Monday 12/09/61, Location: 22.16513, 113.58226, Time 08:00
The team assembled in the first bedroom after breakfast was delivered by room service, and sat on the largest of the beds, the white noise generator running smoothly in the background to cut out their conversation from the entertainment system.
"Ok, so if we can get in to see some of these merc reps, I'll take the lead in the discussion to start with, while you monitor, Shimazu – I'll introduce you as my bodyguard if necessary or appropriate, and hopefully they might dismiss you then, or assume that you're watching them from a safety point of view rather than studying them psychologically."
"Works for me." Shimazu nodded, understanding the aim of where Kai was heading.
"Tads, Aswon, Hunter and Marius – I'll call upon you as my experts for various aspects of the job as needed, for magical, logistical, engineering and high-tech electronics. But also feel free to butt in with questions or comments that you want to ask or if they're talking drek and you think you can put them under some pressure, ok?" The other four nodded at him around their breakfast, enjoying the fresh bread and orange juice or coffee.
"Anything you want to add in terms of how we do this?"
"I seem to recall," Marius said, fastidiously wiping away a few crumbs from his mouth, "that Yat Gwan gave the impression that the attack we stopped is not the only one. It is just the most recent. The impression given was that previous attacks were physical insertions or had rigger drones to deal with – so it seems that her opponent is willing to vary their tactics and methods, and she cannot just harden her defences against one particular style of attack. So we should perhaps mention that we are also looking for a multi-skilled team to carry out our supposed mission, to match that requirement."
"Ahh, ok, that seems like a fair point. So we need to hint that we need a broad range of capabilities to match potentially several missions or targets." Marius nodded to him in confirmation.
"Did you get that permit thing sorted for me, Hunter?"
"I did, Tads. There's a note about severe injuries causing some difficulty walking, and due to the bio-incompatibility and your rejection of grafts and implants, they only choice they had was to prescribe an old fashioned walking stick or manual aid. Signed off by multiple doctors…" Hunter gestured around the team with a grin.
"Oh, great. Thank you. So if I get stopped?"
"Just show them the SIN. It took a while but I think I've got it inserted into the stick itself, and a number of databases that they would cross-reference to. So you should be ok. But you need to hide that it's magical – I can't do anything about that."
"Got it. Not that I want to use it. In fact, I think it's a really bad idea to get into any kind of trouble here, no matter what the reason. The security seems too tight, and it's everywhere!"
"I don't think any of us want to cause trouble or get into a dispute, Tads. But better to be ready for a fight, than not, eh?" Aswon grinned at her and she reluctantly nodded to him.
"Ok. So the question is – where do we start. Does anyone have a preference?" Kai asked.
"Actually. Yes." Shimazu spoke up first, and the rest of the team fell quiet. "I'd recommend going to see Zu Ling first, in Studio City. She's only one block south of here, and as I understand it Combat Inc is headquartered here so this is their primary facility. It might help bolster our cover to be seen at the "best" first. But then once we have done there, we go east to the Grand Palace, there's two there, then work our way up that side of the strip, over the top and down the other side. If anyone looks at our progress then it's just based on a logical walking route that covers all the main players, and means they can't determine anything more about our choices or the order we go to see people in."
"Oh… that makes sense I suppose. And I agree." Kai looked around, but there wasn't any dissenting opinions – though Aswon did raise a finger. "Right then… we'll go with that. Aswon – you had a point?"
"When we talk with these people, potentially when we go into the hotels to see them – we may need to verify our identity to them. So we should pick and make sure we use the same ID all the time we're here. And it's a good chance that the information would be fed back to their marketing and information department, which will investigate, so there's a good chance they'll discover they're fakes."
"Well, that's going to blow things open then, isn't it!" Kai frowned.
