wound up dead on a Snohomish street. After his death, his campaign manager, Corinne Potter, made a heartfelt speech to the city and suddenly his former supporters were pushing for Potter to take his place on the ballot, she did just that.

The residents of the Bellevue Highlands are fairly evenly split between the two, and exchanging opinions over fences is a popular pasttime. The residents of Redmond are largely unaware that there is an election, and most of them will write-in various candidates ranging from Karl Kombatmage to Neil the Ork Barbarian.

It is against this backdrop that we find our intrepid agency puttering away at their Redmond headquarters on a Saturday morning, perhaps finalizing reports about philandering spouses, or background checks on potential employees, or due diligence before a business deal is finalized, or doing some routine maintenance so that the building doesn't collapse. You know, the boring stuff that isn't very dangerous but still helps keep a roof over your head, both metaphorically and literally.

[OOC: Open RP for a couple days until Beta is back. Please stay in the vicinity of Redmond HQ for when your next potential employer comes knocking.]

Bobby had finally managed to achieve his desired breakthrough - his third initiation. It had helped that Jawsey finally started to make regular appearances in their magical group - the magical contract had chaffed on them all, with one member gone for longer than a month.

The rather suffocating middle class neighborhood had one advantage beyond it's safety: it was incredibly boring and quiet during the day. With no reason to leave the circle beyond the eight hours he allotted himself everyday, he had managed to reach his goal in record time - nearly impossible in noisy Redmond.

To make up for his missed time at work, Bobby once again pulled double shifts at the office, manning reception and taking care of maintenance. As usual, his mapping spell proved invaluable to find faults in the construction and fixing them. Without living there fulltime anymore, the type of repairs had changed. No longer was it a matter of fixing worn out hinges on doors and cupboards, or squeaking noises in general. Now he had to look at worn out seals around windows as well as rodents making their way in.

The last part was fixed relatively quickly as Bobby weaseled the problem away.

Another bother were the increasing instances of graffiti - both real and virtual. Mato and Bobby got a lot of mention - mainly hate for their respective talents - but AM was also depicted frequently with a lot vulgarity and explicit, anatomically rather unlikely activities.

Bobby had bought a bunch of cans heavy duty whitewash with additives that made conventional spray paint slide off in a lotus effect.
Now whenever a new graffiti popped up, he painted it over first thing in the morning.

AR graffiti was a bit more of a problem, but a good challenge for him to train his use of the cludged together stealth tag hacking device.

Consequently, it smelled all day long of fresh paint around the office.

AM - April 8, 2079: AM's notes

So I got myself a Suzuki Mirai and a brand new Comlink for my birthday. Wow, it feels so good to just have money to spare. I also bought some new shoes and painted my combat boots to look more fashionable and stylish. Love to wear them when I ride though there really isn't much to go, and yet a bike can usually ignore the worst of the city traffic, which makes it very practical.

Trigger geek talk - I slave the little Erika to the new Fairlight Caliban - made them dom and slave icons. The Fairlight Caliban is the best money can buy, and it brings out-of-the-box and programming-free impressive data processing and firewall capabilities. I mean, I can do similar stuff with Erika but it's a hassle I need to overclock her and run programs, and I heavily modified her to do something similar - and here I just get that kind of capabilities out of the box. Hiding behind that firewall, the deck would be considerably more protected - all my gear would be.

Barman never called, I guess I am just not that good at it, or I was an ass, and he has a girlfriend, boyfriend, AI friend, or whatever. It's more comfortable like that - I only did it to please the Trickster.

I love my blue Suzuki Mirai - and the fact that I just entered their dealership and got the latest model. It should help me navigate the city during traffic, and I think I look cool riding it.


I've sent letters to Mom and Dad and, to my surprise, also to Beaver. My ex-boyfriend. I didn't write much, just placed his ring in the envelope and said "Give it to someone special, AM." I would have thought I'd have kinder words for a person I was about to get married to, but I don't. I used him because I wanted status, money, and a place in Sioux society. His brother was right all along... I did not realize that then - but it is crystal now. Time does that to me, and I decided to lie less this coming year.

Speaking of lying - I am supporting Corinne Potter just because she is a woman, not really; I don't vote. It is just another chance to burn my SIN. Still, some of the people I want to be on my good side decided to actively support her, so on my pros and cons, I decided to support her in yard conversations very moderately to not antagonize the supporter of the other gal. I am saying that she is a natural leader and was the woman behind the man the entire time. I also enjoy pretending that her unlikely nomination is Iktomi trolling the local residence. Maybe it is, perhaps it isn't. They are called the Great Mystery for a reason.


I suspect there is a new graffiti artist in Toruistville because Bobby is always painting over the walls of our home and nearby buildings. Some of these works show natural talent. Well, he also seems to have some passion for me and hate for them - or he hates me as well and seeks to humiliate me or make me feel uncomfortable. Honestly, it just reminds me how bad I became at laying low. I mean, they draw me on walls now... I never meant to draw so much attention - I just... am.


I wonder why the artist has fixated on me out of all people. I mean, I don't exactly show a sexy side to the outside world; it is strange watching myself in all these sexual poses. Bobby seems eager to protect my fragile feminine modesty and keeps painting over the graffiti, he even deals with the AR graffiti before I can appreciate it. Yet, we receive an updated piece of visual art the day after. I find it a bit futile but endearing. Out of curiosity, I discreetly placed the spy pin Raven got for me with a line of sight to a freshly painted wall to see if I could catch the artist in action in the coming nights. See who it is, perhaps pay them a visit.


