B.A.R.T.'s page

Matt, you may want to revise your post.

BART would have checked the package for irregularities or similarities to Carter's package. If it was given to him under similar circumstances with an anonymous sender, no return address and definitely Avryl's address, he'd have sent her a confidential text to meet him somewhere public at a specific time. He would have followed up with another confidential message to Zerin, letting her know to meet him and Avryl where and when because there had been another package. Then, with a reluctant sigh, and an audible "G&! D@@MIT.", he would have similarly invited Carter as well because... ugh... it's HER life, too.

After that, he would have contacted Detective Eteki to pick up the four of them at the location because we might have another package.

BART straightens up in surprise at the replies. "S!%&, I said that out loud, didn't I?"

"Okay. It's like this. A lot of my job is getting into, out of and through places where I shouldn't normally be. Because I can't wear a disguise like a normal person, my professional body is made for speed, maneuverability and gear that lets me travel in all three dimensions. If I COULD wear a disguise, clergy is a great option."

BART begins gesturing with his hands as he gets more involved in his explanation. "Nobody looks at priests like they look at other people. Even around cops or other emergency response folks, it's still `Pardon me, Father` and `Can I help you, Padre`. And a priest who's part of a movement that helps the poor and indigent? That means you could be walking through all kinds of disused, dilapidated areas without anyone thinking it was weird. Hell, the city even gives out parking placards to them in case of, and this if hilarious, a `clerical emergency` so they can park a vehicle where ever they want without even getting a ticket."

Wrapping up, BART points at the image on the screen. "I'm not saying that's your killer. And I know it sounds paranoid. But at this point, I'm thinking paranoid maybe the new normal under the circumstances."

As they review the POS-ID information of the locals, BART just shrugs his way through it. When they rewind back to the sixth person passing through, BART leans in towards the screen.

"Hunh... why didn't I think of that?

B.A.R.T. points to a couple of figures in the feed and turns to the detective. "You running any people with feedback suits, Detective?"

DICE!

Perception: 2d6 + 14 ⇒ (5, 5) + 14 = 24

Perception: 2d6 + 14 ⇒ (2, 6) + 14 = 22

Perception: 2d6 + 14 ⇒ (3, 5) + 14 = 22

If BART's mechanical face could glare at the detective, it would.

"So, you're giving us surveillance to protect us from a killer who has a track record of hacking surveillance. And the feds are `expunging' all the little infractions neither they or you locals can prove in the first place? And you're calling that `help'. You're hanging us out to dry and hoping that this psycho comes sniffing around the laundry line."

BART lets out an exasperated sigh and shrugs.

"Well, since that's the best you can do and you're apparently not willing to let me leave under my own recognizance, I guess I'll just have to be the shiniest lure in your tackle box, detective."

BART looks from the detective, to Zerin, then Emily and then back to the detective. "Okay, I have a question that I really feel needs asking here and I've just about run out of polite and cooperative for the day, so let's try direct. For the professional, Detective Eteki, you seem to be sharing a lot of details about the case with us without telling us what you're going to do FOR us. You've told us a whole lot about this persons suspected motives, methods, pathology... a lot of stuff I would imagine you wouldn't normally share with people as close to the case as we are and some of us have a nasty habit of tattling."

"Where I'm going with this is that those shiny cars and helicopters and AVs out there in the station lot have `Protect & Serve' embossed on their Metro PD logos but you haven't told us a [u]DAMNED THING[/u] about how you're going to protect and serve us?"

BART spreads his arm to include the three women in the room. "I mean... what are we to you? Suspects? No. You haven't notified us of any charges or made any threats. Material witnesses? Maybe. We do have the recording. But if that were true, you'd have offered us protective custody or SOMETHING." BART brings his arms back in towards his chest, leans forward and steeples his fingers. "Are you hoping to dangle us as BAIT, Detective? Because if that's your plan? Best of luck holding me. And if you can't arrest me, I'm going to pack my s~++ and head to some other place where I can work. Here's a quote, Carter. I've already died once. I don't recommend it."

((OOC: Not remembering what Zerin's done for BART in the past was totally PJ brain farting, but we'll call it nervousness on BART's part and move on with the story.))

"I'm sorry, detective, but I'm a courier. I'm an expert in getting packages from point a to point b. Crazy, psycho murderer expert is kind of your entire f+!*ing job, so maybe YOU can tell US why we're in this?

BART gestures towards Emily, "I mean, for starters, I don't even particularly LIKE this woman. She sticks her nose where it's not wanted and airs out other people's business for CLICKS. Avy's a g@!-d!$ned genius who tends to keep to herself and Zerin's a mechanic who tries to take care of the tech, and by extension the people, in places the rest of this city forgot. Exactly what puzzle do these pieces fit?"

BART passes a glance between Emily and the detective before looking directly at the Spiller, "Look, I'm as desperate to get this psycho off my back as anyone. But, in all seriousness, Carter, how much help to the police do you think a cowardly courier, a socially awkward engineer, sorry, Avy, a fame-hound Net-Journo and... I'm really sorry, Zerin, but I'm not sure what you actually do. I'll help the police as much as I can, but I don't even know how I got on this nuts radar."