"Not necessarily. At this kind of level, it's something they'll be expecting. People using a fake ID or a cut-out to hire mercs to do a job. If it's a small job, they'd hire Shadowrunners. But for a bigger job you need more reach or logistics than a runner team could handle, so you need a merc outfit. But you might still want that layer of deniability. So you send your fixer out with a fake ID. As long as we use the GOOD quality fakes, even if they do get broken or spotted, they'll just take that as a sign we might be representing a professional organisation. So don't let it throw you if they address you in a way that seems that they know you're not who you claim you are. As long as your Nuyen's good, it doesn't really matter…"
The team headed out, threading their way down the corridors and lifts, ignoring the signage for shopping and eating that was designed to keep people in the hotel, and exited out onto the main Cotai strip, walking through the legs of the giant recreation of the Eiffel Tower. Turning onto the wide six-lane boulevard to the south, they could already see the huge edifice that was Studio City. The main hotel looked to be thirty or so stories high, built in a giant arc around some kind of central feature, and just like the Parisian, took up the entire block.
Getting closer they saw the central area looked to be a recreation of a movie studio entrance, harking back to the pre-crash days of 2d entertainment. As they entered the block itself, there were metallic stars embedded into the floor with all manner of names, most of which they didn't recognise, though a few sim-stars were present. Just like their own hotel, everything was sparkling and spotlessly clean, the plants carefully tended and not a spot of litter about. The streets were pretty empty of tourists this early – but that only meant that the security was so much easier to spot. They drew a few looks, but apparently looked enough like tourists themselves not to attract more than that – not while they were gawping at the scenery anyway.
Just like the other hotels, there was a large entrance loop from the road leading to a covered reception area, then a series of doors leading into a beautiful reception – this time lit with what seemed like a million spotlights, focussed on a huge number of movie posters from across the last century. Kai asked at the reception for a map of the resort which was quickly furnished with a smile.
"Ok, I asked for a recommendation for a quiet bar out of the way, while we waited for a meeting. She suggested the 'Golden Oldies' bar, and marked it on the map. It's this way, I think…" Kai led them out of the reception, and with only one or two wrong turns, took them under the main structure of the hotel and out to the rear area, where there appeared to be a water-park and recreation complex – and off to one side, signage to their destination.
The bar in question was decorated in an art-deco style, the sharp geometric shapes built into the windows and doors, while the walls were a lush dark green outlined with bold brass fittings. The entertainment theme continued with a horde of posters lining the walls, each of which was in monochrome, and apparently relating to films over a hundred years old or more. The bar was deserted apart from a single employee who was busy cleaning light fittings and the copious amounts of polished brass, but as soon as she saw the team, she hustled over to the bar to greet them.
Kai ordered a selection of soft drinks for them, and settled down at the bar to talk to the server, while the rest of the team looked at the walls, examining the posters. It soon became evident that many of the films here featured some stars of the time called 'Bogart', 'Tracy' and 'Hepburn' amongst others, and they were apparently the big hitters of their era. Aswon wandered down the length of the bar and found a small casino at the end, though he had to pass through a security archway to reach it. Just like the main bar, it had only a single staff member present, who quickly stopped cleaning as a 'customer' appeared, and moved over to greet him. Playing the uneducated tourist, Aswon asked to be shown how to play a game of some kind, and was quickly escorted to a Blackjack table to be 'taught' how to play.
Marius followed him through a minute later, but his attention was mostly focussed on the security in the area, noting the huge increase in the dome cameras scattered about the casino floor, and that each of the gaming areas were covered from multiple angles. He also picked up an increase in the noise in his left ear, and when he checked their comms signal, saw that it was being jammed. Hardly surprising really, that even a 'side' gambling area would take precautions to avoid organised game rigging.
Aswon chatted with the dealer for a short while, inwardly cursing at the incredibly bad luck he had as time after time he bust due to bad draws or the dealer lucked out with a draw of twenty and held firm, before he quit the table after fifteen minutes and a moderate two hundred Nuyen loss, heading back into the bar area to meet up with the rest. Kai joined him shortly afterwards, and they compared notes from their discussions.
"Talking with the dealer, he says that Zu Ling actually lives here, and has a private box, she's well known amongst the hotel staff and pretty well regarded. Seems she does most of her business here, and it was hinted at that visitors looking to engage her services often get to stay here. I guess Combat Incorporated get a decent rate on rooms, and it's all part of the kickback."
