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"All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy;
for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves;
we must die to one life before we can enter another.
- Anatole France
Seether - Remedy (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac9MrvBhqQY)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v437/k1d_v1d/olympic-garden-strip-club_zpsa02bf5a7.jpg)
Last call is usually the end of the night for the drunks in a bar- or in a strip club. One last call for alcohol, so finish your whiskey or soybeer. After all the drunks have left to go get picked up for drunk driving by Lonestar, there's a quiet time when they turn on all the lights and pick the place up before closing down.
It's weird seeing a strip club in full light. The carpets are patterned to hide stain, especially in the dark, but without the dim lighting for the mood, it just seems garish. The place stinks like sweat, jizz, and spilled beer, and seeing the girls tramp out of the place with no makeup and regular clothes really kills your desire to get a dance from them.
Olympus Mounds is one of the fancy places, too, a good old UCAS-style strip club with full nudity and a full bar, including alcohol made from actual grains instead of soybeans. Plenty of sararimen chose those seedy bunraku clubs instead, where you could get laid, but there was something classy and old fashioned about an honest strip club.
Kinsey was just a bouncer- hired magical muscle to keep an eye on things after that incident with the physad pick-pocket coming in here. He carried a gun- all of the bouncer did, in case things got dangerous- which they often did in the Mile High City.
Tiny Tina, the only troll stripper on staff, walks past with a goodnight and opens the door, letting in the cold air. That's the plug that lets the rest of the girls out, and they stream past as Kinsey helps stack chairs so the drones can clean the flooring- as well as anything would get those stains out.
It's not until he's almost done stacking chairs that he notices Tatiana waiting for him. Billed as an 'exotic' Russian, she was actually a Chechnyan immigrant trying to make it in Denver as an honest citizen. Tatiana wasn't her real name, but Sam, the guy who owned the club, wanted her to sound more Russian- because it sold more dances.
"Jon?" Tatiana asks using your fake name like everyone else at the club. She sounds timid and more than a little scared, "I... uh, I was talking to some of the other girls, and I have a problem."
A big swallow, a deep breath- maybe to enhance her bust as she leans forward, maybe to quiet her fears, and the punchline- "The other girls said you were a guy who solved problems."
Solved problems- that was a delicate way to put it. Wanted for questioning in connection to a massacre in the Pueblo side of town. Kinsey didn't want to think about that night- but it came to him. The smell of dust in the air, the bite of the smoke as the Red Samurai came through the wall. The feeling of panic, burning, and tearing as mana coursed through his veins-- forcing those feelings of panic down, Kinsey steels himself- she didn't need someone who was scared of that memory, she needed someone tough.
Kinsey muttered something noncommital; it was enough for her.
"I have a frie-- my, uh, brother," Tatiana pauses, looking around. But there was Mike the bartender cleaning up, and Johan the DJ uploading the sim feeds for the night. She lowers her voice "He has a problem, and LoneStar can't help him. Can you please help me? Him? Us?"
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"If you could kick the person in the pants responsible
for most of your trouble, you wouldn't sit for a month."
- Theodore Roosevelt
Sick Puppies - You're Going Down (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liW-kWFiXtQ)
(http://www.portrait-photos.org/_photo/983812.jpg)
Some girls just look like trouble. That's your first thought after you answer the call from an unknown number, and find yourself staring into beautiful blue eyes framed by big fake lashes.
Your stunned silence gives her the chance to start the conversation, and she runs off at full speed, barely pausing to breath, much less let you get a word in edge-wise.
"Oh my goddess, thank God you answered! I'm so worried! I have this friend, Jon, and he told me he'd look into solving some trouble I had, and then he came back a day later and told me that if I didn't hear from him in a couple of days, I should call this guy he knew- said there was only one guy bad-assed enough to finish the job if he couldn't!"
She quickly enhales, making her chest jiggle before she continues, "Anyway, he was looking into a problem that my boyfriend Roman has been having- his customers have been disappearing, and no one can help him. Jon looked into it, and now I haven't seen Jon in a few days, and I'm really fragging scared."
She bites her lip- she does actually look scared, and manages to look hot doing it- not bad for a woman who called you out of the blue. "Jon said to tell you that Kinsey sent me- that I needed your help. Does that mean anything to you? Can you help me?"
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Continues the juggling of the virtual balls one handed as he pays attentiont to the girl. His rhythm slows down a little bit but she couldn't see she distracted him.
"Well first clarify what you want me to do? Find Jon or find whose vanishing your boyfriend's customers or both? Second, what's the pay? I don't mine cred but for me and my usual line of work favors or info works well too. So you tell me what I am looking for and I will see what I can do. I promise nothing but if I deliver nothing I deserve nothing."
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"It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble.
It's what you know for sure that just ain't so."
