As the time ticked over to 00:01, the comms went dead. Hunter checked the displays in the cockpit and saw a powerful jamming barrage showing on the sensors, coming from multiple sources in a wide arc around the craft. Craning his neck, he looked out into the darkness on all three sides he could see from his current position, but there was no sudden movement or alarm shown by the guards, who stayed in position and continued their silent vigil of the area around them.
Marius detected the jamming going up as well, and gave his remote deck a quick glance, quickly assessing the jamming field. From the strength, there were at least four sources, arrayed around their current locations on roughly equal bearings, and from the strength and consistency, they were powered by some kind of vehicle or non-portable power supply. The jamming seemed to cover a broad spectrum, and his best guess was that it was to disable any attempt to bug or record the meeting that was about to take place.
"Comms are down, local jamming, all frequencies. Doesn't appear to be a hostile act," he muttered under his breath, hoping the team would hear him without carrying to the Johnsons they were due to meet.
Kai continued to approach the low table and two figures seated on chairs to either side, stopping about two metres away, and waited for the team to tighten up on his position. Shimazu stood to his right, and Marius beyond him, while Aswon stood to his left, with Tadibya on his flank. He paused for a moment to compose himself, and then bowed deeply and respectfully, trying to concentrate on his body and head position as Shimazu had shown him while the others stood still, letting Kai act on their behalf. After holding the bow for a few seconds at the bottom, he slowly straightened up to find both of the men watching him.
On his left was the Chinese man, the more elderly looking of the two, wearing a fine silken robe. His face was aged, without appearing old – the hint of lines speaking of the wisdom of years, yet still holding a sense of virility and strength. The Japanese man to his right was younger, but confident and self-assured, radiating a sense of power and control. As Kai glanced from one to the other he realised that both of the men were handsome in their own way, and had a sense of vigour about them, radiating an aura of wholesomeness and charismatic power. Either of them entering a room would have caused heads to turn and look, and Kai got the feeling that if he was walking down the street towards them, he'd have unconsciously have moved out of the way for them. The Chinese man raised a hand and made a sweeping gesture towards the team, then raised an eyebrow, along with a gentle smile, inviting Kai to introduce themselves.
"Good evening to you both. My name is Kai, and this is Shimazu, Marius, Aswon and Tads, my team. I'm led to believe that you're in search of some assistance with a small matter, and have indicated that we may be able to assist you?" He finished speaking, and lapsed into silence, waiting for a response.
"Welcome. You may call me Mr. Kuro, and this is my associate, Mr. Shiroi." His English was smooth and without noticeable accent, delivered with a controlled cadence and deep, rich baritone. It was the kind of voice that trideo executives would kill for, able to sell products to the masses or comfort listeners and make them feel they were listening to a trusted and kindly uncle. "I hope your travel was smooth and uneventful?"
"Indeed it was, and thank you for asking. It was a long journey, and a little exciting as we approached Japan, but our way was remarkably smooth and quiet, for which we're very grateful. Our pilot is very good, but I'm sure the arrangements made had a lot to do with the ease with which we got here."
Aswon turned to Tadiba and glanced down at the box she held in her hands, and she quickly passed them over to him. He twisted in place, and held it out in front of Kai, who nodded at him and took the box, then adjusted his grip so that he could hold the box in two hands, on upturned palms.
"I believe that it is customary to offer a gift at the start of business negotiations, to show respect and indicate our desire for a successful outcome. I would like to offer you this small token in this regard. They may not be the most precious of gifts, but it is somewhat hard to find a suitable gift when we didn't know who we were going to meet – so instead we elected for a gift that was handmade with care and attention." He slid his hands around the side of the box a little so he could use his thumbs to flip open the top, letting the smell of the cookies waft out into the night air.
"Well, they certainly smell most interesting." Mr. Kuro said. "Though I wonder if your team has journeyed long and far, whether you should offer them some?" Kai saw Aswon draw himself up to his full height and then bow deeply from the waist, lowering his face towards the ground, and being careful to swing his arm out to the side slightly, ensuring the spear wasn't pointed at anyone. Mr. Kuro watched him for a moment, and then appeared to change his mind. "Perhaps if you place them on the table, then."
As Kai placed the open container on the edge of the table, he noticed the game board that was laid out between them covered in a mass of black and white pebbles laid out on a faint grid. He wasn't sure what the game was, and he couldn't tell who was winning – the pieces were laid out in a number of different patterns and clumps.
"Should we come back after you have concluded your game? We wouldn't want to intrude."
"Oh no, that won't be necessary at all." Mr. Shiroi spoke for the first time. His voice was lighter in timbre, but equally resonant and powerful, a striking counterpoint to Mr. Kuro. "We have been playing for a long time, and the game has some way to go yet."
"Indeed we have, Mr. Shiroi, though I believe that it is your move."
"Thank you, Mr. Kuro. I fear I had become distracted momentarily by the arrival of our guests, and I apologise for any delay." He reached into a pot on the side of the table and pulled out a white pebble, placing it in an otherwise empty part of the board. Mr. Kuro studied the board intently, then look up at Mr. Shiroi, studying his face.
"Interesting. I've not seen that gambit for some time. In fact, that reminds me of a move made by Chen, during the building of The Wall. Most intriguing." He studied the board again for a moment, then glanced over at the team watching. Tadibya had been listening carefully, studying the two men and watching for signs of magical power – but so far had seen nothing. With how much confidence they exuded from every pore of their body, that didn't make her feel good though – just the opposite, in fact. It just convinced her that powerful as she'd grown over the last few months of her life, she still had a considerable way to go. She replayed the last comment in her head though… 'The Wall'? She could hear the reference to a definite article. Surely they didn't mean the Great Wall of China… that had been built thousands of years ago…
"While Mr. Kuro contemplates that move, I will ask a question. Do you like to travel, then, Kai?"
