12:45:00 Monday January 8, 2063 - Northbound on the 405 in Erebus' Car, Seattle, UCAS

Sybersnake shivers as she lifts herself from VR, reflexively glancing around at the traffic. Dragon and Erebus sit silently in the front of the vehicle, eyes searching restlessly for any signs of pursuit or surveillance. With a careless gesture, she dumps all of her info to their commlinks.

"It's an old corporate airfield, mostly abandoned now and used by a private flying club. Location is north forty seven degrees fifty four point four nine minutes, west one twenty two degrees six point three two minutes, elevation of five meters. I've included a satellite image of the location. I know Aztechnology maintains a logistics point at one of the hangars there in support of some of their deniable assets. The airfield hours are from 0800 until 2000, but only the base operations building is open to the public, you have to be registered with the airfield to have access to the tarmac."

13:00:03 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Tashirocaplan Artist Lofts, 115 Prefontaine Pl S, Seattle

The question hung in the air awhile, like stale smoke at a broken down diner of last resort. Finally Aidan said, "From what I saw last night, at the very least, he's got a serious hard-on for Kat. Whether he's willing to take it any farther than just stalking her...hell, I don't know. Why don't we just call the cops on this anyway? I mean, we're not criminals, we're not SINless, this isn't a runner sim, this is real life! I mean, that's what the Star is for, right? Protecting innocent people from the bad guys!"

Razor smirks and rolls his eyes, but Aidan continues, pointedly ignoring his friend. "I'm serious! Have we even tried to call the cops? At the least, having a complaint on record couldn't hurt us, right? What do you think Lana? Why don't we just leave this one to the pros? Or at least, why don't we try that first?"

12:45:49 Monday January 8, 2063 - Northbound on the 405 in Erebus' Car, Seattle, UCAS

Accessing the mapsoft of Seattle he had chipped, Dragon took a few moments to find the location Sybersnake provided and flag its location. He'd want more research done on the terrain and geographical features of the airport, but that could wait for the moment.

"Did you get any information on either the airport's or Aztechnology's expected security? What about any details on Aztechnology's logistics point? Are we talking about nothing more than a glorified private travel planning center, or are there any potential complications there?"

12:45:49 Monday January 8, 2063 - Northbound 405, Seattle

Erebus called up a map of the area on his P-sec, looking at target location in terms of both ingress and egress since he had no intention of getting caught in a pitched battle with Azzie goons.

Only one main road into the airport, the river to the north, no easy approaches, just freaking perfect. Well, if we egress to the north we can get into crowded streets and cross streets for evasion pretty quickly, that's a plus.

"Doesn't look like the kind of place I'd like to hit standing up, too easy to have a MMG tucked away out of sight aimed at the gates. What do we know of this private flying club? Anyway we could get access through them?"

14:22:47 Thursday, 11 January 2063 - Outside the Raincrest Apartments, East Tacoma, UCAS

The purgatorial grey surroundings didn't impinge on the bright colors of the virtual tour she'd just run through. It just made a grey border around the image feed she'd just moved through. The apartment layout probably wasn't dissimilar to the targets, but to get a good feel, nothing like actually bumping into walls, not matter how good they claimed the latest sim technology could make you feel, she made a reservation for a tour of one of the neighboring complexes units. She might need a hidey hole in some future anyway, it wasn't a bad idea to multi task.

Time now for some patience and making sure she didn't stand out while she familiarized herself with the area.

01:00:08 Wednesday, 10 January, 2063 - A Warehouse in the Barrens

Ignoring Alleycat's question for the moment, John stepped closer to the railing to see how the battle was evolving. A quick glance was all he had time for as he was forced to duck away from a stray shot that ricocheted nearby. He quickly ran his eyes around the second level too, before settling on the woman next to him. She returned his gaze steadily, her expression a mixture of excitement, anticipation, and determination. He couldn't begin to guess her exact thoughts, but knew he wouldn't like them if he could.

He frowned and shook his head. "No; no fraggin' way. Spell or no, I got no fraggin' way to contact him or any of them other fraggers down there. Do you?" Not waiting for an answer, he went on. "'Sides, unless we move and now we're gonna get pinched between all those bogies headin' our way."

He nodded towards two men advancing on the small group's position. They were heading across the northern most catwalks, towards the Northeast stairwell. "Those two are gonna block off our retreat if we don't move. I can lay down some cover if you can get them," another nod at Lady Dove and Nora, "down the stairs. I'll be right behind."

01:00:08 Wednesday, 10 January, 2063 - A Warehouse in the Barrens

At once Alleycat lowered her eyes, dark midnight eyes that pulled a pale blue colournessness into her dirty skin and made her look even smaller and thinner than she was. Woman? Young, certainly. Scarcely more than a girl. She couldn't be much older than Nora.

She'd already shoved the scrounged katana behind her back, tight along her side where its profile wouldn't stand out against the sky. Her other hand held one of the swordsman's grenades. No sign of a gun on her, anywhere -- couldn't be, given that she'd even scrounged the armour she was wearing. She glanced at Scrapheap again, a sweeping glance that also took in the stairwell and those moving toward them. No fear in her -- but also no anticipation, no spark. Determination? Maybe, but it was almost lost in the shadow of ancient pain.

She smiled, a bit sadly. "I'll be right back," she said quietly, almost gently, before disappearing into the cloud of grenade smoke.

01:00:09 Wednesday, 10 January, 2063 - A Warehouse in the Barrens

Disappeared, dropped, using the rain and the smoke and the cold metal of the catwalk itself to disguise her body heat. Senses on razor edge. Even her breath paused, everything in her tuned to her environment. Part of her mind began silently timing the swing of the ropes against the catwalk. If this didn't work, it was entirely possible she'd have to use them in a hurry.

Before she broke through the cover of the smoke cloud she stopped, the grenade loose in her other hand. If she had this right --

Cried out, in a whipcrack voice: "Jump down -- kill that mage!"

And let the armed grenade in her other hand drop from the catwalk.

12:48:06 Monday January 8, 2063 - Northbound on the 405 in Erebus' Car, Seattle, UCAS

As the vehicle hisses northward through the lunch-hour traffic, Dragon glances at Sybersnake in the rearview mirror. For all that an hour before she realized that her son had been kidnapped, she appeared more relaxed than he'd seen her in a long time. The familiar question and answer briefing was drawing out her operational personality, subsuming beneath it all of the worries and concerns which would cripple the conscious mind in a crisis situation. Data spills over onto his commlink; text and diagrams provided in response to his and Erebus' questions.

"The airport security is provided by Lone Star, with a minimal staff on hand of four. They're backed up by pretty hefty technology, though: camera surveillance of the terminal as well as of the airport itself, along with ground radar surveillance for aircraft tracking. That'll be easier to bypass but it's got a velocity gate that'll trip for a running (meta)human. Weapons will be standard light Lone Star loadout, but heavy backup is only a phone call away. Aztechnology will have a staff of eight on hand, all of which will be security trained but will try and maintain a low profile if possible. They'll have their own surveillance and counter-intrusion measures surrounding their hangar. Flying club membership usually takes between a week to ten days to authorize, but I can try and get us ID through less than legal means. The only drawback is that it will take me between two and three hours to accomplish."

