Cheddy seems to consider this for a moment. Your assessment of the pay is accurate, doctor. But, fortunately, my associates and I are more than willing to deal in more than just coin. We can consider your money payment in part. And your friendship payment as well. It pays to have friends, after all.
Luna pouts a little after her suggestion is pretty much shot down, but then tries to at least understand what the others are talking about.
Gig slaps his hands together in a gesture of lets-do-this.
"Alright, let us catch an ugly fragger - FOR SCIENCE!"
He stuttered as he notices that he got a bit loud back there, then addressed the doc once more.
"Ehem, so, Doc, you're the pro with respect to HMVV in this room...
Any idea of how to subdue, and keep one such as this subdued for a medium amount of time?
Some nifty little drug or something like that?
Or do normal sedatives work normally on them?
Like narcojet or neuro-stun if we can get that somewhere..."
"Well, based on the approximate size estimation, it is likely to have a mass bigger than a human,quite possibly troll sized...
And the virus tends to lend itself to greater physical resiliency...
I would say a fair estimation of what is required would be to start with what would work on a troll, and then triple it.
In addition, there is a possibility that electricity would only serve to strengthen it, so shock attacks are likely to be a poor idea."
"I would rather you returned alive, if only because it is more likely you'll succeed in your mission that way, so overkill rather than overcautious is my recommendation.
In addition, even should it die from an overdose, it would still leave an intact corpse."
"Gigegeg.
Trust me, Doc, we would appreciate coming back alive too.
Well, I would. Doc Kalyle always tells me not to speak or think for others...
Aaaanyway, can you easily get a package of narcotics for this, or do we have to resort to ... other means?
We will pay for them of course."
"I'm afraid I am not that sort of doctor, I do not have an MD, so I wouldn't even know where to begin.
I'm thinking that you're more likely to be able to procure things like that on your own, through your contacts and what not."
"Any other questions?"
Gig nods thoughtfully.
"Aye, one more from me.
I have several recon drones.
If we manage to find this grinner, shall we try to observe it before trying to hunt it down.
Vid and sound recordings, ultrasound schematics, stuff like that."
"Well, I would be loathe for you to expend more resources than necessary, given my inability to replenish them for you.
The real prize is the specimen, if alive we can always study it at our leisure, and if not, the chemistry is the real prize at any rate."
You spend a little more time talking to the doc, receiving her contact information, and being asked politely but firmly to contact her BEFORE attempting to see her in person.
Eventually the dwarf assistant returns to escort you out.
It's probably(?) your imagination, but on the way out, you really do get the impression that the eyes of the various HMHVV exhibits are following you with their eyes.
The last thing you hear before the gates shut and lock behind you is the tired sigh of the dwarf, a clear sign of gratitude that the day is FINALLY over.
Standing on the front steps of the museum, you can once again feel the cool night air wash over you, bringing the comforting mixture of street and ocean smells to your noses.
"Soooo... I guess we buy a truckload of sedatives and go catch us some vampies?
I'll talk to Donny if he got anything ready to load up and administer via my babies. Wanna come along?"
Looking back at the museum, by some strange impulse, you find yourself shivering just a touch.
It might be the imposing, gothic look that gives you pause, but it's just as likely to merely be the fact you came from the warm indoors and stepped out into the chill wind of the Seattle night.
It does make you think though, because for all intent and purpose, you are about to hunt down some form of monster, something that walks side by side with classic horror monsters like Vampires and ghouls.
Well, at least you got an idea of it's capabilities, and idea how to take it down, and a clue as where to look for it.
All in all, many a movie monster hunter have started with less and still succeeded.
Gig nods, seemingly deeply in thought.
"I don't know what you think, but I would rather not come face to face with this beast.
I would rather set up a trap for it.
Scout out its behavior, then exploit it.
Maybe it is as simple as laying out tranqued flesh.
Maybe we set up a couple shock grenades and pump it full with gel rounds.
Maybe we could gas it with some neurotoxin...
Regardless, first of all we need to locate it.
I'll send out the bugs and flies to recon the tunnels to make us a map..."
Luna pouts "Where's the fun in that? If we go monster hunting then I wanna see the monster. And hunt it."
Cheddy felt a sense of diving into unknown waters as he leaves the good doctor. Hunting monsters was very not his thing. Then again, he supposes, is not too different from hunting a person.
One heavy sigh later he's committed. We can't hunt it if we don't know at least the general area of where it likes to be. I know the doctor didn't give us a time limit on this assignment, but I would like to be efficient about it. I'll come with you to get the drugs. Gig, you go do your thing. We can meet back at Al's later.