He turns to Avryl with some concern in his voice, "Avy, you gotta get out of town. Maybe back into orbit, but out of the path of whatever it is that we dragged you into. I've been mangled once. Hell, I probably should have died in the accident. But you don't need to get in the path of whatever messed up, Final Destination s!@! I've stumbled into."

BART perks up a bit in his chair and straightens up. Oh... me? Okay. My name is Benjamin Alexander Rand-Tyrell. I am a professional discrete confidential courier. Earlier today, at approximately ((OOC: BART provides the exact time he received the delivery order for the package)) I received a delivery order for a small package to be delivered to an anonymous recipient at the address specified. I was unaware that the address belonged to he points towards Emily, Ms. Carter as she and I have had a difficult professional relationship in the past.

Once I had delivered the package, per the senders instruction, I waited for Ms. Carter to confirm receipt of the undamaged package and confirm its contents. Due to the constraints of the media format, she could not confirm receipt with her equipment, causing us to involve he waves happily at Avy Ms. Grimaldi as a technical specialist as we are both familiar with her work. Ms. Grimaldi lacked the specific equipment required to view the media, further delaying confirmation of receipt. Ms. Carter and Ms. Grimaldi are both familiar with BART gestures at Zerin Ms. Taro's business and so reached out to her to find the specific equipment we needed.

Once Ms. Taro was able to acquire the specific media reader we needed to confirm receipt of the contents of the package, we viewed said contents. I can confirm and will testify in open court that the footage viewed was as Ms. Carter said in her statement in regards to its specific evidentiary information, as well as potential threatening content towards both her and my persons."

After finishing up, BART reclines in his seat. "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaand, I think that about covers it unless either of you two have something else to add."

"It can't be a complete waste of time." BART's voice becoming more satirically chipper, "I'm going to be crammed into a squad car with a complete stranger; a close, personal associate and a woman who, this morning, I couldn't STAND." he spares a glance for Emily "This just in, our relationship has NOT improved. Get driven off to a police station to give a statement about being a material witness to two very high profile homicides. At the very least I'll get to talk to a couple of detectives, so they can make sure our stories are consistent, while they try to double-talk me into giving up a client list so they can "compare it against possible suspects" and further ruin my reputation with the kind of people who need secure, discrete couriers."

BART glances at all three of the women he's traveling with, lingering with an extra cold moment at Emily. "It's not a waste of my TIME. It's a waste of my LIFE. As someone who's already done that ONCE, believe me, being morose about it just makes it worse."

"Look, Z, I want to be going to the cops about as much as I want to go back to needing root canal, but we're safer all going and telling them what we know. Word gets out that I talked to the police about literally ANYTHING and my reputation is trash. And in my business, you're only as reliable as your reputation. I can save my lovely, expensive, carbon fiber hide or my business. I can only rebuild one of those."

Realizing what he just said he turns to Avryl, "I mean, you could rebuild the other one but that's not the point."

As Emily talks to the police on the phone, BART gets less agitated. Until she starts talking about who's being threatened. As she mentions that, he starts giving her the universal sign for "No. Stop. Don't." waving his hands in front of himself.

Once she says the word "courier", his arms drop to his sides and he hangs his head in resignation. "Well, I guess that's a couple of months of lean eating and discount maintenance." He turns to Emily after she hangs up with the police, and jokingly says "You are going to be the death of my business one way or another, aren't you?"

At the thought of his only friend in this situation leaving, he blurts out "You saw the same footage we did, Avy. They'll probably want a statement from you, too confirming how we got it, how we managed to view it and how we got the... extra... information you managed to finagle out of the system. You can probably leave off the specifics."

Don't mind if I do...

BART stops staring at the three women in front of him waiting for some reaction about calling the police into this obvious homicide. "Hang on. You said this Kaplan guy's rig was wrecked and made to look like catastrophic failure on the scene. Same way Mendez was killed and made to look like a fall. So, maybe he's not getting to them in their homes, he's just tracking them as they leave them and getting his jollies out in the world."

BART's been pacing this entire time like, oh, someone who found out that he's on a serial killer's "Need 'Em" list.

"Wait... wait... Time out. Her gear was tampered with, as in sabotaged. In her HOME?!" He turns to Emily. And you think Avy and I should take off? To where, exactly, when this lunatic has my address on his "To Do" list?

He takes a step back to put all three of the women in the small space in front of him, puts his hands to his temples and then extends his arms to encompass all three within the spread of him limbs "AND WHY ARE WE NOT CALLING THE COPS?!"

I got sweet FA. Na chingada. Ain't nobody got time fo' dat.

"I wasn't even going to get PAID?!"

"I need to broadcast something soon but I need a good cover story. I am not putting what we just saw out there. No effin way."

BART stops pacing to turn to Emily. "Wait... why not? Why wouldn't you just post a report of that clip to the entire web-wired public? Out this monster to the world and get your rabid little Etceter-ites to dig up the dirt on our mystery man. The more people who know about this, the safer we are, right? Have Avy get whatever data she can off the clip and turn the entire mess over to the cops. They can put us in protective custody or something, can't they?"

