"Midnight is was to modest with her story of how we got together as a team and speak of that, we originally went to SHIELD to do some research did you find anything Napalm?" He says as he stuffs down a fork full of salad into his mouth.
Hiding company accounts/responsible partners through reams of bureaucracy associated with subsidiary and shadow companies has long been a tactic of top level organised crime
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He leads the group through the park where people occasionally stop and stare after the group and a few come up and ask Spore, Trystt and Midnight in particular if they can take selfies with them.
Over a simple lunch the group discusses where they have come from, what they've encountered and what they have planned next.
Trystt does her best to politely decline any requests, though it definitely frays her temper. It is lessened by her joy in being outside again, rather than a thousand feet below ground.
Over lunch, Trystt listens attentively while eating significantly more than someone her size should be able to do.
She laughs at the end of Midnight's tale. "Not much of a dragon, huh?"
"For me, I mostly want to do some good, and be an example of how we, mutants, aliens, whatever, can make a difference and help people. What do you think, Spore? Should we help these guys get in trouble, but stay alive?"
Spore's a bit taken back by being seen in public, especially after having spent most of his time thus far hidden from people, or at least hiding what he truly is. Still, he can't deny he enjoys the freedom of being out and really experiencing the world, something he hasn't done in a long time.
"I like it, Trystt. Always good to have more people watching your back."
Lucas begins answering Akio's question with a mouthful of food, but then waits until he has swallowed. "I found a little about Metrocab. They seem to be a subsidiary of Cityworks and sprang up almost overnight. I can't seem to find anything on who owns the company though. It seems a little fishy. Shadow companies and multiple subsidiaries is a tactic that organized crime likes to use, so it might point in that direction."
"Oh, they do have a cab depot on the west side though. So if you still want to pose looking for a job, that might be where to start."
-Posted with Wayfinder
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Trystt nods to Spore. "All righty then, if the big guy's in, I'm in. But I don't think we need to worry about a name yet. That'll take care of itself at some point."
"Did you check out the homes of the other people that disappeared? Maybe see if they also had links to MetroCab? Or any other link? One drug dealer being kicked around isn't exactly news."
"Mmm, I'm in. And good questions," Spore says, acknowledging Trystt's inquiries into the gang's in-process inspection of MetroCab.
Her understanding of things around here was better than his, but he knew enough to be suspicious based on what he'd heard so far. And if he wanted to grow spiritually, what better way than to join up with others to affect change?
'We're pretty lucky to have fallen in with these folk, actually...'
"We never really thought of a name... It was all sort of thrown together." He shrugs at Shift. "Maybe we don't deserve a name yet? We haven't really done anything." He smiles.
"We didn't think any of the other crimes would have much left evidence wise, but this Metrocabs really seems like a lead and it was on me to get in and see what's what... I don't have a lot of confidence in myself." He picks up his large glass of water and takes a large drink.
"I'm glad you're all sticking around, I really think we did well in the training. We have a change of doing some proper good work for this town."
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Trystt shrugs indifferently. "I wasn't there. If your instincts tell you that it's a lead, then let's check it out. If it is organized crime, like Napalm suspects, well, I'm guessing that you're probably not going to waltz in and get a job. But we can try. Maybe we should keep surveillance on the place, too. Rooftop stuff, you know, see if we see any shadiness."
Akio smiles. "I'm not expert at investigations but the friend we met there seemed to think the same. Surveillance sounds like a plan, the main reason for me to go in was to get a lay of the land and I suppose I kind of fit the roll a foreigner new to america just wanting a job."
"But I do agree with you, if it's what we expect I wont get far at all. But maybe they need to seem to be on the up and up. So maybe a day/night of surveillance? That might show us more than just going in."
Actually, staking it out at night is a great idea as well as trying to infiltrate the firm. Great suggestion!
Midnight volunteers for the rooftop assignment.
The group waits until the cover of night before heading out to the West Side, specifically to the warehouse district just north of Hell's Kitchen.
The site of the cab depot lies in amongst the huge grey metal slabs that make up the warehouse infrastructure that supports Midtown's huge commercial area. It sits on a lot with a dismantled series of storage sheds on it's east and a flat parking lot surrounded by high fences on it's west.
Napalm shuffles close to the building, using his night vision. He tries for a silent approach to see if there's any activity at this time of night.
-Posted with Wayfinder
It doesn't take long to find a two-storey storage unit that sits almost opposite but some hundred feet or so south of the cab depot.
Napalm can see there is some limited activity at the depot but the entire site, perhaps to his surprise, is surrounded by a high brick wall topped with razor-wire and he can barely see anything through what appears to be the only gate, the steel entrance rolled back to one side as cabs occasionally come and go.
