The World Left Behind (IC)

[Dakota K5]

Otto White

Interaction: Tess and Bill
----
Otto nodded to Bill when he asked him how he was doing which might have seen dismissive but in fact, it was just that Otto was drinking his coffee and it'd be rude to speak until he was finished with it. When Javion decided that it was time for the full crew to get here and mentioned Tess sleeping in before saying one of them should wake her up Otto got up. "Guess that's me then." Otto spoke as he pushed himself off the counter with coffee in hand before pouring another and heading down the hallway leading to the rooms they all used. He stopped in front of Tess's door and kicked it with the side of his boot a few times. "Hey Tess, wake up we got coffee and another Job." He said through the door. He chose to stand there and wait rather than head back just in case he had to knock again to get her up.​

 

[Amaranth]

Tess hummed, seemingly not paying attention in Otto's story, her focus turned to the arm in front of her, even the glass of wine forgotten while she worked. Still, she was listening. There wasn't much to say - an offer of sympathy wouldn't change anything, and, while the way he had gotten the arm was less than ideal, to say the least, the prize was... Impressive.

"It was money well spent." She said, only once she stood up and took a step back to evaluate their work. Her fingers still itched with the wish to explore the arm a bit more, to figure out exactly how each of its parts worked. But it was still someone's arm, and she still had a little left of respect in her. Well, at least she respected the people she liked. She grabbed the bottle offered to her, took a long gulp and smiled back at Otto as she moved outside his room. "Oh, I'll definitely end up asking for something, eventually. But I would be lying if I didn't say that I'm probably more grateful than you, for letting me work on that beauty."


Her sleep that night was good, almost perfect, actually, and Tess woke up just briefly with the sounds of people moving outside her room before she grunted, turned around and went right back into sleep. If anyone needed her, they would wake her up.

It turned out, they did. She woke up again with someone knocking on her door, and it took a few seconds for her to recognize Otto's voice. She grunted, wondering what would the pros and cons of staying in bed would be for another few seconds before finally and quite literally rolling out of bed. She stayed on the floor for a few more seconds, before the courage to get up finally kicked in and she did.

Tess opened the door, eyeing Otto for a few seconds before her eyes lit up when she saw the cup of coffee in his hands.

"Oh, coffee!" She grabbed it, drinking half of the cup before sighing. "Another job, already? Couldn't Javion wait until, I don't know, lunch? Or better, dinner? Should I get changed already?" There was no real bite to her voice though, and Tess didn't wait for an answer before she closed the door to her room behind her. The oversized clothes she used as pajamas would do just fine for breakfast, as far as she was concerned.

She walked towards the kitchen, drinking the rest of her coffee as she went. "How is the arm? Working alright?" She asked over her shoulder.

When she reached the others, Tess made a beeline for the coffee machine, filling up her mug once again.

"Well, good morning to you all, I suppose."

 

[Jack Robinson]

Zion Bill


Bill sighed and lit up a cigarette. At least he got a day to decompress before the job. There were times in Africa where he'd spend weeks doing nothing but shooting, reloading, pissing, drinking, and occasionally sleeping. Strange times. Boring yet exciting all at the same time. The only colors you'd see were brown and red. Sand. Blood. The bodies of the unlucky fellers who got themselves killed. Combat in Africa was odd. Sometimes they'd just sit in huts on different sides of a river and take potshots at each other. Other times they'd charge forts armed with nothing but machetes and pistols and butcher everyone inside in astonishing displays of violence. Bill had seen it all. He could only hope this mission was something a little more tame than the virtual massacre they'd taken part of just yesterday.

Tess arrived in the main room. Everyone was present. Unable to wait any longer, Bill spoke up. "So, you gonna give us a hint as to what we're gettin' into? We robbin' some more poor fools? Or you got somethin' else up your sleeve?" he asked Javion.​

 

[Dunruffle]

Picking a piece of lint off his pants Javion pulled up several news articles on the holoprojector set into the table. The articles we're all about the train robbery and speculating who could have been behind it. "I received word from our employer that the job was adequate for his needs. We can only guess as to what the true objective was, but that would just be an exercise in futility. As for our next mission, it will be a little different than what you all are normally accustomed to." With a devious grin, Javion input some commands and the news articles were replaced with a slowly rotating skyscraper labeled "Building 3A, Korea."

