Ping Time (IC)

Lakshmi

"Auntie Marble, for this thank you" she holds up the 'link, "but need something permanent and I have no account, please pay in certified cred?"

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Frost

The tall elf stand up and shakes Miss Marble's hand.

To the others, "shall we?"

To Axel, "thanks for the lift"

"Actual currency is rather rare even if it isn't corps script. But I think I can do something about that. It should be done by the end of the run. It is a pleasure to meet someone who is respectful to others. Be careful, alright?" Miss Marble smiled at Lakshimi, wondering just how well this group would preform.

On the way out to his vehicle, Axel slipped his helmet on. He felt the familiar tingle as his pulse and respiration revved up a notch. Driving, whether 'jumped in' to a vehicle or not, was the thing he loved most. The skill. The timing. The reflexes. All these things combined to put him in touch with his instincts and impulses like nothing else.

Unaware that he was grinning like a maniac, Axel slid into the unmarked patrol car's pilot seat and ran his fingers over the controls. He loved the feel of the machine and through his implanted control rig he could 'feel' all the systems as if no more than additional parts of his own body.

"Alright, ladies and gentlemen," he said in a phony falsetto stewardess's voice, "please fasten all seatbelts, take note that the 'Smoke 'Em If You Got 'Em' sign is lit, and thank you for choosing Axel Transport Services. We hope you enjoy your trip."

With a laugh, Axel fastened his own safety harness, let his meat body settle into the seat, and laid his right hand on a metal plate located on the console between the two front seats. Immediately his consciousness shifted into the vehicle's node and he felt one with the car. The electrical wiring was his nervous system. The gears and linkage were his muscles. The frame his bones. The body his skin.

A sigh escaped through Axel's throat, then the sound abruptly issued from the vehicle's sound system, adding an electronic quality to his voice.

"Man, what a rush!" the synthesized voice exclaimed.

The engine cranked over and then revved several times. Music blared from the speakers - not surprisingly, something with a driving rhythm - but Axel's voice could still be clearly heard, buzzing with excitement.

"Ok, first stop - Mr Johnson's place. Hold on to your hoops, chummers!"

With a scream of the engine - accompanied by a whoop from Axel - the rear tires spun, sending up a white-gray cloud of smoke, and the team shot forward out of the parking lot and into the sprawl streets.

"You might want to hurry dear. It seems that your ride is about to leave." She nodded at Lakshimi, bidding her good luck. It was clear to the runners it was time to go. She did give them the short end of the stick but, most likly, they would make the most of it.

Now she had to prepare...

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Once everyone was in the car and on their way, the commlinks of everyone (including the disposiable one Lakshimi was given) had a non-invasive chat screen pop up that showed the logo of their hacker friend, IQ.

"Pleasure to meet all of you." The voice was androginious, sent through a modulator. Paranoid much? "I can tell you a bit more about the job if you want, though Miss. Marble wants for you to hear the job from the Johnson. Any questions?"

Frost to the 'Link

"Yes, first off let me say that I do not like people cracking into my personal link like this, I know for a fact that I didn't give you my number. I don't care how hot of a decker...I mean Hacker you think you are, it doesn't give you the right to be rude. Second, I barely consider this a 'meeting' I prefer to look people in the eye when I'm talking to them. And three; who the drek are you? And don't say, 'I'm the hacker that Miss Marble hired for the job."

To Axel,
"Step on it chummer, lets see what you can do."

To Lakshmi:
"You better put that seat belt on and hold on tight."

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Lakshmi

The young girl takes the elfs advice and straps herself in as Axel tears away from the curb. When the Commlink chimes she takes one look at it and powers it off.

[IQ to Frost]

"Decker? Wow, now that is from an old school of thought. Anyway, you don't need to worry. It was just a simple matter of inserting a little fake address into your link, just enough so I can keep a chat window up and display data. And enough to see what you put in the public section of your PAN. You leave my little secrets alone, I leave your's.
"And part of letting me keep my secrets is to not meet face to face with anyone. Again, little secret, not that it matters much to you since you need a bit of support for this one. If your worried that someone has their little fingers around my neck, I assure you, they don't.
"And, to answer the third part, I am the hacker who owes Miss. Marble quite a lot. So I'm doing this for free..." There seemed to be an unspoken part about it, though the monotone vibe of the voice modulator didn't give it all that well. "Does that answer your questions sir?"

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The trip from Renton to the destination was relatively quiet, not surprising due to the lateness of the hour. The address that Miss Marble gave the team was for a rather surprising place. Judging by the looks of the place, it was stupidly clear that the rnners would stand out like a troll in a dwarf convention.

