Gathering Intel (tag Shizuka)

[Annabelle Schmidt]

A steady rain dripped out of the dark gray sky above a hooded figure.  They checked their tablet to notice the time.  They glanced over their shoulder as they crossed the street to a shady bar.  A hum of automated transportation units could be heard as they entered. 

There was a number of patrons sitting at various metal tables with chairs that had seen better days.  The bar itself looked as though it had a layer of grease covering it.  They sat on a stool as they let the hood slide to around their shoulders.  A wave of strawberry blonde hair fell past the shoulders as green eyes caught the attention of the bar tender.  The blonde held up two fingers for a couple of drinks which were quickly placed in her hand.  She gave a nod of thanks.

She was about to take a sip when a hand was placed on her shoulder.  She glanced up into the face of a humanoid pig.  His tongue rolled out of his mouth across his lips as his eyes held a familiar glint.  She shrugged off the hand as her attention was completely on her drink.  They always seemed to want the same thing. 

Her shoulder was tapped again, followed by a deep, nasal voice.  "You might want to stick with me, sweetheart.  You look like you could use a hand with all the rough and tumble types here."

Her eyes narrowed as a muscle twitched under her eyes.  She had a long day already and this was the last thing she needed.  She took the hand off her shoulder as she noticed the bartender at the far end give her a slight nod of his head.  Her full attention was on the humanoid as she picked up her drink.  "First off, I am not your sweetheart, so don't call me that.  Secondly, I don't need your help.  In fact, I would like to be left alone just like everyone else.  Touch me again and you will know what true pain feels like."

The humanoid took a step closer as he bent down.  "Oh but you do baby doll.  I have a place close by where you will be safe.  I could even show you a few moves to keep you safe."  His hand grabbed around her wrist as he started to tug her up.

The blonde slammed down the glass that was in her hand as she glared at him.  He was not taking the hint to leave her alone which was pissing her.  Add in the sex part, well, it was lights out for him.  She let him pull her to her feet to throw him off guard.  She smiled at him before a fist connected with his overly large stomach.

"What the.." came out before her other fist collided with his face. 

She twirled around as she felt the presence of two more behind her.  She was not surprised that he had buddies.  A foot pushed back as her stance widened.  The one to her left took a swing at her.  She collided her foot with his kneecap than finished him off with an upper cut to his jaw.  The one to her right hit in her in the side as she staggered forward.  The one who hit on her first grabbed her from behind as he lifted her off the ground. 

"You think that you are so cleaver.  Nobody turns one of us down!  I think you need a lesson for next time someone tells you they are going to take you home." 

The other one laughed as he started in on her.  His hands pulled back, getting ready to punch her.  She bent her knees as she placed her feet on the stomach.  It was a good thing he was much taller than her.  She pushed hard as she could smell his breath from the gasp from the pressure of her feet digging in.  Both of her feet swung with enough force that the one who was about to give punishment to be knocked to the ground with a large thud.  Her momentum carried her around as she broke out of the hold.  She grabbed a metal chair to swing with enough force to cause the idiot to move forward.  He stumbled over his own feet to the ground. 

She held the chair over her head as she glanced around the room.  "Let this be a lesson.  When someone says no, they mean it!  Now everyone get out!  If it was someone else who was weaker than I, you would have watched them go to their deaths.  What a bunch of spineless idiots!" 

There was a scrapping of chairs as she let the one in her hands fall with force to knock the humaniod out.  She watched as the crowd surged force.  She sat back down to a steaming pile of fresh food and a new drink.

"I never grow tired of you teaching people a lesson.  Those three have caused us a lot of problems.  You don't want to know how many times I called the rangers in here, Annabelle, when you are not around.  I owe ya one."  The bartender smiled as he leaned across the counter.  "Whatcha up to this time?"

Annabelle smiled as she sat back done.  It was one of her favorite spots of all time.  She took a large gulp of her drink.  "I am waiting for a friend before I have to go home.  We have just been gathering information.  Now, I will need another plate if you will be so kind."

"Anything for my Annabelle."  He gave her a wink before heading back to the kitchen.     

[Shizuka Jaeger]

Wearing a hooded gray raincoat with black boots, Shizuka carefully walked across a rainy street on a planet named Voan Dro'. She had almost slipped once already, much to the amusement of the locals.

Voan Dro' had a wider variety of inhabitants than the planet she came from. A quick look at the prominent porcine features of some of the locals made that clear. She was definitely not on Mars anymore.

She took a glance at the establishment standing before her. It looked like it had seen better days. So did some other parts of the city she had visited. Putting all of that aside, Shizuka entered the establishment.