"Good, we keep in touch."
And he turns and walks towards Big Mom, obviously ready to leave.
Luna grabs Gig by his outfits colar and says "Touch!"
Cheddy chuckles. See ya, Gig. I'll follow your lead, Luna. Take me to the drugs!
Luna says touch, but she is not letting go of Gigs colar which might or might not result in a bye-walk-urghmyneck situation
As you are mostly focused on eachother, you do notice something else.
It's too far for you to notice any details, and you wouldn't even notice the man if not for the fact that the quick flash of light as he lights a cigarette.
But you are almost certain that he is watching you...
And in addition, there are at least one or two more people lurking in the shadows nearby.
Gig looks bewildered at the hand holding him, then chuckles after Cheddy started laughing.
It is just a funny-thingy-bingy, keep calm and play along.
He tells himself and starts choking theatrically like the victim of some black-clad villain out of an old sci-fantasy trid.
Then, he receives a medium-priority message from Sauron, circling high overhead as usual with a contact report.
It shows several heat signatures in their vicinity.
Close enough to get reported, but not close enough for a warning.
As he stops the act and gets back up, chuckling his signature giggle, he leans close to Luna and whispers two small words: "Got. Company."
Loud he adds:
"So, you need a ride or what?"
He does also send a command to Sauron to deploy the laser mic against the closest contact. Maybe their company is talking with each other...
Luna grins and starts walking with Gigs towards big Mom. She planned to keep the the hand there while walking - but that'd choke him for real. And she's not that kinky... in public. "Yes. In fact I planned to keep 'in touch' with you until you dropped us off somewhere close enough to home that I can get my own ride. But since you're offering yourself I guess that's not strictly necessary?"
Luna keeps up the pal-ish horsing around while keeping her other hand ready to draw one of her babies at a moments notice.
Cheddy just smiles at the banter and follows.
Once inside Big Mom, Gig quickly activates a series of devices.
The most notable one is the sensor array (especially the motion and ultrasound sensors) and something causing your ears to hurt for a short moment with a high-frequency white-noise type of sound.
Then he quickly starts speaking while typing some coordinates into the nav-processor and flinging himself onto his couch-seat.
"We are observed and most likely followed.
At least three, likely more.
Caught them red-tongued: ..."
And he replays a static filled audio snipped of a voice talking in a clipped tone:
"Target on the move."
Once he lies on the couchseat, he quickly sifts through the sensor logs of Big Mom, ensuring nothing has come close to the car while they were gone, mumbling in a hushed voice:
"It isn't paranoia if they really are coming for you..."
"Really? I only saw one guy. Well I'll trust you on this one"
Luna shrugs
"Anyway. We haven't done jack for this lil stunt yet. So they are propably after us for the last big thing? Or the lady professor has pissed of some odd people"
"Well, I found some tidbits in the matrix, about how the Doc was approached by Aztec - several times in fact.
And turned them down - apparently."
"well, then they shouldn't mean us with target. But they probably do. Since we're on the move not the prof. Right?
Anyway so what do we do? Step on the gas or find a nice small alleyway and turn around and chase em away with guns blazing?"
After making sure there were no nasty surprised taped to his beloved Van, Gig neatly cruises out of the parking spot and plots a random course across two blocks, watching Sauron's vid feed closely.
(Limit = 3 (Sensor) + 3(Visual Enhancer) + 1 (Control Rig) => 7)
Only if he is sure no one is following them (by ordinary means), will he send a quick query to his passengers.
++ Where do I drop you? ++
For better or worse, you leave the suspected tail behind you, and you do not seem to be picking up any indication you are still being followed.
At least none of Gig's instruments pick up any signs, but that's no guarantee in the Shadows.
Cruising down the road, you pass several other cars, their trails of light a momentary blip on your retinas.
At one point you pass by a Lone Star patrol van, which might make you momentarily reach for your hardware, or maybe feel a little safer, it's all up to you.
Cheddy settles in for the ride. He occasionally skips into the astral just to be sure they aren't shining like that blank was, but otherwise he just wants until they get to this weapons grade drug dealer.
Lunas hands are always close to reaching for her babies but right now there should be nothing the lones would want for them so she ignores the patrol.
"Just bring us back to Als place. We'll take my bike to see Handsoff so I need to get home real quick. Cheddy can get a quick coffee in while I grab it. Make it a small one tho I won't be long."
When they get there Luna will wave a quick bye at Gigs and give Cheddy a single fingergun before slipping into the side streets. Unless something unexpected happens she will be true to her word, returning in about 15 minutes now riding her Mirage
She also used the time to grab her other gear from home and change into her cameleon suit but you wouldn't know from the time she took - her gear is always packed ready to go. She's still wearing her usual armored jacked over the suit. Looks less imidiatly suspicious that way.
