1.2 - Shopping Trip

The van rolls into the Trade Ward. You follow the Nav unit as it tells you to turn right and left in a jovial, but robotic, manner. You find yourself in front of a small hole-in-the-wall shop with an aged sign over it. Still using outdated fluorescent lights. They audibly hum as you approach the store and enter.

It's mid-day outside but the store is still out of the light so it seems fairly dim. You find a Lizard Man standing behind the counter. He has a few opened data-pads around him he is fixing. As the door closes behind you it bumps a bell that jingles. The sound seems overly loud in this quiet little store.

The Lizard Man looks up at you, a monocle lense in one eye makes it seem much larger than it is. Even in this dimly lit store you see the Lizard Man has a puckered and white scar that runs from up above his eye, all the way down and around his jaw, cutting a jagged trail all the way along. Part of his upper and lower lip are split where the scar runs across his snout. His dark grey scales make the scar all the more prominent.

Welcome. How may I be of asssssssissstance, he says, almost accentuating the s noises intentionally.

Mack winces. First the hum from those lights, and then... like dragonnails across cobblestone. It really raises the hair on the back of his neck. Trying to look casual and cool, he gives his shoulders a shake.. you know, to arrange the duster just so. "Hi. We're looking for some..." he casts around, "stuff. We have a colleague who thought it might be a good idea to drop in on your store in particular. She was most insistent."

Breecha follows Mack into the store, jingling the door bell again as his head bumps into it. He stands behind Winchester, motionless like a statue, red optics glowing in the dim.

Kessel pulls up behind the van and dismounts. He digitizes his bike, breaking the vehicle down and absorbing it into his own cybernetics. He transmits instructions for O.W.L. to watch over the entrance, then enters the shop behind Breecha.

Ah. Yesssss. You musssst be Tymora'ssss boysss, he hisses out as he eyes you over, adjusting the magnifying monocle over his eye. He rounds around the counter to greet you, but strides past Mack and stops in front of Breecha.

Ooooh, a classic BR33CH-A unit. They don't build them like thissss anymore. How much for the bot? It could early plenty of GCsssss on the market, he says as he raps his knuckle on the armor plating of the bot. He turns towards mack with a raised scaled eyebrow.

"Not for sale." Kessel says levelly. He just manages not to hex the lizardman.

Breecha takes the knuckle-rap with the stoic and impassive grace of a tin man. His red optics are the only indication that he's even on.

Mack thinks about adding a comment, mouth open and finger pointing -- but decides better and shuts his mouth before opening again, "Is the front of the shop the extent of our options, or are there any more.. peculiar items that you might have for a more discerning clientele?" He gestures around the small place of business.

The Lizard Man regards Kessel for a moment, That'sssss too bad. Pleassse keep me in mind if you ever...reconssssider.

He turns back to Mack. Ah, yessss. For Tymora thisss rubbish will simply not do. Follow me.

He turns and heads back around the counter and withdraws a small data key from within his shirt. It hangs on a small decorative mythril chain. He walks you to a door that looks like an entrance to a back stockroom and plugs the data key into an almost imperceptible port on the wall. When he removes the key the door sliders open and you indeed find a very disheveled stock room.

Half deconstructed datapads lay all around. The lizard man leads you to the back of this room where some open piping come down from the ceiling and run along a portion of the wall. He grabs one of these and pulls it and you hear an audible click. The rest of the section of this wall swings backwards. He pushes on through and you find that the door leads to a dark tunnel, lit by a few sparse wall lights.

Right thisssss way. Please close the door behind you. You can never be too...sssssecretive, he says, clearly using that word for the 's' sound instead of careful, which would have made far more sense.

What do you all do?

Mack continues to twitch at the sibilant speech. It gives him chills. Every. Single. Time. Shrugging, however, he will follow the Lizard Man into the back. "One of you wanna close the door after us?"

Breecha will be the last to enter the stock room, and he turns to attempt to close it so that their entrance into the secret room isn't in public view. He gives the common room one last sweep with his optics before returning his attention to the lizardman, whom he scans to try and pick up his vitals and determine his state of mind.

Kessel enters behind Mack. Out of force of habit he looks around for surveillance cameras and the like, as well as an exit if things should go south. Half of him wishes he'd brought O.W.L. in here with him.

For both Kessel and Breech-a there are no detectable threats here. Kessel also notes an extreme lack of technology. A quick scan of the place in HUD view of RAIN reveals the area is devoid of any hard lines to the network. Even your connection to the global network is suddenly becoming spotty. A few more feet down this long tunnel and you suddenly can't get a signal to RAIN at all.

You trek down this tunnel for a while, a few twists and turns here and there, and find yourself at an old rusted metal door, with one small rusted keyhole. The lizard man pulls out a key and unlocks the door. He struggles a bit getting the rusted door to swing open, and as he does you see the door is about a foot thick of solid metal. He walks through the door and says, Hold on one sssssecond.