Sure thing Trystt, only let's just bear in mind I was trained as crisis response, not infiltration, so my sneaking skills are somewhat... in need of improvement!
Midnight looks over the location with the others and muses
I can fly up above that wall, and see reasonably well, right back in a minute...
Her feet leave the rooftop and seconds later she is climbing high in to the sky, arcing over the top of where the Metrocab building lies.
A few minutes later she lands back down on the rooftop and outlines what she saw to everyone.
"Maybe we should try skirt the perimeter." He says. "But remember we're staking the place out, I really don't want to spook them and this turns into one big fight. We stick together."
Akio pulls up his hoodie and plunges his hands into his pockets before taking a slow walk around the block. As he passes the gates to metrocab, he steals a glance in.
He can see several cabs in the workshop but at this time of night only one mechanic seems to be in place and even then he is only changing a tyre.
To the west side of the compound are a series of buildings. One is clearly the office with a reception for customers while there is a larger structure behind that. The front of the lot is filled mostly with just open car parking space and a small building to one side.
Even at this hour the office lights are on in the office and the smaller side building. A couple of men, dressed casually, talk among themselves and smoke as they walk slow laps around the lot.
From their rooftop vantage point, Midnight and Trystt see mostly the same.
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"Several things strike me as fishy. Why do they need security guards when people are still working there? Why do they need such a huge office space for a taxi service? I'm no expert but the few I've seen have been run out of a pokey little reception/office. It would have to be a massive taxi service to require such office space, but if that's the case, where are the taxis? I only see a few."
All excellent points Shift, this looks more like a pickup and delivery service than a taxi company... ideal for a drug distribution network for instance...
Midnight will stay as long as the last other person, she doesn't sleep much anyway and she's a night owl due to her work.
So the real question, do we try to sneak in during the small hours? I had a thought Napalm... do you have access to any small drones that could scout it out for us, at least give us some extra eyes?
"I can stay through the night if the rest of you need to sleep," Spore offers.
"Maybe we'll see something they want people to miss."
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Trystt stares at the corner of the roof that they're on. "Ugh, this just won't do." She gestures at it, muttering something. The area slowly becomes much cleaner. It becomes immediately apparent how she keeps her white clothes pristine, even in a muggy New York summer. "That'll do, I suppose." She lays down on her back beside Spore with her hands under her head. "Let me know if anything happens, or we decide to do anything beyond watching." Then she closes her eyes.
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The stakeout goes on for hours. Long, drawn out hours and nothing at all interesting happens.
The men continuing doing their slow loops, the mechanic finishes changing the tyre and then disappears for a while.
A cab comes in at around midnight that has a bumper hanging off and the mechanic comes out to gesticulate at the driver. This exchange goes on for several minutes before the driver storms off to the office and the mechanic picks up his cell and makes a call.
The driver stomps out of the office and into another parked cab before screeching off out of the lot, watched with dim interest by the smoking guys.
Eventually a small van pulls up and two men, also dressed as mechanics, get out. They engage the first mechanic in conversation before the three of them disappear into the workshop, presumably to look at the damaged cab.
Cabs begin arriving back into the lot at fairly regular intervals after that and the drivers park them up before getting into their own vehicles and heading home for the night.
At around 04:00, a middle sized box van drives in to the lot. The smoking men wander over to it and usher it in before one yawns visibly and moves to close the gate behind it the van. The van drives past the workshop and around to the front of the office where it parks up but it is impossible to see if anyone gets out after that.
Ebon circles back around and climbs up onto the roof, telling the group all hes seen.
@4
"This all seems likes a cover, why the two security for a cab company? What do you think they could be delivering to the office at this early in the morning? A quick rush on printer paper?" He says attempting to strain to getting a better look.
Well it's odd, dodgy even, but without taking a closer look and actually infiltrating to read their documents or scan their computers, I don't see that we're going to be able to learn much more than this...
muses Midnight.
Also next time we should probably take turns and do shifts, so we're not all tired...
"But other than seeming odd, there's nothing that actually points to any criminal activity. Maybe if we knew where that truck came from, or could find one of the drivers..."
"Tracking devices are hard; drones even harder. Maybe SHIELD has something that could help though..."
"Maybe a direct approach is needed. I don't like all this sneaking why not just go in and speak to them? Talk about finding the card and the disappearance." He stretches after a long night. "Let skill all this shield stuff, I've never needed it before."
"Are we in a rush? Do you ask have anywhere to be?" Spore asks, "because I do not."
"If you like, I can spend a few more days on the stake out and reach out if anything happens. Then you don't expose yourself, Ebon. If these are dangerous people..."