"For the time being, let us leave the rifle in the limo with Vogon." Sir Walter said, "If needed, Vogon can get it to you. So Vogon is at the limo as back up, Sharik will have a chat with the other guard. You and I will talk to Mr. Oolak. Let's go. If there is any problems Vogon, three times on the horn will alert us." he said, heading with the others to the guard shack.

Sharik gave Walter a quick 'thumbs-up' and then a curt nod to his instructions.  It all seemed easystraight-forward enough; at least, in theory.  But, in her limited experience, Shar knew that things like this always got complicated all on their own.  No help required.  So, she resolved to try and keep things as simple as possible.

She adjusted the sleeves on her suit jacket slightly, running her fingers along the crisp fabric of the pleats for a moment.  It seemed to help center her.

As soon as the others denoted their readiness, the thin brunette moved along side Walter and Quinzella.  She moved with enough casualness that it would take a trained eye to recognize that she was actually moving to intercept anyone that might be coming up to engage the trio.  As per the nobleman's orders, Sharik was more than willing to run interference...

In reply to Walter Zeller (msg # 22):

"Got it, Sir Walter." Vonon nods his understanding, "I'll have the driver stay inside, behind the wheel, to either honk the horn or be ready to scramble. And you remember to shout out, yourself, if you hit a snag."

Vonon points up as his canine ears, "I'll hear your shout. That, or I'll come running to the sound of gunfire. Hurr-hurr-hurr."

Quin looked at her rifle, then looked at Vonon, "Can you use this even?  I mean if memory serves Sharik can at least."  Then she turned to Sharik, "Can I trust him?  You know my rifle is pretty important to me."

She watched Zeller head off, "Shall we not all go in as one, solidarity and all?"

She turned back to Sharik, "Sharik, you are always dressed to impress in my opinion, the rifle would just complete the look."  She giggled slightly, the first real sign of pleasantness since Sharik and her on the dance floor.

Sharik smiled lightly and looked directly at Quinzella in response to her friend's question about their vargr companion's integrity.  "I would trust him with my life." the thin socialite stated simply and directly; which settled the matter to her mind.  Vonon was more than trustworthy in her opinion.

She 'heh'd' slightly to her fellow scout's assertion that the rifle was 'de rigueur' as a business suit accessory; the brown-haired dilettante took the 'compliment' in the spirit it was given and winked at Quinzella.  But, Sharik was comfortable enough with her current attire and let it stand at that; needless to say, she made no move to take the rifle from Quinzella.  Even to merely transfer it to Vonon.

The security station is a fairly large square structure with windows around most of it. There is a central guard station within that functions like an office. At the back, there is a restroom and a closet, neither of which have windows, but the walkway around the central area goes all the way back to the rear wall, and there are windows there so that the guards can see out the back of the building.

There is an access to the docks on either side of the building, but at this hour, only one side is open.

Members of the marina can leave the keys to their boats in the office; that way, they don't have to carry them around or worry about losing them. There's an ID scanner as you approach so the guards can check who goes out to the docks.

At the present time, there are two guards on duty: Shindar Oolak and another. There are a few other people in there at the moment.

Sir Walter walked up to the security station. "Excuse me, where might I find Mr. Oolak?" he asked.

Her shoes gently tapping on the pavement, Sharik walked and then stood dutifully just in back of and to the right of Walter.  It was as if she were ready to take anything from, or hand anything to, the man should he require it.  Her posture was quite erect and her expression held a slight smile, though it was admittedly a touch distant.  She seemed to be watchful, as any reasonable executive assistant might be.

The thin, brown-haired woman stopped when Walter queried the guard, taking a brief moment to glance down at her dataglove which on standby, but had a datastream display on it making it appear more active than it was.  When she looked up, Shar's right eyebrow was raised slightly, as though momentarily irritated that they had to stop and be delayed, yet her lips remained sealed in silence.  The older gentleman seemed to have things well in hand.

"I'm Oolak, sir," the guard replies. "What can I do for you?"


The other guard is currently dealing with members of the marina who are arranging for guests to be admitted for a party they are having on their yacht.