After a few moments you hear a CHUNK, and suddenly lights flicker on revealing a rather large vault-like room. Shelves and racks and walls are lined with all sorts of weapons, devices, and all manner of technology. Inside this room, Kessel, you also realize any of your techromancy Magic is simply inaccessible to you. It's as if the whole room is either shielding you, or suppressing magic as a whole.

What are you in the market for, my friendssss, the Lizard Man says with a toothy grin revealing rows of small needley teeth.

Mack considers.

"Well, maybe something that provides healing or repair? Or perhaps something that can give my guns a little extra juice?" he shrugs, "To be honest, I hadn't really thought of needing anything in particular. I suspect Breech may have something on his shopping list, since he likes the heavy hardware..."

"ADVISORY: Secondary Source of Alternative Identification," intones Breecha. "Inquire Availability And Cost."

Kessel can't help but admire the way this place has been shielded, even though this leaves him feeling somewhat vulnerable. He is glad, as always, that Breecha is around. He moves to stand closer to the battle droid, but then is unable to contain his curiosity and takes a step closer to the shelves of tech.

Ah, yessss. Healing and repair, gun modsssss. Even sssspare credentials. I can help with all of that, the lizard man says, gesturing at the shelves all around. He starts leading you around the shop space.

The first shelf is lined with repair and healers kits, as well as stims for both repair and healing. The kits are generally cheaper, but will only stabalize, not actually heal. The stims are more expensive, but they work much like the old healing potions of the olden days.

He also shows you a whole display section of various gun mods. For 3,000 GCs you can add any one property to a weapon. This includes the Burst Fire ability. You could instead use that 3,000 GCs to add a stock or a scope onto a weapon, the stock adds +2 to weapon attacks, the scope adds +2 to weapon damage. (I am working on more weapon mod ideas).

He also informs you that clean credentials are 4,000 GCs per person. Generating credentialssss comessss with added...risksssss, he says.

"Hrm. A false set of clean credentials might be pretty handy for you, Kessel. Or do those not have value on the net?" Mack wonders. He walks over to the healing kits and starts to poke around, as the mundane additions to weapons have no interest for the gunmage.

"I don't suppose you have anything to modify an an arcane focus?"

He stops showing the goods off and squints at you, Mack. Ahhhh, he says after a short pause, I didn't realize we had a gun mage in our pressssssence. He grins a little wider and walks over to a row of shelves that have a safe below them. This safe seems to be a very old mundane safe with a standard spinning wheel. Nothing electronic about it, which is quite rare these days.

He spins the dial a few times, and then grabs the big turn bar attached to it and you hear it clunk loudly as the safe unlocks and swings open. He pulls out a small black case, about the size of a briefcase. It's black rugged looking plastic. He clicks the two locks on it and opens it, spinning it around to see. You see what looks like many internal components to your pistol, but they seem to be made of a smooth polished obsidian stone.

Thissss kit will allow you to replace the trigger mechanisssssm of your pistols for one more conductive to your magical powersssss. This is a highly illegal modification. It will run you eight thousssssand GC. It will boost your magical power, and allow you to hold more magical chargesssss.

Mack's eyes grow large. "Very interesting.. but that price is a little dear. And it would seem to me to be a selfish purchase..."

Indeed. Indeed. I can underssssstand your hesssitation. Just know, this stone is quite rare. It's a gem found inside of a volcano. Only forms under the highest of heats and pressssssures. You may not find an item like this anywhere else. At least not for ssssuch a reasonable price, he says, grinning a little. He then slowly closes the case and clasps it shut, putting it back into the vault. He spins the lock around to reset it and turns back.

Are there any waresssss I can interessssst you in? I am a man of busssssinessss. My time isssss money, he says.

"What's the going rate on these health and repair stims?" Mack asks, conversationally.

"The stims are one hundred GCsssss each, for your standard grade stims", he says, and then points higher up on the shelves, "There are also higher quality stimssss for a thousand GCsssss."

"Kessel, Breech? What do you guys think?" Mack waves at the various and sundry. "Definitely some interesting items that might be of interest when we have a little more money to invest in gear. But given the relatively modest state of our nest egg, I'm loathe to shell out too much coin. Maybe half a dozen or so stims and another half a dozen or so auto-repair kits?"

Breecha's acceptance of the plan is shown through his flickering optics.

Very well, which quality would you like. Sssstandard, or the upgraded premium?, he asks, eyeing the robot again.

Of coursssssse. If you wanted everything sssso far a barter could be in order?, he inquired, now visibly flicking his head in Breecha's direction.

