Run for Ever

[supernal 22146]

It was hot out on the esplanade. The robust entertainment boardwalk stretched along most of the large lake pooled north of Chesterfield, and bridged the river whose eastern end led further inland and whose western end emptied out into the bottom end of the sea of regrets.

Not searing hot, but balmy. Balmy enough that, having arrived hours earlier to scope the boardwalk for any individuals or groups of concern, Wige decided to go out on the surf and catch a wave or two. He wasn't very good at it but Wige delighted as much in standing upright on a rented surfboard as taking a dive into the bracing waters of the lake.

When the meeting time was an hour away, Wige paddled back to the boardwalk, rinsed off, set himself to dry in an artificially powered sunroom that baked his clothes dry and left him feeling warm and fuzzy even as he stepped back out into what was now a chilly wind blowing in from the north. Wige stopped two more times on the way to a plaza bench where he was set to meet the contractors, once for a hot chocolate in a biodegradable cup and once for a purple-fluorescent cotton candy cone.

Just a few minutes before the zero hour the dark haired, dark eyed, clean-shaven Wige sat on a bench, munching and waiting.

OOC thread

Edited December 10, 2020 by supernal

[Voldemort 723]

The black mage arrived next. Though while he arrived on time, unlike Wige who arrived hours before the meet, Arthur only stepped onto the promenade about fifteen minutes before the meet. It gave the mage enough time to grab some food, which would help him look natural, before heading off to meet his contact. From afar, Arthur seemed calm as he strolled leisurely down the boardwalk. Internally, the mutant was filled with a certain excitement at the thought of taking up his dangerous trade once again. 

For the purposes of their clandestine meet, the mage was dressed like a typical lake-going tourist, but looked the part of a black mage nonetheless. A pair of black board shorts and similarly colored sneakers adorned the mutant’s lower half. Meanwhile, a short-sleeved button up clung loosely to Arthur’s muscular torso, black with a pattern of yellow sunflowers. Signifying his sorcerous profession, a voluminous coat sat draped across his broad shoulders and settled just past his hips. The article was patterned with diamond shapes, alternating between black and yellow coloration. Rounding out the ensemble, Arthur sported a pair of squarish sunglasses, it’s lenses shining silver in the sun.  

By the time Arthur reached the location of the meet, the black mage carried a small pizza box in one hand and an alcoholic slush in a souvenir bottle in the opposite. The mutant gave the slightest smirk as he walked past the bench Wige sat on, and leaned against the wooden banister on the edge of the boardwalk. He rested his meal on the top of the barrier, waiting for Wige to make his introductions as Arthur admired the lake from his vantage.

[sapphicSphinx 252]

Elsewhere in the town of Chesterfield, about an hour or so from the agreed meeting time, a young woman sat in a nearby café. She batted her long lashes at the shy employee behind the counter, flashing her pearly whites with disarming smiles and sweet giggles, quietly sipping the caramel coffee she had ordered. Her lapis-like gaze then wandered about the small shop, taking in its occupants and decor, wondering if there was anything of interest she could get her hands on before leaving. Perhaps the man two seats down from her at the counter had a full wallet to pluck? Or, she could swiftly walk out with the purse a woman had foolishly left sitting openly on a table as she busied herself by wiping crumbs and whipped cream off her child's face. However, with a content sigh, this woman named Aerona convinced herself she needed not to do any of these things.

Instead, with exciting thoughts of this new, offered job she was going to explore, the woman decided she didn't need to bother herself with small, petty crimes for the time being, even if they still beckoned her itching, klepto fingers. Aerona finished her mildly sweet cup of coffee with a hum, the glass tapping gently on the countertop as she placed it back down with the amount needed to cover her small bill. She then thanked the barista with a sugary smile and a voice full of honey before spinning in her seat and standing to leave, entering the warm air outside once more.

Killing time before making her way to the boardwalk, Aerona stopped into a few other shops to innocently peruse books and clothes, though she found none that genuinely interested her. She had also peeked into the bowling alley but had quickly decided it wasn't up her lane, pun most intended. So, instead, the woman found herself walking along the beach until she needed to head up towards the intended meeting spot. Aerona wadded in the shallows, allowing the cool water to wash over her ankles, and admired the scenery while leaving her mark with a few sandcastles. She continued with this for about an hour, pleasantly humming to herself as the damp sand clung to her palms with her finished and final fortress. 

