[IC] Tʜᴇ Sᴘʀᴀᴡʟ :: Running in the Shadows

[Ms Ravenwinter]

---

Tight crowds pushed through the subway terminal. The smell of tram-side cart food gave way to the scent of fresh rainfall as they ascended into the artificially illuminated streets. The sun showed only the faintest glow through the grey-brown clouds as it sunk past the mountainous horizon; a sun that none in the eastside sprawl could see from the shadows cast by the sleekly oppressive towers of the city proper. These buildings only rose only a couple dozen storeys, all littered in bright neon signs begging passersby to peruse. The rainbow glow of hundreds of Cantonese symbols cast over the wet street, as the whirring of thousands of air conditioners, all fighting the sweltering summer heat, polluted the noise of city bustle. The crowd's pace picked up as the rains angled more and more sideways, sweeping the team along with the street's current.

Among these many signs is one in particular that these four hardened professionals needed to find. The sign hung over the corner street, with pink bands of light shining over Cantonese and Vietnamese text. It belonged to a quaint little noodle shop, titled with a pun that translates terribly to English. They broke off from the urban tide to file into the restaurant. The place was cheaply overdecorated. A hideous wallpaper was hidden behind rows of potted plastic plants. Multicolored chairs crowded the floorspace as wire-frame fans oscillated from atop the walls. Quilts hung over the open kitchen area in the back corner, each painted over with various menu items. The sizzling of stir-fry crackled through the talkative atmosphere as nearly the entire place was packed with people. That is, except for one table, where a burly man in a straight-edged suit sat expectantly among empty chairs.

That was their contact. Their soon to be employer. The so-called 'Mr. Wu'. He noticed the team almost immediately as they entered. Not many others here wearing that much chrome. He didn't beckon them over, instead just waiting patiently and quietly for them to come and sit. Once they did, even if just to keep him at ease, it was easier to get a look at him. He was built wide and packed on a lot of pounds, with a few empty bowls stacked at the corner of the table showing his eating habits. The contact was trim, his balding hair kept tidy and his posture measured. He looked like the very image of a corporate mouthpiece, if not for the little bit of ink peaking out from below his high collar.

"Charming little place, isn't it?" the man said in a soft-spoken yet assertive voice.

---

[Muttonhawk]

New Canton wasn't a place to carry an umbrella if you didn't want it stolen or swept away in a crowd. Serge instead walked amongst his colleagues with a clear plastic poncho that some street kids were selling for candy bars. The many oppressive droning sounds of the city were at least somewhat cancelled by that patter of water on plastic around his ears. Then again, he relied more on his eyes to navigate and watch his back.

The team today gave Serge mixed feelings. He raised an eyebrow and looked over his shoulder to check that they weren't lagging in the crowd.

Andi was skilled, but you could not rely on her to disregard what needed disregarding. She had a knack for expanding the scope of their missions together. Especially if something whiffs of Sinsek.

Siofra was an enemy that you would want to keep closer than your friends. Serge preferred to keep her close no matter their disposition to one another. As long as that little secret between eight and eighteen years old she kept was safe, she could focus. If half the shit she let Serge know about that story was true, he had other reasons to keep that detail out of the firing line.

And then there was Jack. When Serge first arrived in New Canton, he thought the local operators telling him he 'didn't know Jack' was a borrowed western slight against his inexperience in the city. They said it every time he underestimated their chances of something going arse-over-head on the job. He knows Jack now. Everyone does. She is as likely to reverse gravity on the tits of the mission as she is to blast enough heads open to make it all better. It was neither Serge's area of expertise nor his preferred method of doing things.

Freelance operators weren't picked for missions where their skills wouldn't be needed. That told Serge this mission was going to me rough. Though, he needed the job.

Serge wasted no time in pushing into the restaurant so his senses could be overwhelmed by something different. Even if the food could increase your risk of cancer around these parts, spices still passed hands occasionally. It was a much better smell than outside.

The contact caught Serge's eye in short order. He frowned at the others and nodded in the man's direction before peeling off the water-beaded poncho. His grey suit underneath was spotless as always as he approached.

When the contact spoke, Serge looked left and right and pulled a sturgeon face. "They must put something charming in the kway teow if it's that good," Serge said, gesturing to the man's many discarded bowls. "Mister Wu, I presume?" He extended a hand. "Serge."

Once introductions were cleared up, Serge took a seat, weaved his fingers together and leant forward on his elbows. "How can we help you today?"

[corneredbliss]

The street was crowded as the team ascended from the tunnels below, seemingly further from the actual surface by the illusion of the flashy buildings, and from somewhere nearby came the stench of shit that had yet to be swept up by patrol. Lights of every color and shape washed over the four of them as they made their way past vendors and consumers, all chatting or shouting, their images through windows occasionally distorted by the droplets of water assaulting them on a bias. It was another typical rainy day in New Canton for most passerby, but for Andromeda and her colleagues, it was the perfect excuse to search for some warm food.

She didn't mind the rain. Preferred it, actually. The gloom always seemed such a fitting undertone for the little city, a mood that only its countless blinking signs could whisk away. A long, black duster with a hood kept her dry, wicking the moisture away as if she were as steely as the buildings themselves. She followed along just behind the only male in their group with quick yet slinking footsteps, her eyes moving from face to face as they pushed past her but never losing track of his broad shoulders ahead.

How could she, anyway? The tsk tsk tsk of the plastic as he moved would have easily been ignored by someone less observant than Andi; but for her, it was a constant dissonance from the normal rhythms of this stroll. It was really quite hard for her not to make a comment about how idiotic Serge looked in his dinky poncho, though she wouldn't have expected less of him, having worked with him previously.

The other two women were familiar faces, as well. It wasn't that Andi didn't enjoy the company she'd been dealt this time around - she just wasn't sure what the job was in the first place. Judging from the last couple of times she'd been sent out with any of this motley crew, it had been more than an easy cleanup.

As they entered the restaurant and Serge shook off his little coverup, she had to resist letting slip a tease about how it had missed a rain spot near the hem of his pant leg. The thought of his irrational response hooked the corner of her mouth in a small grin as slender hands slipped the slick hood from her head, freeing her face from underneath. It was with this subtly sly expression that she slid into the seat beside her comrades, across from this new contact. Her body language was relaxed, languid - even as she leaned forward to shake his hand upon introductions. "Andi."

