[Poindexter]

As Chino drives the two of them the rest of the way back, Sam stays quiet, considering everything the Ork had just told him. Be honest with yourself. You knew it was too large a coincidence as well, you just didn't want to think about it. He definitely doesn't like the idea of some strange entity having a spiritual "mark" on him as it were, and the more he thinks about it, the creepier he feels. On top of everything else, he keeps thinking about the messages between him and the Johnson. He's obviously not going to pay us, no matter what happens. Perhaps we could carry away fragments of it and sell them for materials. Didn't someone mention how it was mostly orichalcum? That's worth some money. This job doesn't have to be a total wash. By the time the two of them are loading the snowmobile back into the garage, Sam is more convinced than ever.

I'm going to blow this thing up. Tonight.

As he and Chino begin to awkwardly part ways inside the house, Chino must be able to feel something strange about Sam's demeanor, because he stops and asks him, "Everything ok? You cool?" Taking a long hard look at this near faceless ork who Sam can only presume was his friend yesterday, he goes against his instincts and confides in him once again. He approaches the massive man, moves in very close, puts one still ice caked arm around him, and quietly whispers in his ear. "I'm going to destroy it tonight, right now." Seeing the horrified look on his companions face, he adds, "Unless... you think I should discuss it with the group in the morning."

[8-bit]

Chino's first thought is horror, as he thinks about what the obelisk might do. This might be our only chance though.

"There's no way we're getting this thing sold, it's too hot and we're on the run." He asks, "How are you going to get this done without getting it out of the house? It took all our strength last time, and we barely moved it. I would say do it, but I don't know how we're going to do it without alerting the others. Unless, that's a chance you're willing to take."

Chino looks past Sam to see if anyone is overlooking. There doesn't seem to be. "It needs to go, but I don't think having an explosion while almost everyone is asleep is going to help us. If you think it needs to be done now, I'll help in any way I can."

[Zweiblumen]

As Chino and Sam leave the multiple burning wrecks in their wake Sam notices they stop transmitting their feeds.  Still following them from the matrix he sees they are online.  Paranoia strikes deep, and Doc quickly tosses marks on both commlinks, and then starts to snoop on Chino's comm.  While he doesn't have the video feed any more, he can listen in on their conversation.

When Chino mentions the "strange entity" Doc's mental alarms start going off like crazy.  That could explain the strange urges he had and why he can't find anything wrong with his 'ware.  When he hears them start to slowdown as they approach the houses, he unplugs, stretches and heads to the kitchen to grab some beers before heading to the garage to meet them.

As the door opens, he quietly wave's them in, handing each a beer.  Once they've smoothed the snow outside of the garage and closed the door, Doc turns and looks Chino straight in the eyes he just cuts straight to the point, "We should talk about what you can see Chino.  I can tell I've got something crawling in me that doesn't belong, and it's behaving like nanites-gone-wild.  And if you think they are in the rest of us, we should start to figure out what this is.  Whether you guys blow the oblisk or not, I want to know what's under my skin... literally."

As the two of them stare at him in disbelief, he thinks a little more.  "You didn't mention seeing anything in Katsina or Ace.  Did you just not get a chance to check or are they 'clean'?  And no, I'm not being that quiet, if they want to hear we either throwdown or get this worked out together.  The only reason I didn't bring everyone to start is a) ambushing comrades is bad, and b) I'm really jealous of Ohnazee's sleep."

Doc looks really weary at this point, just bone tired.  It's obvious that he thinks this is vitally important otherwise he'd be passed out right now.

[8-bit]

Chino looks down at the beer in his hand as Doc confronts them. "I ... what ... forget it. You already know everything. I might as well tell you."

Chino wearily looks towards Sam, and then looks back at Doc. "I can't give you what you want." He holds up a hand before they can protest. "No, I am not holding anything back. I mean I have no idea what is inside of us. My best guess is that it's some sort of virus, but it wasn't biological in nature. Whether it was Astral, or technological, or what, I don't know. It seemed worse in you, Doc, but it was in all of us." Chino knows the words hit Doc hard, but he doesn't know what he can say to comfort him.