"I am Sir Walter Zeller, on unofficial business concerning the Imperial Ministry of Trade ." he said "Can you take a break for a few minutes or so, in order that we might be able to talk in private concerning your former employer?" he asked.

Quin had started to hand off the rifle but then she watched as first one then another of her companions walked away.  She turned to Vonon, "I meant no offense by the trust thing, just this rifle is something special after all."

She watched the other two, "I swear it is interesting how I offer to help and am left behind every time, even when tasked as such."

In reply to Quinzella (msg # 32):

Vonon wordlessly takes the rifle when it is offered to him, handling it in a manner which indicates his familiarity with firearms. He reaches into the limo, carefully placing the weapon in a position where it will be safe and secure, but also out of harms way, should everyone have the need of suddenly piling into the vehicle for a hasty escape.

At Quinzellas comment about being left behind, Vonon looks at her, unblinking, for a few seconds, before he answers.

"The plan -- which we discussed in the limo on the way over here -- is for Sir Walter to present himself as some kind of official person looking for info on the Onderac Corporation." Vonon raises a hand and gestures back and forth between himself and Quinzella,

"WE -- that would be me, Sharik and you -- are playing the parts of Sir Walters assistants, to make his performance more believable. Sir Walter felt I would better serve the plan by staying with the limo and protecting our escape route, should we need one. You and Sharik, however, are playing the parts of dutiful personal assistants. And where the Boss leads, the assistants follow..."

Vonon pauses a moment, waiting, then makes a slow sweeping motion with both hands, from where Quinzella is standing over towards the security building, where Sir Walter and Sharik can now be seen through the windows, talking with one of the two security guards inside.

Sharik continued to stand just off to the side of Walter.  Without a word, the dark-haired assistant started to tap away on her dataglove, her fingers gently drawing up various displays.  All seemingly in preparation to begin to record, dictate, or otherwise annotate the upcoming interview.  It was hard to say which, given the high tech hardware.

It was all done quietly and in the background.  Of course, Shar's gaze never actually left off concentrating on Oolak; her eyes continue to study the security guard that stood before them.  For what was not entirely clear; but her demeanor remains very business-like and perceptively alert.

"*sigh* Sure, I've got a minute to spare," Oolak replies to Walter. "But I've already told the authorities everything I know, which isn't much. I'm sure that's one of the reasons I got fired, along with being blamed for the misappropriation of funds. Since they couldn't prove it, they couldn't have me arrested."

Though business-like in tone, there was a touch of compassion in Sharik's voice.  "Don't worry, Mr. Oolak," the dark-haired assistant noted with gentle reassurance, "We are not here to interrogate or arrest you."  It was a remark made on the heels of Sir Walter's more general request; as though she were readily filling in details that any personal assistant worth their salt might do.

But even as she said that, Shar continued to tap away on her dataglove's dynamic virtual keyboard.  She feverishly input a number of search parameters looking to see if there was more on public record about Mr. Oolak and Ondrac Biocorp within the local justice system.  There was always a chance that there had been a public complaint filed - especially if, as the man had indicated that the authorities had been informed and there had been a previous official investigation of some sort.

"In fact," Sharik noted off-hand, "We believe that you may be due some compensation for your troubles.  There are some irregularities in the circumstances surrounding your dismissal that we would like to corroborate..."  She figured that if he thought they were on his side - as beleaguered as the man seemed - that it would improve his disposition potentially and make for a better, or at least more willingly open, interview.

And Shar wasn't really lying; that is what made the statement so easy to make.  They had some potential compensation for him.  Even if it wasn't official ...

[OOC:  Greetings, Mr. Oolak.  These aren't the authorities that you are looking for...

  10:05, Today: Sharik Kaagira rolled 6 using 2d6+3. Investigate/Int Check: Oolak vs. Ondrac Biocorp? (+0 Investigate, +2 Int, +1 Program) - as necessary.
  10:06, Today: Sharik Kaagira rolled 8 using 2d6+2. Advocate/Int Check: Oolak vs. Ondrac Biocorp? (JoAT/3, +2 Int) - as necessary.
  10:07, Today: Sharik Kaagira rolled 12 using 2d6+1. Diplomat/Soc Check (or Persuade/Soc) - as necessary (JoAT/3, +1 Soc).