And just as it had been before, Serge dove right into the meat of it. Andromeda leaned back into the seat and crossed her legs beneath the table, eyes agile as they had been on the street as they darted around what she could see of the interior of the restaurant, taking stock as was habit.

[ihinka]

Síofra was twisting and turning on her futon. Ironically she was the one who ended up with the nightmares rather than Lilly who'd gone through that... that... that monstrosity that the tech could not even bring herself up to describe. So it was the scrawny looking teen that often rushed into her room to shake Síofra's sweat covered body awake instead of the other way around. Well, not to say that the kid was splendidly adjusted. Heck no! Mammoth panic attacks could be triggered by the smallest and most unassuming thing. Some of the triggers were obvious and both of them knew to avoid them as best as they could. But than there were those that snuck up on both of them and the tech would be left with a virtually unresponsive teen girl in her hands to take back to their humble abode. As inconspicuous as the ex soldier could make the trek back with a catatonic teen in her arms. People tended to notice that!

And yet it was Síofra that had ended up with the nightmares. Or night terrors as Lilly's most discrete head shrink had called them. The tech payed more than good buck for that therapist. She knew that Lilly needed professional help after what had been done to her and she knew she would have to pay good cred to keep whatever happened within those sessions confined to the room they took place in. But she'd lucked out with a doctor that had once been approached to participate in programs similar to TVP's and upon refusal had barely made it out with their skin intact. Suffice to say Doc had her own motives to help Lilly and be most discrete about it. But when Síofra had mentioned the nightmares she'd offered to listen and with Lilly's constant nagging to do it the ex soldier had finally caved. She was learning fast that there wasn't much she wouldn't do for her adoptive sister.

So the Doc had said that with her case it probably came down to guilt. That even though Síofra hadn't know what really happened to the kids, the girls especially, she felt responsible. Well, of course she felt responsible. She didn't need a shrink to tell her that. She knew she was responsible. She'd told the Doc as much, but than the woman had gone into a lengthy explanation how responsibility and guilt were not the same and how they could affect the subconscious in a different way. Still, since talking appeared to help somewhat Síofra did it whenever she felt like it, but absolutely refused to go into regular therapy the way Lilly did. She could handle the nightmares, especially after what she'd witnessed at TVP, which had led to her busting Lilly out. What she couldn't handle was Lilly's worried expression each time she had to shake her awake.

It still boggled Síofra's mind how Lilly didn't hold any grudge against her for the part she'd played in Lilly's imprisonment. The ex soldier wasn't personally responsible for the teen's capture, but was among the soldiers who were tasked with such retrievals. And Lilly knew that and still forgave her. Síofra shook her head to chase away the thoughts of her sister and to put her mind on the job at hand. Her eyes darted over the figures of her team mates for this op. She knew them by reputation, of course, but she did have some small personal experience with all of them. Serge, the burly dandy with that ridiculous transparent poncho over his precious suit, had helped her with that data mining job down at the MOLE tunnels. It had been a solid job and even with the new scrapes and bruises Lilly fussed over, she was satisfied with the outcome.

Síofra's eyes lingered on Andi a beat longer. Not that Serge didn't strike a fetching picture. He most certainly did, but not to one with her proclivities. No, to her he was just a handsome bloke in a suit. While Andi... Well... Plus she was a tough broad. And Síofra respected that. Especially in this day and age! But, of course, she would have in any day and age. Strong women were simply attractive to her. Aaaaand then there was Jack. Síofra often wondered if she could have ended up like Jack, had she stayed with TVP long enough. But right now she didn't have time enough to ponder that particular possibility or reminisce about the job she'd done with Andi that originated the idea about the TVP data mining op as the group was just entering the locale of their meet up. Their contact was already waiting for them and it would appear they'd made the appropriate use of the place if the bowls of consumed food were any indication. The tech seated herself beside the others not really bothering to introduce herself. If these people had contacted them for a job, they knew well enough who they were. Instead she just let Serge do the talking and flagged a waiter.

"Better order something or we'll stand out like a sore thumb." She spoke quietly as if to herself.

[Ms Ravenwinter]

---

The others kept up their precautions for the weather, but Jack came into the shop dripping. She didn't have the kind of 'ware to rust, and she liked to feel the rain on her face. Boot-heels made unsubtle thuds on her way to the client, and some wary heads turned as it was clear quick that she didn't belong. Luckily she was smart enough to keep the chrome off display, so most of the eyes didn't linger for too long. She sat herself as the Wu exchanged handshakes with the others, but made no introduction herself. He knew what he was getting into in hiring her; there was no need for pleasantries.

The client gave a hearty chuckle at Serge as he firmly shook the hand of the broad-shouldered professional. "You can certainly say they have ways of getting people hooked," he replied as he continued with the greetings, stopping at Jack and giving her a knowing nod, "Yes, I am he. And as you know, I have a pressing business proposition for you four. Now... He cleared his throat, wiping his hands off with his used napkin. Once the cloth was discarded into the twin bowls at his flank, he knitted his chubby fingers together before him, keeping stern eye contact with the team. "The task we have for you is a simple retrieval service," the man spoke calmly through his husky tone and professionally-groomed accent, "Hosaka Electronics has a branch here in the city, and a week from now they're transferring an important asset to an unknown location."

An exhausted looking waiter troddled to the edge of the table, stains all over his apron. He held a notepad in a hand adorned with several junky cybernetic digits, with clear signs of rusting and wear. He took orders in a heavy accent and broken English, making the immediate assumption that the team couldn't speak Cantonese. The Wu gave pause in the boy's immediate presence, unwilling to let too much on among uninvited ears.

Once the young waiter shuffled off with their orders, the Wu spoke up again, "The transfer is by armored truck, so the extraction should be precise and potent. There will be armed guards aboard the truck and in the Hosaka facility. You can either infiltrate the facility and extract the asset before it is loaded onto the truck, or find a way to corner it during transit. However you decide to do it," he leans in and speaks intently to make the point abundantly clear, "The asset must not be harmed, and must not reach its destination. I'm sure professionals like you can understand these terms."

---

[Muttonhawk]

Serge listened intently to Mister Wu. The others behaved themselves well enough that he did not have to break his attention from the man. The only real interruption was the waiter. Serge gave him a quick look, shaking his head and waving his hand in polite refusal. He wasn't hungry.