Letting her coat dry off and wiping her feet at the door, the place looked just as worn on the inside as it did on the outside. Shizuka noticed the strong presence of grease. A lot of grease. So much grease that Shizuka was afraid that a lit match would consume the entire restaurant in flame. It made a good place for a clandestine meeting precisely because it was a working-class establishment frequented by rough types.

Blue eyes looked around the dreary restaurant and eventually found a splash of strawberry blonde. That was what she was looking for. Shizuka carefully made her way over to the person in question and took a seat beside her.

Shizuka lowered the hood to show off her long purple hair. Her coat was still damp, but it was tolerable. She remembered the bad old days on Mars when she was caught in rainstorms without a raincoat. She hoped that she would not have to go through that ever again.

[Annabelle Schmidt]

Annabelle took another sip as she heard groans from the ground. She started at bottom of her glass. A figure slipped next to her. She smiled as she kicked one who rolled close to her. She set her glass down as she glanced over. The young girl that was brought them showed promise. She was pleased of how quickly the girl made a network for information. It was a good skill to have in this uncertain time.

"You missed the show. The three lugs never stood a chance. Dinner will be here in just a moment."

It was almost right on cue, the bartender brought out a plate. It was filled to the brim with hot, local food. He smiled to the other girl who showed up. "A friend I see. Here ya go sweetheart. Eat up."

Annabelle gave him a smile as he walked away. She turned more of her attention on Shizuka. "Hopefully you were able to make some more contacts. We will need them if we want to take a head huncho who helped take out our queen."

[Shizuka Jaeger]

"I bet it was quite the show." Shizuka said to Annabelle. Shizuka could respect Annabelle, and not just because of a fancy title. The strawberry blonde went out into the field and took the same risks as the others. There was also the fact that the organization the blonde worked for took Shizuka in when it could have easily left her to be killed. That played a part too.

Shizuka saw the plate of local food being placed in front of her. As long as it did not bite her first, she would eat almost anything. That trait came with being a street kid on Mars who never knew where the next meal was coming from. Shizuka ate a lot of food of questionable quality. She did get sick quite a few times, but she was still alive... that was the most important thing.

"I hit the streets. It took some doing, but I may have found a couple of potential contacts." Shizuka started.

"One's a weapons dealer named Arbita. I doubt that's a real name, but that's all I could get. Word says that they're willing to sell to any buyer... for the right price." Shizuka gave the name of her first contact. She tried the food placed before her. It had a spicy flavor that disguised some of the grease. It was not gourmet fare, but it was surprisingly good.

"Another contact is not a person, but a militia called the Dro' Home Guard. As the name implies, they're mostly concerned with protecting their home turf. Here's the interesting part... I heard that quite a few of the more adventurous members moonlight as mercenaries." Shizuka listed the second contact. She was ambivalent about the prospect of hiring mercenaries. Being able to call upon soldiers with specialized skills for special jobs was always a useful asset. On the flip side, one could not always count on loyalty that was bought. As with many things in life, the decision was a matter of risk versus reward.

While waiting for a response, Shizuka continued to eat. The food was best while hot. It was starting to cool off a little, but it was still good enough to eat.

[Annabelle Schmidt]

Annabelle listened with great care as the girl next to her listed off a couple of contacts. A weapons dealer could come in handy for them. They were low on things like that. It would help for the small missions that they had to do. Militia could come in handy as well. She was not too keen on mercenaries for she had witnessed a few ones break their contracts. It was one thing that she could not stand.

She took a few bites as she thought for a moment. Andrew would be able to cut out any bullshit that they could offer. It was also help to vet them out as well. Her brother was itching to practice his skills. Well both of his skills, truth be told. She should let him off his chain. He and the bartender have a thing so next time Andrew could join them.

"Those are both excellent to have. We will need the weapons, especially for our next target. He is part of a family who has thrown their support in early with Death Phantom. We will be taking him out and if all goes to plan, all the heads. They have a meeting in the next system over. Up for a little action? It might be tough, you have proven yourself more than capable."

[Shizuka Jaeger]

Shizuka listened to Annabelle speak. Her interest grew as she heard about the family collaborating with Death Phantom. Her interest skyrocketed at the prospect of action. Being an agent was an interesting experience, but her real strength was in bashing heads. Or removing them... as long as it involved violence, Shizuka was in her element.

Before she charged into action, Shizuka wanted to think this through.

She would be going into unknown territory. The family and their associates were likely expecting trouble, either from rivals or enemies of Death Phantom. Shizuka expected them to have eyes and ears in every major inhabited area plus police forces on watch. She also expected them to have some kind of ground forces in case the police were not enough. If they were truly prepared and/or paranoid, they would even have a naval presence in the system.