"Uh no. Breech is not for sale. One assumes he'd let us know if he'd like to hang out with a higher class of persons than we represent." Mack looks over the Kessel and adds, "I was thinking of the standard stims. The upgraded ones seem nice and all, but the order of magnitude cost increase for what is reputed to be merely double the effectiveness seems like too stiff a markup." He looks back at Kessel, "You interested in anything else bud? Or do we make a wishlist and see if we can't double or triple the size of our nest egg before we come hunting around for the specialty goods?"

"Oh, we've got the creds. But I believe standard stim is worth 50 GC's only. I'm not sure our friend here values his good standing with Tymora very much. Such is the price of business, I suppose." Kessel shrugs, and turns as if to leave, "We'll make our purchases elsewhere. Thank you for your time."

You see his dark green scales bristle a bit at the accusation. Doesssss thissss shop look like a Gnoll-Mart to you? Those in a line of work sssssuch as yours should value thosssssse who go out of their way to maintain sssuch a level of secrecy and sssssecurity. If you would prefer there issss a nice little Stop-And-Shop about three blocksssss up. I'm sure they would be happy to keep a paper trail of all of your purchassssses for you.

He crosses to the large vault-like door that you entered in and pushes it open. Gesturing as if to say 'feel free to leave anytime'.

Breecha's optics flicker as he studies the lizardman. However, he is really communicating to the team with a short-wave signal to their implants. The words are audible in his typical monotone, or appear as scrolling dot-matrix text on HUDs. ASSESSMENT: Cost Of Materials Include Maintenance Of Interpersonal Relationship Between Business Partners. ADVISORY: Purchase Supplies To Establish Goodwill And Future Access.

Mack nods, receiving the message. "A half dozen stims and a half dozen auto-repair kits it is. We've got the funds -- and respect your ability to keep the merchandise clean and off the books. Some of the other items you offer are very tempting, but we think we should be working to build up our capital a bit before we dive in. I hope you wouldn't mind if we returned when we had a bit more credit to flow for some of the other items, assuming they were still in stock, of course."

The lizard man's expression picks up a bit and a smile cuts a swath through the middle of his face. Of course, of course. And for Tymora's boysssss, I'll even cut you a little deal. 6 healing stimsss, 6 auto-repair stimsss. 1000 creditsssss., he says, now addressing only Mack.

My vault will always be opened and sssstocked, though rare antiquities may come and go, he says as he jots down the order in an old fashioned parchment notebook. The faded words "Invoice" at the top. I will send the bill to Tymora to take care of.

He grabs 6 of each stims and tosses them in a case for you. His smile still wide from a completed transaction. He is about to turn to hand you your goods, then stops to look at Mack and Kessel again, he then turns back and adds a burst-fire addon for a pistol into the container, For future busssssinesssss and good will, a little gift for you.

He then hands you the bag and shows you to the door, much less annoyed at this point.

Mack will take the bag with his thanks and add, "Do let us -- or Tymora know -- if there's something we can help you with in the mean time." He'll head out to the door and into the front of the shop without looking back. Though a little sad he's leaving the obsidian behind...

Breecha is the last to leave as he follows Mack and Kessel out.

As you make your way back to the shop and outside the lizard man is walking alongside Mack, suddenly much more buddy-buddy with him. I'm sure I will sssssee you again in no time for the focusssss kit. A gun mage such as you desssssserves the besssst, eh?

After some small talk on the walk back to the shop you find yourself out of the shop into the still bright day. It was hard to judge the passage of time in the vault, but it seems to only have been an hour or so. After your devices and implants have reconnected to RAIN you hear PHANTOM chime in, There you are. Where did you go? You vanished in that shop. How did things go? Did you mention the scar?. The AI prattles on far less concerned with answers so much as making up for lost quip time.

With his chatter you almost don't hear it as you approach the van, but Breech-a is the first to hear it. A shrill female scream pierces the day. It seems far away and yet to reverberate from all over. You can't quite pinpoint it the first time, and a few minutes pass without any other sound. Then you hear it again, coming from an ally way near you, your certain this time. Another shrill scream. This time both Mack and Kessel hear it as well.

What do you do?

Breecha remains where he is, awaiting orders.

On the way out of the shop, Mack hands three of the healing stims to Kessel (securing the rest upon his person) and asks Breech for a place to install the auto-repair kits so they'll be handy for him to initiate upon need (ensuring three of these get into his inventory). "Do you want this pistol modification now, Breech?" If so, he'll have handed that over to the warforged to do with as he sees fit.

With a press on his key fob and a boop-boop from the van, Mack has his hands on the door when he hears the scream. He sighs heavily, opens the door to toss the rest of the bag (with 3 auto repair kits and possibly the pistol mod) in and, with a press on the fob locks the door once more.

"Suppose we should look into that, boys?"

As they leave the shop and are about to mount up Kessel apologizes to everyone. "Hey I'm sorry I almost mucked it all up back there. I was trying to bluff the guy, not insult him--" but he is interrupted by the screaming. "On it, boss." Kessel in response to Mack. He sends O.W.L. zipping in the direction of the screams.