13:02:39 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Tashirocaplan Artist Lofts, 115 Prefontaine Pl S, Seattle

“It’s not my call. I mean if you want the cops involved Kat,� her gaze shifted to the leggy blonde, “You have to decide to do it. I mean you might have an “in� with the cops who are investigating the fire at the apartment, but I want to give them as wide a berth as possible to do their jobs.�

She started to say more and then stopped and shook her head.

“Remember guys, I might have a SIN, but I’m still underage as far as legalities go. I don’t want to be on the next flight to Moscow until all this crap gets straightened out with the apartment… and with Niki.�

She blinked a few times and tried to keep the tears in check behind her lashes as she cleared her throat.

“So like I was saying, it’s up to Kat if we get the cops involved. If you want to put a no contact order or whatever on the guy, go for it. But really I doubt the cops are gonna follow you around and protect you unless he actually tries something physical. Might not hurt to discreetly try to dig up what we can on this guy. Treat it like one of the runner sims, I mean he might have some dark secret out there that we could use for leverage to get him to leave Kat alone.�

Her idea sounded just like an episode of “Night City� from last season, but seeing how no one else was tossing out ideas beyond going to the cops, it didn’t seem so outrageous.

13:03:16 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Tashirocaplan Artist Lofts, 115 Prefontaine Pl S, Seattle

Razor snorts. "The only problem is, this ain't a runner sim Lana. How the hell are we supposed to get dirt on this guy in the first place? I agree going to the cops probably won't do us much good, but I wouldn't bank on getting dirt on the guy either. If you ask me, the real problem is is this guy Connected, or is he not? If he's connected the cops won't help us and he'll probably just geek us if we try to blackmail him. If he's not connected, then just curb stomping him should solve the problem."

21:05:01 Wednesday, 10 January 2063- The Sundowner Tavern, 14640 58th Ave S. Seattle, UCAS

Leo nodded, not disagreeing with anything Roderick had to say. “Your place is fine; I’m not getting the impression that a secondary site will be necessary and I trust your abilities are worth what I and your harriers are being paid,� He let his arms clank down onto the counter top and leaned his weight upon them, looking over at the homeless man as he continued to speak, acknowledging the attention of the patron with a long glance of his own.

“You’re going to know what feels out of place in your life better than I will, so don’t hesitate to inform me of the slightest disparity even if it seems inconsequential. For now let’s use the rest of the night to secure your home. I want to get to know the area as well as you.� Leo gestured with his tilt of his head and Roderick stood up from his seat slowly like a kid who didn’t want to get off a park ride quite yet. “Yeah, sure, my car is out front,� he said, still obviously not thrilled with the whole idea.

“If you have a safe house or want a rat motel that’s fine too; like I said, whatever you are comfortable with,� Leo said, running a hand through his hair while pushing the glass door open with his hip. He stayed close enough to Roderick that he could react in case anything seemed out of place on the street, taking a moment to let his eyes adjust to the darkness in the recess of the door before accepting that everything seemed clear. The air outside shot needles across his face, even through the newly trimmed beard which seemed to frost immediately upon his exit, and everywhere the sounds of the city echoed with the somber clarity of a winter night.

Roderick’s vehicle was parked on the far corner, an older gas burner that might be considered a “muscle� car if it weren’t a bit past its prime. The color was faded from black to a lazy gray and some of the chrome near the bottom of the car had rusted out, but it still looked fast, and Leo almost laughed because the whole thing fit its owner so damn well. They both slipped into the car, having to do the limbo and use the roof for leverage to slide inside as the car rested so low to the ground. The mage grabbed the wheel and the engine purred to life, the internal computer recognizing the owner through the bioreader set in the faux-leather steering column.

“Wherever you want,� Leo said as the car pulled away from the curb and rolled out into the light, night traffic.

21:05:17 Wednesday, 10 January 2063- Leaving The Sundowner Tavern, 14640 58th Ave S. Seattle, UCAS

Leo rode along as Roderick drove sedately though the south Downtown area, chilled at first from the almost frozen synthleather seats until the engine warmed up enough to pump out enough lukewarm air to warm up the cabin enough so that breath wasn’t visable.

The ride itself was quiet, light jostling and creaking from the (apparently original, Leo thought) suspension going over the ice ruts provided counterpoint to the J-pop music that Roderick had on. Neither one of them seemed interested in conversation: Leo was looking for possible tails and taking in the lay of the land, and Roderick was concentrating on trying to drive an old Chrysler-Nissan ZM through ruts in the streets that hadn’t seen snow like this since the 30’s. Twice they spun out coming around a corner too fast; Leo cursed lightly in Russian under his breath, thankful that the streets were mostly empty, Roderick spinning the wheel one way, then the other. At least he’s not hitting the brakes Leo thought, as they spun out, found traction, and slowly climbed up the onramp to the 5.

22:30:17 Wednesday, 10 January 2063-1878 N. Boylston Ave Apt 4N, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS
“Make yourself at home,� Roderick said after Leo entered the apartment. The building itself, refurbished not quite 20 years ago in beige stucco-looking plastic panels but looked to be much older on inspection, had at least three points of ingress that Leo marked, all keycard protected in addition to its 10 medium and large apartments for rent. The doors themselves didn’t look like much, though, he appraised, but the neighborhood just north of the International District didn’t look like it had much in the way of door breakers. The wide but dimly lit interior halls had a central elevator, with stairwells on each end, and cameras covered the entrances.

Must be nice living up here, he thought, looking around at the well-furnished corner apartment interior. A large, newish Novatech Zephyr telecom unit dominated the far end of the 5 meter square living room. An overstuffed sofa sat opposite it, close to the door. A couple of armchairs flanked the walls, with a real wood or good-fake enough to look it low table sat. Various plants in simple plastic pots lined the walls in between, resting on saucers on the polished bamboo floor. Leo walked over and shut the curtains on windows facing north and east, more out of protective cliche than any real worry at this point.

A simple but equally well furnished galley kitchen lay though a doorway across the living room from the entrance. A hallway to the left at the end of the living room led off to a large, simply furnished bedroom, a bathroom, and a larger, empty floored room. “My study,� {b]Roderick[/b] said when Leo asked him.

“You can stay on the couch if you want. I’m not expecting too much trouble anyway, but I’ve got two watchers that I can call up if you’d prefer,� Roderick naseled out.

01:00:09 Wednesday, 10 January, 2063 - A Warehouse in the Barrens

Max continued to stumble to what he hoped was freedom. The warehouse was thick with smoke and sounds. He often caught glimpses of swirling color through the distortion that was the wharehouse's spirit realm. It was like heat rising off of the desert floor, tugging at his vision. Pain still burned in his arm as he staggered towards the two auras standing guard over his escape. Even in the hazy wasteland of conflict, the warm, almost sunny glow of the huge troll's aura was easy to see.