Aside from that, I am at the HQ at the Five Fingers or Cutty. Life is routine, and I wish something fun would break this routine. One thing that changed after our last job was that I seemed to be able to breathe. There is enough money for many months. The next big job is not a lifeline but a step up in the world. I feel a bit more relaxed and at ease (which scares the crap out of me, but I can't help it).

(Both Nikola Taul and Corinne Potter are female.)

Nikola Taul, Mayor of Downtown, is highly polished and wears fancy suits that wouldn't be out of place in the nicest corporate boardrooms. She has a million-nuyen smile and a thousand-nuyen hairstyle with all the accessories to match. There are plenty of photos of her at high-society events, like opening night of the symphony and the opera and other high-profile celebrations.

She has a liberal hand with the district's checkbook, but she gets results. Her programs are informed by advanced analytics; effective programs grow while ineffective programs shrink or are discarded. The end result is a well-functioning district that has a degree of shine and polish that reflects Ms. Taul's personal priorities.

"You have to spend money to make money," explains Bao, the young Chinese mother who admires Ms. Taul's fashion sense. "Can't argue with her results!"

Corinne Potter has never held office before, which is an advantage to some and a disadvantage to others. She's a firm supporter of the Technocratic ideology of smaller government and privatization. The Technocrats believe that private enterprise is better able to perform nearly any task than government and maintain that government can best serve when it contracts out its functions to competing contractors.

"She'll keep the government out of our pocket," says Danforth Ableworth, the older Caucasian male. "Lower taxes, limited government, and belief in the individual," he says, spouting off the Technocratic credo. "Peace Through Strength," he adds as an afterthought that doesn't really fit with the rest of the conversation.

Ms. Potter's personal style is also quite a bit different. She has more of an everywoman appearance, favoring blue jeans and white sneakers. Her shirts are often wrinkled and it often looks like the pressures of being an unexpected candidate are wearing on her frazzled hair.

"It makes her more human," says Hina, the middle-aged dwarven Japanese woman. "She's one of us!"

"One of you, maybe," Bao says under her breath in one of her cattier moments. "If you can't take care of yourself, how can you take care of the whole city?"

"It shows proper priorities," Edie says in support of Ms. Potter. "Focus on substance, not style."

I try... I try... but I can't speak in front of the neighbors. Perhaps if there is only one person or if they were criminals.
I have formulated an opinion, but I just can't say it when Danforth, Bau, and Hina are so certain. Where I truly don't know which one is better. I bite my lower lip in discomfort and says

I agree with Edie : "Priorities right, downtown is well managed. I don't want to rock the boat there with the security situation. "

This past week, Rachel spent the vast majority of her time in her own room, in her magical lodge. With the new moon, she had begun her initiation into the higher arts. Besides a few appearances to eat and shower, some workout, and doing a few chores around the house, she wasn't seen much.

When the neighborhood assembles to discuss the recent events, she joins them for a while.

"Taul sure knows how to dress well, gotta give her that," Rachel says with a nod to Bao. "She does distance herself from the less privileged, though, with her posh appearance. Potter will have an easier time getting votes there."

"But who knows whether Potter doesn't spend as much time on her style, or whether she actually does that look deliberately. It's all marketing, right? Make your appearance match what message you want to convey. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is what they actually do, not what they say they want to do. Therefore Taul probably has the leg up, since she has Downtown to show for."

"And giving more power to private enterprises pretty much also means more power to the big corporations, right? Is that really such a good thing?"

Tamarind's thoughts about the governors race are mostly associated with which one is more apt to improve or degrade life. As someone functionally without a legal SIN in Seattle (since she has no permits to reside nor work here on her actual SIN) most of the rest of it all seems secondary. Besides which, even in places where she is a legal citizen, governments are not 'of', 'by', nor 'for' people like her. Like the weather they must be endured and occasionally enjoyed, and like the weather she doesn't feel that she can do much to influence what happens with them.

But she keeps all of that to herself. Around the neighbours she listens, makes sympathetic noises, and occasionally asks what policies individual neighbours would like to see enacted. Like exceptional weather, elections get people talking, so if you have to deal with said people it is a good time to learn a bit of what you are dealing with.

When she can escape Bellevue and get to the office she of course fiddle with her drones. Stitch is seeming morose, likely something to do with something that happened in Texas, but personality chips can work out oddly so there is no one size fits all drone psychology guide. But in her experience spending time with her third hand usually helps, so she does go around looking for simple work on the place that they can do together.

Bobby listened to a local crack-pod-cast when he got back in to stow away the paint. Of course, the big topic was the upcoming election.

"... and the bookies still haven't gotten a clear favorite - so it might get really dicey. Better expect some interference from the NAN."
"Right Henry, our red neighbors are always on the lookout to cause us trouble. It wouldn't be the first time, Seattle's democracy is threatened. That elvish conspiracy was last time was burried deeply, but we know what we know. That vote was stolen. And now history is about to repeat itself. I tell you, Cannon getting killed was just the first step. My bet is on the tuskers, being behind this. Mark my words - a lot of money is going to change hands soon to rob the brave citizens of Seattle of their God given rights. Potter will have to keep on her toes if she wants to survive that..."

