[Zweiblumen]

Doc stayed in the van to finish his searches for Ace.  Going from node to node moving data from one AR window to another as he compiles notes and data on each topic.  He looks up, and comms, <<<@Team [Doc] Can someone grab me a beer and a slice while we're here?  Ace has my 'stick, just charge it to that.  And if we are going to be in reputable places we might need to look into getting at least some cheap burner SINs for Chino and me if we can scrounge up the scratch for that.  Ohanzee, any chance your fixer can sort you on that?>>>

While his agent sorts through some data for him, he reviews the ARO Katsina sent to the team.  "River looks like a good place to me.  It also breaks the pattern of just burninating everything in our wake.  Couple of gallons of bleach before we sink it and the water should take care of the rest."

[rednblack]

Ace adds a couple gallons of bleach and a 12 pack of real beer to the growing number of supplies on his cart, and heads toward the checkout line.  He smiles at the clerk as he slots his credstick, and offers, "Hope your shift goes smoothly," before loading up the bags and heading to the Bulldog.

[Malevolence]

After a twenty count, Ohanzee heads out to the newly arrived rental van, inspects it, and then jumps in to the battered van where the obelisk rests.


<< @Team [Ohanzee] The dump site and exchange site look good. Let's head out, get it done, and get to a warm bunk and a good nigh's rest. >>

<< Doc, I'll see what I can do, but it's unlikely he can get anything turned around on short notice - things like that usually take a couple days. Let's see how the safehouse he recommended turns out before we trust him with SINs. >>

[Poindexter]

Sam has been sitting quietly in the Bulldog, waiting with the other members of the team and not making eye-contact with them for only a couple of minutes when the rental van pulls up. He leers at it through one window, suspiciously. I doubt it's armored, but the amenities are probably nice. Noticing Ohanzee's short frame making its way across the parking lot to inspect the new vehicle, he grows eager as another time for he and Chino to talk privately nears. He stays quiet, watching as the team leader "kicks the tires" as it were before deciding it's acceptable and giving the go ahead for the rest of the team to join him. Relieved as they are to be out of the foul smelling death wagon, Sam expects only he and Chino to be left to escort the commandeered vehicle to it's final resting place. The two of them are just about to start on their way when they hear a knock on the passenger side door. Sam frowns heavily as he looks to see who it is, but is a bit relieved to see Ohanzee's friendly mug looking back at him. Better him than the corp, the vampire, or the decker, I suppose.

Sam spends the first minute or two of the trip fiddling with his new burner comms, ignoring any conversation near or toward him. Finally, once his task is completed, he pipes up. Turning sideways in his seat to address both the dwarf and the ork, he holds one of the burner comms up.

"Turn all of your gear off. Everything. Anything that could be used to listen in on us. Trust me." He waits, silently holding the burner out in front of him until his companions have complied, then continues. "I don't know the details, but I have discerned the important generalities. And they are, as follows. The three of us, in addition to the decker in the other vehicle are a team of heartless psychopaths hired by a dishonorable party to steal an artifact capable of destroying the world. Ace, the vampire, and the dead one known as APB are three individuals of great strength and power who appear to have come together for the purpose to take that artifact back. This leads me to two conclusions; Firstly, that WE are the villains here. Monsters hired to do a monstrous deed. Secondly, and born from the first conclusion, is that our plan to destroy the artifact was a plan concocted by monsters for selfish or fiendish purposes. If we are to "take this second chance" it seems we've been given, shouldn't we abandon the old plan? Try and undo the wrongs we've already done?" He takes a moment to look back and forth between the two faces before exhaling long and hard. Without another word, he slaps the burner commlink down into the hand of the dwarf and turns back to face the road, waiting for Ohanzee to read it out loud.

It only has one file on it. A text file. It reads...

<<@To whom it may concern

I know very few things, lacking even my own name or where I came from, so I won't waste time with a backstory. Such a thing wouldn't be important anyway. What is important is the fact that I have in my possession, an ancient artifact, the likes of which the world has not seen in tens of thousands of years as well as the means to destroy it with a mere thought, should I desire to. The power contained in this artifact is so great, that when I destroy it, there is a very good chance it will tear the very fabric of this world asunder with catastrophic results across all continents. I do not want to do this, but will do so without a second thought, if pressed.

What must you do to keep me from doing this? My demands are quite simple:
1- Contact either The Draco Foundation, The Atlantean Foundation, The Dunkelzahn Institute of Magical Research, or The Astral Space Preservation Society. Send them a copy of this message.
2- I want a representative from any or all of those four groups to come meet me and take this damn thing from me.

