9:00 PM, Friday, June 4, 2027 - two weeks before Summer vacation begins.

This Friday evening the Obelisk is crowded.  The virtual decor is one the owners call “Tron” though most kids don’t know why.  There is a lot of neon lighting highlighting everything and a blue-grey tinge to the rest.  A group of goths has taken over the pool table, the dance floor is packed with juvies of all types. Theodor’s Scene is occupying several booths in the restaurant.  The scene tonight includes Theodor himself, Valeriya, Kat Samuels, Dion, Camille, Albert and Stefan.  Other groups of friends are gathered here and there, some near the dance floor, others in the billiards area.

For those not wearing their v-trodes, the decor is strictly Gothic industrial; though the 'Tron' lighting is not visible without the ‘trodes, the club has indirect lighting under the bar top shining down and along the edge of the ceiling, so that you don't bump into people and furniture.

---

OOC: When you have clearance to proceed post an introduction for your character: description, what they are up to, who they are with.  From the list of NPCs in the People thread, Iva, Melinda and Maria are not present.  Peter and Trevor are in the billiards area with some other boys hanging out.
This message was last updated by the GM at 02:26, Fri 22 Jan 2021.

"So Theo, what do you think about this number?"

Valeriya Sedova, better known to the public as valKriya, draped herself over the couch to reach the neighboring booth. She meant her outfit, an Eji of Tokyo bodycon minidress. It was made of tiny hexagonal pieces of chrome, the only actual fabric in it being the elastic silk threads holding them in place. It matched the stratospheric stilettos. Val was slender but not particularly tall, so she didn't need her brand manager to know the heels were a must.

In so doing, she offered an excellent view of her dancer's legs to the Golden Boys sitting in front of her, including the swirling light tattoo coiling three times around her left leg, climbing from ankle to upper thigh. It was a pattern of pulsating red roses entwined with the black NeoRomantic "VK"s that were her professional logo (a necessary compromise; Dad had been against Val getting any tattoo at all, Mum had acquiesced on condition that it was 'adequate branding in line with your current stage persona').

But her attention was focused on the other booth, and on the conversation she had interrupted by physically inserting her head between the other two's. Val rested an elbow on the upper edge of the backrest, and her head on the hand of said arm, and smiled at Theodor, ignoring Camille directly behind her. Those two had been discussing something boring until a second ago; Val was in the house now. Boredom (and Camille getting any attention) was over.

"I don't know, it's kinda retro, but done ironically, you know," she added, playing with a strand of platinum blond hair with two fingers. Her eyes sparkled with reflected light, almost as big as the V-link on her temple, and of the same matte silver hue. They looked directly into the Golden Boy's eyes.

Outside, the Cyclones had taken control of the street just outside the Obelisk. Though that was no surprise. The boardpunks were frequently outside. Rolling up and down the length of street outside the club practicing basic moves. Kick flips and grinds on the curb, blocking up the cars trying to roll past. Stopping into the alley for illicit behavior.

Andy was with them tonight. Sitting on the edge of the sidewalk, watching B-Man and Tube rolling up and down lazily. Her sweater pulled down over her knees. Hunter seated on the hood of one of the parked cars, holding court with some of the gang. Their boards mostly laying across their shoulders. Andy, though, kept her's under her feet. Rolling back and forth while she watches the guys skate.

"I'm going to get a soda," Andy declared. Her board flipped up with a move of her ankle. Catching it against her shoulder. She turned toward the door of the Obelisk, sliding into line in the front of the crowd of teens.

Tailgate rolled up on his Apache Cyberbike and parked in one of the empty spots. He let thrum for just a moment longer before shutting it off. He stepped off after he set it, helmet still on, riding jacket set on his shoulders. He clothing was casual, as if he didn't care where he was going tonight, just a black t-shirt, jeans and combat boots. The t-shirt had a bike-riding guy in leather and spikes with a flaming skull for a head on it - some long-forgotten band called Ghost Rider that no one remembered hearing of, which sounded kind of bad ass even if he didn't know if their music backed that up.

Only two more weeks.... he thought as he walked inside the club. Then school'll be out an' I can REALLY ride!

His gaze swept around even as he removed his helmet. Full house. Nice. He headed towards the restaurant area, having not eaten yet and he was hungry. There'd be time enough to play later.

Jai sat near the pool table, unobtrusively. He didn't really know Peter and Trevor aside from some passing familiarity, but they were apparently content to have him in their orbit, slowly sipping a soft drink.

His dark blue FastMart coveralls were tied at the waist, a somewhat more festive electric blue t-shirt underneath highlighted with a white faux circuitry design. His left hand's fingers rapped a frantic, steady beat against his phone before tossing it over to his other hand. He'd been repeating this for the past few minutes, perfectly willing to let the possibility of "biz" ruin the reality of a night at the club.

Still... one can only pretend to not be preoccupied with the middling game of pool in progress for so long. He waited for a moment for things to lull, when he wouldn't be interrupting a shot.

"Uh, Pete, Trev. Think I'm gonna grab some Cheez Chips or something. You guys need anything while I'm heading over?"

After waiting a beat for any acknowledgement, he stowed his phone in one of the coveralls' voluminous pockets and headed towards the restaurant.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:09, Tue 26 Jan 2021.

Nikola came walking to the club, she had been in school a little longer than expected, her net connection did not always function properly at home and she wanted to make sure to reach some people through it.  After all, it's more effective to reach people online to talk about the environment, at least to get them interested. Once they are interested she attempts to avoid more serious topics offline, like sabotage and other sorts of activism, at least to avoid detection.

Going to the Obelisk gave her a chance to relax afterwards and to see if drinks could make the message she wanted to spread easier to digest to the ones drinking next to her, those who seemed to get alcohol might be willing to break some other rules too. But she needed also to watch out for those who might get aggressive or too affectionate, she had never had to use her hidden knife to protect her life but it was good to know she could resort to it, just in case.  Things could get extremely dangerous, but for the most part she was not that socially skilled to get the others so interested in what she had to say, her looks were used as a screening method, with some, lets say 'animalistic' tattoos on her face and some other features to show that she was an ecoraider with a slight techie touch, she hoped it would prevent the people totally opposed to her ideology from wasting her time.  Not that people offended by it might feel confronted with her sole presence and may want to start an argument, but not very likely.

She came in and went straight to the bar to order some organic juice. While doing so she gave a look to Valeriya, many knew her from the albums and stuff, but she got to briefly meet her years ago, before she was famous. Their grandfathers shared some story since both had to survive in the same gulag when both Romania and Russia were under Soviet rule. Anyway she doubted that Valeriya would remember or recognize her.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:32, Tue 26 Jan 2021.

Vee entered The Obelisk discreetly, looking from booth to booth and then to the bar, taking note of the patrons today.  The tinkertot had dressed in her finest street clothes, meaning her armored clothes, they weren't exactly stylish but she particularly admired the boots.  Besides, she had very carefully styled the rainbow of her hair, the BodyShope Tech Hair^TM had really helped her desire to dye her hair differently nearly everyday, it was the best sweet 16 birthday present ever.

Normally wary, the mousey tinker was especially careful in social places that multiple yogangs hung out at.  She knew how to throw a couple punches but generally tried to avoid fights (and thus large gatherings).  Places like the Obelisk were the best places for her to get her hands on interesting tech though, or at least meet people that might have some.  Satisfied that there didn't seem to be imminent violence brewing at the moment she smiled and headed to the bar.  Ordering a milk she wandered over to a table nearest the emergency exit, just in case.

She nods at people as they pass, not really acknowledging them unless they have an interesting piece of tech, and even then she mostly acknowledges the tech.  Upon seeing Vamp she smiles and waves, she had taken a liking to the goth girl upon meeting her at school and Vamp had returned the friendship (at least as far as goths did that kind of thing).  Not really having any particular reason to be at the Obelisk Vee contented herself with watching the act playing on the stage, "Hmm, I guess they're not spares." she says with a giggle as she sips more of her milk.

Down the stairs, snaking through the crowd, Andy maneuvered her way through the swarm of kids and laser-colored virtual lighting. It was made only slightly more difficult by her board. Held across her shoulders, braced between her head and forearms. Leaving her twisting her torso to avoid slamming it into people as she passed. But she did a fairly good job at not leaving a trail of bodies in her wake.

Andy ended up at the restaurant. In line toward the counter. She slides into place next to Jai without saying anything at first. Eyes turning through the virtual menu that simply entering the space prompted. But eventually she did manage a half mumbled, "Hey."

His sense of hearing dulled by the ambient music, Jai looked over to see the source of the greeting.

"Oh, hey. Saw you and your goboys chilled outside on the way in. Just grabbing a tight bite, or you sticking around?"

For his part, he took a while looking at the virtual menu, distracted from the choice he thought he'd already made on the way over, before haphazardly selecting a criminally small nachos prepack.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:33, Thu 28 Jan 2021.

“It is an intriguing selection, perfect for the occasion, and just the right counter-point,” Theo says languidly, as though nothing could elicit a strong emotion.  He was sporting his rectangular glasses, an affectation as his eyesight was perfect, and indicated his own muted charcoal turtleneck and matching slacks.  Albert takes the opportunity to hop over and slide in next to Camille, who alternately snuggles up to him and pushes him away.  Stefan simply ogles Val, perhaps assuming she wasn’t paying him any mind and wouldn’t notice.

In the bar Peter and Trevor nod in acknowledgement when Jai gets up.  “Nah, thanks man,” Peter will reply to his offer, he and Trevor engrossed in their phones.  Similarly, the Cyclones don’t seem to notice Andy enter the Obelisk.  The act on stage, a local garage band with more spirit than talent, finishes their set with a few “thank yous” and a little feedback.

In the restaurant Kat excuses herself from the table and leaves dining room, moving through the bar heading for the dance floor and the stage beyond.  She greets juvies she knows as she walks through the club, then mounts the stage to some applause and shouted encouragement.  Her outfit consists of black tights, a flared mini skirt in dark red, and casual layers on top: sleeveless blouse in white, with a dark red cardigan.  As she mounts the stage, the music changes from the baseline techno-industrial to a neo-jazz pop fusion.  Taking the microphone, she starts a jazzy crooning, and the crowd gives another welcoming applause.  The dancing shifts to slow-dancing couples.

---

Val, Andy, Tailgate and Jai are in the dining room/restaurant; Nikola is in the bar, and so is Vamp with the goths at the billiards table; Vee is on the other side of the bar on the edge of the dance area with an unobstructed view of the stage.

Please roll Get a Clue for me.  Vamp can roll and post her intro as well.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:45, Fri 29 Jan 2021.

Val received the non-compliment with pursed lips. It was so Theo to consider others' outfits as 'counterpoints' to his own. Why was she even bothering with him, when she could feel Stefan's gaze like a tracking laser, finding the spaces between the hexagons of her dress? Because Theo was major prey, she reminded herself. And sometimes you need more elaborate bait to attract the best beasts, the ones that make for best trophies.

She mmm-hmmm'ed at Theo and adjusted his glasses slightly up his nose with a finger; then with a cheeky smile she let herself slid back into her own couch to face Stefan.

"Hey, Stef" she addressed the other Golden Boy, making a show of getting up very slowly, then minutely pulling down the fragmented hem of the dress, "this jazz is so dead. Let's get some real choo before I pass out from boredom."

She gave him a come-with-me gesture with the same index that had pushed up Theo's glasses and strutted on her heels, heading towards the bar. Then Kat started blaring through the sound system, making her rolls her eyes. Frack, the Obelisk was really lowering standards.

On the way to the bar, she spotted her sometime supplier Jai, chatting to a skater girl she vaguely remembered from school, what was her name again? Should she stop to say hi to them? They were in conversation, and she was leading Stef to the bar anyway, so she decided against it and...

She was still thinking about this when she reached the door out of the restaurant area, almost bumping into the guy coming in from the bar. Go-Ganger gear, a bit taller than her in her heels, and then she reached the face.

"Can you get out of- wait, Tailgate?"

Val took a subrepticious look back, to see if Stefan was following - and in any case, it didn't hurt to bait Stefan with Tailgate, just as she was baiting Theo with Stefan.

"Hey, goboy. We were heading to the bar to have a real drink..." she didn't quite invite him, but the hint was there.

---

(Valeriya rolled 14 using 1d10+10, rerolling max with rolls of 4.  INT + Get a Clue.)
This message was last edited by the player at 14:30, Fri 29 Jan 2021.

OOC: 06:15, Today: Vee rolled 19 using 1d10+11, rerolling max with rolls of 8.
Will try to get a post in today.

"Nah, I'm around," Andy answers, even with a shrug big enough to broadcast from behind the board on her shoulders. Her attention seemed to mostly be on the menu as well, scanning through the options before locking something in. Something that she knew would cost too much and probably be flat. A frown screwed up her lips.

"Hey. What if like... we didn't order?" she suggested, glancing over at Jai. "Like if we just, like, maybe skip the line?" she drops her board down next to her, leaning against it.

OOC:
11:10, Today: Andy rolled 19 using 1d10+11, rerolling max with rolls of 8.  Get a Clue.

Jai raised an eyebrow.

"Hostile takeover? Suits my accounts fine. But if we just grab and try to derezz, I don't like my chances, boardless as I may be. But... maybe go ahead and cancel yours."

He waited for a moment - just long enough for the food to start being prepped - before cancelling his own order. While he'd grab whatever if it was free, hopefully they'd finish warming up what he actually wanted and put it out regardless.

Reaching down, he untied the sleeves of his coveralls and put the top section back on his shoulders, only zipping up the front partially. Mall Brat legends told of making entire goboards and terminals disappear like this, so he wasn't concerned about some nachos and a soft drink.

"I think I can handle the grab, if you don't mind something in a can. You game?"

12:45, Today: Jai rolled 16 using 1d10+12, rerolling max with rolls of 4.  Get a Clue.

Tailgate slowed and frowned as the music changed. He wanted music to thrash to usually. It wasn't like he had a date to dance with. He shook his head but put it out of his mind for the moment. Dancing wasn't the item on the agenda at the moment.

The pause in his step, however, had caused someone else to nearly run in to him. He turned to look over at them and then a slow smile touched his lips. "Well, well, well, if it ain't THE Val. Long time no scan."

He thought about it for maybe a second and then gave a kind of small nod and half-shrug combo. "Sure. I'm thirsty." He eyed her for a second. "Maybe hungry too." He made an almost polite-looking gesture for her to lead the way. "Lead on."

19:33, Thu 28 Jan: Tailgate rolled 13 using 1d10+10, rerolling max with rolls of 3.  Get a Clue.

Well, well, well, if it ain't THE Val; she smiled at that and twirled around to be admired from all angles, causing a little whirl of chrome-tinged reflected light.

"The one and only. Been slaving away on a new record," she said in a laguid voice when she stopped, and gave him the same come-then finger as she had Stef before, as reply to his Lead on.

"I always do," she replied, and guided the Go-Ganger and the Golden Boy out into the bar. There she squeezed by, making headway towards the countertop proper with a combination of gentle pushing people aside with a smile and saying "valKyria coming through" in her stage voice. Once she reached her goal, she fixed the barman with her album-cover gaze.

"Vodka lemon," she purred, almost daring the man to ask for ID. She was valKyria, her voice was her passport.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:01, Sun 31 Jan 2021.

Jai, Andy, Vee made the Get a Clue and see the following scene:




Meanwhile, the bartender smiles at Valeriya, leans forward to be heard more clearly, and asks, "what's the pass code?"  He is an adult in his thirties and though he clearly knows who she is it seems he is well trained in his protocols.

From the Obelisk Description: 

"Yo," Andy provides her agreement with a nod. Turning away from Jai to let him get to work. It is, at this point, a solo operation. Best for her not to be nearby. At least, not so near that she's indicted. Maybe close enough to run a rescue op.

Andy walked to the entry to the restaurant, leaning against the low wall separating it from the dance floor. Instead of ordering, she uses the time to play with the settings on her board. The wheels would need more grip inside. The tensile on the board softened to give it more flexibility and improve performance in a crowd. Just in case.

Jai nodded back and headed towards the ready orders window. Noting Maria's entrance, he reminded himself to maybe check it out.

"Hey, my order's cancelled, right?"

Putting one arm forward to lean on the flat surface, he surreptitiously grabbed at whatever was hanging around with his other arm, tucking it into his coveralls.

"Chili con kibble and the Sprite. That's not still coming out, right? Don't wanna get charged for it."

He quickly made his exit, off to where Andy was working on her board.

14:23, Today: Jai rolled 20 using 1d10+16, rerolling max with rolls of 4.  Boost.

Val leaned in to look the man in the eye with her gunmetal grey contacts.

"The password is 'I am valkYria, get me that drink or start looking for another job'," she says point-blank. For a second she had considered spinning him a fairy tale about actually being twenty-one but the media keep lying about my age for marketing purposes, yadda-yadda, but at the last moment she decides in favor of a more blunt approach... in hindsight, probably not the best idea.

---

20:04, Today: Valeriya rolled 14 using 1d10+13 with rolls of 1.  Celeb + Cool (impressing the Obelisk barman).
This message was last edited by the player at 21:03, Sun 31 Jan 2021.

Nicola was looking at the Goths while wondering if they would welcome some of her ideas, then realized that Valeriya and some other ones she knew from school were talking to the barman, most likely to get booze or something, that turned out to be more interesting, not so much for the idea of having one of those drinks, which she did find interesting also, but mother earth was most important and she needed all the help she could get.. not that the group looked like the kind of group that might care that much for the planet.. but who knows, if they kept drinking they might want to misbehave later.. and that might lead somewhere useful..
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

07:40, Fri 29 Jan: Nikola Net rolled 11 using 1d10+9 with rolls of 2.  Get a clue.

Vee notes the exchange between Maris and Peter with interest.  She watches the exchange for a bit trying to discern from body language what the argument is about.  "It's always good to keep abreast of the current gossip." she thinks to herself as she sips more of her milk, "At least I think that's what the other kids do." she chuckles at that and continues watching.

Tailgate grinned as he followed after the pretty girl. She was out of his league, but that didn't mean he couldn't enjoy the time with her anyway. Even if he did have to share.

An eyebrow raised at the password request. He almost let out a bark of laughter at Val's response to the bartender but quickly, mostly, smothered it. But even as he was amused he thought back to earlier, trying to remember if he'd overheard someone else mentioning the password or getting ready to go use it.

15:05, Today: Tailgate rolled 17 using 1d10+9, rerolling max with rolls of 8.  Streetsmarts for password.

The bartender smiles at Valeriya, a smile that says he's seen it all before.  "Young lady, I know who you are and therefore I know you are under age; complying with your 'request' is a felony, and I don't need that," he says politely, but firmly.

In the restaurant, the waiter waives him off, indicating that he understands the order was canceled.  Jai manages to swipe a to-go bag that was on the counter.  This is a sit-down restaurant, not a counter cafeteria after all.

Vee, straining to eavesdrop on Peter and Maria's conversation catches the end of it.  Peter yells over the music "it's not my problem!" throwing his arms wide.  Then he pushes his way past Maria and heads to the men's room; Trevor obviously heard the end of it also takes a sudden interest in his shoes.  Maria, looking more furious than anything else, watches Peter go, then turns on her heel as if to leave.

Meanwhile, Vee and Andy see another boy enter the club through the restaurant.  He is Euro-American with dark hair, wearing jeans, a hoodie and converse, and he appears nearly exhausted: sweating and panting, and there is panic in his expression.  He quickly moves through the crowd to the men's room.

Hunter follows him in giving Andy, and pretty much all the girls, his 'look' as he makes his way through the dance floor.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:05, Thu 04 Feb 2021.

Andy's attention quickly wanders from her getaway plans as Hunter momentarily catches eyes with her. Biting her lip as she watches him moving out to the dance floor. Both her suggestion for stealing some snacks and the paniced boy forgotten for a moment. But the look passes and a moment later the spell is broken. Andy returns to the world just in time to see the strange boy rush into the bathroom to do... Whatever it is boys do in there.

Tailgate rolled his eyes and then stepped in close to Valeriya. "Hey, Val? Y'didn't bring me along for my good looks, didja?" He gave her a wink and a small friendly shoulder nudge.

On the outside, he was certainly trying to look cool and impress her, maybe too hard. Inside, however, he was quivering and second-guessing himself. What was he DOING? And TOUCHING her? Was he INSANE?? He could handle if she sicced some goboys on him for a fight but...what if she just gave him the cold shoulder, brushed him off with rejection...or worse, lit him up like a firecracker for daring to invade her personal space! She used weapons as words and no one liked to be dressed down and yelled at in public.

He swallowed after he turned away from her and gestured to the bartender to come closer. He leaned in, getting up on his tiptoes, and whispered something that was washed away by the music - that day's password. He then stepped back and gestured towards Val. "Now, what say you serve the lady?"

Val's defiant smile compresses into a thin line of trembling frustration.

"What you don't need now, you little..." she started to say, voice rising into something that could have ended in a screamed threat or a sobbing cry, but she was mercifully interrupted by the Go-Ganger before it could resolve into either.

And then she was suddenly watching from the sidelines as Tailgate whispered into the ear of the zombieboy. Val wasn't sure which one stinged the most, being snubbed by the adult or sidelined by the 'ganger.

A couple of seconds too late, she felt that residual heat signature on her shoulder, like the faint afterglow of a laser puncture on a titanium hull, just like in the movies. And just like in an orbital strike, there was no pretending it had been an accident, a casual brush in some Kessler cascade. Not the first or the last time someone had tried to touch her, but unlike other times, she didn't have her usual detail of cybered bodyguards to professionally maim the miscreant. It was hard enough to give them the slip and sneak out to the Obelisk.

She opened her mouth again, ready to scream again, grateful for having someone else to direct her anger at. She didn't even remember the bartender any more, her sights locked on this new scapegoat, ready to make him pay - not for the casual touch or the snub, but for everything. The sum total of all her short life's frustrations, concentrated and taken out on Tailgate, just because he was there...

And then she stopped herself, remembering Stefan.

The Golden Boy was just a step behind her. He must have seen the whole thing. He was going to witness this too. He'd go to Theo and the rest of his clique with the tale. No, that ridicule she couldn't afford. She swallowed it with a disdainful smile.

"No, I totally didn't," she replied to Tailgate with as much nonchalance as she could muster. She turned her back on the bartender, propped her back against the bar and crossed her legs, affecting to not care at all for him, the place or the company, a studiedly bored look on her face - but her eyes were still burning with suppressed rage, a fire behind the chrome façade.

Jai swiped the bag nonchalantly, stopping on the way back to order whatever Andy had initially wanted, cursing the fact that no one had a drink order on the way out for him to pilfer. A quick check inside his prize revealed a large order of fries, so he grabbed some condiment packets as well.

"You catch whatever drama's going on? Usually Pete keeps a level head, wonder what's got him tuned up."

He tossed the soda can to Andy in an underhand lob.

"Couldn't pinch one of those, but I managed to grab a ton of fries, so I'm still in the black. You want some?"