Bobby sighed and stopped the podcast. He loathed the duo behind the production, but he liked being informed about what hate messages they were currently spouting.

Being from the NAN, he didn't have the priviledge to vote in the local election - or rather he didn't want to be involved. There was enough scrutiny on him these days, without getting also into voters' registry.

Mato had commissioned Waylon to help fix up the Redmond HQ over the prior month. There has been some progress but Waylon is more of a resourceful "Do It Yourself" type than a skilled construction worked. The place is standing, and doesn't have too many leaks, but there is still plenty for Bobby to do.

"Can't vote," Waylon will say if asked. "Criminal SIN," he explains matter-of-factly. He's older and looks more like a teddy bear that's graying than a hardened criminal, but evidently he had an adventurous youth. A criminal SIN would explain his life of restless wandering around Redmond.

"Neither of them want anything to do with me," he says of the candidates. "Maybe if were pretty or rich, but I'm neither." This is true.

~~~

<<Saturday Morning - 10:33 - April 8, 2079 - SIS Redmond, Touristville>>

BANG BANG BANG!

There's heavy pounding on the front door. Switching to your security feeds, you see two Knight-Errant officers on the doorstep. Both are human; one is older and fatter, the other is younger and skinny. AM and Bobby recognize them as the cops that came to retrieve them in late November to speak with the Mayor.

In the street there are two K-E patrol cars. Two orks in K-E uniforms lean against the cars, waiting and sipping soykaf in non-biodegradable cups.

BANG BANG BANG!

They don’t seem to be here to arrest you. If they were, they wouldn’t be knocking, or so the logic goes. Nor are they ordering you to open up with threats of warrants, etc. They seem to be here to talk. The rest of the neighborhood eyes them warily.

The one banging on the door is a big guy, maybe in his 40s, with a lot of extra bulk around his belly and his chest. Either they don’t have fitness standards in the Redmond precinct or he’s getting fat off his job or both. He actually looks pretty strong; it’s his cardio that’s in question. His skin is pale and he has a hungry look in his eyes.

The cop behind him is younger, skinnier, and darker-skinned. He looks more pallid than AM and Bobby remember him. Maybe it's the pallor of a cloudy Seattle winter coming to an end, or maybe four months on the beat in Redmond is wearing on him.

I am studying in the kitchen and having some cookies and tea when the coppers arrive. I quickly stash my Erika in my purse, and then put the purse out of sight behind a coat. I then go to open the door. I feel safer dealing with coppers in Redmond, but coppers make me nervous, still. They knock very loud, which makes me anxious, but they do knock which means they are not here to arrest us (I think). My mind races as to what they may be after, but as far as actions go, it is crystal. They knock, so I open, and they are aggressive, so I am kind and friendly. It is a bit awkward to intimidate someone who offers you hospitality, not in a mean police brutality manner. Whatever unpleasant business they have with us, keeping them inside is better.

>> Guys, we have guests in uniforms... go rescue a damsel in distress. I text, though there is no need I'd assume they could not have not heard the knocks.

Coming! I say, hopefully, they'll stop testing how well Waylon and I have assembled the new door. "Oh, it's you officers... please come on in." I say as I open the door, not sure if they'll recognize me with an additional 30 centimeters of height.

The cops take a step back when the upsized version of AM opens the door.

"Do you have a sister?" the younger one blurts out without thinking.

The older one keeps his wits a bit better. He rights himself, acting as if he had meant to take a step back all along.

"You know the drill," he tells AM, pulling up his belt a bit. "Come with us."

The younger cop recovers. "The Mayor wants to see you."

"I am an only child. " answered without thinking much about it. Well, if I was entirely honest, I do have a half-sister and two half-brothers from my father's side. Still, our relationship is basically me stocking their social networks digitally, and they barely acknowledge I exist.

I make a sad face "Do you have to take us in the police car? We have our wheels... and also commlinks." Well, there are also four of us, and I am not sure we'll fit in the back seat. Not legally, at least, but does coppers have to follow the law? I am not entirely sure about that point.

The younger one looks flummoxed that AM is an only child. Iktomi is pleased at his confusion.

"Yuh hafta come with us," the older, gruffer one says.

"You can drive yourself but we have to escort you there," the younger one clarifies.

"But then yuh hafta park, and security around City Hall is ehhh." He shakes his hand to show to indicate that things are dicey. This is either a droll joke or a very candid recognition of Knight-Errant's limitations, because City Hall is immediately next door to K-E's Redmond station.

Bobby had just washed his hands when the knock came. Still wiping his fingers, he stepped into view of the officers.
"You know, you could just call us - we do house calls all the time."

He tossed the moist towel on the little table next to the front door.
At the mention of the parking situation, he shrugged: "Fair enough. Let's get going, shall we?"

Tamarind was in the garage, working with Stitch to rotate the tires on her van, when she got the message from AM. She isn't entirely sure of the meaning, but it didn't sound early, and guests sounds like people you should greet with clean clothes, so she quickly shucks the overalls that she had been wearing and pulls on a sweater over her t-shirt and leggings. Hardly high fashion, but it should do. Perching Beauty on her shoulder she instructed Stitch to finish the job, then headed through the house. As she went she asked <<Anything in particular I should know about the visitors?>>

"Good morning, officers!" Rachel is friendly as usual.

She has been thinking about some more office-chic clothes for herself, but hasn't really had the time lately, with all her energy going towards the initiation rites.

So, she is still using her Zoé Executive Suite and heeled boots, but with open hair and no ball cap this time.