Once Mister Wu had finished, Serge nodded deeply. He took a quick breath. "What can you tell us about the asset? Description, dimensions, weight, hazard? The method will depend on what we're dealing with." Serge lowered his hands. "Not to mention our solution to how you want the asset ultimately dealt with."

These contacts ranged from stingy with information to clear and specific. It really depended less on their actual background knowledge and more on what they're willing to be liable for telling them. Either way, Serge was only halfway thinking of plans. The other half of his mind was running the numbers for whether the pay would be worth it once Mister Wu gave them a figure.

[Ms Ravenwinter]

---

While Serge went on with his inquiries, the Wu leaned back in his chair, relaxed. He didn't seem to be so much listening as he was paying attention to anything suspicious and mentally discarding the rest. He rested his interlocked hands on his gut, just below the chest, as he said, "Now, you don't seem like the inexperienced type, so I hoped I wouldn't have to say this. And now I have to say, I'm afraid that isn't how this works. Once you get the asset, we'll arrange for a meet on our terms. That's all you need to know. Do we have a de--"

A metallic click onto the table cut the client's sentence short, as eyes turned toward Jack. A mechanical hand gripped at one of her sinister-looking knives, pressing it to the table in the Wu's direction. "I believe my partner here asked you a simple set of questions," she said in her low metallic rasp, with cold eyes piercing straight through the man's gaze. Her fingers dragged across the plastic top of the table in a barely audible scrape as she gripped the threatening blade tighter in readiness.

His reply: a laugh. It bubbled up slowly after a moment of his intense stare upon the cybered woman, quickly rising to a hearty chortle. When she opened her mouth to speak, his right hand snapped upward, flat, and level with his head. In that motion, several bodies in black clothes rose from their seats among the restaurant, and two more stepped in through the front door. Each one sported varying levels of chrome and muscle, but each wore a hefty chip on their shoulder and directed threatening stares toward the team.

"No, please, do continue on. I'm all ears, Miss," he prodded with a shit-eating grin pasted onto his face. The moment after drew too long, as patrons started to notice and get chillingly quiet. All eyes were on their table and the goons set up all around them. Jack's jaw clenched. She wasn't one to back down from a threat. Especially not from a scum-sucking lowlife like this. But eventually, whether her team pleaded her to or not, she swallowed her pride. She turned the blade around on her palm and tucked it back into her sleeve, easing back into her chair and acting like it never happened.

"A wise decision there," the Wu sniggered to himself as he lowered his arm. The goons retracted just as soon, but remained very attentive to the conversation. Some of the patrons went back to their business, though going a bit faster with their food than before. A couple tables of people slipped away about as soon as the muscle relaxed, not at all willing to risk another upstart like that. As people shuffled out, the Wu leaned over the table and extended an open hand to Serge. "I think that means we have a deal then, don't we?" he said, that irritating grin still played across his face.

---

[corneredbliss]

Heeding Siofra's quiet words, Andromeda motioned for the waiter to come closer to her, eliciting an almost uncomfortable expression from him as she leaned up and practically purred her request for hot tea into his ear. Amused by this, she watched the boy pad away after taking whatever orders were left with the same, almost aloof air she'd had upon sitting down at the table.

Not that she hadn't been paying attention to the conversation, of course. They had to play fetch for this man - or, whoever it was that had hired him. Her eyes peeled themselves away from the waiter after he disappeared into the kitchen to fall once again onto their newest Mister Wu while Serge pressed on for details. It was upon this second, closer inspection that - after a few moments returning to the same spot because it seemed... off - could she spot the thinnest of wires peeking from beneath his lapel, visible only by way of the slightest contrast to his skin and shirt. Someone was being naughty. Who was it now that wanted to listen in on their dinner?

Her attention was snapped away from the fact at movement beside her, followed by even more of a ruckus behind the group as a solid wall of the contact's safety net made themselves apparent throughout the establishment. Body tensed from instinct, Andromeda's brow furrowed as the corners of her mouth turned down into a concerned pout; though truthfully she was much more annoyed than anything by a) the fact she hadn't seen these now so obviously planted thugs and b) Jack couldn't keep her damn trigger finger quiet for five seconds.

"Jack, darling," Andi crooned, swaying lightly toward the woman beside to her, and like a lover on a second date murmured, "Why don't we save our energy for the real deal, hmm?"

Eventually the whole of the restaurant (civies included, it seemed) took a breath of relief as the blonde palmed the blade, and the black force of trouble retreated into their seating. It was all Andromeda could do not to roll her eyes at Wu's sniggering as she continued to watch Jack, unwilling to turn to see the smug smile that was no doubt on his face for having won the little standoff. Serge would handle the closing events, as he always did. Andi was more concerned about not getting themselves into any more trouble before the mission even began. Though with that hidden tap on this asshole's person, she was sure more complication was on a horizon not too far.

[Muttonhawk]

Serge took a slow breath in and curled his lips inward when Jack flashed a knife. Serge suspected that he either didn't make it clear enough to her earlier that she shouldn't be fucking this up for them or she was just doing this to assert that she wasn't the one to take those kinds of instructions. In the end, none of them -- least of all, Jack -- could ignore the consequences of reality.

"Jack?" Serge intoned slowly and with no lack of frustration held back. "You want this job? You're gonna put away that blade." Only at the end of his words did he shift his eyes up to hers.

Andi's words were added as well and were likely more effective. Jack calmed down and Serge could finally turn his attention back to Mister Wu.

"You'll have to forgive my colleague. She's very passionate about work." Serge was partially defeated under his words, but waved a hand just enough while talking to keep Mister Wu engaged. "Now, to answer you properly, this...is not my first retrieval. I understand that matters like this can be sensitive for your employers. So, we'll retrieve this asset for you, in the manner you've requested, per our services. Before you know it, we'll have exchanged as invoiced, and we can both go some place far apart from one another and sip a cocktail for a good day's work done. That truck won't take that asset anywhere we can't get it."

>Serge stakes 2 cred on this mission.

[ihinka]

Síofra's attention was divided between listening to Mr. Wu's words and observing intently Jack. She knew Andi and Serge well enough to trust their behavior during a meeting. Jack, however was a whole different story. The ex soldier knew her type well enough and even though the assassin was behaving herself so far no one knew when she might explode into a flurry of undesired actions. The tech might have been able to interfere with Jack going for her knife had it not been for Mr. Wu's explanation about the specifics of the job. The way he was explaining about the asset and how it should not be harmed under any circumstances struck a cord with Síofra.