That's all there is to it. To stop the destruction of your world, all you need do is come take this foul chunk of metal from me and remove the millstone from around my neck. If you are the offended party from whom I stole it, I'll even give it back for no more a fee than an explanation of events. Fair warning though, I am heavily armed and well supported by some of the most paranoid and trigger happy killers in the world. If you attempt to take it from me by force or deception, you will die. I've killed too many already and I don't want any more blood on my hands. PLEASE make certain this message finds its way to the proper eyes.

[Uncle Sam]>>

The dwarf finishes reading it out loud, then looks up at Sam, inhaling to speak. Before he can finish the breath, Sam interrupts him.

"I've got three more burners just like it. I'm thinking of setting them to open broadcast and just dropping them in a trail behind us, once we switch vehicles. I'm also planning on sending that same text file to every contact in my comm as well as a few random commcodes just for good measure. Unless one of you gives me a damn good reason why I shouldn't, I'm going ahead with the plan at the first opportunity."

He sits, looking out at the road and the snow swirling in a vortex around them, waiting for an answer.

[Tecumseh]

While the others are shopping, Doc stays in the van to conduct matrix searches with his agent. Donning his gumshoe hat, pipe, and magnifying glass, Doc's persona sets off with a bloodhounding sniffing and slobbering at his side.

There's not much to go on, but Doc is familiar with some of the darker corners of the Matrix, the places where secrets are whispered and gossip is shared among those in the shadows. Doc is largely stymied by the search for Rhodes but his faithful hound picks up the scent and races through several nodes before finding a short exchange.

>>>>>(Looking for information on guy named Roads. More metal than meat. My magician says it hurts to look at him.)<<<<< -Whistling Pete

>>>>>(Yeah, I got a score to settle with him. He took down my samurai with the back of his hand while blowing up my drones with his other hand. Using laser beams. Losing Jake was a shame, but I really had a thing for that Doberman.)<<<<< -Randy Wang

>>>>>(It's not Roads, it's Rhodes. I don't have a good handle on what he is. He's with Ares but he's not a Johnson, nor a fixer, nor an asset. My guess is he's some combination of the above. Ares only sends him out if there's a major problem - I'm talking about "blood magic cult" problems, not "oh, my junior executive of nose wiping went missing" problems - or if they want something badly. If Rhodes wants what you have, it's easiest just to give it to him.)<<<<< -Sloppy Jane

>>>>>(I heard Sloppy got her nickname because she gives it up so easily. Nobody has any use for a smuggler who drops her shipment the first time her radar pings.)<<<<< -Rigger X


That's all Doc or his agent can find on Rhodes. He turns his attention to the photo of the tattooed man from the van. He finds a match for the photo on a discussion board for Cheyenne runners.

>>>>>(Anybody know this guy? Whirling dervish of guns and ammo? I saw him shoot the wick off a candle on a quick draw, then pegged a flea's ass mid-hop. My team needs some new talent. Lost our last shooter to bad luck. By which I mean bullets.)<<<<< -Hawwwnuhhh

>>>>>(I don't know his name. He's Sioux though. Probably Dakota.)<<<<< -Why Sioux Serious

>>>>>(How do you know?)<<<<< -Hawwwnuhhh

>>>>>(Those are "honor feathers" in his hair. Active-duty Sioux Defense Force personnel wear them on special occasions. They are not official awards but they are more coveted than actual medals. The custom has trickled down into the civilian world, especially in gangs. Only Wildcats can wear eagle feathers though.)<<<<< -Why Sioux Serious

>>>>>(Do you mean this guy is a Wildcat?!)<<<<< -Hawwwnuhhh

>>>>>(Not necessarily, but if he's not then it does mean that he can hold his own against any Wildcat that might object to him wearing them. Which they would, if he's not Special Forces.)<<<<< -Why Sioux Serious

>>>>>(Good luck trying to recruit him. He's Aleph Society.)<<<<< -Abagnale

>>>>>(Bulldrek, like you would know.)<<<<< -Fianchetto

>>>>>(Try Brotherhood of the Iron Crescent.)<<<<< -Cheyenne Sam

>>>>>(Should we list off every public and secret magical society? Or should we just admit that we don't know?)<<<<< -Fianchetto

[Zweiblumen]

