"The last one might have," Tess says. "The one who shot at us. We were running and then behind cover, and I shot him good too, so he might not even be alive still. But he might have caught a glimpse of at least one of us," she says, honesty coming more easily now that it seems Bao isn't going to murder them. Maybe he can help with that part, too? He seems to have a bit of influence, perhaps he can disappear the spooks.
"The 'maid,' in Ulven's, the other spook Creed and I shot. She sent our pictures, remember?" Cass says, unable to get her dead visage out of his mind once more. "Somebody has our faces."
A kilocred, fuck. That kind of salt's going a long way. He sighs in relief. I need to pick up more meds. Think I only got a week left at this point. His shoulder sends a new wave of vascular pain through his arm. And guns. More guns.
"Ah, true," Tess says, having forgotten about the maid. "Perhaps the Diktat is involved, or they gained our information from them? Given their organization, I doubt it would be hard for them to hack a small time Diktat jail and get our mug shots."
As she speaks she digs in her bag, producing the bottle of beer she'd bought earlier. If there was ever a time to drink this, it's now, after a job well done. Once done speaking, she twists the cap off and flicks it at a nearby crate, savoring the small clink as the metal hits other metal. She then takes a large swig from the bottle, frowning slightly at its temperature. "Anyone want a sip?" she asks, feeling the others might appreciate a good drink right now too. Or even a mediocre one.
"Probably someone with the League, if that's who compromised your boys," Hikaru offers with a shrug. "But who the hell knows who they hired? League's a lot different here than on Strocho." I guess they'll use any means necessary to take down the Diktat.
He smiles at the buzz on his phone, indicating credits have been added to his account. This should hold me over awhile if management keeps denying my money requests. He looks back towards Bao and raises an eyebrow. "So what happens next if they've seen our faces? Can't exactly change all this," he says, gesturing to his famed visage.
He glances towards Tess's offer and shakes his head. Just what I want. Lukewater oat water, or whatever the hell beer is made from.
Cass perks up at the sound of a beercap popping, and opens his mouth to speak, but closes it again, remembering the methadone tap he'd been on the last few weeks. With a sigh, he shakes his head. "Nah. Thanks, Tess. You enjoy it."
He turns back to Bao at Hikaru's question. "We free to walk now? We did what you asked, seems like you figured out what you need."
"Always prepared I see," Bao says with a slight chuckle seeing Tess pull out the beer bottle. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small silver hipflask. He raises it in toast towards your before taking a quick swig.
"League Intelligence would be my guess," he says agreeing with Hikaru. "I doubt they're too happy about you blowing their op wide open too - especially if you killed one of them. You guys are unfortunately neck deep in shit right now."
"You're free to go if you want to try your chances on your own Mr Bevideia - but I doubt you'd last more than a week before they find you again and put you down. I'll give you some free advice. For a start stick together - splitting up is only going to make it easier to pick you off one at a time. Second you're going to want to try and keep your heads down for a while, hopefully their attention will shift to more important things eventually. And in a similar vein you're going to want to stay mobile. Don't stay anywhere too long. A ship would be the ideal solution there, especially as you already have a pilot, he says gesturing at Creed.
"You'd basically be untouchable - I doubt the spooks have any influence over the League Navy," he says, before pausing and stroking his beard once more.
After a moment he speaks again. "Look, you've done me a bigger favour than I expected so I can try and help you out. At least with the last two of those. I know a couple of you live here in Idarete City but probably so do they now. This place is off my books and there's some cots and a couch up in the office so you can lie low here for a while if you want. No one should come looking for you here. As for staying on the move, I have some contacts that could probably help you out with that one way or another."
"Hell if you do manage to somehow get your hands on a ship, I could certainly make use of your services. I doubt your normal lives will be safe to return to at least for a while."
As if my normal life was safe to begin with, Tess muses after Bao's miniature speech. "I'd certainly be grateful for a place to hide out incognito," she responds to the man, before taking another sip of her beer.
"A ship sounds great, but those are pricey," she adds, thinking over his suggestions earnestly, but with no small bit of skepticism. "Definitely more than any of us could afford, I imagine. Even my lovely little Hik-y," she says, as she playfully ruffles Hikaru's hair.