Lilly's face flashed inside her mind's eye. TVP used to call the children they were collecting assets. The girls especially were to be collected with the utmost care for their health, while the boys could stand to sustain a ding here and there. The moment the thought of Lilly crossed the ex soldier's mind Jack made her move and Síofra was a few moments late to grab her wrist surreptitiously and stop her. With the opportunity missed the tech clenched her hands in fists and growled low in her throat allowing the situation to play itself out, but she stomped her army boot on Jack's toes to make her point. Behave, damn it! She didn't trust herself to say anything out loud, because next to Jack she would be considered the second hottest hothead in the group. And she was right to delay as Andi intervened fluidly making Síofra a teeny tiny bit jealous she wasn't the one being scolded.

And thank heavens for Andi's quick reaction, because as soon as Jack made her move so did all of Wu's goons hidden among the patrons of the establishment. But with the situation resolved, things quickly calmed down and talks proceeded. Only this time, thanks to Jack's interference, with Mr. Wu having the upper hand completely. And Síofra wasn't too keen on taking on a job like that with such vague info to go on. Also, she wasn't too sure she could guarantee she'd allow this asset to reach Wu's hands upon completion of the job. But it was no use crying over spilled milk so she would commit to the deal and adjust accordingly in stride.

After Serge assured Mr. Wu they would take care of the job she nodded somberly and removed her boot from Jack's toes.

>Síofra also stakes 2 cred on this mission.

---

After Serge and Mr. Wu had hammered down all the arrangements for the job, their new employer left the dingy food joint, his cohorts slithering behind him like ominous shadow creatures. With all libations and food consumed and the table cleared by the young nervous waiter, the hodge-podge of free agents sat there in quiet reflection.

Síofra was debating an issue with herself. The team would need a base of operations of sorts. Her place was quite secure. It needed to be because of Lilly. And had she been on her own she wouldn't hesitate to offer it to the team. But with Lilly to think of... She just wasn't sure if she could afford to let her new team mates into her home. On her own she could easily find new digs if their safety became compromised, but with her high-profile sister in tow it was a different story. The ex-soldier scanned the others at the table one by one. Doc's not gonna be happy about this. Síofra sighed, deciding to go with her gut.

"My place is secure enough to serve as our HQ for this job." The tech spoke in her usual quiet unassuming tone. "But I, uh..." The constant assuredness with which she spoke waivered for a moment. "I live with someone and your presence in my house cannot under any circumstances threaten their existence!" The threat in her words was crystal clear to anyone listening. "If I let you inside my home and any harm comes to her due to something you did..." Síofra removed her tech goggles, paused for effect, squaring all three with her deep blue eyes. "You will be erased from existence, no questions asked!"

The ex-soldier got up, uninterested in the reactions of her new team mates to her words. "Let's go." She urged, putting her goggles back on. She took the usual precautions leading the group to her house. Only this time she executed everything twice to be extra sure no one, or thing, had followed them. Once that was done the team found themselves in an old subway tunnel system that appeared derelict. They stopped a few times while inside the tunnel while Síofra fiddled with some old access panels, until they finally reached a door most people would overlook. As soon as the tech approached it a beam was emitted by a device above it. The soft blue glow scanned the slight, fit figure of the ex-soldier and a panel appeared from inside the wall to the left of the door. Síofra entered a long sequence of letters, numbers and symbols and the door hissed open.

"Lilly wait!" A concerned female voice warned at the same time as a teen girl yelled excitedly: "You're back! Finally!" Síofra, used to the excited welcome home from the girl, received the flying hug with ease, but also with some amount of awkwardness considering the presence of her guests in toe.

"Um, Lil, hi... we... um... have guests." The amount of stammering was mortifying and the ex-soldier pried Lilly's body away from hers and looked to the owner of the concerned female voice for some help. "Hi, Doc." She muttered sheepishly. The tech could tell Lilly's shrink and babysitter was not pleased one iota by this development. But since what was done was done she placed a hand on Lilly's shoulder.

"Lilly, let your sister and her friends inside." The thirty something Latina looking woman urged, shooting daggers at Síofra.

As the group shuffled in and the security measures put up once again Doc sidled close to the tech and whispered in her ear: "Once they're settled, we'll talk!" The command in her voice unequivocal. All the while Lilly was busy ushering the guests inside, playing the hostess. Well, at least I'm doing something right. Síofra thought watching the teen girl act all polite and well-mannered.

[Muttonhawk]

Serge watched Mister Wu exit. Not moments before, they shook hands on a job that was more coerced than negotiated in the end. They would still get a decent pay, sure, if they honoured their part of the bargain. From where Serge stood up straight, he was giving a smile to whomever looked back at him from the security detail. Once they were all gone, he lowered himself back down onto the plastic chair at the table, leant forward on his elbows, and held his closed fist against his lips. He sat, thinking, and staring into space.

Even if Serge looked like he had just been diagnosed with a venereal disease, the others would have picked up by now that this was his serious thinking face. He barely even shifted his eyes when Andi spoke up.

Serge opened his fist in a gesture and returned it to his lips. "We could use a place to start looking into this," he said, standing up. "Lead the way."

---

Serge couldn't keep his eyes off the various features of the tunnel around him. He could have been was scanning for surveillance devices but he was just as likely to be watching out for leaky pipes.

"You really put those MOLEcorp vulnerabilities to good use, huh?" Serge commented. His voice carried along the concrete walls a distance ahead.

Serge did not have time to ask how the follow-up actions to their previous data acquisition mission had gone for Siofra. He was honestly expecting to spot some clues as to what she had found out in her home. Serge was surprised to see a woman and a young girl waiting for them on the other side of the door, but things did not click together just yet.

"So, I'm gonna guess this is the one you want to keep existing, right?" Serge asked. "Who are these people, exactly, Siofra?"

The twinge in Serge's voice told of his distaste for involving strangers in their mission.