Doc whistles appreciatively as he's pulling up info on Ace's contact "Rhodes".  From the shadows of the Matrix, he finds out that this guy puts the hurt on folks.  Mostly folks like themselves.  Looking over the info he found from on the shooter, it looks like more of the same.  Another badass hired by someone to get the oblisk for some group or another.
<<<@Team [Doc] Welp, Ace's 'friend' definitely has a name for himself in the shadows.  Seems he's a fairly effective recovery specialist for Ares.  See attached file.  And our shooter is another version of him, though with a bit more of a cloud of mystery around him.
>>File: rhodes.info
>>File: shooter.info
>>>

[rednblack]

Ace reads Doc's attachment on his commlink, and sits, reads it again.  I wonder who Jake was.  Sorry, chummer.  Ace would like to believe that Rhodes is not him, just someone like him, cooked in the same batch, or hatched, or whatever it was they did to make him, well this, he thinks as he flexes his cyber hand.  If Rhodes is another Instigator™ then maybe Ace could get some answers.  Sure, he'd probably get burned, and it's unlikely that Ares wants a defective model out on the loose, but maybe they'd be able to unload this hunk and he could scramble off with Katsina somewhere quiet.  Worst case scenario, he'd end up like the people he used to hunt, and probably for a very short time, but best case scenario . . . Highly unlikely I was thinking in 'best case' terms before.  I wonder how else I've changed?

Unfortunately, that's probably not the case.  Unfortunately, like everything else since he woke up every clue he's come to just points to that datalock in his head.  But if Ace is Rhodes, then who is Rhodes on his commlink?  Who's on the other end of that number?

While they drive the rental out to the drop-off location, Ace says, "So, what do you guys think?  Should I call this number from one of those commlinks?  Can we do anything to protect our location if I do?  And Doc, what do you think your chances of breaking this datalock would be without killing me?"

[Malevolence]

Ohanzee processes what he has just read and heard. The intent behind the plan - undoing the wrongs they have already done - appeals to him. Getting rid of the obelisk also appeals to him. And considering that their previous selves used to be cold-blooded murderers, he was inclined to let the obelisk keep their old personalities. But the approach seemed haphazard. Why not simply reach out to these organizations directly? Why have some random person act as mediator?


The way Ohnazee saw it, there were two parties in the pool of interest in the artifact that likely wanted them dead - whoever they stole it from and whoever they stole it for. Whatever other groups were after them, they likely didn't know about the artifact. Well, except for what was previously Red Team - they likely had an employer that may very well have been an interested third party. There were four organizations in Sam's list that deal with ancient artifacts like this, and - as they had learned from both Katsina and their experience with the Natelys - there were possibly any number of secret magical societies that might be interested. Those could not be allowed to have it at any cost, so that left the four in Sam's list, and there was every reason to believe that at least one of them was already after them. Would their change of heart mean anything? Especially if they had just told their "competitors" about an artifact that they had obviously gone through great effort to keep secret?


Wait, we have an idea where we grabbed this thing, at least in a broad sense it had to have been within driving distance of where we woke up in the wrecked van. If, like Sam stated, we were hard-core killers, and thus necessarily hired by Bad People, then it is possible, maybe even likely, that we stole it from one of the legitimate organizations. Maybe one of them has a known or rumored facility near here that might give us a clue. Or one is associated more closely with Ares, considering the KE pursuers in the Hound.


"I agree with the plan, but I'd rather leave less of it to Fate. I don't like the idea of just dropping these commlinks and relying on some good samaritan doing the right thing. I'd rather reach out to these organizations directly - make the offer to all of them. There's a good chance that we stole it form one of them, and given that Doc has been unable to find any info about it on the Matrix, the owners had gone through considerable difficulty to keep in hidden. Of your four organizations, we are almost guaranteed to make one enemy and likely at least one ally. Pitting them against each other, while unpredictable, is likely safer than standing alone against any one of them."

"Moreover, the other, less savory, organizations that are likely already pursuing us - including our employers - might seek to interfere for the sole purpose of forcing our hand - what guarantee do we have that we weren't hired by some group that wanted to use it to tear a hole in reality? It could be very much in their interest to get you to follow through on your threat."


