Adriana 'Sal' Salazar's page

"Not against me, of course... so watch your step, ese. I'm like these bees... small, but I can cause pain."

Sal winks at Brother Bellcher with the eye Danny can't see.

"He's being modest," Sal informs Brother Bellcher. "I might want to strangle Danny at times - many times - but he can hang in there."

"If there's any way we can help your forces, we'll be happy to as well. Some of us are on good terms with the Big Guy and Friends," Sal tells Brother Bellcher a little less certainly, glancing at Danny for support. "I'm more used to dealing with physical fighting, but I'm learning about, um, less normal things. And Danny here and another friend are quite used to that stuff. So we may be able to help with the seal, somehow, if you need it."

Sal nods her agreement, trying not to slap or scratch at imaginary bees crawling on her... at least, she hopes they are imaginary.

"There are only four of us, but we'll help however we can. I hope our friends can find out more about the mortal forces so we know what we're up against. I mean, the very fact they've hired mortals must mean they think they can't succeed alone, doesn't it?"

She waits with interest to hear the answer to the resealable question.

Sal ducks a bee that is zipping close by, on the way to some urgent errand doubtless involving pollen. "The gate is why we're here, Brother. The Formor attack on the Viking festival was the beginning of an attack on the gate, we think. They were looking for people of magical blood that would let them open the gate somehow. And they have human agents nearby, at the Barn at Beale, we think. If they're not there now, they will be soon. Our friends are at the campground now, checking out the situation," Sal murmurs, bending her head near Brother Bellcher while peering closely at the nearest hive.

She takes a quick glance at Danny to see how he's taking the remark on his family resemblance.

Buzz Kill

Sal gives Danny a wide-eyed look. "Wait... are we going to actually meet the bees? Or is this just for wandering around so no strays get us?" She gives Brother Bellcher an apologetic smile. "I'm a city girl. Honey comes from a little squeeze bottle shaped like a bear."

She watches as the beekeeper dons his gear, imitating how he settles and fits it.

"If the bees are as good at defending themselves as your order is, I have reason to worry," she ventures.

Sal can't quite summon Danny's grin, given the seriousness of the situation, but she smiles warmly at the 'old goat' and offers her own hand. "Good to meet you. Please call me Sal. All my friends do. And Fothergill, a ladies' man? You know... I think I can see it."

She nods at his offer. "I'd love a little tour, if you don't mind taking the time? It's really nice of you to offer." Gesturing for him to proceed, she follows where he leads.

Sal nods. "Right. I'll text..." She checks her phone. "...'Probable Spam' with what we find."

"Watch your backs, OK?" Her eyes linger on Kenneth's during the warning. "See you soon."

Thumbs flying on her phone, she tells Danny, "OK, right out of the lot. And remember, that's like a left in the US. You have driven here, right?" Her hand flies out the window in a goodbye wave to the scouts as the Rover pulls out.

Sal makes the climb into the Rover's passenger seat and motions Danny to pull near where the campsite scouting party is discussing vehicles. She lowers her window and leans out.

"We'll meet back here when we're done? What should we do about lodging? We can ask the monks and text you if they have space. Otherwise, if you guys can get us a campsite, we can use the pile of blankets and pillows I brought and sleep in the mini-RV here. Won't be comfortable, but I didn't bring camping gear. Of course, rooms would be better on the off chance either of us can find them." She thinks for a moment. "Maybe it would be better to be at the campground and keep an eye on them at night?"

Shrugging, she asks, "Any preferences? We can always text before committing cash."

Sal makes sure there's enough money on the table to cover Bren's drink and a good tip for the mess she made with crumbled pork rinds.

"That's "hog," not "road hog," she calls over her shoulder to Danny as she exits. "The only road hog is what you're driving next. And Kenneth's bike is not even a hog, technically."

She waits for the others in the car park, enjoying the feel of the sea breeze pressing her clothes to her body and blowing through her hair enough to cool her scalp. If it weren't for the sea-smell, we could be by Lake Michigan, she thinks, with a sudden, unexpected pange of homesickness.