[Ms Ravenwinter]

---

After the sweaty mitt of the client retracted from Serge's hand, he wobbled out of the noodle shop with a smug sense of self-importance, his goons slinking behind him like a messy shadow. "Pleasure to do business with you," he had said with a throaty chuckle. The patrons all watched as they pushed out the front door. A child sat up and pointed, before being quickly hushed down by their mother. After the doors clacked shut, there was but a moment's pause before the place's atmosphere kicked back up in full swing, as if nothing had ever happened, with only a few wary eyes still lending frequent sidelong glances to the team's table. Just another Tuesday here.

And just as apathy set in to her surroundings, Jack simply leaned back in her seat nonchalance, arm hooked over the back rest. "I guess that didn't go down too well, did it?" she said, even-toned, while in one hand she fiddled with the knife that she had threatened the man with. She acted unfazed, calloused. The boot-heel to her toes barely elicited a response as Síofra's stomp thudded off her dermal plating. The words of caution from the others mostly were replied with a clench of the jaw. She knew she was trouble, and she made it very clear then that she didn't care.

"Oh great," she rasped, pulling the bill from the edge of the table, placed there by the nervous newbie waiter, "Looks like the bastard left us with his check."

---

Rapid drips of mud-sogged water formed a dirty puddle in the concrete labyrinth, showing the darkened reflections of the team as they stepped through the dank tunnels to Síofra's hideaway. There were occasional sounds of skittering rats in the darkness, all amplified by the echoing of this underground chamber. People passed, few and far between, going about their own business. Some seemed like obvious criminals moving about unseen, and some seemed like normies getting from point A to B. Either way, everybody kept to their own business. As long as everyone here had something to hide, nobody was going to blow any whistles.

After the ocular haze of security scanning, the blunt and metallic thud of heavy door bolts, and the wheezing hiss of admittance, the team were at their base for the night. The awkward scene of Síofra and company played out in the team's brief silence, leaving Jack with crossed arms and Serge with a burning question. "Isn't it obvious by the animosity, Clean?" Jack cut in, stepping through the vault hatch with the appearance of a door, "They're family."

The interior of the was spacious and well-furnished despite the steamy pipes all over the walls and the boiler in the corner. No apartment was exactly beyond prying eyes, and anything but a ground floor certainly couldn't handle the octoped's heft, or link straight into the abandoned subway. And so there was one real choice, an apartment complex basement. Ms Cheong, the swarthy and elderly landlady, kept her mouth shut so long as the rent was paid and they kept the pipes running. Though, for the most part, the place was rather livable.

And Lilly did indeed play the polite little hostess for these well-armed and well-cybered strangers. The teen invited these street agents in, pulled out chairs out by the dinner table, and offered to take their coats. And when she did she hung them all right over the trigger to Síofra's shop. Suddenly, it seemed as if maybe the girl was being a little too polite. And, indeed, Lilly was trying to distract from and hide the shop, because it was a disaster in there. Gear broken and scattered across the floor, tool boxes completely spilled, and stores of spare parts turned to scrap. In the middle of it all lay Octy in a splayed pile, chrome tendrils spanning much of the room, and its controller dropped to the ground in the corner. It seemed like Lilly had herself an accident while playing around with the big girl toys.

---

[ihinka]

"Lilly is my sister, yes." Síofra nodded in agreement at Jacks snarky answer to Serge's question. "And Doc... Doc is the only one I trust to take care of her while I'm out on jobs." The ex-soldier hesitated. "And that's all you need to know." Síofra nodded at Lilly. "My sister will show you where to set up. I'll be right back." She finished and followed a very irate looking Doc behind a door that probably led to a bedroom.

As Lilly was showing the team Síofra's 'office room' where Myrtle was set up, connected to a wall of four monitors, muffled voices could be heard arguing.

"I can't believe you just brought them here!" Doc was furious. Her mocha skin was flush with righteous anger. "I know you don't need me to tell you what's at stake here!" She pierced Síofra with a steely stare. "No one can know about Lilly!!! The more people know the bigger the chance for TVP to find us." The half-pint Latina kept fuming like this, strolling back and forth while Síofra stood motionless and observed the rant with a mixture of indignation and amusement. As well as a small dose of the warm fuzzies. She watched for another moment or two and when it appeared that Doc wouldn't be running out of gas anytime soon she stepped in front of her to halter her pacing. The therapist stopped dead in her tracks and was forced to draw her head back to look at Síofra. She was still fuming.

"First of all..." The ex-soldier began, removing her goggles and fixing her blue eyes on Doc's stormy brown ones. "I would never... never do anything to jeopardize Lilly's life! You damn well know that so for you to suggest otherwise is..." Síofra left the sentence hanging. "Second... I would have never invited these people in my home if I wasn't sure that they were trustworthy." As Doc opened her mouth to protest Síofra silenced her raising her index finger. "And third... You said us." Síofra added with a playful glint in her eyes.

"I..." Doc tried to argue, but there was a telltale blush suffusing her cheeks. "You..." She tried again and when Síofra grinned at her that cheeky grin that only she could Doc groaned and shook her head. "Fine! I mean. I trust you! Lilly trusts you! I still don't have to like it though." She finished petulantly jabbing a finger into Síofra's chest.

"So noted." The ex-soldier saluted loosly and Doc swatted at her.

By the time the two had exited the room Lilly had shown the group the office room and was being so polite and well-mannered that something on Síofra's radar pinged. The girl was also almost desperately trying to steer the team away from the door to the lab. Which was strange since she was supposed to show them that room as well. A realisation hit the tech and the blood drained from her already pale face. She rushed towards the door to the lab and Doc scurried behind her with a look on her face that said 'she was only in there for like fifteen minutes, how much could she mess it up?'. But when Síofra opened the door undeterred by Lilly's attempts to turn her away Doc knew by the look on her face that it was bad. Really bad!

A small muscle on Síofra jaw was jumping frantically up and down. Doc watched it and the taller woman mesmerized. The struggle lasted for but a moment and then the tech closed the door. That tiny muscle silent, her blue eyes unreadable. "I only wanted to play with Octa a bit." Lilly's small voice explained. "You know it calms me down." She tried to justify her actions, but it was painfully obvious the kid knew she'd messed up. Her head was hung between her shoulders and she was crestfallen. "I'm sorry." She murmured.

Síofra nodded. "I know you're sorry. But what do we say?"

"Sorry's not enough." Lilly supplied obviously used to this line of scolding. "I'll clean it up." She added.