Hikaru sighs but nods at Bao's advice. I guess I won't be enjoying soft beds and room service for awhile. "Thanks," Hikaru says somewhat meekly, not used to many people looking out for him. "I appreciate it." He gives a slight smile but is interrupted as Tess tousles his hair.
He smirks, trying to style his hair back to its usual well-kept messiness. "Maybe you'd know if you made a couple platinum records," he says with a wink. "I know you've got the moves, but how bout the voice?" He chuckles but regains his composure soon after. "But yeah, most of my money's locked up trusts and accounts I can't touch. We're more likely to just find a free ship on the street."
Cass takes a deep breath, shaking his head slowly at the news. "Looks like life has gotten a bit more complicated, hm?"
He considers his circumstances. Still, could be worse. Could be in that Diktat cell. Sounds like Zeus has feasted on all my clients anyways. Not gonna be slinging in Idarete for a while... or ever.
"Alright, Bao. Personally, I'll take your offer to lie low. I've got to make a run, though, before." He holds up his dataslab, dismissing the notification of funds received. "If these spooks are really after us, I want to be kitted out, yeah? Pocket-piece don't cut it." He peers up curiously at the gangster. "Say, you wouldn't happen to... also be an arms seller?"
Tess turns to Cass and raises an eyebrow. That was forward, she thinks, as she listens to his question to their gracious host. However, his words remind get her to thinking, and some extra gear wouldn't hurt.
"That's not a bad idea, actually," Tess responds. She turns to face Bao, waiting his response. Hopefully he is. Don't want to risk heading out there again if we can avoid it.
Eridas listens for the beep and checks the datapad. He nods and mostly stays quiet, letting the others discuss the follow-up. After a moment of silence, Eridas pipes up, still behind the others, and barely above a whisper, he says "I'll take the place to stay... It'll be nice not being at home with my mother for once." He smiles softly before a look of worry spreads across his face. "Speaking of, uh... My mom doesn't really go anywhere, she'll be worried sick about me, do you mind getting someone to keep an eye on her for me?" He asks, not really realizing how weird that might sound.
"That they are, although I know of a couple of banks that might be interested in helping you buy one, for a cut of your earnings of course. If your not one for big financial commitments there's either salvage or thievery," Bao replies to Tess.
"Looking for some new iron heh?" The gangster asks Cass with a smile. "Arms dealer rolls off the tongue much better I feel. Give this number a call - they know this place so can probably meet you here," he says pulling out his compad again and sending a contact to Cass. "I will warn you, the Diktat have been cracking down on the heavier stuff so the prices have been going up and open carrying is not a good idea. The days of a gang of five strolling down a promenade in Idarete City armed to teeth with no one batting an eye are gone - at least for now - or if they're wearing Diktat uniforms."
"I'll get one of my boys to drop by when they're in the neighbourhood," he says as Eridas brings up his mother. "I should probably run. What you've uncovered is going require my attention," He adds checking his compad. He stands up and begins making his way to the door.
"Oh, here's access to the warehouse and the office," he says, tapping a few times on his compad, linking the doors' locks to your own.
Cass gives the man a slight wave as he goes. "Thanks for the number. We'll lie low," he says.
Once Bao has left, the junkie turns to the others. "He trusts too easy. We do one job for him and he gives us a safehouse, his arms contact, and a bank rec. No wonder he has allowed himself two vacuum-head lieutenants." He laughs, unexpectedly. "He's lucky we're not spooks ourselves. This could have been an easy infiltration."
Tess laughs as well at Cass' remarks, amused that he too was thinking just how easy winning Bao over seemed. "Well, it is working out for us, so that's good enough for me," she says. "We should give this contact a call, I am sure, after the recent gun fights, we could all benefit from a little extra protection."
She takes a look around the warehouse, taking it all in now that they are finally alone and not worrying about being killed or kidnapped. Now where do we go to relax? I hope there's a bath here, or at least a shower. I could really use one right about now/
"Yeah," Cass agrees, relieved for the break. "I'll give them a ping once we've settled in. Speaking of protection, I slipped these from one of the lieutenants' places."