'I think the fragger's actually enjoying himself.' he thought bitterly and threw himself to the floor when he saw the troll swing a large weapon in his direction, seeking a new target. It was slow going, but he knew even though he couldn't be seen, a stay bullet could make him just as dead as one aimed.

13:04:25 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Tashirocaplan Artist Lofts, 115 Prefontaine Pl S, Seattle

“Ok bigshot, how do you propose finding out if this guy is connected and manage to keep our asses out of the fire in the process? If he is connected like you mentioned earlier he’s not going to appreciate us poking around in his shit, nor will the cops help us. It’s not like I’ve got someone in my pocket who can dig up the dirt for us. Unless any of you have someone we can get to do the inquiry for us, it falls back on our shoulders to start asking around.�

She stared at Razor and waited for him to say anything and when he didn’t pipe in right away she continued.

“I mean if you’re just gonna sit there and shoot down all the ideas for this reason or another then what the hell’s the point of trying to think of a solution, why don’t we just throw Kat to the proverbial wolf then already.� She rolled her eyes slightly and the sarcasm dripping from her words was tangible.

22:39:17 Wednesday, 10 January 2063-1878 N. Boylston Ave Apt 4N, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

Leo dropped his duffle on the floor and set his gun on the coffee table before taking a seat on the sofa. He tested the cushioning with a few experimental bounces that didn’t really translate to any sort of meaningful sensation through the sythskin, metals, and high-stress plastics of his lower body. Sleeping on concrete would have been just as pleasing, a thought that made Leo a bit angry even after all these years; he had learned some time ago that a lack of discomfort did not necessarily imply contentment.

“So what do you say, some spirits or not?� Roderick had poured himself some cereal and spoke through a mouth full of soy flakes, guaranteed by the dragon on the box to “fuel your astral spirit while fueling your body.� “They’re pretty fraggin’ easy, I can just whip some up here, no problem,� he said, bits of “astral fuel� spattering out of his mouth.

“Whatever, just keep them away from me,� Leo answered, “I don’t like the things very much,�

“Heh, can’t say I blame you, they sure can be annoying, some of ‘em always chattering away, like a toddler on novacoke,�

Leo wasn’t looking over at the mage, having switched on the TV to scan the channels, but he had to turn and raise his eyebrows at that particular simile.

“You know what I mean,� Roderick smiled, tossing his bowl into the sink with a frisbee flick of the wrist. He must have reconsidered the toss just a bit too late, trying to grab his own throw out of the air with a gasp, as the dish clattered into other dishes at the bottom of the metal basin, accompanied by the unmistakable sound of glass shattering.

“Drek, drek, drek. Frag this nonsense. Who the hell would leave all this drek in the sink?� Roderick strung together some other, more creative expletives as he sifted through the damage of the errant toss.

Meanwhile, Leo had found an Azzie channel running an old soccer game. Stats scrolled across the bottom from earlier tournament games, and the channel even offered some datalink, optical-display simulcasts to compliment the onscreen action, but he didn’t want to be too focused on anything but his surroundings while on duty. After a time the clattering behind him ceased and Roderick spoke up one more time.

“Done. I set them to prowl the perimeter, null sheen,� he said, and Leo couldn’t help the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. “I’m gonna get 40 winks, if you need me fire off a full clip, no less; otherwise I’ll assume you’ve got it handled,�

Leo watched the game and a next one for a few hours, wondering how many times prowling astral signatures were passing through his body, before he trailed off into a light sleep that lasted the rest of the night.

08:39:04 Sunday 14, January 2063 – “The Bakery�, Renton, Seattle, UCAS

Without a thank, a nod, and even less a word, Ludmilla left the room. As she walked down the narrow corridor, away from Sacha and his goons, she wondered why she hadn't asked for more cred then she actually needed. It wasn't that she was particularly in need of the cash... After last night's job, she would be able to cover both the rent and all daily expenses for the month. But just getting back to the mobster in some way would have made her day.

Closing the car's door, the Russian woman rubbed her hands together, warming them up before fishing out her pack of smokes and lighting one with a sigh. She still hadn't gotten word from Zeyda concerning the hardware she was missing. He had said Monday, but then again, these sorts of delivery weren't always spot on. Zeyda's usually were... but you never knew for sure.

She took a long drag in, pulling in the smoke deep into her lungs; feeling it burn and itch all over. She had to go to the workshop to complete what she could of the bugs, do some grocery shopping, get some info on the restaurant... and get in touch with Miki. She hadn't seen him in over a week. She craved for his touch; for the sound of his voice in her ear; for his lips on her neck.

Cracking her window open as she fired up the engine, Ludi exhaled out her own fumes as the car started forward down the street.

13:11:29 Sunday 14, January 2063 - Ludmilla's Workshop, Everett, Seattle, UCAS

Her knuckles now practically numb, she punched the heavy bag once more. Even with the protective wrapping around her hands, she would have bruises for some days. But Ludmilla didn't care. She didn't care at all. It was her way of venting out all her bottled in anger. She could have gone straight home from the bakery. She could have gone and seen Lana; spend time with her; crawl into her imaginary world and play her games with her. But the Russian fighter knew one thing perfectly; when it came to her daughter, she was a total coward. There was simply no way she could see her today and then abandon her again to go about her own business. She was a coward, through and through. It was so much easier to simply box herself into the little workshop. She ducked to the side, avoiding some imaginary blow from a fictitious opponent, before letting go a flurry of her own blows.

As soon as she had gotten to the workshop, she had placed a quick call to Zeyda; all polite, all proper and as casual sounding as possible. She knew very well he had said he'd comm her when he had the stuff... but with the job getting closer and closer, Ludmilla was starting to get a little anxious. She had even gone as far as call Miki, but after two rings, she had hung up. What was she going to say anything. Hello? I miss you? It would have sounded so childish. There must have been reasons why he hadn't called her.... he must have been busy...

Letting her hands fall to her side, she exhaled deeply. Her black form forming tank top was soaked with sweat, and she could feel more stick her short black hair to her neck. She shook her arms, trying to dissipate the cramps that were already building up. Her body felt tired and beaten, but she felt good. After getting to the workshop, she had finished the bugs, and fired up her computer. From there, she had programmed the encryption program and let the terminal do the rest. It was long, really long... and so instead of just sitting there and looking at it, she had picked up on her training. The past few days had kept her way too busy to squeeze in any training. She had done some running yesterday, but that was pretty much it. He body needed to be in top shape. It need to be efficient. It was the only thing she could rely on when on the job.