"Um, not really," Andy answers the first question, brushing her bangs back to tuck them under the brim of her cap. "Maybe just like... An argument with his girlfriend or whatever?"

She shrugs, turning her attention fully back to Jai as she regains her faculties with one final glance toward the bathroom. "Fries sound good, yeah," as she pops the tab on the soda, striking it's virtual music cue to broadcast the ad jingle.

While holding in her hand the straw she was using to drink juice out of the cup Nicola got distraughted when she caught with the border of her eyes a Guy coming in all of the sudden.
He looked exhausted and raised her curiosity, making her to rotate on her chair to see if she could igure out where was he heading to...

________________________________________________________________________
Nikola Net rolled 12 using 1d10+9, rerolling max with rolls of 3.  Get a clue (2) + INT (7).

Tailgate was oblivious to what was happening behind him, and the aftermath of his attempt to impress Val. He grinned at the bartender, "So how 'bout, choom? Somethin' good an' tasty for me an' my friend back there?" He hooked a thumb towards Stefan standing behind him and Val, as if this totally wasn't a second drink that would go to Val.

"What's nova right now?" he asked the bartender. "Gimme two o'those."

Stefan smiles in a vague we, could be lamely could be knowingly, having kept his mouth shut up to this point.  It's pretty clear he didn't know the passcode and didn't want that known.  The bartender hands across two drinks and then moves down to deal with another customer.  As soon as the bartender turns his back, Stefan hands Valeriya the drink.  "How did you know the pass code?"  he asks Tailgate, somewhat incredulous.

Just outside the restaurant entrance Andy is suddenly aware of the Cyclones scattering as an armored police cruiser pulls up.  The markings are not NCPD, rather Federal police.  The two troopers exit the car armed with nasty looking weapons of a bullpup design and start making their way to the door.

[OOC Note:  Jai and anyone else in the restaurant section sees this also; singled Andy out because of the Cyclones' reaction.]

Val faked a smile for Stefan, and then for Tailgate as her eyes went from GoldenBoy to Go-Ganger. She raised the glass in a well-rehearsed toast gesture, then took a very long sip from it. The vodka hit her like a punch from a cyberarm.

She didn't want a fracking drink, she wanted to get it because of who she fracking was. The zombieboy had rudely put her back in her place - just a kid, very profitable for her parents, but a mere money-making device, after all was said and done. She could earn millions and still get only peanuts as her allowance. Her pictures and videos could be all over the world, selling records and designer lingerie with questionable imagery for a minor, but she couldn't get choo without knowing some stupid password.

Her burning chrome eyes fall on Tailgate again. She could tear him apart, but again, Stefan was there. She was mad, but not enough to ruin her reputation amongst Theo's clique, the only other thing she had. To all appearances, the biker had just bought her a drink, that was all.

"My goyboy T here knows all the rim stuff," she told Stefan, draining half of the drink with another long gulp. The alcohol was getting to her, rushing fast for her brain, as she was unusued to it. She was sticking to her original plan, for lack of a better strategy. "He's no boof, he's a real man," she emphasized, bringing her eyes theatrically from Tailgate to Stefan, and then back to the Go-Ganger. "Knows all the ways to stick it to Simba, ain't that word on the streets?"

She even managed a glittering wink at Tailgate. She was slowly getting back into her comfort zone.

Nikola could not see clearly where did the new guy went to, but was able to catch one of the guys going after him it seems so she stood up and moved out of the bar to see if she could figure what was that movemount all about, in order to avoid being so obvious about it she pretendet to go to the ladies room while trying to spot something while moving around.. she saw the several boys and girls turning their heads and pointing to the main door. That might be related...

Federal police? It was definitely time to keep one's head down... Or was it? Andy put the one and the two together quickly. Kid runs in, looking sweaty and desperate. Feds on the follow. Andy's jaw dropped in the middle of a fry.

"Yo, I think those guys are about to raid the bathroom..." Andy whispered to Jai. "We should, like... I dunno. Warn those guys?" She glanced back over her shoulder at the boy's room. Hand stretching out for her skateboard.

Jai nodded, divesting himself of a handful of fries and looking for somewhere to clean his hands.

"For sure."

He looked over to where he'd seen the Cyclones scatter.

"Let's get going. Your goboys okay out there?"

Tailgate took one of the drinks that came and the other went to Stefan and then went to Valeriya. He thought about pretending to drink, but after doing so much to stay close to, and impress, Val thus far, he couldn't wimp out. So he took a small sip and tried to hide the wince.

Stefan asked him about the pass code, but before he could answer Valeriya spoke up for him. In fact, he was kind of thrown off what little game he had by Val. She was hyping him up, acting like they were better friends than they were, like he was someone awesome. Was she setting him up? Was she just tweaking Stefan? She winked at him! He barely stopped himself from licking his lips or audibly gulping. He took another small sip. This time it didn't burn as much...but only just.

He managed a small smile Val's way...but his eyes, the ones he had trouble taking off of her, were a little wider than normal. He assumed she was just playing a game, he had to assume that, because he didn't want to get shot down in flames in full view of everyone, mocked incessantly for thinking she wasn't out of his league, or worse.

He gave a twitch of a shoulder that could be mistaken for a shrug. "I hear things. I get around." At least his voice hadn't squeaked!

Val watched Tailgate drink and then try to hide his reaction, and she nearly laughed. It was easy to forget her first reaction to alcohol, about a year ago, when she had raided dad's whisky. She had managed about half a glass until she had to run to the toilet to be sick. It had been a long year since then, and she had definitely learned some things since... all the wrong ones.

She didn't like alcohol as much as drinking alcohol - rim, adult, forbidden. Particularly doing it in a such a situation, in front of a tough guy like Tailgate who wasn't used to it. She raised her eyebrows at Stefan when T spoke, as if saying hear? He gets around. He hears things. Unlike you, loser.

Her mood was turning, like a tide - now that she was back under the spotlight she felt much more at ease. She rested an elbow on the bar, a hip on one of the stools and extended her legs, elongated by the high heels.

"So what's your expert opinion about my dress? The designer claims it can deflect laser fire," she purred, her chrome eyes on his.

"Yeah, they can scatter with the rockers," Andy answers, with every confidence the Cyclones weren't going to get caught. At least not the ones on the street. "Kid their looking for went into the john. You go in and tell him to bail out the window. I'll meet outside and do the dash?" She holds up her skateboard. More than a good enough get away vehicle in tight alleys and with a head start.

"Sounds like a plan. Drop me a line after it's all done?"

Not waiting for the answer, Jai headed towards the bathroom.

Tailgate glanced at Stefan and then back at Valeriya. His eyes were still a bit too wide, though he didn't have the look of a deer caught in headlights...but maybe not completely unlike that either. But after a moment, he started to relax a little bit. He didn't feel the effects of the alcohol - or at least didn't notice them. But the wide eyes became less wide. His slightly tense and stiff posture and body movement became more chill.

He looked Valeriya over in all her glory. Not just her dress - his eyes literally started at her shoes and worked all the way up her to her hair, slowly and perhaps just a bit more enthusiastically then he should have, looking over her with obvious...appreciation, at a minimum, in his eyes. Maybe something more.

"I'm...not expert on fashion." He gestured down at his clothes in a self-deprecating amusement. "Clearly." He let out a small chuckle. "But you...in that dress..." He took in a deep breath as if he needed more air after looking at her, "I don't know if it'll deflect laser fire? But it'll certainly attract the eyes of everyone firing lasers!"

Stefan looks uncomfortable as Tailgate 'inspects' Valeriya's outfit, and by natural extension, her other assets.  He doesn't get a chance to object or say anything because it is just then that the two police officers enter the restaurant weapons at the ready.

Two more police officers in riot gear armed with heavier-than-standard weapons push their way in through the South entrance into the dance club proper.  All four are looking around, scanning the room as though looking for someone.  All of you can see them now, as can everyone in the Obelisk.

Jai and Andy are already on the move.

---

Roll Initiative, to keep things in order, we are not in combat yet ... the Police have an 11 on the die, the other NPCs with planned actions have a 17 on the die.  d10 rolls are open-ended once (if you roll 10 roll again and add, but not on another 10, max roll is 20).

Andy needs to make a sneak of some sort - it is REF based, the skill (Thief Stuff or Little Angel) depends on how she plans to do it.  The former is sneaking, the latter is nonchalantly walking out as though everything is normal.

OOC:
19:10, Today: Andy rolled 7 using 1d10, rerolling max with rolls of 7.  Initiative.

Ref: 8

For stealthiness, we'll do Ref+Little Angel.

19:12, Today: Andy rolled 12 using 1d10+10, rerolling max with rolls of 2.  Ref+LA.

Not great. Not terrible. Not great.

Andy slings her board across her shoulders. Moving toward the main entrance to the club, trying her hardest not to look toward the cops as they make their presence known. Instead, she kept her eyes trained down on floor in front of herself. Mostly just a beanie cap in the crowd, the color slowly shifting from black to neon blue.

Tailgate didn't notice Stefan's reaction. He only had eyes for Valeriya...until the cops showed up. He slowly took another sip of his drink and then set it down on the bartop. He glanced at Val and then at the cops.

"Think it's time t'bail. Good t'see y'again, Val." He flashed her a quick smile.

He turned to and aimed to make his way in to the crowd, weave among the people and not be seen (or at least picked out) by the cops.

22:51, Today: Tailgate rolled 23 using 1d10+10, rerolling max with rolls of (10+3)13.  Ref + Blend to 'blend in' among the crowd away from cops.

Jai kept moving, hoping to beat the cops to the bathroom as he zipped his coveralls back up.

5:03, Today: Jai rolled 2 using 1d10, rerolling max with rolls of 2.  Jai initiative.

Val was enjoying the whole situation, both Tailgate's slack-jawed attention and Stefan's jealousy, when she caught something out of the corner of her eye. Dark uniform, riot gear, long weapons - drawn.

Bad news.

Personally, she hadn't had that many dealings or encounters with the law enforcement repression corps, but she wasn't stupid. Federal cops storming a place like the Obelisk, right at the time when it was in full swing? That could only end badly or extremely badly, and even if she was probably not a likely target for them, it wouldn't be fun to be trampled under a panicked multitude, or catch a stray bullet meant for someone else.

She was still trying to decide what to do about it when Tailgate said it was time to bail. No wonder the Go-Ganger had well-honed instincts when it came to sniffin cops and making himself scarce. He was already on the move, and in any case it would have been difficult for the three of them to leave together; not for the kind of approach Val resorted to.

"Pigs in riot armor," she whispered in Stefan's ear, "put your arm around my waist and follow my lead."

And she led Stefan towards the exit (#11), strutting with an unhurried and highly rehearsed catwalk model's gait, album-cover smile plastered on her face...

---

OOC:10:39, Today: Valeriya rolled 19 using 1d10+15, rerolling max with rolls of 4.  Empathy (7) + Little Angel (8).

11:23, Yesterday: Valeriya rolled 8 using 1d10, rerolling max with rolls of 8.  Initiative? (NOTE: That should have been +6, I didn't know I had to add REF to it). So 14 I suppose)
This message was last edited by the player at 10:52, Thu 18 Feb 2021.

When the second pair of policemen enters the club Kat on stage is among the first to see them and react.  She stops singing (though the music goes on without her) and warns the crowd of juvies.  “The Fuzz is here, scram!” she will say into the microphone before jumping down from the stage into the dance floor.  Tailgate moves into the now surging crowd of juvies on the dance floor, along with those moving with him from the billiards area and even some from the restaurant, all moving towards the emergency exits.  Though moving quickly, the crowd isn’t in a general panic yet, though there is a sense of anxiety building.

The policemen at the club entrance block the door and one of them gets on his radio calling for back up.  Meanwhile, in the restaurant the policemen also block the door, one putting his arm out to prevent Andy from leaving.  “No one leaves the club, we’re instituting a lockdown!” he yells, feeding the sense of growing anxiety and causing the restaurant kids to run for the dance floor emergency exits.

Stefan nods to Val and puts his arm around her waist, groping perhaps a little more than is necessary as he gets himself into a ‘natural’ pose.  As they move to the club exit, with other kids surging around them, they see a third police car pulled up there and two officers exiting the car.  Those two see the kids surging out of the exit and move to block it.

During all of this Ja was moving to the men’s room, making his way through the crowd.  He gets there just as Nikola is yelling her warning into the men’s room and then starts moving away.  Pushing open the men’s room he sees Hunter and Peter with some other boys standing around an open stall, as though watching something amusing, they turn to look at Jai when he opens the door.

---

The actions above are in initiative order.  Valeriya can read some confusion from the police, it looks like this is not a well-planned operation.  All of you can tell that it is about to explode into panic, perhaps on both sides.

Jai craned his head towards the yelled warning for a moment, before turning back to the boys.

"Don't know what's going on, but you guys gotta go, out the window. Or stay here and get slacked, I guess. Just doing my due diligence."

They must have heard the commotion if nothing else, right? So why were they still hanging around watching whatever they were into? Jai waited a few tense moments, wondering if they needed help. He certainly wasn't going to stick around to motivate them.

Vamp and her crew had been playing pool for awhile, having taken over the table and keeping it against all comers by sheer dint of intensity and their somewhat discomfiting appearance. What was someone going to do to a group of people dressed mostly in black accented in skulls, chains, spikes, and studs when the apparent leader of said group looked at you with glowing red eyes and sneered enough to show long, and quite sharp, canines? Anyone looking at her hands would have also noted the long nails painted jet-black and filed to fine points.

Vamp wasn't particularly tall when not wearing her boots (which she was tonight) given the Japanese weren't overly inclined to height, particularly the women but what she lacked in height she more than made up for in attitude and presence. Word on the street was she was something more...disturbing (disturbed?) than your average Goth (which most people already found disturbing) and edged closer to being an actual, no bullshit sociopath who didn't care about giving or receiving pain and, if not having an actual death wish, had no fear of dying. All traits that came out about the time her parents were murdered, she went into the system and joined the Goths. Prior to that she had been a somewhat gregarious and popular child with a lot of friends in school, most of which were in attendance tonight. Most of which she now ignored (almost all of them) or despised (Val).

"Nice dress if your plan was to look like a high-priced whore," she had said to Val in her RP accent which was sharp enough to cut diamonds when she and her gang walked in, eliciting laughter from all of them as they went to the pool table, their faces glowing eerily from the black lights, and chased away the people that had been playing. Her people also contained the members of her band - an industrial-metal goth group called CyberChrist. Known for being one of the heaviest, loudest, most vicious bands in the city as well as the pure chaos their shows tended to cause, they were on the way up if they didn't manage to self-destruct first.

Tonight she had on what looked like the torn remnants of a black wedding dress, her knee-length black boots with the four inch heels which were covered from ankle to knee in buckles, a pair of elbow length fingerless gloves over which a dizzying variety of studded, spiked, and chain bracelets were on display. Skull, bat, demon, and spiked rings covered every finger, a large polished black upside cross was around her neck and she had on more leather spiked belts then could be easily counted. Over this ensemble she had on a black leather longcoat with spiked metal pauldrons that had the band's logo airbrushed in purple and black glowing paint: an upside down crucifix made from a pair of syringes with a cyborg figure impaled upon it. Black lipstick and deep-black smokey cats eye makeup over glowing white foundation completed the look. Her hair was jet-black with silver streaks through it and, as she sat looking at the crowd with a look of utter disdain, sipping something now and then, she noticed the feds coming in.

"Fucking feds," she growled and gave a short, sharp whistle to her crew. "Find us an exit."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:57, Sun 21 Feb 2021.

Val's eyes were on the cops, their faces looked... wrong. No grim determination, no professional indifference, not even sadistic relish, just... confusion? A dash of fear, even? Somehow, that was even more chilling. What the hell was going on to made them so uneasy? It was just a clubful of teens... right?

She momentarily saw one of Vamp's crowboys from the corner of her eye, making her frown. She rememberd Vamp's greeting and her own answer to it from earlier in the night(""Thanks yogirl, you look just like the cheapest one! Hey guys, you really must be on a budget! Go easier on her, OK? She looks a bit worn-out already!"). Well, since they were so edgy, let them find their own way out of that one...

She was still puzzling over that while Stefan and her made it to the street. If they just stood there, they would eventually either be shoved aside by the cops, or crushed by kids rushing out. The most sensible thing would be just going home... but she hated to have her night ruined just like that, without even getting a word in.

Face saved, she advanced resolutely towards the cop blocking the entrance.

"Good evening, officer," she said in her GoodGirl voice, "something the matter? We're just having some innocent fun. Aside from the live music, naturally, I agree that was truly criminal. What's going on?"
This message was last edited by the player at 20:25, Sun 21 Feb 2021.

"Yeah, but... Kinda no?" Andy answered. She didn't stop. Ducking down, twisting to a side. Dodging around the cop- who would hopefully become too distracted to stop her in just a moment.

OOC:
20:17, Today: Andy rolled 21 using 1d10+14, rerolling max with rolls of 7.  Ref+Jock.

Dodging around the cop and trying to scamper past.

Tailgate stayed in the crowd - the better to not be singled out. He hoped. And possibly the chance to slip past or dart past a cop if they got in the way. Maybe. Maybe not. Not good. Not good. Keep it together!

He shook his head, trying to keep his senses alert and keeping himself moving. He kept heading towards the emergency exits, hoping they weren't pigblocked also, but betting they probably were.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:32, Mon 22 Feb 2021.

After warning the guys in the men's room Nikola continued walking in direction to the stage to give a try to the doors next to it. She turned around to see if someone noticed where she headed to, either a cop or any of the guys
----------------------------------------------
OOC: I wonder, Should I roll Ref+Blend?

The first cop makes a grab for Andy but misses as she is too quick for him.  The other one raises his rifle and calls out, "freeze! I'm only saying it once!" as he takes aim at her.

Around the corner Valeriya and Stefan are stopped and she addresses the policeman.


"You'll have to step back inside, miss, until we can process everyone," he says politely, but firmly.  "This establishment is on lockdown, no one is allowed to leave," he adds, and there is clear frustration in his voice as his partner moves to block the other door.  The sounds of more police cars (sirens) can be heard close by (Andy hears it also.)

In the men's room Hunter looks askance at Jai, asking, "what's goin' on?  What do you mean 'slacked?'"  Meanwhile Jai hears retching sounds from the stall and Peter looks to the door and says, "this guy isnot going anywhere soon, he's toast."

Meanwhile, in the club proper, Vamp and her Goth crew start moving from the billiards looking for a way out.



At the command the Goths start pushing around, jumping on or over and attempting to terrify the other kids to make way.  Their efforts are quit effective and general panic breaks out with kids screaming and rushing to the emergency exits.  Tailgate, Nikola and Kat are caught up in mess.

---

For Tailgate and Nikola it's Jock Stuff to maneuver, REF or BOD depending on your technique.  You both also see Kat making her way to the kitchens.

For Andy, you exited at 25 on the map.  Down is the front entrance with more police.  To go right you have actually run at the cops and vault a police car.  To go up is not as bad, but the nearest cover is on the next block.  Going left around the back of the club is an option, it is 20 meters to the other end and you run 7 in one round.  The truck on the map is not there, they weren't taking any deliveries at this hour, but the dumpsters are.  To hit with ranged weapons is based on range, flat-out running puts you 10 m away from the cop with the gun.  Plan?

Val chuckles, propping a hand on her hip, doing her album-cover pose. She crosses the tattoed leg over the other one, so that the red and black logos entwined with the roses are clearly visible on her thigh.

"Do you want to get me killed, officer? It's madness in there, with the crowboys on a rampage. Plus you know who I am, I am not some street trash like them. I can't afford the bad publicity. My family can't. The corporations sponsoring me can't... but there's plenty they can afford. Consider me processed already, officer?"

---

12:12, Today: Valeriya rolled 27 using 1d10+13, rerolling max with rolls of (10+4)14.  Celeb + Emptathy - Convincing the cop to let me go?

Jai rolled his eyes.

"Slacked. Pinched. Arrested. Whatever. THE. COPS. ARE. HERE. Who's..."

At Peter's remark, he looked into the stall.

Tailgate saw Kat making her way to the kitchens and wondered. Maybe she knew something he didn't. Specifically about the club. And an exit that not everyone was heading for. Maybe one that the cops weren't blocking.

He hesitated but only for a moment. Then he began darting through the crowd towards the kitchen.

21:19, Today: Tailgate rolled 15 using 1d10+10, rerolling max with rolls of 5.  Jockstuff (REF).

Nicola noticed that the goths are creting trouble as they started to push everyone around looking for an exit, for a moment she decided to join them, but then she saw the girl that was singing to some jazzy music on stage before.. she was heading somewhere with a interesting determination, she decided to follow her steps to see if the dining room had something to offer, the mess creted by the goths can hopefully be a distraction to the cops.
----------------------------------------------
OOC: 13:33, Today: Nikola Net rolled 8 using 1d10+7, rerolling max ((1)).
Ouch!
This message was last edited by the player at 16:34, Thu 25 Feb 2021.

The goths had all laughed at Val's comeback to Vamp with Vamp laughing the loudest. "Enjoy your night, soulless, manufactured corporate whore," she called back over her shoulder before flicking the V at Val. The night had started out great but now the coppers were trying to spoil her good night.

Her crew had caused a great distraction by stampeding the other kiddies in the club so she whistled again sharply and pointed to the kitchen. "Let's go, boys and girls."

"Um..." came Andy's response as she looked out at the parking lot. She'd been ready to dash away from one cop. Even a pair would be pretty easy for her to get away from, with a club full of teens vying for their attention, too.

No. This was not a situation to tempt fate. Instead, looking around, Andy's hands go up. "Umm... No, it's cool..."

In the Men's Room

Jai looks in the stall and sees the boy who staggered in earlier sitting on the floor next to the toilet, clearly he's been throwing up.  He is sweating as though suffering a high fever, his black hair wet and sticking to his face.  At the explanation Peter moves with a purpose to the window and pries it open with a pocket tool.  "I'm outta here then," he says climbing through and out.  Hunter, the surfer-looking board punk, follows him without hesitation.

Outside the Club Entrance

The cop looks at Valeriya and Stefan with barely disguised annoyance, perhaps even contempt, before pointing to a spot by the entrance.  "Stand over there, don't move,"
he says.  "We'll get to you in a few minutes."  Up the street she can more police cruisers coming, along with a CorpSec armored personnel carrier and two large step-vans with BuReLoc markings.


On the Dance Floor

Vamp's goths aren't responding to her, or even hearing her anymore, the chaos in the club is such that they can't, and in any case, they are having a lot of fun instigating and perpetuating the panic brawl.  She, Nikola and Tailgate can see them clearly among the other kids because of the common style as they jump around and on top of other kids.  A gang of street-fighter is engaging them, apparently trying to defend other kids, and it's turning into a general melee.

Tailgate and Nikola follow Kat to the kitchens, just barely dodging fists and thrown objects.  Nikola catches a thrown bottle with her elbow, and there is a sharp pain as the heavy glass strikes her.  She can keep moving, however, and she and Tailgate push into the kitchen right behind Kat.  The kitchen is a mess, it looks like the adults bolted, and Kat races through and out the back door into the alley.  Breaking out into the alley Kat freezes, looking both ways and panic creeping up on her expression.  At one end of the alley Andy can be seen with her hands up.  The other end looks clear, for the moment.