He digs out of his backpack, producing a small packet of medical gear. "Pharmatech. Shit didn't work for me, but you seem like you're better with your hands." The man grimaces the moment the words come out of his mouth, but decides to ignore the slip. "It's two laz-patches in case I get shot again. And this is a vial of tsunami. Hope nothing we do ever comes to needing rage-juice pumped in our veins, so it might be better to pawn it off."
Tess smirks as the man's words slip out, seemingly unintentionally given his reaction. "Good with my hands, huh? Whatever do you mean?" she asks, with a teasing tone of voice. She reaches out and takes the medtech, placing it in her bag shortly after. Such an awkward man, she thinks to herself, her initial disgust with him and Creed having faded some over the course of the day's insanity. He could certainly use a bath as well.
Exploring the warehouse, you find little of interest other than the sealed crates and cargo containers in the main room. A set of stairs lead up to the office Bao mentioned. Your compads grant you access and the door clicks open.
Inside you find a reception area with a desk and a large couch in the corner, as well as a small refrigerator and some water coolers. Further into the room you find some empty lockers as well as three cots and another desk. The cots have clearly been slept in at least somewhat recently - you probably aren't the first people Bao has had lay low here. Large windows overlook the warehouse floor down below.
Another door leads to a small bathroom with a leaky shower.
Once they've mapped out the place for themselves, Tess heads back towards the restroom. "I'm going to take a shower," she says, beginning to unzip her suit as she nears it. "So you boys wait out here for a bit," she continues, before stepping into the room.
Once inside she takes off her suit and places her bag on the ground, suit on top. She takes a slow and relaxing shower, humming to herself as she does so, and after a half hour or so steps back out to a wet spot on the floor. She grimaces at the sight, and does her best to avoid the puddle before wrapping herself and her hair in two separate towels. She then grabs her things and heads back out into the office.
Once outside she tosses her stuff on the corner cot with the black sheets, before dropping down next to it to sit. She continues to dry her hair as she sits, saying, "well if one of you wants it next, just know that it leaks. Already a sizeable puddle, so keep an eye on that." It's free, so better than nothing. Bao should really get a plumber, though. Maybe one of them has some hidden plumbing skills, she thinks, chuckling lightly to herself.
"I think you mean when you get shot again," Hikaru replies to Cass with a somewhat-condescending smirk. "Your head's about as cool as a volcano on Berez when things go south. And that just invites more trouble."
As Tess teases the man, the pop star can't help but chuckle. "You should start charging extra for your handiwork if he's gonna keep this up." He trails behind as they find their way up to the warehouse's office. He sighs as he takes in their meager arrangements, taking off his hoodie and tossing it on the cot with the beige sheets. He sits upon it, staring at his compad while Tess disappears into the bathroom.
He frowns as she returns, mentioning its leaking issue. "I was hardly expecting five-star accommodations, but this leaves much to be desired. At least it's only for a little while." Eager to get in before the puddle accumulates too much, Hikaru makes a break for the bathroom. He quickly undresses, placing his clothing atop the closed toilet seat so the puddle doesn't threaten them. Jumping into the shower, he quickly shampoos with what's left of a hotel sample-sized shampoo he finds on a shelf, tea tree mint. He works it into a quick lather and rinses, but does not repeat.
He spots a bar of soap but grimaces as it's seemingly-covered in an array of hair and almost looks as though a bite is missing. The fuck? He sighs and shakes his head, trying to use some residual shampoo foam to clean his body. After fifteen minutes, he turns off the shower, leaping out to avoid the now-larger puddle. He dries himself, redresses, and returns to the room. "I don't suppose Bao knows a shampoo dealer too, hm? Otherwise we'll be working with an ounce or two of the Idarete Plaza's finest for the next week or so."
"Shakes can't aim his gun to hit a building, and I wouldn't trust Glitter not to intentionally lance me with the hypo," Cass says, quickly recovering from the misspeak. "No offense," he shrugs at the two men before turning back to Tess. "Process of elimination makes you the medic."
After they've explored the four corners they are now bound to for the indeterminable future, Cass sits on the couch and sighs, sinking into the cushions for a moment. He waits patiently while Tess showers, then impatiently as he checks the time on his dataslab. Half-hour? Damn. That's almost a week of hot water rations.