Sal stands. "Let's go then. I've got honey to buy and you guys need to find us a campsite." She finishes her drink and gestures to Danny. "You've got the keys."

"We probably should get going if we're going to check out the campground. Bren, when is the tide supposed to come in today? I've got some errands here in town and don't want to get stuck away from the hijinks." Sal sips her adult beverage and tries to look more fun-loving touristy, though her mind is very much in mission-mode.

Sal smiles at Bren. "Sounds like the fun times are at the campground except for the occasional monk gone wild," she laughs. "I imagine a monk off the leash could be pretty entertaining."

Sal gapes at her companions in obviously feigned astonishment. "Find hijinks? I thought you guys made hijinks."

"The caravan site... is that the place we passed on the way in, before the causeway. The... oh, what was it?" Sal snaps her fingers a few times. "The...Barn?"

Sal shakes her head. "Don't..." She cuts off whatever it was she was planning to say as the waitress, with true wait staff instincts, wanders over to chat at the worst possible time. Sal looks up at her with an attempt at a smile.

"Hi, Bren. Yeah, just a bunch of Internet friends from all over meeting, visiting, seeing the sites. Not sure where we'll stay yet. Any recommendations for lodging? Anything we should be sure not to miss while we're here?"

Sal's eyebrows nearly hit her hairline. "Wow, really?" Her voice is quiet. "You do know what I spent years of my life doing, right? The thing my brothers-in-arms all died for?"

She crumbles another pork rind. "Maybe we shouldn't let Danny talk to the monks. He's liable to insult my entire religion, too."

Sal nods. "That works for me. Danny is unlikely to shoot anyone, so if shootin' needs to be done, I'm there. And really, anyone can tell the difference between military efficiency and disgusting fish slobbery. Slobbery? Slobbery."

"He could take his bike up, too, so you could pilot the cruise ship. That way, if Edwyn and I run into trouble or don't check in, you guys have a quick way to get to us." Sal hands the Rover keys to Danny. "I need to fetch a few things out of the back before we go. Not much," she vows. "Don't want to be tempted to start a war."

Sal nods. "Works for me. And the Cute Car won't make anyone suspicious, that's for sure. We just need to check the tide table."

"What about rooms? I guess you can ask the Brother if they have any guest quarters for wandering mercenaries who want to help defend them." She grimaces. "If it's really a monastery, I may not be welcome. Fortunately, the Rover is as big as some hotel rooms."

"I have issues with being on the receiving end of the ballistic path, definitely," Sal notes for the record. "Not sure why they'd catch on if we just passing through. They're set up in a public place, so they must expect some traffic."

She adds more crumbles to the growing mountain on her coaster.

"I think the vehicle matters for scouting. Rover's a bit noticeable. Bike or Cutie Car would be better." Sal starts crumbling another rind to bits. "As far as who goes scouting, there's a case to be made for militant people who aren't afraid to fight their way out of something. Of course, there's a case to be made for less militant people who will act more normal and run away."

Sal shrugs.

"I prefer scouting, myself. It's easier to shoot people than to talk to them."

Sal takes a pork rind and begins absentmindedly crunching it to bits between her fingertips, making a pile of crumbs on a coaster. She nods at Danny's suggestion, frowining slightly as she mentally reviews the landscape and layout.

"It might not be bad to find Fothergill's 'Brother Bellcher' and make contact with him right away. But then there's the Barn at Beal."

"It was a good move to pass that place right up, I think. The terrain is very flat and very open. A convoy rolling in there would attract attention. A single vehicle checking out the place would look more normal."

"There's also the issue of the tides." She grins at Edwyn. "No need for C4, sadly; the tides block the causeway at times. But that means we have to make a scouting trip to the Barn and get back here before the causeway is swamped. I tend to take their warnings seriously and wouldn't try to cross it. I've read about somewhere... in France?... where the tides can overtake a man on horseback." She tilts her glass back and forth slightly, the amber liquid making tides of its own.

Shaking her head, she continues, "I know it's Not Done, but it might be a good time to split up: half of us make contact with the brothers, the others scout the Barn."

