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Post by Zachary Knight on Mar 24, 2012 14:40:50 GMT -5
*Away from the meeting and back to my quarters I go. It really is a shame that I could not attend the meeting, but I do suppose that is what I get for choosing to be an analyst instead of one of the city guards or Draculoids. Their lives certainly seem more entertaining.*
*My apartment is a block away from the Tower, in the penthouse of the Bluesky Building. Rent costs me a hefty fee, but it is quite worth it. I can pay for it, anyway, what with the...bonuses that I sometimes recieve from Better Living officials.*
*I run up the stairs to the top, as always. Twelve flights of exercise each day keep me in shape, at least, and I won't have to rely on the slow central elevator. The stairwell leads to my living room, which is rather Spartan but still comfortable. The view from my wall of windows is decoration enough. I walk through my bedroom, just as bare as the living room and significantly smaller, sparing another glance out another large window, but this time I'm checking for a reason. There are no visible threats. Good.*
*I open my closet and walk in, shutting the door behind me. My hand instinctively moves to the small indentation in the wall and tugs sharply. The false back panel slides out of my way, and I walk slowly, purposefully, into my base of operations.*
*Monitors cover the walls, all but the one that I use as an actual computer attuned to various security feeds. Their dim light is the only source of visibility in here. In the left corner of the room, an odd mannequin is dressed in the robe, cowl, blindfold, and laurels that I use whenever I need to leave to do some...questionable business dealings. Two radios (one belonging to the traitor who I put out of business, and one that is my own) sit on a shelf, silent but for the occasional transmission that eminates from both. My game of chess, which is nine full boards across and is comprised of 144 or so pieces on each side, occupies a large space beneath it.*
*I am home.*
*The Oracle has returned to his modern-day Delphi.*
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Post by Zachary Knight on Mar 25, 2012 20:54:03 GMT -5
*Cameras. Everywhere in Battery City, save for a few small blind spots, is visible through the Better Living Industries camera network, which I have...gained the use of. With my many, many monitors, I can see most everything at once, at least in my peripheral vision, and am able to notice anything out of the ordinary. So, when a Killjoy or three make their way through the checkpoint, guns blazing, it certainly catches my eye. I recognize the two younger Killjoys, a pair of scientists-in-training who were broken out of the Tower long ago. I don't recall ever having seen the female, but I'm sure she will be as good an acquisition of the other two. I know that there are many, many units in the Tower, but Unit Eight is the best. A quick check on the meeting-room camera assures me that they seem to be nearly done with their proceedings. I do hope that I'm not stopping the action too early as I call in through the localized intercom system, switching on the voice modulator that assures beyond a shadow of a doubt that no one knows who I am.*
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Post by Zachary Knight on Mar 28, 2012 5:54:20 GMT -5
*The power in my apartment suddenly goes out. All the cameras, gone!* Shit. *I lament not buying a generator when I had the chance, but there are NEVER power outages in Battery City. Never.* Damn Killjoys. I had wanted to avoid this.... *Fearing that the Tower may have lost power also, I call into one of the agents' radios, quickly trying to get into my robe, hood, and blindfold. I won't leave Unit Eight sailing blind, however sure I am that they could do quite well under such circumstances.*
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Post by Zachary Knight on Apr 25, 2012 19:57:24 GMT -5
*Before entering my apartment complex, I hit the button on a small remote hidden inside the sleeve of my robe. It makes the phone ring at the front desk. The landlord turns to pick it up and I dart past him and up the stairs. I'm sure he's confused when the "caller" hangs up as soon as the phone is answered, but it has happened many times. I think he believes that they are all wrong numbers, probably from the same caller each time. Either way, it keeps my entrance hidden. Up, up, up I go. My legs burning from the climb, I move through my apartment quickly, removing the pieces of my Oracle outfit one by one. I make my way into the secret room and position the outfit on the dummy before going straight back to my surveillance. I twirl the scrap of paper that Mr. Wilson had given my into a thin tube without thinking much of it. Delphia Café. Seven PM tonight. I think for a moment before figuring an outfit in which I can go out on the street and keep my identity concealed. Before I take my morning shower, I check the cameras around the wall to see if the patrol is returning yet. I see a group of small dots, apparently people traveling on foot. Delphia at seven.*
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Post by Zachary Knight on May 17, 2012 15:27:22 GMT -5
*I watch cameras for a few hours before going to work. As I am not exactly one of the more well-known analysts, I rarely get any jobs to do, so I can pull up a camera interface and take a catnap in my chair. After a night of imprisonment in one of the Killjoy cells and the main video hub, I really need it. It's about 5 PM when I feel fully rested, and I get a bit of work done for the day by fixing an erring bit of code that is causing someone's company email to constantly send them alert notices before leaving at around six.*
*It takes me about ten minutes to get home, and I promptly assemble an ensemble for my meeting with Mr. Wilson. I fish my black hooded trenchcoat that I once got as payment from a Killjoy I "helped" (I hear he was transferred out to Infinity City last month and is now an Exterminator) out of a box. It is comically oversized, due to the fact that the man who gave it to me was practically the size of a sequoia tree, but it effectively does the job of hiding my body and most of my face. The rest is easily covered with a pair of reflective sunglasses. I look shady, like one of the people that can occasionally be seen selling fake jewelery and extra-strong prescription medications on the street, but that can be something to worry about later. By six-thirty, I'm making my way down the stairs, my hood off for now, and around the corner to Delphia.*
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Post by rileywilson on May 18, 2012 23:54:53 GMT -5
*I make my way down to the lobby, a bit relieved to see that life is carrying on as usual in the tower. Assistants scurry by with medications and reports, doctors debate with each other over treatments, and every five feet a screen with a friendly face tells me it's a wonderful day. Dracs stroll around in pairs, in constant radio contact with their city-patrol counterparts and even another Unit Leader I pass by seems unphased. The Tower hums along, a constant in a recovering city... what a mess*
*The Tower is close to Delphia, so I wait for Vico in the lobby*
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Post by Zachary Knight on May 19, 2012 0:20:18 GMT -5
*When I walk into Delphia, there's a tall brunette at the counter, who stares at me with a modicum of fear. It's not unexpected, seeing as I'm dressed like a character from an old action movie, but it's a bit of a shame to see such an attractive face looking at me in fear. The elderly lady who owns the café places a hand on the cashier's shoulder, distracting him.*
Relax, Jason. He comes in here often. Go on and take your break, now. *She turns and smiles at me.* He's new, as I'm sure you've noticed. The back corner booth as usual, sir?