"Well, yes, I suppose so. I like smooth journeys certainly, Mr. Shiroi."
"Ahh, but excitement can be fun, can it not? A sense of adventure?"
"Often I find, it is the journey itself that can be the reward, rather than the destination." Mr. Kuro said, before Kai could respond. "Take for example our walk to the Garden at the White Tiger Temple."
"Indeed Mr. Kuro, you are correct. That was most certainly a journey that was far more rewarding than I had expected." Mr. Shiroi bowed his head in acceptance, as if reminded of something obvious that he'd overlooked. Kai got the sense that there was a whole separate conversation going on between the two of them, and felt like a blindfolded man stumbling around in a room full of traps – trying hard to avoid things he couldn't even see.
"Well, journeys with my team are always interesting, I can say that much," he ventured. His attention was distracted as Tadibya struggled to stifle a snort, and he thought he heard a mutter escape her mouth about mutual feelings. Both Mr. Kuro and Mr. Shiroi looked over towards her with faint smiles tugging the corners of their mouths, and she lapsed into a self-conscious silence.
"Well, I'm glad that you seem to be open to travel, Kai. It is something that will prove to be useful in the future, I am sure. Travel is like trying a new dish, I've always thought – the wider your travels, the more varied your tastes."
"Ahh, but is it not said," Mr. Shiroi retorted "that even a sea bream loses its flavour when eaten alone?"
"Yes, but a good garnish can improve any dish."
"Of course – though the dishes prepared by the best chefs require no garnish, being able to stand on their own merits." This time it was Mr. Kuro that bowed his head in acceptance to Mr. Shiroi. The banter went back and forth for another minute, as they played several turns, slowly placing more black and white tokens on the board as they discussed things that made no sense to Kai or anyone else on the team, but appeared to have significance to each other.
They appeared to reach an impasse after a move, with Mr. Shiroi now leaning back and steepling his fingers under his chin as he studied the board. Mr. Kuro turned back towards Kai.
"You have a question?"
"Yes. I understand that you have a need for some assistance, and that it involves a certain amount of travel?"
"You could say that. You see my associate and I have been involved in a long-standing discussion, that has been quite spirited at times. It may be said by some, that there is a level of competition between us. And after discussing this matter, we think that it is perhaps appropriate to seek some…impartial assistance, to help us deal with a matter."
"That is correct. We hope that having explained the situation, we can rely on a people such as yourselves to be involved with no leaning towards one side or the other. Much as I place the white pieces, and Mr. Kuro plays the black – the board exists between us, and cares not, supporting both parts equally." Kai took a step forward and looked down at the board, still trying to fathom what was going on and how the game was played, now feeling that it was perhaps more intrinsic to the discussion than he'd thought.
"Do you play much, Kai?" Mr. Kuro asked.
"Oh, not much. No more than two or three games really." The lie rolled out easily off his tongue, and he tried to nod sagely as he looked at the mass of pieces, as if they made sense to him.
"So you know the premise?" Mr. Shiroi asked.
"Oh well, I think so. But sometimes games are about more than what you can see, aren't they?" Kai ended on a slightly high note, pitching his question carefully. "But I'm pretty sure this isn't the one with the horsies and the castles is it?" Again there was the slight smile between the two players, as if Kai had just said something meaningful or amusing.
"Well, the board here is the limit of where we may play these pieces. But of course there are other boards, and other games. And sometimes games grow and expand to encompass new horizons. Though I'm sure that with your resources and attitude, such horizons wouldn't be beyond you."
"A walk in the park, I believe the expression is."
"You honour us with your words, Mr. Shiroi. I'm sure we can rise to your expectations! I'm always open to the idea of new adventures – but I would need to confirm any details with my team."
"But you are the leader, are you not? The one responsible for the marshalling of your forces, the success or failure of ventures. Are you not the leader of your clan?" Mr. Shiroi leant over towards him, studying him intently.
"Ahh, well, in some ways yes, and in some ways no. I tend to manage the money, and often do the negotiations for our little band, and many people assume I am the leader. I see it more as a ceremonial title though, as we all have our areas of expertise. If we were to talk with spirits, I would defer to Tads in that area. If dealing with mercenary operations was in order, then Aswon would guide us. If we needed to operate heavy machinery or drones, I would seek counsel from Marius, and Shimazu guides us in matters of faith, honour and defence."
"You see Mr. Kuro, they are like the petals on the winter orchid, as I suggested."
"I concede the point with humility, Mr. Shiroi." Again Kai felt that a point had been scored in some game that took place on an entirely different board, using rules he could only imagine, with scores that were uncertain. He didn't like the feeling at all.
"Well Kai, as you handle 'the money', I'm sure we can continue this discussion then. After all, no farmer wishes his field to be barren, that is a most undesirable state of affairs."
"Yes, that would be most inappropriate. It might lead to you having other pressing matters to distract you from the task at hand. And it would be most rude of us not to share our resources with you if you are being of assistance to us. Maybe you would like to hear the nature of our task?"
"Excuse me, Kai, but in light of our other…commitments, should we discuss the time element first?" Aswon added, quietly. Kai nodded and turned back to the hosts.
"As Aswon has just reminded me, we do have another engagement that we've given our prior agreement to that might be an issue. Could you give us a time frame for the job?"
"You have other engagements at this time? That is most unfortunate. But perhaps they will wait until this task is complete."
"Yes, we do. And unfortunately, they're quite stern negotiators, and willing to press hard to ensure their job is done." Kai's mind flashed back to his unexpected journey through the air as he was flicked off of the mountain back in Iran for failing to show due respect to Aden, and he wondered how he could explain that while remaining subtle.
