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Post by Bixir on Feb 20, 2023 16:37:17 GMT
This was the last place they would look for someone like CJ. It was what made it the first place for him to hit this week. He had been falling behind on quota, and he needed to tow the company line. He still didn't get why they insisted on calling it that. Robbery was robbery, no matter how you dressed it up. You took something you wanted from someone else that had it. It didn't matter if it came from a store or a car or a wallet or whatever. Money was money... or at least, it used to. The world was so complicated now. Nothing made any sense anymore. Even being a hired muscle of ghastly gunk took so much thinking that it gave even CJ a headache. Wasn't it impossible for Ectotasms to get those? Whatever. Sticky hands in pockets that never seemed to rub off on him (Thanks, Jules), CJ strutted along, maintaining his cold demeanor that both kept suckers away and ensured a low profile for a guy like him in a place like the Platinum District. It was for the creme de la creme de la creme; the kind of rich that preyed on lower tiers of rich. He definitely shouldn't have been able to fly under Strand's radar, but the boss assured him he would work his magic. So he did. Who would even come after him? The cops were kept out of this space for the prudes' arrogance and pride, and more often than not their private teams didn't bother to actually do their jobs. Who would be dumb enough to try, or good enough to even get in, to rip off the people who ran this town? This sort of trick would probably only work once. Then it was back to combing the Underside for gumshoe proxy. Bleh. With all of this gestating in that gelatinous potato CJ called a brain, he shrugged along the lady in front of him before continuing on his way. Her prissy Avon Garde dress screamed at him from three blocks away. She wouldn't miss a few things... or several. Or her entire interior case. It sunk into CJ's slippery hands like flypaper, then into his body itself. Most pickpocketing wasn't much good for him, on account of how his haul would just liquify as soon as it touched his fingers. Another perk of plucking the .01%: their tinsel was ecto-proof. After shrugging off the glare his mark gave him, CJ continued on his way, towards the pickup point on the other end of the district. It'd be a while before he'd get there, taking his time on the sidewalk and all, but that was fine. The way the Platinum Pricks were, they'd take at least a day to notice something of theirs went missing... if they ever did. And he didn't even have to fight anyone this time. The real Blue Jovie. |
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Post by swapgo on Feb 20, 2023 17:00:33 GMT
How disappointing
In most other places of the city, the presence of Queen Vesper garners a modicum of attention, some kids are interested (or frightened), some adults want to talk to her (or avoid her), and the littlest things like browsing the supermarket are somehow important to the masses. The Platinum District behaves differently to her, as in, not at all. It is as if her wealth made this her expected habitat, among the 'important class'; these people hardly looked important, more like they had important relatives. This wasn't what bothered her, of course, the peace was an interesting change of pace, no, it was the offensively weak food she was being served. She would get a much larger, greasier serving of stake at the Andy's near her headquarters, but it seems like humans are just expected to pay more for less food and a worse environment given that it is perceived as more elegant than the alternative.
This was Vesper's experience sitting on the outdoor's section of a fancy restaurant, chewing on some premium quality meat or however it was that they attempted to sell her on, it could've been a piece of rock if the hornet heard people paid a hefty amount for it. Her topmost right arm was doing the knife work, and her two left arms held forks to work through the meat while her mandibles slowly consumed the food, and her last hand held a golden scepter resting on her lap. While her long vestments are as intricate as always, she had no other belongings on her, instead, they were carried in functional satchels worn by her two hornet escorts, standing stiff and watching the streets for the queen, with their red uniforms and unflinching stance, they were but short a musket and a silly hat of really looking the part of a royal guard.
One of them requested the queen's attention with a twitch, warning her that a miscreant is about to cross her. She trusted her guards to not be judgmental, and he confirmed that he witnessed him commit a crime. The queen tilted her head but slightly to the left as her peripheral vision caught wind of a rather interesting rapscallion. The queen contemplated for a moment while continuing to display rather unpleasant table manners, tilting herself slightly back from her backwards seat (as overworld chairs clearly don't accommodate for thoraxes). Her eye flashed a pale blue towards him, signaling that her spell was at work, and implicitly, that she demanded his attention. "Heed, creature", Vesper demanded, an imperious, yet relaxed tone that would ring on CJ's mind, or whatever worked like one. "I am curious, and you can answer"
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Post by Bixir on Feb 20, 2023 17:06:19 GMT
"Whuh-"
CJ stopped in his tracks, if only for a second. He wasn't exactly unfamiliar with the wild faces he could run into around the city, but every now and then something managed to get him to gawk. This time was for more reasons than just curiosity, but he tried to keep that carnal fling to himself... assuming that this lady couldn't reach into his mind any more than whatever was going on right now. His posture stiffened as much as it could for a thing made of spooky jello, his head bobbing and weaving as he took in every facet of Vesper... and that of her entourage.
