[IC] Lowlife Chapter 0.9: A heated discussion

[DemICE]

Aerumna considered all this for the moment.  

The mission was plain old murder. He had seen his share of death, so the issue was not there. Neither in the morality of it, which was something trivial in this day and age. 

The pay was good too. He needed any money he could get his hands on. 

Also there was a chance of him even getting himself a weapon that he could use, or at least buy something with the money, since this would probably not be the last time he would endanger himself for a big cut.

The main concern was something he couldnt answer at this point.

What chances of being successfull and getting away with it were here?  One guy, the one with the pistols, seemed like this was routine for him.  The female, ah, he had seen her before too for a moment. The paranoid one. Was she a magic user or what?  Then there is one crook, the rigger dude and himself, which would be little to no good if not in front of a monitor.

Not the most reliable combination, he thought.

But then again, most cases would probably be like this during his career.  If he is not able to take some risks, he will keep living the same miserable unimportant life he did till now. 

 

"Positive"

[Yours Truly]

Straight Dave nods in confirmation, and he pulls out a small tablet, he types something in the tablet for a few moments, and a slight chirping sound in Aerumna, Darien, and Maria's credstick indicates that the 250 nuyen advance had been transferred to their accounts.

He then shifts slightly before saying "So are the rest of you doing this? Or are you just going to stand there and not say or do anything?".

 

The Bumbler: +250 Nuyen (494 eft) 
Eris: +250 Nuyen (719 Left) 

Aerumba: +250 Nuyen (300 Left)

[Strider]

Turning to those who hadn't responded yet, Darien laughed. "Come on! It will be fun! A thousand Nuyen for killing someone who deserves it! I bet we could take her without you, but this is a great chance for gettin some dough." He stuck his own credstick into his pocket, already a little giddy about the money that had been paid up front.

[DemICE]

"While we're at it, i've been thinking and i wanna ask,  i mean, i understand about the rest, but why recruit a decker with mobility issues for a plain old murder job?"

[Yours Truly]

Straight Dave simply took out a flask of something naff, and poured a bit of it into his coffee before shotgunning the whole thing down, after doing this he leans back into the plush seat of the cafe a bit more before saying "Because you look like you could use the exercise and money; that and if you can't even murder someone, then what are you even doing in this gang? This is a test of your loyalty, go and buy a gun or something with that advance money man".

[Strider]

"Come now. Let's go!" Darien was eager to begin scoping out 51st street for the woman with the 'kaatars'. It probably wouldn't be as simple as just going up to her, draggin her into and ally and shooting her a bunch, but Darien hoped it wouldn't be too difficult. With his heart set on killing a woman for money, he stood up, and waited for the others to do so, before exiting the cafe.

[Bismarck]

Rorik decides to stay out of it, not being opposed to violence but definitely opposed to being dragged into somebody's squabbles is not in his prerogative.

"Sorry Davey but I'm more of a good time guy, not really into being on another radar."

Rorik gets up from the table and heads out the restauraunt.

"Fuck yes don't have to pay the tab!" he thought.

It clicked who the previous man was "KebabRemover, fuck me."

Rorik thought those connections were just a joke but no he actually committed to something.

He could hear the voice of his mother ringing in his ears "Honey when are you going to bring a girl home?", "Honey when are you going to get me grandchildren?".

He was committed to a deal, well he didn't get a choice in it. Besides he felt there might be a conflict of interest between this man and the KR.

Rorik was heading home, he was going to collect information on KebabRemover, more than what he has heard from rumour.

[Yours Truly]

Before Darien could leave the diner he was stopped by Straight Dave who interjected with "You should probably go to Davy's Distant Discount Kebab Delicatessen first, it's some fancy real meat shop near the former SCIRE arcology, still a lot of looters out there so you better keep a 2020 hindsight, and bring somebody with you, I would say to bring Rorik, but since he isn't with us at the moment....work something out yourself alright?". The man then walks back towards his seat and continues sipping his coffee.

 

Rorik would find nothing bothering him in his walk towards the rundown flat he calls home, apparently all of the criminals in Seattle has decided that today was a sacred day where a man can walk down the streets of Seattle with a ponderous look on his face without getting robbed.

He would perhaps be at a loss for ideas on how to gather more information about the KebabRemover, but he would remember the rumors, how the man spearheaded an attack by an allegedly Humanis aligned gang called "The First Men" and killed many different non humans in what can only be said to be an extremely heinous activity that is in no way shape or form recommended.

[Bismarck]

Rorik having few leads and waiting on someone to get in contact with him starts searching for information about KebabRemover online.

"Alright Serbian..." 

Pouring through lists of pages in a language he barely understood. He was able to make little headway into this man's identity.

