Echoes of Egypt

Shan relaxes back into the couch, but without the deep slouch she had first adopted when she arrived. She remained mostly upright. She recognized that the current situation was now, while more under control, outside of her influence, and should carry on without any further un-requested input from her.

When the secretary entered, Shan perked up somewhat. "I would like a drink of water, if you have some, please?" She asks. She remains mostly withdrawn for the time being, waiting for the situation to call for her input again.

"I'll have some coffee, please." He sat down and settled in a chair that gave him a good view of everyone in the vicinity. After making himself comfortable, he took the tomahawk out of his belt and laid it beside his chair, well within reach. "I must apologize ahead of time, but I would like to keep my eyes focused on the astral, please. I would like know if there are any spirits watching us during this meeting." And keep an eye on the general mood, though he'll not say it.

On the offer of drink Night reply's. No thanks none for me. I would love to know Mr. Hamsfield policy on smoking in his jet. I bet he doesn't approve but no harm in asking. Night looks over the group, Well from the sound of it we have an AI hacker, a magic user that is more then she seems another mage and now this new lady. I guess I'll just sit back and see how this meet goes. I am going to want to know alot more about these guys since my life is in their hands and I'm going to need to know what we can and can't do. Night keeps to himself trying to way out the strength and weaknesses this team might have but until he has more info he is stuck will big holes with his ideas so far.

"The rest are already inside." the Ork responds to the Amerind woman with a slight tinge of annoyance before continuing on his way without another word.

Meanwhile the secretary makes a brief note of what everyone requests, though when the question of smoking comes up she offers a slight smile "I'm sorry, but there is a no smoking policy aboard all company vehicles." the response seemingly almost automatic, as if she were quite used to being asked such things. The secretary then disappears for a few moments, only to arrive once more carrying a large serving tray. A small pitcher of water with ice, along with an empty, clean glass for Shan, a coffee mug and a moderately sized pot of coffee for Bear, along with a small tray of bite sized sandwiches and some generic chips and what purported to be 'onion dip'. The food being left on a small folding table in the middle of the lounge.

"Ah, coffee, excellent." Jack poured himself a cup and slowly drank the dark, bitter drink. He relaxed a bit, but not too much. As Akecheta said, I should never put my guard down. Always be prepared to fight for your survival. And in this case, they're wise words indeed. Though he looked a bit stiff, he didn't give off an overly strained appearance.

He quickly took stock of who was around him. The Johnson looked like a tough and capable person, no matter what frills he put on. The woman they called Shan looked like she could take a hit and move well enough, but he doubted she could lift too much. Though it seemed her power lay elsewhere, and not just in the magic she used. He didn't know about this spirit she was talking about, AI or HAL or whatever they were talking about, but made a note of it. This night character, an ork, wasn't as built as most orks, but he sensed there was something else to him. He made a note to figure this out soon. The newcomer, however, was hard to read. This disturbed him, but he did nothing. Best not to seem agitated. The Johnson looks pissed off enough as is.

"Ah, forgive me, but I seemed to have forgotten to give a name for myself. You may call me Alpha."

"MMmmMM, Water." Shan picks up the single glass left for her, and pours it full with water. Then, with 2 hands on the glass, Shan takes her first sip. The way that she drinks her water is reminiscent of a coffee drinker getting their first sip of coffee in the morning. She clearly enjoys it.
After a sip or two, she takes her seat, and goes back to enjoying her water. "Ahh... This is good water. Not like the garbage that most places serve, filled with chemicals..." Shan mumbles, between sips. A few moments later, she seems to remember something. She reaches forward to the table, and picks up the Commlink that she had left lying there. Then she sits up straighter, and looks Alpha in the eyes. "Excuse my delay in greeting you. You may call me Shan Jah, pleased to meet you, Alpha." She says, giving a genuine, if somewhat distracted smile. She goes back to appreciating her water.