City Hall? Meeting the Mayor? Definitely suitably dressed for that. Though, it is Redmond, so maybe a little overdressed still.

"Oohh! I have never driven in a police car."

"Only been on the backseat once." She adds in a conspiratorial whisper: "Made out with a cop there."

Then she continues excitedly. "Can we use the sirens?"

"Just kidding! Lead the way, gents!"

>> They have handcuffs but are not good-looking enough to be strippers. I text Tamarind's question - Besides, I would have been more embarrassed than stressed if they were strippers.

I bite my lower lip; High security means sin scanners and all sorts of things, which I am 95% sure would be alright. On the other side, riding in our ride with two police car escorts as if we were VIPs is even worse than being escorted by the police. It's Redmond. The police take all sorts of people, but they don't escort people like that very often. Less attention if I just ride in their police car. I'd rather the neighbors think that I am a criminal than that I am working with the police.

"Alright... I always wanted to drive a police car. Lead on" I say matter-of-factly. I don't expect them to let me go; not bullying me is fine, but why not?

I take my comlink with me and let Erika be in the purse. Trouble would keep watch of the expensive and illegal equipment - I don't want to give these SINNers anything extra to pressure us.

Rachel elbows AM gently in jest. "I don't think they are gonna let you drive..."

The cops take another literal step back when Raven appears. The older, fatter cop actually stumbles down the top step and only manages to stop himself from falling by grabbing onto the railing. Luckily the railing holds his weight, otherwise you could have a nasty lawsuit on your hands.

He rights himself. It seems evident that neither cop expected to escort someone inside wearing a Zoé Executive Suite suit. They stand up a little straighter and lose the attitude, as if the response had been conditioned into them. The story of Raven making out with a cop in the back of the cruiser does fire their imaginations and floods their systems with long-dormant feelings.

The cops are more respectful after that, which might be contrary to your desires as far as the neighborhood opinion is concerned. They seem almost apologetic about making your ride in the backseat. (One of the orks offers to let AM sit in the front seat so that he can sit in the back with Raven.) Off you go.

You don’t have to drive far. The Redmond Civil Center acts as the city offices for the district of Redmond and is a tiny oasis of civilization in Touristville. Located only a stone’s throw from Bellevue, this building is where the crazies work. Anyone who gets into politics in Redmond is crazy, and the building is often referred to as the Sanitarium by the locals. It’s also right next door to K-E’s district offices, which looks more like a walled military base. Armed drones are on patrol, with tracked drones on the sidewalks and flying drones circling overhead. On the astral, there are sturdy spirits on overwatch over the buildings.

Things look empty and quiet. There aren’t many people here on a Saturday morning; in fact, it seems like the district offices are closed. The cops are buzzed through the front door, then through a second security door and then to a security station where you’re cordially invited to temporarily surrender any weapons before continuing up a wide staircase leading to the upper floor. Inside, it is reasonably tidy but only staffed by a skeleton crew of security personnel and a few janitors who are cleaning. Raven's heels click loudly on the polished concrete flooring, and the clicks echo through the empty hallways.

After that little incident, Rachel tries not to embarrass the officers much further and is just polite. Even though, that was kind of funny to watch.

When they reach their destination, seeing all those defenses, Rachel comments: "I guess, you are not getting a lot of graffity around here..."

Walking through the hallway, she wonders what the Mayor might have for them. Probably something related to the whole election business. What else could it be?

Dammit, Raven is overdressed, and now they are all puppies. Wrong clothing for Redmond - but she hardly lived in that hood. Not that it is not fun to be treated like a real person rather than a scumbag. I make a few guesstimates about why the mayor wants to talk to us. I have a suspicion that it is about the election or Urubia. I miss her- how she was nice to me to get on Jawsie's good side. Can a dragon be fond of an elf? She did not hire us to do anything.

It's probably a dragon's charm, I dismiss the thought, and as much as it works on me, it works 100 times more on her crimson guard. Still - an actual immortal being. However, I got to hand it to Mayor Sonya who plays the politics game without being 100 times more powerful and experienced than anyone else. She is more inspiring, in a sense a bit less exotic. Though I suspect she does not like us, perhaps we are bad for her reputation or something. I don't know.

I respond to her Jab What... I am a member of the Highland's neighborhood watch, I am half a copper already. I got the whistle and green bandana and everything."

...

I am silent when we arrive at the sanatorium. That place is a lot to take in. I don't carry anything that is considered a weapon, but I let the guard do their checking. Aside from the super fancy Comlink, a few energy bars for emergencies, bubblegum, a pack of breath mints, and tissue, I don't carry much in my little bag. I am wearing a pair of jeans and a T-shirt and my running shoes. Comfortable, but not what I would typically wear for a high-paying job - though Sonya did not pay much the previous time, we were considerably more desperate there. I hope the guys won't be disappointed because refusing a woman who sends coppers to do her bidding is difficult. Knight Errant is easily the most powerful gang in the city.

Bobby was the one most out of place here. He was wearing flats - cheap vendor automat clothing that would rip at the slightest provocation - which as far as Bobby was concerned was a feature not a bug. As usual, he didn't carry much gear with him, only his trode patch and his feather. With his newly acquired ability, his aura looked perfectly mundane, covering himself as well as his tattoo. He even dared to draw a mudra with his hands to establish a mind link to his colleagues