"Well, that tallies with what the barman said to me. She has access to the shows and various recreational activities, and can get her pick of the restaurants and experiences around the place – presumably all as part of wining and dining her clients. She's a Chinese national, mid-twenties as far as I can work out. Treats the staff well, and is generally polite and courteous. Certainly the bar staff had a decent opinion of her, and that's pretty unusual, I'd say. They also said they could request a meeting if we wanted."
"That would make life easier?"
"That's what I thought… but I wanted to check." Kai glanced around, saw no objections and then pushed himself back to his feet and went back to the bar, requesting that they pass on a message to Zu Ling on their behalf, requesting a meeting. She came back to him barely two minutes later with a message.
"Excuse me, sir. Ms Ling says that she will meet you in fifteen minutes, in her box, if that's convenient?"
"Oh, that's excellent – thank you. I didn't expect it to be so speedy."
"Would you like directions to the entertainment centre? Or I could get someone to escort you?"
"Directions would be fine. Though, I'm guessing we're probably interrupting her breakfast. Would it be possible to request a small platter of food perhaps, and some drinks?"
"Of course sir, I can take care of that for you." She held out her hand and took Kai's offered SIN, quickly entering some details into her cred-reader and then offered it to him to authorise. "Let me take care of that for you now, sir." She marked up the map, showing the team where to go, and then hustled back to the bar and used the computer there to make some arrangements.
They followed the directions and travelled further west, ending up in the massive entertainment and conference centre that took up the back half of the block, and wound up going up two full levels into an opulently appointed corridor, with a number of reinforced and secure doors leading from it. As they counted the numbers along the corridor they saw one of the hotel staff waiting ahead of them with a trolley holding a covered platter – putting two and two together, they hurried over and found him waiting outside the room they were heading for.
Moments after they arrived, they saw a young-looking Chinese lady walking their way, approaching from the link to the hotel. She was wearing a very stylish dress, although lacking obvious adornment, it was made out of some fabric that seemed to shimmer in the light, along with low-heeled court shoes. She smiled widely as she approached, her attention not focussed on any one of them.
"Good morning, you must be Mr. Khangal?"
"Yes, that's me. And you must be Ms. Ling? It's a pleasure to meet you." As Kai spoke, she gave the others a smile and nod before turning her attention to him, and her smile widened as she gave him a brisk handshake. "I hope you don't mind, but I got the feeling you don't normally take business meetings this early, so I took the liberty of arranging some food in case we disturbed your breakfast."
"Oh, how very thoughtful. It's not a problem at all, and thank you. I could have taken care of this for you, though – but your thoughtfulness is appreciated. Please, do come in." She moved up to the door, swiped an access card through the reader and bent over the scanner to let it read her iris pattern.
"Apple and winter blossom shampoo. Strong whiff as she passed, along with some honeysuckle bodywash. She must have gotten the call and dived straight into the shower and got down here in record time…" Hunter sent out, his nose still twitching from the brief analysis of her scent as she passed him.
The team followed Ms. Ling into the room, finding that it was a large box that overlooked a stage, hovering maybe three floors above the stalls. The amphitheatre they overlooked was large, perhaps capable of holding a thousand or more people, and the rows of seats were raked back from the stage, rising up to give everyone a clear view. Aswon moved forwards and stopped abruptly as his senses tingled – then very carefully moved a hand in front of his face and almost flinched in surprise as he met resistance.
"It's crysta-glass. Some of the most translucent material on the market, and gives you an unobstructed view of the stage and the performers – whilst still giving privacy." As Ms. Ling spoke, Aswon's eyes flicked up to the wall on the other side of the room, and he suddenly wondered if each of those wall panels he could dimly see was actually another window into another private box…
"Amazing technology. It's so clear that I still can't see it, even though I know it's there." He bobbed his head back and forth a little, trying to catch a vague reflection of the glass panel, to no avail. He turned away as he heard the hotel staff member unloading the trolley onto the table, laying out the small breakfast platter and drinks, and watching as Ms Ling thanked the man and gave him what appeared to be a warm and genuine smile.