He tosses his backpack on the green cot, taking a quick inventory of everything. "Guess I don't need to lug this around," the junkie says, taking out a heavy postech toolbox and setting it on the ground next to him. He takes a moment to clean the tools within, waiting for Hikaru to finish his own shower. Finally, the man comes out complaining of shampoo.
"Dibs on next, but let me try something first." He slips the metatool onto his wrist, stepping into the bathroom. The steam blankets him and he frowns, fanning the door a few times to circulate the air. Crouching next to the shower, he begins to work.
"If you can get that thing working better, we'd all be grateful," Tess says sincerely to Cass, as he makes his way to the bathroom with his tool. By this time her body is sufficiently dried, so she stands and lets the lower of her two towels fall to the ground while she squeezes back into her suit, zipping it up to a midway point as usual. She leaves the towel on her head for now.
With her suit back on it is quick for her to put on her boots as well, and once dressed she grabs her bag and steps over to the lockers. She opens the one that is on the far left and places her bag inside, before shutting it and turning to lean against the closed locker door. She looks to her right to Hikaru and sighs. "Well, now what? Want to play cards?"
Hikaru shrugs at Tess's offer and gives a weak smile. "May as well, not like we've got much else to do." He rests his head against the wall, looking up towards his friend. "You got a game in mind that isn't strip poker?" he asks, a wide smirk forming across his face.
"Well, guess that idea is ruled out," she says jokingly, stepping over to her friend and giving him a playful, gentle punch on the arm. "That wouldn't be a fair game to play, anyway. You all have more layers than me," she adds with a smirk.
She steps over to the couch and takes a seat, setting her compad face-up on the table. She leans over and pulls up an app to play gin, and the deck holographically appears on the table and deals out two hands. She grabs the one near where she is seated, and looks over to Hikaru, tapping a spot on the couch for him.
Satisfied, Cass steps back out to the main office. "Shower's fixed," he says confidently as he kicks off his boots and tosses the metatool into his backpack. "Now to test it." Shutting the door and stripping out of his torn hoodie and trousers, he hops in the shower letting the hot water pour over his head. His shoulder burns like sin, but he remembers to keep it out of direct contact. Carefully washing himself not to aggravate the wound any further, he finishes up to find the puddle no larger. I hope we're out of here before it starts leaking again.
Throwing his used towel on the floor and mopping up the puddle with his foot, he slides on his tanktop and trousers before returning to the office once more. "Creed, you're good. Still some hot water left, beratna," Cass says, noticing the card game as he tosses the hoodie under his cot and sits down on it. "When you two are done can I get a steady hand with this? There should be a first aid kit on a worksite like this."
Hikaru makes his way towards the couch, plopping down on it with an exaggerated sigh. God, it feels like I'm on tour again. Long days, bad water pressure, nothing to do in the hotel room but raid the minifridge. He tries his best to focus on the card game and get his mind off the day they've been suffering through.
The game takes probably 10 minutes, and try as she might, Tess is not able to beat Hikaru. She sighs once she realizes that he manages to win right before she was going to play her own cards to win, then laughs. "Well, that was close."
At Cass' words she stands and pokes around the office, trying to see if she can find a first aid kit as he asked. "You just want any excuse for me to get closer, don't you?" she teases as she looks through the lockers and drawers.
Cass blanches, choosing his words carefully in his head. "My arm hurts is all. If I got an infection from keeping an open wound, and I died, then who would fix the leaky showers and hack into flats for you?" He waits patiently on his cot, watching her move about the office but trying not to stare.
The card game progresses and Hikaru soon comes out on top, grinning at his friend. "Guess it's a good thing we didn't play strip poker, or you'd be freezing your ass off." He sits back, looking up at the ceiling as Tess looks around for a medkit for Cass. He pulls out his compad, beginning to type up some notes as inspiration seems to strike him. At least one good thing came out of this. Maybe I could write some songs! Not that the record would ever go for something that's not boy band bubble pop.
"Haha," Tess responds mockingly to Hikaru. "I'll gather a few more layers and prove you wrong next time," she continues. As she does so, she opens a drawer where she finally finds the medkit. She holds it up to show the others, before stepping over to Cass.