Sal pilots the cruise ship carefully into the lot behind the Commando and into a nearby space. Uncertain as to whether they are stopping for real or to huddle, she leaves the beast running while she opens the door, steps on the frame, and pops up between the door and roof to stretch. She enjoys the sensation for a moment, letting the sea breeze blow through the the short, natural curls which are all the hair that has regrown since the Poppy Court conflagration.

Hopping down, she stork-walks a few steps to stretch her legs, then joins Kenneth where he sits astride the bike. "What's up?" she smiles, then stops, finding their heads nearly level for a change. "Heyyyy. I like this height thing. No stretching." She leans in to press her lips to his in a chaste, suitable for public consumption, mom-with-a-pack-of-kids-walking-by-couldn't-complain kiss.

"Why'd we stop here... oh." Her eyes twinkle as she realizes it's a pub. "Good thing. I forgot to bring a flask."

Sal nods her approval. "Gotcha. Retreat to pragmatism. Suits me fine. Life's way easier when you don't overthink things." She grins at Danny in the rear view mirror.

"Well, honestly, that's another one. Why don't we worry about monsters? Don't they have souls? How would we know? If they do have souls, why aren't we worried about redeeming them?"

"So be aware of where fishsticks and Danny are and don't get too close to either." She sighs. "I don't know whether to hope it's human troops so they're not crazy tough, or fishsticks so we don't have to hold back. And the guys in the park were just grunts? I haven't seen anything as tough as those guys since.. the vamps. Do you know if they have any weaknesses? I mean, hot lead took them down OK, but anything else?"

Sal shakes her head. "No, no problem. It's interesting to hear your thoughts and experiences. Guess I've had too much time to think about it since... yesterday? Really? Wow. Busy day."

"So how did you beat the dream tester? I assume you did win that one?"

"They have fish junk?" Sal glances at Danny in the rear-view mirror, eyebrows raised. "Good to know. OK, so here's the thing."

"When all that went down at the park, it was so fast, ya know? And the adrenaline kicked in and everyone was OK after and I won the kill count by a lot, so I didn't think too much about it. But I keep seeing this thing."

"I had two on me, and shot one dead. The other was swinging at me. I was on the ground and pulled the dead one over me - or me under it, whatever - and the guy punched his buddy in the ribs."

"So he pulled his hand back to try to sock me again. And there were spikes of bone impaling his fist. And when I think back, I realize it was splinters of dead guy's rib bones. And those teeth..."

Sal falls quiet for a moment.

"If it had hit me, it could have punched clear through my ribs, torn my heart out. Or... I dunno. Have you seen shark bites? I guess... I'm worried. People are OK, but those things..."

She heaves a sigh and admits, "I might be scared of them."

Her eyes may be on the road ahead, or they may be on the tall figure astride a motorcycle ahead.

Sal smiles and waves as Kenneth passes, giving the Range Rover horn a friendly toot that sounds like a cross between a train whistle and a cruise ship coming in to dock.

The smile remains as she watches Kenneth take point, relaxing when he doesn't pull away into the distance. She checks the rear view mirror and doesn't see the Cute Car, but has to trust that Edwyn knows where they're going. Besides, the armory is in her vehicle, so it's not like he can run off with the grenades. Edwyn seems on board, but she couldn't really blame him if he cut out.

Her eyes linger on Kenneth's tall form on the bike ahead, and her smile fades. After a minute, she switches off the radio.

"Hey, Danny? You awake?" she calls to the back as well as she can without taking her eyes from the road. "Did you happen to get up close and personal with the fishsticks in the park?"

DSX: please feel free to move along. I'm just RPing until you do. we can finish RP under spoilers when you're ready.

At the Mecca of American Cuisine, it becomes apparent that Sal is as good as her word. The back seat of the Rover is loaded with pillows, blankets, bottled water, and (an obvious gas station purchase) a tiny stuffed bear on a keychain.

She assigns Danny shotgun or back seat, his choice. "If we get pulled over, you're in charge of Jedi mind tricks." She waves a ring and pinkie finger. "You don't need to see her identification. These aren't the guns you're looking for. She can go about her business. Move along."

Judging by her singing along with the radio the entire way up, Sal seems in unusually good spirits.