"Please, be seated. Make yourselves comfortable. Good." She gave them a smile, that on the surface looked just as welcoming, but to Shimazu and Kai's trained eyes lacked the warmth displayed only a moment ago. "So, Mr. Khangal, I take it you have need of some security specialists for a contract?"
"Yes indeed, Ms. Ling. We represent an organisation that requires a small strike force to carry out a mission for us. It could be technically challenging, and require a multitude of skills, along with discretion and resolve. And, in particular it may require a certain amount of logistical backup and organisation, making it unsuitable for ahh… freelancers."
"I see. And I understand." She nodded at his oblique reference to Shadowrunners.
"We are looking to employ some operatives for a strike against some heavy infrastructure, seeking to damage and disable it by any means – but not to destroy it. This is more a…demonstration perhaps is the right word, that the current owners are lacking in their security and should not perhaps be trusted. Part of a wider marketing campaign." Kai gave a brief grin at the end.
"Marketing can be a cut-throat activity. So, a team to strike at a heavy fixed target, using whatever methods are deemed necessary or practical?"
"Yes. We envisage that we would require a team of specialist operatives to actually carry out the strike itself, along with perhaps some teams to run either interference or decoy operations, to assist the primary team with their egress, along with logistical and transport support. Ideally all from the same organisation, with a vested interest in making sure that all the other cog-wheels know what is going on, and what is turning when. Let's just say we've been stung before by multi-agency operations." The drek slipped smoothly out as Kai described his imaginary previous operations, but the merc rep just nodded to him as if it was the truth. She didn't seem to have any suspicions – however she could just have been a fiendishly good poker player. Nobody imagined for a moment that they were likely to place someone inept in a position like this – but to Kai that just made the game that much more fun.
"Well, that all sounds very doable. Obviously a physical strike using direct action or demolition skills can often be the simplest to arrange, but can leave evidence and requires a certain proximity. Attacks via riggers or deckers can be performed further away but have a higher skill requirement, and of course, cost. Magical assaults or infiltrations the same again, but we have resources for all of those."
"Control is a key factor for us, Ms. Ling. You see, the infrastructure in question is a power station. Or rather stations. But specifically nuclear power stations."
There was a moment of silence as Zu Ling studied him, her face calm and composed. Shimazu saw a tiny flicker in her body language though, indicating that things had just stepped up a gear. She looked down at the table and selected a small morsel of food, popping it into her mouth and chewing delicately to buy her a few more seconds to respond.
"That does complicate matters somewhat. And I would be remiss to ask to what level of damage are you seeking. Because a power station can be somewhat volatile, and a nuclear power station far more so. When they go wrong, they tend to attract a lot of media attention, and that involves questions, very deep, probing questions, from a lot of people. And some of those questions can be bad for business."
"Indeed. But I think I can assure you we're not after that kind of attention. Perhaps my engineering and technology experts can chip in here." Kai gestured towards Marius and Hunter.
"Like most facilities of this type, there are a large number of redundancies and checks built into a nuclear power station. They are inherently designed to fail safely, if a failure occurs. We would seek to inflict such a condition. Perhaps by damaging the water inflow pipes to the turbines on the cold side, causing a lack of flow and an overheat condition. Perhaps by damaging the electrical transformers on the output from the station to prevent transmission from the station itself of the generated power. But no action need be performed on the hot circuit, no damage or strike against the nuclear kettle or hot steam circuit."
As Marius described the damage, dropping in a few key words for the different elements of the station, Kai watched her overtly, Shimazu covertly, looking to pick up on her understanding and recognition of those key phrases or descriptions of technology.
"It could be as simple as damaging the monitoring equipment itself," Hunter chimed in, making Zu Ling switch focus to the other side of the room. "You don't even have to damage the plant itself. But if you can take out the part of the safety system that monitors radiation levels, or heat generated, to the point where they feel THEY can't safely manage the process and have to shut down – that still achieves our aims. It's the interruption of production that is important, not the actual damage caused."
