RR 1-9: Meeting Clara and Fighting in Starbucks

Mission Report

Tue, Jan 29, 2019 ((2022-Feb-19))
Team: Delly (Cael), Fonn (Dragon), Ikhilzis (Schizo), Lae'eni (Aslene), Lottie (Basil), Smokes (Aunne), Ulthane (blank), Zenovi (Dae)

As a team, you circled back to the Bunker and geared up. You set out to meet Farwatch, with Lae'eni and Delly on the Ducati-Talarin and the rest in the SUV. Smokes detected a memory bead nearby, in the parking lot of DC Central Detention. There the team also found Clara Nores and Prudence Abigale "Abby" Chickering. The teens were streaming a news story on the rise in runaway teenagers coming to DC. Clara noticed the team. After Abby left, Zenovi and Lottie approached Clara. Clara proved to be smart and somewhat knowledgeable about the Edge. You relocated to a Starbucks to continue the conversation, and then you were attacked by city shadows.

Details

• Lae'eni: Laeni seeks. Laeni perfects or adapts. Laeni loves.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: Topi Learns. Topi fiercely protects. Topi *Listens*.
• Alpha Leader: Beta Leader: Smokes
• Alpha Leader: Ikhilzis Beta Leader: Smokes
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "... can I ride next time?"
• Delly (Delsari Orist Nym Galadant): "Yes."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw looks gleeful.
• Fonn Razorenth: Fonn looks at the motorcycle suspiciously. It looks very hazardous
• Lottie: Lottie likes the seats in the SUV she is surpised by their comfort and settles into a backseat
• RJ creates a sword box for Delly
• Delly (Delsari Orist Nym Galadant): Delly lables the case with er cover name and address.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: (.... Violin case. Opens it up. Pulls out a stick. 'one sec. Gotta fix this up.)
• Delly (Delsari Orist Nym Galadant): Delly, oddly enough, keeps her armor extremely light, again favoring mobility. She absolutely wears a helmet though.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw doesn't bother. She's got a decent floofy skirt, a comfy shirt, and a monster handbag stolen from supply. With internal organization. She also has an egg.
• RJ creates a shipping box for Z's bow
• Fonn stocks up on espionage gear
• Lae'eni: While they are masking all the weapons, Lae'eni takes Smokes into the costuming room and shows her all the various eye glasses. "I thought you might have fun picking them out... they seem to fit your new identity...?"
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw ooos!
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood will wear his armor, along with a large jacket over it because it is JANUARY in WASHINGTON DC and probably COLD for a reptile like creature such as him.
• RJ creates a case for that gear, and rapier
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: Yes. Absolutely. Hmm. You know, I've never /had/ glasses. I"ve never had occasion to determine whether I needed them officially or not.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw settles on a pair of half-moon, almost-librarian-style glassses. They fit on her in both forms, with a little rigging.
• RJ gives Kils a shipping box for great sword
• Delly discovers the AR features of the helmet
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood: ".... what is she doing with her helmet?"
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "Wearing it?"
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood: "It almost looked like she was wearing it backwards or something screamed in her ears."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw does /not/ laugh. Those are coughs. Or snorts.
• Fonn Razorenth: wears whatever undercover armor the bunker had instead of her urban stealth gear, though her half-cloak is packed tightly with her rapier. She puts a stylish black leather jacket over it, paired with tough combat boots. After browsing the internet for a bit, she dyes her hair black and trims it down to a pixie cut. Fonn now looks like a picture-perfect goth.
• 3:30 pm
• Delly (Delsari Orist Nym Galadant): Delly seems to both relax and tense a little- the noise, cars, stimulation definitely influence her, but she seems happy to be out of the Bunker.
• (Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw): From Topi's Journal: We first went to the Rational Ascendency. Ikhilzis is an *exciting* driver. He didn't hit anything by inches! Of course, he liked curbs, for some reason. Earth vehicles are remarkably uncourteous, but gave us a bit of room after he nearly ran into the side of one.
• Fonn Razorenth: Fonn squints at the jail. It appears prisons share the same negative emotions on every planet.
• Clara Nores is a geeky teenage human (she/her). She's thirteen years old. She has strong Puerto Rican ancestry: a mix of Spain and indigenous Caribbean. The result is shiny black hair in a bob and beautiful medium walnut skin. Her brown eyes are intelligent and curious. Clara wears a dark green army surplus jacket bedazzled with retro video game pins, a T-shirt with Ruth Bader Ginsberg pulling a ollie (on a skateboard), a pleated black skirt, and brown hiking boots with rainbow-striped socks. If she isn't school or near curfew, Clara also has a piercing in her left eyebrow.
• Interviewer is Prudence Abigale "Abby" Chickering, an 11th grader in LMC at Duke Ellington School of the Arts
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood: "PIed piper scenario?"
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "... if we could get access to their intake reports - it's possible. I would like to go through them, given time. Consider that we are dealing with a charasmatic Power at large... and it wouldn't be impossible."
• Clara and Abby are calling attention to an increase of runaways in DC, who are getting picked up and incarcerated. The system is overwhelmed trying to get them back to their families.
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood grunts. "Children are malleable. If this is a Piper scenario, then that means there's a call. Perhaps on the internet, or psychically."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: And if there is a call, there is a *source*. Understanding its direction would be powerful in identifying and tracking it.
• Fonn Razorenth: Fonn finds the idea of a livestream curious. She's seen some talk of Shir0 and other Sigilnet influencers streaming their exploits, but allowing anyone accsess to your location and current activity is quite the tactic. Later, in downtime, she's seen watching Twitch streams
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw watches the event, curiously - tapping away on her P3. "Did you notice that she looked in the direction of our facility?"
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood: "That is very -not- good."
• Soledad does IT contract work for DOE
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "Perhaps. Qualifying it as good or not-good would be dependant on any number of factors. She could be an ally. She could natively be able to detect paramatter. She could be an external ally of Brother Iron or Mr. Nails - or even fae-touched - who can say? It is merely a point of data, so far."