"lovely, i was wondering when you were going to notice"HAL Chimes in just after Shan made her greetng to alpha (not on the speaker) "oh i will have a list for you to get a few items to add to this device later HAL then speaks up on the speakers for the link so everyone can hear "So when is the resident fleshie getting back? im quite curious as to why so many fleshies are gathered here when this is not what you call a "mall"

"Hey, seriously? You could just tell me..." Shan whispers into the Commlink. "I mean, we are sharing personal space now, aren't we?". She finishes, in reference to HAL's comment regarding Alpha. "Yeah, a list is fine. I have my own list as well. I am going to need to be able to communicate with you without obviously whispering... Isn't there some sort of interesting technology that allows people to do that? Also, I have seen some cool ads for contact lenses that allow Commlink displays. I need that too, so that you can show me stuff." She whispers to her Commlink. Her lack of technological knowledge is painfully obvious. This will be an interesting pairing.
Shan's posture stiffens slightly when HAL outputs through the speaker. She tries to reign in her surprise, and is convincingly successful. "I can't wait to show him a bar." Shan says out loud. She smirks.

Night bows at Alpha. Then comments on the no smoking. Ya I thought so just thought I would ask. Night pulls out his comm link and places in his ear earphones and starts to listen to some Troll metal band until Mr. Hamsfield gets back from where ever he left to go. Every now and then his comm links starts to skip so Night hits it once and then flicks to the next song to get it going again. Every time this happens Night checks his comm link to make sure it is still running off line. It's best to keep this thing off line so no one can track my ware abouts when I'm on a job.

The Amerind woman continues on past the ork, not paying much attention to his annoyance. She's glad to see that everyone's still present, and they appear to be receiving drinks, which makes her the meeting hasn't quite started yet. Her posture, clothing, and demeanor all say military. The hitch in her step, facial scars, and gunmetal cyberarm all attest to some serious injuries in her past. Put those two things together, and you've got a perfect recipe for a shadowrunner. She doesn't have any obvious talents, but then, good runner seldom do. But one thing was certain: she was late, and that was a bad quality in a runner.

"Sorry I'm late, everyone. There was a medical emergency. Everyone's alive and well now. Won't happen again. "

She takes a seat in the nearest available chair, and uses her cyberarm to lift her left leg over her right, crossing them casually.

" I ran into a rather pissed-off-looking ork on my way in. What'd I miss?"

He nods his head to each as he receives their names, then takes note of the newcomer once more.

"You missed the pissed off ork almost tossing us out on our asses. But the problem has been solved, so no worries."

Alpha chuckled and took another sip from the cup. After quickly switching from astral to mundane, he took stock of this new person.

She's most certainly military, and to accept a run after loosing an arm so quickly, that just resonates with fire and courage. Yes, the spirits of battle certainly guide this one.

He smiles widely and switches back to his astral sight. "You may call me Alpha. This is Shan and Night." He nods to each respectively. "There is also another, but I believe Shan can tell you more about him than I could."

at Alphas comment HAL Speaks in its snarky british voice up over the comlink speakers "I believe i am capable of speaking for myself if i wish to, but i would rather not. I see no reason ot add my voice to the group whe nit can be avoided, as seeing how you managed to Rile the Data of that Big Fleshie that left i would rather not hinder my inteligence by speaking up and adding to this group any more than i have" HAL switches over so that Shan is only able to hear "yes there are things that you fleshies can use to see into my world. just as this device here lets me interact with the world of Fleshies such as yourself. now as for that list i was talking about. if you could posibly aquire some system,firewal,responce and signal boosters that are atleast of the sixth level of tech then that would be helpfull, as for what your loking for i know not of where to get them. seeing as i have no need for stuff like "contact lenses"... speaking of which what maner of data are Contact lenses?"

The elven secretary turns to the Amerind woman as she enters "Would you like anything to drink? Tea? Coffee?" she offers.

Meanwhile upon the astral plane, satisfied that there will be no trouble, the astral form of the security wagemage heads off to resume his regular duities. Notably the Johnson has not yet made a reappearance, though it's only been barely a few minutes so far.

(Just so it's clear to those with Astral sight, which is a good chunk of the Group, on the physical plane Shan looks human, but in the Astral plane, where a human sits, is instead, an somewhat larger than average owl)

Noting the Amerind woman when she walks in, Shan stands and gives a slight bow to the Amerind, Alpha, and to Night. "You may call me Shan Jah." She says to the Amerind. She sits and again takes up the glass of water with both hands. She finishes it in a few more sips, and stands to refill it.