- Mark Twain
Stars in Stereo - The Broken (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkVPQ1wV8Rg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v437/k1d_v1d/Natalia_zpsbe0ac62c.png)
"Da- I would be happy to do any favors you want!" the woman eagerly agrees; she's too cute to not be aware of how that could be taken, but it still sends a shiver up your spine.
She listens carefully when you ask about the job. English might not be her native language.
"Roman Tatikov, he is my love. Please make sure he's okay. Find Jon if you can, but he is toughest man I've ever met, I don't know think he'd leave the job undone if he was still able to finish it." She bites her lip again- she has to be aware of how she looks when she does that.
"Something is happening to Roman's clients. Please find him, help him. I'll pay you what I can, and other favors?"
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"Sounds good to me miss. So where am I going to investigate all of this? Also what is it that Roman does? I don't really care but I need to know so I don't go down any wrong path and get myself in more trouble than Jon. Also any info you have gathered from both would be useful so I can begin there if I can't pick up Jon's trail."
Disabling the game I begin moving around the room getting into my gear. Ejecting the gel rounds from my Crusader and inserting regular ammo. As much as Joe tries to avoid violence he might not get a choice in this one. The regular gel rounds he keeps equip is mainly to get people to put their heads down so he can get the hell away. Slipping the first round back into the clip and putting it back in his vest. As far as he can remember he hasn't killed anybody yet. He knows his way as far as he is concerned. Argues for half a second to take the car keys or not but picks them up anyway. If anything being able to say frak it and make a really quick getaway would be preferred to getting shot in the butt running away. Getting to the car still listening to the girl he puts the vest in the trunk of the car. Pulling the katana and putting it in the passenger seat and settling into the drivers starting the vehicle up. Hopefully nothing too bad has happened where he is going to worry about up security at the checkpoint. The katana will work them up into a lather but he has a license for that and that should keep them away from the trunk.
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"Women like silent men. They think they're listening."
- Marcel Archard
US Soliders being awesome (may contain Carly Jepsen) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhQKEEwzbAc)
(http://stashbox.org/785813/trunk.jpg)
Tatiana according to the link information she sent when she called, is happy to fill you in on what she knows- which isn't much, but she's happy to tell you all about it.
Roman Tatikov is her boyfriend. He is a dealer. Some drugs, mostly sims and BTLs. He got a connection to a source that gets him CalHots (illegal BTLs legal in CalFree and the PCC, and nowhere else because they leave behind brain-fried husks), and that allowed him to get a deed to a tenement in the Aurora Warrens, the lowest of the low security class in UCAS' section of Denver.
A few weeks ago, a couple of his customers started disappearing.
He's a drug dealer, and people fall off the grid, nothing to worry about.
Roman let people stay at the tenement, and problem solved, right? After the first few people who left never showed up again, he started to get worried. Lonestar turned him down (pretty hard- he spent 48 hours in lockup before they allowed him to see his attorney, at which point the attorney pointed out that they couldn't hold him without charging him, and since they didn't police the Z-zone, they didn't have jurisdiction), so they released him. Roman then went to the local gang, to try and get protection, but they took his money and nothing seemed to change.
Pretty soon, Roman had the place filled to the rafters, with no one willing to leave (and no new customers showing up meant a dwindling money pool). Now Roman is terrified, and so Tatiana started asking around if any of the girls at work (who she describes as 'clean and discrete') knew anyone. They pointed her to one of the bouncers, a magical tough named Jon who worked occasionally. Jon took the job, left, and called her back a day later and told her to contact you if she hadn't heard from him in a couple of days.
It's now almost the 48 hour mark from when she last talked to Jon, or Kinsey, or whatever his name was. There's a drug dealer, a hot and willing woman (with hot and willing friends), a tenement full of people too scared to leave, and something preying on them.
You realize that Tatiana finally stopped talking, and she's waiting for you to answer her question;
"How do you know Jon?"
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"I actually know him from a mutual friend here in Denver. He is a lot like me and help me learn who I was when he could. Anyway those of us with a magical nature who have fallen through the cracks learn about each other. The friend introduced me to Jon and then well my job had me stopping off at your club every few months drop off some special delivery item or resupply something. Usually early enough in the day where the girls are not there or late enough where you ladies are too busy to notice someone at the front door. That is where Jon usually was we chat about things and he further my education when I had the time and money. Unlike me Kinsey was a bigger fan of nuyen than I ever will be."
Programming the Pilot on the car but still keeping my hands on the wheel driving the car only barely. Bringing up the HUD of the contacts and making sure the safety is engaged on the pistol. Still listening to the girl as she talks to him.
"So does Roman have any idea where the people are disappearing to? I mean he has to have some clue where they are going off to? Rob a bank score money from friends or loan sharks? Also how many people are we talking about in this apartment place of his? I think my pricing might have to go up a little bit again not necessarily financial just favorables."