Yes, Miss Anderson. Thank you. *I take a seat on one of the benches and order a pitcher of coffee before switching my voice modulator on and tucking it underneath the collar of my trenchcoat. I check my watch: 6:55.*
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Post by Alexander Ludovico on May 19, 2012 1:00:30 GMT -5
*Riley's watching the news on one of the many television screens in the front lobby when I arrive downstairs, and I walk up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder* Evening, love. Wonderful weather for a stroll, as per usual. Shall we go?
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Post by rileywilson on May 20, 2012 0:21:32 GMT -5
*I quickly move out from under his hand, not used to human contact or sure I want it. Usually people prefer more space between me and them, not less*
Yes, let's go.
*Some people turn and stare as we enter Delphia. At least half the occupants are employees from the Tower, as it is a well known cafe. I look around and spot The Oracle. We quickly move to that table and sit. No one says anything for a minute as the waitress brings two more cups*
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Post by Zachary Knight on May 20, 2012 11:44:44 GMT -5
*I open two little cream cups and pour them into my coffee before taking a sip. Perfect.* Cream and sugar, anyone? I am sorry that I did not ask for more mugs, but I did not think that you would be attending our meeting, Mr. Ludovico. A pleasant surprise nonetheless. *I take another sip of coffee before putting my cup down.* Now, then. What do you have for me?
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Post by Alexander Ludovico on May 20, 2012 20:20:54 GMT -5
*I smile, adding sugar to my own coffee and leaning back* No trouble at all. I'm just a spectator, here for moral support. *I hold a hand up to my mouth as though telling the Oracle a secret, and add in a whisper* Wilson gets a bit anxious sometimes.
*Riley's glare is deadly, and I grin, not chagrined in the slightest* Kidding, of course. His only flaw is that he needs to lighten up a bit. But don't mind me, go ahead with your little information trade - *I wiggle my fingers in the air* - or whatever it is you're doing.
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Post by Zachary Knight on May 20, 2012 20:39:31 GMT -5
Usually, my sessions are one-on-one. But I'll make an exception this time. *I smile at Vico for a second before turning back to Wilson.* This probably isn't the best time to tell you, but I usually work for pay. A living must be made, you know. I'm just letting you know early on so that you can leave if you want. At the very least, one of you is going to want to pay for coffee if you want any truth in my words. *I take another sip of coffee and shrug.* It's not as steep as I usually demand, out of respect for your position. Both of yours.
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Post by rileywilson on May 20, 2012 23:19:24 GMT -5
*I glare at Vico and then turn to The Oracle*
BLI owns this coffee shop, Oracle, have as much as you want. And pay is not an issue, if that is what you really want. I can do carbons or intel.
*I take a sip of my own coffee, black of course, and lean back*
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Post by Zachary Knight on May 21, 2012 15:17:52 GMT -5
I have no need for more intel. If there's a bit I want, I can usually find it. *I shrug and set my coffee down again, swirling it absently.* Carbons are more my speed, but I wouldn't want our most promising Controller to have to pay too much...we'll see what you have to ask and I will set the fee based on the...confidentiality of what you want to know. Does that sound fair to you?
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Post by rileywilson on May 27, 2012 23:00:54 GMT -5
*I think for a second* What can you tell me about Erik Haider, Naomi Massemburg, and Sharon LeBre. Who are they and where are they now?
*I'm testing him. Two of the files are actually fakes I set up a while back, each at a different security level. The third... well, I'm eager to see what this Oracle has to say about them*
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Yes, I'm still running - sort of. But it is lonely out here. Haven't seen anyone else for a while.
//