"And we absolutely, one hundred percent, do not want to cause any environmental damage or risk any kind of catastrophe. That is not acceptable at all." Tads added, redirecting her attention once more. While Tads wasn't a convincing liar normally, it was helped that here, she was specifically telling the absolute truth, and her desire leaked through her voice and body language. "We must not damage the local area, or the civilian population in any way."
"And this is why we require a disciplined team with a mastery of tactics, operational planning and understanding of the risks involved. And disciplined enough to follow the plans required and understand the limitations placed upon the mission. Again, something that freelancers possibly could not be relied upon to adhere to." Aswon added, keeping Zu Ling's attention moving, and adding his own perspective.
"All of that is possible. And it is reassuring to hear that you do not seek the type of destruction likely to cause major diplomatic incidents. If the strike is to have a more limited impact, then I'm sure we can prepare a quotation for you, in line with the prospect of engaging our services."
"Well, that is reassuring." Kai gave her a warm smile. "Of course, I'm sure you're well aware that we're likely to be looking at other providers too while we're here – you were top of the list, but we would be looking at other options too – our employers obviously want to try and get the best possible solution, but at a reasonable price."
"Of course, that would be prudent."
"Indeed, and it's very reasonable, of course. I might even be cheeky and ask if there are any providers that we shouldn't go and talk to – as I'm sure you're much better versed in the mercenary situation around here than we are!" Kai grinned at her, turning on the charm full blast. Ling smiled at him and gave a polite chuckle, then her eyes opened a little wider as she realised he was serious, when he turned around his datapad and showed her the list of other merc organisations. Kai widened his smile and adjusted his body language slightly, and she gave a chuckle, then glanced down the list.
"I have to admit that all of the people on your list could probably carry out such an operation. But don't let my boss hear that I said that!" She smiled, but her eyes narrowed a little as she exerted a little dominance over him.
"Of course, of course. Never a word shall pass our lips."
The conversation continued a little, with Kai asking questions about the contract duration, how they would sign up for the potential job, and a host of other details to try and cement their role as prospective customers. Overall they were in with their host for nearly an hour, before the meeting wrapped up and they were escorted back out of the room into the concourse. Zu Ling wished them well, and watched as they turned and left, before returning into her room, no doubt to type up some notes from the meeting.
Once the team was outside the hotel grounds, and reasonable certain that they could talk without being overhead, they started to pass information over amongst themselves…
"She really got careful as soon as it was mentioned the target was nuclear," Aswon pointed out, "and rightfully so. Blowing up a plant and contaminating the countryside is going to hit all the news-nets and probably bring down the wrath of god on whoever did it."
"Indeed. It would be something that would likely unify corporate response, even from rivals, in the public eye." Marius shook his head at the concept of bitter rivals co-operating.
"But it was interesting – once she knew that it wasn't aimed at that kind of destruction, it was still a deal on the table. That means she's not massively opposed to it, and was considering it. But I got the impression she was having to think things through, and that means she hadn't already worked it out. I don't think they're our marks." Shimazu responded.
They continued to chat as they walked two blocks to the east and then one north, closing on the Grand Lisboa Palace. Hunter let them know that he'd managed to reserve some meeting slots via the matrix, and they were allocated about an hour for each meeting, the first being with Sir Stephen Colbert from Task Force Magus, followed by Jean Baptise from BrightEdge.
The Grand Lisboa was shorter than both the Parisian and Studio City, but made up for it by dominating the entire width of the block evenly. Made from white stone it looked to have lights attached to every single terrace or step-back, and at night must have glowed fit to guide in passing jetliners on final approach. It seemed to be designed in western Mediterranean style, apparently paying homage to the Portuguese roots of Macau. Once again a loop road fed into a covered reception are with grand doors leading into a fabulous marble corridor and the reception area, geometric tiles laid out creating a dizzying mosaic of swirls and tessellating patterns that appeared to stretch off into infinity. This time though, as they walked into the reception area, there was a subtle ping from the doorway on either side of them, and a smartly dressed but serious-looking security officer quickly closed in on them.
"Good morning. Do you have any items that you need to check in to a deposit box?" The team halted, looking around at each other and the guard, wondering what was going to happen.