"Sorry, uhh... whaddyou want, lady? I, uhh, kinda got somewhere ta be."
As smooth as the Ectotasm usually was, being caught off like he was made his tempo off-kilter. More to the point, whatever he was keeping in his pockets began to jostle, the offending hand fidgeting within that space at this encounter. She was obviously someone to take seriously, if not from how she was speaking to him then how she was dressed, and the fact that she had people around her right now. CJ did his best to keep his nose clean, and he was starting to worry that this dame was gonna make things runny if he didn't play his cards right.
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Post by swapgo on Feb 20, 2023 17:10:31 GMT
As much as Vesper couldn't read this jelly creature, it was clear to her that there was a contrast with their words and their stance, it is difficult to hide body language from the Superiors, given that it is their only language. "Certainly. We all do, such is the pull of the city", she ruminated, her right eye flashing briefly as she undid the spell temporarily to take in another morsel, as it would very easily relay her horrible table manners directly into this curious ghost's mind. "You will tell me how many credits you believe that case is worth", her eyes flashed again and she resumed. CJ could see her escorts tilting their heads forward, if not in curiosity, then at the very least as anticipation to a request. "Take inventory and a seat if you must", she invited them to take his time as she continued with her meal. Vesper's apparent eccentricity was infamous, but it was unlikely that CJ had the time to worry about the city gossip to know about it, but here she was, asking a criminal just how much this pickpocket was worth to him, because she could.
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Post by Bixir on Feb 20, 2023 17:16:01 GMT
"WhuCJ shifted weight from one leg to the other, his upper half weaving to and fro, like he was about to fall over. His face remained plain, though he finally relented, those blank eyes narrowing to emulate relief... or frustration. "You saw that, huh? Aw, cripes..."CJ really didn't want to kill anyone today. This was such a drag. He was sure that he could take these chumps, and this lady that they were lookin' after, but it was the principle of the matter. Messy jobs meant messy pay, worse if something happened to the merchandise. CJ went back and forth on his choices for at least a few seconds, continuing his precarious body language until finally he let out a baleful gurgle that approximated a sigh. The Ectotasm corrected his posture before taking an unceremonious seat opposite Vesper. He pulled out the case in question, half-enveloped in CJ's own substance, before he slowly slipped out of it, causing the container to clatter onto the table with splashes of glowing, green residue. CJ stared at it, seeming to think of how to go about opening it. There was a lock, but it looked... sophisticated. Beyond CJ sophisticated. He was supposed to meet up with a breaker... damn this was embarrassing. "Uhh, just, gimme a sec..." The Ectotasm's fingers continued to poke and prod at the thing, covering it in more and more of his essence. Finally, his ethereal grasp found purchase, slipping inside and forcing it open from the inside, revealing... "It's, uhh... I dunno, a diamond or somethin'. I guess that's like... a hundred grand? Looks pretty good to me."The gem was brilliant, its brilliant, blue luster shining even while the prize was facing away from Vesper. More still, it emanated with a power that Vesper was certainly capable of picking up on. It was ancient, and of a dangerous, forbidden sort. And it, whatever "it" was, was most certainly not a diamond. CJ glared at this lady who had gotten him to go to all these lengths. "What do you care anyway? This whole stick-up is gonna cost me a lot, ya know. You gonna compensate me?"
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Post by swapgo on Feb 20, 2023 17:16:57 GMT
The queen twitched briefly and continued to enjoy her food at CJ stammered on what to do, her escorts twitching their heads and scanning for movement in case he reacted violently. The hornets gave the slime-ghost some space and moved away from the second chair. Vesper merely rose her free hand and dismissively waved as CJ asked for more time while nonchalantly going about her business, though she seemed to stop midway through as the box popped open, her leftmost hand letting go off its fork, and her uppermost one staying still in mid-way through. CJ would hear nothing until they rose their head, and what he heard was not a sound, but some sort of strange, rubbing noise. It felt like some sort of raw joy, as if the queen was portraying laughter without actually laughing.
"Owner", Vesper turned her head ever so slightly to the side and uttered a single word, but it was clearly not to CJ. "Human Female, High Income", one of her escorts replied. "Insignias","Possible. Research?","Go. Signature", she turned her head again to her other escort, prompting the first one to reach for a device at their waist (a smartphone) and got busy with something. There was clearly a conversation happening, but it went at a blistering pace, pure efficiency at work, as opposed to courtesy. The queen's large eyes shone again, and CJ would feel as if a television turned off before him, the hurried words and stoic responses being replaced by chittering, buzzing and twitching as the insects traded requests and information. Both escorts stopped and the queen took that bite she meant to take while silence reigned for a moment.