"Well, the task is not particularly complex, but as we have said, it will involve significant travel. Potentially it will only take a few days to complete, depending on how quickly you are able to move. But we do have a specific starting date in mind." Mr. Kuro told them, placing another piece on the board as he did so, then looking up at Shiroi with a smile.
"Correct – it may be possible to complete in a week or less, depending on how skilled and resourceful you are, and your fixer speaks highly of you in this regard." Mr. Shiroi countered with a stone of his own, returning the smile to his opponent. Mr. Kuro studied the move carefully, and his smile faded away somewhat as he worked out the permutations now available to him.
"The actual job must start three days hence, no earlier than midnight – at the height of the full moon. It must be completed in one lunar month, and no longer. Quicker is fine, but the task will be failed if the month is exceeded."
"And who are we competing with?" Aswon asked, looking from one man to the other.
"Nobody." Mr. Kuro responded, "You are acting as independent and unbiased operatives in this matter. The game is between my esteemed and wise colleague and myself.
"Ahh, so we're helping to resolve some contention then?"
"Indeed. You're levelling the playing field, leaving it down to skill and ability to prove the better party." Both men looked at each other and smiled, their eyes fixed upon each other.
"Well, that sounds like something we can help with." Kai added, trying to break the sudden air of tension. Mr. Shiroi was the first to break eye contact, turning towards Kai.
"Perhaps when the job is complete, we can even consider a game between us, Kai." He gestured down at the board with one hand.
"It would be an honour, providing we're still alive and able to play, of course!"
"We have the utmost faith in you and your team, Kai." Mr. Kuro played another stone, and the two men alternated turns rapidly, each placing four more stones within a few seconds. Mr. Shiroi paused, and then placed a stone slightly away from the others, raising an eyebrow to Mr. Kuro.
"I believe that this gambit was the one used for the first time in 1787. And of course, this is the successful counter to it…" He nudged his white stone slightly, placing it exactly on the small dot on the game board.
Tadibya listened carefully again. Interesting… he said it was a move from 1787 – over two hundred and seventy three years ago. But while he gave the impression that he had played the move with his familiarity – he didn't actually say that. Another deception, or an indication that these two men were far older than they appeared? She was distracted as Marius cleared his throat and spoke.
"What is the direction of travel? That may have a large effect on our ability to complete the job in the timescales indicated."
"Well, they're all relatively local to each other, and should be easy to move from one to another as you move along." Kuro moved a hand in a roughly circular pattern.
"Well, as long as we're not travelling to the UCAS or something crazy like that, I don't see a problem."
"The American continent is a problem for you, Aswon?"
"Not as such, Mr. Shiroi, but more what it represents in terms of distance and time. As we have said, we do have other engagements we need to factor in. And we do not want to disappoint our other employer or act in a way that dishonours our agreement with them – just as we would not want to do that to you.
"Well, this is where you perhaps need to step cautiously. We have a simple job, involving a series of travels, to drop off items at specific locations within a clear timeframe. You should find this within your capabilities. But if you do not wish to take the job, then we will find others that will." For the first time Mr. Kuro's voice had an edge of impatience or warning to it.
"Perhaps if you gave us the details of this other task, we can see if they can co-exist and grow in harmony. For where it rains, the plants may grow and thrive," Mr. Shiroi offered.
"Yes, but also after the rains, the ground may grow hard, and crack," Kuro warned.
Kai looked at the team, first at Aswon and Tads on his left, then Shimazu and Marius on his right, getting nothing but shrugs and gestures of ambivalence. He took a few seconds, trying to way the pros and cons in his mind, aware that he didn't have a great deal of time to ponder the decision.
"The arrangement we have is with a Great Dragon, a being of considerable power, who lives on a mountain far to the west of here. He has tasked us with ridding the world of an evil creature, something that lairs deep under the ground in a long forgotten temple – and we have agreed to do so."
"And what manner of creature is this?"
"It wasn't given a name, but it's truly a horrific abomination, a thing clearly not of this world, that appears to hate life itself and twist the laws of nature around it." Aswon's voice conveyed passion as he described the creature in the temple, his features clearly indicating distate.
"Interesting. Very interesting." Mr. Shiroi looked thoughtfully up into space, his fingers rubbing lightly on his chin. "I wonder why Aden has taken such an interest in this matter."
"I'm sorry, I don't know who you're talking about. I certainly wouldn't mention any names." Kai responded, feeling a patch of sweat break out in the small of his back.
"Ahh, but YOU haven't, have you? You haven't mentioned any names at all. But no matter. And it is understandable that you feel such a weight upon you."
"Perhaps you and your team should retire over there, and sit at the table, and discuss amongst yourselves whether you feel you can pursue this matter or not, and return to us when you have a decision." Mr. Shiroi gestured to another bench and gaming board set up about ten metres away, and Kai nodded, then led the team over to it, gesturing for them to sit or stand in a huddle around it.
"I think if we do this, we're really pushing the limits of the technicality of 'after the Maersk job', you know," Shimazu offered as first comment.
"And it's not ideal in placement. Aden wants us back in Iran, and then to Tashkent. I get the impression this job will take us further east, away from that. It will probably take us two or three days to get back to Iran from here with a circular route, and then we have to actually do the job – and I can't fly us that long and still be good to pilot a drone afterwards," Marius warned.
"So we can't do the job for Aden and make the start time for this one – which means if we accept we've got to start this job and finish it, then move back to deal with Aden's request." Kai drummed his fingers on the surface of the table, his eyes darting back and forth as he pictured a map of the world and their journey back and forth across it. "Do we even know who we're dealing with?"