'So, any guesses as two why the mayor wants to talk to us? As far as I understood, she doesn't want to keep the job. Maybe she wants us to help her prefered candidate to get the seat.'

Once Tamarind figures out AM's clue she nearly goes back to the garage to hide. Police have been people to avoid all of her life, after all the laws they enforce are to protect those in power from people like her. Having once come out of hot sim handcuffed and in a police car doesn't help, either. Still, if the rest of the SIS crew are not freaking out, perhaps it is OK?

She looks over what she is wearing, and decides that if she gets mistaken for their new cleaning lady, that isn't entirely a bad thing. Then she thinks about drones to take, or not to take. Finally she forces her feet to walk her to whatever this is going to be. She does come to herself enough to ask Stitch to open a window for a Pelliper to fly out, once they are gone, and then asks the Pelliper to get enough altitude to watch the car and see where it is going.

She gets through the drive in the car by linking to her drone and watching from the air. How sim would be a further remove, but the thought of going into hot sim while in custody nearly gives her a panic attack. She has to let the drone drop further behind as they approach KE and city hall, and in turn she gets more and more tense. When they finally get out of the car and go into city hall, not the police station, it is at least some relief.

It is only as she is walking those hallways, listening to Rachel's shoes and her work boots making their respective noises on the floor that she realizes she has neither spoken nor been spoken too. The streak seems unlikely to last, but at she appreciates that it has gotten her this far. Maybe by the time she has to do words her throat will have relaxed.

You’re led up the stairs, heels clicking all the way. Looking around, security seems lighter than you would expect, given that it’s the Barrens. Don’t politicians like a bunch of security guards and bodyguards to help them feel important?

You’re lead down a long hallway. Looking around, you can’t help but think that everything is so much nicer than you would have expected. It’s not nice on the scale of Bellevue or Downtown Seattle, but still… it’s almost classy. The walls are a pleasant cream color and look like they were painted within the prior year. Most of the trim along the floors and around door is dark-colored wood (or something that looks convincingly like wood) with few dings or chips. The lighting is warm. Everything seems functional. Compared to the rest of Redmond, this place is an oasis.

You arrive at a large, handsome desk at the end of the hallway. There’s a smartly-dressed female assistant (elven, pretty, looks young but who can really tell with elves) that AM and Bobby recognize from their previous visit. Your K-E escort peels away as the assistant shows you into the Mayor’s office.

“Welcome,” the assistant says in a professional tone. “The Mayor is expecting you.” She opens up a wide set of double-doors that leads into a large office.

The office is much like the hallway outside, in terms of “nicer than expected.” The mayor sits behind a large, ornate desk that looks like real wood, and maybe even carved out of a single tree. It’s heavy and imposing, somewhat unlike the woman who sits behind it, who is slender and welcoming. She stands, smiling. She’s human, maybe of Germanic or Nordic heritage. Her age is indeterminate – young enough to still be idealistic, but old enough to have been mayor for three terms over ten years. She’s dressed modestly but neatly, maybe like what a middle-class professional would wear to church.

“Welcome back!” she tells AM and Bobby, coming around the desk and holding out her hand warmly. To Raven and Tamarind she says, “It’s a pleasure to meet you. Please, call me Sonja.”

No ceremony here. Either that or she’s really laying on the charm. “Please, have a seat.” She indicates four chairs (nice, cushions intact) in front of her desk.

Almost undetected – because he doesn’t move or speak – is a man sitting in the far corner of the office. He appears human and his build is muscular and dense; he’s wiry, not bulky. His legs are crossed, he makes no move to greet you, and his suit screams nuyen. His features are unimpressive except for large eyes that study you closely. He has a lean and hungry look. Sonja ignores him, treating him like a piece of decoration as she tends to you.

“Last time we did Earl Grey,” she says, nodding to her assistant to make it so. The elven assistant closes the doors quietly behind her as she leaves to make the tea.

The mayor sits on the front edge of her desk to be closer to you while you talk.

“It's election season,” she says. “So I presume you know why you're here.”

She is a politician. It is always politics... I wonder which candidate she supports." I think at Bobby.
---
When I enter, I take a moment to appreciate the room aura of the mayor and her general health.

As for the man who wishes to be seen but does not interact with us, I glance at him - and then shift to my mundane vision because astral is too alien for clarity.


"Sonja!" I say warmly when she recognizes us." Thanks for the ride. " I say without bitterness. Place looks really good. I don't volunteer speculation when she says we know why we're there. We have some speculations. I say softly.

Rachel appreciates the clean look of the building. As they approach their destination, she switches her senses to the astral. Her magic and her foci are hidden from view, thanks to her newly gained insight into the higher arts. Bobby, who is a bit farther ahead in this kind of metamagic technique, was able to give her some pointers during the process, which really helped getting it right. Now, once she goes active, there is no way of hiding anymore, so she has to be a bit more deliberate about it. The same goes with actually using her magic. There is a lot to learn still.

She is Mayor of Redmond. The election is for the Governor of Seattle, which is her boss. She will have some obvious interest in who gets elected. So, yeah, pretty sure it is going to be about that. Rachel communicates via the mental link when Bobby asks about their thoughts.

She looks around the room, while the Mayor speaks, her eyes lingering a bit longer on each person, as she does so. In her mind, Rachel is wondering, what the man's deal is. Surely, he is not just a bodyguard. He is dressed too well for that. Maybe they will find out soon enough.