Outside the Restaurant Entrance

Andy stands at the foot of the alley with her hands up, her plank on the ground next to her.  The cop with the gun is covering her, the other one is occupied blocking the door as a good number of juvies try to exit that way.  She is aware peripherally of some juvies exiting the club through the alley, and can hear the sirens of the approaching CorpSec/BuReLoc convoy.

Valeriya wrinkled her nose at the rough treatment. Who did the pig think he was? More importantly, who did he think she was? How dare he treat her as street scum? Her heels clicked furiously as she walked to the wall of the building and stood there, waiting and fuming.

"That's enough, Stefan, knock it off," she said cuttingly, swatting the GoldenBoy's hand away from her waist. But something else was slowly making inroads into her brain, something different and colder than the mere fury at being treated like that.

What were they doing? What they were looking for there? It wasn't exactly going smoothly, judging by the obviously nervous cops, or the sound of screams coming from inside the Obelisk. It felt improvised, botched...

She had to find out.

Discreetly, Val felt inside her purse, looking for her v-term. It was a sleek APPLE® MAc520, the size of a credit card. She pressed her thumb against the little window in a corner of the "card", and it came alive. It didn't light up in any perceptible way, it emitted no sound, but the v-trodes on Val's right temple synced with the v-term and projected a transparent virtual screen in the center of her field of vision, options and menus scrolling before her eyes, superimposed against the darker background of the street scene. She crossed her arms, and the fingers of her right hand tapped agaist her left elbow, as if just keeping some impatient tempo - but actually typing on a virtual keyboard, haptic feedback sending little vibrations to her fingertips so she didn't have to look down at the virtual keys.

OK, time to find out what was going on. She run a search through the news sites, seeing if there were any "breaking news/developing stories" about the Obelisk raid.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:38, Sun 28 Feb 2021.

Tailgate tried not to get distracted, but it wasn't easy. There was a chaotic brawl going on and part of him wanted to jump right in to it. But with only slight hesitation, he shook it off. The brawl wasn't going to last long - the cops would see to that. And he didn't want to get arrested.

So he kept going, following Kat through the kitchens, bobbing and weaving as he went, tamping down the urge to get involved, to just throw one punch, strike out with one elbow. He followed Kat to the door leading outside. She hesitated. He did not. He gave a quick glance and headed directly away from where he saw Andy.

Jai stood frozen. He stared towards the window for a moment, wondering if he should even bother, given the state of the boy.

"C-Can you move, man? We gotta get the hell out of here..."

He started backing up to where the window was. If the kid could respond, he'd stop and try to help out, but there was no use getting arrested just to watch someone throw up for a few more seconds.

Despite the aching pain Nikola was able to make it outside and just like kat and the guy that was drinking with valeriya did,(she thinks he was called tailgate) she saw that girl, Andy, they call her, with her hands up.. she decided to look to her escape partners, that tailgate dude and the singer and ask them . "Psst, guys! what do you think? should we try to help her before runnning to the other side?" She did like boardpunks a little, mainly because of their means of transportations. Much less contaminant that those rich guys moving around in their cars, Hopefully her new companions feel something similar, Nikola can become a brave troublemaker, but not completely on her own, not at leas with so many feds all aroundt
This message was last edited by the player at 21:43, Wed 03 Mar 2021.

"Oh... Shit..." Andy said to herself, muttering. Glancing down the alleyway. She moves to the side. Shuffling toward her board slowly. This was not great. In fact, this was bad. Really, really bad.

OOC: Is it possible to get a message to Jai? I forget what VTrods can do.

The sick boy in the bathroom shakes his head and heaves, then looks at the boys around him and says, weakly, "I'm... I'm sorry.  Go... run... or you're... next," and he passes out.  Hunter, half way out the window, calls to Jai and the others.  "Time to bolt, let's go!" and then he is out after Peter.

Outside, Valeriya can't get a connection, it seems the cell net is down or jammed in the neighborhood.  The spinning circle just keeps spinning waiting for a data connection that isn't going to happen.  Stefan leans in to whisper to her, "I think we need to go honey, this is very bad."

In the alley Kat follows Tailgate after his tug on her, looking over her shoulder at Nikola and Andy as well.  "Where do we go?" she asks and there is rising panic in her voice.  At the end of the alley there is an avenue with a dataterm on the corner, across the street another alley beckons in the dark night.  The streetlights are on and to the left/south Tailgate can see the emergency doors of the Obelisk and they appear to be locked, as they are not open yet.

For Andy, the cop covering her with his weapon keeps looking back and forth between her and his partner trying to hold back a press of kids at the restaurant doors.  After some hesitation he orders her to "stay right there and don't move!" and then turns his attention to the door to help his partner.

Valeriya cursed and logged off. The fracking net was offline, either because a lot of kids where panickedly accessing it at the same time or as part of the raid or who knew. And to make things worse, Stefan was panicking now, the idiot.

"Fine, but calm the frack down," she said softly, remaining quite still and in the same pose as she eyed the cops at the door. There weren't that many, meaning maybe they had a chance.

Meaning she had a chance.

The closest and obvious direction of escape was to the west, round the corner and making a dash for it. But whatever lead they would have on the cops will mean nothing when they went round the corner and get a clear shot at them. Besides, in her high heels she wasn't going to keep that initial lead for long.

She needed a way to move faster - for instance, her CityScooter - she could almost see it from there, so close and so far away, in the parking lot... For all those reasons, she needed a distraction.

She turned towards Stefan as if flirting with him, whispering into his ear.

"OK goboy, we go. When I say go, we run to the west as fast as we can. I'll follow you. At the count of three. Ready? One, two... three! Go!"

Naturally she didn't run after him. She just stood there, looking innocently shocked by her boyfriend's crazy stunt - and waited until the cop went after Stefan to run in the opposite direction, to the parking lot to retrieve her bike...

Vamp growled and grabbed the nearest member of her crew. "Enough!" She hissed. "We have our distraction so get the others and let's get the hell out of here before there are too many pigs to avoid."

She pushed him in the direction of another one of the gang and looked for someone else to grab. Say what you would about her but she was loyal and would never countenance leaving her people behind.

Tailgate flashed Kat a wide smile and hissed quietly, "keep chill, don't panic. don't fight the fear, use it an' ride it!"

Not that he was really chill himself. He was filled with fear. But...there was also the RUSH! Just like when he was burning rubber with the wind flying through his air on his bike. Different thrills for different situations, but the adrenaline gave him speed and clarity like always.

He dipped his head out to see if it was clear and then booked for the alley across the way if it was clear. "let's shake it!"

"Well if we are running we better do it in that direction", ready to dash after Tailgate, she took a look at Andy, Hopefully she will be able to see them and join the escape run
This message was last edited by the player at 16:51, Mon 08 Mar 2021.

"Bad break..."

Jai quickly moved to the window to clamber out of the bathroom and head outside.

Andy did not wait. And she especially didn't stay right there. The moment the cop's attention turned, she bolted. Landing hard on her board, the traction on the wheels set low. Shooting away from the police officers with a few quick pumps of her foot. Down the sidewalk and around the corner as quickly as she can go.

Stefan makes a run for it just as Hunter and Jai are coming out of the window on that side of the club.  The nearest cops yell "hey!" at Stefan, then they see the other boys, and they raise their weapons to shoot.  Valeriya meanwhile makes a break for her scooter in the parking lot, getting to it just as the BuReLoc and CorpSec vehicles stop, and begin deploying a lot more cops.  She hears gunfire.

Andy makes a break for it also high-tailing it down the alley to the sound of gunfire behind her.  She doesn't feel anything, but at this point there is no stopping to check.  At the speed of a good thrash she clears the street crossing and practically rams into Tailgate, Nikola and Kat, who just ran across the street into the alley West of the club.

Inside, Vamp tries to get her posse together but it is impossible in the chaos.  Suddenly shots are fired and the panic goes up to eleven as kids start pushing against the locked emergency doors.  There is screaming, more gunfire, kids falling and getting trampled...

---

Need a Thrash skill for Andy, to see if she actually hits one of the three or stops herself in time.  Need a Jock Stuff for Jai and Vamp.

What is everyone doing next?  Nikola, Tailgate, Andy and Kat are in the alley in the block of four low-rise buildings just West of the Obelisk on the map.  Valeriya is on Effinger Ave surrounded by cops, though for the moment they aren't paying her any attention.  Jai, Hunter and Peter are running down Effinger (South), Peter in the lead turns right at the corner, Hunter follows.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:20, Tue 09 Mar 2021.

Val laughed to herself as she made it to the parking lot. Perhaps the night wasn't going to be a total write-off - that had been such a fun move! She had just given the pigs the slip, that was way, way more rim than anything anyone in Theo's clique had ever done. And she would have given anything to see Stefan's face when he got busted. Adrenaline was coursing through her veins, better than vodka, better than any other drug she had tried or meant to.

She made a beeline for her CityScooper. The electrical moped came alive with the slightest whirr of electronic life - then she shot out of the parking lot, heading north.

And then she heard the gunshots.

What the frack? They were shooting the yogangers?

And fracking Effinger Avenue was teeming with pigs, more than Val had ever seen in her life.

For a panicked moment Val didn't know what to do - her parent's apartment was to the north, in the posher part of Japan Town... but they were fracking shooting kids on sight!

Without a second thought, she swerved abruptly left, her electric moped letting go an electric groan as it mounted the curb and shot into the alley, heading west...
This message was last edited by the player at 14:00, Wed 10 Mar 2021.

OOC:
17:14, Today: Andy rolled 21 using 1d10+16, rerolling max with rolls of 5.  Ref+Thrash.

"Clear!" Andy cried out to the kids pouring out in front of her. Twisting her weight to a side, dodging through the little pack making a break for it- though not nearly at the same rate that she was. She barely sent a glance back over her shoulder as she breaks toward the alley where she had hoped to meet up with Jai.

Tailgate started a bit, and bodily flinched, stopping his run, at the sound of gunfire. That along with Andy's quick reflexes were the only things that saved him being plowed in to by the boardpunk. He wanted to yell out something angry and coarse, but he was honestly too frightened to make much noise - he didn't want to attract any unwanted attention from those making the gunfire sounds.

He checked to make sure that he wouldn't be visible to the police from the alley before he let out a small shaky breath. "Are they SHOOTIN' people??" He shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. Mostly to himself he then muttered, "Man. Okay. Okay. I gotta get to my ride."

He started to make his way towards the other end of the alley to see if he saw anymore police out the other end.

Was that gunfire?

The sounds of increasingly frantic activity without and within the club all but confirmed it, and Jai clambered up and out of the window as fast as he could. The other guys had dashed off down Effinger, but he broke towards the alley Andy had swerved into.

00:37, Today: Jai rolled 14 using 1d10+8, rerolling max with rolls of 6.  Jai Jock Stuff.

"Holy crap! Those sound like actual gunshots, those bastards are not kidding!crap crap crap! what should we do?" Nikola's usual determination vanished while she considered all options, she had no ride. Although running away alone would decrease her chances to be spotted, To do this with the other ones would bring some other advantages and disadvantages, she looked at Kat and then to tailgate. She guessed that if there was some room left in tailgate's ride , kat should be the one using it. She might want to sneak in the dark corridors of the alley or help someone else.."So can you get to your ride dude?"

Jai climbs out of the men's room window, hits the pavement and Stefan runs right into him.  The Golden Boy was looking back over his shoulder with a mix of shock, anger and betrayal when he runs into Jai.  Hunter grabs Jai by the arm and hauls him back up to his feet.  "Let's move, move!" he yells as he leads the way to the corner to try and get around and out of line of sight of the cops.  Those cops are running after Stefan and the poor boy, trying to get up, is tackled.  But he accidentally slowed them down enough for Hunter and Jai to get around the corner.

Jai sees Valeriya zipping on her scooter out of the alley behind Obelisk ahead and across the street into the next alley...

Andy, Tailgate, Nikola and Kat see Valeriya racing towards them after turning sharply from Effinger and racing through the alley behind Obelisk towards them.  "We need to find some place to hide, or lay low, or whatever," kat says just before the Glitter Girl swerves into the alley.

Valeriya can see down the streets the NCPD is responding from multiple directions, they seem to be closing off the roads in a wide cordon, trying to seal off the neighborhood.

At this point the darkness of night and the general confusion are the only things keeping her - and really all of you - from being swept up in the net.

---

Valeriya should roll Go-Go to make a safe, fast stop.  Speed will not longer get her out of this, the NCPD can outrun the scooter.  Stealth, and perhaps some help, is needed now.  With some effort (Jock stuff) Jai and Hunter can make it to the alley with the others for a moment of respite.  Anyone can roll Streetsmarts.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:57, Sun 21 Mar 2021.

Jai nodded to Hunter in thanks before taking off in a sprint behind him. A quick look around didn't inspire confidence that tonight was going to end very well - for anyone involved.

12:58, Today: Jai rolled 17 using 1d10+8, rerolling max with rolls of 9.  Jai Jock Stuff.
12:59, Today: Jai rolled 26 using 1d10+12, rerolling max with rolls of (10+4)14.  Jai Street Smarts.

Tailgate nodded at Kat, hearing her words even as he kept his eyes peeled for any sign of the police. "You're not wrong, Kat. Know any place around here? Anyone?" Even as he asked them he racked his brain for any thing he could think of as well.

He saw Val coming and wondered if she was going to join up with them or run them over.

16:14, Thu 18 Mar: Tailgate rolled 11 using 1d10+9, rerolling max with rolls of 2.  Streetsmarts + COOL.

"Yeah lets do that", she touches her chin while checking if anyone comes up with any idea, she takes a look at her surroundings as well to see if she comes up with anything

-----------------------------------------------
19:00, Today: Nikola Net rolled 15 using 1d10+10, rerolling max with rolls of 5.  1d10 + 2 for cool and 8 streetsmarts.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:08, Sun 21 Mar 2021.

Val's electric moped careened into the alley. She cursed as the CityScooter slipped on an oil slick and fought to keep control of it...

And then she saw them, just ten or twelve paces ahead - Tailgate, and a bunch of other kids; she didn't have the time to recognize their faces, but instinct told her they were probably also fugitives from the Obelisk. What an absurd thing to think, 'fugitives from the Obelisk', she thought in a split second. As if that was the most important thing right now...

She slammed on the brakes, regretting it instantly as the Aerovector threatened to go completly out of control...

---

12:12, Thu 18 Mar: Valeriya rolled 12 using 1d10+9, rerolling max with rolls of 3.  Gogo+REF to to make a safe, fast stop with the moped.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:18, Sun 21 Mar 2021.

Vamp cursed and looked around for her crew. It was utterly against her nature to leave them behind but their blood was up and they were on a rampage. Some of them were going to get shot and the rest arrested if they didn't snap out of it. Well, time to introduce a little more chaos into the equation.

She ran for the gents as she had seen some of the other kids go in and not come out and she doubted they were hiding. As she ran she looked for a fire pull and, if she found one, broke the glass and hit the alarm before running into the loo and making straight for the window. Up, over, out and looking for an escape route.

Vaamp jumps out of the men's room window into a skuffle; the boys who preceded her but came after Jai are in a fist fight with several cops, and losing.  Stefan is on his face hands cuffed behind his back, bloody and bruised and cursing about how much his parents are going to get out of these pigs.  In the confusion she can bolt if she doesn't hesitate, get around the corner and out of line of sight.

In the alley, Andy, Nikola, Tailgate, and Kat jump in every direction as the careening Valeriya skids into the alley, the scooter on its side for the last 10 meters.  It comes to noisy halt at a dumpster and then all is quiet.

Jai remembers a phone number, a number passed to him on the low by another Mallbrat, for a network of juvies that help juvies in need.  The cell net is off or jammed, but a dataterm would have a hard line, could risk a call.

---

Valeriya takes 1 point of damage; it goes to Body.

"What the-"

Heart already pounding from the run over, Jai sidestepped the careening scooter and tried to concentrate on catching his breath.

Fetching his cell phone from a jumpsuit pocket, he cursed at the complete lack of signals.

"We gotta get out of here. If they don't stop... well, if I can get to a hardline, maybe I can try something."

She didn't waste time; as soon her boots hit pavement Vamp was off like a shot - running as fast as she could for the corner and out of line of sight of the coppers. She was utterly gobsmacked by what was going on. Federal and city cops attacking, shooting?! kids? The bloody pigs had gone utterly barmy en mass and the sooner she was clear the happier she would be.

Tailgate's eyes widened as Valeriya had trouble stopping and barreled towards them. He tensed and then leaped out of the way, hoping she didn't swerve in to him. He made it and she seemed to come to a graceful stop with a thump as she hit a dumpster.

He picked himself back up. "Val. Couldn't stay away, huh?" He then looked serious. "You alright?" He walked over to her see if she needed a hand up.

To the others he said, "I don't know this area that well. Any ideas on a place to hide?"
This message was last edited by the player at 14:48, Wed 24 Mar 2021.

Val let out a pained yelp as the CityScooter skidded to a halt. The moped had left a little mark on the pavement, mostly silver paint, sprinkled with a few notes of red.

"Frack!" she said, propping herself with a hand against the dumpster. Her left shoulder was bruised where it had connected with said dumpster, and there was a trickle of blood flowing down her right leg from a few scratches in her upper thigh, where skin had kissed the asphalt. Not a very glittery entrance.

"I'm fii-ah-iine, just... fracking piece of crap bike... should have my own aerodyne by  now..."

She jumped one-legged a couple of steps, swapping support point from the dumpster to Tailgate's shoulder. She smiles at him through the pain (the show must go on!) and then looks at the others. There was Jai, and that girl she remembered from high school, Andy, was it? and then another girl that seemed vaguely familiar but she couldn't place her face right now, with adrenaline pumping in her veins.

"Hey, Jai! I'm gonna be in the market for a paint job, I guess? If we survive. They are shooting people in there - and Effinger Ave is chock-a-block with them pigs with guns. I don't know what the frack is going on, but we gotta beat it! I can take someone with me in the 'scooter, I think, but not more. T, you have your bike?"

Hunter points at the corner outside the alley at the dataterm, a squat concrete block with a computer terminal built in.  "Those things have hard line connections, right?" he asks.  A police spinner flies by overhead, the search lights missing the alley.  Vamp barely dodges the light as she dips into the alley, and right into the group of juvies hiding out there.

In reply to Valeriya (msg # 90):

Nicola looks at Valeriya's wound and decides to comment:"Aww that hit had to hurt! Ok so if tailgate can get to his bike then i guess a minimum of 4 of us might be able drive away. also the question would be where exactly should we head to.. Are you sure you can still ride your scooter?"
This message was last edited by the player at 05:23, Sat 27 Mar 2021.

"I guess I've got enough time to try while we figure this out."

Jai peeked around the alley exit to make sure that the coast was clear, pulling up his phone to check the mysterious number.

OOC: He'll go ahead and make the call if there's not a cop about to tackle him or whatever, just didn't want to assume NPC positioning.

"Fuck!" Vamp whispered as she almost plowed into the other kids in the alley. She looked around at the small group and shook her head. What a bunch of collection of misfits. "We need to get out of here before they look this place down tighter than a mouse's arse. They're bloody shooting people."

She looked at Val. "They got your boy toy in cuffs back at the club and I have no idea where my crew is."

Jai makes it to the dataterm without incident and punches the code he remembered while the others watch from the alley.

The terminal flashes twice, like it’s rebooting, then asks Jai to confirm by hitting any key.  Once he does, an image rezzes of the girl, a teen like you with wild, frizzy air.  Her face is lit by the glow of a flat-screen and the camera is zoomed in to show only her head.



"Operator how can I help you?" she says with a hint of amusement.  Then her face goes serious.  "Oh shit, your near the Obelisk aren't you?" Jai can see that she is suddenly working hard at her terminal, talking absently as she does.  "Looks like Corpsuck is flooding the neighborhood and bringing BuReLoc, NCPD and who ever else they can drag through the muck.  I'll find you a place to hide, lucky you knew this number," she says as she works.  "You alone?"

Jai raised an eyebrow at the operator.

"Uh, yeah, near Obelisk. There's, like, a half-dozen of us?"

He motioned to the rest of the teens with a thumbs up.

Val forces a smile at Vamp, grinning through the pain.

"So your johns ditched you? Don't cry, yogirl. I'll spare you a few credits for the soup kitchen."

And she passed her, limping her way to the terminal Jai was operating, with as much dignity as the wound and her high heels allowed.

"How did you do that?" she asked the Mall Brat, incredulous, her eyes going from Jai to the screenand then back. "I was trying to raise the net a minute ago and there was no signal - the pigs must be fracking with..."

She jerked her head back to the girl on the screen.

"You what? A place to hide? Where?"

Nicola remained silent as she watched how Valeriya did not answer her and Headed to the guy in the terminal, she whispered to Vamp,"Well there goes my answer.. too bad she turned like that, always wanting to be the star.. anyway we ecoraiders are used to bet for lost causes so i'll still give her the benefit of doubt.. i must say that with all the confusion i barely noticed that guy and he seems to be pulling of a rabbit out of hat right now"  she then looked around to see if there were any cops coming closer

"Listen, bitch," Vamp hissed,  "I was being serious and not insulting you. Those are my friends back there getting arrested or shot so I suggest you shut the fuck up or you and I will have a go. Mummy will have to pay for a facial reconstruction when I'm done curb stomping your plastic, vapid arse."

Spleen vented, she turned to Nikola. "We used to be good friends until fame went to her empty little head. Now I'd just as soon drop the twat off the tallest building I can find."
This message was last edited by the player at 13:44, Wed 31 Mar 2021.

Nikola opened her eyes wide as she heard Vamp’s words , she decided that next time she would choose her words a little better to make sure she wouldnt be adding to the tension: “Wow wow wow ! Take it easy girl! Sorry,  i had to consider your emotional status after your guys stayed back there amidst the whole chaos, but  circumstances brought us together and the best chances for your gang right now depends on you being able to catch a break , and hopefully plan a rescue later. And to do all of that we might need to join our efforts and connections” Nikola smiled at Vamp and then tried to focus her eyes and ears to see what might come up from the mallbrat’s conversation

Val crossed her arms, lips pressed together, livid.

"And what the frack do you want me to do about it, Vamp!" she yelled, "They were getting everyone! Shooting kids on sight, the pigs! I only escaped alive because I was faster, and then I nearly crashed and split my skull against that fracking thing here, just trying to get away from them! What was I supposed to do!"

That was the guilt talking. She turned her back on Vamp, not so much out of attitude but because her eyes were getting misty and she felt herself on the verge of tears.

"Stefan will be alright! He has rich parents, the boof! And what do I have, eh? As long as I sell records, my parent's don't-" and her voice broke there, and she had to stop and swallow hard, unless she wanted to break down and cry. And she'd rather just die; just walk back to the Obelisk and run into the bullets.

