DAY :048 | DO THE CREEP

[onemind]

CHARACTERS: All
WHERE: Concordia, Misc.
WHEN: Day :048 - :050
SUMMARY: Seek and destroy; the hosts follow up on the three suspects identified at Saffit's fundraiser. One of the three eventually leads somewhere significant...
WARNINGS: Will update as necessary.

---

((OOC NOTES: This is the catch-all log for characters following Aytac Devin, Kusuma Ming and Kalup Aquila. Feel free to use these characters however they suit your threads - we'll jump into modjack when and where we can! At some point, we'll highjack one of your threads to direct it toward plot relevant information, but until then don't hesitate to go wild.

If you have any questions, drop them over HERE at the calendar questions post.))

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ILDE | MING & FAHIMA

[erbier]

See Here For Planning

Feel free to ping me for any plot points you want, and to comment under this header with anything you want to thread out.

Petre

[erbier]

[ After the party, after yet another run around of not quite reaching their goal, her heart is filled with acid once more. Frustration and determination. The loss of Sam Anders does her no favors. She wants even more so than before to return to the Station, to place her fallen broodmate in the nesting deck where he will be save, preservered. Where she can mourn in peace without all the interruptions of Concordia. She is so tired of this place. Of these people, of this mission. With little preamble beyond asking one of the tech savvy for some assistance in locating her target, she heads out to see if she can finally make some kind of headway in this increasingly futile mission to enlighten a world.

She follows Pidge's directions towards a quiet cafe in the afternoon, intent to charm her way into the good graces of one woman or the other. She is almost there when she feels the tug of another host, looking around with a frown. She knows exactly who it is, her disgust for him makes him unmistakable but-- ]

( Petre. )

[howtoget]

[ And there he is, hat and sunglasses on, sipping away at Fahima's favorite drink. The dress he has on is as fake as the skin and hair he wears, as is his composure, as is the look of inconvenience he shoots at Ilde, rather than the sneer she would normally get from the demon brat.

Bringing the cup back to his lips, he simply answers, ]

( Ugh. Why am I not surprised. )

[erbier]

[ A small tilt of her head, following the vibrations of his thoughts to the figure that looks like Fahima. No, no, that is not helpful at all. ]

( That is the woman I am here to speak to. )

[ She purses her lips. ]

( I did not realize you had such control over your choice in shape. )

[ Really she'd assumed he was either the child or the monster. It chills her to the bone to realize it's otherwise. ]

[howtoget]

( So?

I'm waiting for the other chick. So you can go now. )

[ He doesn't care what Ilde thinks. Except when she's offending him, then he just gets irritated and acts out elsewhere. ]

[greentech]

[ Pidge is willing to lend her expertise to their mission - tracking down potential leads. Which really means she gets to sit back at the base and try to track pings via the computer. It's not that exciting, but it's better than not doing anything. Besides, she could use something a bit more sedate after smooth-talking an AI. ]

( So, what's the plan once you actually find them? )

[erbier]

( I believe I can convince Fahima Hanne to invite me to their shared living quarters. )

[ Ilde is not trying to be vague on purpose, to her it just seems that simple. ]

[greentech]

( OK... )

[ Pidge watches as something pings. ]

( And... then what? Knock her out? Go through her stuff? Ask her leading questions? )

[erbier]

( No, it will have to be a more reliable means. Where I know what I am being told is the truth... )

[ Idle contemplation, ]

( I have a potion to garner control over her with... And perhaps once we are alone I may press on her with my powers. )

STALKING AYTAC DEVIN @ THE PARK

[decommission]

( NOTES: Leaving the day/time up in the air for now to account for any timeline wonkiness. Consider this a free-for-all thread, no strict tag order! Plotting was here but anyone is free to jump in via action and/or mental link, people can spread out across the park and stuff. I've made up the park stuff, so feel free to add in whatever other details you like! )

THE MARK

FROM THE MOD POST: AYTAC DEVIN - ...was one of the names in Ngozi’s list of slush cases. Devin (late 50’s) is one of those old money Concordian elite who makes money off money and increases that income by buying up and managing property (something of a commodity in a city like this one). In the aftermath of the Royal Parlor bombing, one of Devin’s investment properties suffered some minor vandalism as he demanded that Public Security patrols in the area be increased - conveniently at the same time that the investigation into the bombings should have been drawing on most of Public Security’s workforce; for some reason (as of yet uncovered, though we’ll update this if Pidge gets into Ngozi’s private data partition), Ngozi bowed to the demand. All that said, Devin seems to largely be the affable grandfather type and quite the family man. The Devin family is one of those traditional, sprawling Concordian families and it’s clear that Devin puts a lot of time into doting on them. He has a slew of nieces and nephews and is still celebrating his first grandchild even though the kid’s six years old. Devin regularly attends any activity this his grandchild is participating in, though at the moment that usually amounts to days in the park and baby’s first martial arts classes. Find one and you’ll likely find the other. That said, Devin does seem to often travel with two body guards - a slim man by the name of Leoban Vurwal, and a bruiser-type woman named Alani Amir.

