Apr 14 00:19:28 108 PA - Following Up on a Run
From Chronicles
Apr 14 00:19:28 108 PA.
MERCHANT'S PLAZA
It's the height of the day, and Kingsdale remains sunny as Persephone smiles upon North America. The Merchant's Plaza is bustling with activity from all over. Even on a Saturday, commerce is king, and the various traders are trying to cash in. It's nearly an elbow-to-elbow situation, with carts, hover vehicles, even the occasional bit of livestock passing through just to make things even more entertaining. It's noisy, it smells of creatures of all kinds, from all over, and it seems as if everyone is shouting in a different language. So basically it's like the floor of the ancient US Stock Market, except these people are probably brighter.
Bartholemew makes his way through the crowd, not always being polite as he pushes his way through when needed, all in his search for a specific merchant. He's a bit hungover from the night before at the bar, after all it was a successful job, he lived and was paid after all, so he had to have fun at least for a bit. "Hell, I don't know if we can find anyone in this crowd."
Valeriya seems to be quite experienced with throngs of creatures bartering in a multitude of languages. She moves through them gracefully never a worry to the haggler or urchin. Of course the angry looking red lizard on her shoulder is quite the urchin deterrent. She doesn’t look to be really browsing though rather following. Two individuals make their way through the crowds ahead and she is keeping the distance between her and them pretty constant while being inconspicuous about it.
Along with the woman, Sage follows in the man's wake. She apparently has decided to take advantage of the man clearing the way for her. There wasn't really a plan to appear separately where she was concerned. She'll branch out a little to help look, but ultimately sticking close to the other man unless the situation dictates otherwise. "Merchants are probably creatures of habit in terms of position.... we should start there."
There's lots of pushing and shoving from every direction, though Valeriya does a good job of going unnoticed, despite her appearance and stature. Though the path is semi-random by necessity - hard to run a chosen path when being bumped around like you were in a washing machine - eventually along the line of shops to the west side of the Plaza is one with a brightly lit neon sign, so bright that it's even bright at a Missouri noon. It has sparkling lights, and spinning micro-mirrors that can't help but draw attention. Probably what they were designed to do. The name of the sign proudly displays the shop's identification: "The Best Little Hairhouse In Town." A sharp eye might catch Mr. Plus standing outside, possibly greeting people, possibly just shooting the breeze.
Bartholemew makes his way in the large neon sign's direction, honestly not realizing he had an actual storefront, figuring he was more the tent type or maybe a simple table of junk type. When he finally gets closer, within earshot he offers the man a smile, "Well well, fancy seeing you here." he says in greeting to him, "How ya doing? I never got to offer my condolences for your buddy. A shame what happened."
Valeriya lingers a ways off among the surrounding crowd. Certainly not in earshot she'll have to rely on the body language of Sage and Bart for the moment as she keeps a steady distance between them. When Sage manages to slip out from the pack, she manages to work her way towards where the man that hired them to do a job is located. Close enough to Bart to hear the comment, Sage nods faintly. "Yes, you have my condolences as well." She chips in, but isn't quite sure what the relationship between Pert and Suave was.
Pert is only somewhat surprised by Bartholemew's appearance. The 'only' part probably simply because there are so many people coming and going, one never knows exactly who you're going to run into. He offers a little wave, and waits for the other fellow to get close enough that he doesn't have to yell. Much. His tone is only a tad sad, but his words might belie his true feelings. "Suave was the light of my life. We built this place together, he and I. Not really sure how I'll go on. Except that I'll be making double the profits. I guess that kind of makes up for things, right?" Quite the odd expression on his face, but he replies to Sage and Bart once more, "Thank you both, I appreciate your condolences. It also warms my heart to know that he died on a successful delivery."
Bartholemew isn't the most sincere sounding person. Maybe he's been a soldier too long and seen too many men fall in battle, maybe he really doesn't care, but he tries all the same, not everyone has seen heavy battles and war first hand. Seeing the mans look on the bright side and it matching his own outlook on life he smiles with a nod in agreement, "Yeah, got a little hairy there, but pulled it off. So what's this all about," motioning to the store front and sign, "you guys a pair of barbers?"
Valeriya is also a bit speculative about the business front behind a short jaunt in the country that nearly killed two experienced mercenaries. Danger comes in all varieties indeed. Who would have guessed the Coalition was so desperate for anti-dandruff shampoo.
A brief thoughtful look passes over Sage's feature as she tries to decide whether something is off about the man's response, but she does nod in acknowledgment of the man's comments. She falls quiet for a moment to let Bart take the man's attention briefly as she reaches out to touch Pert's mind to see about grabbing impressions from him.