"Oh, shit!" She quickly cursed once realizing the time, scrambling up from her spot in the sand.

The woman then placed her shoes back on before rushing towards the wooden steps that rose and met with the boardwalk, the golden grains of the beach continuing to stick to her clothes and warm skin. She walked along the promenade, keeping an eye out for a figure she could recognize or assume was Wige at the determined meeting location. Upon her delayed arrival, there was another man nearby as well, standing off to the side, unless introductions had already been made. So, instead of finding a place to awkwardly wait around for names to be stated and plans to be made, Aerona did as she did best and strolled up with a sashay of her hips, happily sitting upon the bench beside Wige with a charming grin.

Aerona crossed her legs and comfortably leaned back on the bench, a bit of sand still present on her black harem pants and dark, flat shoes. Her footwear themselves almost looked similar to pointe slippers, though of course, without the durable box made for elegant dancing, and the dainty ribbons were replaced with black, leather straps, securely bound around her ankles and lower calves to provide support. She also wore a dark, ruby red blouse, the bottom hem of the shirt stopping around her upper abdomen in a crop-top fashion, the sleeves long and flowing until they came to tight cuffs around her wrists. Around each cuff and the neckline of her blouse was simple, black embroidery, tying it together with the other dark elements of her outfit.

As she subtly shifted, her hands clasping together in her lap, there were small reflections of the sun in her jewelry. Thin, golden chains and charms were clasped around her neck, several earrings of similar metal pierced through her ears, and upon her fingers, multiple rings were casually displayed. However, the most captivating sight upon Aerona, aside from her lean, lithe figure, was her eyes. They were dark blue, shining under the sky like sapphires lost within the depths of oceans, heavily contrasting against her warm, dark brown skin and thick, waist-length, blackish-brown tresses, which were currently weaved into two, neat french braids.

"Sorry, am I late?" She asked coolly, knowing damn well she absolutely was.

Edited December 12, 2020 by sapphicSphinx

[supernal 22146]

"Could be worse." Wige said as he finished the last of his cotton candy. He squinted towards a feature in the middle distance; if either of them cared about his sightline they could track it to a clock whose minute details were readable if you had the eyes of a hunter. "You could be the last guy we was waiting on, cause we ain't waiting on nobody no more."

Wige dusted his hands off to one side, then clapped them on his knees before coming to a stand. Maintaining eye contact with Aerona, Wige nodded Arthur's way just a second before breezing in that direction. When they're both within earshot Wige continues by saying: "Let's walk while we talk. Paddling out has me starving right now."

One could not take from what he said or how he said it any sense of active deception but one would also be foolish to assume the surface concern was the only concern. Anyone even briefly familiar with tradecraft knew it was harder to keep a distant ear on a moving target. Not impossible but harder, and much more obvious. So with another nod of his head, Wige began walking them around the plaza's wide circuit.

After they settled into a rhythm, Wige broached the subject head on. "Eridianus. New Everrun. Just a little sleight of hand, nothing violent. I need you two to run off and get me the schematics and maps for their light rail system. Copies if you can, so no one knows anything is up, but if you have to make a little noise for a clean getaway that ain't no problem. Pay's about 10oz rhodium (5000 USD)."

Edited December 16, 2020 by supernal

[Voldemort 723]

Arthur turned his head, looking over his shoulder when Aerona arrived and seated herself next to their employer. The mutant listened to the pair exchange words, sipping at his blueberry flavored alcohol as Wige mentioned that they weren’t waiting for anyone else. That brought a grin to the black mage’s lips. Right to business, just the way he liked it. Fortunately, despite Aerona’s slight tardiness, Arthur didn’t have to wait long. If they would have had to wait for another wayward soul, it would have grated on the mage’s nerves. Luckily, their employer seemed to be a man about his business. 

The mage turned fully when Wige stood to his feet and nodded in understanding. Placing his drink on the banister, Arthur fished out a large slice of pizza from the box he carried, folding the slice in his hand while his opposite hand sent the box hurtling into a nearby trash can. He grabbed his drink and moved to follow Wige; the muscular battle mage walking in lock-step with the others as he took a generous bite out of his pizza. Arthur hummed in contentment, quite enjoying himself as he savored the flavors. The prosciutto and mushrooms that covered the slice in a hearty layer were to die for. 