As she tore the tape off, she sat on a small mat that covered part of the floor and began to stretch herself in slow and precise motion. Ludi had never been really keen on gymnastic or any other form of “graceful� exercising. Those kinds of things were for those rich women who wanted to burn down their fat asses. But after finding herself dropped into more and more discreet ops and bugging jobs, she had picked up a few moves. They always came in handy when scaling things; when leaping here and there.

15:01:11 Sunday 14, January 2063 - Ludmilla's Workshop, Everett, Seattle, UCAS

As she neared her last crunch, Ludmilla heard the computer beep from the other side of the room. It had either finished compiling the encryption software for the bugs... or it had totally crashed. Pushing herself up with a grunt, she hopped it wasn't the later.

09:00:00 Thursday, 11 January 2063-1878 N. Boylston Ave Apt 4N, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

“Rrrroar,�

Leo’s eyes cracked open, reverie interrupted by a droning, low grade recording coming from somewhere in the dim living room. The apartment was lit by the blooming haze of sunlight filtered through shuttered windows, perfect ambiance for the withdrawal headache that thumped between his temples.

“Don’t be groggy! Get your astral spirit burning with a quality breakfast!�

Rolling his head to the side, Leo could see a low quality, laser-light projection of a dragon on the far wall, emanating from the cereal box on the kitchen counter. The two frame animation tried to imply a bellowing growl, but came off more like a fish gasping for breath.

“Groggy,� he thought to himself. “You have got to be kidding me,� he said aloud.

A few more pun filled advertisements and Leo was forced to get up and shake the box until it stopped talking, the short walk doubling the ache in his head and mixing nausea into the equation. Relieved of one annoyance, he searched the cabinets to cure the other, finally retrieving a bottle of wine from one of the wooden cabinets that he poured for himself in a plain drinking glass. Wine wasn’t ever his first choice, but it was all he could find, and a few quick swigs did manage take the edge off.

“Yeah, that’s my best, uh, before breakfast wine you’ve got there, glad you like it,� Roderick said, emerging from his bedroom scratching at his paunch through a graying nightshirt. His voice had a mix of sarcasm and disbelief that Leo immediately decided he didn’t like. Still, a part of Leo knew the mage had a point, and so he merely glowered back from behind another draught of wine.

“Anyway I’ve got some plans for today, so I assume you’ll want to tag along,� Roderick continued, performing his own search of the cabinets before settling for handfuls of soy flakes pulled directly from the dragon-faced box.

“I’m listening,� Leo answered, ready to be pulled along for the time being as long as the ideas were within certain reasonable standards.

15:01:43 Sunday 14, January 2063 - Ludmilla's Workshop, Everett, Seattle, UCAS

When she reached the terminal, still mopping the sweat from her head with one of the shop rags, she discovered it was neither. Rather, a message from Zeyda waited in her inbox.

15:01:50 Sunday 14, January 2063 - Ludmilla's Workshop, Everett, Seattle, UCAS

Relieved was too little of a word. Ludmilla felt as if a huge burden had just been lifted off her shoulders. Her original plan was to case the whole place tomorrow, pre-slice herself a way in tomorrow during the day, and come back at night to plant the bugs. But now, with all the gear, odds were she could probably install a few ones while doing her recon.

The small reader in the corner of her eye still flared early enough in the day so that she could go and case the joint, but at least now, she wouldn't be so nervous about the whole affair. After all, maybe this would turn out to be an easy job. If she fared well enough, maybe Sascha would leave her the frag alone. Or at least, have his attention on something else long enough for Ludi to get her hands on a long rifle.

Cocking her head to the side, she brought a her pack of cigarette to her mouth where she fished one out with the tips of her lips. She rolled the small tube from one corner of her mouth to the other, trying to make her mind up. It was still early enough for her to go home and spend some time with Lana.

01:00:09 Wednesday, 10 January, 2063 - A Warehouse in the Barrens

"I'll be right back."

Scrapheap opened his mouth, but before he could reply the slim girl ran past him into the smoke, katana held tightly against her oversized jacket. "What tha frag," he mumbled to himself. He knew she wasn't running away; there were two other fraggers in that smoke.

He shook his head. Crazy girl. Reminds me o' some tha crazy drek Floyd Redfeather used ta pull. Never knew what that fragger was thinkin' either. Hope it works, whatever "it" fraggin' is.

Snugging the Ingram's stock against his shoulder, the old runner turned back to the task at hand. A quick glance toward their exit showed two gunmen advancing across the catwalks. He began to walk back towards Lady Dove and Nora. He motioned towards his niece, hoping she would take the hint and crouch like the older woman. He barked, "Get down, an' stay down!"

Turning away, Scrapheap brought the battered SMG up and took aim. The smartlink display blazed across his vision, showing the Ingram as being set to "burst" and having a full load. As soon as the smartlink cross-hairs had locked on the nearest target he let out a breath and squeezed the trigger.

09:15:12 Thursday, 11 January 2063-1878 N. Boylston Ave Apt 4N, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

“Well, I’m supposed to do some job stuff at,� Roderick scratched the thinning hair on the side of his head and looked around the living room for his commlink; coming up with it after digging in the cushions of one of the chairs. Leo tried not to roll his eyes in the meantime.

“Uh, at 1300 or so. We’ll need to run up by the dockyards over in Tacoma for that, meet up with Izir and the rest afterwards at around 1400 or so around there,� he added around a mouthful of sweetened soy-cereal. “Also,� *crunch* *crunch*�I need to run a few little errands; pick up some food, and I guess some more wine,� he said, noting that Leo had powered through half the bottle.

“Other than that, just some study time. You got anything you need to do? I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself if so,� he added.

13:05:03 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Tashirocaplan Artist Lofts, 115 Prefontaine Pl S, Seattle

Undaunted by Lana's sarcasm, Razor fires back, "Look, I never said anything about throwing Kat to the wolves. I just said that digging up dirt on people is harder than it looks on the trid. If you want to toss that idea out there, fine, I'm not sayin' it's a bad idea, just I'd sure as frag like to know how we can get started with that without bringing the hammer down on ourselves in the process."

20:41:34 Sunday, 14 January 2063-Miner's Landing, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

Throwing her cigarette out the half opened window, Ludmilla leaned over to get a better look at herself in the rear view mirror. Her last meeting with Zeyda had gone a little awry, and ever since then, she had been slightly ashamed of how she had behaved. Sure, right on the spot, she had been pissed off and felt justified for her behavior... but after running the thing in her mind a few times, the young mother had finally come to a conclusion: she had been very “unprofessional�. And so, for this second meeting, she had decided to at least clean herself up a bit.

After leaving the shop, she had gone straight home, and spent what little of the day was left with Lana. It was still way too cold outside, and the weather was still like drek, so her options had been cut rather short. They had gone out to some fast food joint... one of those with the whole interior playground thing. Ludi had felt awkward all afternoon, as Lana made new friends amongst the local child fauna. Dozen of mothers were there with their little noisy and spoiled brats. Some were there with the husbands.