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood: "... She's thirteen. I have -issues- with that kind of use."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "Of course, we're approaching her with both a lack of subtlety and tact... and NOW WE"RE GIVING AWAY NAMES AGAIN. UGH."
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood FACEPALMS.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "Sorry, sorry - just.. phrasing, you know? I've learned to be cautious."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw snoutpalms.
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood: "No. Cautious is good."
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood: "We're going to need to have a LONG talk about NAMES."
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood starts screaming internally
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw physically cannot facepalm harder.
• Fonn Razorenth: is in the middle of heading over to them, and is unable to facepalm, but her poker face is cracked
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "Chain: We are going to have to talk about approaching youth, in general. She's right not to trust you. You've given her no basis of trust. Just asking is better. She thinks you are police. Or agents.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "... Chain: Try this: "We are interestd in your story, and wish to learn more - we /may/ be in a position to help - as you have noticed from your skateboard. In exchange, we can offer some information to further your own investigation - or even an exclusive anonymous interview. You have no reason to trust us, but you can see what happens after you offer your story, which is public."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "DO NOT INVITE HER BACK TO THE VAN."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw facepalms harder.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw couldn't, but has figured out how.
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood has started to break the steering wheel.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw patpats his arm. Without looking. "I* can't fix that. Be careful."
• Fonn Razorenth: Fonn looks simultaneously humbled, impressed, and suspicious. She /really/ wants to know how she spotted her
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "Interesting in young-people speak translates to 'You are very weird'."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: * Meeting with contact at neutral ground - a Starbucks.
• Clara went separately.
• Lae'eni: "We are going to beat her there, and I"m going to be obvious with my hot motorcycle and hot passenger in hte parking lot."
• Lottie: Lottie in the background waving too
• Fonn Razorenth: Fonn eyes the skateboard. Paramatter aside, it seems safer to use in a city than a motorcycle, quite a bit more mobile as well. Able to be carried in ways that wouldn't interfere with on-foot activity. She marks it down for later research
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood goes and gets coffee and a table, if at all possible. Being the big guy, no one should try and cut in front of him.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw pads along with him - smol with tol, apparently a boon companion given that she reaches up to link her arm with his.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "........ And we're all brain surgeons."
• Fonn Razorenth: "Are human brains and kobold brains similar enough?"
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "I'd like to be an auric diagnostician. Ikhilzis shall be a bonesetter!"
• Lottie: "You're going to make me sound like a fraud, I actually went to nursing training"
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "No, she's assuming we're all wierd."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: Which, I suppose, we are.
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood: "Which is accurate."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "...a ctually, I may ask you for advice in learning to better deal with trauma. I am not very good at it, and I think it might be useful in our future."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "... physical trauma."
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood grunts. "You mean taking a hit?"
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "Well, yes. And bleeding."
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood nods.
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: Lottie - how hard would it be to learn to manage something more than basic Triage?
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood: "Could help, a bit. Some training."
• Lottie: "Whats a triage? Sounds like a ship."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "Mm. Definitionally - the sorting and management of injury in a trauma situation - especially diagnostics."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "I think it imperative."
• Lottie: "Must be from after my time. I should get reading on the medicine beyond my death. I bet they figured out something better than salicylate bark."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "Likely! I will see if I can find appropriate books for you - I would imagine you're a prodigious reader. Do you need rest?"
• Ikhilzis Poisonblood: C: I disagree with this course of action. But, it seems she already knows a little. We need to find. things."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: "Chain: ... actually. This idea of mentoring young Unbound... or unbound-potentials. You know, that's not a terribly awful consideration.
• Fonn Razorenth: Chain "This girl is very smart, I wouldn't mind working with her in the future."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw makes only a startled *erk* as she's run through, and falls over... her tea, untouched by the blade, spills under the table.
• City Shadow: You don't belong here
• Lottie: chain: Has anyone tried talking to them
• Delly (Delsari Orist Nym Galadant): Delly, pained: "We might be quite beyond that, darling, Smokes is down."
• Topi "Smokes" Smokeclaw: Intriguingly - Smokes's flower, which has wilted when she collapses, joins the riot of blooms - now a large, orange orchid, it bursts into full, trembling health as her wounds close.
• Delly (Delsari Orist Nym Galadant): "If you don't want me to kill them, tell me now."
• Lottie: chain: No better time to befriend necromancers when a friend has seen the edge of death
• Delly (Delsari Orist Nym Galadant): "Hurry up with it then."
• Fonn Razorenth: Fonn sprints between the tables with ease, boots skidding not even an inch when she lands in front of the ghosts. Her rapier aims for the neck and her eyes switch targets as it finds purchase. When Ikhilzis cleaves the ghost into pieces, she smiles a bit.
• Delly (Delsari Orist Nym Galadant): Delly snarls, somehow deeper than her voice should be, and the air ripples around her, like it's eating up.....
• Lottie has broken the glass and is trying to break through the glooming
• 4:30