"I have a horrible suspicion." Marius said quietly. He paused, until Kai gave an exasperated sigh and went to poke him. "I have a feeling that we may be dealing with more Dragons. Ruymo and Lung, in this case." Kai's eyes widened. "Ruymo was the first Dragon to be sighted after the Awakening, flying past Mount Fuji. Since then he's become a bit of a cult hero to the people of Japan, and it's strongly rumoured that he has ties with the Yakuza and Mitsuhama both. That would be Mr. Shiroi. Lung on the other hand is supposedly the puppet master behind many of the Chinese Triads. There's some kind of rivalry between the two, and they're constantly engaged in competition between each other. Sounding familiar?"
"Fuck. Stuck between three Dragons. Not where we want to be. Is it definitely them?"
"Can't say for sure, Kai. If it's not them, then it could be two very senior and serious members of the Yakuza Clans and Triads, who are maybe acting on their behalf or with their knowledge. They'd also have the pull needed to get us into Japan so smoothly."
"Or, it could be free spirits, or perhaps immortal elves – they're rumoured to be behind a number of conspiracies and very powerful…" Aswon offered.
"But my money is on Great Dragons – so we need to be careful. I mean, I think we shouldn't be getting involved at all, but it might be a bit late for that." Marius's features moved into a slight pout.
"If they are Great Dragons, then turning this down might be a very dangerous move. Or I suppose if they're free spirits, immortal elves or anyone else with this kind of pull. We're pretty much committed now, aren't we?" Kai looked around, but didn't see any dissent on the faces of his team members.
"Fuck. Looks like we're doing it then."
"There is one minor redemption I've just thought of, though, Kai. At least, I hope so. We're fretting about doing this job because it will take a few days or weeks – because we think in timespans like that. It might be that Aden actually won't bother with anything shorter than a few years… when you're ten thousand years old, who knows what kind of timespan your mind works on." As Marius spoke the others blinked, reacting to the idea of an entirely different perspective on the concept of "long term planning".
"I'm still really not happy about this, Kai. I think it's dangerous, and disrespectful. But, I'll go with your decision. I just hope we're not going to annoy him too much." Tadibya shook her head at Kai, but then sighed. She didn't expect him to change his mind, and she wasn't disappointed.
"Let's get back and tell them we're signing up – or at least we are at the moment, unless they want the job doing for peanuts." Kai led the team back over towards the two men and the ongoing game, just in time to catch the end of a statement from Shiroi to Kuro.
"…a most cunning move, and one that would normally cause a great deal of perplexion. However, in this case I feel that perhaps this move over-extends you. We shall see." He looked up as the team approached the table. "Ahh, you have finished your deliberations? From the somewhat hesitant looks on the faces of your team, I suspect you have some reservations."
"I would be lying if I said that we didn't – but we'll accept the job, and we'll make it work. We have a habit of getting the job done."
"So I am led to believe. And if you are pursuing such a noble goal – maybe we can perhaps ease your way a little. A few words in the right ear, should things become unpleasant, and we can pass on your reservations and concerns, and indicate your honourable intentions. Maybe that will help ease tensions."
"That…that would probably help. And we most graciously accept." Kai give a bow to each of the men, flexing deeply from the waist. "In that case, we would be most happy to be part of your game then."
Aswon froze in horror as he heard Kai's words, and Tadibya flinched as well as she thought about the significance of what he'd said. Marius was only a moment behind her as he contemplated what saying something like that to a dragon – if that's what they were – would signify. Hell, if they were spirits or immortal beings, it would be just as bad. Only Shimazu remained inscrutable as ever.
"Excellent news then. In that case, let me describe what needs to be done." Mr. Kuro smoothed down his ornate robe and leant back into his chair, twisting his torso slightly to face the team. "You will be given a number of tokens, and a set of locations. Travel to each location, and when you reach the appropriate place, you will place one token. It should be placed within a thousand metres of the exact spot identified, and lie in such a way that it can be found with a cursory search. Perhaps between two rocks, or in the roots of a tree, under some hardy bushes perhaps, or placed in the bottom of a shallow stream."
"Though if you do place it in a stream, I hope you stay drier than Loo Sung Pan did!" Mr. Shiroi added, and quite unexpectedly both men gave hearty belly laughs. "I believe it took him the rest of the day to recover from his unexpected swim!"
"That sounds fairly straight-forward and simple. Will the task require any killing or armed conflict? We generally try to avoid such matters, where possible." Kai asked, ignoring the comments about the unfortunate swimmer, whoever he was.
"You should defend the tokens with all of your power, but there should be no requirement for conflict from our part," Kuro stated.
"Excuse me, I have a question. May we use magical means to plant the tokens?" Kuro raised an eyebrow at Tadibya, inviting her to more fully explain. "What I mean is, if we could levitate a token up to the top of a tree or high building, is that what you expect?"
"Ahh, I see. If you wish to use magic to aid you to reach a location, then you may do so. But all of the tokens should be accessible to a searcher using only mundane means. It need not be easy, so long as it is possible." Tadibya nodded to Kuro as he explained and clarified the requirements.
"And how much lead time do we have before the searchers begin to move?" Aswon asked, still somewhat confused as to what they were doing.
"You have three days to reach the first location, and then must wait for midnight. As soon as the moon turns, you have one month to complete the task. When you have finished, then the searching will commence." Kuro explained.
"Though now, of course, we must talk about how many tokens there should be. Perhaps four?" Shiroi suggested.
"Four is perhaps a little low. Mayhap we should consider six?"
"Six is a number I feel does not generate harmonious feelings. I would favour nine though?"
"I feel that nine would generate very poor results. Let us not be bound by small thinking – perhaps forty three would be a fine number?"