Arthur grinned happily, the satisfaction clear upon his wolfish features. The distraction of his meal, however, wouldn’t stop the mutant from listening to Wige with keen ears. As he listened, the mutant couldn’t stop smiling. Partially because he was enjoying his food, but mostly because he had never visited New Everrun. Visiting new locales always fueled the mage’s wanderlust. 

Arthur swallowed a bite of his pizza and gave a whistle. “Sounds like we’re going to need more than just a little finesse. This isn’t some innocuous blueprint. We’re talking about critical infrastructure here. Where are they keeping these schematics? I imagine it’s not at one of the local libraries.”

The black mage smirked at his attempt at a joke, washing down his previous bite with a freezing stream of alcoholic slush. Arthur sighed in contentment before returning to business. “And is that ten ounces of rhodium each, or split between the two of us? How about expenses as well? New Everrun isn’t exactly a brisk walk from here, after all, and I have a monstrous appetite as you can see.”

Arthur turned to his companions and smirked roguishly. “So what do you say? Do we hold onto our receipts for you? I imagine my lovely partner has expenses of her own.”
 

@supernal @sapphicSphinx

[supernal 22146]

"Ugh."

Wige grimaced when Arthur smiled. He made no effort to hide his visceral reaction as it happened and no excuse for it after the fact. There was, he reasoned, no way that a man such as Arthur could make it through life without knowing the effect that a man's smile had when paired with his mutated features.

But he didn't dwell on it, or marvel at it, or let it slow him down otherwise. Wige had no scruples that interfered with his ability to work alongside the mage.

"You heard me say 'ten ounces rhodium' right? Not 'walk in the park?' Easy it won't be. So yeah that's ten ounces each, and if you need to think about it a bit and think you need more crew than we got, there's enough room in the budget an extra pair of hands, feathers, spindly insect legs, whatever. Boss'll cover expenses too. Decent ones that is. Vices you pay out of your own pocket."

Unsurprisingly, once the target was revealed to be municipal in nature, there was a flicker of disinterested in one pair of eyes. As they continued walking their circuit, the body those eyes belonged to faded away, leaving just Wige and Arthur.

Wheat and chaff thus separated, Wige felt he could afford a little more honesty.

"It ain't in Everrun." They were now nearly back where they began, near the benches. "But it is going to be at a secured facility, and the blueprints are no less sensitive, are as just as likely to be guarded and squirreled away. The firm's south of Glass Road, near where they keep the Defender."

@Voldemort

[Voldemort 723]

Of course, the mutant knew exactly how his features affected those around him, and he would continue to utilize those intimidating gifts for good reason. The work that Arthur often sought was fraught with betrayal and late payments and he knew that fear was an intense motivator. As long as they took care of him, they would never have to see the alchemist in an angry state. Instead, they would only have to deal with a mage who was enthusiastic to get to work, and more than happy to continue shoving food stuffs down his throat. His eyes stood in stark contrast to his otherwise human features, watching Wige throughout his initial explanation with a hunter's interest. His pupils were narrow, boring into Wige like a pair of pistol barrels as they sat suspended in pools of luminescent orange. Those irises were wide and inhuman, dominating much of the whites of Arthur's eyes until they were wholly unnoticeable except from particular angles where hints of his sclera appeared on the periphery of his eyes. Wige wouldn't be able to see the human qualities in his eyes at that particular moment, but rather was caught utterly in the mage's monstrous gaze.

What was the rule animal handlers followed when it came to dogs and wolves they weren't familiar with? Oh, right, don't look them in the eye for too long.

"We'll have to see when we get there but I imagine that we'll manage with our current numbers," Arthur replied with a nod, satisfied with Wige's clarification on the money. The mutant took another large bite of his pizza, swallowing politely before he turned back towards Wige with a low growl. Something must have pissed the mage off. "Food isn't a vice. I hope you and your boss understand this when I come back with your plans and my receipts. I'm not some fanciful faerie who casts magic and farts pixie dust on a whim. My body serves as the fuel for my transmutations, and I can't go all out if things get hairy unless I have a couple thousand calories in me."

The mage didn't ask if things were squared away in that regard. Arthur didn't feel he had to. They would have this conversation again, as he said, when he returned with their blueprints. As they continued to walk, Arthur finished off his pizza and continued to sip away at his drink. Despite the distraction and the beginnings of inebriation settling in, the mutant would still note the sudden disinterest in his partner. He shrugged his shoulders before turning his attention back on Wige.