"HAL, I am certainly not qualified to speak for the "Big Fleshie" that left, but his aura suggested that he was more thoughtful than concerned. I think, despite the drama of you and I becoming acquainted, he has decided that your presence poses a benefit." Shan states, in response to HAL's statement to the group. More quietly, she adds "HAL, You are likely quite adept at analyzing data, and moving through your world, correct? I ask only because this team is missing an ambassador to your world on our team, and if you could represent us to the data we need access to, I suspect that they would appreciate it." She waits for his response.
Keeping her voice down, Shan continues to converse with HAL as he makes his list, and responds to her queries. "Umm, ok, I can do that, eventually, I think. But when I got where I need to be to purchase those, you will have to help me locate the precise enhancements you are looking for. I am as blind to the data world as I suspect you are to the Spirit world. Also, would it be useful to you for me to purchase a more advanced model of the Commlink?
"So, the contact lenses are a tool that allow you to communicate with me more freely, I think. I think you will like them, we will like them. The same goes for the neck thingy that let's me speak to you without speaking to everyone else." Shan is struggling with her knowledge of technology, but giving it her best shot.

"Well then, now that we're more or less acquainted, let's share our abilities, shall we? That way we'll know how best to work together." And I'll know what to expect if betrayed. Always be friendly to new people, but always treat them as potential enemies until you know them better. That's what Akecheta taught me. He drained his cup and set it down, then grabbed his tomahawk and presented it for all to see.

"I'll go first. I am a battle shaman, and most of my spellwork is violent, but not all of it is leathal. I also know how to cast a healing spell, should the need arise. I am somewhat skilled with this tomahawk, and it is a weapon focus." He then paused for a moment, hesitating about this next bit of information. He was already revealing too much, so he decided to keep Akecheta a relative secret for now. They don't need to know how much power I can channel, but that I can channel the power the spirits lend me. He smiled and put the engraved tomahawk back where it was. "I am also fair with a pistol, I can ask the spirits for help, and can move out of the way fairly well when shot at." He then sits back and lets someone else talk.

"Hey all, I guess I will go next. I am a sniper," She says, patting the case sitting next to her chair. "I prefer the use of the Ranger Arms, as it can be broken down into this nice, handy, suitcase; in line with this, I am quite good at recognizing good hiding places just by examining a building. And I can get Anywhere," She emphasizes the word "Anywhere" quite heavilly.
"I am good at getting places quietly, and I am decent at defending myself up close and personal. In terms of speaking with people, I am somewhat good with negotiations, and such; but more importantly, I speak Spanish, Mandarin, and Cantonese fluently and Salish is my native tongue." She says.
Shan then looks to Alpha, and nods at his Axe. "I have come to understand that complex items like my rifle do not work well as a magical focus. But my understanding of magic from the Shaman I have worked with indicates that there is a special technique that I can learn as I improve my magical capacity which will allow me to mimic the effect of a Focus for more complex items, like my rifle. I intend to do more research on this as I prepare to improve my capacity."

Night takes the ear phones out of his ear and hits is Comm link a few times to get the thing to turn off. After the first two tell the group their skills Night speaks up. My expertise is in hand to hand combat, I can also cast spells summon elementals. On top of that I speak English Hebrew and Japanese but I also have the ability to pick up languages quickly which might help since we are heading for Egypt.
Night pauses for a second pulls back his hood fixes his hat then adds. This job from the way I see it is a infiltrate a corp and take a man and some items. The spells I have that will help is Improved Invisibility, to get inside and sterilize to keep the crop from tracking us after wards very easily.
Night waits a second again then adds. Even without the info Mr. Hamsfield is going to be giving us I hope. We should be trying to figure out how we are going to get inside the building find our guy and the items Mr. Hamsfield wants. Once we get as much info as Mr. Hamsfield will provide we best see what other info we can gather on our own so we don't walk into this place blind.
Night stops talking to let the group think about what he just said and to double check his comm link is still off line. At least my magical aura doesn't seem to mess with this thing when it is turned off but when ever it is turned on it seems not to like being co-operative with me. Night waits to hear what the last lady that entered has to add to the skill pool.

Artemis waves off the secretary with a quiet, "Nothing for me, thanks," and listens intently as the other runners introduce themselves, figuring as the latecomer, she ought to go last. As HAL introduces himself, she very subtly but quickly takes her commlink completely offline, disabling its wireless capability altogether.