Thinking this is going to be a lucrative job not necessarily well paying but he could use all the favors and contacts that he could get. Slipping into traffic and getting ready for the haul to get to Roman's. Maybe I will make enough to get one of those Executive action submachine guns to help round out my firepower. Or another pistol like a Roomsweeper less range but one hell of a lot of bang for the buck.
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I'll need a negotiations roll. It's opposed, but don't worry about that just yet, let's see what you can get, first.
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OOC: Okay um where the hell were these rolls for Kinsey? :o
3d6 = 6,6,5 = 3 successes
http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4026504/
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Natalia's opposed roll:
(Cha 6 + 3 negotiations)[blockquote]Rolled 9d6>4 : 2, 3, 5, 2, 5, 4, 5, 2, 5, total 20[/blockquote]
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“Anything worth doing is worth overdoing.”
― Mick Jagger
Kidney Thieves - Zerospace (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1q5e7d7GKw0)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v437/k1d_v1d/Natalia_zpsbe0ac62c.png)
Natalia ponders your offer for a bit, and nods. You almost think she's agreeing with you, until you hear what she's saying.
"How about you do the job first, Cowboy, and we'll decide how much extra reward you deserve after?"
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"Oh okay well now that it all seems to be done on your end I will let you go. I will give you a call back when I get some more information or have any other questions. Let your boyfriend know I will be there soon.
Disconnects the call to watch the road and get to my destination.
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"Strong characters are brought out by change
of situation, and gentle ones by permanence."
- Jean Paul
Seether - Love Her (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVY8YFubAaY)
(http://i.huffpost.com/gen/530478/thumbs/r-ESCONDIDO-POLICE-DUI-CHECKPOINT-large570.jpg)
The best thing about Denver is that you can get used to just about anything- when Ghostwalker landed in town, the dust took months to settle, and a lot of people were angry about new security and new regulations, the new and improved ZDF and everything that went with it.
It's odd how a few years of stifling security at border checks changes things- rather than being close to rioting, people accept it, docilely sitting in their cars and waiting for the ZDF to check on them. The best way to cross without attracting attention is to cross where it's busy; it's easier to be one of ten thousand visitors to downtown than to be one of the six quite memorable people at the obscure ZDF outpost.
Of course, the tradeoff is that you spend an hour waiting at the crossing, no matter what time day or night. There's just as long a line at 3am as there would be Friday afternoon at 5pm. Well, honestly that line is probably longer, but what can you do?
Pulling through the ZDF checkpoint means a smile without showing too much teeth, yes you don't want to be here, but you're not worth noticing- it's a skill that's very difficult to master.
Fake SIN <Joe Turner> (4) + Charisma (2) + Etiquette (2) = 8 dice
[blockquote]Rolled 8d6>4 : 4, 1, 6, 5, 3, 2, 1, 2, total 11[/blockquote]
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Sliding across the border took a little longer than you would have liked, but pretty soon you have the ZDF in your rear imager, and you're blazing across the UCAS sector headed for Aurora.
You see regular Knight Errant patrols in the happy neighbrohoods, and then security beefs up as you head into the Z-Zone, but no one stops you. Why would they? It's none of their business if you want to die.
(http://blog.kenkaminesky.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Kaminesky-Blog-Montreal-The-abandoned-Babcock-Wilcox-boiler-factory-002.jpg)
You get to the approximate address- it's hard to tell with so much real-life and AR graffiti layered over each other, but this matches the GPS coordinates that Natalia gave you. There are a bunch of homeless people covered in trash, trying to keep warm in the pre-dawn chill, and one creepy guy with rotted teeth watching you intently- perhaps just the rage of a madman, but it creeps you out.
"Omae!" You hear shouted from one of the nearby buildings, and you see a shifty guy holding an AK-97 and looking terrified.
This must be Roman.
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"Yeah, hey... Roman right? You can just call me Haste I am going to get my stuff from my car. It is going to be okay here right? Why don't you give me any details you got?"
Gathering all my gear and strapping on my vest, holstering my gun and putting the katana on it's back sling. Being very slow and cautious so Roman doesn't shoot me.
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"Before you start pointing fingers, make sure your hands are clean."
- Bob Marley
Collective Soul - Shine (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_m0bI82Rz_k)
(http://fc02.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/333/4/c/movember_selfportrait__by_dmitrys-d33uqh1.png)
"Thank God you're here, man!" Roman sounds as though he actually means it- as much as anyone with dark circles under their eyes and the haze of cigarettes coming off of them- it looks like he's been pulling all-nighters out here in happy town.
Can you really blame him?