"I can't say I'm familiar with the Glass Road or the 'Defender' for that matter. Educate me while I look for something else to eat."

@supernal @sapphicSphinx

[supernal 22146]

"That's fine, that's fine, I just mean don't come back with talk about first class tickets for the blister on your ass or how you need a few red-light women to keep you sane while on an op. I've heard the tricks before."

Seeing that Arthur was no less invested in completing the contract Wige broke their circuit; instead of walking in a circle he started them on the main path south, away from the boardwalk and Chesterfield's north-facing lake, and towards the city's southern end. The wind which started earlier in the day only strengthened in its resolve with the hours that passed, and its play across the earth's surface slowly leached away the ambient heat. Wige turned his collar up as they passed the noodle shop and Wige started looking for a bus terminal.

"Glass Road is an industrial and commerce district. The Defender is a news agency. They stay up on the trends for keeping their people and information secure for all the obvious reasons. I don't think we'll be seeing the same kind of security measures as we would at the agency's HQ but sort of like, you live around someone who bulletproofs their windows and sets up a patrol, you tend to take looking over your shoulder a little more serious. That sort of thing. And the firm has money

"I'll take you to it right now, we can scope it from a distance. I can finger the building for you but you're the specialist, you know?"

@Voldemort

[Voldemort 723]

Arthur lifted his hand disarmingly as Wige explained himself. It was fair enough and the mutant had gotten what he wanted from his client. Smirking wolfishly, the mage sipped his drink and followed the other man as they made their way out of the boardwalk area. By the time they reached the noodle shop, Arthur had finished his drink and promptly launched it into a nearby trash bin. He lifted his hand when Wige began explaining the job details, “Give me a moment.” 

Without ceremony, the mutant turned into the noodle shop. He wouldn’t take long, exiting the building after a few moments with a deep styrofoam bowl in his grasp. “Their menu is extensive,” Arthur laughed, wielding a pair of chopsticks in his opposite hand. “I spotted gyūdon a few pages in and the cravings came like a burst dam.” 

The mutant laughed again, gathering thinly sliced steak, onions and pickled ginger with his chopsticks before depositing it into his mouth. Arthur listened to Wige as he chewed with a hum of satisfaction, nodding with acknowledgment when the client finished his explanation.

”Ah, you mean a place here in Chesterfield. No wonder I didn’t know what you were talking about,” Arthur replied after swallowing his first bite. Digging deeper into his bowl, he gathered some rice long with the beef and onions. “Yeah, take me there. I’ll finish my meal before it’s time to get to work.”

@supernal

[supernal 22146]

"Hold onto your receipts." Was Wige's sole reply when Arthur returned from the noodle shop with a meal in hand.

It took only a minimum of wandering from that point before the city's infrastructure gently guided them to a terminal. Less than ten minutes of idly waiting and an autobus glided down the street, puffed to a gentle stop before them; it generated no steam exhaust like the machines of Tia, before its fall, was not propelled by animals like the vehicles of Blairville; its underside shone with a galvanic lambency familiar to anyone who had seen Empire's old Rail system at work.

Wige paid their fare using what he later identified as a 'burner chit' - it looked like a ribbon of iridescent plastic, held just enough value to get them onto public transit, and would be crumpled up and thrown away as soon as they disembarked, which they would once they were in the Lostspark district, passing the wide expanse of contractor companies flagshipped by Elder Company, and the entertainment district through which the Silver Screen sprawled.

This far from the Defender properties, it was hard to make out the buildings but easy to pick out the demarcation which separated much of those companies which buttered their bread on the exchange of confidential information, and those dedicated to more conventional industries. It was almost as if they were surrounded by a fortified line, an enclave separated from the rest of Chesterfield, though this couldn't be further from the truth.

Wige took them the rest of the way walking, easily a half hour before they were at the heart of the commercial buildings of Glass Road, and Wige pointing out the architecture firm they wanted to infiltrate and rob without using his hands.

"It's that building there, with the sloping curve to its top floor. The offices we want are at the 17th."