"Forty three is entirely too large, and too favourable a number for some. Eight may be of favour for both of us though." Aswon listened carefully as the conversation bounced back and forth, and wasn't surprised at the numbers used – each mentioned had symbolism and significance in either Chinese or Japanese culture, often being associated by sound with concepts such as wealth, success or joy – or negative factors such as pain or death.
"How do you feel about fourteen?"
"Fourteen would be agreeable to me. Neither too large, nor too small, and with good Chi. It is agreed."
Mr. Kuro reached into his robe and pulled out a jet black bag made of silk, and with deft movements untied the silken ropes that held it closed. Teasing the bag open with his fingers, he reached onto the board and selected seven of the black stones that had been placed there, dropping them into the bag one by one. When he was done, he passed over the bag to Shiroi, who similarly selected seven of the white stones from the board, dropping them into the bag too, before returning the bag to Kuro. With a gentle pull on the ropes to seal the bag, he turned and held out the bag to Kai, who gently cupped his hands underneath the silk pouch, accepting it with two hands. Kuro then pulled out a small piece of paper, the size of a playing card, and held that out to Kai, too.
"Here are the list of locations that have been selected. All of them should be easily reachable to you, provided you take adequate precautions and preparations." Kai took the card and saw a list of fourteen numbers neatly inked on one side, listing latitude and longitude by the looks of things. He flipped the card over and saw a brief summary of the instructions, restating that each location was to receive one token, within one thousand metres of the exact location specified. He carefully placed the bag and the card into an inside pocket on his jacket, sealing it shut.
"Now, let us of course discuss the recompense due to you for performing this task. I feel that perhaps a fee of five hundred thousand would be appropriate for your troubles."
"Come now Mr. Shiroi, let us not be so miserly. I would add at least seventy five thousand to that number!"
"Well Mr. Kuro, if we were to mention five hundred and seventy five thousand, we may as well go to six hundred thousand and not a Nuyen lower."
"Again I feel that six is a poor choice, and will not serve our new employees well, while seven is much more pleasant to contemplate."
"As if I would accept seven, a number that clearly favours one side over the other. Now eight hundred and twenty five thousand – that is a number I feel would be interesting."
"I know that you have strong feelings about nine – so perhaps we should just round it up to a million?"
"Hmm. Interesting, a value often ascribed great value at the turn of the century, but favouring neither side, nor hindering any. I like it." Kai, and the rest of the team were standing in stunned silence. Never before had they been in a negotiation where their two employers were bartering upwards, and it sounded like a lot of money for a fairly simple delivery job. Of course, that meant it almost certainly wasn't a simple delivery job, and there was a lot that was being unsaid about the difficulties they were going to face. But still – a million Nuyen was a sizeable pay-out, and would ease their difficulties significantly.
"It is agreed then. One million of your Nuyen to deliver the fourteen tokens, and place them at the locations specified, as per our requirements." Kai nodded in agreement, and for a moment all three of them smiled in harmony.
"There is one small matter I would like to raise, if I may?" Kai looked to the two men, hoping he wasn't going to regret this. They studied him for a moment, then each made a small gesture of acceptance. "Thank you. We will require significant fuel for our journey of course, and that can be somewhat difficult to come by in places. If you have any….ahhhh…. recommendations for where we might procure supplies along the route, that would be most helpful in ensuring we can complete the task."
"Oh I see. Well, introductions to a number of places could perhaps be arranged." Kuro turned to Shiroi and raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, that is something we can provide I'm sure. It would be easier if we had your direct contact details, of course."
Kai pulled out two business cards and was about to just hand them over when his mind caught up with who he was potentially dealing with. He glanced from Kuro to Shiroi and back. If he handed a card to one first, would that indicate a bias against the other? Handing a card to both of them one handed might be seen as a slight to them both… He though furiously for a moment, and then holding both cards in both hands he bowed deeply again, placing the cards on the edge of the table, as equidistant from both men as he could, before releasing them and standing upright again.
"Well, it is late in the day – perhaps we should continue our game and let you be on your way." Kuro raised a hand as he spoke, and the inner ring of guards started to head in towards them, the Japanese moving to stand behind Shiroi and the Chinese to stand behind Kuro. Once they had arrived and stood in formation, both sets of guards bowed deeply to their respective masters, and then moved to form up around the team to escort them away – clearly the meeting or interview was at an end.
"Thank you both for your hospitality, and the employment. We will endeavour to do the best job we can."
"It has been our pleasure, Kai," Shiroi responded.
"May you travel far, may you travel fast, may you travel well," Kuro added.
The guards started to move, guiding the team back towards the tilt-wing. As they approached the rear ramp, the Chinese guards moved off to one side, heading to stand under a tree where several of them pulled out cigarettes and lit them, sending clouds of pungent smoke into the air.
The leader of the Japanese contingent moved to Tadibya, then Aswon and finally Shimazu, pulling loose the ribbons bound around their hands and weapons, draping the colours over his arm, before turning away from them and leading his own group of guards to go and stand under another tree, where they too list up cigarettes. The team started to head up into the tilt-wing, and as soon as they were clear of the ramp, Aswon held up a finger to his mouth and slapped at the close button on the ramp controls. He didn't make a sound until the ramp had closed, then he turned to Marius.
"Jammer, please?" Marius flicked their own jammer on, adding to the intensity of the jamming field still in place. "The Japanese guy who was taking off the silk strips – he slipped a card into my hand while he was doing it. Pretty subtle, and I think he chose the moment when his body was in between us and the Chinese guards." He opened his hand on the spear, revealing a crumpled business card, still showing the indentations where his fingers had curled around the edges to hide it. Carefully he examined the card, finding only two pieces of information – a matrix contract address and a name 'Digital Flower'.