♪♫Happiness hit her like a bullet in the back
Struck from a great height
By someone who should know better than that

Run fast for your mother and fast for your father
Run for your children for your sisters and brothers
Leave all your love and your longing behind
Can't carry it with you if you want to survive ♪♫

She drives perfectly properly, as long as one overlooks her tendency to let go of the wheel to join in on the clapping parts, laughing at Danny as she does.

Ready to move on to the approach to the Barn at Beal, or wherever DSX takes us. :)

"Mmm, Spike. Way better than Angel, and it'd suit you," Sal agrees.

She picks a stab vest from the pile of stuff she's brought up from the armory. "Now, I need to get you upstairs and out of that shirt," she crooks a finger at Kenneth. "Then I need you to use this on me." She digs a roll of duct tape out of the pile and offers it to him with a wink.

"See you two at McDonald's at 11," she tells Danny and Edwyn, and heads out of the kitchen to the stairs going up to the bedrooms.

"Naah," Sal laughs. "You're one of mine, Danny. I might bark, but I don't bite."

She arches an eyebrow at Kenneth as if daring him to contradict that assertion, then disappears into the 'armory', reappearing a few minutes later with the requested vests.

"You can take them with you or I'll put 'em in the Rover. We will." She smiles at Kenneth. "And I second Edwyn on the name. We're way too cool for that."

She hands them each a chunk of bills from the stash for expenses (roughly £500.)

"Time's a-wasting! Go forth and run errands. We'll meet you at Mac's at, say, 11? We'll be to Lindisfarne - at least the Barn - by 2 or so. Good enough?" She makes flapping motions as if shooing chickens.

Per DSX, stab vest (armor 1) goes under regular clothing. Ballistic vest (armor 2) goes under loose clothing or jacket. Either is available, just be sure to mark it on your sheets.

Sal has the grace to look abashed. "Fowwy, Edwyn," she attempts to articulate, holding one finger over her lips to keep in crumbs, "Dis fing is wewwy dwy." She glares at the hapless scone.

After a slug of coffee to wash down the pastry, she coughs lightly and turns her attention to Edwyn. "Before you go, did you pick a vest? If you're going to wear that suit, the only thing that will fit under it is a stab vest. If you have more, um, casual clothes?" She scans his rather seedy-looking outfit with mild dismay. "I mean, looser shirts? You can get a ballistic vest under larger sizes. And do you want to wear it or have me bring it in the armaments truck?"

"Stab vest is better than nothing against these guys." She frowns. "Assuming it's the fish guys and not militia."

"We were up fairly late kissing in the armory. Then we went to bed. Together." Sal rises from her chair and prowls in Danny's general direction. "And we'll probably do that same thing at the next opportunity."

She holds up a single finger in front of Danny's face. "And I do not want to hear one. word. from the guy who's been dating hot twins from the day I met him."

She picks up a scone and takes a vicious chomp from it, staring at Danny.

"Aww, it's cuuuute," Sal says about the clown car, giving Edwyn a pleased smile.

She waits until Kenneth has the chunk of new scone in his mouth before leaning over and saying "By the way, there's something I need to tell you," then smothering a laugh.

"When we meet at the Golden Arches, we can move him to the Rover, give him a pillow, blankie, and teddy bear, and he'll be aaaall better when we get to the Barn, I'm sure," Sal continues in the tone of voice used to soothe an infant.

That seems to remind her... "Cash! I'll get some cash from the stash before I leave. Less traceable, though with these damned CCTV cameras all over England, that's not such a big deal. At least cash doesn't have mag stripes for you magic people to scramble."

She tears into the rest of the cinnamon roll with a much improved appetite.

"...make sure I didn't leave anything vital in the basement..." Sal suggests helpfully.

At Danny's narrow scrutiny, Sal keeps an innocent face. Once the Hungover One turns away, she smiles quickly and conspiratorially at Kenneth.

"Maybe Edwyn could take Danny by his apartment, since they are the ones who need to go back to town, and we could meet them at Mac's," she suggests, eyes twinkling. "No point wasting all that gas for the Rover."

She has no selfish agenda here. At all.