@Voldemort

Edited December 22, 2020 by supernal

[Voldemort 723]

“I definitely will,” the mutant replied with a toothy grin, a smile which seemed to spread from ear to ear. Arthur followed his guide, walking alongside Wige as the man led him towards a bus terminal. While they walked in silence, the alchemist busied himself with his meal, swiftly making headway with his voracious appetite on full display. Even when they stepped onto the autobus, Arthur was still craning his neck over his bowl and continued his feasting until their vehicle arrived at its destination. 

Arthur exited the autobus after Wige, launching the empty bowl and chopsticks into a nearby bin with one hand while the other grasped the mage’s handheld CCD. The mutant concentrated his will and communed with the computer, inputting information across his own channels of communication. Meanwhile, he followed Wige quietly, admiring the city as they walked after finishing the work on his handheld. 

“I see it,” the black mage nodded, his monstrous eyes darting to and fro as it analyzed the building with a predator’s keen curiosity. Even at that moment, Arthur was already envisioning a plan of attack. “I can do this. I won’t tell you how but it can be done. I need time to prepare, however, which is fine since I plan to make the attempt after midnight. I’ve sent out a vague job request on the Crook. Hopefully, someone nearby responds. Either way, I need two things from you before I can start. Give me a list of the taller buildings in the general area. Preferably a construction site since they’ll be closed after dark. And secondly, would you be able to cut off the power to this area for a brief moment? I won’t need long to infiltrate, and the target building probably has a back-up generator, but I just need long enough to break-in without tripping an alarm.”
 

@supernal @Mickey Flash

[Mickey Flash 5895]

Not too far away....

 

Willow straightened her new sundress, hoping it was appropriate for her first day at work with the mysterious Ms. Star.  She was wearing a nice new pair of strappy sandals, and had a large handbag thrown over her shoulder.  She did not know what the day would bring, so she loaded the bag full of all kinds of odds and ends, including her lunch. 

As she walked into the rundown motel, she was under no illusions that her job would be an easy one.  After the role she played at The Feeding, she did not think she was anything special.  She had been given a lot of money then, but college costs a lot of money.  And her uncle had taken half of that.  So, she had asked around to some of the more sophisticated people she had met at the party, the only people she knew who had money, to see if a vampire needed an assistant.  She was willing to offer blood for pay, since she believed that was the only thing a vampire could want from a human.  After a remarkedly short period of time, she was contacted about being hired as an assistant to the vampire Ms. Lorial Star.  All she knew about her was that Ms. Star was no one to trifle with. 

Willow knocked on the door of the motel, and she barely waited a second before the door was jerked open and she was jerked inside.

The creature before her was very lovely, beautiful in the way that vampires had a tendency to be.  She had long, straight, black hair, and she was wearing tight, formfitting black leather clothing.  The most noticeable thing about her though was the wicked looking blade that she held to Willow’s throat.  “Who are you?” she hissed in a low tone.

Willow wanted to clear her throat but was afraid to do so would accidentally cause her throat to be cut open and lead to her death.  Instead, she grabbed the knob of the door that had closed behind her once she had been pulled in, and found the courage to squeak, “I’m Willow Bright.  Your new assistant?”  She did not mean to make it sound like a question, but she hoped she had the right room and had not walked in on some type of criminal. 

“Oh.” The dark-haired beauty withdrew the knife and slid it quickly into a sheath tied to her thigh.  She stood back a few steps, which gave Willow room to breathe.  She stared at Willow for a long minute, long enough for Willow to squirm.  “What is that you’re wearing?”

“You like it?” Willow asked nervously.  “I didn’t know what it was I should be wearing, so I brought a change of clothes just in case.”  She gestured toward her large handbag.

“Uh, huh,” Ms. Star said, sounding anything but impressed.  “Let’s get a few ground rules in place, shall we?”  She pulled a large dark bag of her own out under her bed.  She started rummaging through the bag as she spoke.  Willow’s eyes widened as she took in what looked like hand grenades, knives, throwing stars, and other strange looking weapons she could not identify.  “First, don’t wear bright clothes unless you are purposely trying to bring attention to yourself.” She eyed Willow’s white sundress with small yellow daisies all over the dress, making her point.  “You can wear dark colors.  I prefer black, brown, gray, blues, or greens.  Purple is possible if it is dark enough, but no red or yellow.  Orange is an absolute no-no.  Simply because I will be the one who has to look at you on a regular basis and I simply hate the color orange.”  She pulled out some clothes from the bottom of her bag.  “Here, put these on.  You’re a bit smaller than me, but you might be able to fit into these.”