The name of the place was the Juju Ice Cafe, a late night ice cream parlor set for teens.

The outside of the cage was done in baby blues and pinks in the facade of an old fashioned speekeasy from what was as good as prehistory for the runners. Whatever expectations the runners had would no doubt be reduced a bit.

It wasn't that much better on the inside as various AR displays flooded the PANs of the team before it faded away. It seems like IQ was doing the support job.

With the AR out of the way, it was clear that the owner was treading a thin line between adult and kid, mature and fun. A human woman, her face usually in a bored expression, now had a look of mild surprise as the team walked in. "Um... Can I help you?"

[Frost Juju whatever]

Frost smiles at the clerk as he walks in. Hey theres nothing unusual about a 7 ft. tall elf in a white suit walking into an ice cream parlor....

"Two scoops peppermint Ice cream in a waffle cone..... Real Ice cream please not that flavored soy crap."

Then while she is scooping the ice cream he politely asks, "I'm looking for a friend of mine, goes by the name of Mr. Johnson. Have you seen him?"

Over the link to IQ: You have got to be kidding me. Seriously?

The woman gave Frost a look before she went to work on the order. After the initial shock, aparently she went back to her usual, job-has-sucked-out-my-soul-for-minimum-wage self.

She handed him the cone of what was no doubt flavored soy. The real stuff was for the highrollers, not wierd people. It was a teenager joint after all.

When the Johnson was mentioned, the woman pointed to the back of the store towards the private rooms. "Third door down on the right sir. Anything else?"

IQ chuckled quietly before replying. "The circumstances are special and Miss Marble doesn't trust her other team to keep the collateral damage down."

Frost Sighs and tries to enjoy his cold flavored soy treat. and a couple of licks he scrunches up his face and the bad aftertaste and hands it off to Lakshmi (who takes one lick and tosses it in the trash). "Well guys a job is a job, lets go," he says as he leads everyone into the back room.
'An ice cream shop, you have got to be kidding me, who the heck is the Johnson, a 12 year old girl who lost her puppy' Frost thinks, letting out a big sigh. He takes off his hat as a sign of respect to the establishment, probably just showing his age again.

Lakshmi sits down at the table and listens to young girl ‘play’ Mr. Johnson. She simply nods and says, “Ok.” As she is starting to stand up Frost gently puts a hand on her shoulder having her stay put.

Frost thinks to himself, “Children… Children who watch have watched to many Trids. And this girl, I don’t even think she told us her name? Ok it’s obviously her first job but seriously is she really this fraggin’ clueless? Ok Miss Marble owes me big, Saint Nougat owes me bit. No wonder Marble is footing the bill on this one, I bet clueless, Ching chong or the Driver would walk all over them. Hell, there’s no telling what I could get these brats to do.”

The Elf just shakes his head then something strikes him, “Holy, drek if there is a camera in here recording this I swear I will go ballistic,” he thinks looking around to see if that’s the case.

With a sigh Frost leans back in his chair and takes another look around the “Dark back room where deals are made.”
“Ok, Kids. Seriously my granddaughter is older than some of you. And you all watch to many trids.”

Frost leans forward placing his elbows on the table. “I have a hard time believing that any of this is for real. So let me make some things perfectly clear Ms Johnson, this is the really real world, people are going to get hurt. The guns are real, the bullets are real, the blood is real, the pain is real, the spells are real. If this is some game you are playing you best say so right now before anything more than my time is wasted.” He pulls his gun out placing it on the table for emphasis when he said the guns are real.

Leaning back in his chair again. “Regarless,” he says, his tone low and even, “Before we go further there are a lot of questions that need answered before we even start thinking about this job.” He pulls a notepad and pen out of his pocket and starts making notes.

“First: Tell me more about the principal: Height, weight, age, meta type, If you have any images of him so we know what we are looking for that would help. Any cyberware that we should know about, anything that we can use to track him such as phone, radio, or ‘link. Is the principal aware of a rescue or will he be fighting back against us?”

“Next: Tell me about the opposition. Again images would be helpful. Did they wear uniforms? Any insignias, gang markings? Meta types are always useful. How were they armed and armored. Any obvious magical support? What type of vehicle were they in? What language did they speak, did they have an accent?”

“Continuing: Where did the grab happen? We need to start our search somewhere so that would be a good place. When did the grab happen?”

“Fourth: what method is the opposition using to communicate with….whoever? Since they are off the grid, this will give us clues to where they are hiding. Who has been in communication with the opposition?”

“Fifth: that reasons were given for the kidnapping? Have any demands been placed?”

“And finally: how are you all connected to the Principal?”

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