A life of Crime [M&M 2nd ed]

[RationalGoblin]

Zach scrambles to get in the car, climbing down the building swiftly, and walking quickly to the car. Once in the car (I suppose since it's a van, there's enough room), he powers down his battle systems. (I'm waiting until Doubletalk is driving to speak.)

[PsyBlade]

ooc: It's an Armored Car.

[RationalGoblin]

ooc: It's an Armored Car.

((Yes, but what kind of car IS an armoured car? A minivan? A semi-truck? Even a Jeep maybe?))

[Blackbird]

(( Something like this. Edit: Made it a link as it was stretching the page.))

[Green Bean]

Doubletalk pulled up to the motel slowly, checking for signs of pursuit. He had discarded his disguise to evade pursuit, but there was still the problem of the rest of those with him; most weren't exactly...subtle. They had cleaned out the armoured car and switched to something a little more suitable; hopefully the police would have trouble finding it crushed and damaged beyond recognition.

He stepped out of the car, waited for the coast to be clear, and headed into the motel room, beckoning the others to follow him.

[Blackbird]

Switching your escape-vehicle seems to have thrown the police of your trail for now. Although it's only a matter of time until the remaining heroes and the police band together to try and find you, you're safe for the time being.

[RationalGoblin]

ZACH

ZACH tucks his tentacles into his coat and body as best he can, and uses his knowledge of human behavior to attempt to appear as a generic male teenage "hoodlum". He then follows Doubletalk into the motel silently.

((Disguise check when following Doubletalk, in case someone is watching. Zachs a paranoid metal man.))

[PsyBlade]

The two thugs get out of the vehicle. They have ditched their disguises. And briskly follow 'the boss'.

ooc: Spoiler for Blackbird.

Spoiler

Show

I recommend a notice check to see if they notice a resemblance to one of the 'victims'.

[Blackbird]

Zach's disguise works perfectly and no-one even looks twice at him. The motel seems a little shady, but there seems to be almost no-one around. Either that or ayone else staying there is keeping to themselves.

Opening the door, Mage Bane leads the way into the motel room. The construct stops dead only a few feet into the room however, looking around. "Gone. Betrayed. Used. Again." His voice sounds hollow as he speaks before proceeding to slump to the floor just inside the room, nonresponsive.

[Green Bean]

Doubletalk keeps his face impassive. Inside, he's disappointed, but unsurprised. Not much for whoever it was to stick around. I'd have done the same thing. He walks over to the apparently comatose construct, kicking it a few times to see if it responds.

[RationalGoblin]

Zach is irritated by the construct's apparent departure from sentience, but outwardly is a blank slate.

"Would've been a useful "meat" shield, but it does not matter. *We* can find better "partners" to aid us in our work.

Zach then notes Doubletalk's kicking of the contrivedly comatose construct.

"If it becomes apparent that it is not "alive", I get to take it apart and study it. After all, I took down the armored human. He would've been an annoying antagonist that would've impeded us greatly. Any objections?"

Zach pulls his metal tentacles from out of his coat, itching to take a hold of Mage Bane, and take it apart.

[PsyBlade]

It doesn't feel right. Too bad for him.

There is an expression of sadness in the eyes of the two Thugs. Mage Bane felt really alive to them. They hope, no Cubit hopes, that something can be done for him.

[Green Bean]

Doubletalk shakes his head at the robot.

"No, leave it in one piece. Whatever it is, it's obviously quite magical. I'm sure there's plenty of sorcerous types who'd pay through the nose for it."

[RationalGoblin]

Doubletalk shakes his head at the robot.

"No, leave it in one piece. Whatever it is, it's obviously quite magical. I'm sure there's plenty of sorcerous types who'd pay through the nose for it."

"Good thinking. We have no use for it, and could get a large amount of money from selling it. Yes, that's the best course of action. So, what do we do now, ah, I didn't get your name, and I think it's not *Doctor Bedlam*. Am I right? Well, whatever moniker you have, you'd probably be the best leader of our merry little band if we ever decide to go on any more crime sprees. Very good social ability, ability to lead your duplicating friend, good analytical skills, and enough brute force to get the job done. I'd insist on becoming leader myself, but I prefer to do the "dirty" work, and I have no skill with leadership, merely a passable skill at frightening organics."

[Green Bean]

"Call me Doubletalk. And we seem to be getting ahead of ourselves; first we worry about selling this thing, then we can concern ourselves with further...activities."

Doubletalk motions to the collapsed golem. "In any case, load this in our vehicle, if you don't mind. You two need to earn your twenty-five percent."

[RationalGoblin]

"Call me Doubletalk. And we seem to be getting ahead of ourselves; first we worry about selling this thing, then we can concern ourselves with further...activities."

Doubletalk motions to the collapsed golem. "In any case, load this in our vehicle, if you don't mind. You two need to earn your twenty-five percent."

"That is true, I do seem to get ahead of myself a lot. I shall do as you say, Doubletalk."