Then she heard Nikola's voice, and finally placed it - there had been something familiar about it all along, but her head was throbbing with pain and adrenaline and anger and she hadn't been able to identify why it sounded so familiar. She turned around to face the Eco Raider.

"Ni-Niki? Nikola?" she swallowed hard again, discreetly wiping an eye with a knuckle, careful to not ruin her makeup. "Is that you? I-yeah, you're right, we... we should... do something..." Her head was still too messed up to think straight, but the aggression was gone from her voice.

Vamp was almost always angry. Had been so since the murder of her parents and her near death experience when she was 10. That was when she had changed and dropped most of her friends, including Val. But there was a part of her - the part that was Mariko and not Vamp - that she kept locked down tight so no one could see. That part of her wanted to put a hand on Val's shoulder and reassure her that things would be all right.

The rest of her, the angry Vamp part, stomped on Mariko and forced her back down, deep into the dark.

"What I want is for you to yell a little louder so the cops hear, Val. Jaysis. Stefan is rich but you're a public figure and the coppers still wanted to grab you and toss you in the nick so it doesn't look like they bloody care about wealth or fame. We need an exit and hopefully one is going to be provided. Once we get clear of this shite show we can work out what to do about our situation. I'm guessing you dropped your name to the cops so going home's not an option. We're stuck with our arses in the wind until we figure out what the hell is going on."

Kat stayed very quiet as Vamp and Val went at it, almost trying to disappear into the shadows biting her lower lip slightly a clear sign of anxiety.

Hunter, moving to stand next to Jai, looks back at the drama and shakes his head, sparing what he clearly hopes is a reassuring wink for Andy.

Minerva nods as she types when Jai answers.  "Let’s not bank on Corpsuck being in a good mood and get you out of their way.  I’m going to hardcopy you a map of the neighborhood.  There is a  safe house not too far from you, it’s marked on there.  Keep your head together, play it smart and you should make it there.  No heroes, no little angels.  These buttholes are armed and shooting first, not bothering to even ask questions later.

“If you pick up other juves along the way try to bring ‘em along, but don’t stop anywhere for long.  Just keep moving.”  She stops talking for a moment and looks right into the camera.  “I know the Code, I’m not going to lead you into a trap.  I called in my crew, and we're on the Net, juvies helping each other, trying to save as many lives tonight as possible, so please, trust me.  I gotta go now, ‘nother call comin in.  Here is the map.  Good luck!”  With that she signs off.  The map prints out on a thin cellulose paper, you recognize it as the kind that falls apart real easy, the cheap stuff.

With the dataterm and the safe house marked and the fact that this is your home turf, it's pretty easy to find the spot; across the street, North of the high school is a row of townhouses, many with stores in the lower floors.  An alley runs behind that row, mostly for access to the garages at the back and also for trash collection.  The safe house is marked in that alley, just West of your location, maybe two blocks away.

“Hey! I can’t believe you remember! It’s me, yes that little girl you knew that day grew up and made some modifications to her looks as well “ Nikola smiled and then  faces the rest of the group to explain all of that “Our families met years ago because our grand parents escaped together from a Gulag back in the Soviet union, and it seems we might need to do something similar,lets go!”

This message was last edited by the player at 15:35, Thu 01 Apr 2021.

Like it or not, Vamp had made some good points. Val looked away from her, lips pursed; she took a deep breath in, the she looked at her again. With a finger she pointed down, towards her uninjured leg. In the half-light of the alley, her luminous tattoos pulsed with red light, making her 'VK' logos look like a faintly beating heart.

"Yeah, I'm not exactly built for incognito. In case they didn't remember my face, there's this. No, my parent's condo is not an op-"

She stopped abruptly, listening to the girl on the screen. Her eyes went wide.

"A safe house? Your crew? What is this, some sorta spy-themed braindance?"

But she said no more, because however out-there it sounded, they were out of other options. She found it in her to smile a little at Nikola.

"Hah! Some modifications, you can say that again, Niki. Fracking weird time and place to bump into old friends, righ. OK, here we are, gulag-buddies forever," she said ironically, offering Nikola a fist bump.

Tailgate had been content to listen and keep an alert eye out for any police or corpos coming but things started to get heated for a moment in the alley between Vamp and Val. He turned with an angry scowl on his face, but they calmed down, or at least quieted down more, before he felt the need to step in or say anything. He shook his head, looking disgusted.

He wanted nothing more than to go get his bike and ride off. He didn't want to be in an alley with a bunch of juves he barely knew, none of his yogang around. The cops had been shooting at people back there. He was scared. He swallowed it down. They needed to get moving - too much noise in this alley.

He looked over at Jai and gave a nod. "You lead, I'll watch your back."

Vamp looked at the glowing tattoos and shook her head. "That's going to stand out like a beacon as will that dress," she said as she shrugged off her leather duster and handed it to Val. "Put this on. It will hide that tattoo and that dress. We'll need all the help we can get to make it the two city blocks from here to the safe house."

She peeked around the corner, very quickly and slightly. "We need to go before this whole area is so locked down they arrest the bloody rats."

It seemed like the cheap cellulose paper came out in slow motion, the back-and-forth of the others blurring into static.

"Lead?"

Tearing off the printout, Jai looked at it for a moment before committing the prescribed path to memory.

"Right, we gotta dash. West, just maybe two blocks away. Everyone, keep following me, not too far away before we're good to go."

Hunter looked like he was going to swipe the map, but thought better of it as Tailgate and the others gathered around Jai.  He drops back and follows the group as they head West through the alley.  Vamp, looking around before the group moves out, could see that there were a lot of police lights over by the Obelisk.  Several police skimmers are flying overhead but they seem more interested in keeping media choppers out of the airspace.

With Jai in the lead the group reaches the West end of the Alley.  There is no alley opposite, according to the map you have to go South to the next street and then West again.

Here is a rough idea based on the area map:



Next move?

As soon as they broke out of the alley, Jai looked back and above them, seeing if any of the drones were tracking them.

"Okay, left, just until the end of the next block, then we're almost a straight shot."

"That was the idea," Val quipped, but she accepted the leather duster, and after a doubtful look at it, she threw it over her shoulders with a quick gesture and put it on. Her eyes, chrome-colored in the contacts, found Vamp's.

"Thanks. I guess. Not really my style, but - thanks. Yeah."

Then, after a brief hesitation, she walked to the CityScooter, making sure it was still functional, ruined paintwork aside. Then she used a forearm to try to clean the blood from her thigh. The electric bike emitted a soft whirr as she clicked the engine back to life.

"Jai, I can get there faster with this. Scout ahead or whatever. Someone riding with me?"

Tailgate looked both ways when they were ready to exit the alley to make sure there were no police or other adults they didn't want to get spotted by. He glanced back at Val and hesitated. He wasn't sure it was a good idea for her to go off on that scooter - she had almost just run them over and crashed it.

Besides, splitting up may be either a really good idea or really bad idea. He shrugged at her. "Dunno know if it's a good idea." He looked to see if anyone else was interested but volunteered himself if no one else spoke up, "Sure."

After bumping fists with Valeriya, Nikola saw that Vamp was much more perceptive as her noticed the tatoos and offered her coat, Nikola had a coat but the idea naver came to her, "Good move vamp, glad to see you thinking of that, i got too distraughted in my own thoughts sometimes, hey we can all make a good team after all" She then continued to follow the group after Jai, after Tailgate and Val comments she also wondered about the safer nmext thing to do..."Hmmm i hope the scooter does not raise unwanted attention.. Jeez i wish there was a way to send something ahead acting as a bait, something by the way, not someone.. i have a rope hidden in my leather trenchoat just in case we can come up with something"

Vamp's glowing red eyes (courtesy of her own contacts) met Val's and she nodded and gave her a half-smile. "Scratch it or get blood on it and I'll rip your arms out of the sockets and beat you to death with them," she said, still smiling slightly. There was no heat in her voice when she said it.

Inside she mashed one of her boots on top of Mariko's head and kicked her back into the dark recesses of her mind.

"That scooter might attract one of the spinners circling around. Leaving it might be the better option as will us not going in one pack all at the same time. They'll likely be looking for that as well."

Val took one last look at the CityScooter, then at the other juves - then she just sighed and pushed the bike behind a trash can.


"No worries, Niki, I'll just leave it here and hope nobody... well, hell, whatever. Let's get the frack out of here..."she said.

It had taken her *weeks* of pestering her parents to get the bike, because it was dangerous, and what did she want it for anyway, she shouldn't be going anywhere except interviews and rehearsals and studio sessions and the corpo sec guys would bring them to those anyway, and...

"Just a sec, yogirls..."

She shook her head irritably and bent down to take off her shoes. She shivered as her bare feet touched the cold, damp ashphalt. It was very unpleasant, but if she was to follow the others on foot, she knew the stilletos were going to slow her down to a crawl. She suppressed another shiver, high-heel shoes in hand, and followed the others, jumping from one feet to the other.

"Shiiit, it's cold. OK, let's fracking move. Ooof. Sorry, T, no bikes tonight. Jai, Vamp, you got that map? Let's move, OK? I'm freeeeezing..."

“I guess she is right, the more we delay the closer they might be if they come looking for us.. if i can tie something heavy to the end of my rope i might use it as a weapon i can whirl against something heading to us as we cross in the open street”

The walk to the hiding place feels like it takes longer than it actually does, with the adrenaline and anxiety levels both high and police spinners chasing media helicopters out of the sky.  Crossing the major roads is the most harrowing part, the feel of being exposed and open somehow worse than stage fright, even for Val who is used to that.  In time the kids duck into the alley behind the row houses North of the school, an area seen often but rarely looked at closely during their time at school.  The businesses are book-ended by a fast food joint on the Easternmost corner and a book store on the Westernmost.  The place marked n Minerva's map is about two-thirds into the alley, on the North side, at the base of one of the low-rise residential buildings.

The safe house has a “front” door that is in the back of one of the residential building, half-way underground with four steps leading down to it.  The door clicks open when Jai approaches, apparently keyed to his face by Minerva.  The door opens on a small foyer of bare concrete and a similar hallway, lit by aqua-colored electro-luminescent strips along the ceiling edge.  Half-way down the hall is a wide door opening into the main room, also unlocked.

The main has a v-term in the middle, three sofas/loveseats, and a side area with a kitchenette including a small table with four chairs.  There are four other doors out of the main room: a shower closet, a toilet closet (each with a sink), a bedroom with three double-bunk beds, and a “back” door.  The back door is narrower than the front door, and opens into a concrete hallway that seems to double back to the alley.

---

Plan of the safe room is Map 1.  Wanted to move things along, so a montage of emotions and thoughts as you move to the safe house, and actions immediately upon entering.

The asphalt was cold under Val's bare feet, and her dress wasn't made for running. She had to keep pulling it down, tricky as it was because the chrome hexagons tended to move on their own and separately rather than as a unit like a piece of fabric would. A few times she stepped on a puddle, cursing and sending shivers up her spine, but she kept on running and following the other juves, purse in one hand and heels in the other.

"How the frack did I even get into this mess?" she whispered to herself as she made an effort to keep up.

They seemed to go on forever, endless hours of sliping around the alleys, always a little stroke of bad luck away from being shot by a cop or a drone, and then all of a sudden Jai was leading them to some random-looking door, and the door opened, and they all crushed to cross it and bang it behind them and they spilled into an unknown living room.

Val took a look around. She found the place almost as alarming as the exterior.

"Whose place is this? Jai? Are we sure this isn't a trap?"

Jai paused for a moment as another drone flew overhead, more out of sheer panic than strategy, though its target must have been something else, and he let out a huge breath he'd been holding as he passed by the stores and searched for the address they'd been given.

"Come on, come on..."

He needn't have bothered combing every inch of the alley, as the click immediately drew his attention. He bounded down the steps and paused at the first inner door to the main room. When Val bolted past him, he tried to stop panting and entered.

"Not my place. I scored the number from a guy who owed me - he said it was a support network of some kind. All juves, he said. Sounds nuts, but with everything going on, I figured it was more useful than empty pockets.

I'll admit, I can source some killer opportunities when I put my mind to it, but a secure Office I can lend to some randos at a moment's notice because some club got slacked... I don't know, and unless those doors lock on us, I'm not keen to ask too many questions."

He wandered over to the v-term, curious if any links to the outside were being actively maintained.

As they walked, Tailgate's nerves were ragged and on edge. He could feel his heartbeat thrumming with every breath. His eyes were trying to look everywhere at once. He was jumpy and scared, flinching at every unexpected noise, not caring if he didn't look 'tough' enough for the moment. He wasn't sure how long he could take the tension and pressure. They had been moving quietly for so long, and it was starting to wear on him.

But...finally...they made it. He looked around outside furtively before darting down the steps and inside. He moved in a bit and stopped, glancing about. But then it opened up in to something much more 'normal', as much as anything could be.

After a moment, he hurried to find the bathroom and went inside. He felt like he might puke but finally didn't. He splashed on his face and then dried it off after a moment. He walked back out, licked his lips, and asked "Are we...safe here?"
This message was last edited by the player at 03:39, Fri 16 Apr 2021.

Nikola entered with the rest of the group and was amazed at the type of place that this juve support group was able to set and continued to think aloud

"Well i think i get what you mean, i mean, this place looks nice, too nice maybe? If these juves were able to set this up they most likely have support from adults, who is behind them? Do they have a political agende or something ? Or could it be that these people are using someone else's property without the actual owner being told.. hmmm anyway, on the outside they are shooting people so i think for the moment we should thank these guys as well as Jai. it might not be bad at all"
She sat at one of the sofas and relaxed a little "All af this is intriguing. but we should watch out for the other doors, hopefully we werent followed"

Jai shook his head.

"Don't thank me yet. This might come with a price. I know this sort of setup isn't cheap. Even if they're stealing it, leaving it unproductive like this means missing out on potential.

But I made the call, so I'm the one in the red if it comes down like that. None of you asked for this."

As if to further appraise what sort of debt he might have just incurred, he ran a hand long the nearby furniture.

"As for their agenda, no idea. By Juves, For Juves was the only tip I got. Full stop."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:56, Fri 16 Apr 2021.

Hunter follows the others in a let's out a whistle of appreciation before plopping himself down on a sofa, hands behind his head.  "This is nice, I'm going to remember this place is here after all of this," he says.

For her part Kat is more tentative and she sits in the kitchenette and simply takes off her shoes.  While not the spike heels like Val was wearing, she is wearing dress shoes with heels for her performance.  She is sweating and looks a bit ill, and the rest of you are feeling a little nauseous as well.

When Jai activates the V-term there is a pause before Minerva rezzes on the screen.  "Great!  You made it," she says by way of hello.  "The news is totally blacked out about that neighborhood, but the media are starting to make wild speculations, so I think Corpsec is going to have say something soon.  We mobilized the whole crew and are trying to help a lot of kids, some more may go your way.  I'll check in later, let you know when the heat dies down.  Any questions before I sign off?"

"A support network?" Valerya repeated after Jai, frowning. "For juves? Wait a minute, you mean - someone knew that the pigs were going to hit the Obelisk and just shoot people, and set up this place to rescue survivors? I mean - it's sounds like the cheapest conspirancy braindance since... ever."

As she was talking she sat on the edge of one of the sofas, carefully crossing her legs. The rehearsed habits of stardom were coming back to her, now that she was a bit more calm. Her eyes looked around, fixed on Tailgate, then she made an effort to bring them back to the group.

"Yeah, I'm with Nikki. Someone doesn't just randomly set up some sort of hideout for juves just in case there is a..."

Then Minerva rezzed, and Val turned towards the screen.

"Talk of the devil. Yes, we do have questions - who the hell are you and why did you brings us here... well, help us get here? If it's some sort of kidnapping, you are NOT going to like it when my corporate backers retaliate."

Nikola opens her eyes wide open while hearing the words of Valeriya and decides to help the conversation with Minerva "Well you will have to excuse our friend here, she's been through a lot, not only because of the shootings (She looks at Val´s hurt leg and then to Vamp, but then eases her look with a half smile), some of us left friends there and been tryng to handle tensions ad much as we could since then. We are grateful for letting us find refuge here, we just want to make sure we are not getting somehow in something even more complicated, despite your best intentions"

Then she stops, feeling somewhat dizzy, she did stand up very quickly before, it could be that her body did not pump enough blood to her head so fast after being relaxed in the couch

Tailgate had met Val's eyes for only a moment but they both looked away fairly quickly. He moved a bit closer but not crowded the v-term when Jai made the call. His eyes narrowed a bit as he listened to the voice on the other end, but then widened and he almost flinched when Val piped up angrily.

The ghost of a smile touched his lips but faded quickly. Things were too serious. He was no stranger to running from cops, but he was usually on his bike and he didn't usually get shot at in earnest.

"What's actually goin' on at the club? What're the cops after?" He was surprised to hear the question come out of his own mouth.

Minerva looks a bit taken aback by Valeriya's accusation.  "Oh, I know who you are," she says with a smile of recognition.  "Look, this is not a kidnapping, you are free to go; it just wouldn't be a good idea right now.  The only time Corpsec goes this rogue crazy is when they think there is a plague event.  How do you guys feel?"  Minerva asks, looking concerned in the screen.

"I've been better, all things considered."

The rising nausea was the least of Jai's worries, given what he'd seen in the bathroom. How did this... whatever it was even spread?

"...there was someone sick in the bathroom."

Vamp waited for the first group to move out before taking off across the street herself. She kept waiting for a bullet but none were forthcoming which was good because getting shot sucked.

Getting there seemed to take forever but she did breathe a little bit easier once they made it and crashed on the couch where she let her head fall back and rested her eyes, trying not to think of the rest of her crew. Some might be dead, most would be in custody and...then Val was jumping up and down Minerva for helping them.

She opened her eyes and sat up. "Whoa, hold your tits, Val! There are places like this all over the bloody city set up just in case Corpse Sec and BuReLoc get a wild hair up their arse and decided to raid like they did tonight."

She turned to look at Minerva, her eyes widening. "Oh bloody hell...you're right. Someone was sick in the gents which some of us ran through to escape. If there was an outbreak of the plague that means we've all been exposed. Damn it all. Oi, you have any clothes for Val here? That dress is way too damn distinctive and impractical in case we need to run again and I'd like to get my duster back."

Val smiled back at the girl in the screen, although hers was a thinner, slightly trembling smile.

"Of course you know who I am," she replied, "And what do you mean by a 'plague event'? There was no 'plague' at the Obelisk, unless you mean all the frothers that follow me everywhere."

The effect of the flex was somewhat spoiled by the fact she had to sit on the arm of the sofa because her head was swimming. She crossed her legs and pretended to have done it on purpose. It must be the drink. Yeah, it was the drink, sure.

"Well, sorry, yogirls," she said, looking at Nikola and Vamp in turn, trying for a light ironic tone, but her voice came out a little wobbly. "But this is all mega suspicious. Who are these people? I just don't want to end up in some snuff braindance. And don't worry, Vamp, you can have this back, it's too hot in here anyway."

In fact, she felt uncomfortably warm and a little out of breath, and her skin burned and itched in the places where the leather touched it. She got up and started taking it off, but her knees buckled and she fell back on the sofa again. She tried to smile it off, cheeks flushed.

"Oopsie! That vodka was quite something..."
This message was last edited by the player at 11:24, Wed 21 Apr 2021.

Vamp cursed and caught Val. “This isn’t alcohol, you’re burning up. Someone get a tall glass of ice water and a damp, cold compress.”

She helped Val take off the duster and stretched her out on the couch. “Blankets and a pillow. Someone find them and bring them to me. Val - if there was a carbon plague outbreak there then you’re in the first stage. All of us have been exposed. Is anyone else feeling off right now?”
This message was last edited by the player at 21:43, Wed 21 Apr 2021.

"Sick kid in the boys room?" Minerva says thinking and looking up presumably at the ceiling.  She listens as Vamp urges Val to lie down and futilely cranes her neck to see what is going on.

Kat slumps onto the table, also sweating profusely, her hair matted down.  Though he looks a little pale, Hunter is still standing arms crossed defiantly.

"So yeah, we have a couple of safe houses in the city, different types, some better than others.  And yes we have adult allies, people we can trust, who help out.  But it's mostly kids, cause its the kids CorpSec is afraid of," she says.  "Look I'm going to break it to you quick, it sounds like you have the Carbon Plague.  You are in the first stage right now, you're gonna feel real sick and real weird.  In a day or so the symptoms will go away and that's stage two.  Stage three is the kicker.  After a very nasty night it will either leave you alone, or change you; it doesn't kill kids," she says the last very confidently.  "If I'm right, you're contagious right now, so don't leave the safe house.  In any case, CorpSec and NCPD are all over the neighborhood; one of my yos lost a drone but he got some good footage before it went down..."

Tailgate frowned in worry at Val when she started talking a bit odd and then staggered. He took a step towards her but then stopped when the voice in the screen started talking about the Carbon Plague. His eyes darted back to Val but he took a step back. But if what was said was true...he was already exposed. He couldn't leave and possibly infect others.

Then he glanced at Vamp and turned away, heading further in to the safe house to see what supplies he could find.

"Pffff. The carbon plague is f-fake," Val muttered, trying for a smile; it came out a pale excuse for it, as her eyes were out of focus and her face was shiny with sweat, a high blush turning into a feverish red, a rampant rash all the way down her neck and spreading downwards, visible here and there between the hexagons of her dress, like a rabid allergic reaction.

"It's fake, yoboys. No such thing. It's just an excess... an exclass, I mean, an excuse, to control everybody and then... corporations, they... vaccine you, and the... things, in the... needles, they control you with... the broadband thing, of - you know, the fracking waves, they have frequencies, and they make you, they make you, they do, yeah..."

Her throat was dry, and pulsing. Talking was a lot of work, not worth it. The room was going out of focus, and seeing the faces was way too much effort. She didn't resist when Vamp stretched her out on the sofa, maybe because she didn't quite register it: one second she was sitting, the next one she was lying down, OK, whatever, the lights in the ceiling were dancing in figures of eight, hypnotically, white and red and blue and purple, at the pace of her heatbeat, very cool moves, that was good stuff, they could put it in her next vid, she had to remember that, she had to talk to the choreo guy...
This message was last edited by the player at 18:38, Sat 24 Apr 2021.

“Oh damn! Ironically I’m one of those that confronted the ones claiming that the carbon plague was a hoax.  Poor Val here can be excused of making those extraordinary claims because of the fever.... I guess..
Next thing you know she might say that we are faking out symptoms in order to play into the conspiracy...or that indeed it is a engineered weapon but at the same time just a  little weirder flu But again that is the fever talking i hope. Minerva any suggestion that might help us mitigate the ugliest effects in us and the ones around us? Poor Val needs something”

They used to be friends. They were close friends and then Vamp's family had been killed and she had almost died that same night. The young girl turned into a very angry woman who hated the world for what it had done to her but there were times, admittedly they were few and far between, that the young girl she was pushed the boot on top of her head off and she let herself care.