O.W.L. is the first the set off after the sound. It swoops down from it's place doing general observation over the store and group and darts into the alleyway. Kessel is able to keep a small window open on his ocular display showing the camera feed from the drone. It zips a few turns down this alley way as another scream pierces through, this time shouting the word 'help'.

You also hear a variety of other strange noises that start coming up. One sounds like the roar of a lion. Another sounds like a car alarm. Another yet sounds like gunshots. You even hear a loud clap of thunder on what is, as of now, an entirely blue sky day. Not a cloud in the sky.

[passing a note to Kessel]

"Elven woman being mugged by four Kenku. All armed with knives and pistols. Down that alleyway. C'mon!" Guided by O.W.L.'s video feed, Kessel leads the group down the alley.

It won't necessarily be single file, when you arrive at the dead-end I mentioned, you will be able to be in whatever formation you would like to be.

Breecha complies with the directive and helps lead the way into the alley, following the guidance of O.W.L. and Kessel. The construct currently is only armed with his shield and mace, having left his pistol and shotgun in the van as a precaution against openly showing firearms in public.

"You want my piece, Breecha?" says Kessel, grinning, as he offers his SMG to the battle droid. "I'm feeling like I'm going all magic-fingers on this one."

"ADVISORY: Retain Firearm As Secondary Weapon," Breecha monotones. "ASSESSMENT: Indication Of Civilian Target Warrants Intervention With Protective Barrier." Almost as if to drive home the point, he locks his shield into place as the group nears the area.

Breecha's tactical assessment is, as always, right on point. Kessel returns the firearm to its holster and considers how best to snatch up the civilian while his companions engage the hostiles. Breecha is probably right, the best option is probably to have the battle droid protect her while Kessel, Mack and Preserver take out the Kenku. "PHANTOM.Nimbus," Kessel says into the coms, "What intel have we got on Kenku in general? Anything we can exploit. I'm patching O.W.L.'s video feed through to you so you can run these particular birdmen through facial recognition, see if we can get I.D. and gang affiliations."

Mack unlimbers his pistols.

"So -- do we go in shooting or do we try and warn 'em off first?" It's clear by his tone of voice that Mack prefers the shooting idea, though he doesn't really like the idea of just shooting a bunch of people. Still he much prefers not being shot.

Phantom chimes back over the comms. Looks like a low-status gang. There are a number of roaming gangs of kenuku. If you approach the way you are heading you will actually show up behind them at the other end of the clearing.

Remember guys, these are a non-vocal bunch. The communicate with sounds and phrases they mimic. Reasoning with they may be...difficult. Good luck.

Breecha begins to call up from memory the various sounds and phrases heard over the years. Admittedly, not a lot of space was dedicated to such, but putting whatever he finds to RAM will hopefully come in handy.

"Hrm. I guess it's a show of force then." Mack adds, wistfully, "I really could have used that sleep bullet I left back at the garage." He casually paws through his available ammunition, hmming to himself. "I could try and freeze one or two of 'em in place as a kick off? Perhaps that will get them to back down? Or are we basically consigned to killing these things?"

Breecha will obey whatever orders are given. He draws his mace as they near the site of conflict.

"Whatever works, yeah? It's not like we're getting paid."

Mack sighs, "Good point. Maybe it's a rich, grateful elf."

Mack readies a Hold Person bullet and says. "Ok guys, when you're ready, let's do this thing. Breech -- be ready to put them down."

Mack will come around the corner and raise his pistols. Using his Hold Person bullet he will fire it at whomever looks like the bossiest of the kenuku or, failing that, the one that looks like it's threatening the elf the most. He adds in a slow drawl, "Alright you crazy critters -- step away from elf and go about your business..."

Breecha takes one step forward with his right foot, planting it hard with both mace and shield wide, announcing his arrival. He then strides forward and plants his left foot equally as hard, bringing the shield in front with mace readied behind, announcing his intention. As the dust settles about him, the optics glow and hum with intensity and purpose.

The lead Kenku, who had been making the sound of coins clinking together and holding had hand out to the elf woman, turns with only enough time to see a bolt of energy flying across the clearing at him, his surprise puts him at a distinct disadvantage to avoid it.

The bolt slams right into his chest as he turns and he is suddenly locked in place, as if frozen.

The other Kenku are distracted by what has just befallen their leader and Breech-a's intimidation seems to affect a few of them, but as this alley is a dead-end, and the Kenku are a flightless species, their only option is to fight their way out. The direness of the situation causes them to draw arms and ready themselves for combat.

The elf woman takes the moment of distraction to try and move further away along the wall towards a corner of this enclosed space.