"Hey- YOU!" Roman shouts at the homeless, waving the gun around. The homeless stir, and begin shuffling off. The creeper that you saw first is talking to a wall, and doesn't pay you any heed.
"Yes, you!" Roman says to the one not paying attention, "Come," Roman shouts dis-articulately, "Get with it!"
Finally the homeless man glares in your direction and begins shuffling away. The others are alread long gone by this point- apparently this isn't the first time Roman has tried to get rid of them.
"Man, those fraggin bums, man, they bum me out," Roman confides in you, letting the assault rifle hang by its sling so that he can light another cigarette.
"So... Haste, what do you think you can do about our problem?"
Warehouse map (may be stolen)
(http://media.screened.com/uploads/0/1620/292776-18918_warehouse_map_m.jpg)
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Seeing his state of mind I decide to keep it short.
"Simply try to find your missing customers or whatever and find my missing friend. So why don't you tell me everything you told him and then tell me where he went from here? Then I will hopefully go find him and them and bring them all back here. Sound good?"
Leaning against my car feeling just trying to feel slow because this guy's jitters are making me antsy.
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"Move fast and break things.
Unless you are breaking stuff,
you are not moving fast enough."
- Mark Zuckerberg
Rival Sons - Keep on Swinging (Acoustic) (http://youtu.be/RovpHzHcfoQ?t=5s)
(http://fc02.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/333/4/c/movember_selfportrait__by_dmitrys-d33uqh1.png)
<Roman> | "I'll tell you what I told Kinsey--" Roman takes a long drag on his cigarette, the ember lighting the front of his face in the dark, shining in twin reflections in his glasses.
"I let people stay here, good customers, neh? A week ago, I had some good customers go out to get food, never came back. People went looking for them, never found nothing."
Roman gestures for you to follow him inside, "Here, come on in and I'll introduce you to everyone."
Roman looks at the dark night with suspicion on his face- he doesn't trust something out there. "Kinsey came in, looked around, talked to people for a couple of hours, and then said he wanted to take a look around the neighborhood. He never came back." |
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"You remember who Kinsey talked to? I am just going to ask them what it was he asked them and then maybe piece together what it was Kinsey found. Then I will go out there and find out what is going on. Don't worry I will come back because well one thing I do well is run so I will book it back here.
Walking into the building after Roman waiting for him to point out who he talked to.
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(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v437/k1d_v1d/warehousealt_zpscb1baa29.png)
Roman shrugs, "I wasn't in here for that, I went back out to watch the perimeter, omae. I know he talked to Maria and a couple of the others, because he wasn't here long."
Finishing his cigarette, Roman drops the butt and crushes it under the toe of his boot, and then pulls out the pack and sticks another to his bottom lip, turning and lighting it as he wanders out into the darkness.
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Kneeling down near the girl the I take as Maria. "So Maria I take it? What you and Kinsey talk about that sent him on his chosen path?
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(http://media.screened.com/uploads/0/1620/292776-18918_warehouse_map_m.jpg)
There's a small gathering of people. They look homeless, unwashed, and scared. They watched you interact with Roman, and now they're just watching you, trying not to hope for anything.
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Approaching slowly and asking very gently. "Hi there have any of you seen or spoke to my friend Kinsey in the last few weeks?" Just testing here not trying to startle or spook them just as casually as I can start the converstaion.
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"We're really quite nice and friendly, but
everyone has a beastly side to them, don't they?"
- Sid Vicious
Lady Gaga/Christopher Walken - Poker Face Mashup (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGH5ygIKyT0)
(http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2582/4101995572_3ea40cbb8d.jpg)
The people you walk up to look dirty, and scared, but not like junkies. One of the major benefits to BTL chips is that rather than frying your body like Cocaine or Deepweed, they fry your mind- your ability to understand emotion gets burned out when you spend so much time slotting CalHots, chips illegal here in the UCAS sector, but legal in the NAN sectors.
It leads to a delayed response, like when you talk to someone who's watching AR, or trideo while on a voice call with you- there's a delay while the words make their way into the brain and back out again. You get the slow blinks of some heavy addicts that are otherwise perfectly healthy- another reason some gangs preferred to deal in BTL- it left the organs clean to be harvested after the host died.
One of the men in the group, a dark-haired man with three days growth of beard, is the first to answer you. "Kinsey? That tough ork? Yeah, he showed up and asked questions, wanted to know about Walter and Sandy."
The man scans the crowd, looking for someone, but doesn't find them.
"He wanted to know about the missing people," a girl from the crowd prompts, "where they lived, why we think they're not coming back." She nudges the first man, "Tell him, Pale-Horse, about the people who wandered off and never came back."
You'd think she'd sound more scared, people getting abducted from the place where she's living in squalor without weapons, but she sounds like she's re-telling a story that someone mentioned they once scanned in a hero trideo.