Ohanzee scans the text again. The scenery rushes by silently, while the wind pours into the vehicle loudly. He holds up the phone. "I'd like to have Doc see if he can't figure out which of these organizations operates near here - rumors or otherwise - so that we might have some idea which one we might have stolen this from. I want to do the right thing, but I don't want to end up dead or in prison. I'm fine trading in a payday for immunity, but that won't keep the other parties we've fragged off from taking revenge. Your threat brings the four organizations to the table and makes less appealing the option of just geeking us and taking it. After that, we need to make sure that we walk away from the exchange with at least some headstart from any parties that might carry a grudge. Information on who those parties might be would be a nice bonus."


"That's my take on it. And there is still one more thing that we need to address." He wags his index finger, pointing it at each of them and out of the van to indicate Doc. "Our infection. It's not magical, so most of these organizations are unlikely to help us with that. The Draco foundation might, being interested in pretty much all areas of research. We might end up spending the rest of our lives in a quarantine facility, or they might just decide it's better to kill us and learn what they can via dissection, but however the deal with the obelisk goes, we still have that to worry about. Basically, we might survive handing off the artifact only to succumb to this other unknown. Might be worth it to try working that into whatever deal we make regarding the artifact."


He pauses for a moment to review his thoughts, then wraps up with "Any other ideas?" as he looks between Sam and Chino.

[Tecumseh]

Katsina, sporting her new look as Ivana, sits in the back of the Eurovan while Doc programs it to rendezvous with the Bulldog. She's already enjoying the lack of blood splashed around liberally, which - however appetizing - was not suitable for an extended journey, especially if they were to encounter SecForce at some point.

Ivana watches the Bulldog drive off and wonders if it's a major strategic blunder to leave Sam alone with the obelisk. The destruction of the obelisk would be... catastrophic, as best she could tell. Not that there's a lot of precedent for destroying Fourth World artifacts, but she doesn't want to be a trailblazer in the arena.

What if Sam attaches his bomb? Spellcasting is dicey: her Influence spell only lasts a few minutes. Would that be enough time for the troll to remove the device, or is disarming it an extended process? Chopping off his hands would be counterproductive, and that's only if she could get through that titanium bone lacing. She'd have to convince the dwarf and maybe the ork... She inhales sharply, hoping it doesn't come to that.

Ivana finishes her last preparation and goes to put it in her pocket. As she does, she feels a lump in her coat. Pulling it out, she sees that it is APB's commlink. She tuts and passes it to Doc for further examination. Doc switches it on and cracks the Firewall in about three seconds. He rifles through the commlink's contents, which are pretty meager. Technomancers only need them for external hard drives, and there's nothing indicating that APB was actively using the current device before yesterday's run. Doc does find some video files that look interesting though...

20:22
The footage is from a security camera. There are heavy stone walls, much like the ones that Chino kicked through. Sure enough, the wall explodes a moment later and Chino runs through. He turns, looks to the right, and shouts at someone, "HEY! Over here, drekbrains! Yeah, you, numbnuts! Get over here so I can gouge out your eyeballs and skullfrag you!" Then he kicks the opposite wall and runs through it. A few moments later he is pursued by a squad of four security guards who run in from the right. Their movement is restricted by their milspec battle armor. They lumber after him.

20:25
Another camera with a timestamp a few minutes later. There's a burst of dust and rubble, then Chino runs into frame. He turns around, grabs his groin, then shouts obscenities at someone off-camera. "Rolling thunder, bitch!" It's a catchphrase from a popular simsense franchise, Jack Slade: Totally Jacked Up. Chino's barrage of insults continues: "Too slow, pops! I'm gonna rip over to your house and throw your old lady a hump!" There's scattered automatic fire that pings around him. He spins around, kicks down another wall, and is gone. The same security guards follow, but this time they're joined by a swarm of security drones.

20:27
Another camera. Chino runs onto the scene and collides with Katsina, who was running from another direction with her claymore drawn. Chino, being much larger, is hardly fazed, but Katsina is knocked to the ground and drops her sword. Chino looks unsympathetic. "Ever make idiot wine?" he shouts at her as she rolls to her back, assuming a defensive posture. "Find a gang moving in on your turf and STOMP 'EM!" He then slams his heel into her face, smashing her head into the ground. Looking over his shoulder, he sees the pursuers getting close. He takes off running. Katsina shakes off the kick (which was probably strong enough to blast down a wall), then gets up and starts running in another direction like nothing happened. The guards arrive on the scene. The troopers pursue Chino while the drones go after Katsina.