It only made her realized even more how much she missed Miki. She had almost called him, again, later in the day, but had stopped herself. Somehow, she felt terribly guilty about sneaking around behind his back, taking a shady job from his underling... a job he probably wasn't even aware of. Ludmilla still wasn't sure how she would go about it... but he would know. She would make sure he'd know of Sascha's little operation. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if she lied to him. The constant facade she had to put up for the sake of her daughter was already draining enough.

As she sipped her lukewarm soda, keeping a watchful eye on Lana, Ludi felt out of her element. As much as she wanted to be a mother... as much as she wanted to be a good mother.... as much as she loved Lana.... she couldn't wrap her head around it all. The cooking, the homework, setting a good example. Even though she thanked God each day for bringing Lana in her life, she couldn't help but also curse him. Lana was so young. So innocent. She was so good. She didn't deserve an aweful mother like herself. She didn't deserve a mother who killed people.

Looking down at herself, still seated in her compact car, Ludmilla fixed her clothes a bit. The hint of makeup on her face was very subtle; just enough to highlight some of her features. Her short black hair, on the other hand, showed a little more work; after all, fixing hair up had been, and still was, one of her day jobs. As for her clothes, she had taken out her only business suit. A custom fit, two piece long skirt and jacket, of a corporate looking dark gray, with a subtle interior lining of ballistic protection.

She had gotten it a few years ago, when she had pulled a bodyguard detail for some Vory boss “visiting� in Seattle. It had been one of the first jobs Miki had gotten her. He had also been the one who had bought her the outfit. No matter how much she hated dressing up in such a “serious� manner, she couldn't help herself but agree that she looked somewhat good in it. It was just tight enough to show her clean cut silhouette, but still loose enough to allow her to move freely and quickly. The skirt, which stopped only a few inches about her ankles, had a subtle slit running up it's right side, which flashed on her long and well defined legs from times to times. In the suit, Ludmilla actually looked like a woman.

Buttoning up the jacket slightly, she slipped out of the car, and into the cold street. She somewhat hoped that she wasn't over doing it... In her mind, being professional wasn't just acting in that way, it was also dressing in that way.

The only itch with her whole attire was her shoe ware. Ludmilla wasn't the kind of woman to own “women's shoes�. At the bottom of her expensive, custom fit business suit, she still wore her heavy combat boots. At least, she still had an edge to her look. And that wasn't counting on the Ares Predator stuck inside the suit's concealable holster.

Tugging her shoulders as close to her neck as possible, Ludmilla walked in a hurried pace the few blocks that separated her from the Miner's Landing. She would have preferred taking the bike on such an outing, but she had left it at the shop. There was just no way she could carry all the gear she needed for tomorrow's undercover work inside her bike's seat. That, and her car would just fit better with the general scenery in Auburn.

Nearing the Miner's entrance, she wasn't surprised to find the outside, as well as lobby, pretty darn crowded. After all, it was Sunday night, and every respectable metabeing had to be out somewhere. Only losers spent Sunday's home alone. Gently pushing her way past waiting patrons (gently being something rather unusual for Ludi), the young russian woman went straight past the maitre d' and up towards the stairs that led to the bar.

09:15:12 Thursday, 11 January 2063-1878 N. Boylston Ave Apt 4N, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

"Sorry, no such luck for you,�

12:38:56 Thursday, 11 January 2063 - In Transit, Tacoma Seattle, UCAS

After a morning of shopping and small talk, a long car trip into Tacoma was exciting in comparison, especially with the frame of the vehicle rattling like a broken washing machine, threatening to fly apart at any moment.

“Is it supposed to rattle like that?� Leo asked sourly as he watched the scenery fly by on the I-5, Gridguide cars giving the rickety Dodge a wide berth. The question was mostly rhetorical, but Roderick wasn’t hampered by such trivial concerns.

“That’s power, man; I call it ‘cruising gear.’ That’s what all those electric cars are missing out there. You can’t even tell if you’re moving in those things,� As if to accentuate his point he cut in front of a small Jackrabbit, forcing the other vehicle to decelerate rapidly.

“Hmm,� Leo grunted, but he doubted he could be heard over the “power� and incessant click-clang pealing out from somewhere in the dash. He checked the mirrors for any tails out of habit, but nothing was there besides an angry dwarf businessman jamming the horn of his Jackrabbit. Leo found himself wishing he hadn’t cancelled his sparring match with Lyssa earlier that morning.

After a while they exited onto 705, then trickled down into the smaller streets and parked at a marina located on Dock street under the Murray Morgan bridge.

“Wait in the car for a moment until I get out,� Leo said, holding a hand up before the mage and opening the passenger door.

“Yeah, yeah man,� Roderick replied, familiar with the car exiting procedures Leo had insisted upon at every store they had visited that morning.

Leo pulled himself out of the car and surveyed the marina before motioning his charge with the ‘all clear’.

20:48:19 Sunday, 14 January 2063 - Miner's Landing, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

Despite the late Sunday hour, the bar upstairs from the Landing was still busy, almost all of the tables full, people seeking to drain one last hour from the weekend before slouching home towards the work week. Shifting to one side, Ludi let her gaze wander over the crowd, feeling comfortable anonymous in the molten shadows of the bar. She could see Zeyda at his usual table, deep in discussion over his commlink. Every once in a while his gaze lifted to traverse the head of the staircase, ever watchful in case one of his many appointments arrived. Rack, his bodyguard, hovered at a nearby table, close enough to intervene if something should go wrong, but far enough away to preserve the fixer's sense of privacy.

Ludi leaned against one of the waist high tables near the stairs, savoring the last of her cigarette. Zeyda's eyes found hers and he nodded, holding up a pair of fingers. Ludi shrugged, making her way to the bar to get a drink while the fixer completed whatever business currently occupied him.

Less than five minutes later he was off the phone, motioning the slim Russian woman over to the seat across from him. Ludi held her drink in the same hand she held her cigarette, her offhand, letting it dangle across the back of the seat where the smoke would rise harmlessly to the ceiling. Zeyda smiled, an expression which, while lacking true emotion, was friendly enough.

"It's good to see you again, Ludi. Everything you ordered has been supplied. It's waiting at the take out window downstairs under my name."

20:52:03 Sunday, 14 January 2063 - Miner's Landing, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

As she sat across from Zeyda, Ludmilla gave him a smile of her own. She brought her off so she could put her vodka martini down on the table, and did her best to avoid smoking up the whole area. Apparently, if the fixer had heard of how her last job had fared, he wasn't touching a word about it.

With a polite nod of acknowledgment, she unbuttoned her jacket slightly; just enough to allow her hand to slide in to retrieve her pocket secretary. Sticking the slim cigarette between her lipsticked lips, she used her now free hand to get the certified credstick Sascha had given her.

“Spasiba.� she said through half closed lips, slotting the credstick in and sending over what was left of the payment.

Disconnecting the now useless tube, she threw it back into her pocket, and pulled the cigarette out of her mouth. Gently, in an almost sensual gesture, she parted her lips. The smoke slowly rose out of her mouth, gliding toward the celling.