"Clean it and close it, then I will offer you 1399680 credits for it". Vesper's eye shone and CJ was given an offer, the strange number would enter his head much faster than the rest of the message, given that the Superiors use a different counting base. "I have 27000 in cash, the rest I can provide to you in a few minutes if you're patient, or in checks, other mineral valuables, or stock in Dominion", she mentioned, dropping the more recognizable name of her company. "Consider your alternatives with care", she added, for some reason.
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Post by Bixir on Feb 20, 2023 17:22:34 GMT
"Err..."
CJ was, again, at a loss as this bug lady and her bug friends... talked? That was how they talked, right? CJ couldn't exactly tell, and it was happening too fast for him to try keeping up anyway. It reminded him of how the usual meetings went, CJ more often tuning the whole thing out until he was brought back to reality with the details that actually mattered.
Details like the big, fat number this bougie bitch just threw on him. The Ectotasm blinked, barely able to process even that bit of information. That was more money than he had ever brought in on a single haul. Scratch that, a month's worth of hauls. Just what was her game here? Was she pulling his leg? She certainly seemed rich enough to throw that kind of dough around but there were important things to think about. Loyalty to the job, discretion against strangers, moral integr
"You got it, doll!"
Immediately CJ set about fashioning the treasure in question. It was a little odd, seeing such a clumsy and grotesque hooligan work to refine and polish, but he clearly had experience with it. It wasn't long before all of the radiating gunk had been cleared from the table, absorbed back into his form, including what had gotten on the item itself. He quickly closed and locked the case, looking up at Vesper with eagerness that could only be accounted with greed.
"Uhh... checks, I guess? The boss usually cashes all'a mine, but uhh... that might not matter after this. You, uhh..." He scratched his "chin", generating a slick, rubbery noise as goo met goo.
"...got any more paydays like that?"
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Post by swapgo on Feb 20, 2023 17:24:07 GMT
Vesper's escorts seemed to take offense to the miscreant's misdemeanor, given their now slanted posture and some mysterious, thrumming noise coming from them, but a wave of her hand allayed their discontent. She pensively watched the ectoplasm go to work with commendable diligence, and only after being convinced that the case would be left in an impeccable condition did she twitch towards her nearest assistant, prompting them to reach for one of their bags for a check and a pen. She spun it around her two right hands until she met CJ's overeager gaze, something about her looked delighted, but it was impossible to tell what. "Unlikely. I'm not compensating you for the grift, but for curious opportunities". Vesper mentioned, starting to write the amount on the check. "Never would I have guessed for the city to be unyielding as to not even offer peace to something such as you", she elaborated, visibly counting that it was just the right amount of zeroes. "Tell me then, what is it that you want and need that drives you to misdemeanor", she demanded, briefly putting the pen down. It was apparent that CJ would have to play her game for this payday
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Post by Bixir on Feb 20, 2023 17:27:49 GMT
CJ's attention span was a fickle thing. It was hard just to keep him focused long enough to hear a job, let alone do anything more complicated than lifting a mark or putting the squeeze on someone. The fact that someone - a complete a stranger at that - had gotten him to sit still for longer than a few minutes was an accomplishment in itself. There was also the matter of what had gone beyond an otherwise simple job, bereft of context or details that were above the Ectotasm's pay grade. Though CJ wasn't necessarily an expressive sort, his glassy expression what Vesper was saying showed just how much of it was going over his inconsolable cranium. He squinted rather comically as he tried to process it, making that rubbing noise against his chin as the taffy gears struggled to churn.
"Uhhhhh..... mis, uhh, misdemeanor? You mean like, why I do what I do? Iunno, it just, feels right, y'know? I always done this. The, other g- I mean, uhh, I just never knew anythin' else. It's a good gig, y'dig? I get ta do whateva I want, I get paid good, the boss is happy. I never really thought about it any more than that."
CJ's eyes were caught between greedily eyeing the check and lecherously gawking at Vesper. Of all the ilk that Vesper dealt with, CJ's breed were certainly the least difficult to tug along, so long as his base needs were indulged.
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Post by swapgo on Feb 20, 2023 17:31:23 GMT
"I see", Vesper stated bluntly(?), as much as she could muster with a poignant pause. "The urban equivalent of a predatory drive. Caring not for what's right or wrong, instead, for what's necessary", she waxed poetic for a moment, a worrying sight, given the brief jitter of her escorts, but they wouldn't dare question her further. "This exchange might rob you of this impulse", she suggested, whilst taking another bite from her morsel to substract even more manners from her statement, expressing as if this grand windfall would somehow go right around to being a bad thing.
The Queen audibly put the pen down, one of her subjects picked it up and coiled it shut while the second one put it away in what appeared to be a heavily organized case. "I will test your insight", Vesper slid the cheque across the table, two fingers firmly pinning it from CJ's grasp. "Tell me what you believe my intent with this item is"
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