20:28
Another camera. Katsina is surrounded by drones, some flying, others on the ground. She throws her claymore like a javelin, skewering one of the roto-drones mid-flight. Instead of falling back to Earth, the claymore stays suspended. The light around Katsina flares, and then she swings her arms like she's still holding the claymore. It rips out of the roto-drone and flies through the air in a huge arc that brings it down onto a Steel Lynx combat drone like some sort of goddamn guillotine. Katsina spins, and the claymore turns into a tornado. It flies around, obliterating Ares Duelists and GM-Nissan Dobermen, all under her telekinetic control. Seconds later she has reduced a half dozen combat drones into scraps and kibble. She extends her hand; the claymore flies back to her and she sheathes it in one smooth motion. She runs off.

20:30
The same footage you saw previously from the Knight-Errant HTR team. Chino kicks down a wall. Ohanzee exits, levitating the crate with the obelisk, while Sam backpedals out of the hole, hosing down things down with liberal applications of suppressive fire. It seems to be working. Previously, the pursuers were always 10-12 seconds behind Chino. This time, Blue Team seems to have built its lead to a full minute. The security guards finally limp through the breach, but are then met with a minigrenade that detonates right at their feet. The armor seems to absorb the worst of the shrapnel, but it knocks them down all the same.

[8-bit]

Chino continues driving as the other's talk. It seems everyone else had come to terms with their previous tendencies towards violence, but Chino still hadn't made up his mind. To them, it was all in the past, those were different people. For him, it just felt right. It was so much more comfortable being chased and in danger, at least then you could rip your enemies to shreds as they came after you. He didn't like this feeling, the feeling that they were going to be safe, at least for the moment. It felt like a trap. It just turned his paranoia up to 11. Still, the plan seemed like a good idea. Getting your enemies together to either obliterate with you, or to let you go free seemed like a decent proposition.

Something still bothered him though. It took him a second to realize it, but he finally pinpointed it down.

"Any other ideas?"

"Just some thoughts." Chino pauses a moment to consider his words. "Are we really certain that we were hired to steal this thing and blow it up? I know that Sam had quite the argument with our Johnson, and as far as we can tell, the bomb was our safety measure. I'm not saying our Johnson wasn't a downright ass who was probably intent on evil, but somehow I don't think the run was as simple as we think it was. After all, considering the resources that have been used to track us down, you would think that if they wanted the obelisk blown up, they could have just sent a missile launcher or two with their teams. They didn't though. I don't have the answers to why we were sent for this thing, or what the Johnson wanted with it, but our explanation for it seems a little too easy, too convenient." Chino lets out a disheartened laugh. "Of course, that could just be the paranoia speaking."

He takes a moment to check the map. Almost there.

"Hell, we've made it this far. The plan sounds good, if we get the others to agree. We'll need an exit plan though, and that's where I come in." He makes a turn before calling up an ARO. "I'm slowly starting to remember some things, including some ways in and out of the city. I've marked them on a private ARO for us. Another thing that I seem to remember a great deal about are BTLs. I'm pretty sure I'm a user. There's a parlor marked on the map. It's pretty far from here, in the CAS Sector, but it might be a place you can hide in. It caters to upper clientele, and is good with secrecy. I have a simchip, and I'm pretty sure it's unique. If you need to, sell the thing. It might be able to get you some cash to disappear with. Just, don't slot it, all right?"

Chino pulls up to the rendezvous point, waiting for the others. He compiles a message with no body, just an ARO, but waits to send it.

"I don't plan on going anywhere, but you might not have a getaway driver. Let's face it, this plan could get us killed, or this disease could get us killed. Frag, with how these last couple days have been, who knows what could happen. That's besides the point. If I die, I would rather have you guys not be stranded with me. We psychopaths have to watch out for each other, if you understand what I mean."

[Zweiblumen]

Doc reviews the images from APB's phone, then wordlessly passes them on.
<<<@Team [Doc] .
>> APB1.vid
>> APB2.vid
>> APB3.vid
>> APB4.vid
>> APB5.vid
>>>

He looks up at Katsina, "Nice moves.  I wonder where Ace was durring this?"

[Malevolence]

"We aren't certain we were hired to blow it up. It actually seems that the bomb was a deadman switch cooked up after Sam provided some unsolicited sexual advice to our Johnson, so we almost certainly were hired to deliver it to our employers intact. But we don't know that our employers didn't intend to use it as a weapon - either by means of some fundamental property of the artifact, or simply blowing it up in a populated area. Us destroying it might be a viable plan B for them if they learn of Sam's threat, whatever their goals are. I am reasonably certain that the four organizations listed by Sam are not bent on malicious use of the artifact, hence my desire to contact them directly and hopefully not tip off any other organizations. Of course, that assumes that these organizations are not compromised by agents of some secret organization - or all of the organizations."