"Oh – It might be my toolkit." Shimazu offered. He stepped back into the doorway and there was another soft ping. He made a show of checking his inside pockets and then pulled out the small toolkit he used when working on locks. Handing it over to the security guard, he stepped back in and out of the doorway – this time to blessed silence. "Silly me. Well, we won't need that for our meetings this morning."
"Thank you, sir. You have meetings here?"
"Yes, we do. With Sir Stephen Colbert, I believe, due to start in a few minutes." Kai interjected, moving forwards towards the reception desk and trying to get away from the weapons scanner in case it decided that the vibro-knife concealed inside Shimazu's jacket wasn't quite as innocent as it had seemed on the last scan.
"Ahh, very good, sir. Sir Stephen normally takes his breakfast in the Orangery. Let me get this sealed away for you and I can escort you there." The guard waved for a security box and dropped the toolkit in, then gestured for Shimazu to slot his SIN and provide a thumbprint to seal and register it, before leading them into the hotel proper. Just like the other buildings, it was made up of soaring atriums, polished marble, glittering handrails, exotic art – and plants. Lots and lots of plants. Every nook seemed to be filled with a large potted plant of some kind, and all of the atriums featured large flowing cascades of plants draped over the edges, forming living waterfalls of leaves.
"I like it here. We should stay here if we come back." Tads looked around with satisfaction, then briefly dropped into the astral to sample the aura, finding it even more pleasant and to her taste. Whoever had designed this, or more importantly, maintained it, really cared about the plants. It wasn't fake, or forced – people who enjoyed tending to nature looked after the abundance of plant life, and it was reflected in the background mana of the area. It practically called out to her, and she could feel the abundance of mana in the air, ready to be tapped.
When they arrived at the 'Orangery' they were greeted with a wave of humid and warm air as the doors were opened, and a veritable jungle inside. The plant life outside had been impressive, but inside the glass and steel structure it went to the next level, looking more like the set for some trideo drama about the dense jungles of Borneo. Butterflies flitted around the area, and insects hummed from plant to plant, sampling the flowers and stems of dozens of exotic looking and rare species. Once over the original surprise, they saw that there was a carefully tiered hierarchy for the plants, with the rarer and more unusual species positioned further back or higher up, away from grasping hands, while denser and more common species were available to touch. None of the plants were dangerous though, with several of the team checking them out for known species containing ingredients that would bring out a rash or cause issues – everything here seemed very benign, though beautifully arranged.
Their escort bought them to a large metal gazebo, in which sat a tall and distinguished gentleman, probably somewhere in his 60s. Wearing a very traditional-looking tweed suit, his breast carried a number of medals on ribbons, neatly arranged and perfectly aligned. He looked up from his large broadsheet newsfax, printed on traditional paper rather than e-ink, and then carefully folded the paper down onto the table and rose to greet them.
"Mr. Khangal, I take it?"
"Yes indeed, and you must be Sir Colbert. A pleasure to meet you, sir." Kai responded putting plenty of respect into his voice.
"The pleasure is mine. Please, take a seat." He gestured to the finely wrought iron chairs dotted around the table, but then moved to follow Tads, gently grasping the chair and moving it in behind her. She was a little uncertain at his behaviour, but he didn't seem hostile, and she grasped his intent and sat neatly and gave a little nod of thanks.
"And they say that chivalry is dead." Kai remarked, giving Sir Stephen a warm smile.
"They do, and they are incorrect. You just have to know where to look." Sir Stephen responded.
The team settled down, and were quickly given glasses of orange juice or chilled water, while a selection of breakfast pastries and sliced meat were laid out under mesh covers to keep the buzzing insects away. It seemed that being "wined and dined" was a common feature of such meetings, and potentially they were starting off easy – and that any meetings they had later could turn into more serious drinking sessions.
Kai outlined the fake mission again, just as he had for Zu Ling, while Sir Stephen asked the occasional question or made a comment, smoothly working in what must have been some of his standard sales pitch into the conversation. At one point he mentioned the close integration of their magical and mundane team members, and when Kai asked for clarification he pulled out a very high spec and modern tablet from under his chair and played a prepared briefing – a very slick mix of computer graphics and live action footage shot in a documentary style, which of course showed their forces achieving great things with what looked like ease.