Kessel steps aside, effectively opening up an escape route for the kenku while at the same time moving closer to the elven woman. "Breecha, primary objective is to protect the civilian." As he moves, turns his attention back to the remaining kenku. "Alright, bird-brains, you better clear your sorry asses out of here while my friends and I still have our sense of humor."

Two of the four Kenku take this opportunity to flee down the path Kessel left for them, trying their best to scramble around Breech-a, while keeping as much distance as possible from the large bot. The third had stepped in front of it's frozen leader and drawn a gun. He screeches out the word "COWARDS!", but it sounds as though it comes from a deep, but distinctly female, voice. You think this is a regurgitated sound it has heard once before.

The last Kenku is still frozen in place, but he struggles to regain his mobility.Kessel's words seem to fall on deaf ears with Razor Beak and he fires a shot at the Breech-a unit. Redfeather manages to free himself and pulls a weapon as well, but doesn't have time to get a shot off.

Kessel starts slinging energy bolts at Razor Beak, talking cover behind Breecha as he does so, urging the battle droid closer to the defenseless elf woman.

Breecha moves forward even as the bullet slips past his shield to slice sparks off his body. Seeking to maneuver around Razor Beak while keeping Kessel behind him (thus rotating his CO towards the woman), Breecha moves to the side nearest the wall of the alley. His mace lashes out at Razor Beak's weapon arm, looking to dislodge the gun from the kenku's grasp.

The Kenku takes the hit hard, not expecting the mace to do so much damage. He does his best to keep a hold of his weapon. But it's clear his arm was pretty well broken by the mace, and the gun topples to the ground.

He quickly looks between Breech-a, and his boss Redfeather. He opens his beak and the sound is that of a whining puppy. He turns to try make his way out of the alley while he still has his life.

As Breech-a finishes his move he winds up between Redfeather and the elf woman who is now hiding behind a trash can near the corner of this clearing, trying to avoid the loud gunfire and battle.

Mack causally spins his guns and points them at Redfeather. He casts-and-holds Fire Bolt, willing to dismiss the spell should Redfeather show some intelligence and make a run for it. If the scrawny bird decides to have a hack at anyone, he's getting a flaming bolt of magic to the torso.

"Be smart about your next move there, sir." Mack says, thinking of a classic Flint Entwood line, but feeling far too self-conscious to lift it outright.

Breecha's audio plays a lion's growl, a deep baritone rumble to lend emphasis to Mack's gesture.

Redfeather looks to Mack, and back to Breech-a, then to the elf woman cowering behind the bot.

He seems to consider for a moment and then lowers his weapon and scrambles away down the alleyway out of here. You hear what sounds like incoherent muttering as he goes by, probably another copied sound he had heard before.

The alleyway is suddenly calm as the elven woman looks up to Kessel. P...please don't hurt me, I have credits. I...I can get you credits, if you let me go.

You can see closer up now that she has light blond hair that blends into her light skin. She is wearing a business skirt and button up blouse, a small bag carried over her shoulder is clutched in her hands. She straightens her glasses and looks on the verge of tears at this point.

"You're safe now, lady. We're not here to hurt or rob you." Kessel helps her up.

She tentatively takes your hand and stands up, seeming to relax only a little. She still clutches the bag under her arm.

T...thank you. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't come along. I guess I don't know my way around here very well.

Still facing the direction the kenku ran off to, Breech-a picks up the dropped gun and positions himself to shield the woman both from view and from anything that might come forth. He scans the elf with the optics from his shield briefly before returning it to a protective guard, and remains on the lookout for activity beyond.

Your data turns up not too much on the elf. She seems to be a corporate employee who just got turned around in the Trade Ward. Not the best thing for a creature not familiar with the more unsavory elements that may appear this far south in the ward.

Looking around the alley all seems calm now, a basic pistol is your reward for disarming the enemy. There are only a few bullets in the gun. You can definitely tell this is the back alley of a few stores. Utilities meters dot the back of the buildings that surround this place. The only entrance or exit is the alley you came down, unless you have access to one of the rear entrances to these buildings, but they all seem locked with small digital locks.

Kessel sends O.W.L. zipping back up the alley to make sure there are no surprises when the group heads back out. "We'll get you out of here, miss...?" Kessel already has her name scrolling across his HUD of course, but asks her like a normal person to avoid alarming her.

Mayweather. Lacei Mayweather, she says, extending her hand for a shake. Her grip is light. If you could get me back to the bus stop, I am such a dunce. I was daydreaming on the bus ride into work and missed my stop by a good seven or eight stops and wound up down here. Those birds followed me for a ways after I was off the bus and then chased me when I tried to run down the alley. It's been a very stressful morning, she explains. She begins speaking quicker and quicker in a nervous way.

Sorry, she says, I just talk when I'm nervous. Can you escort me to the bus stop?, she asks, readjusting her glasses which have started to slide a bit down her nose.