Chino sighs and opens his beer, taking a swig. Softly, he says. "I wasn't going to tell either of you this. To be honest, I wasn't sure what I had actually seen. I was going to ask Ohanzee tomorrow, he seems better at this stuff than me. I wanted him to double check me. And no, I doubt that Katsina or Ace are clean; I didn't get a chance to check them. I'm not even sure I could see it again, whatever it was, it was incredibly well hidden from Astral sight. That's why I figured Ohanzee would be able to double check me; I think I got lucky to see it the first time."

Immediately, Chino's entire demeanor changes as he lets out a single, sarcastic laugh. "As if you could call anything happening to us lucky." He takes another drink before he says, "When Sam mentioned that we were planning to destroy the obelisk, things started to make sense to me. I couldn't be sure, but everything was just too convenient, too coincidental." His voice starts to raise to a normal level, "I mean, come on. We all woke up with the same type of amnesia, while we were transporting the obelisk and planning to destroy it, and it was just an accident?" Another mirthless laugh comes from Chino. "No, something happened. Something went horribly wrong, and I'm willing to bet the obelisk has something to do with it."

Chino takes another swig of his beer; the liquid almost gone. His voice soft again, as if his personality changed again, he says, "There you go. You now know everything I know."

Chino leans against the wall, his head pounding. Whether that was from his emotions, the booze, the temperature change, being tired, his blackouts, or all of them, he wasn't sure. All he knew was that his head felt like it was going to split in half. He places the still-cold beer bottle on his head, not that it helps. He realizes that he's just so fragging tired; he's been running for as long as he can remember; strike teams or visions; fragging artifacts or teammates; a disease or insanity, it doesn't matter. He hasn't had a single chance to rest since the start of this misadventure. He goes quiet as he waits for someone else to break the shock-ridden silence.

[Poindexter]

Only a little irritated that Doc has eavesdropped on the conversation, Sam doesn't let it show. He stands and listens to the back and forth between the two of them. Doc is all but threatening to wake the rest of the team up if Sam goes ahead with his idea alone, and Chino seems more keen to give the idea to the group as well. Maybe it's the lack of sleep, or maybe it's the cold, or maybe its the unsettling realization that something is wrong with his aura, but all he can picture are visions of nightmarish astral horrors, slowly laying eggs inside him or something equally horrifying. Maybe it's best to go along with them for now. "Ok." he says rather matter of factly. "We compromise? Tonight, I finish rigging traps, then sleep. In the morning, we bring it to Big O, and see what he thinks. Deal?"

He looks back and forth between the two in hopes they agree.

[Tecumseh]

Katsina, on watch, hears Sam and Chino arrive. Doc grabbing beers and going to greet them in the garage is unexpected. She grabs Ace's ankle and shakes it, but doesn't check to see if it actually woke him up or not.

She trails Doc to the garage. Overhearing the conversation is not difficult. She knocks on the door leading to the garage, announcing her presence. She speaks slowly, trying to maintain concentration on her spell while ignoring her accumulating fatigue.

"Everything you say is possible," she tells Chino. "But if the obelisk wiped our memories because we planned to destroy it then there's nothing stopping it from doing so again. If it acted in self-defense once then it will do so twice.

"I agree that all of us waking up with the same type of amnesia is suspicious. Certainly more than the crash alone could explain. I saw the obelisk's aura on us when we woke up, but it has faded now. Maybe that's why our memories are beginning to return. I don't see a lingering presence, nor have I seen what Chino says he saw or what Doc says he feels. The virus or the nanites or..."

She trails off, waving her hand to indicate "etcetera". The motion throws her a bit off; she reaches to steady herself against the door frame.

"We're all tired. Let's make a decision when we're rested."