As her focus goes back to the Mayor, she smiles friendly and says: "Nice to meet you. I'm Rachel." She only knows her from the occasional appearance in the trid, and there havn't been that many. It's Redmond after all, not many care about what happens here.

Bobby, as usual was much more direct: "Hi. I guess you want to keep your job and to some extent therefore also to keep Redmond working.
I guess you'd prefer the candidate with the loose purse strings to keep doling out the means to keep the lid on things around here.

So, what do you want our agency to do?"

"Pretty close," the Mayor tells Bobby with a smile that looks tired. "Yes, I fell short in the gubernatorial primary in February, but I still have two years left in my term as Mayor of Redmond. And for someone from Redmond, taking 10% of the primary was an accomplishment!"

She's rounding up, as you might expect of a politician. Her tally in February's primary was 9.5%, but she's not wrong about it being a decent showing from a candidate who works on the outskirts of civilized society.

"But you are correct that I do wish to keep Redmond working. We've had some hard-fought victories over the last decade and I wish to consolidate them. Some whisper that Redmond should be cut off like a gangrenous limb to save the rest of the metroplex, but I strongly disagree."

Sonja folds her arms across her chest and pauses for a moment before continuing.

"To that end, I would like to know who my friends are and who they aren't. Ms. Taul is well-known to me as a fellow district mayor. It is Ms. Potter that I wish to know more about. She is a newcomer and little is known about her other than her support for the Technocratic platform. That is where you come in."

She unfolds her arms. There's a light knock on the door as the elven assistant returns with a pot of Earl Grey, some soykaf, and a small pitcher of chilled orange-like juice. The mayor waits for the assistant to deliver her refreshments, then Sonja dismisses her with a small smile and a nod.

Once the assistant has left and closed the door quietly behind her, Sonja asks, "Tell me, have you heard any rumors about Ms. Potter?"

Knowledge skills:

Assensing:

"Only crackpot theories. Whoever killed Cannon - if he was killed, would have to have amazing organization skills to get Potter to where she is now.
If I understand you right, you want us to investigate her and find any dirt we can, right?"

Bobby replied, taking a cup of tea and a biscuit.

Sonja drums her fingers on the edge of her desk. Nerves, or a bit of showmanship?

"It's actually broader than that."

She leans forward a bit, lowering her voice.

"I want you to find evidence that she actually exists."

She leans back.

"Oh, she exists in the sense that she's a physical being who can smile on camera and shake hands and answer questions. But we know remarkably little about 'Corinne Potter' the person. Of course we fear what we don't know but, even deeper than that, I want to make sure she's not a sock puppet for someone or something else. Moreso that usual for a politician, of course." She gives a wry smile.

I pour myself a cup of tea, unsure how long this meeting will be, but just holding the warm glass would make me happy. Not a sock puppet? Does Sonja know how much of a sock puppet she appears with a dragon sitting behind her watching us? Not that I am not flattered that such a being takes interest in us - but still. That man was there before as well.

"So you want us to verify that Corrine Potter is a metahuman rather than some immortal being with more exotic ambitions? Or that there is a person named Corine Potter with a matching digital trail and people who dated her in high school? Do you have any concrete suspicions of her being a sock puppet for someone else? Some direction we should be looking into to speed things up?"

"Not so much an immortal being in disguise, no. More like, is the person an artificial construction? Or, to put it another way, is she really someone else?

"I hesitate to tell you how to do your jobs. Presumably you would start with a background check, then - if there are any loose ends - start pulling on them to see where they lead.

"Or look into the decision-making process behind Corinne getting the nomination over any of the other Technocrats in the metroplex. 'Lucky' Duck Phillips is a councilor up in Snohomish. He has enough of a reputation to have a nickname. Why didn't he get the nod?

"Maybe scratch at the death of Howard Cannon. Knight-Errant considered it an open-and-shut case. But their contract with the metroplex specifies metrics for arrests and convictions, so once those KPIs have been met they lose interest. In other words, they don't lean into things. That's what I need you to do here: lean on things and see if a bit of pressure produces anything."

She looks to Bobby specifically.

"Last time you said that I'd be paying you for effort, not results. The same is true here, I suppose. I don't wish for you to fabricate anything. I'm not looking for dirt where none exists.

"But..." she trails off and tilts her head to the side. "If you do find something... that would be worth extra to ensure your discretion, and my exclusive receipt of your findings."

I use my throdes to take notes;

After I appear to be finished with my notes I speak "Okay, so you want a full background check on Potter, as well as her meteoric rise to favor, and of a bit of digging around Cannon's death in case it sheds some light on Potter, and you pay extra to guarantee that the information is available only to you. Did I get it all right?"

I also mentally text Edie my thoughts quickly before I lose my confidence. >> Hi Edie, do you think people would want to talk to Corine Potter in person? I am thinking of trying to get her to talk to potential supporters in the neighborhood. Make it less about clothes and more about substance. Want to help me organize such an event - I have never done anything like it, and you seem so good at organizing things. It would be good for the neighborhood for a potential mayor to know who we are. If it works, it would be an excellent opportunity to talk to her and see how she responds to an unusual question.

"Sounds reasonable. Are you looking for actionable proof that you could use in a court of law, or are you content with 'fruit from the poisoned tree's - we can deliver both, but obviously, actionable information is much harder to come by and not necessarily as quickly, as would be necessary for it having an impact before election day."