"Our goal is the removal of a certain figure. By removal I mean killing. Try to keep up." Rolling his eyes at the mercenary trio, Javion highlighted the upper floors of the building. "The target is a man who is on the Belka Group's board of directors. Unlike our last job, this one will require much more finesse. Being from one of the big three companies this executive has some of the best protection money can buy. It also does not help that our target is paranoid and drug connoisseur. I will be posing as a scientist looking for protection from some old clients. You all will be my entourage and do your best to stay silent and not do anything idiotic. Easier said than done though considering how uncultured you three are." Letting out an annoyed sigh, Javion ran a hand through his hair and gestured to Syd. "Just do your best to imitate Syd, silent and imposing. Considering how cautious our target is, we can't just walk up and shoot him. The plan is to lure him out of his room and into the open where Reina has an angle to shoot him. Reina will be on a nearby mountain with a sniper rifle and will ideally complete the mission in one shot. Once the target is eliminated, we simply play our roles and walk out with our over still intact. If for some reason the target catches wind of our plan, it will be up to us to take him out before he can escape."

Examining the three mercenaries clothes, Javion sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I can only assume you all do not own a single piece of nice clothing. We will need to stop and make you all look presentable. Since we will be in a private floor of the building you will not be able to have any weapons on you. If you absolutely need to be armed, go find a concealable weapon from the armory." Leaning back in his chair, Javion stretched his arms out in front of himself. "It will be at least twelve hours before we arrive. Go...clean your guns or whatever you mercenaries do if you are bored."

 

[Dakota K5]

Otto White

Interaction: Tess, Javion, and Bill
---
Otto returned behind Tess and resumed his spot next to Bill who had just lit up a cigarette. Otto then listened and focused on their objective as well as their cover. "Or...and just hear me out here, Bill, Tess, and Syd act as your entourage while I provide protection for Reina, since, you know, I'm an internationally wanted terrorist here and all that remember." Otto spoke as he pointed to his face. "I ain't no bin laden when it comes to infamy but do you really want to take that risk Javion, that someone is gonna recognize me and decide they might get a promotion or a fat payment for information on me or the other direction see me, recognize me and possibly blow our cover?" Otto spoke as he rubbed his eyes, shocked Javion was so dense to forget this. "Look if you want me to go in with my face covered I can but I think that's gonna raise some more questions but you're paying me because I'm good at what I do so if you want me to play dress up in a fine suit as your hired muscle then that's fine but if you decide I'd be better providing muscle for our talented sniper over there then that's fine too." Otto paused to drink the last of his coffee. After, he stood there and waited for them to continue, if he was honest he would just say take the building down or plant started bombs on the target's car or cars mob-style but if Javion wanted to do an overcomplicated assassination then he was fine with that too. "Though if I get to see our lovely Tess in something more formal and Bill sweat it out in a suit without his whiskey or bible you might convince me the risk is oh so worth it." Otto spoke again with a playful elbow to Bill's side and a wink at Tess.​

 

[Amaranth]

Tess began sipping on her coffee, much slower this time, while listening to Javion talk and trying to filter as many insults as she could. The man could really be insufferable. The current mission was... Well, Tess wasn't sure how to feel about it. She had absolutely no problem in eliminating someone in a company's board of directors. If experience had told her anything it was that those kind of people were never working for the greater good - unless this meant their own pocket. So it wasn't like she wasn't all for going in and shooting one of those leechers in the head. The thrill of infiltrating such a big company was also very tempting. The thing was... She didn't really know how to feel about the whole 'looking presentable' thing.

She still laughed over her mug at Otto's tirade about being recognized, but the laugh suddenly turned into a groan at the mention of formal wear.

"I'm allergic to formal." She grumbled, glaring at her coffee as if it was somehow going to offer a solution. "You're not making me wear a dress, are you? Those things are shitty to run on, and if things go south you'll need us mobile, right? I mean, I could just wear a suit as well. It's definitely formal enough. Or I could wear a suit and we could put Beary in a dress. I doubt anyone would recognize him with some makeup, international terrorist or not." She grinned at Otto, not really serious about anything she said.

Except for the dress part. She could definitely do without a dress.

"How tight is their security?" She asked instead, rocking back and forth lazily in her heels. "I mean, what kind of things we can expect going in? Metal detectors, cameras..."