Mack spins his guns and holsters them with practiced ease. No. Seriously. He practiced a lot to make sure he could do that and look suave. In front of a mirror even. Ever a sucker for a damsel in distress, as he maintains this is how he met Tymora, he offers, "Certainly we can escort you to a bus stop." He considers offering a ride, but decides that might be creepy.

In the back of his mind he wonders what gang they just pissed off by disrupting their enforcers, but since no one is dead, surely it won't be that bad...

She flashes baby blue eyes at Mack, Thank you! That's so generous of you Mr. uh..., she trails off waiting for a name.

Breech-a slips the pistol into his tactical vest, and walks back the way they arrived down the alley. Conversation was never his strength, so the construct moves to secure their departure.

"Let's move as we talk eh, Mack?" Kessel ushers everyone along after Breech-a.

Breech-a, coming out of the alleyway first you see the Kenku have indeed made a swift escape. They are already long gone from this area. You are able to easily secure the exit route from danger, your optics quickly scanning anything that moves in the area.

Mack? Well thank you Mack and, uh...you, she says, looking to Kessel. You are ushered out of the alleyway back to where your van was parked. The bus stop is about 3 blocks north up the road.

"Kessel. My name's Kessel, miss. And that's Breech-a." Kessel says, pointing out the droid. "So, uh, the bus stop, right?" Kessel is unsure whether to offer the woman a ride. He looks to Mack for suggestions.

Oh, yes. Thank you...Kessel. It's just a few blocks up, if you don't mind walking me there I would be incredibly thankful, she says and gives a small smile, starting to put her recent experience behind her.

"Uh, walk with you? Sure. You guys walk, and I'll ride off to that side of the street to make sure you aren't bothered. Breech-a, grab your gear from the van and guard the opposite flank." Before riding off on his bike, Kessel tells Mack & Lacei, "If you need us, just holler." When he's sure Lacei isn't looking Kessel winks at Mack and points at himself while mouthing the word, "Wingman!"

Oh, uh. Yes, that's fine. Just as long as you can get me safely to the bus stop, she says as she digs out a SWMT pass for the bus from her bag. Seriously, I appreciate the help, she says, adjusting her glasses again, more of a nervous gesture than to correct any sort of issue with them.

Breech-a returns to the van. He inspects the caliber of the ganger pistol to determine if its ammunition can work in his own weapon (if so, he releases the clip and stuffs it into a vest pocket). He deposits the kenku's gun inside the van and retrieves his pistol, holstering it inside his tac-vest.

After locking their transport, the construct returns to Mack and Lacei to take position opposite the gunslinger.

Kessel whispers into his private channel with Breech-a, "Give 'em some space, buddy. Flank 'em about 30 feet." Kessel checks O.W.L.'s camera feed, making sure all is clear.

Breech-a dutifully complies, crossing the street to walk on the opposite side. His stride is confident, like he is supposed to be there.

Mack casually escorts Lacei, trying not to roll his eyes at his friends. "So, Lacei, what is it you do for a living? This part of town doesn't seem like it should be your usual stomping ground..." He keeps an eye out for any trouble, as best he can, figuring that more folks being away of a potential problem is a good thing.

Oh. I uh. I work over in the Castle Ward. I'm an Accounts Rep for Silver Star...you know...the medical company, she says as she digs in her bag idly, I know I had mace in here at one point. I really should be more prepared, she continues, muttering more to herself at this point.

Yes. This is a bit out of the way. I really spaced today and didn't realize how far I had missed my stop by. If you guys hadn't come by, she says, shuddering a bit.

So, what do you do, Mack? Do you guys just go around saving random people?

"Uh... no. Saving people isn't our usual gig." Mack offers. His brain moves quickly while he tries to figure out how to avoid saying he's basically in a criminal gang. "We are independent contractors that handle all sorts of odd jobs. Unfortunately, it doesn't always pay that well, so we live in a rougher part of town and have to get used to staying alive in these parts."

"Accounts Rep, huh? Does that mean you are on the road a bunch visiting hospitals and clinics?"

I wouldn't say a bunch. I more represent those around San Waterdeep here. I'm in charge of selling and distributing supplies to the various outlets that need them, she says, as if she has explained this a hundred times. Usually if I have to travel around the city work pays for a car service.

She brushes some hair back out of her face. Sounds like a rough life. Do you do construction or something?, she says with almost a look of hope in her eyes that the answer is that simple.

"Hrm. No. Not so much into construction." Mack muses, "More of a glorified form of guard duty, really. Rent-a-cops, if you will." Mack shrugs, "You know, watching over stuff -- escorting things. Delivering messages into shady parts of town."

Breech-a maintains his escort from a respectable distance.

As you are arriving to the bus stop you see her fiddling with the zipper on her bag. Ah, I see, she says as realization seems to cross her face. Well, either way, thank you very much for the escort.

