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Post by Krakenbox on Jan 22, 2022 20:42:30 GMT -8
There was as click and lock that Gavin and Aster's hard experienced recognized as someone cocking a shotgun.
"Oh, yeah?" A man's voice wavered through the door, "How much, then?"
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Post by Aster Blau on Jan 23, 2022 17:33:02 GMT -8
That was... less than good.
The agitated Viper considered popping Talon and Wing, but withheld. Her claws were already lethal without the enhancement and they needed Sage alive. For now, at least.
Aster had to wonder how Sage would react if he knew that the information he possessed on the very same college kid he was hunting was the only thing saving him. Still... Gavin wanted to do this politely. Aster could always revisit the matter another time, after Tanner was returned to the fold.
Sometimes, you needed to act as a lure, so the Viper spoke up, still behind the Bird.
"Listen, Sage, there ain't no reason for this to get messy," Aster called out, "Reality is we got a mutual interest, so let's just say we're inclined to assist for our own needs. You got info and we got a talent for finding people. We just need to know what you know and follow the crumbs, you feel? Simple as that. Open the door and let's chat."
A risk? Yes, but, hey, Aster was trying at least.
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Post by Krakenbox on Jan 23, 2022 21:54:25 GMT -8
The familiar tune that Aster and Gavin sometimes found themselves humming was echoed through the door, as the dresser was kicked once more to slide it away from the door. Sage still held the shotgun, keeping enough distance to react if either changed to show some level of intelligence. He wasn't weaselly, either, and without the manic look in his eyes it was easy to gauge how he moved among both bikers and students. Paisley stared sightlessly on a clean bed, arranged in the recovery position and not seeming to track or register anything that was going on in the room. There was an odd, stringy burn pattern that seemed to have worked its way across her face and down her body, which by the smell of rubbing alcohol Sage had attempted to treat. An animalistic sense of fear wriggled in Aster and Gavin's mind's as they looked at her: not quite the same as gazing upon Cold Iron, but evoking similar feelings of restless caution. "It wasn't no fucking overdose. I want him dead."
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Post by Gavin Graves on Jan 24, 2022 20:34:31 GMT -8
He nodded grimly, "lemme take a look at his handiwork though, yeah?" The Beast tentatively and slowly approached Paisley respecting Sage and his shotgun's distancing effort, intending to stop where the drug dealer would feel he still had a clean shot and not wave Gavin off. It would create a secondary cover for Aster as well. She'd no longer be in the spray of the weapon's blast and he'd likely be the primary target being both closer to the man and his woman. The burns he wondered it they were somehow electrical with how they flowed in strings down her body, rather than as a liquid acid would splash and drip, or a flame would billow upward. A lightning strike? It was a fairly standard weapon in the Autumn arsenal after all. She felt dangerous to Gavin. Perhaps she did to Tanner as well, and this was the result of an altercation. Gavin decided to not stand in front of her direct line of sight, even though she seemed out of it.
"What'd he say it was this time, some designer shit; there any of it left or did this happen at a party elsewhere?" He was focusing on remaining professional and not saying overmuch. It was better to let the scenario do most of the talking for him. Sage had mentioned an overdose which hung implications like dew drops on the details of the story.
Paisley was different somehow than the rest, and it seemed worthwhile to apply his enhanced Kenning to the phenomena.
This house was rife with the infected. Tanner had been thought to have found some kind of Bane to the Freehold's invader. It stood to reason he might be testing it in a live environment on the infected somehow and this was the result of his little experiment. With how this woman looked, it might not be a success, or it had worked, but in a less than ideal manner. If that were the case, he might be refining his process and looking for additional subjects.
Also, Sage knew to call Aello and Golden Boy. So to some degree or another they floated in the same circles. Both locations were widely infected. Perhaps they attended the same parties recently. If that were the case, Tanner might be looking to others that attended for his next stops.
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Post by Aster Blau on Jan 24, 2022 22:04:01 GMT -8
Aster felt the pull of fear, just as Gavin did, but then old habits kicked in. It didn't do to show fear in the eyes of fellow predators and, right now, Aster had a manic, angry drug dealer toting a shotgun in her face.
And Aster answered it with a look of indifference, her eyes resting on Sage with a mild look of disinterest as she kept an eye while Gavin worked.
"If whatever it is is still around, it'll help finding the maker maybe. Anyone downstairs take something similar?" she offered as Gavin sought to learn more about Paisley's condition by grasping at the hope for a clue, "Let's take a step back, yeah? He came through here. Recently."
Sage's sudden agitated state and hunt for Tanner made it likely they had missed him by mere hours.
"He seem out of sorts more than usual?" she asked. Getting insight on Tanner's mental wellbeing would be useful for understanding his motivation.
The humming itself was concerning and the fact it seemed to be following in Tanner's wake was doubly so. However, the chance existed he was still being influenced by a web of memories that were not entirely his own. If a Loyalist mindset had been infecting his thoughts...
He may have to die.