She cared for Val so she wiped her face with a cool dishrag and covered her with a blanket. "You're going to all right, Val. You'll make it through this. If anyone can it's you, bloody stubborn twat. Right now you just rest and I'll watch over you as long as I can," she told her in a low voice.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:19, Wed 28 Apr 2021.

Tailgate crouched down next to Val after bringing the blankets and pillow, and helping to arrange her comfortably. He then turned his head and coughed in to his shoulder. He cleared his throat once, twice. He then shook his head like to trying to clear it or ward something off.

He spoke quietly but his voice sounded a bit rougher than before. "Ugh. Man. Suddenly I..." He drifted off as the realization set it. "...I don't feel so good either. Damnit."

He sat down on the floor with his back against the couch.

Mum was saying something, high up in the sky, but it was difficult to understand her because her face kept contorting in odd shapes, like oil on water.

"Just stop... moving the... in my," Val said, very eloquently.

Mum got angry at that, and her face turned into Vamp's.

"The vo... the vodka," she mumbled, a hand flailing in the air, trying to grab Vamp's. It was hard, because the hand kept unfolding into two, then three, then a blur of flesh-colored lights and little stars.

"Shhhpike. The shpike. Vodka," she explained.

Then Tailgate materialized close by, floating on black and pink clouds, very pretty, cute little nuclear mushrooms.

"The fracking zombieguy. Spiked... the vodka," she added, and the effort made her shiver, a bone-deep shake coming from the base of her spine all the way up, as if her nerves wanted to tear themselves clean out of the flesh.

Jai was a little dizzy. Before the call, he'd chalked it up to the breakneck pace and general WTF-edness of the whole situation.

"Everyone just stay cool. Symptoms might start to pop up, but stress doesn't do you any favors as far as that sort of thing is concerned. Like the screen said, it's not gonna kill us, and we're safe from the cops."

A rumbling in his stomach had Jai heading over to the kitchenette. He never did get to eat those stolen fries...

A review of the supplies (both Tailgate and Jai looking around) finds the place decently stocked, if nothing fancy.  There is pre-pack food in the cabinets, a water filtration system on the faucet, a microwave oven, eating utensils and cups.  Also washing implements in the kitchen to clean up after yourselves.

The bathroom has basic soap and shampoo and towels stacked neatly on a shelf.  The beds are unmade but each one has a neat stack of folded sheets with a blanket.  There are six bunks, three bunk beds crammed into the bedroom.

The lights are all LED and recessed, and there is glow in the dark tape around key access points, including the door sills.

Jai found the dizziness increasing as he rapidly bent down and stood back up to check various compartments. When he found the prepacks, he called back to the rest.

"You guys hungry, or the sick folks need anything? We got flavored noodles, some kind of salad wrap..."

In reply to Jai (msg # 141):



“Great idea, whatever this plague might do to us , all doctors agree that being well fed and hidrated helps against whichever sickness affect our bodies” Said Nikola after realizing that minerva was no longer available, she had ended up talking to the air before as her senses were decieving her. Not to mention that she could barely stay on her feet.. “whoa” she continued “i was thinking that a shower would be a good idea for some of us but in my condition i dont want to risk falling and hitting something there, the water could also help Val’s fever but she  better lay in the couch. As you said before lets try relaxing and regain some strenght, specially the ones affected the most by the carbon thing”
This message was last edited by the player at 20:55, Fri 30 Apr 2021.

'Shhhh...it's not the vodka, Val. You're in the early stages of the carbon plague," she said, wiping the other girl's forehead again.

"Can you bring out some water for Val, Jai? Try and get her to drink it whilst I get the beds made up. I'm not feeling symptomatic yet so I'll try and get everyone as comfortable as I can before I start feeling the effects. If anyone feels like they can then get the beds set up and get water in each room. I'll make the rounds until, or if, I get too sick to do so. Let's move, we don't know how long we have before all of us are deep in the grip of the plague."

We could do that, if desired.

One more post everyone get settled in for the night and I will update the scene.

Thank you

"Right. Coming right up."

Grabbing a cup, Jai exhaled and watched it fill up. As he turned around, he heard the plastic rattle against the floor before he realized he'd dropped it. Too frustrated and dizzy to bend down to pick it up, he grabbed and filled another.

"Not sure how much longer I can be upright. I don't feel any pain. Yet. But it's like my eyes and limbs aren't lined up correctly."

Keeping a careful eye on the cup as though it were about to explode, he set it down gingerly near Valeriya with both hands.

"I'll help you out as long as I can. Anyone else need anything...?"
This message was last edited by the player at 11:10, Mon 03 May 2021.

Val uttered a loosely connected strings of sentences - some to acknowledge that the girl that sometimes looked like Val and sometimes like her mother and some other times like another girl she used to know (in another life?) - and the rest was a rambling mumble about things she couldn't recall even as she said them. She felt herself burn with fever, her skin hot and dry to her own perception, even as she sweated buckets.

At some point there was water, a blessed feeling of precious, silvery water flowing out of nowhere and down her throat, quenching her thirst, and then she went into the darkness with a boundless feeling of gratitude. There were dreams, down there, strange dreams of metal and growth, the chrome hexagons melting and seeping through her skin to coat her inner organs - but somehow she slept through it, fitfully, in and out of conscience all night.

"Go lie down, Jai. Everyone else starting to feel sick grab some water and lie down. I'm not feeling anything yet so I'll stay up and watch over everyone for as long as I can," Vamp told them, displaying a quite unusual amount of concern and empathy (for her) for those exhibiting symptoms.

She sat on the couch next to Val and pulled the blanket over her, keeping the damp cloth over her forehead and giving her water when she thought she was coherent enough to swallow without choking. She wiped back her sweat-soaked hair and looked at her old friend. "You'll be all right. You're going to make it through this. I'll be here with you as long as I can," she whispered.

With some effort as she is obviously not well and looking a bit silver in the skin, Kat makes her way to the bedroom and sets up one of the bunk beds.  She then climbs into the lower bunk and leaves the made upper bunk for whomever wants.  "Least I didn't just do mine..." she says lying on the bed, looking exhausted but unable to sleep.

Hunter crouches down close to Vamp, his face showing concern for Valeriya as well.  "You guys didn't seem close..." he says keeping his voice just above a whisper.

---

This is an RP scene, a chance to write.  Interaction among the cast is key here.  If someone would prefer an NPC (different from Hunter or Kat) to play off, let me know.

Vamp looked up as Hunter came over and crouched down. She looked back at Val for a moment before speaking. "We were, once. Closest of friends but this was before our lives changed and diverged so dramatically. I lost my parents, my brother, and almost died and her career took off. After I went into the system I was so damn angry that I cut everyone off from my life. I couldn't keep going to the exclusive school we went to since I was a ward of the state and she started home-schooling so she could concentrate on her music."

She dribbled a little more water into Val's mouth. "Being angry and hateful all the time was easy, more so when we ran across each other again after a few years. In some ways I blamed her for not looking for me once she became famous and wealthy but...that wasn't fair to her. But I still made her my target since we were so very different. Seeing her like this-so...vulnerable, makes me regret the bile I've thrown at her all these years. I'm not going to lose her again."

She looked at Hunter and he could see some moisture around the glowing red of her eyes. "You tell her any of this and I'll kill you," she said, giving him a small smile.

From outside, an injured teen made his way in. He wore a gi from the Razor Walkers, a local Streetfighter dojo. It was torn and bloody in places. He gripped a bloody monokatana in one arm. He did not look good.

He had a look of grim determination on his face, and he scanned the bunks. Once he saw that there was no threat, he looked around. His disciplined composure slowly continued to fade as he stalked the hall and examined the survivors.

By the end, his breathing was ragged, and he was shaking badly, his determination turned to desperation. "Not one of them. Not FUCKING ONE of them made it."

He gripped his head, leaving some fresh blood on it, and stared at his hand for a moment. Then he took in the room. "Sorry..I" The words failed him.
He slumped against the wall, slowly dropped to a sitting position, still gripping the bloody monokatana, trying to get ahold of himself. But the image of a genius bullet ripping through Dimitri-San's was too fresh in his mind, and the scene just kept playing over and over.


OOC: Too much?

Nikola observed and listened to Vamp as she told her story, after her final "warning" she smiled at her and said "She wont hear it from me tough girl, no seriously, it takes a lot to lower your guard to expose your actual warm inner personality, so the least that we could do is to honor your trust with confidentiality"

Seconds later the karate guy came in all of the sudden, she attempted to stand up to see what happened, when she realized that she could not keep her balance.. so she gave quite a view for all those who could see her ; crawling in all fours while asking to the newcomer, 'hi, sorry to hear that i guess, you dont look like you were in the obelisk. did the cops attack your dojo?"
she realized  that she looked so ridiculous that she went ahead and explained, "i'm sorry im so dizzy i cant walk" then she realized she was waay too vulnerable for someone holding a monokatana
This message was last edited by the player at 22:57, Thu 06 May 2021.

A few glances at the bloody katana made him realize he was being extremely threatening, plus he'd dropped his face. He fumbled in his pockets with fading hands till he found a blade cloth. He sat in half lotus, placed the blade on his lap, and began cleaning the weapon.

The return to rote cleaning though was weirdly comforting for him, and hopefully it conveyed the message that he had no desire to use the monokatana. He'd never meant to scare the civilians. He'd NEVER had any desire to use the thing on a living being until today. Hopefully that would make it clear.


"I... understand. I'm not feeling well myself." Except of course, he was supposed to be better than that. He was supposed to resist the adrenaline and emotions cloud his mind. He'd been training his mind and his body for this for years so that he'd be ready.

But all his training had meant nothing in the face of genius guns, and the pure desperate terror he'd felt as bodies exploded around him had undone any grip of rational thought. His escape from the dojo was a blur. 'You should be handling this better than some random civilian!" he heard in his sensei's voice. Correction, his ex-sensei's voice.

You are correct. But it wasn't just cops. They were using genies. .

He'd heard the stories: he'd been talking to rads and listening in on the grapevine of horror stories about Bureloc, but he'd always chalked the worst of it as propaganda.
Hesitantly, he looked at Nikola directly and observed her appearance. No doubt her escape had been frought with violence and loss, and she lacked the training he had.

 "Deep breaths may help." He tried to follow his own advice as he cleaned his blade, but his mind kept wandering. After a few moments, he abandoned his attempts, and returned to conversation, reluctantly. "I take it that it was bad when they tried to take you all?" He absentmindedly tried cleaning the blade. It was something else to concentrate on.

"'Warm, inner personality?' Have you met me? " Vamp asked with a smile and was about to say more when the bloodied Kung fu kid came in through their front door. She jumped up and whipped out a butterfly knife with practiced ease and kept it in hand as she kept her distance.

"Yeah, it was bad. I doubt many of my crew are still alive. You said genie guns? Bloody BeReLoc."

She turned back to Nikola. "You, bed, now. You can't stand and I'm not going to have you pass out on the floor. Come on, I'll help you get into one of the beds," she said as she helped Nikola get back to her feet. "I'll take care of Karate Kid here and will keep checking on all of you whilst I can."

"You, she said to the kid with the katana. "Stay there. I'll help you once I get my friend here in bed." Having said that she walked-carried Nikola to one of the beds and helped into it, despite any objections the other girl might have put up.

Once she had her set up with some water next to her she walked out of the hallway to the kid with the sword. "Nice blade. My parents had one that had been in our family for some 900 years but's it long gone."

Interesting since Vamp looked Japanese but spoke in an English RP as crisp and sharp as his sword. "How much of that blood belongs to you?"

Hunter smiled at Vamp and was about to say something when SHin-ji came burting into the room.  He stood and took a defensive position but relaxed his posture as the situation became clear that this boy was not attacking but fleeing.  As the others engaged in conversation he went out and closed the outer door then the inner door, making sure the hideout was secure again.

Turning to address Shin-ji he looks at the monokatana with respect.  "You, uh, wanna rinse off and clean up?  There is a fresher over there," he says pointing out the restroom.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:04, Fri 07 May 2021.

If you really, really listened hard, you might get the slightest trace of a Korean accent, but it was clear he at spent at least the majority of his life in Night City, even if he had adopted some weirdly stilted speech patterns.

"I won it in a tournament. It was originally purchased from the mall on Flatirons. Not as romantic a heritage, I'm afraid. But I too, come from a line of warriors. "

Vamp's comment on the blood made him think of an often told joke when someone walked in with an injury, and he couldn't help but speak up. "you should see the other guy.". Actually, he couldn't remember any of the armored figured he'd chopped through. His memory was... dim.

He ripped the sleeve of his gi. As he did so, some of the cyrillic (Russian) characters became more visible on it as he turned his arm to the light.  There were a lot of abrasions and scratches, but none of them had too much blood. I think I'll be fine."

Then he noticed the silver traces visible running along where the wounds as the light ran over them. They'd already formed a crude scab. "Oh. He sighed, and suddenly realized why he still felt so incredibly tired.

Taking Vamp's advice, Jai headed towards the beds with a slow, meandering pace. He looked up at the bed Kat had made, but he could barely walk. Climbing seemed like madness.

"I'd grab it, but making the trip up... eh, give myself maybe fifty-fifty."

Moving towards one of the other beds, Jai grabbed the sheets and roughly laid them out, doing the bare minimum simply to avoid the plastic mattress covering. Rather than setting the pillow at one of the ends, he pushed it against the middle of the wall and sat down against it.

"Juve out there just came in with a bloody monokatana talking about genius guns. Crazy."
This message was last edited by the player at 13:25, Fri 07 May 2021.

"Wa
   aah     eer," sing-songed Val, one foot on consciousness and the other out of it.
       taa-

She opened her eyes, big and grey and unfocused, and they wandered about the room, vaguely registering an intermittent cascade of water coming into her mouth and out of nowhere; the Vamp Mountain beyond and above it, towering over her; indistinct voices around, footsteps; a samurai cleaning his sword.

"Washing katana
               with my
           pantiiies,
                          tee heee," she giggled, absolutely sure she had said something profound, like a haiku or something, she had to remember that for a song, she had to remember the other girl she used to know, she was hiding under a raven, where was she again?

She fell asleep again, dreamt of Stefan being shot.

He could wash later. What was likely to happen next might not kill him, if the snippets of stories he'd heard from the rads about the plague were as true as what they'd said about Bureloc.

No time for thinking though, he had to very quickly arrange for the next challenge, a supremely difficult one: trying to make it to an unoccupied bunk on his own power given how hard he was finding it to move. The injuries he'd gotten were already healed, but his arms and legs felt incredibly heavy, like he'd overworked himself with every limb.

He did not wait for help, of course.

The first step was putting his katana away. Not so much about theft: no one here looked like they were capable of stealing anything. And honestly, if one really wanted to take it and was healthy, he probably couldn't stop them. He stuffed everything in his bag as quickly as he could.

He gave up on walking very quickly. His balance was already insanely off. But he could manage a steady crawl. Getting into the low bunk was difficult, but he managed. It took him about 15 minutes though. "How mortifying," he thought, "to die here now, among... these people. How utterly pointless his escape had been. It would have been far more fitting to at least go out with the rest of his dojo, like a warrior of old, not dying in bed with a bunch of feverish juve civilians."

He wondered what his mother was doing right now. How pathetic.

It took agonizing minutes to swing himself up to the lower bunk and put his clattering gear at the bottom of the bunk. Once he was in his bed he turned to the wall. Best they do not see his weakness, and he knew the sight of what would happen would not sit well with him, nor would the sight of what was going to happen to HIM sit well with others.

Shin heard the sound of someone walking as he started to crawl towards one of the rooms. Standing over him was the Japanese girl with the brisk English accent, red-glowing eyes and very sharp nails which he could see since she currently held a hand out to him but wasn't moving to touch him.

"There is no shame in accepting help when it is offered and no dignity in crawling," she said softly, showing fangs when she talked.

Tailgate had trouble with focusing. He had sat down near Val but was getting sleepy. He looked blearily at Nikola and Vamp as they talked to...someone. But he was having trouble following the conversation.

After a moment he muttered to himself quietly, "ugh. this sucks worse'n hangnail." pause. "wait. no. hangover."

And then his chin drooped down on to his chest and he slumped over.

He had this weird image of death making the same offer to him, given the fangs on the goth. Thankfully, he was not feverish enough to assume she was death, but the moment of hesitation made him re-consider.

He was quite possibly dying of the carbon plague. Best get to doing it with a minimal of fuss so as not to disturb the others. "Thank you." He accepted her help, then faced the wall.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:04, Thu 17 Feb 2022.

Val helped the newcomer into bed, covered him with a sheet and blanket, and put a bottle of water next to him. "I'm Vamp. I'll watch over everyone for as long as I'm able. For now I'm the only one not showing symptoms. Rest as best as you can," she told him before turning off the light.

She walked out at looked at Tailgate, passed out near Val. There was no way she was getting him into bed so she stretched him out, propped a pillow under his head and covered him with warm bedding. That done she turned to look at Nikola. "All right, your turn. Off to bed you go. Come on, I'll help you get there. And I mean it - you tell anyone I've been being nice to people and I'll bite your nose off or something worse. I must be having an off night, being so bloody soft to a group of complete tossers."

The truth was she was worried. Perhaps even a little frightened. Her crew and band were all she had and the thought of losing all of them left her feeling vulnerable in ways she did not fancy one bit. She sat down next to Val and placed a freshly cold compress on her head. "Are you even wearing knickers under that dress?" She asked, even though she knew Val was past the point of hearing her. All she could do now was keep an eye on everyone until she became too sick to do it so she propped her legs up and settled in for a night of...uncertainty.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:51, Sun 09 May 2021.

Hunter did his best to help Shin-Jin and the others get to bed as well, quietly helping Vamp where he thinks she'll need it.  When everyone besides them is covered he goes and sits on one of the other sofas leaning on the arm.  He looks tired but does not seem to have any overt or serious symptoms.

Meanwhile, in the bedroom



Kat raises herself on her elbow when Jai mentions Shin-Ji's entrance.  "They were shooting people with genius rounds? That doesn't make sense, it's way overkill," she says, letting her hair fall over and cover part of her face.  Vamp and Hunter help Shin-Ji soon after and deposit him in one of the bunks.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:17, Sun 09 May 2021.

He nodded thanks as he settlee in. "I will remember this, 'Vamp'. My name is Shin-Ji Han. I honor my debts."

Did that sound threatening? He was aiming for serious.

This was hitting him fast!

Nikola thanked Vamp while getting in bed, "Don't worry i might not remember most of this after all, who knows what this thing is making to my brain"

She remained laying down in bed, not sleepy yet, but her body felt like in a rollercoaster, sometimes floating , being propelled upwards, then falling into bed and sinking in the matress, fusing her body with it and the feeling she used to have once in a while ,the vibration on her skin, the electricity in her body when she experienced sleep paralysis, she was used to it, but this time was different,

she would attempt to move her lips and say something , then started to think aloud, to say whatever crossed her mind, and hopefully some might listen ' If the ninja guy would have wanted to hurt us he would have already, what happened in the dojo and the obelisk leads me to think that they rather kill us all instead of having an outbreak that might kill older people, or give us paranormal abilities if we believe what many say"

"What she said, I guess. And they were taking down news drones, so they don't even have to answer the inconvenient questions that come with broadcasts of juves getting gunned down on the nine o'clock news. This is messed up."

Fatigue finally starting to sink in, Jai moved the pillow back to one of the ends of the bed and laid down.

"We might be out of commission for days. If there's footage or locational data of us at an outbreak... shit, I don't even want to think about it."

Kat sits up, though it looks like she is a bit dizzy, as Nikola joins the conversation.  "News black out is going to be hard to maintain, and missing people hard to explain," she says replying to Jai.  "Wait, you didn't come from the Obelisk?" she asks Shin-ji in the other bunk.  "So were they using genius guns at the Oblesik or was there another operation tonight?  My god, is it city-wide?"

This message was deleted by the player at 18:07, Sun 09 May 2021.

"We saw what was going on and tried to help. Our dojo is just across the street.

Thats when the genius guns came out on their side, and the monos came out on ours.

I don't think its city wide though.

Edit at ST's request. Sorry, I misunderstood what was supposed to have happened.

"oh," Kat says and falls back onto her back.  She lifts one knee and puts her arm across her forehead.  "still shitty, shooting people.  At least it was just the one place, but damn!"

nikola is stunned at shin's words 'wow, sorry to hear all of that, if it helps you, your partners died with honor, as heroes, we will try to avenge them.. btw, were you given this location by minerva? do you know anything about the ones providing us shelter?

Shin-Ji wasn't quite sure what to say to that. Honor and giri o
Once again felt hollow in the face of the carnage he'd just witnessed.

One part of him wanted to thank him, anotger wanted to scream about how meaningless that felt right now.

He settled on a blank stare.

"I.. yes. I heard from Minerva, but I know nothing of her or the origins of this place.

Apparently, all of them were in the dark.

9:00 AM, Saturday, June 5, 2027

In time all of the kids drift off to sleep; even the night owls among you feel exhausted - physically and emotionally- and are overcome with a need to sleep.  Unfortunately, sleep, though uninterrupted, is not pleasant for most of the night.

Between images of kids being shot and crowds panicking to incessant noises and other sensory hallucinations, sleep is not restful.  Sounds such as buzzing that ends abruptly or the noise of static on an old TV set; strange flashes of lights in kaleidoscope colors; itching sensation of skin crawling.  All these things come and go quickly, enough to be remembered, not enough to wake anyone up.  And they end during the night giving everyone a couple of hours at least.

When morning comes everyone wakes up from a natural sleep, at their own pace, all sensation of illness gone for now.

Kat is curled up on her bunk.  Hunter is still sitting on the floor, leaning over onto the side of the sofas.

Valeriya was asleep, and then she was not.

She was staring at a strange, unknown ceiling like she had never done anything else in her life. She blinked (it was hard, her eyes were dry and the eyelids felt gummy), and rolled, and then she saw an equally unknown living room. Then things trickled back to her brain like rainwater down a drainpipe. The Obelisk, the cops, the panic, the bike, the alley, the safehouse, the fever. All of it was gone, it seemed - except for the house, naturally. She pulled her legs under her and got up slowly.

Her legs weren't shaking, her head wasn't swimming. Surprisingly. She felt mostly OK, just parched, just a little bit hungover. It was probably morning, and at that hour, she felt very undressed in her party dress. She was barefoot too, but her only option was the high heels lying by the sofa she had slept on, and they felt even more ludicrous by daylight.

Tip-toeing so she didn't wake anyone up, she went to the bathroom for a glass of water.

When Shin-Ji awoke, he stared at his hands, at first hoping this whole thing was some kind of nightmare. However, the nightmare wouls not end.

Reviewing what had happened last(??) Night briefly in his head, he took quick mental stock before rising. He stood and stretched. No light headedness, though he was very thirsty and hungry.

He wasn't going to die of the carbon plague.

So what next?

First a drink, food if possible. Then shower and change to an outfit that wasn't ripped and blood stained.

Then.. who knew. Vengence, probably. Against every faceless goon? Could he pick them out of a crowd? What about the people who ordered them.