"No." The tech shook her head. "You should have cleaned up right after. Now is too little too late. I have work in there and I won't be able to do it." She put her hand on Lilly's shoulder and used the other one to raise her head by the chin. "You're better than this Lil. I know it. You know it. Having fun is good and all, but how would you feel if I messed up your room and left it like that for you to find."

"Pissed." Lilly answered barely managing to hang on to the eye contact. "I'm grounded, aren't I?"

Síofra nodded. "One week." Lilly's eyes became huge with the length of the punishment. "I don't want to, kid. I know it helps you. But this is how you learn. Right?"

"Yeah." Lilly mumbled.

"Come on, Lilly, let's go to your room and finish that homework." Doc hugged the dejected girl. "You're sister and her friends have work." Lilly nodded as Doc pushed her toward her room. "Go, I'll be there in a minute."

"Nicely done!" Doc said to Síofra as the teen trudged for her room. She looked at the lab door. "How long?"

Síofra sighed. "The whole night most likely." She answered massaging the ridge of her nose.

"I'm sorry." Doc said. "I should have checked after she left the lab, but she was only in there for like fifteen minutes."

"No, Doc, it's not your fault. Lilly know she's only allowed in there if she cleans up after herself. This way she'll learn."

"Can I at least help you clean up?"

Síofra looked at Doc, amusement in her eyes.

"Hey!" Doc protested indignantly. "I know the difference between a welder and a wrench."

"Mhm." The tech chuckled. "Thanks, Doc, but I got it covered."

---

Síofra sat in front of Myrtle, cracked her knuckles and started typing. The team needed to know when this asset was getting moved if they were gonna intercept it during transit. They could try hitting the streets and find the intel that way. But that could take too long and there was no guarantee the info would be sound. She much preferred to fish straight from the source, but unfortunately she didn't have a tap on Hosaka to try for a direct hack. So she needed to find someone who did. There were bound to be plenty of people out there that wanted nothing more than to mess with that particular corp. And Síofra knew the perfect place to look for such individuals. Or groups. 'CorpsRU'. It was a netroom withing the darkweb frequented by corp haters of all sorts. Sure, there was the occasional nutjob and the not so savory types with shady morals and agendas, but Síofra knew how to navigate the oddballs in 'CorpsRU'.

"Need a line on Hosaka's servers to do some damage. Any interested party that comes forward with access lines will be compensated accordingly." Síofra typed the message, making sure to put in the necessary encryption, firewalls and safeguards. When she was positive no identity could be discerned from the add she pushed away from the cyberdeck. She couldn't do much but wait now. Okay, Lil, let's see just how big of a mess you've left me with. The tech thought as she strode toward the lab. On her way there she grabbed her trusty goggles and put them on. Myrtle would alert her via them if she got an answer to her add.

[corneredbliss]

The few, hurried sips of the tea delivered to the table by the waiter was enough to hold Andromeda over as they traveled through the murky tunnels behind Siofra. The brunette wasn't much of a neatnik (though no one was anything near it compared to Serge), but she preferred not to be tromping through rat shit if it could be helped. Still, she followed behind calmly enough, with the occasional tensing of the muscles every time anyone passed by. Their leader didn't seem to have any problem with it, however, and soon Andi realized they were probably just as much put on guard by their presence as vice versa.

Eventually they reached what she supposed was the techie's front door, and after completing the necessary security checks, the door opened to reveal a blur of a young girl eager to greet her sister. The scene was sweet enough, but even as Andromeda couldn't help the little smile as she observed the affection, there was something else in her expression that was hard to place. The ambivalence was quick to disappear, and if anyone had bothered to give her a second glance, they would have just seen a bemused grin as they entered into the place and made the necessary introductions.

Lily was cute and quite eager, the youthful energy refreshing after spending most of her time with operatives or no one at all - barring the one night stands that were really strictly physical. The other two probably thought she was being superfluous the way she enthusiastically responded to the girl's tour, all warm smiles and positive exclamations when necessary. She was even a little sympathetic when she was finally caught in her act, and as the group disbanded from the tour, a slightly confused Andi found herself murmuring to no one in particular, "Wow. Being grounded is almost a foreign concept to me, now..."

With the woman of the house off to do her own thing, Andromeda found herself wandering over to the long couch and sinking into it. It was obvious that the tone had changed, and it was time to get some work done. Lucky for her, she knew just the person that might get them some more answers for the job. "I may have a lead," she announced to whoever was leftover nearby as she slipped her phone from her side pocket. It looked to be the grey outline of half a rectangle resting in her palm, though when she pressed her thumb against its bottom mass, a digital screen unfolded itself upward, filling out the rest of the shape. "Might be able to get us some inside information on this whole thing... Let's see if he's awake."

Having already pulled up a blank message screen, Andromeda began to touch the pad, which gave slight buzzes with every letter:

_{TO: DARWIN HAYES
DARWY BABY! HOPE U HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN ABOUT ME. FREE TONIGHT? I'M FEELING A LITTLE LONELY...}

[Muttonhawk]

Serge remained passive during Lilly's tour. He did not pay Lilly so much as a second of eye contact as he scanned around the rooms, pretending to look like he was noticing things. In his mind, he would rather not have met Lilly or Doc at all. The fact that they were knew to his knowledge after the operations against TVP made them a risk. A risk he had no interest of being involved with. It was too late now.

"I'm gonna need to use the bathroom," Serge said, pointing to one side from his hip. His forward-held head turned as he crept away for a moment.

He didn't really need to take a leak. He just needed a minute to think and brush up. He checked his teeth, pushed down the rebellious strands of short hair, straightened his collar, and leant forward with his hands on the basin. Alright, he thought to himself, staring at his left pupil in the mirror. What's the play?

There were too many questions to go in and swallow this mission whole. He carved the information they needed into steps and substeps, many of which were fuzzy and dependent on what they didn't know. But they were possible methods. One way or another, it would all fit together.

>It all fits together! move: 10. 3 hold gained, each usable to answer a research question at any time as information unfurls!