In other words, just another day at the office.

"What do you need me to do?" Shizuka asked Annabelle.

[Annabelle Schmidt]

A wide grin covered her face as the girl answered her. She tossed back the rest of her drink as her full attention was on the mission. It was going to be fun getting in and out of that place will be challenging. A good test of skills that she has not had to use in ages.

A plan of sorts was starting to form in her mind. Details can be worked out between all three of them. Her heart started to race a little faster as ideas popped into her head. It would be like the good old days.

She turned her whole body to face the purple haired girl. She lowered her voice with the gleeful glint in her eyes. "First we will get some small weapons that we can bring with us. You and I can meet the weapons dealer together unless you feel that he would not like company. I can get us an invitation easily enough. How are your acting skills?"

[Shizuka Jaeger]

Shizuka was curious when the question was asked about her acting skills. Acting skills? She was both curious and worried about what Annabelle had in mind. It was too late to back out now.

"I don't mind the company when we go to the weapons dealer. He might like you more than he does me. And we'll definitely need weapons. As far as I know, harsh language never killed anyone." Shizuka replied. With what they were likely going to face, they needed to have good weapons. Arbita should have what they required.

"As far as my acting skills go... I haven't had to use them in awhile. I usually fought or ran from trouble instead of bluffing my way out. Looks like we're about to find out if they're any good." Shizuka answered. She finished her food and drink. The road ahead was sure to be a long and interesting one.

[Annabelle Schmidt]

Annabelle tapped the side of the bar as she heard the answer. The weapons dealer should be easy enough. The plan would need to be altered slightly. They would all have a role to play.

"If you are done, we can walk and talk. I am interested in meeting this dealer. We will figure out how best to work you into the plan. I have a few ideas at the moment. I almost fear what would happen if we leave my brother alone too long unsupervised. He has a knack for getting into trouble."

She placed her hood over her hair as she placed a generous tab on the counter. She stepped over the bodies as she waited for the woman to lead on. Time was not on their side.

[Shizuka Jaeger]

"Yes. We'd better get going before someone buys up all of Arbita's inventory. I hope the weapons are worth the trouble to get." Shizuka told Annabelle. The pair had better get going. Pals of the people on the floor might be heading their way, to say nothing of the local police.

The news that Andrew would somehow be involved made Shizuka slightly worried. Despite his "specialty", Andrew was handy in a fight. His involvement made Shizuka think that they were going to grab a captive. She would find out the plan soon enough.

"We'd better get going. I'll lead the way." Shizuka said to Annabelle, placing her own hood on her head and gingerly stepping over the bodies. The former had to recall how to get there. According to the person who told Shizuka, Arbita had their shop in the Finis District of the old part of town. It was an old shopping district, but it had fallen on hard times when a more upscale shopping area was built in the better part of town. It was time to run the back alleys again.

[Annabelle Schmidt]

With a nod of her head she followed the young woman out into the rain. It started to pour in heavier sheets, threatening to seep into every pore of her body. Her eyes darted around her hood as her ears picked up on the sounds around them. Experience taught her that they could never be too careful in times such as these. Being a fugitive tended to track a bit of trouble where ever you went.

She watched as they continued in the worn out part of town. As the imbalance of power grew more, these areas had been long forgotten would become plentiful as people grow desperate. It was the price of progress, or at least that is what she thought. They had traveled to so many different worlds which all seemed to have this theme on it. There might have been one or two places that truly had equality for all. Her brother had either gotten them kicked off or they had little interest in fighting an impossible battle.

She went through her mind possible scenarios on what was going to happen at the meeting. It was depend on how willing this person was when negotiating terms. They didn't have a lot of credits to spare. Most of it came from bounties and odd jobs that they worked when given the chance. They could easily sell services to make up an differences if it came to that. It would be nice if they had some sort of funding. It would make getting back home a lot more possible.

[Shizuka Jaeger]

The Finis District had seen better days. Despite never having set foot on the planet before, the desolate area felt familiar to her. In front of them was a four-story shopping mall. The gray walls looked structurally unsound, like a stiff breeze could finish what time and vandals had started. That was likely one reason Arbita chose this place as a headquarters.

"Well, this is the place." Shizuka said to Annabelle, gesturing to the entrance.

They had not taken four steps past the doorway when they were greeted by a dozen armed individuals, all armed with mid-grade but deadly weapons. Shizuka did not like the look of this. One of them, a brown-haired man with a shotgun and wearing green body armor with red pauldrons, approached them.