He gave a brief nod to Valeriya, Kat and Hunter (and any others awake) before heading to the living room where thrg could talk without waking people(and maybe he could find some food).

Val drank a glass of water, tentatively. When she didn't throw up, she downed another one quickly, and then half of a third. She was parched, and the liquid was very welcome. Only then she did dare take a look in the mirror.

"Oh Val... Not exactly coverpic material, are we today," she told her reflection. She didn't look great, but at least it wasn't as bad as she had felt. Her eyes were still gunmetal grey from the contacts, the makeup was smeared in dramatic ways away from her eyelashes and her upper cheeks. A bit too much to count as edgy-dramatic, crying-beauty-queen-chic. But it could have been worse.

She propped her right leg over the toilet to inspect the wound from the bike accident the night before. There was a reddish-black scab, not the nicest thing, but at least it didn't hurt any more beyond a little irritating itch.

It was like that, leg up, glass in hand, that she looked up and saw the samuraiboy going around. She frowned.

"Hey! And you are..." she said, just as he disappeared towards the living room.

Had he not introduced himself? His memories of last night... no, the night before last, were incredibly hazy.

He felt embarrassed... and slightly awkward talking to someone as attractive as her, even if she looked like hell right now.

"Sorry, I was... not myself last night. I am Shin-Ji Han." He went for a hand shake, then thought better of it after realizing he had a fair chunk of sweat and congealed blood.

He thought for a moment.

"I think I can lend you a shirt later once I use the shower. I still have my street clothes in my backpack. My GI is water washable and stainproof."

He'd have to rip off the sleeves. Others in the Dojo had done that, but he'd thought it looked really, gonk.

A sudden hunger pang ripped through him and took his mind of fashion.

"Right now though, I'm going to find some food if I have to tear this place up with my bare hands. I could eat unflavored kibble right now."

Normally he carried a bottle of Refresh, but he'd guzzled it sometime last night in a daze. He didn't have a single protein bar on him though.

There is ping from the dataterm signaling an incoming call.  Hunter groans, half asleep swatting an alarm clock that isn't there and tipping over on his side with the action.  He opens his eyes and groans again.  "Not a nightmare..." he says to himself.

Kat wakes up at the pinging sound as well, shaking with a start as though startled awake, then she relaxes and sits up.

Tailgate felt like he'd been in a head-on collision with a truck after a night of hard drinking. His mouth was bone dry. His eyes felt like they were stuck closed and had to be rubbed to get open. There was a tiny group of imps banging on drums inside his head. His ears rang for a short while as he came more fully to consciousness.

He muttered to himself but it was barely a hoarse whisper, "i know...i'm not dead...cause dyin' wouldn't suck this much..."

It took a while before he was able to rouse himself and make it to a sitting position and later to a hunched but standing position. He stumbled to the bathroom once it was empty and relieved himself, washed his hands, scrubbed his face with water - drank some of the tap water like a man dying of thirst! - and then walked slowly in to the living room.

"ugh. hey. what's that sound?"

Jai awoke with a start, mostly glad that what he was feeling was morning drowsiness and not the static-y, dizzy feeling that had put him down the day before. Not sure how else to contribute, he was about to head into the kitchen when he heard the familiar tone of a dataterm notification. With everyone else waking up or still sleepy enough to be confused about it, he headed over and picked up the call.

"Morning. I think."

His eyes darted to the corner of the terminal where the time (just after 9, it seemed) was displayed.

"Oh, hi Shin-Ji. I'm - well, you know," she said, gesturing in the general direction of her thigh, the black-and-red logos visible, it's faint pulsing glimmer not that evident in the morning light. She wasn't really feeling all that much like her on-stage persona, but that made her remember herself - and she stood a litle higher, shrugging it off, like yeah, who isn't skulking around a strange safehouse dressed in last night's dress and looking divine all the same?

"A shirt, heh. Good one, very rim," she said with a smile, lightly stabbing a long-nailed finger as she passed him, as if he had said something very clever and maybe even a little bit flirty. She had already dressed in Vamp's leather coat the previous night, because it had been an emergency, no way she was going to be wearing men's clothes around a strange house, like somebody's girlfriend. She'd rather stay half-naked in the party dress - not ideal, but much more her brand.

And talking about Vamp's trench coat - the yoganger was still there when Val returned to her sofa to check her purse. She blinked twice, only noticing her then. Somehow she had skipped over her automatically when she had gotten up to go to the toilet, somehow not registering the facts.

And the fact were all over the place - Vamp sleeping at the foot of the sofa, curled around a cushion, a half-empty glass of water on a table close by, and a washcloth. Val took it between two fingers. It was moist, and it smelled faintly of sweat... and Chic Fatale, Val's very own designer parfum, famously made from a custom mixture of jasmine and her own pheromones.

For a wild second she thought about moving on and pretending nothing had happened, then something made her stop, try to crouch, then think better of it, and slowly, carefully, kneel and then sit, her legs to the side, none of those steps made any easier by the chrome-hexagon dress.

"Hey," she said quietly, poking Vamp with a shy finger first, and softly shaking her shoulder when she didn't immediately wake up. "You OK, yogirl?"

 There was a lot about people he didn't quite get, and this was evidently one of those moments. It was like there was this whole other level of conversation and rules that he just didn't see. He blinked as she brushed by him and paused for a second before heading to the living room.

He stopped as the dataterm rung.

(OOC, going to switch to red for dialogue in the future if that's ok, should not be using the same color as Val)

The dataterm sound made Nikola suddenly wake up from her deep sleep state, jumping right out of her bed while screaming "Nooo! Nooo! The beanstalk vines!" like not realizing where she was.. she grabed Kat out of her feet , like trying to pull her out of bed " They are crawling and glowing! get out get out!"she continued like crazy.. then she stopped and realized that her mind was playings trick on her... she looked all around at her partners and the room, what happened?, this was odd, was she awake for real? she did a reality check, counted her fingers, bit her tongue and recalled how she got there, it was not a lucid dream, "Sorry! wait ... my parents! i need to contact them!" Then she realized there was a incoming call

Jai answers the call and Minvera comes back on the screen.  She looks tired as though she didn't sleep last night, but smiles when she recognizes Jai.  "Hi, and good morning," she says.  "I've been chatting with my yo's about last night and I think you need to move.  If you are infected, and I think you are, then in about 12 more hours you will enter the last phase.  That can be dangerous for any adults around.  Also, you may have noticed that place is a hideaway but not very secure," she adds.

"My suggestion, and you don't have to take it:  use the next few hours to set up an alibi for the following two days or so, make sure people think they know where you will be, and that it will be some place you will be hard to reach.  Valeriya and Kat need to make public appearance, they need to be seen, so that it will allay suspicion.  If you can make your way to the New Harbor mall, I can get you some scratch to spend and the more secure hiding place you can go to ride out the plague is close to there.  Does that work?"

Hunter, now standing and looking over Jai's shoulder laughs a little.  "You're going to fund a shopping trip for us?"

Vamp was tired. No, scratch that, she bloody exhausted. She had stayed up last night taking care of Val and the others until she felt her own fever and chills coming on. After a very impressive litany of curses in Japanese she made her slow, wobbly way to the couch, wrapped herself in a blanket, curled up around a pillow and feel deeply asleep.

Deep, not restful. Once again she had the nightmare of the terrible night. The night her family was murdered, she was shot, and was so close to death she felt like she could see him coming for him.

And she dreamed of the mon the attackers displayed which, and this made her very, very angry, she had had zero luck tracking down. But she would and they would pay.

She owed them in blood and bullets.

So it was she wasn't quite sure of her surroundings and situation when Val woke her up. She looked at through sleep fogged eyes and took a moment to process things and try top remember what the bloody hell what was going on which came back to rather more quickly than expected.

She blinked a few times a sat down. "Aside from this massive crick in my neck I'm all right. How are you? You're doing a lot better than last night and judging by the sounds, so is everyone else"

Shin-Ji gave a nod. "Ready to fight." A low growl from his stomach occurred at this point. "Once I eat."

While normally he frowned on spending extra money on junk food, he was prepared to take a very big exception if it involved going to a Hot'za right now.

"And maybe five minutes in the 'fresher."

He'd use his mono tanto to cut off his other sleeve before he left as well.

The bare arms thing was the stupid sort of poser look that made his sensei roll his eyes, but it looked better than having one dangling sleeve like some kind of weird RPG character.

Jai nodded to himself as he thought of an easy fix. Telling each parent that he'd be across town at the other's apartment should work fine.



"I can help us stretch the cash some, my override key should work on New Harbor's autofacs. Mostly. Maybe one in four store managers bother to update the security software. Sounds good - catch up with you at a terminal near the mall, same number?"

A plan for the day beginning to formulate itself, Jai headed back over to the kitchen and started a half-dozen of the prepacks warming up.

Without thinking about it, Val gave Vamp a warm smile, unforced, unrehearsed, a rarity. She was glad to hear she was mostly fine, and perhaps she was imagining it but the usual hostility seemed gone from her tone.

"Could be worse, I guess," she said, meaning herself but applicable to both of them, maybe to all of the group.

And then for no particular reason, without any warning to Vamp or to herself, even, a hand reached casually to the Goth’s shoulder and started lightly massaging it, at the approximate spot she guessed the muscle knot was. It took Val a second to gain awareness of what she was doing, but by then she was already doing it, an unguarded gesture of friendliness. She wanted to pull away before Vamp cut her hand off or worse - but in some way, that would be even worse, some sort of admission that she had stepped out of line.

So she kept smiling, and shrugged like no big deal, and massaged the other girl’s neck softly.

"I’m fine, I guess," she said lightly, tossing her hair. "Woke up in a dump full of fugitives, still wearing my ‘high-priced whore’ dress, and I could use a shower and a change of underwear. All that aside, I’m fracking rim."

Her head turned to the rest of the room, where everyone was becoming more active, and there was a voice coming from the screen. She caught the gist of it and thought about it for a second.

"Sure, let’s do a fracking press release," she replied from the floor, loud enough that the mike would catch it. "Where’s my hair and make-up team? Kat, maybe we can tease a collab, right? Make my marketing team go ballistic."

Vamp gave out a small moan and leaned forward into Val's hand. "You are right on the spot. For this I take back one, maybe two of the bad things I've said about you but, no more than two. Three is pushing it," she said with a slight smile, eyes closed as she savoured Val's ministrations upon her aching neck.

"Maybe 'high-priced whore dress' was the wrong thing to say. How about metallic band-aids held together by string? We need to get you practical clothes but clothes that blend in and one of the first things about blending in is making you look 180 degrees from your normal look. Change your hair, no makeup and clothing that doesn't scream 'I make pop music pablum for pre-teens!'" Once again she gave Val a half-smile

Whilst talking Vamp had also been listening to the conversation with Minerva. "Bad idea for Val to make a public appearance. She identified herself to one of the pigs at the club last night so they know all too well that she was there. The second she goes out in her public image the cops will be on her like flies on shite."

Yawning, Kat smiles at Val's suggestion.  "I think a colab could work our styles are so different it would be unexpected," she says; though she frowns when Vamp reminds the group that Val identified herself to the police.

On the screen Minerva crinkles her forehead in thought as well.  "Well, that won't do then, you at least will need some sort of disguise.  Do you guys have enough you can mix and match to get to the mall?  I can fund a shopping trip and Jai can help as well," she says sounding hopeful.

Kat looks at her outfit.  "You can have my cardigan, at least that is something," she says offering the sweater.  It is lightweight, the type that is worn for decor over something else. (See post #10 for description of her outfit)

Hunter takes off his surfer hoodie, the sleeveless t-shirt underneath pulls up with it to his abs before he pulls it down.  "This will cover more than the metal band-aids," he offers with smile.

Shin-Ji realized this conversation didn't concern him, and instead made his way to the smell of delicious pre-paks. He gave a nod to Jai.

"Good, sensible action. Very chill."

Shin-Ji's sensei had been Russian army at one point. He didn't bring it up that often, but when someone fucked up planning and was late or forgot something, he was fond of saying that warriors won fights, but logistics won wars.

He found it difficult to think of anything else at the moment, other than the pre-pak warming in the microwave.

Tailgate leaned against a wall and listened to the conversation. He was leaning only partially because he needed the help staying upright. He frowned lightly as he listened to the back and forth, the details.

They weren't safe as they had thought, as they had been told. And more was to come. His eyes  shifted to Val when she was mentioned in making a public appearance. He wondered if that was a good idea...but it wasn't really up to him, or really his concern. He shook his head. So they'd hung out a little last night! It wasn't a big deal. They weren't dating.

He needed to focus on something else and get back in to his own level of the social strata. This hiding together wouldn't last forever. He smirked. He didn't need to do much for an alibi - just say he was going...

...riding. "Aw man...I had t'leave my RIDE! I gotta go back for it." He was talking to himself, even though it was loud. He grabbed his jacket and started to head towards the door.

Shin-Ji reluctantly pulled him away from the microwave for a minute and stood in his way, raising one hand. His tone was firm, but not hostile. He made it clear he'd

"Gonk move. Not my business if you want to play loose with your life, but if you get caught right now, you endanger everyone.

If you wait a few minutes we can all leave this place ready with no risk of you leading them back here."

He noticed that the ganger was barely capable of standing on his own.

"You look like you couldn't handle a moped right now.
Eat something and take stock. You'll think more clearly. Maybe we can find out if the place is being scoped by corp-sec." 

There was a ding from the microwave. Shin-Ji carefully considered. It was not worth bringing attention to the place by starting a brawl, and the man had a right to do what he wanted.

"Your call, rider."

He made his way back to fill up, having presented his view.

"You want to watch that," Val replied with a fake serious tone, as she kept massaging Vamp’s shoulder. "You stop calling me a whore all of a sudden, people will start whispering. And what is not practical about this?"

She meant the silvery hexagons, straining against the flexed muscles in her thighs.

"It gets the job done in my line of work. Which is not escorting, before you say it. But yeah, I get it. I should wear… I don’t know, leggings?" she added in a dejected tone, as if it was the worst imaginable defeat. In the bright light of the safehouse, the tattoos covering her leg looked almost like normal ink.

She bit her lip as she listened to Vamp, then the other Glitter Girl.

"Well, does it make a difference that I told the cops I was there? You fracking were on-stage, Kat. It’s not like people are going to forget that – even if not one single juve mentioned it, out of solidarity or whatever, there were plenty of zombieboys at the Obelisk. Including the bastard who didn’t want to get me a vodka lemon. But let’s not make this about me – yeah, I’ll take that hoodie I guess? Gosh, I’m too iconic for my own good…"

"You're right," Kat says with a slight frown.  "I don't think the Obelisk management would sell me out, but they are adults ultimately, they'll follow their best interests," she adds with some concern.  "I do have to tell my parents something.  Party in Rancho Coronado?  Do you know someone out there?"

Hunter grabs a pre-pack and slices it open, digging in like a starving man, and nodding along in agreement with Shin-ji.  "Dude, we can pick up your bike on the way, just chill for a minute, let the girls work this out," he says to Tailgate between mouthfuls.

Minerva is still on the monitor, waiting to see what plan you will come up with and if you want to share anything more with her.

"Order up. Uhh... label said Chick'n A La King. I have my doubts..."

Jai slid the newly microwaved prepack and a plastic fork onto a nearby table, surprised that the call was still ongoing. Luckily, watching the food spin was boring enough that he'd paid attention to what passed for obstacles to their trip in the meantime.

"Uh, I figure as soon as everyone's dressed, we head out and grab the bike on the way? Like I said before, can you give us an address to contact you once we find a 'term at the mall?"

Tailgate slowed to a stop as multiple people tried to impress on him that it was a bad idea. He frowned but nodded and stepped back. He let out a sigh and slumped in to a seat. He just...couldn't help but think horrible things. What if his bike had been impounded? What if someone had trashed it? Or it had gotten shot up in a crossfire or something?

He tried to banish the thoughts and focus on the present.

Alibi.. Alibi.. to be seen. hmmm i could show in some ecoraider initiative, i mean not the most radical actions.., some protest or something alike that would make things much more complicated. That way they will believe if i say i've been participating since yesterday. now i need to find if there is something somewhere

Kat’s comment made Val think about her own parents. Briefly.

Were they concerned? Probably. For all her bad girl rep, it wasn’t like her to go out and not come back the same night. Scratch that – it was totally like her, but she wasn’t allowed, and she had never dared face the consequences. But did she actually care that they got worried? And worry they would – if nothing else, because their main source of hard cash and social capital had disappeared. Oh yeah, and then, she was their daughter, that too. A distant second.

So as for reassuring her parents, nah, Val was good, no big hurry to allay their fears. But still, if Kat wanted to do some sort of media appearance and Minerva (whoever she was) had suggested it as a good idea, then Val wasn’t staying out of it. Not so much to reassure her parents she was alive and well, but as a frack-you to them, and to the pigs who had tried to arrest her. Slowly she smiled. Yeah, actually... This could be her chance to increase her street cred immensely, not to mention show Theo and the rest of his clique how much more rimmer than them she was.

Val gave Vamp’s neck one last squeeze and sprang to her feet.

"OK, let’s do this, yoboys. Thanks for the hoodie, Hunter, I’ll use it in a minute – I shouldn’t appear in that vid with it, would make it too easy to spot me later. We need to film it somewhere that doesn’t give away this place, not until we’re ready to leave. Mmm… Kat, let's you and I get into that bedroom, yeah? No boys allowed. Make it look like a publicity stunt – I mean, it is a publicity stunt. Oh, meanwhile – can someone maybe drop by that alley and get my electromoped, please?"

Her eyes searched the room, stopping on Tailgate, who was looking sort of concerned.

"T, maybe? You’re good with bikes, aren’t you, yoboy...?" She let that question linger, raising an eyebrow. Was he, now?

Nicola's gestures after hearing Valeriya's idea conveyed the words: "Good Idea!, Indeed" she started to rub her chin while staring at a non existing horizon "Making a video is a well though strategie,  i must say and i think that the juves providing us with this place did already make sure that our comunications are not being tracked... I wonder if i can use their dataterm to obtain some video footage we keep in the Ecoraiders network in which i was filming and denouncing the release of toxic fumes from the roof of a corporate building.. i did not release it since we found it more convinient for analysis purposes, basically to hayduck it later.... i guess i can use it to make it seem i'm there now..if not i'll need to call my parents to let them know and some other ecoraiders to retrieve info on current operations and see if i can join them"

Shin-Ji took dibs on the "Chick'n" happily to eat the questionable flavor.. as long as it was food. There was a nasty taste from.. whatever was growing on his mouth for the past 12 hours, and he knew this was plastic and sawdust, but he didn't care: it was food.

A quick shower, a change into his spare clothes, and hacking off the sleeves on his gi, he felt better. He still thought he looked a completely gonk in the mirror, but he sure felt more human after just a few minutes of self care.

Of course, with the immediate dealt with, his mind started to drift to last night, but he tried to force it away. His first duty to his yo-gang and everyone else he was with was to stay alert and stay alive. He'd worry about payback and guilt later. He'd have to send some messages out and find out who was still walking around and who had died in the mess at the dojo.

(Shall we skip ahead?)

Jai sent contradictory text messages to each of his parents describing how he'd spend the next few days, then returned to his unofficial job while the girls finished their logistics.

"Next up... Kimchi Rice and... Paneer Tikka Masala. Well, at least it's all vegetarian. Nothing sadder than two juves throwing hands over the one slice of vat-grown ground mystery animal."

As soon as he'd made one for everyone, he ducked out to go clean himself up.

(Sounds good to me.)

Kat followed Vamp into the fresher eagerly joining her with a conspiratorial look.

Hunter looks at Tailgate and Shin-ji.  "Maybe we can get the bikes while they are in there.  Does it look okay in the neighborhood, Minerva?" he asks.

Minerva looks away from the camera for a few moments then answers.  "All is quiet.  Creepily quiet, but no one is shooting down my drone.  It's best if you stay together, but considering the short distance, I'd say you can make a run for it.  There are still vehicles at the Obelisk parking lot, including some bikes," she says.

Nikola addresses Minerva : “Ok so i think its better if i create an excuse without getting too much far away from here. Can you retrieve a video out of the Ecoraider network if i give you the data on how to get access to it?”
This message was last edited by the player at 10:18, Mon 31 May 2021.

Tailgate looked at Val when she asked him to go after her moped. His number one priority has to be HIS bike! Those things were expensive as hell, and unlike Val he didn't have rich parents to buy him stuff any old time.

But...it was Val. And even though he disliked himself for it, and he knew it would never go anywhere, he wanted to do things for her, make her smile, have her like him.

He shrugged and nodded. "I'll do what I can. Especially if they're coming with me to help.", looking at Hunter and Shin-ji.

He pulled the hood up on his jacket. "I guess let's go if we're going."

15 minutes later, Shin-Ji was still wet from the shower and he thought the sleeveless look was stupid, but at least he had the arms to pull it off. He'd tied some bandages to cover any white scarring.

His blades were clean and put away.

"Ok. Let's see if we can get those bikes."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:06, Thu 17 Feb 2022.

Val gave Tailgate her smouldering smile. Perhaps she looked a bit less than smouldering that morning, what with the makeup smeared around the eyes and her hair in a chaotic mess. Or perhaps that gave it an extra something...?

And that gave her an idea.

"Thanks T, you are real rim," she said as she passed him by, brushing a hand on his shoulder and squeezing lightly. Things might be fun, after all.

She got into the bedroom with Kat and took a quick look around.

"OK, let's make the most of the scenery then," she said surveying the room - little more than three beds and anodine walls. "This could be anywhere. Which is good, I guess - means it might take the Simba more time to find this place once we release that video. And maybe we can make the most of that 'just woke up in this dive, after that wild jazz' thing. Mum and the marketing guy are so gonna pull their hair out when they see this..."

Val got her v-term from the purse, set it over the bedside table, fiddled with its position and virtual keyboard until satisfied that the in-built camera covered the nearby bed and nothing else was in frame.

"OK then, Kat," she said, winking at the other Glittergirl, "Why don't we do it like this - you start, and go like," good-girl voice, imitating Kat, "'hi everybody, I know this is not my usual stuff and might come as a surprise for you dear fans, but I met someone tonight and we had this great idea for a collab', yadda-yadda, build up some expectation, and then I barge into frame like I just woke up and go like 'heeey guys'," she did her sultry voice, then went back to normal, "A little tease, a little peck on the cheek - then we log off, leave the frothers frothing. Boom, bomb dropped. Then we are outta here as fast as we can."

She couldn't help but giggle. Finally, this was starting to be fun, what with being a fugitive and infected with some biomechanical disease and all that boring stuff.

"Ok, ok," Kat says sitting on the bed next to Val and prepping herself to be on camera.  She takes a couple of deep breaths, then nods that she is ready.  Her voice comes out sot and mellow, almost like she is singing, breathy and intimate way.  "Hey everybody, you'll never guess who I met last night, no details right now to keep the Watchdogs at bay, but we decided to do a collab.  Here she is,"  and then she will shimmy over a little to let Vamp take center.