THE PARK

The gossip and lifestyle sections lead to a large park in the Alpha Block, all fancy statues with placards dedicating or attributing their placement to long deceased high society folks. Off the regular path and near the man-made lake Devin can be found seated on a bench, watching a boy clumsily practice Zero Ball with a fit young man. A pair of woman stop to watch, followed by another lone bystander that keeps shifting from spot to spot, likely taking pictures. It's the young man that's capturing their attention, some big name player from a favored Zero Ball team. Devin's bodyguards are quick to move - the slim man remains close to Devin, while the large one approaches the voyeurs. Her murder-walk is enough to get the young woman to move along, but the man stands his ground and the two can be watched arguing.

The boy seems oblivious to all this.

[headinjuries]

[ It's a park, people are playing ball, and that's all Sam needs to look like he has every reason in the world to be there. He's tossing around a ball of his own, still a distance away from the commotion, watching from the corner of one eye, but looking mostly focused on what he's doing. ]

( So I'm guessing I won't be able to get away with asking for an autograph, huh. )

[ A shame, considering he's actually been watching Zero Ball, and the guy is good? ]

[decommission]

[ Halfway around the lake Steve's got a little easel set up, painting the lake in watercolors on a canvas that's only the size of a small picture frame. He's got a hat on, the brim shading his eyes from the glare of the sun and obscuring his features. ]

( I don't think that'd be keeping with low profile. ) [ There's some wry humor in his tone.

The bulky woman says something that finally sends the voyeur stalking away. She watches him go with both arms crossed over her chest.

Behind them the boy gives a kick that sends the ball into the water, upsetting a flock of water birds. ]

[headinjuries]

( I hate to say it, but I think I probably look a little less like a potential threat than that guy. )

[ Strange unknown men raise more eyebrows than...than no don't make him admit how small he is. ]

[decommission]

[ Look at who you're talking to, Sam.

Some serious consideration, then the equivalent of a mental shrug. ]

( Well, I guess it couldn't hurt. )

[ If he really wants to try for that autograph. ]

idk what i'm doing

[unfavoured]

[ Some people just don't have to look for trouble because trouble always comes around to find them. Not that Parker avoids trouble at all cost. In here, maybe, but mostly because she stays out of the business of spying for an entity she doesn't know, much less trust. On her day to day basis (when she was back on Earth, that is), she was more than happy to look for trouble and if she didn't find any, she would certainly cause it. Pushing for rebellion has never been difficult for her.

But give her some credit. In here, she doesn't care to. The universe is intent in proving her wrong it seems.

Across the pond, she's taking laps around it. She doesn't care who the kid is, or who the bodyguards are guarding (because even if you don't know who that is, those are clearly bodyguards with the way they stand), she is minding her own f-word business. It's certainly not her fault that runt is kicking the Zero Ball around. Much less when it hits her square in the face. It makes a beach-ball sound as it bounces off her head in comical fashion. Parker staggers backwards in her run, nearly slipping on to her ass.

The ball rolls down sadly behind her. The kid stares at her, apologetic, but definitely hopeful in getting his ball back. Holding a hand over her face, part of it red from the impact, Parker is clearly contemplating kicking the ball right back into the kids face. Yes, even with the watchful eye of the other bodyguard not engaging with the voyeurs.

Maybe in this planet they don't mind child beatings. ]

i'm making it worse

[decommission]

[ The slim guard lets out an unmistakable snort. Funny. The beefy one seems slightly less amused from where she stands closer to the boy, and there's something about her posture that makes it clear she's ready to intervene. The Zero Ball player looks mortified.

All three are taking their cues from Devin - and he gives a nod to the player. ]

Sorry about that... [ The tall, dark and handsome Zero Ball celebrity starts jogging toward Parker, clearly intending to retrieve the ball from where it's landed. There's nothing to say he's from a top team unless you've managed to miss his face plastered all over posters. His relation to the Devins is literal - a twice removed cousin of sorts. Used to money even before his paychecks started coming in, his jeans have that look of 'expensively worn' and what he paid for those sunglasses could easily cover the rent of a moderately priced loft. ]

( Don't engage - )

[ Usually, Steve's much better at not reaching out to people instinctively. Especially when they're someone that clearly does not want to be reached out to like this. He's still at his spot around the bend of the lake, within line of sight and sitting on a bench with his drawing tools, eating some lunch that's probably about to be quickly forgotten. ]

escalates too quickly

[unfavoured]

[ Whatever her intention was previous to this situation, it became void quite quickly. As soon as Steve breaks through her (admittedly distracted, considering the ball that had smacked her right on the head) walls, Parker makes a very, very clear point of setting her jaw even further, eyebrows pushing angry lines in her forehead. She doesn't look for the source of it, because part of her instinctively knows where he stands. All of her hates the fact that she does, even though it's less so nowadays, with her actively blocking everything and then some. But it's still that, that nauseating pulsing beneath her flesh.

It doesn't matter. Parker has told so many times to so many people to not to get in her head. She has made exhausting efforts to make sure it's clear that she does not want anyone besides herself in her head. And yet the only time anyone seemed to listen to her was when she punched Angel. She hasn't done it again. Pretty sure those that were there to witness didn't either.

