[Nexus] Random Places and Plots 4

[Lost_Deep]

Villainy on the Rise

"My thoughts exactly. Where's Ellise? She's the one that really needs that info." She looks around, satisfying herself that the Succubus isn't in the room.

[Halae]

[Limo]

"I know most of what it entails, yes. I'll just need to know about the place we'll be in that I'll be guarding." Evan says, smiling towards Tina. She really looks good in that outfit, doesn't she?

[Murkus]

Limo

Tina slides her hand over a glass panel set into the seats between them. With a few deft taps, she seems to input some kind of code. Something in the upholstery flicks on, and the translucent 3D model of a domed building snaps into view. Tina waves a hand - more subtle gesturing with her fingers - and the picture switches to a cut away map of the interior. A main lobby is followed by a marketing area, as well as various augmentation stands displaying examples of what's available. Deeper into the building, labs follow, places for the assembly of artificial limbs and replacement of real ones. Underneath the compound are three flat, square rooms full of cloning tubes, one floor placed atop the other in a stack.

"The job's cake. There's only one entrance that can be entered by the public. The others are built into the walls - you need clearance or some very advanced tech to break in. And everything - even the employees - has a microcamera. If a problem does arise, you'll have full access to a force of, um, 'security drones' - our little clone soldiers." She crosses her arms over her chest and sighs. "It is in the Red Zone, so expect some idiots to try shoplifting. Won't be hard to stop them, but I'd expect quite a few."

[AmberVael]

[Villainy on the Rise]

"Dunno, haven't seen her since she left." Ana shrugs and washes her hands, having finished off the last of her ridiculously over-sized meal. "But hm, that is really kind of a problem..."

[Halae]

[Limo]

"Alright then. How much knowledge do the security clones have?" Evan asks. Gotta know what you're working with if you're going to work out contingency plans.

[Murkus]

Limo

"They've got chip-brains. We give em' Common and combat. Very minimalist," Tina explains, tapping the hologram. It zooms in on one of chambers, where a large, healthy young man floats in a vat of nutritional juices. "They're conditioned to follow orders. We've got these, uh, 'glands' that flood their brains with Serotonin and other things when the do it right."

The hover-car flies down the street, passing cheaper and cheaper buildings before finally turning off on a small, rainy little back alley. The street lights get dimmer and damper, the alley darker.

[Halae]

[Limo]

"Positive reinforcement is generally a good thing, I suppose, as long as they don't start fawning over me or something," Evan rolls his eyes, smiling, "I'll have to give them a bit of extra training for what their work requires then, maybe a bit of sparring too, since knowledge without practice isn't as useful as it could be. Will they all look the same, or will they have distinguishing marks?"

[Murkus]

Limo

"You wish," Tina snorts, zooming back out and turning the whole diagram around. "Live training's good. Naitiri can probably help with that. She's run this little security firm for years now." The neon girl swings the diagram up again, taking a look at a small, boxy room. An armory. "Most of the clones - unless they're from different generations - should look the same. They'll have tags on their suits, though."

Suddenly, the darkness outside is replaced by a staggering glow, service torches meant to blind potential intruders from the Nexus. "Oh, here we go. Be happy I got tinted windows. Those lights are a bitch." She pops the door and steps out as the lights switch off, gesturing toward Evan. "C'mon."

[Halae]

[Limo ==> Clinic]

"I'm probably going to end up giving them names anyways. Just for my sanity," Evan steps out of the limo behind Tina, moving towards the building with her, "Gotta admit, this is way cooler than the little holo image."

[Murkus]

Clinic

The walls around the gleaming, windowed dome hit at least 10 feet, providing some privacy for the compound while it's constructed. Spaced around the entrance, a scant handful of guards in slick, single-piece armor stand at attention.

"Meet your new boss!" Tina proclaims, waving at Evan. The soldiers - hidden behind ominous black helmets - look at him, thinking simple thoughts. They don't speak, only offer a salute. "This whole... wall thing is temporary. Naitiri was worried about 'crazy people', apparently."

One of the soldiers approaches Evan, to Tina's surprise. He's taller, at least at Evan's average height, and the armor emphasizes it. The nameless fellow - tagged 'E50' - looks at Evan as if challenging him. Or perhaps waiting for something.

[Halae]

[Clinic]

Evan crosses his arms, looking curiously at the man. His muscles are tensed though, and his hands could move apart to block a blow fairly quickly, "What do you want then?"

[Murkus]

[Clinic]

E50 lowers his head a little, perhaps stumbling over the words. He grasps the right one and looks Evan in the eye. That much might be hard to tell, from Evan's end.

