[adamu]

"Well, it ain't really potatoes, it's rice. But if they do it how I tell 'em, it makes fer a half-edible approximation." There were only chopsticks at the table, so he stabbed the steak, picked the whole thing up, and tore a chunk off with strong yellow teeth. "Course I done ate most o' what they got ta offer. Or at least what's fit fer a human. They got a wondrous array o' fish here, I do give 'em that. But I'll take this on the rare occasions when I can git it."

He chewed a bit, apparently not bothered by long silences. For a while he was alone in the world with his food. Then after a few minutes he spoke without preamble. "Nope, not a coincidence. No way these cats don't have your skillset on tap, an' I know they prefer workin' with they own kind. An' more'n that they like keepin' things in-house. Nah, this Yao feller must o' been damned impressed by what ya showed him." He took another bit of steak and continued speaking with his mouth full. "An' the fact he pulled out the big guns means whatever they after up there must be worth somethin'. He wouldn't tell ol' Al squat when we met, though he'll have ta open up a sight more in Andoung if I'm gon' plan the route from there. Sure would be nice ta have a bit more data to be thinkin' 'bout inna meantime...."

He let his words trail off, congratulating himself on his incredible sublety.

The more he talked, the more he convinced himself he'd need this woman close to him. Not only because she carried the meds, but because they'd be the only two non-company people up there. Out in the middle of nowhere. When these corp boys found whatever treasure they were looking for....

[Mercy Merchant]

Al is a surprisingly.......comfortable......dinner partner.  Alyce appreciates his silence as she is not one to just talk for talking sake.  She is a huge fan of the "think before you talk and say what you mean" school of thought.  She concentrates on the food, enjoying the flavor.  Alyce has lived in a number of Asian countries for short periods of time and each has its own culinary spin on similar dishes and she likes the feeling of exploring new tastes.  She considers carefully what Al says before replying.  "As you say, Al, I am not a corporate insider and they have not confided in me as to all of the details, but I feel that you are correct in your assumptions.  I do know that Ling Tse Tau is the oldest grandson of the very important Vice Chairman of the Special Projects Division for Wuxing Incorporated.  These guys specialize in looking for lost mystic artifacts.  The public face of our mission is humanitarian aid for a lost indigenous tribe, but that is pap for the masses.  And thank you for the compliment.  I am not sure that I am a "big gun", but I am in demand for missions like this.  I do good work and I keep my mouth shut.  They are paying me handsomely for this and I expect it will help with future employment."

Alyce pauses to take a few more bites of dinner then adds, "Although I inherently trust Yao Lung to do his job and treat us right, I am bothered by the presence of Ling Tse Tau.  My information on him is a bit sketchy, but he has a rep for being a right bastard where women are concerned.  Rough sex, rapes, disappearances, that sort of thing.  Yao Lung is probably along to keep him in line, but Tau is the titular leader of this expedition and will some day be Yao Lung's boss as well.  To say that I am a bit concerned is true.  You were with him for a bit earlier today; what is your impression of our expedition lead?"

[adamu]

"Who? Dandy boy? Well, Good Book says don't judge others lest ya git it wrong." He finished his second Scotch. "So I'll be cautious in my assessment an' say total asshole. Bored as spit with the whole thing when we was talkin' shop. Tells me he don't care. Which tells me he din't have no part in earnin' all that money he's wearin'. Which tells me push comes ta shove it's gon' be all 'bout him. Wuxing second. Other Chinese last. An' then us."

He waved the waiter over and signalled for another round of liquor.

"Reckon Yao, he'll do a good 'nuff job with the day-ta-days we might git where we's goin'. But end o' the day, it's gon' be pretty-pretty makes the big decisions, an' Yao'll back 'im. An' that when you an' ol' Al gon' have ta watch our backs. Now what's this you's sayin' 'bout missionaries?"

[Mercy Merchant]

Alyce smiles.  "Yes, total asshole is a good evaluation, I would imagine.  I am a bit surprised at his attitude, though.  Even if he did not earn the money, he sure spends it.  His cologne alone must be in the thousand Nuyen area and I managed to touch his suit once and the fabric is real silk, not an artificial knock-off.  I will say, though, that there are not a lot of betrayals in this line of work.  People with our skill sets are not common.  Burning us would be like burning bridges where other freelancers are concerned.  However, saying that does not make it true all the time or for everyone.  I would agree that in this case it would be wise to watch our backs."