“Oh wait,” Willow pulled out a pair of medium brown slacks from her own handbag, brought along because she was unsure if she was supposed to look more business-like.  The blouse she brought was bright pink though, and she did not think that fell into the ‘dark color’ category.  She held up the slacks like an offering.  Ms. Star looked at them and nodded.  She threw her a black shirt that would have been tight on her, but probably fit Willow adequately. 

“Second, you will be coming with me on a few of my jobs.  You will not make the same pay as me, since you have no experience, and you might be more of a burden than help.  There is only one way to learn though, and it has to be done.  I expect you to help when you can but try not to be a pain in the ass.  I do not know what I will need until we are in any given situation, so be prepared for anything.  And finally, call me Lorial.  I’ll call you Willow.”  She zipped back up her bag and stood there looking at Willow as if expecting something. 

Finally, Willow found her tongue, and asked, “One thing, how much money will I be making?”  She pulled the pants on under her skirt, having a feeling that was what Lorial was waiting for her to do. 

“You will get a modest monthly stipend which should take care of your financial needs, and twenty percent of any moneys awarded when travelling with me on a job.  You are in luck.  A large goose egg of a job landed in my lap just recently.  I found it on the Crook.  The money will be good.  Twenty percent will be around 2000 USD once the job is completed.”  Lorial flipped her hair over her shoulder before she hefted what must have been a very heavy bag easily on her shoulder. 

Willow turned her back as she pulled off the dress and pulled on the black shirt.  She turned back around and Lorial nodded.  “What exactly is your occupation?”

“You don’t know?  I’m a mercenary, baby,” she winked and smiled a cheeky grin at Willow.

[supernal 22146]

"OK. I can work with that."

Wige, like many of his contemporaries, like many of those who worked in fields of employment such as these which operated in the shadows and which dealt in precious intangibles, understood the survival benefits of a healthy dose of paranoia. As reasonable as it would have been for him to ask for details as an employer, it was doubly so for Arthur to want to play his tactics close to the vest - you never knew when you were being setup, by law enforcement, by rivals against your employer, by ancient enemies. So he dealt with it.

"I can get you that list of buildings." Wige pulled out his own CCD, sent a few terse, coded commands out to his own base of operations, and waited the few minutes it would take to get something back. "The power thing, a little harder to swing. All of Glass Road? No way in Wyrm-shit. The building? That I can do. The whole block? . . . tougher, but doable. Seconds? Minutes? I got a guy can maybe make it look like an accident sort of thing but we'll need the timing to be tighter than a flea's puckered mouth."

The information came back. Using a narrow-beam transmission Wige sent the list of buildings directly to Arthur's CCD once he set it to 'listen'.

"I'll be on-prem for spot cleaning but we'll need mid-range comms. I can get encrypted crystals unless you have some preferred method."

@Voldemort

Edited December 23, 2020 by supernal

[Voldemort 723]

The mutant nodded with a smirk when Wige confirmed that he could get him a list of nearby buildings. His other requests were important but every job needed a staging area, a place to meet with the other thieves and launch their assault on the firm's building. If Wige didn't want any one killed, something that Arthur also preferred, they couldn't stroll in through the front door for it was a tactic that would necessitate fighting their way up to the seventeenth floor. Arthur stopped mulling over the precise details, knowing he had more than enough time later, and turned to Wige as they continued to discuss the heist. 

"The building will suffice. I'll only need half a minute. We'll be able to get inside before their back-up generator reactivates their security systems and the guards will likely think it's just a malfunction of the power grid," Arthur whispered in reply, staring ahead towards the building with intense focus. The determination was practically palpable, his aura expanding and cloaking his form in a subtle nimbus. "Encrypted crystals will do. I'd rather not spend valuable mana on communication, and frankly I've never been skilled at such will work..."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Later that night, Arthur stood on the unfinished floor of a building that was under construction. It's roof was unfinished, though beams jutted upwardly from the corners of the paved floor, and the night sky hung above him as a heavy breeze buffeted the mutant. The floor near the center of the temporary roof was covered in a variety of gear, including bundled up lengths of thick rope and several fully-assembled hang-gliders. The sails were constructed of black fabric which would blend in with the night sky once Arthur and his team took flight. So far, however, the mage was alone. If the others didn't arrive before it was time, Arthur would elect to head out on his own. 