"Ok – let's look at the other card too, and get a list of those locations." Kai rummaged in his pocket as Hunter climbed through from the cockpit.
"Everyone alright? Lots of jamming out there, but it all looked peaceful enough."
"Yes, we're ok Hunter. But grab your computer and your map, will you? We've got a list of co-ordinates to check. We've agreed to do a delivery job, fourteen stops, got to be done inside a month. There's more details, but that's the gist of it." Hunter nodded, and grabbed his deck and the large screen, then jacked in and fired up his mapping software.
The first thing Kai did was take a picture of both sides of the card, then carefully replace the card into his inside pocket and seal it back shut again, then exported the list to Hunter, and watched as the co-ordinates streamed onto the map, marking each location.
1. -5.05116, 151.32711
2. -6.03682, 143.88772
3. 7.70289, 124.51483
4. 12.77065, 124.0577
5. 32.65689, 128.84845
6. 34.6848, 137.2611
7. 43.43796, 142.70088
8. 55.83263, 160.36601
9. 53.12637, -168.67578
10. 60.29268, -140.93773
11. 57.39534, -132.29918
12. 51.52503, -126.1226
13. 46.85356, -121.76271
14. 37.88322, -121.91298
"Ok, let's see what we have here…" Hunter pulled the list of locations up, adding them to a new route list. "First one is Uluwan in Papa New Guinea. Second is Mount Giluwe, also in Papa New Guinea. Third is Mount Piapayungan in the Philippines. I think I'm seeing a pattern here. Fourth is Mount Bulusan, north side of the Philippines, Fifth is… anyone want to bet it's a mountain? No takers? Good, cos I'm not paying... it's Fukue Island, Japan."
The team watched as the chain of volcanoes were linked and highlighted on the map, starting in an arc just north of Australia and working up the edge of the Pacific towards Japan.
"Six is another volcano, Zaozan in Japan. Seventh is Japan again, north island – called Tokachidake. Eight is.. ugh – Yakut controlled. Mount Ostry Tolbachik, out on the peninsula. Nine is Mount Nikolski on the Fox Islands, part of the Aleutians. I think that's going to be part of the Athabaskan Council lands now, we'll have to check. Ten is Mount St Elias, definitely Athabaskan council, in some really gnarly countryside. Eleven is Mount Ratz, heading down towards the border with Tsimshin. Twelve is Silverthrone Mountain, definitely in the middle of Tsimshin lands, Thirteen is Mount Rainier, which makes it Salish Sidhe lands, just south of Seattle. And number fourteen is Mount Diablo in Calfree. Which means effectively little Japan…"
The map now showed a huge arc, a journey of eighteen thousand kilometres from end to end, stretching most of the way around the Pacific Rim.
"So, what the hell are we delivering to fourteen volcanos? Some of which I hasten to add, are active and full of molten magma?" Hunter asked.
"I think that doesn't matter as much as how the hell we're going to get around there. We're going to need a whole bunch of fuel stops. And we've got to do them in order, was the impression I got." Marius studied the map, working out the ranges from one location to another, and the number of different territories and spheres of influence they had to cross to complete the mission. "Some of these we can fly commercial routes, if we have enough time to file the flight plans. Some we are definitely going to have to run the borders, no questions asked. And we've not got a lot of contacts and options."
"Right, it looks like we need to call in some favours then. I want everyone to get in touch with your contacts, email, phone, matrix meets, smoke signs – whatever it takes, and work out who can hook us up with some contacts. If you need to, spread some Nuyen around, buy them tickets to the next game of something, or a slap up dinner out. But we need some contacts, or this job is going nowhere."
"How much cash are we talking about?" Marius asked.
"Well, as little as possible. But let's set aside up to five or six thousand for each of us to use on our contacts if needed. Once we've made contact with someone, we should be able to cultivate a relationship and grow things from there, and it'll pay dividends."
"As long as you don't tell them you're going to skullfuck their mother again, anyway," Marius muttered, thinking back to the disastrous negotiations with the warlord in the Trans-Caucus League.
"Hey! That was a long time ago. And I've learnt much better Russian now!" Kai looked around at the team, then slapped his palms on his thighs. "Let's go, get on the line to people and get some details!"
The team broke up, spreading out as much as they could and diving onto their devices, working out who they could call, who would need a message and who would need some subtle financial incentives. Kai gave everyone three hours to work their magic, then called everyone back together to check on progress.
"So, I've got some good leads, but let's work around and see what we've got shall we? Aswon, will you start us off?"
"Sure. Well, unsurprisingly I gave Spook a call and had a good chat with her, and got two good leads and some introductions, in exchange for a night at the opera. There's a guy called Mr. Fu, runs a temple and martial arts retreat on the south east side of Hong Kong island, but also works with a bunch of smugglers in the area and has refuelling capability. I'll squirt the details over to you now, Hunter, to update the map." Hunter nodded and gave Aswon a thumbs up as the co-ordinates pinged to his device and he tapped away, building an operational radius around the new location.
"Second one is some place called 'Rumble in the Jungle', way down near the Solomon Isles." Kai gave a start, but didn't say anything and waved for Aswon to continue. "They've got a small airstrip and can handle boats, and there's a variety of goods go through there. They should give us coverage over the east side of Papa New Guinea, I think."
"After that I had a chat with Mr. Hu, and he's told me about a couple of possibilities. Both are in the South China Sea, first one is called the Shark Tank, the second is called Elune's Bay. The Tank is run by some up and coming smuggler, working between Vietnam, Japan, China and the Philippines. Second one is in some place called the Spratly Islands, and are a bunch of eco-warriors that go after local polluters and the corporate shippers. They don't like outsiders, but trade with them from time to time. Mr. Hu says if we go and act clean, we'll stand a chance to get somewhere with them."