Perception Check, 2d6+14: 2d6 + 14 ⇒ (2, 4) + 14 = 20

When BART gets to Emily's apartment with the reader

"Okay, here's your antique. Let's see if it can read that thing so I can get paid and get gone."

As the video plays out, BART starts pacing, at first impatiently but as it continues, more out of anxiety.

"What the f&&&? What the F@&~?! What have you psycho attention whores roped me into! You wanted to see what happens when the whole world is watching? Now you know. Congrats, you're about to tragically dead and famous.

He turns to face Emily. "Double my rate, Ms. Carter. Now. I need to get out of town, like, yesterday. You need to get that chip and reader to the police, like, YESTERDAY. And before you ask, no, I am not touching that thing again. That thing is apocalyptically bad news."

Throwing a glance over his shoulder "Avy, I'm your friend and I'm telling you, get out of town. Go back Upstairs and stay away from Ms. Face-Time here or you might be next."

He goes back to pacing a hole in Emily's floor. "S+$@. S$+%. I can't even go back to my apartment. No, you know what? F$$@ it. Mike TV over there" points at the screen "can HAVE my knock-around body. I'm got my professional suit on. I can FIND work anywhere that isn't in a hundred mile radius of THAT a*$#!+& or any camera hound looking to get the next Inhuman Interest story on Pinocchio, the Delivery Bot."

"Well, at least there's no human organ trafficking going on."

I grab the card reader, re-seal the tote, put the tote back in the locker, close the locker back up, make sure it's locked again and then make my way back to Zerin's spot.

Before I touch anything, I'm taking a high res, time-stamped, geo-tagged shot of Jagger's gear with my AR and sending it to Avy right now with a note that says 'Tell Jagger he's got mice. Like ASAP.'

With the obvious signs of shadiness going on, I'm going to open the black tote and check that there's a card-reader in it and not, like, a human heart of something. Once I've confirmed I've got what we need, I'll head off.

If there's no card reader in the tote or, worse, something horrific in it, I'm going to ask Avy to get me Jagger's info so I can confirm information with him and sitting tight until I hear back from him.

Can I record video or take stills with my Observer optics package OR my AR? The answer will determine my course of action from this point.

About time.

"Double my fee should cover all this traipsing around town. And, for the record, I wasn't given a name, just an address. I didn't know you were the client until you opened the door.

I turn to Zerin and give my widest salesman smile. "Nice tech lady, please ping me with the coordinates for the package and our delivery instructions as provided by the sender?"

I turn on my heel and head out of the shop, turning on my delivery subsystems as I go. "See you in a hot minute, Avy. Jagger, I'll be in touch about the derm iron."

Once I'm out the door, I take off. A good run will clear my head.

If the route takes me over flat ground and it's not just somewhere in Jagger's scrapyard, I'll break out the skates in the shoes to cover ground as quickly as I can. If it's just coordinates in the yard, I'm just going to move as quickly and safely as I can to get it.

Jagger's eyes flit back and forth between Emily and Zerin, and his left eyebrow tics up for a brief moment.

"Yeah, okay, Miss Face. I'll do that for ya, easy price."

Because, of course he will. Note to self. Next time, get the money up front. I don't know what I'm losing more of, time or brain cells.

"I got six of those, one's in a locker near here," he grins, pointing at Avryl. "I give you dainties the code, and you give me your private PERSONE, yeah? Because life? Is short. And you? Are hot. What you say?"

Great, this guy's as slick as road-rash and twice as appealing and I've used up about all my patience with this garbage. If I don't get paid, in full and sharp, I'm writing today off. She can call it a favor or add it to my tab or whatever she wants but boredom is my kryptonite and I forgot my lead-lined jammies.

"You have ten more minutes of my time, Ms. Thing. Then we'll just call it a professional courtesy, I'll call it a loss and jog on."

Through this entire debacle, from Emily's office to Zerin's, BART has remained stoically deadpan and silent, with his only real motion or show of humanity being introducing himself to Zerin. With every set-back or new wrinkle, he just rolls his eyes and follows along, occasionally with a mumbled "Never going to get f%!~ing paid."

I smile and walk over to the nice, grease-spattered lady and extend a hand. "Hi. I'm Bart. Nice to meet you."

I just sit in her studio, giving her the dead-eyed stare of the SalaryMan(tm) floor model.

I try to give the busy-body my deadest dead-pan expression. I never wanted to see Emily Theora Carter again after I replaced her mobile kit. But since she recorded me throwing the original into the Bay, someone must have thought it would have been a real chuckle to give me this drop-off.

"I'd rather not wait around so Avy can confirm what I already know. You're package is fine and in tact. It was never opened or tampered with while it was in my care. And you'll forgive me if I don't exactly trust Miss Live-and-Direct to keep me off-camera."

"You're not my only drop-off today," I lie, "and I know you want me in your studio like a dose of the clap, so if it's all the same to you, just give me a good rating on the app, cut me my fee and I'm in the wind."