The mutant was dressed differently than he had been when he met Wige. No longer looking like a tourist, Arthur's lower half sported black sneakers and jeans, while a black leather jacket adorned his muscular torso with the hood of his gray sweater peaking from the jacket's low collar. A thick belt was wrapped around his hips, a multitude of holsters and pouches were fastened there along with a scroll tube that hung from the small of his back. 

Arthur was ready. 

@500bees @supernal @Mickey Flash @sapphicSphinx

[Mickey Flash 5895]

Willow nervously placed the strap of the handbag she always carried over her shoulder and across her chest.  She stared up at the numbers dinging in the tiny coffin sized elevator they were in.  They were going up and up.  “You never mentioned to me what it is we are doing here,” she said hollowly as she watched the numbers increase.

Lorial was studying the fingernails, or more like claws, of her left hand.  In her right hand was the satchel full of weapons.  “It’s a job.  We’re to meet here.  There is no killing.  Maybe a little light stealing.  What else is there to know?” she asked in a bored monotone voice.

Willow’s head whipped around and looked at Lorial in alarm.  “Light stealing?  You didn’t say I’d be breaking the law with you on these missions you have.” Her voice had risen an octave and she was now clutching the strap of her handbag. 

“Do you want to work for me, or not?” her left eyebrow quirked up high as she looked over at the nervous assistant.  “This is part of the job.  And this one seems to be an easy one for me.  It’s perfect for bringing a human along for the ride.”  Lorial shrugged as she went back to studying her nails.  The dinging of the elevator stopped, and the doors opened.  

Willow swallowed.  “I guess we’re here,” she said as she hesitantly walked out of the elevator. 

“Not quite,” Lorial said as she pointed to the door that said ‘STAIRS’ in red lettering.  “Just a little bit further.” 

Willow sighed as she followed her.  They walked up a couple of flights of steps and Lorial opened a door that let in a stiff breeze.  “Come on, let’s go,” she said impatiently.  Willow wanted to reply sharply back that she did not have vampire stamina for stair climbing, but kept her mouth shut.  This was her first day and she did not want to ruin it by whining about things.

When she went through the door after Lorial she looked out to see the fact that not only was it under construction here but there were no walls, or railings to protect someone from falling off the edge to go splat below.  She gasped and grabbed a hold of the doorjamb as if it were a lifeline.  “I can’t do this,” she whispered, her voice held a shaking quality that was usually reserved for older people or those terrified. 

She did not think anyone could have heard her over the wind, and the fact that she barely heard herself.  But Lorial turned to look at her with narrowed eyes.  “You’re not backing out on me now, are you?  We have barely begun.” 

“I am scared of heights,” Willow squeaked.  Lorial reached for her arm and managed to pry her loose from the doorjamb. 

“No need to be scared,” she coaxed as she dragged the other girl closer to the center of the floor where all the equipment lay.  “If you fell off the roof I’d dive after you and save you.  I wouldn’t die from the fall and I’m pretty strong.”  She proved this by continuing to drag the still frightened Willow over to the equipment.  “What do we have here?” she asked as she let go of Willow’s arm.  She was looking down at the gliders curiously.  Willow realized that she was too far from the door to easily walk back to it, but too close to the edge of the building to move forward.  She clutched Lorial’s arm after Lorial had let her go.  Lorial looked down at the small hands clutching at her sleeve for dear life.  She tried not to grin at the ridiculousness of Willow’s fear.  Humans.  They were afraid of everything.  A fleeting thought went through her mind of what could happen to Willow if she did fall off the roof and no one caught her.  She would be a pancake.  No bouncing back up like Lorial could do.  She guessed if she were that fragile, she might be scared too. 

Lorial noticed they were not alone and turned toward the other occupant there.  It was a male, with orange eyes and a dangerous air about him.  Lorial sized him up for a moment, wondering how he would fare in a good fight.  “I’m Lorial.  I’m here for the job,” she greeted as introduction.  She remembered Willow due to the increase of pressure from her fingers tugging at her black leather jacket.  “This is Willow,” she gestured her head toward Willow.  After a brief pause, she added, “She’s human,” as if that were all the explanation needed for Willow’s strange fear-filled behavior.