[Ms Ravenwinter]

_{Collab with Muttonhawk, Corneredbliss, and Ihinka.}

---

There were some moments of peace and quiet as the team milled about in Síofra's whereabouts, with only the metallic hum of cool ventilation and occasional stomping from the above floor taking up the usual noise. Moments to savor in this line of work. Ones without gunfire raining overhead or ever-staring cameras. And as these moments started to pass, Jack had herself a load off. She sat herself at the dinnerside table, arms and legs crossed, shoulders relaxed. As the whole scene with her colleague's family took place, she mostly kept her eyes forward at the wall, paying no mind as she munched on a heavily processed nutrition bar that tasted more like coal than the apple shortcake it was made out to be. Not like she could taste much anyway.

"Looks like you got a real Stepford situation here," she said before Síofra would leave the room, easing herself back into the chair and crinkling the used wrapper into a finely squashed ball, "I wonder how much meat you had to grind to get it."

"Probably not as much as you would like to imagine, Jack." Siofra answered on her way to the lab.

Serge entered the dining area with his back a fraction straighter than before. He tugged at his grey lapels and lifted an eyebrow at Jack where she sat. "I would have thought the whole Stepford thing would be a step up from the shit we generally deal with."

For the moment, Serge was content to take a step to the side and lean against the doorway with his arms crossed. He gave Andi and Jack each a high-browed glance. "So, we got a lot of blank space to fill. A week's gonna be a fun timetable, but I got one or two acquaintances who might be able to give us a starting point. What about you two?" He craned his head to look to the messy workshop. "Looks like Siofra's already doing her thing."

Andromeda looked up from Hayes's reply at Serge's inquiry, lifting her phone in the air and shaking it playfully at him. "I've already got something in the works," she answered, slipping her phone back into her pocket and pushing away from the couch as she did so. "An old client of mine, back in the Sinsek days. Darwin Hayes, one of Hosaka's note-lackeys. Should be able to give us something useful; just have to flash him a little ass." She had moved over to the mirror above a small decorative drawer and was already looking over her face, wiping away at her lower lash line in case there was any hint of stray mascara. "Hopefully won't have to be out the whole night. He was always very quick to finish." A mischievous smirk grew on her lips as her gaze floated to the right-hand corner of the mirror, where she could see Serge and Jack in the dining area. "And what about you two?"

Serge sniffed and nodded to one side with his brow raised. Andi certainly didn't have the worst ways to get information.

"I'm gonna lay down a few next steps for what to be looking for, then I plan to do the rounds in the area around the branch. A whole lot can go on in front of innocent eyes that don't make talk in the matrix or the corporate intranets." Serge pulled his cuff to check the device on his wrist. "I might also know a guy who likes to keep his ear to the ground around these parts. If I can get him to loosen up, he might have a thing or two to tell me."

After pushing off the door frame, Serge unfolded his arms and made a few gestures to bring up contacts on his wrist device. "We wanna know anything about this asset, anything about the branch, anything about how to either get into the branch or stop the truck, and anything that could give us an edge. Anyone unclear?"

"Well," Jack started, legs uncrossing, "Somebody's got alone time with skin, somebody with bolts, I might as well tag along with Serge here as long as he's being social. Dangerous job, that." The chrome woman stood, her arms unfolding from each other as she pushed a sleeve aside to reveal a panel on the back of her forearm. With a press of her thumb, the metal sheet slid up to unveil a slightly crackling screen with subtle fissures on its surface. She tapped through some numbers then glanced back up to the others in the room. "My guys won't be too helpful 'til we know how we're doing this, so I'll stick around with him in case some of his friends need a little 'push'."

Andromeda, finally satisfied with her appearance, chuckled under her breath at Serge’s little show of taking the reins. “All clear, Captain,” she purred, a little overly compliant, as she began to back out toward the door again. “I’ll send word once I’m finished with him. Don’t wait up.” With an impish wink, she turned on her heel and disappeared back into the tunnels.

Serge gave Jack an upward nod. "Fine by me," he droned. "Just so long as you don't shank anyone who likes pineapple pizza or some shit."

To Andi, Serge gave a 'hmph' before stepping out of her way. "That's a good point, actually," he said. He brought one hand up to his mouth and raised his voice just enough to be clear in the next room without shouting. "Síofra! Expect us back in four to five hours." His eyes shifted to Jack again. "Let's not waste time."

Before long, Serge and Jack were headed out of the tunnels. Serge kept a thumb in his pocket while he spoke. "The target's in the Primary Industrial Zone blocks. More'n a few free spirits like to camp under the roadways there. They'd do anything for scraps, but that don't mean they won't be slipped a few creds to keep quiet, so you'll definitely be pulling your weight. Let's just hope the armed street sweepers haven't driven them off recently."

"What?" Jack said, sounding rather serious. She stepped in front of Serge, holding her frame solid, and gave a stern glower. Her jaw held firm, tightened with irritation. Silvery eyes were dead-set upon his, as if searching for the nerve within him. "You got a problem with pineapple pizza?" she rasped, seemingly dead serious. The tension held for a silent moment, without Serge's reciprocation and with Jack standing her ground. And just as he opened his mouth to speak, she broke the stare with a snort. Her lips curled into a smirk as her hardened stance shifted to a casual slouch. Without more word, she stepped out into the dank tunnels, thoroughly amused with herself.

---

The screen-laced goggles about Síofra's eyes pinged a few times as she tidied up the massive mess that was made of her lab; Lilly might've needed a month after all this. Most of the messages were random forum chatter, trashing the quality of Hosaka programming, a few of the more extreme members suggesting that it'd be better to demolish the facility, and a couple ill-advised sexual expletives. Síofra would surely pay them no mind, or casually chew them out for wasting her time. It was about a half-hour of cleaning before the display gleamed with the notification of an encrypted private message. Myrtle made short work of it, and the cracked message displayed before her.

It came from an anonymous user by the alias of Deck-Breaker, with some numbers for letters for good measure. Seems they'd come across an underground cyberterrorist of sorts out by the northward slum docks, and would be willing to set up a meeting for tomorrow night, but couldn't give any promises about how friendly the contact would be. The message came attached with a photo of a moored ship with a large blast hole in the side of it, and mentioned that it'd be the meeting place, in a downcast neighborhood called Little Heoi.

"Probably not as much as you would like to imagine, Jack." Siofra answered on her way to the lab. Octa was splayed in the middle of the room, idle. The tech sighed. Lilly wasn't allowed to operate Octa. Blinker, or Blinky as her sister had dubbed him, was one thing. Operating him was pretty straightforward. But Octa with her octaped frame required quite a bit of experience and a fair amount of artistry. Both of which Lilly lacked. Which is why she wasn't allowed to jockey Octa. The ex-soldier sighed again. I should have given her two weeks.