Alyce watches silently as Al orders another round.  "Thank you, Al.  I do know my limit and another of these just might cause my clothes to fall off, and I am not sure that you want to see that."  Tellingly, she does not refuse the scotch, but seems to be looking at him.

[adamu]

"Toots, what a man wants, and what he does, now that's two different things. That's why he's a man an' not a damned animal." He downed the third Scotch and pushed away his empty plate. It looked like he was going to say something else, but he took his time, pulling a huge knife out from under the back of his leather jacket, sharpening one of his chopsticks to a point. Then he began picking bits of meat from his teeth.

Once he'd dislodged a particularly beefy strand of steak, he sucked it back off of the improvised toothpick, savored, and swallowed. Then he carried on speaking as if he'd never stopped. "Like you said, we's gittin' handsomely recompensed fer this here shindig" - no doubt she was getting considerably less than the astronomical sum he'd negotiated for himself, but it would be poor manners to rub her nose in it - "an' ol' Al's got work ta do. Up early, an' still folks ta see tonight. Say, whyn't ya come with? Swing the pedicab by some o' the best night sights, an' that way you can do yer comms thing, access the approvals an' funds fer my gear."

[Mercy Merchant]

Alyce can "see" everything Al is doing and she is almost consumed with interest.  She has worked with many local and imported guides in her career of slogging through one jungle or another.  Most of them were rough spoken, hard men and women who were not above saying what they want and doing what they want.  The man in front of her, Alouicious Harlan Guthrie, ought to fit that same mold, but strangely does not, and that intrigues her. 

"I think I will take you up on the offer, Al.  I have everything I need in the bag here so any time.  Oh, and I was not ignoring your earlier question; I have been trying to work out the answer.  I was told that this is a humanitarian mission to the Pear tribes of Southwest Cambodia, to the mountains there.  To that purpose we are escorting three missionaries from some church based out of Hong Kong.  Yes, the Hong Kong United Church of God.  There will be two women and one man, but I do not recall anything else.  I did a quick search of the church and it is legit, although the missionaries may not be.  They specialize in going to backward tribes to bring them a bit of civilization.  I rather imagine that the backward tribesmen would like to remain lost, but that is my opinion.  I am afraid that I was raised Russian Orthodox and do not place a lot of faith in what these people are doing.  But it does give a cover for being here."

Robyn looks thoughtfully at the third tumbler of scotch then takes it and downs it in a gulp.  Placing the empty glass upside down on the table she laughs and says, "Three dead soldiers.  I did warn you that you might see odd things, so take warning.  When do you wish to leave?"

[adamu]

"Carpe diem, toots. We go now." His voice was like gravel in a juicer. He had a cigarette lit before he was standing. Thinking of how much more money he must be making, he tossed enough cash on the table to pay for their meal twice, grunting "Ol' Al's got this." He wondered if they could expense it, but he wasn't the sort to go crawling to the boss for every little thing.

He shouted something at the waiter about a cab, and by the time they were out the front doors a bicycle was out front, a bench seat just big enough for two and upholstered in cracked red plastic was in tow, attached by a makeshift combination of scrap metal welds and scavenged wire. He hopped in right away and talked to the driver as she climbed up, mentioning a palace and a monument. The pedicab started moving the moment she was was aboard.

"I'm headed into the less savory part o' town - which, ta be fair, is almost all of it - but first I told 'im ta take us south along Norodom. We'll have a veiw o' the Independence Monument the whole way down the boulevard, an' the Royal Palace an' Silver Pagoda'll be all lit up fancy-like onna left. Once ya seen that, ye purty much seen what they is ta see." He noticed as they moved into the half-lit side street the hotel was on that she was still wearing her ornate shades. "Sunglasses at night, huh? Guess you're jist too cool fer school. But what's with all the cogs an' whatsamajiggits? No offense intended, but are ya some sorta hippy or somethin'?"