Much as their earlier meeting had gone, when the details were teased out and it became clear that they were looking for a strike on a nuclear facility, there was an immediate and marked change in demeanour. Shimazu watched a barely masked look of disdain wash over his face, before he schooled his features and told Kai that he would certainly not be looking to continue development on the contract based on those targets. When it was abundantly and clearly refined to include only interruptions or service outages, and definitely nothing that could harm the environment in any way whatsoever, the conversation renewed, but Sir Stephen appeared to have been somewhat soured by the initial pitch, and towards the end of the meeting, they actually received a quote from him in a preliminary basis, that was close to six figures and demanded a large up-front payment to be held in escrow.
Sensing the coldness and general tone of the conversation, Kai made efforts to keep things light, to re-emphasise their absolute commitment not to cause any ecological damage, and quickly wrapped up the meeting, allowing them to thank their host and beat a retreat from the humid area of the Orangery and find a cooler and more comfortable area of the hotel to briefly stop and chat. They were circumspect as they were still indoors and couldn't be sure there weren't listening devices, keeping their conversation brief and quiet.
"I don't think he liked the mission at all. That price was high, and too quickly given. I think he's trying to price himself out of the market, without flat out refusing it." Aswon commented.
"Is he for real anyway? I mean he wasn't even wearing a robe. And those medals looked like they came out of a cereal box." Kai grinned, wondering if they'd also see the funny side.
"He looked like a mage to me. Had a few, very well hidden, foci on him, and no cyberware at all." Aswon responded.
"And those medals were real. He's a Knight Commander of St Michael and St George – that's a real award of the British Crown, and well respected. He really is a 'Sir' and probably has political clout." Hunter added.
"Well, you're still his king then."
"Drek off."
"Well, either way – I don't think he's our guy. He didn't seem to relish the idea of a strike on the plants, probably because anything going wrong would cause such massive damage – and they're going to feel it more than most." Aswon chipped in to head off the argument. "So I'd say that's another one to cross off the list."
"Agreed." Marius confirmed, and the others nodded along, agreeing with them in a universal vote.
"Come on, we've got a few minutes to find the BrightEdge location. I'd say it can't be far, but these hotels are massive. At least the passages make more sense than that hellhole in Kowloon…" Kai pushed himself up and headed off down another glittering marble passage, looking for 'The Botanicum' and their next meeting.
The location proved to be not that far away, possibly even butting onto the Orangery in space, though accessed from a totally different side of the hotel. It was part of a miniature indoor zoo, and carried over the natural themes established elsewhere in the hotel. The background count rose even higher here as the displays of insect and small creatures were nestled in environments that so closely mimicked their home ecosystems that it was probable that the creatures didn't know they were so far from home. The BrightEdge office was set in a small room off to one side of the tour corridor, and was panelled in dark wood with recessed and subdued lighting, along with a number of comfortable leather chairs arrayed around a small coffee table.
Inside, waiting for them, was a male dwarf, seemingly of a middle age, though it was always hard to tell with both dwarves and elves. He was wearing robes that made them think of Jesuit priests, and he had a very direct and piercing stare that he fixed them with as they entered.
"Bonjour tout le monde."
"Bonjour. Veuillez continuer en anglais, pour mes collègues" Hunter responded smoothly.
"Ahh, very well. English it is." His voice was heavily accented, and Hunter listened carefully, working his way through the pronunciation to try and determine where in France he came from. "Good morning to you all then, and be welcome in the sight of God."
Tads meanwhile had risked a quick glance into the astral and spotted two things. Firstly, their host had a slightly fuzzy aura, not showing any cyberware, but not entirely normal either. As she studied him for a moment, she thought she could pick up some subtle changes in key areas of his body, where it had been changed or augmented somehow. She realised it was probably bioware, vat-grown and clonally compatible tissues that had been implanted, less damaging than cyberware, though still enough to make casting magic more difficult. The second thing she noticed was that as she continued to study him, the flies in the display case at the back of the room were starting to glow. The longer she stayed in astral, probing his aura carefully, the brighter the glow became, and she hurriedly adjusted her vision, returning to the more mundane sight before the glow became too noticeable.