As Siofra continued working on cleaning and tidying up, answers to her add began rolling in, pinging her goggles each time, showing the content on the display. Most were trash as she'd expected. Just fed up people venting steam. Some were more creative than others in their vernacular. The tech had mostly finished picking up after Lilly and was about to begin servicing Octa, which would take up almost all of the night, when her goggles pinged with a private message on her add. This was what she was waiting for. The anon was vague in their info on this cyber terrorist, but that was to be expected. Risk was part of the job and they needed the intel so she'd have to go and see what this person had to offer.

Siofra strode to Myrtle to compose an answer. "Interested. Set up a meet." Again she encrypted the message as tight as she knew how and sent it. Now to see how badly Lilly messed up poor Octa. Another sigh dislodged itself from the tech's lips. Having kids to take care of was hard. But she wouldn't give it up for anything. She already adored the little brat beyond measure. And even if she didn't, she'd still give her all to help her move past what she'd endured at TVP's instalation.

Síofra's goggles pinged again a few minutes later, just as she was breaking into the tangled mess of steel and aluminium that was made of her precious drone. Myrtle's sifter let it through, as a clip of a computer programming newspaper fizzled into the corner of the display, sent in from her request thread. The clipped image is a close-up of an article headline of an upcoming Hosaka product.

NEW NON-LETHAL BLACK ICE PROGRAM BY HOSAKA ELECTRONICS IN DEVELOPMENT

Evidently, the company was in development of a new line of 'direct matrix security measures', a prospect that they haven't ventured into much in the past. The user that uploaded the clip mentions that they seemed rather confident and secretive in the announcement, suggesting some new breakthrough in development. Some discussion occurred about what, whether it's new talent or new hardware that allowed for the breakthrough. One user heavily suggested that they could be secreting some new AI. From there, rumor came up about the target, that one user related to a Hosaka employee heard about an armored truck leaving in the coming week some time in the morning, headed to an underground facility somewhere, traveling beneath the interstate highway through some familiar slums.

[ihinka]

Síofra was busy recalibrating Octa's tentacle servo-motors which had gotten completely misaligned during Lilly's little experiment in operating the big battle drone. Thankfully the physical damage to Octa had been minimal, but readjusting the drone's inner workings and operating mechanisms was a more difficult and lengthier task. As Síofra was recalibrating and running diagnostic after each calibration, one tentacle at a time, she was effortlessly swept back into the past when she was still a loyal TVP soldier.

---

Five years ago

TVP as organization believed in maximizing everything. This applied to their soldiers as well. They were all required to be proficient in more than just soldiering. For Síofra it was tech. She'd always been drawn to it and had shown an aptitude towards it and TVP had given her the opportunity to be trained adequately in it. Even more so than the average tech out there. As TVP did nothing halfway. You either knew your craft to perfection, or you were out. And Síofra was good. By the time her training had ended she was proficient in dealing with all kinds of tech, recognizing, fixing and modding. But she'd shown an incredible aptitude with drones and to a lesser extent hacking. Two valuable skills for TVP.

Whenever Síofra's unit wasn't out on a collection run she could be found elbows deep within the innards of some TVP drone. And boy, did TVP have some fine beasts in their stables! Síofra loved servicing the drones. They were straightforward. She understood them way better than people. If something went wrong with them, they had a way to tell her exactly what was wrong so she could fix it. People were not like that at all! Most of the times they didn't even know something was wrong with them. And even when they did, they had no idea what they needed to become better again. It was so frustrating!

"Yeah, people are frustrating. I better stick with you guys." The tech soldier said as she petted lovingly one of TVP's reconnaissance drones. Okay, so maybe it's more of a spy drone than reconnaissance. Síofra admitted begrudgingly to herself. But it was a dog eat dog in the corporate world and the other corps out there were constantly trying to get a leg up on TVP and weren't above stealing corporate secrets to get ahead of the game. "Cheaters!" Síofra muttered while fixing the outer plating on the little spy drone. It was clear from the damage it had gotten in a scrap with a bigger defense drone. "You barely got out with your chrome skin, huh lil' guy." The tech said attaching the brand new plating on the diminutive drone. "There! All better now." She said as she ran a final diagnostic and moved to a much larger defense and battle drone. A complaint had come down the chain that it was acting up and to run a diagnostic on its higher brain functions and directives.

"Let's see what's up with you, big fella." Síofra said quietly as she linked up with the drone's core unit.

>initiate_full_diagnostic...
running_diagnostic...
diagnostic_runtime_180_seconds...
...
50_seconds...
...
30_seconds...
10...
9...
8...
7...
6...
5...
4...
3...
2...
1...
diagnostic_complete...
error_found_in_memory_banks_in_direct_contradiction_of_prime_directive...

"What the fuck!" Síofra exclaimed staring at the diagnostic readout. She ran a couple more additional and deeper diagnostics to make sense of the first one. It turned out the drone had its memory banks tempered with. But by some amateur who'd done a piss poor job of it. They'd left some residual files in the banks that were obviously in contradiction with one of the drone's prime directives, which was leading to the weird behaviors.

>display_aberrant_memory_log...
processing...
error...
unable_to_display_memory_log...
video_corrupted...
>play_audio...
warning_audio_file_partialy_corrupted...
>play_audio_compensating_for_corrupted_sectors...
playing_audio...
segment_913*123/54...
segment_1384*364/87...

By the time the first audio segment had finished playing Síofra was so weirded out by what appeared to be some sort of ritual chanting that the second segment caught her completely unprepared and she jumped with a start hearing the horrified girl's scream, her trusty goggles clamoring to the ground.

"Shit! What the bloody hell was that!?!" The tech kneeled, picked up her goggles, put them back on and forced herself to listen to both audio segments again and again. After half an hour she was pale and cold sweat was running down her spine.

>display_gps_location_in_relation_to_aberrant_memory_log...
error...
requested_gps_location_corrupted...

This again! Síofra mused. Where the fuck have you been? What did you see to warrant a memory and gps log dump?

>triangulate_an_approximate_location...
triangulating...
approximate_location_triangulated...
>display...

Síofra stared stunned at the blinking location displayed on her goggles' visor.