So he started poking into those providing the information he was able to gather.

And there is where he started to find something valuable.

The Pursers, (subgroup of something much larger) dedicated to tricking people out into the open for thieving identities has helped war criminals, gang bangers and filth get new lives across the world or down the street.

And then things came rushing back to Rorik.

Rorik owes this man. And this time he can't run away from the debt.

Edited April 9, 2017 by Bismarck
Drunk writing

[Yours Truly]

At that moment Rorik would receive a call with a rather urgent tone, the sound of accordions playing was heard inside of his flat before the phone picked itself up. A rather cold voice said "You fucked up Rorik, you fucked up real good. I mean did you seriously think that I wouldn't ask you to do something? That after all I did for you. I wouldn't come calling? Well here's a newsflash for you, meet me in the fucking Wyvern's tooth bar in Redmond, or your ass is grass!". A few moments after the call ended Rorik would find that his wallpaper has been replaced by the image of an ass shaped mound of grass.

[Bismarck]

"Subtle" he thought.

Rorik decided to sober up and prepared his anus for the reaming that he was about to receive.

Heading out the door he knew he was being watched for any sign of treachery.

"Shouldn't have wasted time with fuckface Dave there." he thought.

Rorik found the dilapidated bar in a shitty theme park.

"Quaint, no wonder you're able to get a new identity every minute."

Walking into the bar, he see's parents relaxing from their kids and a door off in the corner.

Heading towards it anticipating the inevitable ass reaming the door opens in front of him.

Into a smoke filled room where the stench of whiskey and raki was thick as syrup he sobered himself for his encounter with Kebab.

When a large man motioned him over to a corner and halfway there he heard the gravel in the voice come out.

"Alright you little cigani bitch, I wanted one fucking thing from you. You're god damn loyalty."

"Sir, I don't know how they..."

"I wanted you to tell me who's in that fucking neighbourhood, what's in that fucking neighbourhood, and most importantly why I need you in that fucking neighbourhood"

Rorik stood silently and stone faced as any thing he says would like be grounds for his murder.

"And now this little bitch tit Straight Dave! I want some fucking answers about how he got your profile shitface!"

"Sir, I'm afraid I don't know, I went out to the grocery store and..."
"Oh I know all about what the fuck you did at the grocery store, you tried to fuck a guy and helped yourself to some booze, what I want to know is why is this prick calling you!"

"Sir I have no honest idea, I swear." Rorik said shakingly.

"Look here you little bitch, I don't like how you treated me at the cafe, I don't like your fucking posture, so man the fuck up and listen. I have a client who needs shuttling out of town, you got it. Now thing about this client is that she has a group of dedicated bastards on her tail, I need you to get her on the train and see her get off the train in Idaho."

"Yes sir."

"Now I'm assigning you under Milos, he'll meet you over at your apartment tonight, you'll join his squad and make sure she boards and exits alive and well got it."

"Yes sir"

"Good now go get fucking ready"

[Yours Truly]

Rorik

Rorik would then receive an image file of "Milos" and an image file of the woman he was in fact supposed to be guarding on his phone.

Milos was a rather short Human male with an angry and accusatory face that wouldn't have looked too out of place on a bulldog, he seemed to have been photographed while saying the words "YEAH I KNOW WHAT YOU DID" to a particularly hated person. Milos didn't seem to be quite threatening by himself, and he seemed to be the type to lead from the comfort of an office somewhere far away from any actual conflict, and not from the front lines. The man's ratty brown greatcoat does suggest the possibility of concealed weaponry, and of course you can't underestimate the defensive capability of kevlard.

 

The woman that he had been rather suddenly be ordered to defend on pain of death had rather unremarkable short black hair, and her skin was rather....present, along with her clothing. The only thing that was at all remarkable about the woman are the rather unreasonable looking pair of keytars that she is brandishing like a weapon. A note explains that the keytars are rather tougher than usual, and contains several nasty, sharp, and more importantly deadly surprises. Another note explains at length how not bullet proof or resistant her clothes are, and that she has no defensive cybernetic modifications on her person. In effect her only actual defense against attack is her knack for not seeming important enough to kill or even notice.

 

It was nowhere near night yet, and Rorik has nothing but a lot of time, a phone, and a rather large amount of regret. And as a follow up message would explain, he wasn't going to be paid for any of this.

 

The Straightest Dave you have ever seen/Lucky Lucius's Cafe and Eatery

There wasn't really anything of interest left in the cafe, the ancient pop music was still blaring on about someone asking another someone to call them maybe, the various waitresses were still running around and serving orders everywhere except the booth the group was clustered around, and Straight Dave had spent most of the last ten minutes slowly but surely gulping down a serving of not very good, but reasonably priced soykaf.