"Name's Artemis, and I'm probably the wheelman here. If it rolls on the ground or flies through the air, I can operate it. Helicopters are my specialty. Insertions. Evacs. NOE runs. That sort of thing. I can provide fire support, too, but I'm better with a gunner. I know my way around a workshop and an ER. If anything, living or otherwise, needs patching up in the field, I can probably get it done well enough to keep us moving. Keeping us moving: that's my specialty."

Artemis' tone is very terse and straightforward, as if she's given the whole spiel a thousand times before - almost an oral resume.

"So this HAL character . . . he expects us to believe that he's a genuine AI, and not just some hacker who refuses to show up in the flesh? Are we all actually buying that?"

In the Astral Plane, Artemis' aura is very weak, indicating a rather extraordinary loss of essence. Only the arm is obvious, but based on her facial scarring, at least one eye is probably artificial as well. No telling exactly how much gear is crammed into her larger than average frame, but it's clearly taking its toll on her life force.

"Well, he does talk the talk. But more importantly: We've invited Mr. Johnson to bring in a signal jammer of sufficient power to prove it. We are all waiting on that for final judgement." She says, not even trying to hide this from her Commlink. "I am coming to believe, more and more, that HAL is actually an AI, since a hacker with any brains would have taken off running at the mention of that test." Shan looks to Artemis. When she really takes a look, a slightly confused look passes across her face, gone almost as soon as it comes.

Artemis looks over her shoulder, in the direction the ork she passed on her way in was going. "So that was Mr. Johnson? Well, he didn't look happy."

"HAL," she says to the air, "I assume you can hear us. If you're thinking about calling Mr. Johnson's bluff, I suggest you reconsider. He looked pissed. If you jack out now, maybe he won't have us track you down and break each of your fingers. If you're the real deal, however, why not tell us a little more about yourself? You one of those corpsec dogbrains gone sentient, or some poor hacker trapped in the Matrix? Or maybe you're some bleeding edge Azzie weather control satellite run amok? What's your story, and why should any of us trust you, seeing as you're here uninvited?"

Artemis is clearly skeptical, but enjoying playing along, to which both her body language and the tone of her voice attest.

listening to Art HAL talks to Shan in a rather iritated voice "Hmph..., Shan if you would please tell that fleshie that just spoke to mind his own data? i dont see why i should speak to someone as obnocious to think that i am some low level data as a satelite program" i ought toscramble your data for assuming that im as simple as once of the corperate IC

"Woah... Umm, you pissed it off." Shan says to Artemis. Without much knowledge of AI's herself, Shan doesn't see how she wouldn't have ended up asking similar questions, so, she was pretty satisfied that it didn't have to be her this time. "He was pretty upset that you called him a satellite program. Umm, HAL, what kind of program were you when you were first, uhh... made conscious?" She asks, maintaining a regular speaking voice, so as to let everyone listen.

"It's upset?" Artemis laughed at that. "What's it got to be upset about? I just asked it where it's from, what it did before deciding to crash our party. Typical background stuff. I understand if it'd rather keep all that private - everyone here understands the need for privacy, am I right? - but to get upset . . . I think it's just a hacker yanking our chains. Let's just wait for Mr. Johnson to get back and get rid of the thing."

Artemis leans back in her chair, still smiling at the ordeal. She looks for the secretary offering the drinks, and catches her attention. "Y'know what? I think I will have that drink. You have MaxCaf Plus?"

The secretary pauses at the question "Ahh.. no. We don't carry anything quite so.. basic." she says in the most polite tone she can manage "We do however offer several blends of South American coffee and a handful of other blends from elsewhere in the world. We.. don't serve soycaff variants here. Do you have a preference, light or dark roast? Milk? Sugar? Cream?"

Shan shrugs, and then grins. "To be honest, I'm not precisely sure what it was that got it upset, but I think it had to do with you're suggesting that it was a Satellite Program in it's previous life. Maybe that is a particularly degrading job to them? Something like being a Political Representative might be to humans?" Shan says, looking both amused and confused at the same time. "And yes, he was a bit put off by your questions in general. I still think it was the Satellite thing though." Shan shrugs, clearly not certain one way or another. - Seriously, it's not like I, of all people, knows a thing about Hackers or AI... Shan thinks to herself.