Bobby looked her straight in the eye:

"In other words: are you paying us to investigate or to spy?

In any case, we need the file you have on her - known residences, associates, bank accounts, school record, military service, etc.
If she had any life before her nomination, we need to know about it. Because if we have to puzzle all that together ourselves, we lose valuable time. Time we could be spending shadowing her."

"Yes, correct," Sonja nods to AM.

<<omg do u no her??>> Edie responds to AM. Who would have thought that Edie would text like a teenage girl but there you have it. <<yssss!!!!!>>

After a few moments she adds, <<danforth says it could improve property values!!>> This seems like a bit of a stretch, and won't benefit you as renters, but if it makes them happy...

Sonja raises her eyebrow at Bobby.

"I'm not looking to convict her. I'm trying to understand her. I don't want to know what kind of toothpaste uses; I don't need her shoe size. I need to know if her 'gee whiz golly' personality is real and she actually did stumble into all this, or if she's someone's pet. If she's someone's pet, I want to know whose lap she sits on.

"Bank accounts? My goodness, you have an imagination. I don't have any of that.

"I know what you can read in the newsfaxes: age 44, came up through the Seattle public schools, attended the University of Washington and held a had some civic-oriented jobs and volunteer opportunities after graduation until" - she wipes her hands clean - "all public records were lost in Crash 2.0." She holds up her hands, empty.

Then she slaps the desk to get down to business. "I'm sure you're eager to discuss compensation, so let's talk numbers.

"I'll pay you ¥50,000 for a full report. I think you'll find that quite generous compared to the rates you have listed for background checks on your Matrix site. And, depending on what you find, the value of your discretion may be worth that much again.

"As for timing, I do wish you to have the necessary time to be thorough in your investigation. Shall we say delivery one week from today?"

An interview with a mayor would be more intimidating if it were not the mayor or Redmond. How many others think that they are the real powers in the city? Does she control much that is out of sight of city hall? But she has money, and she is willing to pay them for actual detective work.

Tamarind hesitates to speak up. For all the usual reasons, and that Bobby and AM seem to already know this Mayor Lady. Still, as the person running the drones, she has a question that is probably more important to her than the others. "Any limits on how open we can be in our investigations? I'm sure that you are not the only one having people look into her background, and I'm sure that she is expecting it. In rough terms there are three levels:
1- don't be found out,
2- It is OK if she know that yet another team is digging, so long as the trail doesn't lead back to you
3- Anything short of having a drone parked over her head all day is fine. Basically just don't be too gauche about it

What level of restrictions do you want followed?"

I mentally text. >> No, I don't know her, but it is a tight election, and she is generally unknown in the city, so I thought if we can get her to come it is now. It would help if we knew how many people would come.


***
My mind races when it comes to currency on the table. 50k seems reasonable, but there are gaps in knowledge, and we will be spying on an important figure, which means risks. Is that public money at work? I wonder, instead of getting more coppers or roads or schools, they pay people like us? This world is upside down.

I'll let Tamarind's questions be answered before I'll say my piece.

Rachel mostly keeps in the background. AM and Bobby know the Mayor from a previous job, and they already mentioned most things. She does not really have much to add at this point.

The Crash 2.0. The mentioning of that incident brings back memories. It was a major turning point in Rachel's life. And for the most part, it shattered everything that she called her life before. From one moment to the next, she lost everything, her home, her parents, her identity. The years that followed were an experience, that she does not want to repeat. Her talent was pretty much the sole reason why she made it through that.

Since noone else mentioned him, she asks the others via their mental connection:

What's the deal with the guy in the background? And is that really a dragon? Looks like one on the astral. But the aura seems a little... overdone.

Bobby shrugged: "So a 100k. Doable. But yeah, what she said. How much is the target allowed to notice?"

Bobby personally was of the opinion that the target should never learn that they had been spied upon. But he would leave that to AM as a lever for negotiation.

To Rachel he thought: 'As far as we know, he's on a level with Urubia. No idea why he stays around for us to see, but then, never tangle with dragons, so better ignore him.'

"Well, to be clear, that second half is dependent on there being information worth the exclusivity bonus. It's not for whether or not she puts creamer in her soykaf in the morning, or which pant leg she puts on first."

To Tamarind she says, "I previously hired you for your agency for its discretion, so I'm hoping you bring that same level of delicacy to the current task.

"Now Ms. Potter will know that people are investigating her. That's just a given when you are prominent in public life; it's all in 'the game'. So, to that end, being found out is not inherently a crisis. In fact, you should be able to use the media for a certain degree of cover, who likely will have drones parked over her head all day long.

"Of course, that latitude has limits. There are plenty of grey areas to exploit, but blatant criminal activity will still get you arrested and prosecuted. If you get caught." A wry smile.

She holds up a finger.

"But a word of warning. Ms. Potter may be a neophyte, but the Technocrat party is not. They generally have plenty of support from the corps who like the Technocratic 'less government, more private sector' rhetoric. In fact, if you cooked up a party platform in a corporate lab you would basically expect the Technocrat's principles and party line. So don't go into this thinking that Suzy Q. Homemaker is going to be running everything from her refurbished Renraku Sensei. My number one rule is hope for the best, plan for the worst."