Kai waited a moment, then realised that Aswon was done, and pointed towards Hunter.
"My mate Julius has sent me some info on two good places to stop up in the Bering Sea. One is called the Ice Box, and is near Anchorage, based in the old commercial port there – so that should cover us over one side. The other one is Ivan's bay, and is down in the Aleutians, so gets us halfway to Russia hopefully. He didn't want any cash, but says he may have a job for us in a few months that he really needs help with, so I said I'd see what we can do for him."
Kai nodded and then worked around to Shimazu, waving for him to speak next.
"I'm sure it won't surprise you to know I gave Saito a call. He got me details of a couple of places too. First one is called El Diablo and is in something called the Cascades. Apparently it's a big bunch of orks and other metas that live in the hills, and they run lots of stuff down into Seattle – so I guess that's in the Salish lands? Anyway, he said they can be a touchy bunch, but if I transferred him a few grand he'd get some supplies sent over along with our details, to get us in with them. He did warn that they're a little bit paranoid though, and have to be handled carefully, whatever that means."
"The second one was Arkan Port, which is a pirate base of some kind. Run by some retired warlord that moved there with his own guard force and took over the whole island. Saito has arranged for some supplies and luxuries to be sent down there in the past and says the guy's rep is solid and reliable, as long as you don't piss him off. And that's it from me…"
"Sorry, I haven't got anyone useful I could contact. Most of the people I met on my walk didn't have phones or matrix access. Some of them didn't have houses…" Tadibya shrugged apologetically, and Kai moved on past her, and then Vadim as he gave a shake of his head, to look at Marius.
"My friend Georgi in Tbilisi, you remember him? The one we moved the golem for? Well, he told me about something called Zebra Base. It's up on the northern side of Russia – possibly in or near Yakut territory, so that may help. It might be worth checking out anyway for you, Tads, as the place is built on or near an old gold mine, that they've managed to reactivate. You need gold for your magical construction don't you?" Tadibya nodded enthusiastically, and craned over to look at the map as Hunter started working on adding the new location. "Anyway, there's a smuggler base up there and he's sorting out an introduction for us and getting us an access code. The only bad thing he says, it that apparently it used to be a gulag, and apparently the gold mine is haunted… so that's why they don't produce much. But he says if we can deliver a golem, a few ghosts won't scare us."
"Alright, that sounds… interesting. Right, the reason for my snigger Aswon is that I gave my guy in Shanghai, Harry Wu, a call. And he mentioned a place called 'Rumble in the Jungle' too. He mentioned though that they're a bunch of Hawaiian refugees that are big time gun-runners. Close-knit family, very hard to get in with, but if you do, they're your friends for life. He's also got a place down on the docks near him called Shanghai Noodles that he can sort us out with, provided we're willing to trade info with them. Seems they don't do the Nuyen shuffle that much, but really value info dumps. We can sort out something like that, right, Hunter?"
"Sure, I can get a whole bunch of sensor logs and things and scrub anything too personal from it and use that for trade goods."
"Excellent. Next up was Sarangani Free Port, a research dig down in the southern Philippines. Lots of activity from the Atlantean Foundation and the D.I.M.R. and unsurprisingly someone nearby has set up a little trading spot to try and help them out in exchange for a few supplies and bit of Nuyen."
"Next I got hold of Aawut, a fence I know down in Thailand. He handles magical stuff mainly, and has told me about a base north of Japan called 'Twin Peaks'. Lots of pretty unique talesma moves through there is seems, and he's hooking me up with an intro. And, he also told me about Zebra Base, the same place Marius got a hint at. So that sounds pretty solid as a lead."
"Gregory came through with a bit more information for me on the Dragon Pirates, those guys near Okinawa. No dragons apparently, but led by some guy who throws a killer fireball, hence the name. He dropped hints that Yamatetsu and the Dragon Pirates have some kind of 'understanding', and that if we cover ourselves as a Yamatetsu flight, we might get better reception there."
"Anahita from Tehran gave me a lead on something called the 'Battle Barge', way up to the north. She had a really weird request to source a ship's sextant from World War II, and some particular teak decking for something, and it was going to a buyer up there. But, she's making some calls and is sorting something out. Oh, and she also mentioned that we probably shouldn't show our faces in Tehran again for a bit, or not without apologising to the black market organisers. Apparently they put some info together from talking with people, and think it was us that dropped that massive mist spell and caused chaos, so we're on the shit list." Kai shrugged, and weighed his hands up and down in a see-saw motion.
"Last of all, talking with Praneeth who works at a shipping port in Arabia, I got the same details about Ivan's Bay up north, and also something called 'Gwoks'. It's a small dock in the second biggest town in Papa New Guinea that has an understanding with the local suppliers and shipping agents, and can supply fuel and cargo. The main wrinkle with this place is that they have some crazy local law called the '1971 Sorcery Act', and that magic will get you burnt at the stake. Like, I shit you not, burnt at the stake. Pran says they burnt over a hundred people last year, and he has to warn any of his captains dropping containers off there to be super careful with his crew. Standards are a bit different over there it seems."
Hunter had finished inputting the locations of all of the new locations. Some of them were still a little rough, and the fuel radius circles he drew were shaded in a warning yellow and reduced in size to account for the uncertainty of their precise location – but they could now see a large arc of bases that followed the general sweep of travel they needed to undertake, all around the Pacific Rim, with two exceptions. There was a large gap between the bases near Okinawa and the Twin Peaks, leaving the bulk of Japan uncovered, and on the other side of the ocean, there was a large space between the Ice Box in Anchorage and the El Diablo stop in the Cascades.