Sal watches Danny's entrance in fascinated horror. "'There are thousands of good reasons why magic doesn't rule the world. They're called Witches and Wizards,'" she quotes faintly.

Sal nods at Edwyn's observation. "We get there early... and without speeding. The Rover won't stand any scrutiny if it's pulled over."

"I'm good to head to Lindisfarne, but everyone else probably needs a stop in town to pick up an overnight bag, I'm guessing. I can put a pillow and blankets in the back seat so Danny can catch up on his sleep." She winces. "Maybe a bucket, too. "

"Should be a nice quiet ride, for once, so there's that."

"We can meet somewhere in town when we're ready and caravan up to the Holy Isle." She pulls out her phone and does a bunch of thumb tapping on the screen. "Let's see... parking is tight in town proper. Google recommends A59 out of York... aha! There's a BP and a McDonalds just off the A59/A1237 circle. We can meet there, gas up, get Danny something greasy and quasi-nutritious to soak up the alcohol, and head out."

She looks up from her phone and scans between Kenneth and Edwyn. "That's assuming you guys want to drive your own vehicles. At least two would be useful in case we have to split up. Anyone besides Danny riding in the Rover? I'm not married to being the driver, if you'd rather drive, but Danny is not driving. That's for sure."

Sal opens her mouth to answer the question about Fothergill when Edwyn stumbles in. His greeting puts her right into an old cartoon about a sheepdog and a wolf, so she replies "Mornin, Sam" in a flat, bored tone.

She is glad to see another heathen American making a beeline for the coffeepot.

Sal smiles at Kenneth in reply to Edwyn's comment. "Yesterday kind of seems like a dream. But then, so does today."

"But I'm afraid it might be a nightmare today for Danny. Last we saw him, he was awfully happy, so he's probably super unhappy today."

"We've been sitting here trying to plan for what we don't know," she laments, "Feel free to chime in. So far, we have stabbing, shooting, and magic on the list."

Sal sighs and sets a hand on Kenneth's arm. "Relax. Sorry if I upset you. I probably made it sound worse than it is in trying to show you it can't be more. And it's OK how it is. She has helped me. I hope I help her. It's just.. full disclosure. I don't want to hide from you. OK?"

And honestly, she'd probably be better off with someone like you who could understand her better, Sal doesn't say.

"So... battle plans. I wonder where Danny and Edwyn are. It's tough to plan with half the crew."

Sal sits up in alarm at Kenneth's near-asphyxiation. "Are you OK? My God, I thought I'd killed you with a scone."

Rather than be reassured, she seems a little alarmed at his response. "No, no... you don't get it. It can't ever be love. I mean, it got started the night we met - she was the driver in London, you know? And I was high as a kite, to be honest. And she seemed so... I dunno, lonely. Once I was sober, I called her to see if she wanted to go clubbing, because she was so wistful about it. So we go dancing when we can, and maybe dinner sometimes. She kept me from falling back into bad habits, and I understand about her sudden absences - and she mine. We keep it fun. Because..." She shakes her head. "OK, look: people get lonely, they get a dog. And they get home from work and are glad to see each other, and they play silly games, and the human gets to feel young again. There's affection, sure, but no equality. There's no basis for the kind of love you're talking about. And Letty has more miles of walls than China."

She grimaces. "And dogs are useful, too. They can, say, watch certain redheaded sorceresses at the University where they work, where you get them a job."

"So yeah, it's light and easy, because I'm basically Letty's pet human."

Sal whistles softly. "Yeah, Axe was really something. The boy could lay the smack down. I mean, you're good, but he was just a beast with an edged weapon."

"We could always tell..." and her brain, running much faster than her mouth, has already finished the sentence 'Letitia so the Wardens know and can maybe back us up' when the name Letitia jogs the tumblers in her brain that were rusty last night and they slip into place, unlocking the realization I am dating a woman he's in love with and she can't finish that sentence.

She swears softly and fervently at the remaining coffee in her mug, then tries to pick up the thread of the planning, continuing to look into her coffee mug.

Don't need this right now. Focus.