Zach takes hold of Mage Bane carefully, using his tentacles to support his grasp, and gestures for Cubit to come help him.

[Green Bean]

While the others are stashing the golem, Doubletalk pulls out his cellphone, and makes a few calls to his network of contacts, trying to see who might be interested in a 'previously used' magical construct.

((Time isn't that much of an issue, so I'll take 20 on a Gather Information check.))

[Blackbird]

After making a few calls and calling in some old favors you find something useful. It seems someone's very interested indeed in buying a 'near mint-condition' construct. You get the address of a warehouse near the city's waterfront and are instructed to show up there in an hour.

[Green Bean]

((I'm assuming that since it took at least 20 minutes to make the check, Magebane's loaded in))

"We have a buyer. Let's go." Doubletalk gets in the vehicle, and when his two associates get in, he drives to the drop-off location.

[Blackbird]

It's quiet as you stop your 'borrowed' car outside the warehouse the meeting's to take place in. You can hear the sounds of ships being loaded and unloaded, but they're coming from a distance. This part of the docks seems much less frequently used, which is also apparent by the bad condition the buildings are in.

For Doubletalk:

Spoiler

Show

On closer inspection, the warehouse you're meeting the buyer in seems to be only made to look shabby and weather-worn. Small details all over it give you the idea it's actually in better condition than newer, secure warehouses.

[Green Bean]

"This is the spot." Doubletalk gets out of the van, looking for any security cameras. If he sees one, he makes sure to get within its line of vision, trying to let the buyer know he was there.

[Blackbird]

You don't seem to notice any security cameras. Just as you note this to yourself, the large doors used to moving freight in and out of the building open up. An asian man, maybe from the eastern part of the continent, wearing a black business suit appears in the doorway. "You have the merchandise? Please enter." With that, he goes back into the warehouse, not waiting for any kind of response.

[PsyBlade]

If not given any other commands, the 'Thugs' move the 'merchandise' (with a pang of guilt).

[Green Bean]

"Of course." Doubletalk motions for the Cubits to bring the golem inside.

[Blackbird]

As you enter the warehouse you see it is half-filled with crates and various other containers of differing descriptions. Deeper in, the asian man is standing behind a table with two cases on it. The immeadite area surrounding the table is well-lit by bright lights as opposed to the darkness that seems to swallow the rest of the warehouse. "Please, bring him here and be careful. My employer is very interested in the construct."

[Green Bean]

As his henchmen bring the construct in, Doubletalk gets right down to business. "Now, I believe there is the matter of my payment."

[Blackbird]

The asian man bows. "Of course. You may call me Mr. Feng." He opens the case on the right to reveal it contains money, lots of it. "This case contains half-a-million dollars. I haven't been authorized to offer you more, so you'd have to talk to my employer if you wanted more." He smiles politely to you. "Personally I'd suggest you take it."

Moving soundlessly to the second case, Mr. Feng opens it to reveal it is in fact a state of the art laptop computer. "Regardless of your reply to the first offer, my employer has a second proposition for you. I trust you are familiar with the man known as Jack Frost?"

Jack Frost, a secretive crimeboss few have seen and lived to tell of it, is the leader of nearly all organized crime in Fort Garth.

[Green Bean]

Doubletalk takes the case, not bothering to count the money. If he was shortchanged, he could always revisit and acquire the money more...violently.

Doubletalk raises his eyebrows at the mention of the elusive crimeboss. "Of course. However, I must ask if Mr. Frost is our employer, or our job?"

[PsyBlade]

Cubit

The two copies of Cubit become interested in the offer, but stay silent. The original was quick to realize that Doubletalk may be on to something, something good. He has them listen intently.

[Blackbird]

Mr. Feng looks like he thinks you just made a bad joke. A few keystrokes on the laptop and an image appears on the screen. The silhouette of a high-backed, impressive-looking chair is visible. "Mr. Frost, your employer." After making the introduction Mr. Feng takes a step back to a respectful distance. The chair swivels around, though just who is sitting in it is practically impossible to tell due to the darkness of the image.

A hand extends from the shadows, human, and a very pale blue. "Greetings gentlemen, I trust Mr. Feng has filled you in on most things." You notice a small red light blinking on the laptop next to a lense. The hand retracts and the figure in the chair seems to be leaning back.

"Now then, lets get down to business. What I saw you do at the bank today was impressive, in a certain sense. Though you didn't make any money from the robbery as such, you did just turn a nice profit with your magical friend over there. Yes, my experts will be most interested in seeing him, he'll make a valuable asset to our little... Syndicate. However, more importantly, you held your own very well against those do-gooders. Muscle is easy to come by, but professional people who can get the job done are not."

There's a brief flicker of light on the other side of the screen as the figure in the chair lights up a cigar. "To be frank, I'm interested in hireing you for an indefinite amount of time. The pay will be good, although it'll vary depending on your jobs. You'll have a Syndicate safehouse to lay low in if things get too hot. If you need specialised equipment, you can contact HQ and we'll see what we can work out. So, questions? Interested?"