"Scooch over," she says to the man, as she draws near his cot. Once he does, she takes a seat next to him and sets the medkit down as well, opening it up to view the contents. She is pleasantly surprised to see it mostly stocked, and takes out the manual to look for what to do with a laser wound. After a brief period of quickly flipping through the pages and not finding an immediate answer, she grabs the can of spray bandage and holds it up. "This is probably going to sting," she says as she begins to spray the material over his wound.
Cass scoots over, letting Tess apply the spray to his shoulder. "Yes," he says through gritted teeth. "It does." He closes his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath until she is finished. Peering back over the wound, it looks suitably dressed. "Hey, not bad. Thanks." Cass pats it carefully, inspecting the seal to his satisfaction.
With a start, he stands back up and stretches, culminating into an unexpected yawn. "The come down on all that adrenaline from today is making me exhausted," the junkie explains, taking a short lap around the room to keep from crashing. "I think I'll call the arms dealer and then take a nap. That fine with everyone?"
Tess smiles at the completed bandage, and Cass' apart satisfaction with it. I guess I did it right, she thinks, as she packs the items back into the medkit. After Cass stands she does so as well, returning the kit to the drawer she'd found it in. She then walks back over to the coffee table and grabs her compad, before laying on the couch, her head propped up at the turn in the center.
"That works," she says, as Cass mentions calling the weapons dealer. "We can just let you know once they're here so you don't miss out." She browses the net on her pad for a moment, before asking, "you don't snore, do you?"
"I, um, I'm not sure," Cass admits, a bit taken back by the question. Haven't had anyone to be able to tell me for a long time.
Leaning against the door, he pulls out his compad and gives the number Bao gave him a ring. "Alright, making the call."
Creed had been wandering around the warehouse until now, looking around until he heads into the back. He notes the three cots and shrugs, examining the room. "Mmm, nice little room back here. Feels like being back home." He notes that the other three have showered and clears his throat. "I'll get to it, thanks." He has a quick shower, trying not to take too long in there. Eventually, he gets out, dries off, and gets dressed again. Then goes and sits next to the desk on the floor.
Tess watches in a mixture of amusement and confusion as Creed exits the bathroom and chooses to sit on the floor, rather than any of the other surfaces in the room. "You comfortable over there?" she asks the man, taking a break from mindlessly scrolling through Tweeter. "You know there are seats you can take, plenty of room on the couch too."
He nodded. "Home isn't very comfortable either, this is what I'm used to." He said politely.
"Well, alright then," she says, finding the interaction quite odd. She quickly goes back to staring at her compad, waiting for Cass to complete his call so they can buy new gear.
Eridas shrugs and looks back at his compad, pretending to also be scrolling through social media.
"Hi Amber," Cass says into his compad. "Got your number from an associate. I'm at his warehouse, actually, looking to do some business. Can you meet me here?" He looks down at the device and flicks his finger upward twice. "Just sent you the coords."
"Hey, make sure to give her our contacts if you're going to sleep," Tess says across the room, as she listens in to Cass' conversation. "Last thing we need is for them to show up and then leave because you didn't answer."
"Rifles, mostly. Laser, sniper, spike thrower... The more the merrier." Pausing to catch Tess' words, he looks down at his compad and taps a few buttons. "Just sent you my colleague's contact. Call her if I don't answer. Thanks, Amber," he says, not waiting for a response before disconnecting.
"Alright. They should be by in a few hours," Cass says, passing the pilot staring at his home screen. Odd cookie. Maybe the shock's finally hitting him. I'll have to talk to him later, make sure he's good. He turns to the other two, lazily browsing their compads after their card game. "Wake me up if you need, just catching a wink." Cass lays on his cot, pulling the blanket over him and turning toward the wall to rest.
"Yeah, sure," Tess says half-heartedly to the man, her mind more focused on the screen in front of her. She continues scrolling through it for awhile, before sighing and dropping it onto her stomach. There is only so much of that I can handle.
She sits up and turns back towards where Hikaru is sitting. "What are things you guys do for fun when traveling to a gig?" she asks, her boredom eating away at her. "Like, do you practice your singing? Play games? Drink? All of the above? Something else? I need to do something," she says.