[Poindexter]

And now Mask is in on it, too. I should have just kept my mouth shut and done what needed to be done. The troll stands silently, listening as the woman throws her two cents in. Too late for that now. They'll be watching out for it. He nods at the appropriate times as she speaks. I'll have to figure something else out. When she's finished, he nods in agreement. "Morning then."

With that, he heads off to finish trapping the remaining two doors.

[Zweiblumen]

"Well that stirred up the hornet's nest quite a bit there...."

Looking at the crowd that's formed in the garage, Doc speaks up again, "Lets move this inside where it's warmer and less likely to draw attention?"
<<<Reboot all devices>>>
Once his deck has gone through the reboot cycle and everyone that has extended him marks is re-established in his PAN he settles down on the couch with his elbows on his knees and head in his hands.  It's obvious he's nearly passed out from exhaustion, and he knows he'll need to spend some time after waking up to repair the damage to his new deck.  He looks up and speaks loudly enough for everyone including Sam to hear, "Sam, I understand your desires to erase the oblisk from existance, I truly do.  However, it's our only meal ticket right now, and for all we know if we blow it up, we blow us up if there's anything to the oblisk being the source of our hitchikers, whatever form they may be in.  I'm significantly more squishy than you are and don't like my chances of survival in that situation.  That said, from what I can tell you're likely to survive anything that happens, so I'll leave that one in your hands.  I think once rested our Awakened team members can more reasonably examine the situation and come to a reasonable conclusion.  I'm going to get some sleep, or just pass out if this goes on any longer.  If I wake up, I'm going to assume you didn't blow it up."

Doc looks like he's going to stand up, and just crashes on the couch.  It's possible he could be woken, but his usefulness is dubious at best.

[Tecumseh]

The gathered assembly breaks up. After finishing his traps Sam goes upstairs, shakes Ohanzee awake, and whispers in his ear. Sam then returns back downstairs to the living room, where he props his head on a bag of explosives and falls asleep on the floor.

Doc doesn't make it any further than the living room before his fatigue overtakes him. He crashes on the second couch, the one that Ace isn't already sleeping on. Chino makes it to one of the two guest bedrooms of the first floor. The beds there are big enough for an ork to stretch out, so he does, and then he's out. Katsina dons her lined coat, puts her claymore on her shoulder, and stares out the front windows like a dark sentinel.


Ohanzee is shaken awake for the second time, but this time it is Katsina instead of Sam. Ohanzee instinctively jolts at the sight of her ballistic mask just centimeters from his his eyes - the ghostly white Wiccan pentagram ornately carved into its face practically shining at him in the dark room. She holds up a hand to indicate peace, then points out the window. Ohanzee's head throbs as his eyes focus on the scene outside. The sky is a flat, dull grey, but he can tell that it is sunrise. White Raven sends its regards via the spirit-summoner link, and then departs.

Ohanzee is not best pleased to be awake so soon but Katsina tries to ease the pain. She holds up a steaming mug.

"Coffee," she whispers. "Real coffee. Not soykaf. It's from Aztlan, which probably makes it illegal in Pueblo. Beans are five grand a kilo, chip truth. Makes this mug worth about fifty nuyen, compliments of our host."

She puts the mug in his hands, regardless of whether he likes coffee, or soykaf, or both, or not. Ohanzee inhales. The scent of coffee is obvious, but there's something else that's cooking.

"Scones just came out of the oven. I found some cream and whipped it into butter. There's jam in the fridge, honey in the cupboards."

She rattles this off quickly, not bothering to see if Ohanzee's keeping pace or not.

"Doc's been sleep walking a bit. Nothing major, and luckily hasn't stepped on Sam yet.. Walks a few steps one way, then the other, then sits back on the couch. Mutters something about the corps on the 'net.

"Speaking of corps, I'm sending you a file about PCC. Feel free to share it with the team if I'm still sleeping. I'm going to take a shower and crash in the master bedroom downstairs. Everyone else is still out."

She stands and turns, her lined coat twisting around her like a cape. She's off in a blink, leaving Ohanzee reasonably certain, but not 100% positive, that he's now awake. He feels his fingers burning and looks down at the mug, confirming that he is indeed alive, conscious, and on watch.