"Orders," He says, in a slow, hard voice obviously meant to inspire fear. Tina, just past the soldier's shoulder, grins at Evan.

[Halae]

[Clinic]

Evan nods, his body relaxing a bit, "That's good. And good of you to ask. I want you to take the lead of your fellow security, as you'll be my second in command. If I'm unable to fulfill my duties for some reason, You'll be the one to cover for me, understood?"

"Now what I want you all to do is find yourself a training area and put those combat skills to work on each other. I don't want to see any injuries beyond bruising, and no killing each other, but if you're going to be useful you need some real experience over just what the vat gave you."

[Murkus]

[Clinic]

The black-clad warrior salutes smartly, muscles rippling beneath the segmented armor. It's plated, in parts, but form-fitting and corrugated in others. For flexibility, it would seem.

The motion also reveals a small device on his wrist - a weapon, judging by the small black slot on the end. Perhaps that explains why they're 'unarmed'.

"Understood."

He turns to his brothers, perhaps wondering if they heard. They all nod or salute in turn. E50 takes off at a jog, with his fellow soldiers following in formation. They don't wait for dismissal, unfortunately. Not enough attention to detail yet.

Tina watches them go intently, smiling a pensive little smile. "Mm. Nice. I told Naitiri we wouldn't need an army, but with you around, it might be fun to watch," Tina strides off toward the dome, heels clicking on the concrete. "This is good. I think she might actually like you."

[Halae]

[Clinic]

"They seem pretty cool to me. A little rough around the edges, but workable, certainly. I'll also be training them to handle larger creatures than just human beings. This is the sort of place they'll need it. Or is that already part of their comabt training?" Evan watches them go curiously. He's hoping he can foster a bit of creativity and innovation among them. The one who came up to him first showed initiative, and so he rewarded it. Hopefully the others get the message.

[Murkus]

[Clinic]

"They're like babies with eight-inch-thick arms, Evan. Rough does not begin to cover it." Tina falls into step beside her favorite demon, looking up at him, smiling a thoughtful little smile. "And there's no monsters where me and Naitiri come from. No dragons or demons. Nothing nearly as scary as you." Her smile flattens out. "What exactly do you want to teach them?"

[Halae]

[Clinic]

"Basic stuff for combating the big beasties. How to take a hit without getting yourself broken in two, how to hit them back despite them being way tougher than you are, and how to take advantage of 'bigger means slower'. Basic fight stuff," Evan says, "Maybe even ways to deal with magic, since spellcasters will probably end up as an issue too."

[Murkus]

[Clinic]

"Ah. Magic. You'll never get tired of explaining that to people," Tina says, passing through the main lobby of the clinic and up a wide set of stairs to the right. A hall greets them at the top, ending with a small receptionist's desk. The receptionist is a strange, spindly creature. A young lady's head atop a thin metal spine, some minimized support mechanism. Her hands are built like her spine; ten tiny metal needles that seem to tap invisible keys. A plaque on her desk reads 'Marcella'. It's eerie, the way the cyborg stares into space. Half-emulating life, composed of hair and flesh, but scarred with dark steel.

Marcella does not look up. "Naitiri's waiting for you," Tina starts forward, but Marce doesn't seem to be finished. "Security Chief."

Marcella finally grants her attention, glassy doll's eyes studying Evan. "She wishes to speak with you privately."

Tina blinks, turning to stare at the demon incredulously. Marcella gets a glare, but the recycled corpse isn't looking at them any more. Tina sighs and rolls her eyes dramatically. "Oh come on. Fine. Go ahead, Evan."

Two lights above the doors flick on, turning green. Marcella glances up at Evan again, raising her eyebrows expectantly.

[Halae]

[Clinic]

Evan looks curiously at Marcella, but doesn't comment on her body. it'd be like calling out someone in a wheelchair - it's just rude. When she says Naitiri wants to see him along however, he looks at Tina and shrugs, "Huh. I'll see what she wants then, I guess." and Evan will move on through to Naitiri's office, and the first thing he'll do is look at exits. windows, vents, doors, and any hidden slots he can see at a glance. Something felt off. Maybe it was just nerves, but still.

[Villainy on the Rise]

There's a knock heard on the door. Those who look through the peephole or open the door will notice that Ellise, who has just arrived, looks rather bedraggled and tired. She also smells a bit of booze.

[Slii Arhem]

Villainy on the Rise

"I believe that answers all our questions, unless you've ordered even more food Ana." Merideth's tone is full of playful mockery as she heads to the door, letting her fist meld into it and pulling it open.

"Good day Ellise."