 

[Dunruffle]

As the mercenaries voiced their opinions, Javion rolled his eyes and groaned dramatically. "Oh Otto, have already forgotten who you are working for? In the armory i am sure there are some synth-flesh masks you could wear. Just slap them on and you have a whole new face. As amusing as it would be for you to pester Reina, I need her focused on the task at hand while you make sure I do not get shot." Leaning back in his leather chair, Javion arched an eyebrow at Tess. "I guess you wearing a suit is allowed, though you are breaking my heart since you refuse to wear a dress." Sighing in annoyance, Javion went back to scrolling through his tablet. "The mission plan has already been decided, we cannot afford to mess up this opportunity to eliminate the target. He is already paranoid enough and I really would prefer to not be tortured to death if my plan goes awry simply because one of you could not follow simple directions. Now go do whatever you people do for recreation, we still have a long flight ahead of us." Syd remained where he was like the emotionless bodyguard he was while Reina finished her smoothie and washed out her cup. Reina then wordlessly passed by Otto, Tess, and Bill and meandered into the armory where she began sifting through a case full of ammunition.

 

[Dakota K5]

Otto White

Interaction: Javion, Tess and Bill
---
"Well no Javion, I can't forget who I'm working for when I don't know who it is other than some vague explanation like powerful people and I know you didn't hire us directly otherwise you won't be part of this new job. Also, promise I can pester Reina at a later date and time and I'll make sure you walk out of this situation without a spec of dirt on you let alone with a gunshot wound." Otto gave a false pout towards Tess. "I'm also disappointed I don't get to see you in a dress but I'm probably being less sarcastic about it then Javion." Otto put his cup into the little sink of the kitchen area as his coffee was finished before looking at both Tess and Bill. "So you two want to help me pick out a new face or am I gonna be in charge of that task all on my lonesome? Maybe we can all pick out matching concealable pistols to? Look real professional and like we just came from Mercs'R'Us two for one sale." Otto spoke in an overly hyped up tone like he was really excited before turning and heading towards the armory while whistling a tune, not caring to wait for Tess and Bill to follow in case they had their own final parting words for Javion.​

 

[Amaranth]

"Oh, good, breaking your heart is my life's purpose." Tess rolled her eyes at Javion before patting Otto's shoulder. "You're going to be more disappointed if I trip and fall down because I'm wearing a skirt with high heels when I need to run, believe me." She leaned against the wall, sipping on her coffee more slowly now, shutting whatever it was that Javion was complaining about at the time off. She chuckled a bit at Otto's words, but still took her time drinking from the mug she was holding.

Only after the coffee was completely gone - and perhaps she did refill it once, but no once could judge her - did Tess straighten herself up and put the mug into the sink, filling it with water but not really bothering to wash it before she exited the kitchen and made her way towards the armory.

Once there, Tess sat on top of the table, passing her eyes once again on their options. A small pistol would be better for a subtly mission, but if she could find some kind of knife she could take as well, it would definitely make her feel better. Missions like this, that required certain refinement, weren't exactly her forte. Sure, infiltrating a company was very tempting and all, but she'd rather not have to talk to the people inside. Even if she hated it, though, she had come from a rather 'classy' family, so she wasn't completely clueless...

Shaking her head, Tess kicked the air a few times and looked at Otto.

"So, did you decide on a face yet? Something soft and trustworthy and with less beard, perhaps?"

 

[Dakota K5]

Otto White

Interaction: Tess
----
Otto heard Tess as he flipped through the options on the machine which would print him out a new face. "That'd probably be smart ya. But gotta keep up appearances if I look too much like a choir boy someone might think something is amiss since we are playing the part of bodyguards hmm." Otto stood in thought as he looked down at the interface, he had already scanned his head and getting the dimensions so that the mask would be already ready to fit when it was done as well as entered his body weight, shape, and his height so the proportions were in order. "How...about this." Otto entered somethings and soon the interface spat out an image for Tess to see. "Certainly has the stern look someone would expect from a bodyguard but looks nothing like me. Ya, I like it." Otto spoke before he pressed enter and the machine began its work.

He walked over next to where Tess sat and looked at their choices for weapons. "Probably should take the same model of pistols in the same caliber, that way if we get into a firefight." Otto spoke as he pulled out a small polymer 380 chambered pistol as well as a push dagger that was small enough to fit in a suit near his pistol and would make any punch he threw much more lethal.​