In the ultimate 'we're fucked' scenario, Tanner could be the source of a potential breach in security, which the Freehold couldn't afford. Especially not now. The solution was messy, but if it worked? It was better to take the sure road if other paths failed.
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Post by Krakenbox on Jan 27, 2022 22:10:22 GMT -8
"He wanted to party, shit got weird," Sage hissed. "She was fine, then she wasn't, then we tried to get him. He was-" the mundie gestured helplessly, unable to describe a supernatural event with the combination haze of hard drug abuse. "Fast. Fucked a few guys up. We're still looking but his friends aren't talking and we don't want that kind of heat." Fighting amongst criminals and society's vulnerable was one thing, but roughing up university students was bound to draw unwanted attention. Paisley wasn't dead, but it wasn't a great thing to have law enforcement discover, either. The fact that Sage hadn't ditched her at least spoke to some semblance of favour and loyalty, but who knew how long that would last when the pressure was on?
From his examining, Gavin could at least tell that the head seemed to be the source of the damage, with some crusting around her nose and ears from fluid leaking.
He shook his head once at Aster's question, narrowing down her search as he confirmed that the victim hadn't been given anything strange. He might have been leaving out impossible details as hallucinations. "He didn't bring anything with him. I don't think. The- out of sort-? He seemed pretty fucking cock sure despite not being into the hard shit. He doesn't come around, usually. Guess he's tweaking now. Seemed like the type that would at some point."
This really wasn't the Lost's scene, and his shift in attitude stood out.
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Post by Gavin Graves on Jan 28, 2022 15:56:57 GMT -8
He stared at her trying to immerse himself in the feeling that gave him that creeping dread. It was like his fear of Iron, but not. Perhaps like his other quirk of the Wyrd, but not. Maybe the Bane Tanner had discovered was introduced to the girl somehow, perhaps like the solution Gavin had come up with to resolve the other curse. Had the Beast developed yet another quirk or was this inherited through his own infection?
"You getting a really unnerving feeling when you look at your friend here?" He flashed a glance at Sage then back to Paisley, "Like the 'in your bones kind.' Not the 'my friend is in a bad way' version." With the added clarity, the Beast looked to his compatriot. Aster's input likely wouldn't act as a control group because of their shared supernatural heritage, but he needed to check the room or it would seem strange to the human.
"Going to check for her phone. If he was hanging or partying with her, he might have tried to check in after the fact. Even assholes sometimes feel bad." He moved slowly to allow time for Sage to object, but would persist if uninterrupted.
At a point in the search the Razorhand made sure to make skin to skin contact while moving her arm aside and he began to hum the tune that had resonated in his mind for some time now. He knew he shouldn't give ear to the voice of Amducias or Phenex, but such risks were in the nature of discovery. He wanted to test his hypothesis: something in Paisley had become antithetical to the infection. His test sought to provoke a reaction that might give some insight.
On the trail of Tanner, the phone with her finger print or facial recognition to unlock it, might give the search something to work with.
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Post by Krakenbox on Jan 29, 2022 18:36:09 GMT -8
"Yeah, sure man," Sage grunted to affirm Gavin's question. "Woah, hey! Hands off!"
He clearly wasn't keen on the Beast touching her, though he didn't escalate to the point of aiming the firearm. Gavin couldn't find evidence of a phone, either. Paisley didn't respond the touch.
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Post by Aster Blau on Jan 30, 2022 23:36:50 GMT -8
Aster nodded slowly as Sage offered some input.
"So he left on foot. Cool. Good to know," she offered, "And, guessing from your whole search, he ain't gone anywhere you know he frequents, yeah? Far as the heat goes, we can handle it, but if ya got any info on a heading that'd be sweet."
Then Sage seemed to grow more agitated as Gavin interacted with the still body in the room.
"Easy, he's just looking for effects. Clues and the like," she said, "Nothin' to worry about... So he didn't usually come 'round, right? So you went to him. Any popular spots for the meet up or did you already check 'em?"
No phone. No signs. No information.
The reptilian want for results was beginning to irk Aster, this divergence beginning to feel wasted, but the Viper curbed her impatience. Finding the Scribe was never going to be easy. Tanner had the shared tragedy of being a part of the Green Man's menagerie. It was important for the Beast to see this through as a result and Aster began to consider how she could help via her own gifts. For a moment, she was uncertain if she could help at all, but then it hit her. If they didn't have a visible means of tracking Tanner perhaps relying on senses unseen would do the trick.
Thus, Aster's feet pawed at the ground as she let out a loud sniff, burning away a bit of Glamour to enhance her sense of smell, remembering dreams of the hounds of yesteryear and fairytales. She then opens her mouth to let out a yawn - and consume the unseen dream to take its power for herself.
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Post by Gavin Graves on Feb 1, 2022 13:25:07 GMT -8
"Alright, hands off," pausing the search. It didn't seem to be on her anyway.
"Another way then. Pulling out my phone. Real slow." Making no fast movements and allowing Sage the time to see the telegraphed movement of a single hand for his pocket, the Beast drew his own phone. "Your hands look full." Glancing at the shotgun to indicate the limited number of hands problem. "What's her number?"