Mr. Plus turns and waves up at the absurdly flashy sign. "Yes, I believe we're trying to get that mission statement across to the common passerby. Of course, we don't actually usually do the cutting ourselves. Just for special customers. Highly-placed and/or well-paying customers. Mostly we employ about a dozen people inside. I just stay out here so that when the hook of the sign grabs someone's attention, I'm here to actually reel 'em in." He grins. He's obviously sad that his partner is gone, but possibly more cutthroat businessman than a man with a heart. He leans in to whisper at Bartholemew, "Of course, we do obviously make the occasional delivery that doesn't show up in our ledger."
Bartholemew chuckles with the mans hushed comments, "True true. Speaking of which, you up for rentin out that truck of yours? I gotta gig comin up and I need a cargo vehicle to haul some shit back. Was plannin to rent one, but would be better to have someone else drive so the combatants can concentrate on their own jobs, mine included."
Valeriya still lingers in the crowd beyond, trying to stay patient but it is pretty boring waiting just beyond earshot for Bart to get to the punch so her attention wavers slightly to allow her to preserve her sanity. In so doing her gaze shifts to a nearby juggler.
It is the impressions that begin to form with that last comment that draw Sage's attention, but she doesn't figure trying to prompt in this setting would be likely to spring the information to surface. "Perhaps the vehicle Suave was driving." She suggests as that vehicle might be more free due to circumstances.
Pert looks at Bart, this time genuinely surprised at the question. After a moment's pause, he shrugs his shoulders and opens the door to the hair salon, where inside are about ten people getting their doos done, and four more waiting, of both sexes and the neutral gender as well. "Please, go on inside, my office is on the left, you can't miss it. Let's talk inside." He'll hold the door open for everyone to enter... two or three. The office is indeed pretty obvious. It's the likely the door that has, PERT PERT PERT PERT PERT in various and dozens of shiny iterations pasted on it.
Bartholemew accepts the invitation quite happily, his gaze flowing over those inside as he passes by. A slight chuckle when he sees the door to the office that he is heading for. "I wonder, this the door I'm looking for?" lightly joking. He waits for Pert to get there to open it, allowing entry, seeming not to want to assume anything.
Valeriya glances back just in time to catch her quarry moving on and inside. Uttering a dark phrase she steps to catch up and make it in without too much fuss. With three other people making the trip her steps should not be obvious.
Deciding that she's invited by proximity, Sage will move along with Bart into the place. She doesn't expect much to be picked up until they're able to question the man a little more closely. She gives a faint look of amusement at the joke about the door. She, on the other hand, seems to take the man's word at face value in terms of stepping into the office. It'll give her a moment to glance around the office.
Mr. Plus's office is as shiny as everything else. It's like being inside a magical genie's orgasm. It's good sized, with two couches and two chairs, both very plush and comfortable-looking for anyone to seat themselves. Obviously brightly lit, his desk is the only thing that looks serious, a huge lump of carved, burgundy-dyed mahogany. The man walks in before or in front of his guests, whatever the individual sequence may be. He doesn't seem to care. With a little hop, he lands on his desk, legs crossed, dangling down the front. After waiting for all to settle themselves however they may, he asks in a genuinely inquisitive tone, "You.. want to rent my truck? I don't get it, you want me to drive it? You said, 'better to have someone else drive.' I don't think I'm the one to drive, if there are going to be a bunch of combatants." Raising an eyebrow, he adds, "Um... nothing."
Bartholemew follows in last, before actually entering, at the last minute, lingering just a bit with the door wide open, he shoots one hot babe in the stylists chair a quick wink. Closing the door behind him a smile on his face. "Well, I'm not expecting a fight, but you never know. I guy I know from back in my old platoon told me bout a wreck he found out on a dino hunt. Unable to grab the scrap due to money problems, he told me about it. He knows I got the money to finance a small salvage operation. The problem is, I need a cargo truck to haul it in. I figure being your used to these transportin gigs, and it don't look like you got any problems with the CS patrols, might be able to make a good bit off it without too much trouble."
As inviting as the comfy chairs look Valeriya does not take the bait. she stands unseen and touches nothing in the office. At least now she can hear what is being said even if her movement is limited. Her eyes lock on mister Pert an unseen staring contest.
Once she gets a sense of the place, Sage decides to pick out one of the chairs to sit down. Chairs typically being a little easier to get up from than the couch. It may lead to her attracting mildly less attention that way. "I hope there won't be any problem with that." She comments simply as she looks to Mr. Plus.