“I wanted to thank you for that earlier... how to say... referral. You know very....� she stopped to look for the proper word, making great effort to get her pronounciation as spot on as her thick accent could “interesting people�.

She took a second drag off her now dying cigarette.

“I was wondering� she exhaled “if I could ask something from you. I need information about incoming and outgoing calls made from a private telecom line... I don't have the number, but I know the addresse of the linkup.�

20:52:51 Sunday, 14 January 2063 - Miner's Landing, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

Zeyda nodded in response to Ludi's thanks.

"Glad to hear it worked out. As for information searches, I'm afraid that I lack the appropriate skills. However, I can put you in touch with an individual who is very capable in sifting through the binary ether and acquiring information. Can you meet tonight?"

20:53:02 Sunday, 14 January 2063 - Miner's Landing, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

Sticking the cigarette between her lips, Ludmilla inhaled as she nodded her head. She hadn't exactly planned on going to another meet tonight, since she knew very well she need the sleep and the rest for tomorrow.... But the faster she got her info, the faster she'd be out of trouble.

12:50:17 Thursday, 11 January 2063 - Port of Seattle Transit Trailer Holding Area 5N, Tacoma, Seattle, UCAS


Roderick got out of the old Z-M on Leo’s beckoning, the suspension groaning and rising as he got out of the driver’s seat, either from relief from his weight or lack of maintenance Leo didn’t know. Popping the coupe’s driver side seat forward, he pulled out one if the plastic bags that they’d purchased from shopping earlier in the day. Motioning toward a spot where a large unattached tractor hauled flatbed trailer, was close to a section were large shipping containers were stacked over the chain-link-razorwire-topped fence, Roderick trotted over to the section, which wasn’t far from where Leo had looked for possible ambushes.

No one was in the immediate vicinity, although Leo was concerned with the amount of trailers and cargo containers within gunshot range. The large container cranes, about a kilometer distant, could hold a sniper; the . The wind whipped overhead, but was surprisingly calm in this area, sheltered from the strong buffets off the Sound by the large stacks of cargo containers. Most of the port had been cleared of ice and snow as well, but large puddles of IceMelter and water lay around the entranceway to the port, occasionally kicked up by the pre-programmed load-movers scurrying around the outer truck-yard outside of the Port’s gates.

“Ok, this shouldn’t take long,� Roderick naseled, positioning and snugging himself in a dry spot under the back wheels of the flatbed. Moving to a sitting cross-legged position while retrieving a small bundle of what looked to be a bundle of fresh cut wooden sticks bound with a thin fraying rope from the plastic bag; whispering a few low intoned phrases at the bunch, he placed them between his legs. Leo saw him typing in a message on his commlink; 30 seconds later, Roderick nodded with the reply. “Ok, Gar’s in the system, showing nobody around here. He’ll let you know if something show’s up out of norm, so keep that phone on vibrate and ready. A ‘bot truck will show up to pick up that trailer over there,� Roderick motioned toward an I-shaped container transport trailer, “in about 3 minutes. Just keep down, and nothing should happen,� he said, a flash of professionalism flashing over his face.

“Stay sharp, I’ll be back in about 5 minutes. I’ll find my meat bod if you need to move, just keep that bundle near us,� he said, leaning back up against the trailer tires and seeming to pass out as his astral form left his body, leaving Leo alone in the traileryard.

12:55:01 Monday January 08, 2063 - Northbound 405 - Seattle UCAS

The conversation quickly turned to nuts-and-bolts discussions of how the trio might deal with the variety of situations they could encounter and it took no time at all to realize they were going to need help. Gear and skills the group lacked. Erebus let the car's dog-brain pilot the vehicle along while he got out his cell and dialed in Elan's message line.

"Hoi, Elan, it's me again. I need some gear and some special skills and am in a time crunch. You know I got the money, since you're the one who delivered it to me, so I'm going to leave you a list of stuff and see what you can come up with fast. I'm also going to need a couple of specialist, rigger and magician, preferably with combat skills, available for the next 24 hours. Simple extraction, target friendly but guard forces not. Get back to me at this number soonest."

Knowing that they'd need more information and remembering the old adage about knowing the terrain he directed the autopilot towards the airfield, looking for a coffin hotel where Sybersnake could jack in and get them the information they'd need.

12:51:23 Thursday, 11 January 2063 - Port of Seattle Transit Trailer Holding Area 5N, Tacoma, Seattle, UCAS

Leo paced back and forth, keeping warm and making himself a harder target for any potential snipers. His Ares Predator was snug in his crossed arms, cocked, locked, and hidden beneath his green-fatigue jacket. The smart link responded with a clean signal, informing him that he had a full clip loaded, the safety was on, and the barrel was ambient temperature with no deformation detected. Roderick was for the most part safe sitting with his back to one of the flatbeds, and there weren’t too many people in Seattle who could make the shot necessary to hit Leo while he was moving.

Everything seemed clear, but he kept on his toes nonetheless, if only because Roderick had seemed serious for the first time since they’d met.

20:53:31 Sunday, 14 January 2063 - Miner's Landing, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

"I'm assuming, of course, that you'll be able to get online. The individual that you're looking for goes by the name Oracle, and you can find him at the matrix club Palatine. I'll send him a message and tell him to expect you tonight. He'll be able to answer your questions better than I can."

Zeyda made a note to himself in his pocket secretary before glancing back to meet Ludi's gaze.

"Is there anything else?"

12:52:15 Thursday, 11 January 2063 - Port of Seattle Transit Trailer Holding Area 5N, Tacoma, Seattle, UCAS

Leo had been pacing in a small circuit in and around the empty trailers lodged in th frigid parking area for almost minute (that certainly felt a lot longer to him) more when the phone Izir had given him buzzed in his pocket.

That loader's running a bit early. It's set to pickup a trailer about 50 feet north from where you currently are. I'd get down by that flatbed Rod's under till it passes, a smooth, clear female voice said over the link.

12:52:37 Thursday, 11 January 2063 - Port of Seattle Transit Trailer Holding Area 5N, Tacoma, Seattle, UCAS

“Sure…thanks,�

Leo made it a point not to argue with mysterious women who called him on his employer’s phone. The rule went double if they seemed to know exactly where he was with no visible surveillance in the area. He hunkered down on the balls of his feet next to Roderick and made a quick check for any nearby cameras, listening devices, or rigged vehicles besides the loaders that patrolled the grounds – though they were suspect too. “The phone could be the source,� he thought to himself, “Stupid not to check it; I’ll have to work that out later.�

Once again he waited, vigilant, for the mage to awaken from his astral foray.

13:06:17 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Tashirocaplan Artist Lofts, 115 Prefontaine Pl S, Seattle

Lana was about to snap back at Razor when Aidan spoke up and vied to keep the peace amongst friends.