She looks up and sees a bus pulling up, Oh, this is my ride, she says as she starts to go towards it. She stops and looks back, digging in her bag and pulling out a small slip of paper. Hey, if there is anything I could do to repay you, feel free to get in touch, she says, handing you a business card with her name inlayed at the top. She brushes her hair back over her ear and smiles, krinkling her nose a little in the process. She turns and hops on the bus and in a few moments she is gone. You are left at the bus stop holding her card.

Breech-a continues a methodic scan of the area, but you don't see any sign of more Kenku or threats to the elf anymore. No doubt your escort has helped to keep any seedier elements that may have been around at bay.

Kessel pulls up, grinning. "Got her number, I see. Who's the best wingman ever, huh?"

Mack waves to the elf as she departs.

Mack shakes his head. "She's cute and all -- but she's too legit. Probably tithes to some druid or something too." He nonetheless pockets the card. "Still though, you never know when a contact elsewhere in the city might be helpful -- especially if we don't ask her to do something illegal." He turns back towards the van, "Shall we head back to the garage and see if Tymora has anything for us? Those obsidian attachments make me hungry for some more GCs"

Breech-a turns around and positions himself as an escort for Mack, given that Kessel's vehicle is a bit too fast for him to keep up with. "REMINDER: Assignments Pending," he intones, referring to the jobs Tymora had on their mission computer.

Mack nods to Breech, "Ah, right. Right. We don't all have solid-state memory, my friend."

As the afternoon turns to evening you make your way back to your hideout. The shop is still lit from the evening sun and Tymora has returned from her errands this afternoon.

Hey guys, how did the shopping trip go?, she asks as she goes about working on a motorcycle she has been fixing up, calling Breech-a over to get him to help hold the engine in place for it as she attaches it to the main body.

Breech-a complies, using his bulk and strength to assist with the assembly.

"It went well... that lizard man is a little creepy." Mack offers, "Still we got a good deal on some healing components, which we were low on, and got to see some of the more exotic wares. I definitely was interested in what he had on offer, but it would be irresponsible to over-invest in that stuff until we had a bit more of a buffer built up in our finances."

"Oh, and we prevented a cute elf from getting mugged." He flashes the business card in Tymora's direction. "We may need to be more cautious next time we're in the neighborhood in case those flightless bird brains figure we need teaching a lesson."

Yeah, he has always been an odd duck. Only person I know who has such a shielded storehouse though. He's really a good guy at heart though, she says as she works on the bike.

When she hears about the card she looks it over with idle curiosity at first and then does a double take, looking it over closer. She takes it from you hand, leaving large grease covered fingerprints on the white parchment.

"Mayweather?", she says and scrambles off to the office computer. A few clicks later she pulls up a case file to the vid screen. You remember that lonely hearts case? Husband thought his wife was cheating on him. Wanted us to follow the wife?, she explains as you see some case details pop up. You see a young looking male elf in business attire. His hair is slicked back and his complexion is flawless. This is Mr. Denrik Mayweather, husband to a one Laci Mayweather. Says here he has been noticing odd transit stops and poorly explained absences for various times. Seems he has been doing a bit of his own spying on her stuff to track her down.

As she flips through the file you see pictures of Denrik and Lacei together, and some of her alone. There is no mistake about it, that is the very same elf you recently rescued.

"Huh. Interesting." Mack shrugs. "Says she fell asleep on the bus. No reason not to believe her as she was clearly outclassed. And as we don't carry business cards in our line of work, there was no reciprocal exchange of contact information. Either way, we didn't see any particular evidence of her cheating on him. She got on the bus and got on her way..."

So you want to call the guy up and tell him you met Laci in an alley in the southern portion of the Trade Ward? Not sure how I'm going to spin that one. What would you suggest we do?, she asks as she is pulling up the other case file. There is always this escort mission. I have a few others in the pipeline but nothing to start on yet.

She gnaws idly on a stylus for her datapad as she is studying the two case files up on the vidscreen.

"QUERY: Lacei Mayweather Residence," intones Breech-a, still holding the engine block in place. "Correlate To Bus Route From Silver Star Facility In Castle Ward. QUERY: Lacei Mayweather Occupational Responsibilities. Correlate To Claimant Of Supply Distribution In Vicinity." Whether it is acceptance of the job or not, Breech-a considers some research essential towards making a preliminary decision.

"She's married?! Damn." Kessel is clearly more preoccupied with playing matchmaker for Mack than prospecting a new job for the team.

"What? No. Did we take that job? I wasn't going to call anyone." Mack answers Tymora. "I mean, if we took the job, I guess we should report in... it could be worth a bonus. But if we didn't take it, I don't think we have any obligation to check back in with him. For all we know he had someone following her already and we're already over-involved."

They aren't yet a client with us, unless you want to act on the mission, she says.