"What are you doing on Arbita's turf? Are you with the police? Or are you looking for a fight?" He asked warily.

"Neither. We heard that Arbita's got a good selection of weapons. We're interested in buying some." Shizuka confidently answered. The leader looked at them quizzically. He then relented.

"OK, but first, we need to check for weapons. Not everyone likes Arbita. Some people are looking to muscle in on Arbita's turf." He stated as two of the guards patted them down. One of them took a bit too much time around Shizuka's chest and backside, but she kept quiet.

It was a mixed blessing that Shizuka left her weapons back home in a caffeine-induced moment of forgetfulness. Since she did not have any, she easily passed the pat-down test.

Annabelle's whip was discovered. The team laughed.

"What is she, an archaeologist?" One of the team, a blond-haired man wearing green armor and matching pauldrons, quipped.

"Are you gonna swing from chandeliers?" Another man asked.

"This whip's not too much danger unless you're dumb enough to stand nearby when she swings it. No wonder you're looking to buy weapons." The leader stated in a sympathetic tone before handing it back to Annabelle.

"This way." The man said to Shizuka and Annabelle. The pair followed him as three guards detached from the main body at the entrance. Eight remained behind to watch the door.

As the six wound their way up the stairs, Shizuka noticed the security measures. There were automated drone guns on the corners of each ceiling. Single-barreled heavy machine guns that looked like old .50-caliber HMGs. They were old but still deadly, particularly to unarmored targets like Shizuka and Annabelle.

On the third and fourth floors, security was tightened. There were chain-link fences and gates manned by guards armed with the latest energy weapons. They wore black body armor with matching pauldrons and had face-concealing helmets.

"They're looking to buy from the boss. They check out. One of them has a whip, but it can't do much harm." The leader explained. The gate swung open. They were escorted through by four of the black-armored guards. On the third floor the drone guns were now upgraded to six-barrelled miniguns in each corner.

The fourth floor was the same, but now there were a dozen black-armored guards on the floor flanking a tall, skinny man, six to each side.

"Ah, you must be customers. I'm Arbita. I was informed that you're looking to buy weapons." He asked. Arbita was a simply dressed man in a gray business suit who had a sly smile on his face. He had black hair and blue eyes with a jagged horizontal scar on his left cheek.

"Yes. We need weapons and we were told that you've got what we're looking for." Shizuka stated. Arbita laughed heartily.

"You could say that. If you like old-fashioned bullet weapons, I've got those. If you want energy weapons, I've got those too. I even have explosives and knives." Arbita proudly boasted. Then he leaned in close to Shizuka.

"I don't care what you do with them. That's none of my business. All I ask is that you don't use them on me, OK?" He asked in a friendly tone.

"We won't." Shizuka replied calmly. The unspoken caveat was that he not try to trick or cheat them. Should he give them a fair deal, then there would be no need for a fight.

"Great!" He replied. Arbita stood up straight again, laughed and snapped his fingers. Up rolled a shutter door with a large array of weapons that were neatly sorted by category and placed in appropriate racks.

"I've got weapons for all needs and budgets. Is there anything in particular you're looking for?" He asked in a well-rehearsed manner.

[Annabelle Schmidt]

The run down mall, to Annabelle, had several different meanings for this man. Her eyes carefully went over the surface, noticing a few drones flying around. He was open yet careful about who found this place. She made a mental note of how often the drones flew around as well as their speed. She would guess they had guns of some sort.

She looked over at her partner as she nodded her head to the fact they had arrived. "I know this needs not to be said, let us be very careful. Something about this seems... misleading.  If things go bad, you know to head to the rendezvous point in the upper part of town."

She followed as they entered into the mall. Annabelle made mental notes of exits as well as any potential weapons. She was not surprised when footsteps approached them. She slipped one of her knives out of her sleeve as she stretched her arms up with a tiny flick of her wrist. It was a planet that looked down upon visitors carrying firepower around. If only they knew she was a weapon herself.

She let Shizuka do all of the talking as she watched the guards with great care. She spread out her arms and legs as she got the pat down. This one was rather handsy. They took her whip and made jokes about it. She smiled as she thought of a sharp come back.

"What is she, an archaeologist?" One of the team, a blond-haired man wearing green armor and matching pauldrons, quipped.

"Are you gonna swing from chandeliers?" Another man asked.

She gave a gentle laugh at the jokes.  Her voice had a distinctive purr to it.  "It is really a prop for my night job.  I do on occasion swing from the ceiling there.   You should stop by sometime as I do have a move or two that you boys might enjoy."