Ohanzee pauses for a few seconds, looking down in thought. For the first time he notices that aside from the blood and gore, the van appears to be either new, or well cared for. He wonders if it is a rental too. He runs his thumb over the powered off commlink he holds in his lap, not liking being out of communication with the other van for too long.


"As for exit plans, anything you can remember to get us in to and around Denver when needed will be critical. Chances are that that is where we will have to go to meet with these organizations. And I think I speak for both of us" he gestures, indicating Sam, "when I say that I sincerely hope we will all be making use of that information. But I appreciate the thought."


"Are we agreed then? We will reach out to these four organizations directly and explain our memory loss and freely give the artifact to whichever one can provide us with answers and a little help dealing with the trouble the artifact has caused us, and provide a reasonable guarantee that it will remain out of the hands of whatever foul party hired us to take it. And if we can get some help with our mystery affliction, all the better. We will run the plan by the others for approval, but do we at least have consensus here?" He waits for any objections before nodding, and then turning his commlink back on.


He finds a message from Doc waiting on it and reviews the video attachments. Chino was a bad ass. As was Katsina, though he had to wonder at why the drones held their fire long enough to be obliterated one by one by her flying sword. Did her thermal signature throw them for a loop, confusing their dog brains into momentary indecision? Or was it staged? And why does it only show those two? He could only imagine that APB had been monitoring the feeds, either as part of Katsina's and Ace's plans or as the security spider for whatever facility this was. The fact that their pursuers had at least some of this same footage meant that it had not been erased, or at least the clip with three of the four members of Blue Team had not. Doc had apparently been elsewhere, presumably assisting from the matrix, or fixing his deck - which would explain the lack of cleanup on the video footage.


Perhaps Sam and Ohanzee were sneaking in under Ohanzee's invisibility spell while Chino made a major distraction, leading the guards on a wild goose chase - gathering them all up and away from the true objective. APB may have deliberately left the one piece of video for the security forces to use to locate Blue Team, but cleaned up any video of Red Team. It still doesn't answer how they all made nice and ended up in the same van, though considering Katsina's use of mind influencing magic, it was entirely possible they didn't make nice at all. In which case, when the van crashed they might have been driving to wherever Red Team had wanted the artifact rather than where Blue Team had intended to take it. But Influence only worked for a short while - there was practically no way it could last long enough for Katsina to direct them to a different location. Had Chino crashed the van intentionally? Perhaps by the time the spell had worn off, Blue Team had found itself at gunpoint.


He tried to recall where all of the guns were when they first awoke. It seemed like forever ago, but the few details he could remember made it possible, but not necessarily likely. Ace, pulling his weapons out of a duffel - if he had them at gunpoint, they wouldn't have been neatly stowed. Katsina, picking her claymore up from where it lay haphazardly across the roof cum floor of the van. It's possible she had that drawn in order to threaten a hostage, but it seemed more likely that it wouldn't fit in a duffel and that she had been disarmed. All told, the evidence pointed more toward Blue Team being in control in the van - Sam was in the rear most seat, and armed, giving him coverage of the three members of Red Team - seated neatly together if Ohanzee's memory served. So, the most likely scenario was that either Blue Team had taken Red Team hostage or they had indeed teamed up before everything went to pot.


He kept his musings to himself for now - such discussions would not help team unity, and it had been fraying lately without such help. He sat back in his chair and tried to keep warm against the chill.

[Poindexter]

"I agree with the plan, but I'd rather leave less of it to Fate. I don't like the idea of just dropping these commlinks and relying on some good samaritan doing the right thing. I'd rather reach out to these organizations directly - make the offer to all of them. There's a good chance that we stole it form one of them, and given that Doc has been unable to find any info about it on the Matrix, the owners had gone through considerable difficulty to keep in hidden. Of your four organizations, we are almost guaranteed to make one enemy and likely at least one ally. Pitting them against each other, while unpredictable, is likely safer than standing alone against any one of them. Moreover, the other, less savory, organizations that are likely already pursuing us - including our employers - might seek to interfere for the sole purpose of forcing our hand - what guarantee do we have that we weren't hired by some group that wanted to use it to tear a hole in reality? It could be very much in their interest to get you to follow through on your threat."