[Murkus]

[Clinic]

Evan looks curiously at Marcella, but doesn't comment on her body. it'd be like calling out someone in a wheelchair - it's just rude. When she says Naitiri wants to see him along however, he looks at Tina and shrugs, "Huh. I'll see what she wants then, I guess." and Evan will move on through to Naitiri's office, and the first thing he'll do is look at exits. windows, vents, doors, and any hidden slots he can see at a glance. Something felt off. Maybe it was just nerves, but still.

The doors slide out of the way, revealing a slim, curvy office furnished in a gleaming art-deco style. In the corner a small, private lounge area with what looks like a gift-wrapped bottle of Xorn Zinfandel sits unused. At the end opposite the door, a wavy desk sits before a spectacular view of Inside's Blue and Yellow districts. In the distance, far away from the slums where the two sisters have set up shop, gleaming towers reach toward the sky.

Naitiri sits behind this desk, facing the finer parts of Inside. Her reflection in the window is narrow-eyed and pensive. Greedy, perhaps.

"...Evan, right?" She says at length, without turning around. "Evan what?"

There's few exits visible. A sliding door, on the right, also curved. An inconspicuous vent on the ceiling.

[Lost_Deep]

Villainy on the Rise

"Oh, hey there. I got a bit of info for you. someone hand her the notepad?"

She looks Ellise up and down...

"What happened to you?"

It's not asked like she's worried, it's more just idle curiosity.

[Halae]

[Clinic]

"Evanazgrix," The half-demon says, "I don't like the name though, so just Evan." Rather than taking a seat, Evan will simply lean against the nearest wall, in this case the one beside the door.

[villainy on the Rise]

"Got caught in a loop," Ellise says, as if that explained everything. "Notepad would be awesome, yes."

[AmberVael]

[Villainy on the Rise]

"Well, there might be another pizza coming..." Ana says with a cheeky grin at Merideth. However, as it turns out, Ellise is not a pizza delivery girl, so Ana will have to go hungry for a while more.

"Merry's got it, I think." Ana says, nodding to Merideth as she hops up on the counter. "Maybe we'll just brute force through this."

[Murkus]

[Clinic]

"Evanazgrix," The half-demon says, "I don't like the name though, so just Evan." Rather than taking a seat, Evan will simply lean against the nearest wall, in this case the one beside the door.

"Evan," Naitiri says, rolling it off her tongue as though she dislikes it. Too informal. But it will have to do. "I understand my sister's offered you a job."

The phosphorescent woman finally turns. Her skin is a lighter blue than Tina's original shade, and her hair frames her face like a hood until it's brought to order by a mild ponytail. A pair of pink eyes appraise Evanazgrix. "Sit. We have a lot to discuss."

[Halae]

[Clinic]

"First, I have a question of my own," Evan says, moving to sit, "Why are we talking in private? Shouldn't Fettina be in on this as well?" He decides to use Tina's full name, seeing as Naitiri seems to be a stickler for formality in the workplace.

Evan's own Red eyes are appraising Naitiri in turn. She seems like the sort of person he'd have avoided if he wasn't already entangled with Tina.

[Murkus]

Clinic

"No," Naitiri says bluntly, brooking no argument. The neon-skinned woman leans forward, steepling her delicate fingers. "Because my sister does not have a head for business. She is flighty, impulsive, and poor at picking partners, business or otherwise." Was that a joke? A mean one, certainly, but a joke. "I do not need to hear from her how good you are, I need to know how good you are."

[Slii Arhem]

Villainy on the Rise

"As uncouth as that would be, it seems the quickest and easiest solution." Merrideth hands over the notebook, the pages separating from their fusion with her hand as she lets it go.

"I hope this will be of some use to you, and that you'll be out of this loop by the time we strike."

[Halae]

Clinic

"No," Naitiri says bluntly, brooking no argument. The neon-skinned woman leans forward, steepling her delicate fingers. "Because my sister does not have a head for business. She is flighty, impulsive, and poor at picking partners, business or otherwise." Was that a joke? A mean one, certainly, but a joke. "I do not need to hear from her how good you are, I need to know how good you are."

"I imagine you have questions for me then. Go ahead and I'll see how well I can answer." Evan says. He doesn't comment on Naitiri's opinion of Fettina. It was a bit of an exaggeration, but true enough. Not really enough to preclude someone from this sort of thing, though, in the half-demon's opinion.

[Lost_Deep]

Villainy on the Rise

"If we're going to scrap the official parts entirely, it might draw the attention of the local law enforcement. For that matter, we don't know how much oomph is in the security system, or if they care about this branch enough to hire people to get it back."

Connie shrugs. "I guess if we can get a lot more information, we could force it. The plan should still be good for getting into the depths of the bank, if we still want that."