After a while he finally stops paying attention to the coffee substitute long enough to stare at everyone who had decided to stand around and not do anything and say in a rather annoyed tone of voice "What? Do you guys want a different job or something? Because I have other jobs, not as well paying of course, but they don't necessarily involve murder" he then brought the soykaf back to his lips again, and started to slurp it down rather loudly.

[Strider]

"Ha. I can do this myself, if no one else wants the pay." Darien stepped out into the morning light, and set off towards the delicatessen. He wasn't terribly concerned about bringing backup...After all, he had two submachineguns and an itchy trigger finger.

[Bismarck]

Standing over the balcony shirtless freezing Rorik is stirring a mixture of chemicals in a tub.

Respirator and goggles over his face he's glad the balcony sits over an alley.

"So I've got 3 vials of chloroform gas, and 2 vials of chlorine gas if things go really bad. I need more."

He spends hours until the clock reads 8 sitting over his brew. 

"12 vials of each."

Rorik sat down on his bed and started prepping, he didn't feel right about this mission.

He started lining the inside of his clothes with padding for makeshift armour.

"So if I get stabbed or clubbed I'll get up, but bullets, well bullets are bullets."

Rorik is really wishing he possessed a gun at this point, on the other hand security won't notice him getting in with a bone knife.

Putting the vials on the strap for his chest. Covering himself with an old canvas coat, he see's Milos pull up in a black suburban.

Rorik checks his list and heads out the door.

He doesn't share much more than a glance with Milos who gets in the car with him and several other men.

The driver was leaning against the door smoking a cigar.

"I got gasses if we need them."

"Hmm."

Rorik started to wonder if he should have said that but then somebody threw him a gas mask.

"We got much worse than whatever you tossed together in your kitchen"

 Rorik noticed a gps on the dash he noticed he was at one of its blue blips, and he noticed several red blips a few blocks away from the station.

[S34N1C]

"Oh, I'm ready. Whenever you guys decide to head out works for me." 

Admittedly, Maria was a little hesitant to just go and murder a random stranger for this guy, but hey, credits are credits. And as much as she despised how he was lording his so called "seniority" over her, she was a member of a gang, and had to - for now, at least - listen to those higher up on the totem pole. 

[Yours Truly]

Eris would perhaps notice Darien walking out of the cafe with his twin submachineguns and an overly large ego.

 

Darien would eventually reach Davy's Distant Discount Kebab Delicatessen after what is most likely an hour of traffic jams, and he would find something that would have passed for a sleek and modern building, if this was the 20th century and Art-Deco was still the hot thing on the block.

 

The attempt at futurism is not very endearing, especially when Darien realizes that this place only has two entrances, and that the inside of the diner is filled with equally ancient decor.

 

Of course the woman wasn't among what few customers hung out in the building. While the bar had looked...passable; the food seemed to be quite horrid, and I do not want to disturb your stomach by describing what passes for Yogurt sauce in this restaurant.

The bartender and her robotic eye was currently tending the bar by wiping a squeaky clean beer mug for a long period of time.

One of the customers had a pink mohawk, and he seemed to enjoy the food here....somehow.

[Bismarck]

The car pulled up to a storage facility in the north end of town, and Rorik saw Kebab talking with three men in the gate office.

Rorik noticed the fleet of cars on the street, he knew this was a heavy operation.

It was then Rorik saw the person they had to move, a black haired girl who of average features.

She looked disjointed, like she wasn't all there.

"She's a sabinin addict"

"What is she?"

"A sabinin addict" said Milos.

"The drug fucks with your mind makes you fearless"

"So why are we pulling all of this out?"

It was at that moment everyone in the car fell silent and gave a look that could only be described as saying learn more.

Then Rorik saw the girl come out of one of the lockers with her mother, then the mother and two men stripped her down for inspection.

Rorik had two thoughts on where she's heading, slavery or rehab. He mused over it but

Once they were done inspecting her they put her into Kebab's vehicle

Kebab then approached the vehicle.

"Here are her toys."

He chucked a pair of claws into the car and some other armaments.

Rorik remembered Daves offer at the diner about killing a girl, he took a glance at her and realized this is who he was moving.

"I'm moving a drug addict away from them." he thought.

It was then Rorik could get a decent guess at what was going on, she owes people money. And when it came time to collect she didn't behave.

Rorik peered at the gps and noticed the red blips were paused near the train station at a deli.

Once everyone was in their car Kebab reached his arm out from his Jeep Wrangler and waved everyone forward.

And then it started to rain hard. Rorik saw a powerline fall down and take power in the North End with it.

 

Edited April 21, 2017 by Bismarck
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