[Mercy Merchant]

Robyn faces to where ISaint is standing and nods, giving the commands to have her Mule move forward down the tunnel as she says,  "What are you talking about?  That "indulging the nosy guy" took all of a few seconds and we were pretty much moving the entire time.  You never gave the cover a chance to work.  A lot of effort went into creating that and you tossed it at the first chance.  Al's smuggling compartments and the background we did on the band were well laid and might have got us past that guy, but you did not have the patience to let that part of the plan work.  It is completely unlikely that that man would have recognized the device as anything other than what we told him it was.  It has been buried in a vault away from any eyes for years and he might very well have accepted that it was an amp for the stage equipment.  Sure the ruse might not have worked, but you did not trust your team enough to even try it.  And pushing past him from the start would have raised the alarm in any case and the guards would still have been in the way."

"I am incredibly worried about Al and Al and the rest of us.  Even though I and Halfpint are apparently not directly at risk, we are carriers.  I have too many friends to wish the sort of harm you have described on any of them.  The warning signs are meant to discourage others from either following us or coming upon us by accident.  They should work, if only for a while.  And the Johnson has already lied to us or is not knowledgeable of this thing in the first place.  By the time we would have had any word from the rather useless man, we might have infected all of Below.  "

The two mages approach the team moving towards them, having already taken the precaution of cleansing themselves.  Robyn jumps down from the Mule and introduces them around as they begin the task of sterilizing the team and its equipment.  Halfpint keeps the drones oriented so that they can discourage anyone who might have ignored the warning signs from following them from getting too close.  When the mages have completed the process, Robyn holds her breath as they check to see if the infection is still present or if it has been dealt with for now.

[Jack_Spade]

"As you can see, even seconds can be crucial - especially with closing gates.
Our cover was shot the moment someone sent those drones after us - or do you believe that was a random patrol? The man knew exactly what he was looking for, he even indicated at the crate. This has nothing to do with not trusting the team. I seized the initiative before the man could discard his own cover for something more dangerous.

Trust me, I've been in enough situations like this: Taking a potential threat out before it can become real is almost always preferable to relying on a fraying disguise.

I know you loved this cover, but it is the nature of the beast that you have to discard the lovingly crafted artwork like a used condom when you are finished." Isaint stopped to pick a bit of dried freeze foam from his shoe.
"Our Johnson has not yet answered - I'd prefer to let him explain himself before jumping to conclusions.

Also I'd suggest to table this discussion until later when we are somewhere with a semblance of safety - criticizing each other won't change what has happened but might very well kill us through distraction.

And please, please shut those AROs down. You are putting us at risk more than those manaphages ."

[Mercy Merchant]

Robyn takes the ARO signs down and discards them.  "I agree that we have differing opinions and that the best time to discuss them is not now.  The AROs are down.  Let's hope that the mages have done well by us."

[Aria]

[Sunday July 5th, 2076; The beginnings of Below, London Underplex]

The two mages bumble about the tunnels waving sprigs of burning rosemary and looking woefully inadequate for dealing with one of the worst bio weapons created in modern times.  For those looking on in the astral however their mojo is undeniable and the manaphage does seem to be reducing in the face of the onslaught of their magics…

Isaint receives a terse text back from the Johnson

<<FABIII? That wasn’t part of my intel. Get rid of it and then we can talk again, I still want the artefact but I didn’t ask for that! Right now you are the worst bio-terrorists of the last five years, you might want to factor that in to your planning. Get shot of it without making the news and I will add fifty percent to your fee>>

This is nothing compared with the voice that fills Robyn’s mind from nowhere and everywhere at once

~Foolish Girl! How dare your kind bring that filth in to my domain! It is Isaint and Guthrie that are at the heart of this…the Pattern warps around them and the seers tremble…get you gone, do not think to come here until you are clean~ and as abruptly it is gone, leaving a cold emptiness.

From the Professor there is no response as yet, but that is probably due to the lateness of the hour…

From Hecate and the Harelquinade a wryly amused message returns

<<This is a story to be told! I will send dancers to record your tale, perhaps you may even live to see the end of it>>

***

#25

[Jack_Spade]

Isaint groaned inwardly as he received this information. With a mental flick, he shared the info with the team.
<<Ok Robyn, I admit our Johnson is an idiot - but at least a generous one.

Now I have a question for you all: Should we destroy the FAB III or keep it in a secure container.

I happen to have acquired a few hard case briefcases with extremely good seals. Make no mistake: This is a potent weapon that doesn't endanger non-magical beings, but will give even the strongest mage pause.

If done right this could be a powerful insurance for our safety. Likewise it could get us killed by a furious mob or a counter-terrorist team.

Not to mention that this stuff is really worth a lot to the right buyer.