From his perch on the desk, Pert listens to Bartholemew's suggestion and question. After thinking to himself for a long while, he asks two questions. First directed at Sage. "Are you here with him and renting the truck, too?" Then back at Bartholemew. "Ah... what would you consider to be a fair day's rent, however many days you need it for?" He sniffs as if there's something in the air to be sniffed, but shrugs it off. A glance at Sage, but only one whose eyes say, "You can talk!" But not in a bad way, just a mildly amused one.
Bartholemew answers the question posed to Sage, "Yeah, she did well on the job the other night, and she was easy to find so I invited her along. I got a Titan Juicer friend of mine running the trip with me as well. I've seen that bastard wrestle an Allosauraus to the ground and put it out of his misery." boasting well of the titan's prowess. "As for a price, depend on if you're willing to drive or not. I figure 1k creds per day with the truck only, 2k if you're driving. With any bonus if you have to talk us out of a CS patrol. I'm guessin you got a good working relationship for the most part after the other night. I'm only guessing, but a week tops, depending on the condition of the wreck."
Valeriya wins the first match in a matter of seconds and unflinching continues with subsequent victories. Like he doesn’t know the object of the game. She smirks a bit at how Bart maneuvers the topic, very smooth. Suave even.
Sage offers a faint smile as she gestures over towards the man, "He has a way of doing most of the talking." She mentions with a faint shrug to the concept, "Perhaps we can trade notes later about the work you do here since I dabble in it a little myself." She offers, "Until then, its his show." She adds before falling quiet once more.
"Really?!" Pert expresses quite the interest - in Sage's common business interest. "Wow! We should talk sometime. Do you do hair, or something else? Freelance? I could use another." But then, back to the other business at hand, but still with a smile that has been enhanced a little by Sage's comment. "Um. So... you'd be willing to pay up to fourteen grand?" Pert's brain is clearly crunching numbers behind the shine that is his - probably artificially enhanced - eyes. "For fourteen grand, I'll just sell you Suave's truck flat out, all yours, clean and clear. Which is one of my treatments, by the way. You want to go out back and take a look at it?" Perhaps in anticipation, the man hops off of his desk and onto the floor.
Bartholemew smiles with the offer of the truck, "Sure thing, I didn't really get that good a look at it. How old is it actually?" awaiting the man to lead the way, "If it looks decent, I'd say you might have a deal. Though I could use the other service a bit more. The way there cuts through a small bit of CS territory on the way to the swamp and to have someone with your connections would be invaluable on this. Like I said, there's a bonus which includes an equal share of the salvage. For now, lets go see that truck of yours."
"I have a number of skills." Sage replies softly, deciding not to elaborate for the time being as she begins to rise from her chair. "For now, it may be best to talk about how we can help Bart here." She comments simply, trying to gently nudge the man towards thinking on what Bart has been trying to ask him.
Pert moves to the door, opens it, then waves for everyone to follow. "C'mon, it's right out back." Only a few dozen steps and a few right-angle hallway turns lead to the back lot, which a number of merchants use as a common parking area. The two trucks from the day before are only a short distance away. The one previously driven by Suave is easy to spot. It's the one with a darkening mist of blood spray all over the cab's interior walls. "Well, go on, take a look. I'm not a mechanic, but I can try to answer any questions you have. Clearly, though," he bangs his knuckles at the driver's side door, "it's not made from combat. Just hauling stuff."
Bartholemew moves around to the hood after popping it from the cab of the truck. Opening it he takes a look at the engine underneath, "So no comment on the other part of the offer? Not interested? Thinking bout it?" playing with some things under the hood like battery connections and such, checking the oil, just to make it look good for the most part as he's under the hood. "And in all actuality, I'm kinda curious. Especially since, like I was saying on the trip, I'm startin up my own merc company, how'd ya come about those kind of connections? A man in my line of work could use someone like you on the payroll full time." Leaving the hood open he moves back around to the driver's side, pausing momentarily at where Pert stands after his question, though before he answers he moves to the cab looking for the ignition.
With the transition about to be made about moving to the next location, Sage will follow along with the men leading the way. "It could be that those weren't his connections to offer." She comments simply, figuring Bart was already unsubtle about it enough that a little comment couldn't hurt.
"The salvage scrap? Oh, sure, I won't say not to money," Pert says, shaking his head. Then, "I'm flattered, really. But I'm not a mercenary. I just own a hair salon and trade things now and then. I have no desire to get into trouble on a run, let alone intentionally go into combat. But again, thank you. I'm flattered, really." He bangs the cab again. "Like I said, these simple metals aren't built for any kind of combat." He looks at Sage for a while, then back to Bart. "The Laramy thing? I don't know, things just happen sometimes. Right place and the right time. Right kind of guy meets the right kind of guy. It's not as impressive as it looks, though, I'm sure. Like I said last night, that was the first run in two months. Not like we - or I, now - are making thousands and thousands of credits in some kind of secondary Black Market contraband service." He shrugs. As for the engine compartment, it's just a six-liter V8 gasoline engine, but instead of being hooked up to a drive-train or transmission, it just runs electricity to some obviously highly over-taxed hoverpads. It's still large enough to carry a good haul, though people may remember its handling. Pert bangs on the metal again. "Not for combat, but she'll move, and with a good load, too. Just remember to fill 'er up before you leave."