Just be careful if you choose to take it on, you never know how the information might sound if you bring it about like that, she says and hands you back the business card with a big black fingerprint now across it.

She turns to Breech-a, if you find anything out pass it along if you guys decide to take on the job. With that she goes back to work on her bike.

Breech-a intones from where he stands, next to the bike. "HYPOTHESIS: Coincidence. Further Inquiry Into Circumstances Of Encounter May Factor Into Decision Of Contract Acceptance."

[running queries for Breech-a]

"ASSESSMENT: Preliminary Inquiry Appears To Corroborate Mayweather Claim Of Lapsed Dis-Embarkation," reports Breech-a to the group. "Further Investigation Requires Investment Of Resources." In other words, digging deeper into this case would basically mean taking on the job.

"QUERY: Other Outstanding Assignments," he continues, looking up the other pending contracts.

"Well there's that escort mission." Mack notes, nodding over to Tymora.

"Are either of you guys superstitious?" he asks. "I mean -- it could fate, or whatever that we ran into the girl. That said, it does seem like our cover is pretty much blown if we're supposed to follow her around for her husband. I mean, she'd be able to spot us and that would be creepy. It doesn't help that Preserver hasn't come back from that hippy commune of naked hobbits smoking their 'pipe weed' all day."

"You're right, Mack. She might call the cops on us if we tart tailing her. So what about that escort mission, Tymora? What's that about?"

She continues to tinker with her bike but calls back, Some dwarf put up a job for an escort of cargo out of the Sea Ward and up to the Trade Ward.

Can you lift this part 1 foot, she says to Breech-a, getting him to re-angle the frame so she can get a better view of it.

I don't know much about the dwarf, he will meet whoever on site. There was no mention of what the cargo is, only that it would fit in the van. I assume since he is looking for more freelance help with the escort that it's probably something a little less than legal. There is a bit of a timer on that one, the shipment comes in tomorrow night, she says wipes some sweat from her brow.

The construct complies with the request, lifting said item exactly 12 inches straight up.

"I like the idea of a simple smuggling job. Kessel can provide recon with his bike and Ocelot and me and Breech can hold down the fort in the van."

Tymora starts draining some oil from the bike's engine into a tray and sits back up, Well, either way I suggest we should bring in another merc to help us out here. Preserver is still out and about. Not sure when to expect him back. You know how he gets when he goes to those communes, she says.

I have someone on hand, unless you want to try and find someone for the job, she asks, clearly set on you needing a fourth for this mission. The OWL is nice, but I worry that it's capabilities outside of scouting may be not up to par, she says, looking to Kessel. No offense.

"None taken. O.W.L. really is just for overwatch and not much else." Kessel replies. "Preserver seems to be having way too much fun! Maybe I should look into retiring to one of those communes!"

Mack shakes his head, "I don't think it's your kinda joint, Kessel. I hear they're all about 'eschewing technology to get in touch with the astral planar selves and your full natural potential'. Well. That and smoking a lot of pipeweed. Who knows what else."

Last time he came back from one of those he had dreadlocks. He doesn't even have any hair which is what confused me the most.

"ASSESSMENT: Additional Operative Advised," monotones Breech-a, bringing the conversation back to the topic. "Current Resources At Tactical Disadvantage."

Alright, any of you know a guy?, Tymora asks, waiting for an answer.

Mack considers, "Uh. Most of the people I know skew on the legitimate side. I'm already somewhat of an outcast for my chosen line of work -- but all that cramped office space and filing sounds like a colossal waste of a life that's too short. Sounds like a perfect gig for some musty old dwarf."

He muses some more. "I mean, JD is up in Loudwater. I can ask if he knows someone?"

A mainframe running in the background has finally completed its reprogramming of a new set of optics for Breech-a, and signals the construct. Breech-a walks over to the charging station and takes a seat, attaching cables to the base of his neck while mechanical arms detach to disassemble the armor plates on his head. While some optics are left untouched, a number of others are removed and replaced with precision amidst the whirr of rotary and pneumatic wrenches.

Finally the armor plates are replaced and the appropriate firmware has been downloaded. Breech-a's optics glow red again, but this time several apertures expand and contract, zooming in and out and picking out details around the garage.

"Well I know lotsa guys. And guys who know guys, y'know? The trick is finding a guy you can trust enough not to turn around and double-cross your ass." suddenly Kessel snaps his fingers, "I can call my cousin, if you want. A bit of a rookie, but he learns fast. Plus, we can trust him."

Alright, well give him a call, hopefully he is available on short notice. Are you guys planning on this tonight?, she says as she continues working on her bike.

Breech-a spends time ensuring all equipment is ready. The van is fueled and emergency supplies are stashed in their appropriate places. Finally, he cleans and loads his firearms.

Preparations complete, Breech-a stands motionless next to the van, awaiting further orders.