Sam's instinct is to jump in and rebut every point, but he uses his patience and perception to really listen to the end instead of arguing. And what he hears at the end is a point he doesn't like. They might INDEED want us to detonate it and play right into their plans.

"I hadn't considered that the detonation of the artifact might be exactly what certain parties want. How about I make a promise to the two of you and to the two of you only?" He doesn't blink his massive eyes nor look away from the road and snow as he speaks. "I promise upon my life; the only thing the old me and the new me share in value, that I will not detonate the obelisk. I'll threaten, I'll bluff, I may even arm and set the timer on it, but I will not detonate it. I swear on my life. Does that solve the problem?"

Ohanzee hesitates a moment, thinking before he replies.

--------------------------

Having moved on to another topic, the dwarf eventually brings up another point Sam feels he needs to comment on.

"Our infection. It's not magical, so most of these organizations are unlikely to help us with that. The Draco foundation might, being interested in pretty much all areas of research. We might end up spending the rest of our lives in a quarantine facility, or they might just decide it's better to kill us and learn what they can via dissection, but however the deal with the obelisk goes, we still have that to worry about. Basically, we might survive handing off the artifact only to succumb to this other unknown. Might be worth it to try working that into whatever deal we make regarding the artifact."

"PFFFFFFT! Isn't that all life really is? Surviving one thing only to succumb to another?" He waits only a moment before turning his head to face Ohanzee. "But yes, we SHOULD enlist the aid of any of those multi-trillion nuyen possessing groups in order to get these things OUT of us. I could not agree more strongly on the subject."

"Hell, we've made it this far. The plan sounds good, if we get the others to agree. We'll need an exit plan though, and that's where I come in." He makes a turn before calling up an ARO. "I'm slowly starting to remember some things, including some ways in and out of the city. I've marked them on a private ARO for us. Another thing that I seem to remember a great deal about are BTLs. I'm pretty sure I'm a user. There's a parlor marked on the map. It's pretty far from here, in the CAS Sector, but it might be a place you can hide in. It caters to upper clientele, and is good with secrecy. I have a simchip, and I'm pretty sure it's unique. If you need to, sell the thing. It might be able to get you some cash to disappear with. Just, don't slot it, all right?"

If he remembers the area, I should too. Why don't I?

Sam turns his head back to the road and says to Chino. "I'm going to slot it once we turn our gear back on." Noticing the look of "whatthefuck?" on Chino's tusked face, he adds, "If I'm promising to you that I won't use my only ace in the hole, no matter what, then I'm slotting the damn chip. If you fear I'll think less of you, you're a fool. I think no less of the vampire nor the Ares assassin borg, nor the... Dwarf?" Looking at Ohanzee and seeking to conjure up something horrible and factual to call him. It's at this very moment that Sam realizes something. There's not a shred of evidence beyond his association with us to suggest Ohanzee here used to be a crazed sociopath at all. Hmm. Then something else hits him. There's really no evidence that I am, either."

"Are we agreed then? We will reach out to these four organizations directly and explain our memory loss and freely give the artifact to whichever one can provide us with answers and a little help dealing with the trouble the artifact has caused us, and provide a reasonable guarantee that it will remain out of the hands of whatever foul party hired us to take it. And if we can get some help with our mystery affliction, all the better. We will run the plan by the others for approval, but do we at least have consensus here?"

Staring forward unblinking and with firm jaw, Sam replies, "I say we do both. We reach out to them directly and we drop the burners. Deal? Also, I don't think we should be doing any big meetings with anyone in a downtown, populated area at all. There's going to be bloodshed and I'd prefer it all come from us and the unlucky fucks who've been sent to kill us. Make them come out into the snow to meet with us. Much harder to lay a trap for us like that. Thoughts?"

-----------------------------

Chino pulls up to the rendezvous point, waiting for the others. He compiles a message with no body, just an ARO, but waits to send it.

"I don't plan on going anywhere, but you might not have a getaway driver. Let's face it, this plan could get us killed, or this disease could get us killed. Frag, with how these last couple days have been, who knows what could happen. That's besides the point. If I die, I would rather have you guys not be stranded with me. We psychopaths have to watch out for each other, if you understand what I mean."

Cocking his head to the side, Sam looks directly at Chino and says, "I actually have no idea what you mean by that? Mind spelling it out for me." Genuine confusion crowds his face up into an ugly mask of flesh and horn.