And just to be clear: I am neutral on the topic - even though once upon a time I'd have given my right arm for this stuff when I was confronted with a cellar full of zombie children Shedim.>>

#323

[Mercy Merchant]

Robyn does not hesitate to respond to ISaint's question.  >>I am very much not neutral in this.  I vote to destroy it.  I am not magical in any way, but I have friends that are and this is a terrible thing.  No good can come of it.<<

[adamu]

"Have ta say I'm with the lady. Ya say that there garbage burns? Then i say burn it an' burn it hot. I'll grant it's worth a pretty penny. An' I'll grant it'd come in handy someday against a nest o' demons or whatnot. More'n all that, I'll grant whoever put it in that case did so fer a damn good reason - namely ta contain Mr. Easter Island when he reveals his true nature as Lord Tssogotth o' the Eldar Realms....

"But the other side o' the coin is, we don't rightly know how ta use it, it's a danger to us as much as any enemies, an' we still gotta navigate the dingus outta the Undermaze an' then come back an' play weddin' planner. None o' that gon' go too well if we got some sorta all-House Omega Order on our heads fer wipin' out all they sorcerors an' peepin' wizards...temptin' as that thought might be...

"So I reckon we burn it."

[Mercy Merchant]

Halfpint pops in with his two nuyen.  >>Make that three of us, then.  I agree that this could be useful under certain circumstances, but Al is correct in saying we should destroy it.<<

[Jack_Spade]

Isaint looked at Rick, but the mage just shrugged: "I know exactly what you mean - that business in France with the child killing blood mage vampire...
I'd say we hide it somewhere secure, just in case we need it later. Just imagine if that was exactly the thing we need and we destroyed it all."


"That's three to one so far." Isaint looked at Jackhammer: "Any compelling argument from your side to keep it?"

[pistolgrip]

Jackhammer was a bit surprised to be asked for his opinion as opposed to his fists. He realized he hadn't even been thinking about it since he figured the others would just handle it themselves. So he paused, running a hand through his hair. "Uh..." He looked at Robyn, not wanting to disagree, and at Al and Halfpint, all strongly convinced of the same opinion. But here was Isaint, the guy most like him in the group, and he was saying that this stuff might just be the only thing standing between them and some super-mages or vampires or something. And Al had said something about demons. Jackhammer wasn't sure how magic worked really, and didn't like to waste a lot of time thinking about it either. But one thing he did get was weapons--the kind of thing a lot of people like to try to control or destroy, but at the end of the day, the only thing that can keep you alive sometimes. He sure wouldn't like anyone trying to take his guns or his bow away. But against some things in the world, guns and bows didn't do a damn thing. So, he figured, this was his supernatural magic bullet. So he made up his mind and spoke.

"Is the stuff dangerous? Sure. Maybe not as much to me as to some other people, but still dangerous. I don't want you to think that makes me take it less seriously. There's plenty of things in this world that can kill me. I have some of them stashed in that cello case right now. So yeah, this stuff is dangerous. But we can't make the whole world a safe place. Best we can do is keep ourselves dangerous enough to be able to handle the other dangers in the world. So I'll tell you what--soon as you all melt down your guns and your foci and your drones, I'll vote to burn these containers."

He then turned to Isaint and said without a hint of flexibility, "But we sure as hell aren't just going to pawn it. You said it yourself--you don't sell guns. This is no different."

[Mercy Merchant]

Robyn nods.  "It appears that we all have fairly good reasons for our votes.  I appreciate not being dismissed out of hand for being the decker.  I guess as team leader, the final call is yours, ISaint."

[Jack_Spade]

Isaint nodded: "3 to 2 with me abstaining. So we will destroy the stuff. But I don't feel confident to just set fire to the bags or open the valve into an open flame - stuff could escape. I suggest we hide the stuff for now at a non-descript place and come back with a vat of alcohol we can funnel the stuff into. Afterwards we can set it aflame.

Or does anyone have a better solution - mind you I'd like to avoid giving the stuff to anyone else to dispose of. My trust in metahumanity only stretches so far..."

[adamu]

"Well, if we ain't destroyin' it yet, then keepin' it's safer'n hidin' it. Only way someone gits it is if we's dead, which ain't on ol' Al's agenda. We take it with us ta make delivery o' the dingus, then dispose of it safely topside afore returnin' ta play the Newlywed Game."

[pistolgrip]

Jackhammer nods. At least they'd be keeping it for now. The loss wasn't too serious--he'd only known it existed for the past few minutes. Easy come, easy go. And at least it wouldn't be one of those things that would come back to haunt him. The others had their say of it, so it was off of his conscience. But for now, nothing changed, and they needed to get moving. "Are we clean? Ready to move? I'm starting to miss the smog."

[Mercy Merchant]

After conferring with the mages, Robyn leaves them with her comm code to coordinate the payment for their service.  She turns to the others and says, "I am told that the parasite infestation is gone and that we may proceed."  She bends over to rub the head of her hound as she commands her Mule to begin moving again.  She sends a note out to The Old One.  >>I beg your pardon, great leader.  We were not aware that we had the FAB III device until it went off.  We immediately took precautions to prevent any infection of Below.  My message to you was to alert you of the presence of this horrible device.  I would have done my best to keep the device from impacting below.  I arranged for two wizards to cleanse us and we have managed to turn the device off.  I am sorry that you thought me foolish and stupid.<<

As they walk, Robyn says, "So, is the plan now to return to the Overworld and deliver the artifact then return?"