“Everyone just chill out ok? Getting worked up ain’t gonna get us anywhere.�

Lana sighed heavily as the fight drained out of her with the breath. She looked around the loft at anything but her friend’s faces, settling on the clock display on the wall. Shit. Class.

“Look, sorry for flying off the handle, everything is just a little too much to take right now. I don’t know about you Kat but I can’t afford to lose any of my scholarship and grants because I start skipping on all my classes. I’m thinking being forced to focus on something other than the messes we’re all in might be good for my head, and my grades.�

Her eyes moved between Kat and Aidan’s faces.

“Besides, it’s not like I’d be alone on campus, I can stick to the quad and the like…�

Kat piped up “I don’t have that problem, it’s only my money that I’m pissing away if I stay home. Right now an extra long nap sounds devine.�

Aidan seemed reluctant to let her go off on her own, but knew he couldn’t keep her out of classes and put her future in jeopardy. “Just call us if you run into trouble, or something seems fishy babe.�

“I promise I will Aidan. I’ll be fine, really.�

She gave him a little kiss on his cheek and gave Kat a hug as she hefted her bag over her shoulder again.

“I should be back around 5’ish tonight guys. We can grab a bite to eat and figure out how to keep tabs on O’Halloran to get something that has to give us some kind of leverage. He’s got to slip up some time right?�

She nodded to Razor as she made her way to the door of the loft.

13:52:11 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Meany Hall - University of Seattle

Lana ran across the bricks that covered the outdoor patio outside the Performing Arts building wondering if she’d have enough time to make it to the locker rooms to change before class started. Mark Haim wasn’t the type of artist who appreciated students coming into class late, and Modern II was a foundations class for her future degree. She picked up her pace as she dodged students moving slower than she was on the patio.

12:53:17 Thursday, 11 January 2063 - Port of Seattle Transit Trailer Holding Area 5N, Tacoma, Seattle, UCAS

Gar saw the lot in a window of her current vision; one of her deployed rotodrones was a 150 meters over, and had a great overview of everything but the actual piers. The squat, automated trailer skitter was snaking though trailer parking area at a preprogrammed 10 KPH though the semi-fractal derived parking lanes toward where Roderick and his bodyguard were. She’d almost told the guy Izir hired to drag Roderick’s body out to the programmed path of the loader instead of to take cover; having grown up in Auburn under a father that had only gotten out of hock with the Mafia after his organs were sold off, she didn’t understand why someone would get into debt with them.

Izir’s right, though. He’s good enough for this job, and the extra nuyen won’t hurt at all. We are dumping him after this, though, or I’m breaking his nose just like I broke drekwipe’s down there she thought as the loader picked up the indicated trailer and meandered back toward the gate. She started a timer to check the time, but it seemed to be pretty reliable.

Thumbing up the bodyguard’s LTG, she opened a line. Ok, you’re clear after the trailer passes. Sorry about the communication hassle, but I’m not patching you in until I know you. By the way, if you get the chance, kick that asshole a few times for me. Tell him Gar's still pissed she said, and cut the line, moving back to making sure that the hauler was still on schedule.

12:54:09 Thursday, 11 January 2063 - Port of Seattle Transit Trailer Holding Area 5N, Tacoma, Seattle, UCAS

“Will…� *click* “…do,�

Leo flipped the hand receiver off and gave Roderick a small kick.

“I think that was your sister; same attitude,� he told the lifeless body. He wasn’t surprised when there was no response. The trailer continued to trundle down the road, and Leo watched it wind out of sight, then went back to scanning his surroundings. A few moments later the mage’s eyes fluttered and he finally awoke.

“Anything happen while I was out?� Roderick asked, voice slightly rough as if he had just been roused from a deep sleep. He pressed the palms of his hands into his eyes and rubbed them back and forth briskly.

“No,� Leo answered, giving a curt shake of his head, “who is Gar though? I’m supposed to tell you she is still ‘pissed’. Anything I should worry about?�

Roderick assumed he must have misheard any sarcasm in his bodyguard’s voice.

01:00:09 Wednesday, 10 January, 2063 - A Warehouse in the Barrens

Aiming first for the shotgun-toting gunman, Scrapheap fired off a quick, narrow burst designed to take his foe out quickly and efficiently. Although his shot was on target, the goon was armored, and apparently quite heavily, since the bullets smacking into his foe's black armor seemed to have no appreciable effect. Going with the recoil rather than fighting it, he fired in a wider arc, trying to make sure his shots at least stayed on target enough to hit his opponent. Once again, his shots proved true, and once again, it was uncertain how much, if any of an impact his shots had. Cursing under his breath, Scrapheap watched as his foes continued to advance.

As the enemy mercenaries(?) moved quickly along the catwalks, the one Scrapheap had been shooting at stopped, set himself, and returned fire with the shotgun. The shells smashed into the wall Scrapheap was hiding behind, sending splinters of plastiwood and glass flying, and causing him to duck back behind cover, as the shots were a little too close for comfort.

The shotgun goon's partner, toting an SMG, immediately laid down a sustained pattern of suppressing fire, designed to make John stay back where he was. Unable to come back out without risking getting hit, John had no choice but to get back around the wall and stay there, pinned down by the bullets ripping through his position.

Fortunately for him, the petite katana wielding waif was busy staving off the team heading up the middle catwalk. Hiding in the smoke from Scrapheap's grenade, Alleycat waiting until the middle team was within vocal range, then spoke firmly, "Jump down and kill THAT mage!" She watched in satisfaction as the two men, seemingly against their wills, immediately ran to the edge of the catwalk and jumped onto a shelving unit almost 10 meters below, although they stopped short of actually opening fire.

Noticing another pair of hostiles moving east on the south catwalk, she crouched low and waited...waited...and then...BOOM!!!

The flashbang's blinding light and sonic sound was just the cover she'd been waiting for, and immdiately she took off at a dead run down the center catwalk, trusting in the professionalism of her foes to prevent them from looking in the direction of the flash, which was what she was coming out of. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Nora had adhered to her uncle's instructions, and was lying flat on the floor, hands covering her head.

What was more interesting to her though, was the mage, Lady Dove, who had apparently listened to her instructions and summoned up a Spirit of Water, which took shape on the astral plane next to its summoner. She didn't have time to look at the spirit any closer though, as she was rapidly approaching her targets.

Once again, as she closed within vocal range, she said loudly, "Jump down on those men!" One of the team moved immediately to comply, immediately jumping down to a catwalk below, while his partner ran towards the railing, right behind him.

Below Alleycat and John's desperate fight for survival, covered by his City Spirit, Max continued to run towards the maniacal ETG and equally ferocious Blaze, who were holding back the ground invaders with nearly equal parts skill and glee.

From all appearances, the Warehouse Defenders looked to be well on their way out their exit point, as Knight managed to help Cao Jaan stagger to safety just around the corner, behind Blaze.

Meanwhile, overhead, the helicopter hovered, its rappelling lines still dangling tantalizing close to the roof...