Handsoff does his business out of an old (but not abandoned) warehouse down on 31st and 5th street.
Perhaps not entirely surprisingly, the people around that area tends to be fairly well armed, which has created a small island of neutral ground.
Handsoff supplies enough different people that nobody wants to have them unite against them by messing with their pipeline of shooters.
Luna connects to Cheddy via comlink on the ride to Handsoff to prep him.
"Alright, rumor has it his nickname is literal. Do not touch him for any reason. No idea what really happens if you do. The rumor get VERY out there about that part.
Anyway. Dealings with Handsoff are easy enough. We go to his warehouse, tell the guys out front the codeword and they go ask him if he got time for us. Codewords change over time depending on how much he likes you. Or he just likes to make up new keywords over time. Nor sure but I'm on my second codeword. Well if he got time we go in and tell him what we need and he names his price. If he doesn't then we come back some other time because enough people get weapons from him that you don't mess with him for any reason. And that includes more than half the block around the warehouse of course."
So does Handsoff allow no haggling? Not at all. Luna is just too oblivious to even try. As long as she got the creds to pay for what she wants. Of course she doesn't say anything about that part. Being oblivious to it and all
As you round the corner, the warehouse comes into view.
With a Lone Star patrol car parked in front.
However, it's empty, and by the look of things, the cops are inside the warehouse.
Seems like the rumors of Handsoff supplying even Lone star cops that feel the need for a little firepower beyond the regulation equipment might just be true.
A pair of guards lounge by the door, looking bored and inattentive.
Luna knows that it's just a feint, the guards are most assuredly NOT slacking, and merely affecting that look to draw attention to them and away from the hidden shooters.
One of them look up and seems to recognize Luna, she nods and waves you closer.
Cheddy acknowledges the advice and follows half a step behind Luna. This is her turf, after all. He keeps his eyes open though and easily shifts his body language to fit into this odd environment.
Gig looks perplexed at the description given by Luna.
"So, um, I though you said the guy was a dealer?
Now he's also trafficking weapons?
Well stocked guy...
I guess I'll come along after all.
Need a bunch of gel rounds if we want to take this critter alive."
He stops for a moment with a troubled expression on his face.
"Or... can I just give you a list of stuff I need and a credstick?
Not sure ya want me around if he is so ... particular."
Luna is a bit confused at Gigs confusion
"Yeah a dealer. A weapon dealer. As I said I want to ask him if he got some ammo with stroooooong narcs. Where else would you go? A street doc? And then what would you do with the stuff? Brush it onto your bullets."
Luna waves happily and comes closer. She leans in closer like she's doing one of those cheesy "kiss kiss" greetings you sometimes see in old trideos and whispers her password to her.
as she leans back she looks at Cheddy "Sorry but you'll get your own if he likes you" and winks at him
The guard that Luna "kisses" nods and reaches under a metal crate, a moment later the door opens up and he waves you through.
They don't bother to frisk you or ask you to relinquish your weapons.
After all, if there is someone you don't want to try to rob, it's a weapons dealer.
The inside is quite a setup, to each side of the door are a pair of large forklifts that has been semi converted into mobile cover, and each one armed with a heavy machinegun, further in there are shelving units that have been reinforced to force people into funnels if they try to advance, making for easy targets.
You can spot at least two crows nests for snipers, and there are a couple of mines laid out as well, currently blinking green in "safe" mode.
Meanwhile, in the very back, there is a heavily reinforced area in a crescent moon shape, with several monitors linked together, currently running some old vid.
Sitting in a chair, with his booted feet up on a table is a large man.
Clearly either a stubborn man, or a man deeply unashamed of his looks seeing as his t-shirt is just a little too small, leading to it not quite covering his hairy belly.
He is wearing tight leather pants, a tight black t-shirt, a long leather coat and a pair of shades.
His hair is in the shape of a single crescent, bright red, making him look a bit like a rooster, especially with his prominent beak of a nose.
Looking up and spotting you he gives you a lazy wave.
Luna doesn't put on airs or anything. She just walks over to him and cheerily waves and greets him. Not that you have ever seen Luna change from her usual self tho.
"Sup Handsoff? You got time? Looked like you'd be busy right now with the Lonys parked outside all open and stuff."
Handsoff raises an eyebrow for a moment, then he slaps his forehead.
"Oh the Lone Star folks you mean? pfft!"
He blows a loud raspberry while waving a hand dismissively.