[Malevolence]

The coffee goes a good way towards bringing Ohanzee to consciousness. The need to have a second cup and get some food brings him fully awake so that he can but his trodes on and  head downstairs.


He refills his cup, grabs a scone, puts more butter on it than any sane doctor would recommend and is halfway through the second one before he realizes that another basic need must be met. Well, two basic needs, but going to the bathroom could wait.


Without White Raven, they were exposed. He wondered if he should dare summon him again. But he had other matters to attend to first. Seated comfortably in the kitchen, he adjusted his body to ensure he wouldn't immediately fall out of his chair when his body went slack. His body secured, he entered the Astral, rising up to the ceiling. The wood the cabin was made of was long since dead, and so it had no aura, and thus no physical presence, on the Astral. He rose through the ceiling to the second floor then through the top of the roof, poking just his head out so that he could get a good 360 degree view without sticking out like a flare on the astral. He looks to gather a baseline of their area so that he can more easily spot things out of the ordinary through the remainder of his watch, but he still looks for pursuers, spies, or other potential dangers - Katsina likely left things in good order, but a fresh pair of eyes never hurts.


Satisfied that things are relatively safe, he ducks back down to the first floor and before returning to his body reaches out to the realm of water and calls forth Dolphin.


Hello again, friend Shaman. What game is afoot today? the familiar voice asks.


I need you to find an acquaintance of mine that may be a useful ally. I don't know yet if I can trust her, so I can't risk looking myself. All I have is the place where she lives. She has gone missing, and may be dead, but that should be a useful place to start. Will you do this for me?


The dolphin chirruped cheerfully. Hide and seek! Hide and Seek! And the spirit was off, the acceptance of the task implicit.


That task complete, Ohanzee returned to his body to finish his meal and use the bathroom. While in the bathroom, he scans the documents Katsina gave him, and makes mental notes on what to share. But that will wait until people are awake. Soon, he has heard from the spirit what it has found at Gloria's residence.

[Poindexter]

Once finished rigging up the other two entrances with explosives, Sam finally settles down to sleep in the main living room, but not before warning the rest of the team.

<<@Team [Uncle Sam] DANGER! I finished the job from last night. Be careful about fresh air and the morning paper before you talk to me.>>

Then, he turns all his gear off and curls up on the floor, using his duffel bag full of explosives as a pillow.

[Tecumseh]

Ohanzee's head emerges from the roof of the cabin to peruse the astral surroundings. Even in the winter, the scene is full of life. The aspen trees glow brightly, obscuring his vision beyond. Through the glare he believes he can see a man and a woman on the front porch of the house to the south. They seem to be enjoying their morning soykaf (or coffee, should they be similarly blessed) while watching the snow. There is a large dog with them, which wags its tail. The couple put down their mugs and walk down their front steps to take the dog for a walk. It runs ahead happily to the south, away from Ohanzee. The couple follows.

In the distance, above the tree line, Ohanzee sees free spirits playing. Spirits of the air enjoying the wind, or spirits of the water celebrating the snow, or spirits of the mountain, or spirits of the trees, or perhaps all of the above. They are small and playful and pay Ohanzee no mind.

Inside once again, Ohanzee brings forth his friend Dolphin, who is willing and able to assist in the search for Gloria Winters. --Hide and seek!-- it chirps before vanishing into the astral. Ohanzee heads to the guest bathroom while the spirit travels. He can hear water in the pipes from Katsina using the master bathroom to shower.

It does not take long for Dolphin to identify the location of the home, as provided by Ohanzee. It seems to be a proper house in a fine neighborhood, indications of success in the career of Ms. Winters. However, the mood of Dolphin changes when it enters the home. Ohanzee can feel the chill distinctly via his spirit-summoner link.

--Oh, this is not a happy game,-- Dolphin tells Ohanzee. --This house has seen great pain recently. Physical and emotional. I feel weak in its presence.-- Ohanzee feels Dolphin struggling through the home, as if Dolphin were swimming through mud.