So, she's through trying to make it louder than she possibly can. If they keep doing what she has asked not to, then she is definitely not above of being vengeful and giving back what she gets.

The tilt of her head is subtle. Like a crick on her neck. She doesn't look for long to the bench Steve is sat on. Just a quick glance. Oh, she is not above this at all. ]

Really? Are you sorry? Because maybe you should keep a better eye to make sure your kid respects who's around them.

[ Everyone says she should be more social, after all. Why shouldn't she take this opportunity to engage? ]

[decommission]

[ He's getting too used to communicating this way. At her radio silence he pulls back into himself, quieting the link as best he can. His sandwich and tools are abandoned at the bench and he's a little too swiftly making his way toward the scene.

Meanwhile, the gleaming smile on the player's face wavers along with his PR training, and there's a second where he seems to be considering that he's misheard her. ]

You forget to take your meds? He's just a kid. [ A kid who's already running back to his paw-paw at the bench. ]

MURPHY & BELLAMY & THE DARKLING | no stalking just scheming

[wrackful]

[Subspace is full of dark corners and places where people look the other way. The crowd of it reminds Murphy of the Ark, in some ways, the lack of space, people living on top of one another. But property is cheap, changes hands often, and it's safer to hide a hastily procured car and two bikes in the back lot of the small bodymod shop Murphy's bought than anywhere around the Bearings.

It's a safer place to make plans, too. Murphy's as mindful of hiding what they're doing from the rest of the Nest as he is hiding it from the people of Concordia. Mara had pressed that. Mara had pressed or inspired a lot of this.

But Mara isn't with him today as he comes to meet Bellamy and his weirdass broodmate who goes by a title instead of a name. What he has with him is a tray of smoothies and a bag of pastries, both of which get set on the counter as he comes in, and another bag he empties out next to them.]

Got the gloves. [As if the pairs of gloves now piled on the counter need announcing.] I'll pick up the helmets later.

[deployed]

[ Keeping secrets from the rest of the Hive isn't easy. But it helps that half his brood and Lexa are asleep; beyond that, Bellamy's able to keep most everyone at a distance. It's enough to preserve secrecy.

They're meeting to plan, supposedly. Bellamy's gaze skips from the smoothies to the gloves before he looks to the door again. He expects Mara. He's not particularly eager to see Mara, but he'd assumed she'd either be here when he arrived, or trailing in behind Murphy. ]

Smoothies?

[ Still too fancy for Bellamy. And it's an easier question than Where's Mara? ]

[unsea]

[ Bellamy had asked him to come, and so he had.

Mara Jade's absence is painfully noticeable; she's sleeping deeply, the way that so many others before them would, for time indeterminate. The Station has walls full of them, and even more walls, full of the dead. A tomb within a prison - their minds made into shackles. That's why he's here, as well. Bellamy had asked him to guard them, and his own backseat machinations demanded he not miss this opportunity. And defend the three - no, the two. Mara Jade is no longer a variable, and he is taken a silent moment to recalibrate --

And where Bellamy is more interested in the smoothies for the moment. He's interested in what Murphy has procured for this venture. ]

She'll be so upset that she missed out on this.

[ """"""""THIS"". Hey, Murphy. Long time no see. ]

[wrackful]

[The Darkling's comment gets nothing more than a glance, sharp but ultimately dismissive in Murphy's attention turning away. He doesn't want to talk or think about Mara, and he definitely doesn't want to dwell on the surge of itching irritation that The Darkling thinks he knows what Mara would be upset over. It's easier to just respond to Bellamy.]

Yeah, smoothies. [Obviously. He works two of the cups out of the holder, pushing one at Bellamy.] Here, this one's meant to be for focus.

[And clearly he needed it. Murphy takes his own selection, moving to lean against the nearest treatment chair.]

Have you memorised the route yet?

KIDNAPPING | DAY :050

[wrackful]

Murphy will be waiting in an alley/alcove/doorway at the least populated point of Kulap's morning walking route. Bellamy and The Darkling will be waiting in the car, parked nearby. Murphy will wait until she's just passed and then shock her from behind with his taser glove. If there's anyone around, he'll make a bit of a show of her just suddenly collapsing and him helping her, carrying her to the car with the intention of bundling her into the back.

[onemind]

Congratulations, Kulap is shockingly easy to tase and kidnap. There are people around, but it seems like pretty much everyone buys Murphy's cover story of assisting an older woman with health problems. Good job, Murphy - you just successfully knocked out an old woman!

https://youtu.be/3suGfhnT2Sg

[wrackful]

Step one complete! Murphy gets her and himself in the car and Bellamy drives them over to Murphy's empty bodymod shop in Subspace. Provided she hasn't woken up along the way, they'll get her into the back treatment room, tie her arms and legs to a chair, and wait for her to wake up.

They'll all be dressed in all-black motorbike gear complete with black-visor helmets, which is totally just to hide their identities and not to intimidate her at all.