"Looks like we're doing well, but we've still got a way to go. Some of these doglegs we're going to have to take will chew fuel and time though – while other places we have a choice of routes." Marius traced the area near Yakut and the whole flight along the Aleutians, with a look of worry on his face. "This is very much a weak link. If we run into trouble up there, there are no alternatives."
"I agree, but I'm also not sure what we can do. It doesn't look like there's much up there at all." Kai peered at the map and then shook his head.
"First problem we're going to run into though is Japan. So, let's have a look at that card you got passed, Aswon."
Aswon placed the card in front of Hunter, who went to work trying to track down some details on the matrix address or the names. It took him about five minutes, and when he jacked out, he rubbed his forehead as if to ease a headache.
"Ok, got some news for you. Not sure if it's good or bad. The address goes to a secure meeting server in the Tokyo area. Very strong security – strong enough I won' t even think about trying to crack it. It would eat me, and the deck, for breakfast. So, if we do have a meeting, it should be pretty safe. The other side of things is this Digital Flower. They're a pretty whizz decker, with a solid rep – and they also work for the Tokyo Data Haven."
"Is that a good thing?" Kai asked, not really understanding the reference.
"The Shadowland service that I use… it's an underground series of matrix sites, tucked away here and there, on hosts hidden all over the world. The big main node is over in Denver as far as I know, in a place called the Nexus. But they have sub nodes and mirrors all over the world – there's one in Germany called the Helix for instance. And the one in Japan is called Hokidata, and this Digital Flower is some kind of Sysadmin there. Which means he or she has some clout."
"Oh, right. I think I see. Do you want to call them then?"
"It's a matrix site, so I'll have to log in. But I can relay what I'm seeing and hearing out to you guys, and can get input from you to talk back to them." Hunter set up the speakers and microphones, configured his deck and then jacked in, heading for the matrix address given to him. The system was sculpted to look like a Japanese Pagoda, with intricate carvings on the building, surrounded by lush and verdant flowerbeds. Peasants scurried back and forth carrying buckets, with digital payloads slopping back and forth inside, while Samurai patrolled the area keeping a watchful eye out for intruders.
Entering the building, he followed a fluttering origami crane that led him down underground into a series of fortified and secure corridors, before being led into a small windowless room. On entering, the door slammed shut behind him, bars falling into places as the security systems engaged to keep the conversation secure from outsiders. A single table made of heavy oak beams lay in the centre of the room, while a low stool was placed to each side. As his deck icon sat on the stool, another icon appeared on the other side of the table.
The icon was a small branch, with a bud on the end. As he watched the bud grew and then unfurled, revealing an intricate flower head that glowed brightly, shot through with a mixture of purple and yellow swirls. The leaves grew and straightened, stretching out into perfect symmetry for a moment, then started to age and die, rapidly curling and withering before him as entropy ran its course. The leaves crumbled and dropped off, leaving a bare branch with nothing but a tiny bud, that then started to regrow, repeating the cycle.
"Ahh, you came. Excellent. Welcome to Hokiadata."
"Thanks, yeah we got your card passed to us, after a meeting."
"Good, good. I understand that soon your will be embarking on a long journey?"
"Uh-huh."
"I will take that as a yes. Well, it so happens that we may have some pertinent data regarding the locations you will be passing, that might make your journey easier and simpler. In addition, we may be able to assist you with material requirements."
"And what do you want? Because nothings free in this world." The ugly visage that Hunter chose to project in the matrix leant forwards, the tusks dripping saliva as he leant towards toward their icon.
"Very little, really. A mere trifle. For instance, if you were to supply us with your flight plans, so we could track your progress as you go about your travels that would be most helpful. Or if you could supply certain map references, we would be extremely grateful."
Aswon erupted from his position, making frantic gestures in the real world. In the digital meeting room, Hunter's icon leant back on the stool.
"Hold on." He suspended his matrix operations, feeling his attention shoot back towards the real world. "What is it, Aswon?"
"No – not only no, but hell no! Do NOT accept this offer. I mean, I don't think you should even be talking with this person. But we absolutely should not even consider this." Aswon moved both his hands before him, emphatically illustrating his point.
"It's either someone working for Mr. Shiroi if he's Japanese, and we'll be giving one side an advantage – which means we're not impartial in their game anymore, and that's bad news. Or it's a test, and they're seeing if we'll bend to bribery – and that means we'd piss both of them off, and that's a whole lot worse. Get out of there, while you still can, without agreeing to anything."
Hunter looked around the cargo bay, and saw agreement on every face – even Vadim who was only picking up the details of the conversation between the two old men second hand. He jacked back in and un-paused the meeting.
"Sorry Chummer, no can do. That information is classified, and we're not passing it on. But thanks for the offer."
"Disappointing. Most disappointing. Well, if you change your mind, simply come back here. I'll be waiting." The icon went through the rest of its cycle, but this time as it died, the entire branch withered away and then crumbled into nothingness. Hunter stood and approached the door – half expecting trouble – but the door swung open before him, and he was able to traverse the corridors and stairs back outside, and then leave the Pagoda construct, returning to the matrix at large and jack out cleanly.
"So, we've got a good start on some bases, but we need to work out how to fill those two gaps – and that guy shouldn't be one of them." Kai looked down at the map again. "But for now, we've got a meeting with some smugglers down here, south of Tokyo in a few hours, and then we've got three days to get all the way down here." His fingers traced south across several thousand kilometres of open ocean to the east side of Papa New Guinea and their first destination – the Volcano of Uluwan.
"Any problems with that, Marius?"
"Nein. A simple task."