Bartholemew cranks up the engine to give a listen a bit more carefully than the other night. With it running he goes back under the hood to look and listen. "Ya know. I'm not against paying for being pointed in the right direction for a contact like that one." his comment a bit nonchalante as he studies the truck some more before heading back over to turn off the vehicle and closing the door with a smile. "So 10k?" his tone gives hint at the humor.
With the question seemingly answered this time, Sage decides to simply let the rest of the negotiation play out. She can't really help much when it comes to mechanical things. She takes a moment to look around the place.
Eyes are narrowed - not in anger, but in thought. "Hmm. Eleven and a quarter, because apparently that giant guy hacked in and destroyed some of the cargo that you were hired to protect." By tone voice clearly not meant as an insult, just an observation from a bartering standpoint. Pert is apparently ignoring the comment about contacts for the moment, and focusing on a sale.
Bartholemew smiles happily with a sharp nod, "Fair enough, done. Shall we complete the transaction for the truck?" motioning back towards the building and adding with a sly grin, "Unless you wanna add on to the truck with a bit of logistics and make it an even 15k for an easy days work?"
When talk seems to be edging back towards the topic they came to talk about, Sage turns her attention back to the two men. She raises her brow faintly, "He has been suggesting he wouldn't know that." She mentions simply.
Pert claps his hands over his head, shouting, "Done! Now let's do the paperwork." He reaches into one pocket, takes out a pair of keys and tosses them at Bartholemew over by the truck. "There's the paperwork, eleven and a quarter. But what are you talking about with logistics?" He shrugs. "You just mean that you want me to do the driving?" The man smiles happily at Sage. "Yes, yes. I don't know what you mean. If you want the contact, I honestly don't know how to hook you up without directing you to my own - and I'm not going to do that, or even bring you in on my little side business. Sorry, it's good to have a monopoly. But I hope you like the truck." He looks between the two others, wondering if he's guessed correctly. Also wondering if those keys are going to be caught or not.
Bartholemew catches the keys and looks to Sage, "Maybe so, but someone hired him, I'm just trying to get pointed in the right direction cause that will lead to the treasure I'm looking for." giving a smile back to Pert, "Please forgive my bluntness, but you have to understand what something like that would mean to me and my company without cutting into your piece of the pie. Maybe on a case by case basis I could come through you. Cut you in on my pie so to speak, you'd be my contact. Something you'd at least consider?" with one last tilted head of hope as he hands over the credits to complete the deal for the truck.
Sage's gaze shifts between the two men with a thoughtful look, "Bart, I think Pert here is a smart business man just like us. He knows what works well for him, and I can understand that." She comments, "Every business has their own way of doing things that they don't want competitors to know. Its okay." She offers, "At least we were able to get the truck and what we really wanted." She adds, "Thank you for your time, Pert. We'll see about chatting about hair some other time, hm?"
Nod, nod, nod, smile. Pert is.. pleasantly pleased. He looks to Sage as if she'd just saved his life, or at least his sanity. "Yes, thank you, ah.. Sage, right? Yeah. Sorry about all the shooting yesterday, but you did a good job. I think. I was kind of.. um.. out if it at the time." He blushes a little sheepishly, but recovers quickly. "I'll be happy to talk with you about hair another time, but yes, I should probably be going." He waves a finger the direction of the lot's exit. "I'm going to get back to the front, wave in some customers, unless there's anything else?"
Bartholemew sighs with a smile and an understanding nod to admit defeat, "Fair enough, I know I'm a bit persistent sometimes, but good deal." He offers a handshake in completion of the deal. "Again, good doing business with ya and sorry about your business partner." With that he climbs into the cab of the truck and starts it up and awaits Sage to hop on in the bloody truck.
Following the man's lead, Sage makes her way over towards the truck to climb into the front seat of the truck. "Yes, sorry about your partner." She says along the way, but doesn't say much for the time being. Perhaps waiting for a better place to speak whatever is on her mind.
Valeriya coalesces into being beside pert and gives an astute nod. "Right then, a good deal for us." She voices before stepping to climb into the truck.
Pert waves his arm at the departing duo, smiles - then nearly soils himself as Valeriya materializes into being. He then rushes into the back door of his hair salon. If there's any other interest, he sure has no interest in it.