Once more they started their fake presentation, but Jean Baptise was clearly cut from different cloth. As soon as the basics had been explained, he dived right into the operational side of things, starting to explain exactly how they would approach such a mission, and how it would be carried out. Aswon listened carefully, paying close attention to his choice of words and mannerisms, and picked up on several telltale clues – he was pretty certain that this dwarf wasn't just a corporate marketing specialists, he'd been an actual merc himself, had been out in the field and smelt the napalm. He was proficient and very aware of a number of factors that would affect things and seemed to have a familiarity with being out in the field, dealing with different missions and coping with the demands from the rear-echelon types that sent out mission orders.
The others listened as Jean Baptise dived into the planning, laying out how many squads they would need with what skills, to do particular aspects of the mission and deception plan, and were a mix of horrified and amused at the inclusion of a chaplain to oversee the mission. The chaplain in fact seemed to take the position of a captain or senior sergeant in his force structure, and was responsible not only for leading prayers and keeping them on the path of righteousness, but also for logistics, transport, communications and control.
By now, they were picking up on a number of common factors in the pitches or presentations. Whenever a problem was raised, it was made clear that the organisation had the skills and equipment to deal with it. Nothing was impossible, everything was negotiable for the right price, and certainly they were better equipped to deal with any issues than any of the other mercenary outfits the team were likely to talk to. Shimazu could start to get a feel for things now, when Jean Baptise was speaking for himself or responding directly to their questions, and what was sales and marketing nonsense, promising them the moon on a stick with only vague assurances that they could follow through.
When they revealed the nuclear side of things, Baptise seemed less taken aback than the others – though he quickly started to add in a large number of extra troops and skills required to make the mission work, as well as PR types and marketing assistants to deal with the fallout. His language showed that he was talking off the cuff, almost speaking out loud as he worked out the logistics of the situation, and Kai actually had a job interrupting his planning to let him know about the constraints they had.
Aswon and Hunter shared a glance as the dwarf almost planned out a theoretical mission in great detail – they could see he was good, and any questions about whether he was actually experienced out in the field himself were firmly put to bed. He seemed to be an expert at planning and organisation, and was hugely impressive in a different kind of way to Zu Ling or Sir Stephen Colbert. He radiated a competence that he could actually get the job done, and to actual operators like the team, he had enough credence from even this small meeting that they were convinced he could do it. It was also clear that he was working through this from cold, and it wasn't a specific mission that he'd had to deal with before – which meant that BrightEdge also wasn't the organisation they were looking for.
As they had before, they wrapped the meeting up carefully and politely, with Kai explaining that they were seeking quotes from multiple mercenary companies before 'their organisation' made a decision on who to pick.
Finishing up, and with a prayer said for them whether they liked it or not, they extricated themselves from the hotel and started to head north.
"Pretty sure he was speaking with a French Moroccan accent. Lots of his word choices were edged with a distinctive accent."
"Makes sense, Hunter. I was sure BrightEdge were based somewhere over that way, and as soon as you said 'Morocco' it clicked. I'm sure that's where their headquarters are."
"Handy for desert wars as well" Marius pointed out.
"Yeah – he's definitely seen action. But I don't think he's our guy. Keen as hell, and not so fussed about the risk of hitting a nuke plant, but he was far too willing to dive down into planning for the first time."
"I agree, Hunter." Aswon nodded. "So where does that leave us?"
"Well, next hotel up is the Wynn Palace." Kai checked his notes. And we've got Tiguan Oolowamba from the Free Marine Corp there, as well as this Professor woman, Jenny Lindstrom from Team Zero. Though if we continue to get fed at every meeting, we might need to start booking taxis soon to get us to the next hotel…"
With grins all round, they started to head north to the next major block and the enormous Wynn Palace, rising up like a black ziggurat at least forty stories tall, while the clock crept towards midday.