"Sniper rifles aren't really silent, not when the bullet goes supersonic, and I don't have the subsonic kind - even those make noise. So you're right - a couple of shots and they'll find me. If I can take down a big bad first, that's totally worth it. In the park, it was close quarters right away. The Eagle did well for me there, and I'll have that with me. Smaller pistol won't stop them."

You're babbling. Just tell him.
He'll hate me. He'll be angry. Men always get angry.
Mission first. Focus.

"I've got the berries and the wire, and ever since the Poppy Queen, I feel... like maybe I could make that holy weirdness happen again. I haven't tried it since. Pretty afraid to even touch it. But maybe that would help."

If you don't tell him, he'll think you've been lying to him. The longer it goes, the worse it'll be.
I'll lose him if he knows. We've barely had any time at all. It's not fair.
Both of us need to focus on the issue at hand right now. Don't distract him.

"I haven't made any custom shell loads for the shotgun - didn't even think of it. That would be a good weekend project, making different shells, but there's no time today. I think it's lead ammo, for the most part. I don't use shotguns as a rule, so it's just whatever was lying around for hunting, birdshot mostly. But a faceful of that will make anyone hesitate."

He knows something is wrong by now. You're no actress, and he's not stupid.

She pulls a corner off the cinnamon roll but it has no taste, and she has to wash it down with a swallow of coffee. Oddly, it all feels like ice in her stomach, even the hot coffee.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know how you felt about Letty," she abruptly informs her mug, which seems to be trembling slightly for some reason.

Sal pops into the kitchen and zombie-walks to the coffeepot, where she fills the biggest mug she can find and tops it off by stealing cream from the tea set. Settling into a chair next to Kenneth, she clutches the liquid heaven with both hands and takes a sip with a tiny moan of pleasure and a deep sigh as the oh-so-magical potion hits her empty stomach.

Feeling the gears of her brain beginning to un-rust and turn, she can't help but think about the coming day's work. Might as well talk shop while they wait for the team to assemble.

"So, the guys in the park were pretty easy to kill - with the baddest handgun in the world - but if they'd gotten hold of me, I think they could have wrecked me bad, to be honest. And they were just brute forces. I'm betting some of them have magic, with the way they changed appearance. What do we do about them?" She takes another deep swig of coffee while it's hot. "My training says to take out the dangerous guys first - so, focus-fire on any magical types?"

Don't have Resources, just Contacts at +1. Anyone who can help out, please do! This would have been activity taking place between the last chapter and the start of this one, so Edwyn can't help Sal's rolls, though he might be able to do his own for his sponsor?

Contacts: 4d3 - 8 + 1 ⇒ (2, 1, 3, 1) - 8 + 1 = 0
Craftsmanship to modify shotgun: 4d3 - 8 + 3 ⇒ (3, 1, 1, 3) - 8 + 3 = 3

Crappy Contacts roll. Can I make use of Friends in Low Places to improve that? The Sal action figure came equipped with a Kevlar vest, so that's no issue. Even if we can't get a new or combat shotgun, I'd imagine a country house would have some shotguns for hunting (though Fothergill might not appreciate them being sawed-off.)

"Fine," Sal grumbles good-naturedly, rolling out of bed and stretching to her full height with a wicked grin at Kenneth, before tossing on a t-shirt and shorts and heading for the shower.

Not knowing when they'll be facing trouble (or if), she chooses dark brown outer clothing with a silky black long-sleeved tee next to her skin. She packs a haversack with toiletries and changes of clothes for couple of days, just in case. Once she's decent, she heads to the basement to put her vest on over the tee, then a dark plaid shirt, her shoulder harness, with a loose windbreaker-style jacket over all.

She double-checks the gear bags in the basement to be certain weapons and utility gear (binoculars and the like) are all packed (retrieving her new kukri from the table with a smile). She attaches a tripod to the outside of one bag, hoping it will look like photography gear. Then she hauls the bags to the back of the Rover and pulls the privacy screen over the cargo area - just in case. Even though they're in friendly territory, she locks the vehicle since it's now full of arms and munitions.

Only after the gear is prepared does she allow herself to head for the kitchen for food and blessed coffee.