[Mercy Merchant]

Alyce laughs softly as Al puts the money down.  "Thank you, Al.  You must let me get the next one."

She picks up her pack and brings it with her when they leave, tossing it over one shoulder and walking out just behind Al.  The evening air is cooler, but the humidity is still high, something that the relative coolness of the restaurant had hidden.  As she walks, Alyce undoes the top three buttons of her blouse and removes a small handkerchief from a pocket and dabs at the exposed skin.  She leaves the buttons undone when she returns the cloth to her pocket.  As they pass through the lobby, Alyce hears what has to be the same mahjong channel from the counter.  She hesitates at the cab, trying to determine where the step is so she does not embarrass herself, but covers it by using the time to swing her pack from her shoulder.  She has to bend while climbing in and Al, if he were interested, can get a good view of some really nice cleavage.  Alyce sets the pack at her feet and sits back on the bench seat, which has scant enough room for the two of them, forcing them to sit rather close. 

She listens to the man talk about the sights she should be able to see, but cannot, and nods as if in appreciation for the tour.  She is saved some embarrassment when he asks about her glasses.  She turns her head to face him and replies, The glasses are part of what I wear at home, Al.  The little lenses all nest together and the cogs and whatsamajiggits allow the wearer to move the lenses about.  One of the lenses on each side is a  magnifying glass and................."

Alyce stops talking and looks hard at Al then reaches up to remove her glasses, exposing dead white eyes and several ugly scars around them..  "But the magnifying part is just for show for me.  I am blind.  Have been since a man shot me in the head back in '33, taking my eyes and damned near my life.  Doctors saved me, but the eyes were a total loss.  So I am sorry, but I will not be able to see the things you have just talked about.  Not with my eyes, anyway.  I compensate for that by being able to see them on the matrix.  And I would enjoy it very much if you would tell me what you are seeing as we pass these places.  It will make it much more real when I go back to the trix to see visit them later."

Silently, she puts the glasses back on her face to conceal the eyes and scars, but keeps her head faced toward Al..   

[adamu]

Al was surprised. He didn't respond for a moment as he ran over the implications in his mind. Just the fact that he was surprised said a lot about her capabilities. But a crappy hotel restaurant in Phnom Penh did not equal the Cardamom Mountains. "Joseph an' Mary inna manger, woman, that's a helluva thing fer someone makes her living patchin' folks up inna jungle. When ol' Al needs an artery tied off, you tellin' me you ain't gon' miss a beat on that?"

[Mercy Merchant]

Alyce nods at his question.  "That is a justifiable question and no, I will not miss a beat on that.  I have been working jungle expeditions for almost thirty years and am very good at keeping my people alive if there is a chance to save them.  It should not be held against me that I have lost a few team mates to some serious spirits that swallowed them whole, or to the odd explosion that jellies the body, or to the score of heavy caliber bullet wounds to the upper chest and head."  She shrugs and smiles, :Sometimes people die before I can get to them.  But I will save you if you are not already dead.  But let us hope that is does not come to that."

Alyce turns her head to look at where she knows the Independence Monument is and points in its general direction, but purposely off just a bit, silently hoping that he will take her arm and move it to the correct position.  You said the Monument is over in that direction right?  Can you describe it to me?"

[adamu]

Al was not blind. Not anymore, anyway. And it had not been lost on him that she emerged from the hotel three buttons less dressed than at dinner. He'd spotted those cha chas even under the blousy thing at the warehouse, and the view when she'd gotten into the cab had almost been enough to distract him. Hell, he'd just gotten out of prison for fuck's sake. But now he suddenly had a lot of questions, and he needed to be on his game.

If she could hold her own in the bush, if she could do field surgery, why couldn't she figure out where exactly the giant monument ahead of them was? Because if she couldn't do that, how was she going to keep from running into trees or stepping off cliffs?

Clearly she'd found ways to compensate in the, what was it, thirty-five years since she'd been injured? But was she some sorta Shaolin monk type like Kung Fu guy's teacher? Or did she use a lot of tech? She said she saw everything through the matrix did she have cams and a real-time VR feed piping into her brain? Short-range sonar that let her see things close, but not the big monument half a klick off?