[Tecumseh]

Ivana sits back and watches the videos provided by Doc while the Eurovan drives itself. Chino running around, making a big commotion. The stomp looks like it hurt, not that she remembers it. If anything, she's grateful that the kick didn't obliterate her mask, seeing as how Chino's feet shatter stone walls with ease. She was lucky that Chino hadn't infused his kick with killing energies; she wouldn't have recovered from that. Perhaps Chino slipped up, or maybe he did it intentionally to leave Katsina behind to distract the guards. Now, here she was, healing him from third degree burns. How a day changes things.

She watches the fourth video. I hadn't remembered that trick, she thinks to herself, watching the sword bifurcate hapless drones. Momentarily she wonders if she quickened the wrong spell. Perhaps she should have locked in a powerful version of Magic Fingers, one stronger and more agile than her physical self, extending her reach as far as she could see. Being strong in person is great, but she has a limited amount of karmic energies to pour into such things. She would gather more, in time, provided she lived long enough. The vampire exhales, calculating. She can probably lock down one more spell... combat sense? Telekinesis? Her mind spins.

"Ace was probably playing with the barghests," she says finally.

[8-bit]

"I'm going to slot it once we turn our gear back on." Noticing the look of "whatthefuck?" on Chino's tusked face, he adds, "If I'm promising to you that I won't use my only ace in the hole, no matter what, then I'm slotting the damn chip. If you fear I'll think less of you, you're a fool. I think no less of the vampire nor the Ares assassin borg, nor the... Dwarf?"

A look of horror flashes on his face before going back to a mask of calm. Chino shakes his head. "It's not myself that I fear for." He sighs and places the chip within Sam's reach. "I doubt I can stop you anyway, and no, I'm not going to explain what I meant. You'll figure it out." That damn son of a gun is going to slot it. I seriously hope it doesn't affect him like it affected me. Should I tell him how I nearly lost my grip on reality from slotting it? No, it might not do the same thing to him. I hope it doesn't. He continues, "Remember, the BTL feels real, but it isn't. You might experience some," he hesitates, looking to find the right word, "interesting emotions while in there. Just keep that in mind."

"Are we agreed then? We will reach out to these four organizations directly and explain our memory loss and freely give the artifact to whichever one can provide us with answers and a little help dealing with the trouble the artifact has caused us, and provide a reasonable guarantee that it will remain out of the hands of whatever foul party hired us to take it. And if we can get some help with our mystery affliction, all the better. We will run the plan by the others for approval, but do we at least have consensus here?"

Staring forward unblinking and with firm jaw, Sam replies, "I say we do both. We reach out to them directly and we drop the burners. Deal? Also, I don't think we should be doing any big meetings with anyone in a downtown, populated area at all. There's going to be bloodshed and I'd prefer it all come from us and the unlucky fucks who've been sent to kill us. Make them come out into the snow to meet with us. Much harder to lay a trap for us like that. Thoughts?"

He's echoing my thoughts exactly.

Chino notices a transmission from Doc. He waves it away. "My thoughts exactly. That way, we have a better chance of getting them all grouped together in one spot. They'll have to come to us, in a place of our choosing. It makes it easier to plan for and escape from. We'll know the terrain." The memories of the last encounter they had with others was still fresh in his mind, at the rich man's house, the name eluded him. That did not end so well. Actually, considering we all came away alive and relatively unscathed, it could even be considered a success. Shaking his head to get rid of his stray thoughts, Chino replies, "You guys know my point. I'm in on the plan."

"I actually have no idea what you mean by that? Mind spelling it out for me." Genuine confusion crowds his face up into an ugly mask of flesh and horn.

Drek, do I tell them about my ... erratic feelings? My need for violence? I don't plan on dying, if I don't have to, but something tells me that I'm heading towards my last fight.

Chino looks away from Sam. "Forget about it. I think that last fight has made me start feeling my own mortality. It's just a precaution, just in case." He left out the part of "just in case this fight pulls me in and I die in a blaze of violence".

Even now, he was still keeping secrets. Everyone else seemed to have come clean about, well, pretty much everything. They might still be lying about a few things, but everyone was putting things in the open. Everyone except him. He kept telling himself he was doing it for their own good. Or maybe it was for his own good. He knew he could trust them; he was probably the loudest voice in trying to work as a team. It's just ... he couldn't tell them. Not yet, anyway. They weren't ready.

A small voice in his head spoke, "Or are you not ready?"

Chino sits back in his seat and stares forward, deliberately keeping his thoughts away from his face.