He replied to Aello's text. 'Update soon. What's Paisley's number?'
The Shotgun approach worked for more than just drug dealers.
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Post by Krakenbox on Feb 3, 2022 19:50:51 GMT -8
"Her phone's gone," Sage emphasized. He wasn't about to be tied back to a potential homicide investigation. "And we've been hunting his ass since this happened. His friends aren't. Fucking Talking," he repeated, a manic edge to his hatred. "He's hiding. We're all over the place, though. Only a matter of time."
"He came here. On his own, looking for a new thrill. Though I covered that. Maybe take some notes if you want the job." Sage shook his head, returning to pacing as he cocked the gun while humming to himself.
Aster didn't know what Tanner smelled like, taking in the rolling chemicals and soaps from whatever chaos had happened in the room alongside the embedded smoke in the wood.
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Post by Gavin Graves on Feb 4, 2022 19:01:48 GMT -8
The high strung pacing had started to press on the Beast's instincts. Gavin felt a growing want for the man to try something with him. It was clearly time to get out of there. Cocking the shotgun was an escalation. The man was on the verge of doing something stupid. "Right," he looked at the gun losing all semblance of friendly or understanding he may have maintained to this point. "She was asking what the usual deal was with him. Not this time. Don't worry about it though. We're going to hit the streets now. We bring you the peace you're looking for, she's going to come for a favour one day, Peacemaker," gesturing toward Aster. It was a conversation ender, not a negotiation starting point. Money would be too easy an out for someone connected like him with his particular reputation while caught on the back foot like this. The Razorhand wanted him to feel the weight of it for a while. Sage's reach exceeded his grasp as soon as he networked beyond his direct allies. The looming future where a Cartel demands a quid pro quo should leave him stewing a bit as well. The drug dealer had racked his weapon and clearly wasn't thinking too clearly. He needed a dose of the outside world to bring him back down to earth.
The pressure might make Sage more feverish in his bloodlust, but it would also make him out to be more crazed. It added the possibility of him alienating the people he already had in the field. Gavin was ready to flex in any case.
On his way out he intended to harvest the stewing fear he'd instilled coming in and then text his motley mate once outside. They needed someone written into Pursuit and he knew Oren was already busy elsewhere. It was the hope Henley knew of someone else that would meet the bill.
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Post by Aster Blau on Feb 5, 2022 16:47:06 GMT -8
The thought of gutting Sage and leaving him to his fate proved a palpable feeling particularly as he continued his displays of manic obsession and paranoia.
Then he decided to get cute and toss in a little jab at Aster's expense.
Fuck this dude.
Luckily, Gavin put the desire to rest for the most part, the Viper refraining from turning the drug dealer into a red mist of blood and viscera. Nonetheless, the Beast's demeanor, her expression going cold as her gaze locked on the offender.
"If you keep huffing and wavin' that gun around, I might just start thinking you're a problem I need to solve," Aster offered, her tone speaking to a cold wrath within, "That's not something you want. ¿Comprendes?"
Sage wanted to flex, but Aster was done letting him do so at her expense.
"Right behind you," Aster offered to Gavin as he signaled his intent to depart.
However, the Viper didn't move, her gaze firmly locked on Sage. She wasn't going to move from the room until Sage made it clear he understood or that he required further... incentivization to develop such an understanding.
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Post by Krakenbox on Feb 6, 2022 20:36:38 GMT -8
Sage blinked a few times as Gavin dropped the thread of contracting him, beginning to text his motleymate for an immediate connector to someone who can chase down their target. Something had happened to Paisley, but him and Aster were hitting a wall on figuring out the how, and he made the professional call that Tanner can explain it in post. Lucky Jack may have made some assumptions on the Beasts having the Sword Contract he had seen Oren wield—damn stereotypes. Or, his Autumn instincts whispered, Jack had wanted them to investigate Tanner's activity lest they jump the gun with a potential Loyalist or Privateer situation.
"What do you guys really want with him, then? Huh? How're you actually connected-"
As the viper flared, the experienced dealer licked his lips and snapped his attention back to the immediate threat stepping to his complaints. Gavin's phone flickered with a number for another Spring that went by Dan Miller
"Now you, little lady," he hissed in a low voice, pointing the barrel into her solar plexus, "Need to develop a thicker skin if you're going to pretend you're a professional. Step the fuck back. Stop escalating. And get the fuck out."
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Post by Croupier on Feb 6, 2022 21:11:56 GMT -8
Dan Miller sat in the locker room of the casino and finished buttoning his shirt up. The shift was over, the tips were good, and Dan had gotten his fill of that good mojo he was always after. A few other dealers walked passed him and wished him a good night, so he did the polite thing and said the same.
Finally, Dan was the last one in the locker room. As he finished tying his shoes, he heard his phone go off. Picking it up, he saw the caller was a fellow Spring Court member - Gavin.
Frowning, Dan flicked the screen and put the phone to his ear, "Hello?"
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