13:59:30 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Meany Hall Dance Studio - University of Seattle

Gasping and out of breath, Lana burst through the doors into her Modern Dance II practice room with a full 30 seconds to spare. She grinned to herself in satisfaction at making it on time, when she saw something that stopped her cold in her tracks.

Detectives Morris and Fox were standing there talking to Instructor Haim with grim looks on their faces. Seeing her enter, they immediately nodded to her teacher and shook his hand, then strode towards her with definite purpose, and that purpose practically screamed 'trouble'. Approaching her, Detective Morris smiled tightly and said, "Ms. Prevlov, we have some answers regarding your apartment, and we'd like you to come down to the station with us so we can discuss them with you."

As he spoke, Lana noticed Detective Fox shifting her position, almost as if she wanted to be properly situated in case Lana tried to bolt. And judging from Detective Morris's tone and the looks on the cops' faces, she was getting a very bad feeling that bolting might not be a bad idea after all...

14:00:04 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Meany Hall - University of Seattle

She forced herself to take a deep breath, her mind spinning this in a million different directions at once of just how this could go. She could feel the eyes of all the other students in the class burning holes into her as they stared. It wasn’t often that detectives came in to dance classes and wanted to escort students away.

Shit.

Thankfully she probably had a better grasp on the layout of the hall than the detectives would if she decided to run. She thought about just what they could have to talk to her about as she stared them down and they all held their positions in a stalemate. Nothing they wanted to “talk� about could be good if they wanted her back down at the police station. She shook her head slightly from side to side as she mouthed the word “no� before she gulped down one last breath, turned on a heel and took off in the opposite direction towards the doors at the back of the room.

14:00:07 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Meany Hall - University of Seattle

Lana knew she’d have the best chance of losing the detectives down a floor amidst all the practice rooms and subsequent locker rooms as well, which mean she needed to make it across the studio to the double doors on the opposite corner wall and down a short hall before hitting the stairs.

She didn’t think anymore beyond that as her body just went into autopilot and she sprinted across the hardwood floors in her bare feet. She just wanted to get away. From the cops, from the mess that her life was becoming.

13:10:47 Monday January 08, 2063 - Northbound on the 405 in Erebus' Car, Seattle, UCAS

The tension in the car climbed steadily the closer it came to the airfield, becoming a kind of palpable electricity. Sybersnake continued to sift through the electronic ether, her uplink allowing her to pull additional surveillance information on the airfield as well as the ground approaches to it. She remains silent, though, operational concerns unable to fully override the desperate fear of a mother for her child.

The shiver of Erebus' phone to an incoming call breaks the monotony of the drive.

"In trouble again, eh?" Elan sounds vaguely amused despite the late hour.

"Don't tell me, though! I don't want to know. I've got a line on a couple of guys I've worked with before. They're usually part of a larger crew but they occasionally do solo jobs. The driver goes by the name Bridger while the mage calls himself Shard. I've forwarded their LTG numbers to your phone. Watch your back out there, kid."

01:10:58 Monday January 08, 2063 - Northbound on 405 - Seattle UCAS

Erebus could hear his fixer salivating about the profits involved with a rush order on restricted gear. His phone beeped the receipt of the LTGs into his ear.

"Trouble is what I get paid for friend. I'll call your guys pronto. Most of the gear I'm looking at, the flash paks, respirators, trauma patches, tranq patches, and Plasti-Cuffs shouldn't be too much trouble getting. If the electronics is a little harder, the 6 micro-cameras, comm jammers. How about the two sets of security armor, and maybe some APDS rounds for either a SMG or pistol?"

He knew the price tag was going to be hideous, but a dead man couldn't spend nuyen.

13:13:07 Monday January 08, 2063 - Northbound on 405 - Seattle UCAS

"Just some gear to go fishing with, eh? Flash-paks, trauma patches, respirators, tranq patches, and flexcuffs I can get within four hours. APDS is going to take at least twenty four, longer if you want more than one clip. Security armor will take six days, and that's paying double the going rate. What rating did you want the jammers? And were they area or directional? Basic cameras are only a hundred nuyen each, I've got 'em on the shelf. But if you want any kind of enhancements that'll be a special order. They usually come in a day or two, though."

12:55:10 Thursday, 11 January 2063 - Port of Seattle Transit Trailer Holding Area 5N, Tacoma, Seattle, UCAS

“Nothing you need to worry about,� Roderick said, touching his nose reflexively and maneuvering out of the underside of the flatbed trailer he was under. Leo scanned the area, seeing not much more than before: a few low rise office buildings across the highway from the trailer-park; stacks of standardized shipping containers and the medium size mobile cranes to move them; and in the distance closer to the waterfront, the high, overhead scaffolding of the offload-onload cranes snaking down to snag a container off a trailer and stack it on a waiting container ship. A few cameras were visable on the 5 meter tall chain link fencing, but only one of them pointed outward toward the truck park. Whatever she’s watching us on, it’s not close Leo thought.

“Still pissed, eh? She never did like that I didn’t chip in when her drones got shot up, but that slitch never did help with any of my supplies,� Roderick said, after getting up and straighting his coat.

“Let’s get back to the car and get out of here, it’s damn cold. I’ll call them when we get back, they’ve still got some work to do,� Roderick said, walking back toward the car.

14:00:10 Thursday, 11 January 2063, Meany Hall - University of Seattle

Lana may have wanted to get away from the mess her life was becoming, but such philosophical thoughts would have to wait until she could get away from the very real threat the cops had suddenly become.

As she'd thought, Detective Fox had been waiting for her to run, as the female detective reacted quicker and more decisively than her male counterpart. As Lana turned and dashed for the double doors, Fox immediately gave chase.

Despite the teenager's sudden dash, the cop moved only a hair's breath slower, literally, as her initial grab for the soon-to-be young fugitive just missed grabbing her dark hair.

Not looking back, Lana sprinted desperately for the doors, not wanting to find out what exactly the cops wanted to talk to her about...

20:53:50 Sunday, 14 January 2063 - Miner's Landing, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

Ludmilla picked up her drink, and sipped almost timidly from it.

“Actually, yes.�

She fished her pocket secretary from out of her jacket, pulled the little stylus from it's compartement and jotted down a few things on the screen. A few seconds later, Zeyda's own device beeped with it's received message.

Military Tutorsoft: Long Range Rifles and Sniping Technics
Military Tutorsoft: Heavy Weapons Operations
-Russian manuals preferred, but I can deal with UCAS, CAS or Sioux.

“Now, that is all that I need... “

20:54:39 Sunday, 14 January 2063 - Miner's Landing, Downtown, Seattle, UCAS

Zeyda's eyebrow lifted slightly at Ludi's request, but other than that he gave no indication.

"What ratings would you like? And I'm assuming you wanted the practical application series rather than the easier to acquire knowledge only series. I'll have to do some checking around, but right now I'll say thirty six hours. If it's sooner I'll drop you a text."