No difficulties included.  And if EDU is the more appropriate characteristic on the Investigate or Advocate tasks, then the check will be one less, since her INT has a higher DM]

Heading off to a place to speak quietly, Sir Walter nodded in agreement to what Sharik has said. "There is some concerns from Imperial businesses that your former employer was playing fast and loose with trade laws to the point that Ondrac BioCorp has come to my attention. While they might have had you sign a non-disclosure agreement, they do not apply when crimes have been committed. With your former position, you might have been aware of a few incidents, such as evidence tampering or false testimony that was given in a court of law." he said, waiting for a response from the former employee.

Sharik doesn't find out anything new about Oolak and Ondrac though she notes that one reporter thought that the whole incident was some sort of cover-up.


Oolak replies to Walter: "I've already been compensated by Ondrac. My attorney told me that since they couldn't prove I was guilty of any wrong-doing, that was all I could reasonably expect until and unless they were proven guilty of something. It was called 'severance pay' in lieu of giving any cause."


He seems sincere, but his words also sound a touch... rehearsed, almost like he's reading from a script. He was a professional, however, so he may have picked up the jargon from his job.

In reply to StarMaster (msg # 38):

Vonon held his two-handed gesture for a moment, then gave a little sigh and shrugged his shoulders; allowing his arms to drop back to his sides.

Placing a hand on his holstered weapon, Vonon begins watching the general area, keeping and eye -- and a nose and an ear! -- out for potential trouble.


OOC:
Vonon Ronkunu made an Intellect Roll for "Perceptual Observation" and rolled rolled 6 using 2d6+1. His Auditory & Olfactory senses are sharp enough to be included in this, but his eyesight is less effective in dimmer light.

Quin lowered her gaze at the one that sought her trust but would not return it, nor even act with decency in mind.  Her arm snapped quickly back to her side with the rifle in hand, as she had never released it.

"I gave you a chance to appeal to me as well as from Sharik, but instead just the gesture of an open hand you spat in my face!"

She turned to the other two and slowly began to stride up, eyeing the guards to see how defensive they might get upon seeing this late advancer to the party.  Hoping she could get all the way up to Sharik at least.

The two guards are not armed, and they seem to have noticed Quinzella coming from the limo just like Walter and Sharik did, so Quinzella has no problem approaching the guard house/office and reaching Sharik.

As she approaches the building while still carrying her rifle, she realizes one of the truths about laws: while a policeman would stop her and ask her for credentials, most people that see her carrying a rifle just assume she has a right to do so.

Sir Walter listened to Oolak "Your mouth says one thing and your body says another." he stated. "If the compensation package was so good from Ondrac BioCorp, why are you working here? There is more than meets the eye and now your former friends have abandoned you along with the social status that you use to have. While I have not meet you, I would hazard to guess that after the incident, your wife took the house and kids over something that you had nothing to do with. Would you not like to have your day in court in order to clear your name or at least have the satisfaction that they got their just deserts?" he asked

"Oh, do you have a pen that I can borrow?" he said, holding his hand out.

As Walter continues to try and push Oolak's buttons, he comes to a crazy conclusion: things aren't what they seem.

Walter bases this on the wrong reactions he gets from Oolak. Everything Walter tries to entice Oolak with produces just the opposite reaction. It's nothing that Oolak says, or even his facial expressions, but it's in his eyess. When they should display elation, instead they narrow every so slightly. When they should flash with anger, it's like they are smiling at Walter's silly suggestions instead.

It's almost like he realizes Walter has no idea what's going on.

He does hand Walter a pen when he asks.

Sir Walter looked him over, "Something tells me that the information I had received concerning your former employer is incorrect nor is the article on the web concerning the incident correct. What is going on?" he said, playing with the pen.

Quin looked over Sharik's shoulder, in an obvious manner.  As if to point out that they were more or less doing the same thing, it was for both of them.  She whispered to Sharik,

In reply to Quinzella (msg # 45):

Outside, by the limo, Vonon continues to watch the local area -- frowning and mumbling to himself, as he obsesses over his most recent encounter with the crazy human smuggler.



OOC: had to explain that failed Observation roll somehow ^_^