Meanwhile, the boys (is Nikola going with them?) step out into the morning light.  The alley is clear, though there are sounds of life and activity in the building above.  Making their way carefully to the East end of the alley, the streets are all eerily quiet with the morning fog just dissipating.  There are no cars moving close by, but the sound of garbage truck in the distance is clear.

"Mmm.. we may be in luck. Looks like they didn't want the police response to last through the busy workday. Still.. keep your head on a swivel."

Shin-Ji moved carefully, looking for faces in windows or shadows that might indicate they were spotted.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:06, Thu 17 Feb 2022.

Vamp opened her eyes when Val finished rubbing the kink out of her neck. “For a corp whore and bitch you sure give one hell of a massage,” she told Val, giving her that enigmatic smile again.

“Jaysis, you still nattering on about that bloody bike and going to get it? If I get caught or killed because of you and that bike, I swear I’ll bloody end you,” she growled, smile gone. Said lack of smile turned into a sneer when she heard the “girls only plan.”

“Sounds brill. Maybe we can braid our hair and paint our toenails whilst we’re having at it.” She said as she grabbed her duster and followed the others into the room and dropped into the bed. If the camera swept past her at any point she flashed the V before going back to looking utterly disinterested.

Nikola  decided to go with the boys for the bikes since it seemed that Minerva did not hear her questions. while walking with them she kept looking at the surroundings not only because of cops but also to find something she could use to get an excuse for her absence. like something to hayduck to makeit look she took part in some kind of protests (ooc: would a roll help her chances?)
This message was last edited by the player at 14:14, Fri 04 June 2021.

Tailgate, hood up, walked casually to the end of the alley and then slowed to a stop. He carefully peeked around the corner to see more of what was going on in the street. He planned on acting casual rather than attempting to be stealthy - but it depending on how things looked and the presence of police or security out and about. He looked up as well.

10:02, Today: Tailgate rolled 17 using 1d10+10, rerolling max with rolls of 7.  Get a Clue if needed.

"Shhh," Val touched a finger to her lips, directed at Vamp's snarks as Kat was getting ready for her video spiel. "Give me a minute and I'll kindly let you paint my toenails later," she whispered, sticking her tongue out at the Goth.

And then, just as Kat started delivering her intro, Val touched two of the metal hexagons, the ones that unclasped at the back, and slid out of the chrome party dress. With a couple of sauntering steps she got to the bed, and dropped on it by Kat.

"You're awake?" she said huskily, sliding a hand over the other Glittergirl's shoulder, and pretending to only then notice the camera. "Oh hey, yoboys." An unhurried moment to cross her legs and minutely pull up a bra strap. "Katty, wasn't this supposed to be a secret? Oh well. Cat's out of the bag I guess."

A wink for the camera, then a kiss on Kat's cheek.

"Keep watching this space..."

Sign off.

Val shook slightly with a giggle.

"If that doesn't get us some attention, nothing will," she remarked, peeling off from Kat. She bundled her party dress into a loose, silvery ball, then pulled on Hunter's hoodie and zipped it up. It was long enough to look like a shortish dress on her; it didn't cover the leg tattoos, but it was so radically different from her usual style it would be sufficient camouflage to reach that mall. Or so she hoped.

"OK, give me ten minutes to shower, then we run?" she said over a shoulder as she headed for the bathroom.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:55, Mon 07 June 2021.

Kat could barely contain her laughter, caught by surprise at Valeriya's risque move, but manages to turn her surprise into delight for the camera.  She let's the laugh out when the camera is off, rolling over and back on the bed.  From her position lying down, she looks up at Val heading for the shower.  "I could use one as well, but I'll wait."

Outside, the only thing Tailgate, or anyone, sees that is slightly out of the ordinary is a couple of drones.  Minerva was using one earlier, so it's hard to tell if it is sinister.  But they don't seem to be following you as you make your way to the Obelisk.

Tailgate moved along, keeping just a bit of distance from the rest of the group in case he ran in to trouble, so they hopefully wouldn't all get caught. He kept a wary eye out and his ears were tuned for approaching sirens, footsteps, whatever...it was tiring to be paranoid, but hopefully you lived a bit longer.

He looked around for his bike...and for the moped Val had left behind as well on the way.

Val was back in the bedroom ten minutes later, wrapped in a towel. She looked almost like someone else, without make-up and hair in a wet bundle. Definitely less adult, and more like a teen who hadn't exactly had a good night's rest.

"For the shopping list: underwear," she said to herself, slipping into hers and putting on the oversize hoodie. "Oh, and shower is all yours, Kat."

She dropped on Vamp's bed, still towelling her wet hair.

"That's us Glittergirls all set. You don't have to call your parents or anything, V?"

Vamp jerked like she had just taken a blow when Val asked her about calling her parents then jumped off the bed and whirled on her, teeth bared in a silent snarl that showed off the very sharp fangs she had in place of her canines. The look of sheer rage she turned on Val was made all the more terrifying by the red glow of her eyes. “What the fuck, Val, are you so completely self-absorbed that you’ve forgotten my entire family is bloody dead! That I nearly died with them!” She ground out in a low growl that was much, much worse than her screaming at her would have been.

She viciously stomped on the part of her that had started to care last night, the part that had her up taking care of Val and the others until she had passed out from her own illness. She mentally crushed it underfoot and took a single step towards the other girl. “You really are the vapid, empty, soulless piece of shit I thought you were if you forgot what happened to one of your closest friends just seven years ago. So up your own arse that you would ask me that because you didn’t bloody recall. Suffer alone tonight, you sodding twat,” she snarled before turning and walking out of the room, slamming the door hard behind her.

Kat was eager for a shower anyway, but she practically runs out of the room at Vamp's reaction.

Tailgate easily finds his motorcycle in the parking lot in front of the Obelisk.  There are also a couple of compact sedans and three more motorcycles. Valeriya's moped is behind in the alley, leaning against the wall where you left it last night.

"Excellent. It looks like we are not being observed.

I suggest anyone else take the moped, as I have never ridden a motorbike in my life."

He did not have a lot of money. What little he did typically got dumped into dojo fees training gear or tournament fees, so he simply had not ever been able to afford a bike.

He'd rather just run and get a workout, or take public transit for long routes. He'd have to learn how to ride one at some point, but it would be with his own property, and not when the cops were out looking for them.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:59, Sun 13 June 2021.

It seemed to happen in slo-mo, and she watched herself from without, saying the words just as they left her mouth, silently horrified but unable to stop. And then it was too late... And then there was nothing silent about it any more - as Vamp lashed out and Val shrank under the verbal barrage.

"Frack frack frack, I'm so sorry V, I just didn't..." she started saying in a broken voice, but the Goth was already going to the door, and the rest of the sentence was interrupted when she slammed it, making the whole place reverberate like a shockwave of hatred.

Val sighed her lungs out and curled on the bed, hands over her face.

"Shiiit. Shit, shit, shit... Well done, V. Very nice," she moaned under her breath. "That damn carbon plague melted your brains or what... How could I... forget..."

She slapped her forehead, twice, harder the second time. She had no idea. Maybe there was some sort of nano disease actually screwing with her brain chemistry, maybe it was the bad night, maybe she had just shot her mouth off without thinking, as she often did when she didn't feel like she had to watch her words. And she had - she was, what, now? Some sort of fugitive, on the run from Simba, the Watchdogs, everything, and her only friends were a bunch of juves she barely knew... Well, Nikola and Vamp were the only ones she could claim to have at least some previous acquaintance with. And things weren't going exactly well...

Tailgate nodded back and slowly replied as if on autopilot. "Alright. Sounds good. See ya back at the place."

He took one quick step towards the bike, like he was about to break out in to a run, and then calmed himself down and slowed deliberately. He walked towards the bike and ran a hand along it, letting out a sigh of relief, and his body relaxing a bit as he touched it.

He then looked over the bike a bit to make sure it was undamaged...and wasn't sporting any new pieces it shouldn't for tracking or anything.

OOC: Not sure if that would be Get A Clue or something more bike-related?

Jai finished off the rest of the prepak's and laid them out with a deep breath. A look around the compound let him know that the rest of the guys had gone off to grab the bikes, and the giggling (and then yelling?) coming from the bedroom let him know the girls were busy in the bunk room. As one of the girls stomped out of there with a slammed door, he cracked the plastic on the "mozzarella stix" prepack and settled down at the table with a glass of water.

"Whoa. Uh, you want some food? Team Speed just kind of left everything here, so you've still got preferred selection."

Not sure what else to do, he dipped one of the breaded sticks into the provided marinara sauce and braced for a response.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:25, Wed 16 June 2021.

In all it takes about half an hour for Tailgate, Hunter, Nikola and Shin-ji to recover the bikes and get back to the hideaway.  "I think we should walk it back, quiet like, just in case," Hunter will suggest, and he has his skateboard on which he will follow along.

Meanwhile, Kat comes out of the bathroom with her hair still damp, dressed in the same clothes, her expression apprehensive considering the situation when she ran into the bathroom.  She looks to Nicola and Jai, a question in her look that she doesn't ask aloud.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:13, Sun 27 June 2021.

Finally, Val musters the courage to uncurl, get up from the bed and head out into the living room.

"Uhm, ready to go when you are all ready," she mutters, and she sits in a corner of the room, as far as possible from the Goth, hood on, hands in her armpits, and she doesn't say one more word.

Vamp walked out, breathing heavily with the sheer intensity of her anger and pulled her knife out, spinning it back and forth, open and shut. “I’m not hungry,” she ground out through her clenched jaw. The knife continued to spin, faster and faster as she paced around the small flat.

She looked up when the guys came back but didn’t respond to Val’s appearance. Anyone watching might have seen the grip she had on the butterfly knife get tight enough to turn her knuckles white.

Tailgate hesitated and looked visibly torn. He wanted to do nothing more than turn the bike on, hear the engine roar, feel the wind on his face and let it RIP! He fought the instincts and urges for a long moment. He turned the engine on, letting the bike rumble beneath him, eyes closed.

After a minute, he got it ready to roll and killed the engine once more, sighing loudly. "Fine." he said a little bit sullenly. This was the worst twenty-four hours of his life he thought.

Nikola's expression showed that she had a lapsus, a really long one as she reallized she was still in the same place she had been since last night, with Val, Kat, Jai and Vamp..for a couple of seconds she could have  sweared she was outside with the guys that went out to look for the bikes,, but it seems that it was all in her mind.... Nikola thought to herself that then it was no wonder she was not able to see anything that could have provided an excuse, as she never left the place it seeems.. she went ahead and said to the other ones "Sorry girls..I...I, did not realize where i was.. where i am actually.. like i had some brain glitch, like a very strong  and i must say logic Daydream.. Your yelling and loud voices, did snap me out of it but sorry i did not pay attention to anyhting being said here, so i would be surprised if any of our minds could have malfunctioned a little, that all that io can think off..I'll let my parents know that i am okay... for the moment.. then head for the shower after getting some snacks in my stomach" she showed a shy smile to all her partners as she found all of that kin of embarassing

"We're all a little tense right now, for sure. Last night wasn't great for anyone. Apologies to anyone on team bikes, you might need to reheat your stuff."

Finishing the last mozzarella stick (stik? what's the singular of stix?), he absentmindedly played with the plastic dish of marinara sauce, bouncing it around the package like a pinball.

"But we gotta get out of here, get to the mall, and supply up, issues or not. Grab a shower. Think of what you might need, I can see which stores it'd be a good idea to crack the printers on."
This message was last edited by the player at 11:36, Fri 25 June 2021.

"Let's get going, yeah?" Kat will say once she finished towel-drying her hair and straightening out her outfit, as best as possible.  She doesn't eat anything, though Hunter grabs a handful of kibble and stuffs his face.

---

For vehicles you have Tailgate's motorcycle (which can hold two) and Valeriya's scooter (which can also, in a pinch).  Hunter has his skateboard and will thrash to the mall.  Public transportation, either the L-train, a bus or a cab, are available.  What is the plan?

"I got enough food before I left to avoid starvation, and Hot'za awaits."

Said Shin-Ji as he finished the touches on his clothing and hair.

"And what happens if we go into the next stage of the Plague whilst we're out playing at the mall?" Vamp asked, sneering as she spat out the words in that low snarl that meant she was very, very angry and on the verge of doing great harm upon the next person who said or did the wrong thing.

"I'm sure the police, feds, and BuReLoc have all packed up and gone home and the drones flying overhead are just Disney Streetview^TM updating their maps."

Val smiled at Tailgate under the hood, without her usual self confidence. An hour ago she would have given T a hundred-degree wink to melt icebergs, but in the event it was more like the flicker of a cigarette lighter in a heavy wind.

"Thanks, yoboy," she muttered nervously, fingering the ignition keys. "Uhm, you can ride with me. If you want. But you, eh, have your ride, and. So. Yeah."

She cast a quick look around the room, in case Tailgate preferred to ride on his own bike and someone else needed a lift - otherwise she'd ride alone, driving slowly and carefully, to the mall.

"That's a good point I have to say, but also we might need some equipment, so maybe we can come up with some backup plan or to prevent to be detained as much as we can, my first thought is to change our appereance as much as we can and once we get into the mall we go straight to the stores in which we can find something to defend ourselves like hardware ones or something alike"

Jai quickly hopped into the bunks and put his jumpsuit back on. He zipped it midway up his chest as he re-entered the common area.

"The operator that scored us this place suggested the mall plan, and she seems to have the inside line on how all this is supposed to progress. I doubt she'd send us there if we're gonna start throwing up again five minutes after we get inside. As for the drones, we can't stay here forever, either. And if we have to move, it might as well be to a place where we can get outfitted."

He looked around and did a quick headcount.

"Even if we stuff the bikes to the max, we're still three short. I'll take the bus, and two of you should take it with me."

"Yeah you are right Jai, like Caesar said time ago, "Alea jacta est", i mean, we are already in trouble here so we better get moving..i'll take the bus with you then.. i wish i could get a bow or something alike in the mall"

Val pulled the hood a bit further down, then pulled on the hem of the same item over her thighs, and filed off towards the door, as inconspicuously as possible.

She was determined to ride slowly to the mall, avoiding the larger avenues, and carefully this time. No more crashes, no attrating attention at least until she was wearing something more concealing of her true identity.

Tailgate looked over at Val when she talked to him and after a moment he smile, wide and pure. He looked happy and relieved to have his ride back. "Anytime, Val!" He then chuckled and shook his head. "Thanks, but since I've got 'er back, and I was told I should WALK her here," There was almost disgust at having to walk his bike in his voice, "I'm gonna take the chance to ride her. YOU can ride with ME if you want, on a REAL bike." He grinned and winked at her.

Seemingly, his confidence was a little restored this morning after getting his bike back, if not fully.

"I'll be using public transit for now."

He was actually pretty fast on his feet, but he had the feeling as good a fighter as he was, there would be a lot of running in the future.

He'd ripped the dojo tags off him so they couldn't be easily identified.

He glanced over at his mono weaponry.

The main reason he kept them was that they were symbols of his victories in his dojo, and because people tended to take that sort of thing seriously.

He wasn't planning on buying too many weapons.. but armor and survival gear would be a good idea.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:49, Sat 03 July 2021.

Vamp gave her knife one more good flick before closing it and putting it away. "Fine," she said with another sneer. "Let's get this bloody charade over with. It's not like the bloody pigs are going to avoid the mall which is bursting with...right, people just like us, after they raided a juve club and started shooting people. We get caught we're not going to the nick - we're getting dead."

She started walking to the door. "I'll ride the damn bus. Better that than riding bitch on some bloody scooter."

By motorcycle, scooter, skateboard and bus, the group of juvies arrives at the New Harbor Mall.  The motorcycle and scooter arrive first, just before opening of the main concourse.  It is only a few minutes of waiting around the bus stops before the others arriv, Hunter having 'pooned the bus and followed along on his plank.  At 9:00 AM the concourse opens letting in the small crowd of people - mixed adults and juvies - waiting to enter and start their shopping day.

The instruction from Minerva was to call her when you get to the mall and she will give you some cash.  You can call from any data term or use your cell phones.

---

Okay.  This is essentially a shopping trip.  Work out the gear you want and we can RP any encounters with other juvies, store clerks, etc as you wish.

Val parked the scratched CityScooter in the most inconspicuous spot she could find and went into the mall. She wasn't sure whether she was supposed to wait for the others or not, but waiting outside seemed like a dumb way to attract attention. Resisting the urge to run for the (questionable) safety of the most upscale fashion store, she forced herself to walk at a normal pace, keep her head down and her hood on. She probably looked like a junkie, but who cares.

Once inside, she found a quiet corner to pull out her v-term. A couple of fingers danced in the empty air, tapping Virtuality icons.

MINERVA, she typed, uneasy about talking even in whispers; her voice was too well-known. I'M AT THE NEW HARBOR MALL. THE KTHERS ARE GETTING HERE TOO. WHAT NOW? THIS IS A BAD IDEA, TOO MANY CAMERAS!!!!1

Likely getting there fairly late due to the public transport, Jai took only a moment to breathe in the atmosphere. Even if it wasn't his mall, it still felt like home. He tried to find everyone near the entrance before they scattered.

"Okay, so the... uh, real hostile takeover-type stuff - guns and swords and whatever - is kind of a special situation, if I recall correctly. Grab a slice, you'll figure it out. They don't have an autofac I can crack. But looking at the directory, I think sporting goods is the best place for me to try and do some market manipulation. Unless... well, no offense, but none of you guys seemed the types to beg me to unlock the fabricator at TechShak. And if you were, you'd probably know how to do it better than me anyway."

While he waited for any questions or different suggestions for well-applied criminality, he dialed the operator and waited to see how help they were getting. A second hand manipulated the mall directory icons where he considered what he personally needed.

Nikola arrived in the bus with vamp and the others with her trenchcoat in her arms and using a bandana on her head made of a pillowcase she took out of the apartment in order to conceal her green dyed hair and haircut , she looked around for val and the others to see if they contacted minerva already and if they would be willing to trade jackets or something to make themselves look somewhat different than tonight.. not that it mattered too much, the place would be packed with Juves and on the obelisk last night it was such a mess in the dark that their faces might not be that much identified

Tailgate wasn't stalking Val or anything. He was just keeping an eye on her, making sure she was safe and possibly 'undetected' as a celebrity. He wasn't too close either. He didn't want to crowd her. He was just...nearby...while they waited for the others to arrive. Once they did, he nodded to them and headed inside.

Val took a subrepticious look around, spotting Tailgate's bike parked by the Mall and then the others approaching. She got closer, trying to be casual about it.

"Hey, so, I just texted Mine-eeeh, I mean, you know who, Screen Girl. Has anyone heard from her? I was going to hit the upper floor for some decent rags - uhm, no offense, Hunter - and a new haircut to throw them off, but I don't know how safe is that."

She was trying to keep the edge of anxiety from her voice, with mixed results.

"And I probably need to get rid of my ride and also last night's dress, every cop from here to Harajuku must be watching out for them already..." she sighed. An Eiji exclusive. Goodness knew how much those costed. She had never had to buy her own clothes... And she had a nagging feeling her weekly allowance wasn't going to be enough, and that was assuming her account wasn't already frozen...

“You can use my Trenchcoat in the meantime Val, Also we might consider a buying a couple of wigs or Baseball caps, hope minerva answers soon”

Minerva answers the call Jai put in after a couple of rings.  "Hey there!  Okay, I scored some euros for this.  Remember, part of the plan here is to establish an alibi and a cover for the next day or so, you're going to need some time to recover.  Punch in this code at the ATM, it's a sequence just do plus one for the next person, should spit out a thousand euros for each code.  You can get a cash card or cash, don't matter," she says cheerfully discussing upwards of 10,000 euros going out quickly.

"Don't worry about the money, I've set it up with some mondo help to be untraceable.  Now when you are done shopping head to this address; it's an old bunker belongs to friend of mine.  You can stay there a couple of days until it blows over, then we can talk about the future.  Questions?"

Jai looked away from the directory for a second.

"Uh, I assume the food situation is taken care of at this new place? Other than that, I'll thank you for the windfall. And everything else, while I'm at it."

---

After any questions are resolved, Jai closed the phone and pointed in the general direction of the sporting goods store.

"SportsNet. I heard somebody say something about bows, and they got 'boards of all kinds. Though I doubt they print the hunting rifles on-site... I gotta head there to get a nice, roomy bag. Anyone coming with?"

Shin-Ji did some alterations to his shopping list in his head as he tried to budget out his money. This wasn't something he was good at, but his sensei had tried to impart a respect for logistics into his students occasionally.

The days of warriors facing every problem by being brave and good with a sword were long gone.

"Sure. I think a lot of us wised up to the idea of carrying a bow. It makes sense: it's quiet and it'll go right through lighter armor.

Those goggles are really tempting, but I don't know if I'll have enough money for them.

Myself, I want a smart board, but I have no idea which one to get."
This message was last edited by the player at 14:54, Fri 09 July 2021.

Hunter smiles at Shin-Ji.  "Well, lucky for you I'm here then!  The SantaCruz smart board is hard to beat, especially for a beginner, awesome choice," he says holding up his own well-worn plank covered in stickers and Sharpie-art.  "And yeah, a Roadrasher is also a smart idea," he adds.

---

SantaCruz smart board gives a +3 to Thrash, very handy if you have no skill in that and want to ride a skateboard.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:54, Fri 09 July 2021.

"I like the idea of a bow. Very practical these days and can be paired with green leather for a modern-age Robin Hood look. We can all be merry together," Vamp said, trademark sneer firmly in place. "I refuse to wear tights, though."

"I am, however, anxious to go back to learning Kenjutsu. My father learned it from his father, and on and on, and was teaching me. Are you able to teach, Shin-Ji?"

In reply to Vamp (msg # 251):

So i guess you lean towards a sword instead? We could organize a little.. Does anyone want to get into pinstols mainly?.. I think i can get just a low quality dress for just 80 since its mainly to mislead others.. speaking of which ot might be better to change our appareance first and then for example once i look like a different type of girl go get my bow and other stuff pretending to be buying stuff to go with "daddy" to a hunting trip,, getting the cheap dress allows me to save for some tech stuff that we might need as a group, like flashlights,  datachips.. or something you tech savy guys think we should get together.. This people helping us might want to assign us missions in return for their asistance, missions that might include , sneaking, infiltration, sabotage, tracking, stealing information and more

"Missions? Are you having a go? We're a bunch of juves, not bloody operatives or some other bit of tosh. And, lest you forget, we know what's coming soon but not what life is going to look like for any of us afterwards. Missions." Vamp said with a mocking laugh.

"Why don't we look to the immediate future which involves simple survival, hmm?"

Jai shrugged.

"You take their money, there might be strings attached. I'm at peace with that."

He punched in the code, and was honestly surprised when a thousand fresh eurodollars came out.

"Stretching it will help. I'm off the sporting goods. Gonna pay honestly for a cheap duffel, and then see if I can get some boards or bows printed out."

"I'll defer to your expert opinion then, Hunter. Though I'll wait on buying in case if we can get a few employee discounts. printed."