"Well, ol' Al's more a master Thespian than a poet, but I'll do my best. The thing sits in a small park fillin' a big roundabout, cars an' bikes circlin' it twenny-four-seven. Then there's a big concete dais, with four massive pillars risin' up to a good height, an' atop that they's four or five big rotundas, each a bit smaller, so together they form a sorta dome shape. All lit up real fine in simple white light, but the mix o' light an' shadow gives it a sorta golden cast. An' the whole thing's ringed by violet fountains."

He took her outstretched hand. Two reasons. First, he wanted to see how she was with seeing textures. He watched her face to see if she was surprised by the touch of the congealed mass of burn scars that covered his hand. Second, he adjusted the line of her arm so that it was just as far off to the left as it had been to the right. If she really couldn't see it, no harm done. If she could, well, be interesting to see how she played it.

[Mercy Merchant]

When Al touches her hand and moves it, she is immediately aware of two things.  First, his hand is immensely scarred.  Second, he is playing her.  "OK, Al.  I was right about you and you are far smarter than you put on.  You are right; I know exactly where the Monument is and what it looks like.  I actually visited it on the matrix earlier this afternoon while doing a virtual tour of the city."  She smiles at him.  "But I do appreciate a verbal description from someone who can see, though, and I thank you for it."

She puts both of her hands on his and feels it for a minute, running her delicate fingers up his arm as far as he lets her.  On a hunch, she reaches across his body and puts her hands on the other arm as well.  Sitting back up, she says, "Al, are these scars from a burn?  They do not quite have the feel of simple fire, though.  Perhaps acid was involved?  Do you want to talk about it?"

[adamu]

"Heh heh. Not a fire." She knew her stuff. No one had ever made that distinction on their own. But she'd needed to touch the hands to even know the scarring was there. "Had us a little run-in with three o' Lucifer's own minions. Guns warn't much good, so..." he held up his hands, assuming she could track the gesture. "Din't leave behind nothin' but bone up ta the elbow, but the Good Lord done restored the flesh when Pa laid on hands. Why the Almighty left 'em lookin' this way...well, I've always reckoned He wants ol' Al ta remember whence his blessin's come." There, he'd given credit where it was required. To say more - without telling the whole long story - would be to disrespect the fallen. So he moved on.

"Reckon ol' Al was blind once. Coupla years or so back. Faulty blastin' cap up at a tin mine in them very mountains we's headed up into. Got these babies now," he tapped at his eyeball audibly with a long, dirty fingernail. "It were only six days, but long enough ta know I wouldn't o' liked it ta be any longer."

[Mercy Merchant]

Alyce nods and puts her left hand to the side of her head.  "My first weeks were hell.  I was a bloody mess.  The Yak assassin had shot me in the head right here, then added a couple to the chest just because.  I was in a coma for a bit then surgeries out the bloody arse.  Eyes totally gone.  I was told that not even cyber eyes would work; something to do with some mutations within my body when I was born.  Other 'ware is OK, but not eyes.  I have learned to compensate.  I have a good set of implanted sonar sensors that would have let me see your scars earlier, but I prefer to not use them on people unless I suspect I someone is a danger to me or the team."  She drops her hand back to her lap while still resting the fingers of the other one on Al's arm.  "Are you a danger to us, Al Guthrie?"

[adamu]

Her tone was whimsical, but he wondered if it was more than rhetoric. She had some tricks up her sleeve, this one, and he wouldn't be surprised if she had some sort of lie-detector gizmo as part of her compensating tech - measuring sweat and pulse and all that, Her hand was still on his forearm when she asked it. But the truth was easy enough: "Heh, jist the opposite, toots. I done took Yao's cash, an' that makes this work. An' a man works fer a livin'. So reckon now I'm in it ta win it. Long as he an' Ling keep they end, ol' Al gon' look after y'all jist fine."

He thought about the story she told, and as he imagined it based on the details she had mentioned, he realized his mind was making assumptions that were not necessarily sound. And given some of the other things stirring around in his brain, he decided to try to clarify things for himself. "So was it your beef with the yaks, or some sorta victim by association thing?"