Eridas continues to sit quietly as he watches the others go about their business. He lets a few minutes go by as Cass falls asleep before he gives up looking at his phone. He grabs his backpack and quietly rummages around for a moment before pulling out the armored undersuit he was supposed to be wearing. "Well, at least it's going to good use." He mumbles to himself, before folding it and quietly walking over to Cass, placing it down next to the sleeping man. He takes his seat back by the desk before looking up at Tess again. "I'm sitting here because it puts me out of the way if anyone were to walk in. I might not be as much of a target if they can't see me at first." He nods towards the door. "Maybe we'll get lucky but... I don't want to take that chance." He says and offers a shaky smile. "You don't live long by taking risky chances."
Hikaru pays little mind to Cass's call, too caught up in his compad screen to recall a world exists beyond the pixels. I'm probably missing so much hot gossip back on Strocho, he thinks, mindlessly scrolling through his social media. He ignores the usual comments from his fans, like "Come to Berez!" and "Your skin looks so perfect, I could wear it!" Who ever thought preteens should be allowed on the internet?
He snaps back into reality as Tess addresses him. He shrugs. "Not usually singing. Management doesn't want us giving people in the hall a free show or some BS like that. 'Save that energy for the show,' they'll tell us." He rolls his eyes and sighs. "TV, card games, storytelling, lots of room service. We'll usually hit up the pool and gym, hit up the town. Kaze'll disappear into the bathroom and come out high. Guess that's fun for him." He shrugs, knowing the band's hiatus is caused by that drug problem. He shakes his head. "Plus, Benji usually brings some video games."
His eyes wander over to Creed, raising an eyebrow as he explains why he's sitting on the floor. He sighs, burying his face into his hands for a moment before looking up towards the pilot with a mixture of annoyance and sympathetic concern. "If you don't take any risky chances, then you don't live at all. You can't say you'd be happy just playing it safe and not doing anything the rest of your life."
Tess watches as Creed quietly crosses the room and places the gear with Cass, and she can't help but to smile. He's weird on the outside, but I guess underneath he has a caring and helpful side. Hopefully we get to see more of that. Once he sits back down and describes his cautious mindset, the smile fades somewhat.
"You can definitely live a while taking risks," Tess responds to the man. "That's been most of my life so far, and I'm still here. There have been lots of ups and downs, but risks don't necessarily mean mortal danger." Though I'd be lying if I said I hadn't been there once or twice, she thinks.
Turning back to her friend. "Storytelling sounds fun," she says, looking for anything to alleviate the boredom of waiting. "Tell me a story," she says playfully.
Hikaru rolls his eyes and smirks as Tess asks him for a story to keep her occupied while they wait. He tosses his compad into his pocket and rests his chin on his hand as he thinks. "Let's see... Did I ever tell you about the ski trip in Alldis a couple years back?"
He smiles, looking upwards as he remembers the experience. "Management wanted to reward us after finishing a tour so they booked us at this luxury ski resort, sick as hell. They built this whole artificial mountain under this huge dome, even had its own artificial weather." He gets a slight chill, recalling the frigid temperatures, so unlike the warmth he's used to on Strocho.
"Anyways, turns out that prick Raye Diànt—you remember him, yeah? Dickhead with the pointy ears—was visiting too. Even better, he thought his people booked the whole resort just for him. Imagine his surprise when it's not only crowded as fuck, but he also sees me there," he explains to Tess, remembering this trip vividly.
"Actually, forget imagining." He pulls his compad back out, scrolling through pictures for a few seconds before he finds one of Raye, his expression a strange mixture of anger, disgust, and surprise all while attempting a plastic smile.
Tess bursts out into laughter at the sight of Hikaru's longtime rival in complete astonishment. "Ah, of course he would think the world revolves around him like that. I've met some narcissists in my life - more than I can count, to be honest - but none of them seem quite as obsessed with themselves as Raye does."
She pauses for a moment as a thought pops into her head, before continuing. "If I'm honest, I'd love to spend an evening with him just... to see what it's like, you know? Like, what is a man like that like in the sack? I imagine he'd want everything focused on him. I bet you he has some crazy kinks. Probably a shit tipper though," she adds with a chuckle.
"You think you could set something like that up?" she asks her friend, only half-jokingly. I bet you I could grab any item from his bedroom and easily make more than my fees for the evening. The fans would go wild bidding on a genuine Raye possession.