--I fear someone has died here, and that they did not die well. This game may not be won.--

[rednblack]

When Katsina touches Ace's foot, he wakes up easily, surprised that he's not more groggy.  Must've only been out for a few, he reasons, and waits a solid ten seconds before he follows Katsina out toward the garage.  He can hear the talking inside, thinks of joining the conversation, but when the team decides to wait until morning, Ace thinks that's good enough for him, and returns to his spot on the couch.  Destroying the obelisk seems like a viable alternative, but Ace will be glad to hear from those who are more experienced and knowledgeable before he signs off.  Still, it would be nice just to be rid of the damned thing.

He rests his eyes on the couch for awhile longer, but when he hears Sam rigging explosives, Ace figures that everything is well, and allows himself to slip back to sleep.

[Malevolence]

The news from Dolphin is not unexpected, but still shocking anyway. He'd have to ask Doc to look into the police reports - if she was reported missing, the local authorities had certainly been to her home already. Did he, or one of his allies, kill her? Was she killed by those pursuing him? Or was it just random chance?

Keep looking. Ohanzee sends Dolphin an image of Gloria from the deep recesses of his memory. Whether it is from when he met her in person or some image Doc dug up on the matrix after his amnesia, Ohanzee couldn't be sure, but he hoped it would help the spirit find her - or, it seemed, her corpse.

We'll have to look into our other contacts. Hmm.


He finished up in the restroom and found a good spot to get comfortable. He did a search for news reports involving his other two contacts. He didn't have their real names, but he had their addresses and started with those.


Then he went back into the Astral, did a quick patrol and then was about to return to his body when he decided to see if he could spot this parasite that Sam had mentioned the night before. Did it corrupt his astral form when he was projecting, or did it stay with his body?

[Tecumseh]

Ohanzee checks the addresses associated with his contacts:

Long Shadow's address looks like a talismonger shop in the Sioux side of Denver. Long Shadow himself is reported to be a Shark shaman. As such, his business practices are particularly cold. Long Shadow doesn't form attachments, so regulars get the same prices as everyone else.

Styles' address shows up as crappy Sichuan restaurant with bad online reviews. From the exterior photos, the restaurant appears to be a concrete hut with no windows. Several commentators mention that it is "a good place to go if you want to die", although it is unclear if that opinion pertains to the food or the clientele. The restaurant has a reputation as being popular with information brokers and adepts with the Iron Gut power.

Finding an image of Gloria Winters is not difficult. A candid photo of her is linked to her contact profile in Ohanzee's commlink. The local news source - the Aspen Times, owned by Horizon - even ran a news story about her absence two days ago, which Doc found and shared earlier.

NOTED ARCANOARCHAEOLOGIST REPORTED MISSING

The article features a more formal photo of Gloria. She looks like a bit of a frump, one of those 40-years-old-and-never-been-kissed spinsters. She's obviously a dwarf, with an oval face. Her hair is pulled tightly behind her head and she's not wearing any makeup.

The article includes a brief biography, which says that Gloria is (was) an academic at the Aspen Institute of Technology and Thaumaturgy, in addition to being a member of the Atlantean Foundation. Her boss reported her missing three days ago, shortly after she had an emotional breakdown over a failed relationship. The police are searching for a person of interest, who is not described by the article.

Dolphin promises to continue the search for Ms. Winters, and is quite content to do so outside of her home. Dolphin will search until Ms. Winters is found, or sunset, or whenever Ohanzee releases the spirit from his service.

Returning to his body, Ohanzee pauses to consider his aura. Outside of the unhealed injuries from drain, he appears to be in fine pumilionis health. He does not detect any astral viruses nor cyberinsects nor any other bugs of ill repute. He momentarily wonders if the others imagined them, or if they might be delusional in addition to being amnesiacs. But wouldn't that make him delusional as well? Perhaps not, with his fine dwarven will and all. But still, a troubling trend.