"I see, so we provide the information and you can decide if anything is sensitive enough for you to pay - but if you don't want it, we are free to sell it otherwise.

We should be good here. We improved on our magical talent and also got some more expertise where technological surveillance is concerned."

Bobby replied.

The mayor nods to Bobby. "Correct," she says.

She looks to the others to see if there are more questions.

"So, how do you want us to report back to you? That Knight-Errant escort was a nice touch, but it might be a little too conspicuous, considering the level of discretion you are asking for. And, assuming, we will find anything worthy of your attention, should we provide you with preliminary reports, so you can give us feedback if anything should be investigated in more detail, or rather wait until we concluced our investigation to present you with the full results?"

"Let's set a meeting for next Saturday at noon. You may have an escort if you like. If not, come as you please. They'll buzz you in and my assistant will meet you at the security station downstairs."

Raven's second question makes the mayor look thoughtful for a moment.

"Good question," she says, delaying a moment to decide on a final answer.

"Send me an update if you have something solid. Not rumors or hearsay, but if you have something concrete then share it."

She takes out a pen - an anachronism that AM and Bobby remember from their last visit - and scratches down something on a piece of paper.

"Here's a commcode," she says, passing it to Raven. "If you really strike it rich, we can conclude the contract early."

Bobby looked at AM:
'Do you want to haggle a bit for a deposit? So far she paid her bills on time and the offer is good for one week of work.'

Through their team channel he sent:
<<We probably best start with a matrix search. I'll ask Lysander if they know anything about her background.>>

I sigh . "Look, Sonja, that offer is a bit light for what you ask us to do. We're digging into the potential governor of Seattle and peeing the technocratic party's pool. This is way bigger than what you asked the previous time. There are also additional risks due to the stressed timetable and our mark running an election campaign.

The stakes are higher when going up against politicians... You can send the coppers to our house, so I am unsure if I want to step on your toes for 50k. You are asking me to step on... well, bigger toes. Plus, you want everything done in a week, so slow and safe won't be enough. In simpler cases, it often takes more than a week to wait for them to make a mistake and study their schedule. Your job likely involves unorthodox means - and these are dangerous for us. "

Sonja looks like she's having none of it.

"It's not light," she says with hardness in her voice. "For a background check, it's quite generous.

"You're not dealing with criminals now. You're not even dealing with a politician; she's just a candidate. And I haven't asked you to piss in anyone's pool, so don't exaggerate matters. Nor do I foresee any potential for danger.

"If that's not of interest to you, I am sorry for disturbing your Saturday."

Tamarind zones out during the final haggling over price, and starts to think about angles they can follow up in order to get information. The challenge isn't in getting information, she has no doubt they'll gather a fair bit. It is in either finding well hidden information, or pulling out hidden meaning from otherwise dull information. This isn't something that she's had to do before, but she understands the technique, because it had been used by Razak's team when she was arrested back in the Sioux.

The Smuggling consortium she worked for moved stations around regularly. Sometimes they'd go to a location just for a single re-fuelling or offloading, other times they'd settle in for a few weeks. But they returned to some of the sites periodically. That was why she'd started planting wildflower seeds around them, to have something pretty to look at when they returned, without digging gardens that would be obvious and need maintenance. But Razak's team had noticed the increase in wildflowers, looked for someone buying the seed regularly without property to plant them on, and had used that to track her down. And once they'd cracked her, they'd rolled up a good part of the operation.

But trying to find hidden patterns in a week would be hard. AM was right, they'd have to push hard, they'd not be able to stay cautious.

I grin because sayings like "Nor do I foresee any potential for danger" invite the Trickster, but as much as I fear my totem, I enjoy that kind of attention deep down. Honestly, I find Sonja funny; perhaps politicians are like that.

We are here because Potter is electable. It's a Saturday, you have a week, and you are a busy woman with no time to waste. Talk is cheap, but you placed 100k nuyen on the table because of possible complications despite not foreseeing any dangers yourself. I get it; one must be optimistic to the core to become Redmond's mayor.

I say in my most nonconfrontational bias, trying to establish that the truth lies in the middle of Sonja's overly optimistic view and my darker perspective. " So how about A 25k bonus in case Potter is elected and we might have pissed off the new governor. " I am proud of myself for such an offer because it can tell me what Sonja thinks about Potter's chances. If she is just "a candidate", I just agreed to her terms - she has no reason to refuse. If Potter is likely to end up as the governor, I just asked for 25% extra - in that case, she'll probably edge it - or throw us out of her office.

Sonja seems to appreciate this line of negotiation more than the previous one.

"Hmm," she says, seemingly caught off guard by the proposal. She stares at AM intently while considering it. "Interesting idea."

After a long moment she comes to a decision. "Yes, BUT under the condition that you find something that Ms. Potter would not want others to know. If she is who she says she is, with no skeletons in the closet, then confirming as much could hardly be expected to piss her off. As I said, it's politics: this is all in 'the game'. She's a campaign manager; she knows how it's played.

"And, if you do the job with the discretion I know you are capable of, then she'll be none the wiser, with nothing to piss her off, which makes it free money.

"Are we agreed then?"