Shin-Ji laughed at the image Vamp put in his head of the merry yogangers.


"That would be one hell of a poser gang. I'll bet someone's already done it at least once.

No Kenjitsu, but I got some saber training, as well as some Gumdo from when I was a kid."

Tailgate kept quiet and mostly just went from store to store, shopping by himself. He was worried about what was coming, what might be coming. So he used the time shopping to distract himself, to calm himself. He didn't need a gun since he already had one, but he bought a knife and a taser - for a non-lethal option. He bought some clothes, some armored clothes, and a pair of boostergoggs. He got a skinwatch and a light tattoo of a stylized flaming cyberbike. He bought some sleeping stuff, something for entertainment, and a tool kit for his bike, as well a bag to carry stuff in.

"You are going to buy weapons?" Valeriya said, incredulous, in her most European of tones.

What the frack was going on here? Was she suddenly part of some StreetFighter yogang now? Her eyes went from Vamp to Jai, following their conversation. Yes, it had occurred to Val that Minerva and whoever she worked for might have an agenda, some vested interest in saving their asses and giving them advice, shelter and now money. But to make them into some sort of, what, juve commando? That sounded like some cheap braindance.

So she stayed silent, queued behind Jai and got her wad of Eurodollars. She hesitated before she inserted her own smartcard and emptied her account – another thousand.

The plastic bills felt strange in her hand, she wasn’t used to cash, but it made more sense. Harder to trace, or so they said in the movies. Sooner or later her account was going to be frozen or at least tracked by the Simba. Whenever they wised up, that withdrawal of funds was going to point them to the New Harbor Mall. So she better get a move on, pick whatever stuff she needed and beat it ASAP.

Val went with the flow, unsure of what she actually needed for her... new life? Was she some sort of fugitive now? Trying to avoid attention, she kept to the center of the group, as inconspicuous as possible.

She bought a sleepbag and a sleep pad, because all the others were buying one too, and a carrybag to lug them all. When she peeled off from the group it was to get herself some SmartGoggles.

Those looked cool, and they would do the trick of concealing her identity. A look at the mirror confirmed this: except for the trademark tattoo on her thigh, she looked just like a seventeen-year-old with a hangover, no Eiji dress, no heels, perhaps a Valkyria frother trying to look just like her idol.

She turned around to head for the till and almost bumped into someone.

"Oops! I didn't see..." she started saying automatically, before she saw who it was.

And it was Tailgate, sporting similar BoosterGoggs, and carrying a similar bag full of stuff.

"You again," she said, but she was smiling. Some time alone had calmed her a bit, particularly not being around Vamp for a while. "The Obelisk, the New Harbor… We gotta stop jazzing like this. Those look rim on you, by the way," she added.
This message was last edited by the player at 11:18, Tue 13 July 2021.

Vamp laughed at the airs Val was putting on. "Yes, we are going to buy weapons. What do you think we're going to do, sing them into submission?" She said, nose in the air, speaking in the most posh, stuffy accent they had ever heard.

"Might work with that rubbish you sing given it makes me want to put my ears out whenever I hear it. Go buy designer clothes and stick with what you know," she finished, voice as dry as the desert, back to her crisp RP accent.

Grabbing a few of the ready-made items, including a big nylon bag, Jai headed over to one of the microfacs and palmed his override key near the machine's RFID reader.

<EMPLOYEE OVERRIDE NOT RECOGNIZED>

Jai bit his lip. Of all the times the employees picked to finally update their software, it had to be now. He looked towards each other juve who would benefit from a printed board or bow and waved his hand under his chin to signal "no good."

"Maybe the next place. Damn."

The only other place with as much demand for the group looked to be Disposable Futures...

13:23, Today: Jai rolled 89 using 1d100 with rolls of 89.  Fails on 76 or more.

Despite their anxiety the juvies are largely ignored in the mass of people moving about shopping.  There are some exceptions, notably an occasional catcall to one of the girls from some boys who sport similar colors and style: long hair in the '80's metal band look, though it is apparent they toned down the studs and spikes as a concession to mall security.  Given their amped testosterone and style, megaviolents.  Fortunately, they don't seem to be morning people, satisfied in mildly harassing the girls.

Hunter heads to the skate shop intent on getting a new roadrasher and some other stuff.  Kat looks at the money with some hesitation before moving to get some clothing (more rugged, outdoorsy stuff) and some food.

---

Get a Clue rolls please.

Shin-Ji kept his eyes out, trying not to get the attnention of the megaviolents. Not here, not now, anyway.

Get a clue+ int
20:36, Today: Shin-Ji Han rolled 13 using 1d10+9, rerolling max ((4)).

Tailgate turned to look at who bumped in to him and went a bit wide-eyed. "Oh, uh, sorry about that. Oh, uh, hey, Val!" His eyes, of their own volition, tracked all the way down her and then back up. "You look...great!" He quickly hastened to add, a bit flustered, "Not that you don't normally, or anything. I mean, you always look great."

He then shut his mouth for a moment to stem the tide of words.

He then smiled at her. "Oh, if only that were true, I'd be so happy, all my dreams coming true." As soon as he said it, even though he said it a lightly joking matter, he winced inside. That had sounded more dumb than funny. And what if she thought he was really some weirdo fanboy?

11:47, Today: Tailgate rolled 15 using 1d10+10, rerolling max with rolls of 5.  Get a Clue.

Valeriya opened her mouth to say something in reply to Vamp's dressing down, but she closed it again, sighing between tight lips. She was still feeling a bit guilty from her catastrophic slip with her that morning, and also she wasn't feeling her finest - no heels, no makeup, still dizzy from the bad night, not to mention she was still wearing an oversize hoodie as a dress. Not quite feeling her most self-confident to trade barbs with the Goth.

So she turned her back on Vamp with as much dignity as she could muster, and just said "whatever", and headed for the escalator to the clothes stores.

It couldn't be helped anyway, she told herself as she went. There was no befriending people. Where she was, people either hated or idolized you, there was no middle ground, no room for friends or acquaintances. That included most of her family - except for her parents, who simply were indifferent to her except as a financial resource. Of all shitty things that had happened lately, the Obelisk shootout at least had given her a chance to put some distance between her and her parental exploiters. Enjoy that harsh freedom while it lasts, V.

---

"Oh, quit talking that drek, T," she said with a smile, not quite her CharmSmile™ yet but close enough. Making it pretty obvious she did not, in fact, want him to shut up. Not while he was fanboying, anyway.

"I know I look like some junkie wannabe after a night of hitting the black lace. Just hoping I look like, well, a Val frother rather than, you know, the real thing. Speaking of which. I'm gonna hit the clothes store, do you wanna..."


"...Uhm, what? I mean, heh, yeah. Right?" She said, searching his expression for clues. That had sounded like a lame joke, then like something else, and then like a lame joke but, like, genetically modified to be giga-lame. It was a joke, wasn't it? Or more like, the joke of a joke - joking about the kind of joke some Beaver would crack. Totally not the stuff of actual GoGangers, right? Not like a guy like Tailgate at all. Sure, so, double joke. Or something.

Frack, she was confused now. Too carbon-plagued to overthink jokes. What the frack, was she being outwitted now? Grand, just grand. First the ravengirl gets mad at her, now the bikeboy makes her feel dumb. Great day, Val, fun times. She sighed and looked him in the eye, crossing her legs, striking a pose.

"Anyway. Talk of black lace, I need new underwear," she said sultrily, making it sound like a challenge. "And someone to go fetch me the right size if I get it wrong the first time. These are growing all the time, you know," and with that she strutted towards the entrance to Rapture Fashion Concepts, never looking back.

---

15:35, Today: Valeriya rolled 13 using 1d10+10, rerolling max with rolls of 3.  Get a Clue at the Mall.

Guess she's a bit distracted...
This message was last edited by the player at 18:36, Wed 14 July 2021.

Jai quickly headed to Disposable Futures. While he earmarked a few of the clothes for further perusal, his first priority was finding the most expensive item they needed that would be printed on-site.

"Tear gas might be a problem, right?"

Keeping the override card in his palm, he stealthily passed it over the reader on the autofac. Manipulating the virtual screen so the large "INVENTORY MODE" graphic was hidden, he requested a ClearAir gas mask for printout at his station, and used the same codes to delete the entry that claimed a mask was now available for floor inventory.

As he tried to hide an excited smile, he sent a message along to the rest of the crew.

"2&20. We're live as long as I can telling this thing to not mark inventory correctly. Any requests?"

23:41, Today: Jai rolled 21 using 1d10+12, rerolling max ((9))
23:42, Today: Jai rolled 71 using 1d100, rerolling max with rolls of 71.  Fails on 76 or more, pt 2.
23:44, Today: Jai rolled 20 using 1d10+18, rerolling max with rolls of 2.  Boost, TN 20, spending 2 luck..

Shin-Ji tried to keep his eye out for security and tried not to pay attention to the conversation involving black lacy underwear. He remembered his little shopping list.

"The masks are cool. An appliance cube's am must though unless we want to be eating raw pre-pak and rations for the next few weeks.

We're all going to need sleeping bags, tents and a mattress,  though those are cheap.

The portable couch, table or a chair would be cool if we're going to find even medum term digs. It should be luggable between us.

Any actual rations or a water recycler would be cool, though I don't see those on catalog."


Drek. He couldn't help the feeling that he was being watched by security. He'd figured that they weren't exactly corp-sec enemy number 1 right now, but getting busted for item duplication was not an option.

On the other hand, they were gunna need this stuff, so he wasn't about to argue with Jai.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:07, Thu 17 Feb 2022.

After getting her money Nikola told Jai to "Say thank you to Minerva for my part" and she proceeded with her paranoid driven shopping strategy:

She kept closer to the group but at a little distance, just in case someone would we looking for them as a group, getting ocassionally a little closer to other groups of people gathered in the mall in order to hide in the crowd a little, but always keeping an eye on the the other girls like Val and Vamp in case something happened.. she  went first to the fashion store, where she purchased a dark wig , a cheap and feminine looking dark grey dress plus a cheap brown top and pant madeof a stronger fabric to change later.. she then decided to head to the ladies room , get into a toilet cubicle , close the door and get the clothes she carried before in a bagpack she purchased on the way.. she wore the dress she bought and taking her pillowsuit bandana out, she used the long hair black wig to better conceal her green hair coming from a partially shaved head.

Hopefully after looking very different coming from the ladies room the cams wouldn't recognize her.. making the rest of her purchases pretending to be a daddy's girl getting ready for exotic vacations in which she would use diferent camping gear and tools, not to mention the bow and goggles she attempted to hide in the bags she recieved in the stores since some of her "teammates" were also buying the same thing

14:59, Today: Nikola Net rolled 10 using 1d10+2, rerolling max with rolls of 8.  Get a clue

(I got confused and added just +2 for get a clue.. but if i should have added the 7 for INT).So i guess IT SHOULD BE 17 TOTAL. RIGHT?
This message was last edited by the player at 14:56, Fri 16 July 2021.

Tailgate thought that if it were possible to die of embarrassment, or from having a foot shoved too far in to one's mouth, he would be dead right then. Luckily, Val paid only a slight bit of mind and kept talking while he tried to recover. He breathed in and out and felt a bit better.

He raised an eyebrow at her and slowly smiled. "Depends. Do I get to watch you put them on?" He let out a snort of amusement. "I like you, Val...but I'm not your gopher. I MIGHT consent to hang with you while you shop. I MIGHT even consent to hold some stuff for you here and there."

He tossed her a wink and walked alongside her.

As the juvies split up into small groups or pairs Jai and Tailgate notice that some other juvies are watching them.  The kids watching are dressed pretty much the same in the latest fahsions, though all in bright, sassy colors.  Their hair and other accessories are hip to the current trends.  In the sporting Goods store there is a pair looking at camping gear.  In the clothing stores there's always at least one browsing.  As you work your way around the mall Jai makes the connection: Mall Brats, watching the newcomers in their turf.  They are not otherwise bothering you, but they are watching even as he boosts the autofac...

Val turned her head to look at him, hair doing an accurately calculated fanning movement.

"Wouldn't you like that, human?" she replied in a slightly femmebot tone. Naturally, that was the last line at the end of her most-watched music video, the first single of the valKer1a album. A half-second for him to catch the (self-)reference, and she was walking again, smiling to herself as she heard the rest of it. Holding stuff was enough. She needed an audience, nothing else.

Did those two fifteen-year olds gasp as she entered the store? Probably, but she wasn't going to look. And those middle-aged dads patiently waiting for wives or daughters to be done with their shopping, they were totally checking her out. But that was par for the course.

Feeling much better about herself, she went through a rack of jeans. Nah, too vintage. Something more ironically old-fashioned, like leggings. And, she reminded herself, for the first time in many years she actually had to watch the price tags. Oh well, the Eijis of Tokyo were suddenly out of her reach, but hey, there were some very decent Alysse Latours, right? And no, forget the minis, no skirts for a while. Damn tattoo.

She grabbed a few fistfuls of underwear along with the leggings and corset, and punched her measuremenets into the tacticle screen of the store. Then she caught Tailgate's hand in hers. For a moment she held it up in the air between them, letting him get ideas, then she dropped his on the screen.

"Scout some bikinis for me while I try this on, sweetie?" she said in a girlier voice, winking at him. "You know, like my bestie would?"

She went into the changers, leaving him to peruse the Eiji Swimwear section of the catalog.
This message was last edited by the player at 11:24, Tue 20 July 2021.

Noticing the home team mallrats all around, Jai risked only a second hack, for the Hitachi-Kenmore appliance module. He didn't want to seem like he was bringing undue regulatory attention to their business by robbing their stores blind. He grabbed a decent-looking suit from the rack before leaving for a few scattered purchases before heading to the "pizza" place.

All this talk about genius guns had him amped to buy a roll of scramblers, and his lack of genius regarding any sort of guns had him opt for a cheap, plastic pistol. Just in case. An armored jumpsuit much like the one he was wearing completed his trip through.

18:01, Today: Jai rolled 25 using 1d10+16, rerolling max with rolls of 9.  Boost, TN20.
If the appliance cube is too complicated, I'll settle for a table.

Nikola gets closer to her group and  takes a look at the mallbrats while rubbing her chin "First the megaviolents and now these guys taking a look at us hmm.Do you think some of them were at the obelisk too? If they did they might recognize someone like Kat, anyway i just remembered i forgot to buy the grappling gun thing, anyone wants me to get them something? Since most of us are buying stuff to get thrown in the woods or to hide for days under a bridge of something..I'll go there one more time but not with my wig and dress, but looking similar like I did yesterday, i might question them about encouraging harmful practices such as hunting right after my purchase is done. hopefully that will get me some alibi"
This message was last edited by the player at 03:26, Sat 24 July 2021.

"Don't stress about them, I'd be doing the same thing in their situation. This isn't our territory. Though now that you mention it, I didn't see Mel at the club. Don't think she showed."

Jai looked over his purchases, keeping a wary eye out.

"I think I'm all set, but get that alibi locked in. Just let me know if they give any of you static."

Speaking of the devil, Jai and Nikola are stopped by a surrounding group of mallbrats.  They are not overtly hostile, but they form a semi-circle in front of Jai and Nikola as they exit the shop with the appliance, preventing them from moving on without pushing through.  Before things get to that point, however, Melinda Upton steps through the line to stand in front of Jai.

"You're on our turf and boosting stuff, what gives?"  she asks.  Her tone is not hostile, but there is a certain arrogance to her posture.

"Not looking to bankrupt anyone. Just stretching my limited assets a little. You know how it is."

He held up his hands.

"The hacks are clean, I made sure of it. And it's not like I made a dent in that place's feedstock numbers. You guys are in the clear as far as management is concerned. You know if you headed down to my store, I wouldn't begrudge the same."

Not that the scale was the same, of course. If they walked in and boosted six hundred eurobucks of product from his convenience store, it'd look like a bomb hit the place. But it's not like any of them actually owned the products they were selling, anyway. Not while actually -at- work.

Nikola looks at Jay while he does the talking, she is not used that much to mallbrats and their Jargon, she might say something that makes things worse

For just a second, Tailgate looked at Valeriya blankly and with a furrowed brow. Then his mind connected the dots and he vaguely remembered the music video of hers. He had never been her biggest fan, but since he'd gotten to know her, maybe he'd give her music another try.

He watched her gather things to try on. He stepped closely to her and smiled slightly. But then he said very quietly, as if whispering some sweet nothings in her ear, "by the way, i don't think we're in any danger or anything, but it looks like there's a local juve gang eyeballing us, and likely the rest of our...troupe. probably their turf. just wanted to mention it so you can be on your guard a little."

He then moved away and began looking for revealing swimwear for her.

Val took another look at it on the mirror; not actually a mirror, but an array of nanocameras, all designed to subtly alter the image and make everything look more flattering than it was. The bodysuit was a bit more biker-chich than her usual, but whatever, the way things were going, she could use something armored. And the other stuff suited her like a glove.

"And what is weird about juves eyeing me?" she retorted, stepping out of the changing booth.

She was wearing high-heeled ankle boots, wet-looking jet black leggings, and a tighly laced, crimson corset. Way edgier than her usual - but she was not her usual self anyway.

"About time I wore something fitting," she observed, casually sliding by Tailgate. "You done finding the sluttiest stuff, yoboy?"

"Yeah, we'll see about how clean the hacks were in a few minutes, the proof is in the lack of reaction.  This isn't your turf, you're not New Harbor juves.  What gives?" Melinda asks.  She crosses her arms leaning her weight on one side, her blonde hair falling over one eye.  The other mall brats take up positions surrounding but in innocuous looking groups of two or three.  To any adult, it looks like she is talk with Jai and Nikola and the rest are just clumps of kids chatting also.

A pair of mallbrats approaches Valeriya and Tailgate, looking eager-eyed and a little nervous.  "Are you... are you Valeriya, the singer?"  The brunette latina girl asks, her ginger partner nods excitedly.

Shin-Ji stood at the back of the group and kept an eye out, and generally looked like the socially awkward teenager he was.

If a fight broke out, they were probably all screwed anyway, so it was best to let the celebrity and the mallrat do the talking.

Jai sighed. He knew she was a shark, but couldn't she see-

Well, maybe she could be made to.

"Listen, I'm not here to sell this stuff out of my back room. Kind of an emergency, as if the shopping list didn't give that away."

He suddenly found himself wishing they'd interacted more, despite her somewhat unpleasant demeanor. She was hard to read.

"So... what are we doing?"

He looked around at the packs of mallrats, then back at Mel, shrugging his shoulders.

05:26, Today: Jai rolled 13 using 1d10+12, rerolling max with rolls of 1.  Get a Clue. Streetsmarts is the same bonus, if that makes more sense.
Well, if we're using the crit fail rules, let me know and I'll roll the extra die. So much for getting a read on her.

"Well, I sure ain't Valeriya the fracking netrunner," Val retorted, striking a pose with her fist on her hip.

But she couldn't help but smile. You can rinse the glitter off your skin, but you can't get the GlitterGirl out of the girl. And it was probably not a good time to be recognized, but frack it, it had already happened, she might as well enjoy it.

"You see the thing we put out earlier today, yoboys? I can't talk about it, you know, but we are working on some. Real. Rim. Stuff." She made it sound confidential, like she was giving them a world exclusive.

Well, like. She was. Nobody knew about that yet. Not even her, let alone Kat.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:19, Mon 02 Aug 2021.

Tailgate turned slowly to grin at the girl holding up a pair of swimsuits. One was pretty and functional and actually not very slutty at all besides being a bit on the skimpy side, purple and red in color. The other...well...calling it a swimsuit was almost degrading to other swimsuits. It was more like...water-proof lingerie. He grinned at her as he held them out to her.

He rolled his eyes at Valeriya from behind her as she turned away from him to talk to other juves, and let out a small groan. Of course she leaned in to being recognized. It was like she couldn't help herself! He reached up to rub the bridge of his nose for a moment.

Melinda’s expression goes to something harder to read, a little colder.  “Yes, it is that obvious, that’s sort of my point.  You are attracting attention.  What is your emergency and what do you need?” She asks, lowering her voice and leaning in for the final sentence.

Meanwhile, the two girls that approached Valeriya smile and look at each other.  “See I told you it was her,” the first one says.  The other one nods, then turns to Valeriya and Tailgate again.

“I think you probably don’t want to be recognized, right? You’re not here with an entourage, security or media…” she asks tentatively.

---

Generally, Gen Speak or Get A Cluerolls are needed to “read” people.  13 is not bad, and Melinda is trying to communicate non-verbally.  She seems to be offering help.

Jai raised an eyebrow.

"Well..."

He looked around, trying to check how the others' shopping was going and scope out the area for nearby authority figures.

"We need to get out of town, off the grid for a bit. Like a half-dozen of us. Long story, and frankly I don't want to talk about it out in the open like this. We've got a place to crash, just needed supplies. I think most of us are pretty much done, though."

"Ha ha, well, what can I say, you yogirls just positive-ID'ed me," Val winked at the girls with a conspiratorial air "Lucky for me, you don't work for the watchdogs, right? I mean - right!?"

She giggled a little at the joke, then looked around theatrically. She slapped Tailgate's arm while she did that, as if to say, shut up and let me work.

"OK, tell you what, yogirls. Yes, I'm trying to give my security detail the slip. Like, my parents won't give me a break, and they are going to kill me if they see this on my credit card," she said, tapping a fingernail on the screen, where a 3D view of the armored SmartSurvival™ bodysuit kept doing its 360-degree loop. "'That is pure urban warfare aesthetic, Val, no you can't wear that,' yadda-yadda, I won't hear the end of it. But you two look like you know your way around this place, right? It would be totes rim if you could, you know, do your magic?"

---

Yes, I am asking the Mallrats to Boost shit for me. Bad Val!

11:19, Today: Valeriya rolled 22 using 1d10+13, rerolling max with rolls of 9.  Celebrity + Cool.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:21, Thu 05 Aug 2021.

Nikola nods to confirm Jai's comment since she realizes that the mallbrats are not looking for trouble but are friendly, she doesnt feel that socially skilled when surrounded by a whole group belonging to the same yogang , she did learn some jargon of different groups for activism and proselitism , but the situation surpases her, anyway she smiles at the mallbrat leader and decides to add a few words, "Sorry if we were mysterious, it's hard not be a little paranoid lately"
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 12:45, Mon 09 Aug 2021.

Melissa nods and does a cutting motion with her hand and the sub groups move off and melt away into the crowd.  She and a boy of Asian descent move closer as though 'hanging out' with Jai, Nikola and Shin-ji.  With a casual expression that belies her seriousness and in a low voice, she asks, "what do you need then?  What sort of cover?  And what's in it for us?  I'll take credit on future returns, but what's the investment?"

***

In another part of the mall, the girls talking with Val and Tailgate get serious, and the first one replies.  "A boost of that magnitude is serious business, need executive action from Uptown Girl, she's the boss," she says thumbing towards the fountain in the center of the mall.  "If you are not trying to attract attention, best come with us; you can lay low and Jeanie here can finish your shopping list," she says pointing to her partner.