"Some sergeant managed to hold a little "charity drive" and got enough nuyen together to afford her boys a little extra firepower.
Typical in a way, you know what they went for first and foremost? hold-outs and sawn-offs.
Last I checked, sawn-offs have been illegal since they first came to be, and yet now we have cops packin' em.
There's got to be some kind of massive cosmic irony to that."
Finally pulling his feet down from his desk, he swivels his chair around to face you fully.
"So, waddaya want, eh?"
Luna grins.
"Sounds like there should be some old saying about being in power and ignoring rules. Never bothered to remember that stuff."
She shows him her tongue for a second before getting down to business.
"Easy stuff first: 4 clips of armor piercing rounds for my babies and 2 for the Ingramm X. Then there's the interesting stuff, not sure that's something you have."
She gestures at Cheddy
"This is Cheddy. He and I are going to hunt some super ultra troll monster thingy. And the client wants that thing alive. You got any tranquilizer of doom bullets? Or at least some bullets to put some tranquilizer of doom into?"
Gig is clearly impressed by the level of combat readiness on display but appears ... disappointed by the man himself, as if expecting something else entirely.
Upon Luna's oversight, he gulps a glob of discomfort but does not (yet) speak up, rather waiting for the initial reply of the dealer.
After all, if he is currently out of stock, there is no need for me to speak at all...
When Luna asks for Armor piercing ammo, Handsoff looks bored and maybe even a little disappointed.
It's clear he gets enough call for that to not consider it worth his time much, in fact, his only real reaction is to put a boot behind one crate nearby and push it open.
"Got what you need here Luna girl, people ask for that all the time, so I am swimming in the stuff."
When she begins to talk about specialized tranq rounds however, he clearly sits up and begins to pay full attention.
"So...you want tranqs to take down a troll eh? Some kind of SUPER troll? So not regular strength, even for a troll?
Hmmm..."
Reaching into one of the drawers on his desk, he pulls out an old, well thumbed folder of papers and begins to flip through them.
"Might just have something here you could use.
See, I got a case of something know as "Chinese dream or nightmare", a powerful stimulant.
Ah, but see the thing is, if you add an extra ingredient, it goes from a stimulant to a powerful sleeping agent.
You'd need to look elsewhere for that bit though, but it's fairly common.
It's called "Xylidon" and I think it's over the counter stuff.
One tenth of it added to the Chinese stuff, and you got yourself something that could knockout an elephant."
"Ohhhhh now that sounds like the fun stuff we're looking for. And if you got a whole crate of them we can just shoot it again if the first one wasn't enough. Unless it costs an arm and a leg. I don't have enough of those to sell off any."
Lunas perpetual grin shows she's very much joking about the selling of any appendages, just asking for the price.
Handsoff scratches his scraggly beard for a moment.
"I can sell you the case for say...fifteen-hundred, don't bother haggling though, that's what I'm asking.
You dilute that nine parts to one part xylidon, I'd say you've got yourself about 30 dozes there.
The armor piercing is standard rates."
So... Luna sticks her tongue out, calclating before lighting up.
"Ah, right..."
... and pulls up her commlink interface and runs the numbers there.
"Almost another 1500 for the rounds. 1520 with clips. 2 Ingramm X and 4 Predator V clips.
So one credstick with 3070 on it? Just enough extra for one real coffee."
Oh-woah, this is going fast!
Ehm, I should really speak up or this meeting is over and I'm leaving empty handed!
Dammit, come on you can do this.
Its just business!
Gig clears his throat with a somewhat miserable expression.
"Got a couple boxes of assault-rifle grade gel rounds lying around somewhere too?
Sorry, if that is boring as well.
And maybe a couple flash bangs and ... explosives?"
Handsoff looks up, as if seeing Gig for the first time.
"Friend of yours Luna?"
"Well, gel rounds and flash bangs are standard kit, easy to get so I'm always stocked.
As for explosives, well, can you be more specific eh?"
Luna looks back at Gigs.
"Ohhhhh sorry about that. This is Gigz. He's also coming for the Ultra Troll run. I was sure he wanted to take care of other business but I guess your charm made him reconsider even before meeting you in person."
Handsoff grins, leans back in his chair and puts his feet back up on his desk.
"Well yeah, don't be ashamed if you get aroused, it happens to everyone.
You should have seen Luna the first time she was here, blushing and positively panting.
That COULD have been all the hardware of course..."
Urgh, someone is feeling high-and-mighty...
He could do with a couple weeks of military basic training....
"Oh, yeah, ehm, sure.
If you have it, one blocksof military grade C-7 plastics and ten blocks of the commercial stuff - 50-50, solid and liquid."