She belted her whip when she got it back.  She smiled she caught a few greedy looks from the others.  She gave them a wink before following the leader of the group.  Her eyes took in all of the security that this place held.  Arbita, to her, seemed paranoid as if he had crossed a few people in the past.  She made a mental note each floor of how many guard, guns, and wall mounts.  She had a feeling that they did not like people going off this path. 

Annabelle smiled as the man introduced himself as well as what his supply was.  He mentioned any budget which might work in their favor.  She once again let Shizuka do most of the talking.  She watched the man with great care.  She could not help a smile as she noticed the girl was sharp when dealing with this man.  As long as he didn't try anything funny, things would be good between them.  She noted the rehearsed manner in which he spoke. 

"We are looking for something to protect us girls from the mean streets.  I know our boss is looking for something to keep us safe at the club as well.  I'm afraid that I am useless when it comes to knowing the differences in gun types and explosives.  Mind showing us around?" 

[Shizuka Jaeger]

"Protection from the mean streets? I've got that. Plenty of people want that nowadays." Arbita started. He walked over to the far left rack and waved a hand. It was full of pistols and knives. There were old-fashioned lead throwers and newer energy weapons.

"It's not just ladies like you who want protection. I've had lawyers, teachers, politicians, even everyday folk come in here looking for something that'll keep them safer." Arbita continued. He took a small, modern lead-based pistol with chrome plating off the rack. He called for one of his guards to bring him tools. This was done in about ten seconds.

"Thank you." Arbita thanked the faceless guard, who nodded and returned to his position.

"I won't sell you ladies bargain-basement junk. I might have weapons for smaller budgets, but they aren't junk. Here, I'll take this one apart and show you!" He insisted. He disassembled it and presented it to Shizuka.

Shizuka looked at it. The internal components were indeed clean and functional. But how did she know that it was not a demonstration pistol meant to trick unwary buyers into purchasing his wares, only to find that they had been cheated?

"You don't trust me? I tell you what. YOU choose the next weapon. I'll disassemble that one too!" Arbita said to Shizuka. She was taken aback. Was he psychic?

Shizuka pointed at a random energy pistol. Arbita obligingly took it and disassembled it. He presented it to Shizuka.

Again she looked at it. Again all the internal components were clean and in perfect working order. Shizuka did not want to string him along.

"I'm pleased. You seem to be on the level." Shizuka said. Far from being offended, Arbita simply smiled. He began to reassemble it.

"I'm glad you think so, young lady. Around here dealers who sell junk weapons don't last long. It's bad for business. If word gets out that you're selling duds, your business won't make money. There's also a chance a slighted customer will give... violent feedback." Arbita explained. He then transitioned into explaining the properties of the pistol in his hand.

"This is one of the mid-grade energy pistols, and it's called the Defender. It's concealable and powerful, but it runs out of charge after only four shots. It's best used when you need an emergency weapon with some punch. It also has a moderate price tag." Arbita explained as he finished reassembling it. He put it back in place.

"If you want decent and affordable protection, I'd go with the lead-based pistols. They're concealable and common and the technology's mature. You can find ammunition and repair shops on practically every corner in most cities on this planet." Arbita told the pair.

"If you want something with more power, you should consider energy weapons. They're starting to catch up with the lead-based weapons, but the technology's still evolving. They're more maintenance-intensive. They also draw more attention from the local law enforcement, so I'd be careful when using them around here." He counseled.

"That's good to know." Shizuka commented.

"I'd suggest the Guardian line of pistols. They're affordable, have reasonable stopping power, and they're easy to clean and repair because they were made with the civilian market in mind. The Pocket Guardian isn't a bad choice if you want something concealable with the same virtues as the main line. If you have a little more money to spare and don't mind a larger weapon, the Steadfast Guardian is a good choice." Arbita suggested. He sensed that he was droning on and on.

"Do you have any questions so far, ladies?" Arbita asked the pair.

[Annabelle Schmidt]

Annabelle was pleased he bought her line so easily. She kept her smile on her face as she listened to him talk. He was well grounded with explanations. Once again, she felt that it was well rehearsed. It caused her to wonder how many people felt the need to buy protection as he called it.

She was almost impressed with how well he took apart all of his weapons. Shizuka was smart to be skeptical. She made a mental note that he good at reading people. She clapped her hands at both the demonstrations. "I don't think I could ever be able to do it as fast as you."

"I guess we will take your advice about the weapons. Mind telling us a price for...." She made a mental count in her head that would not seem like too much. "ten of the guardian pistols? And a couple of Defenders?"

She took a few tiny steps toward the racks. She looked closely over what was there as her face showed interest. She pointed to a row of explosives. "What do this do, Arbita?"