Feb 04 108 PA Vixen and Leonard meet Strala

From Chronicles

Snow flows in the winds and in the Dregs, pure white is a rare find. Even where is clings to buildings the dust and dirt tends to dirty it. The 'roads' are mush and Vixen's boots squish through it as she sticks to the edges where there is a bit less mush and more actual ground. She has a rough sack over one shoulder, the soft clunk of armor plates sounding with each step. Her coat is drawn close around her and a knit cap half hides her hair as she approaches the refugee's retreat. Fortified, no doubt, so she has an eye out for the expected security measures.

Hopefully, any security measures will help to protect Vixen and Leonard, as well. He has enough issue with protecting himself from the weather, judging by the cloak, coat, and thermal suit underneath the layers of clothing. Or maybe Vixen is /his/ escort? Leonard walks along at her sid Hopefully, any security measures will help to protect Vixen and Leonard, as well. He has enough issue with protecting himself from the weather, judging by the cloak, coat, and thermal suit underneath the layers of clothing. Or maybe Vixen is /his/ escort? Leonard walks along at her side, regardless.

The Security measures are certainly there, but they are not grueling. No they are rather similar to the procedures at the gates. Though they do hold some alterations for weapons. As the pair make it to the gates into the sector they are first asked to identify themselves and provide their id cards. A new feature to the regular visitor. A simple card refugees are given to confirm their place here. Visitors are still welcome, but are not permitted armed, their weapons stored at the gates for their stay.

Vixen identifies herself as needed. Vixen. She does mention she's helped out before, but doesn't lean on it. Some might remember, some might not. Some might still care, most probably won't. She'll turn over weapons. All small. Handgun, various grenades, whip, mace spray. She won't hold back. And as the procedure is going on, she'll note her purpose. "I have some armor that needs a look over. Might have belonged to one of yours. Heard you folks have had some more trouble than normal. Might have found a way to see who has been fucking around."

Leonard doesn't possess any weapons, which coincides conveniently with his lack of refugee identification. Other than a smile and "Hello," he has little to offer the guards. He has also assisted them as a whole, in the past, but as Vixen was the point of contact, he doesn't give more than his identity.

The guards nod slightly as the introductions and exchange are made, handing Vixen a ticket to reclaim her gear on departure. "Strala is handling the outside interaction on the issue. Jake will take you up to her." He explains briefly before gesturing to a yound guard posted near by. With a curt nod Jake leads the pair through the sector to the southeast factory building and a fire escape at its base. "Strala likes to keep look out up there, so up we go." He offers in explaination before starting the climb.

Vixen nods her head, content with the guidance and, a little lighter, she shoulders the bag and follows Jake steadily. "Haven't met her before. What's her expertise?" Casual conversation as she approaches and starts to tread up the fire escape carefully. It was looking a bit rickety before, but one would expect it's been reinforced along with the rest of the complex. "A lot done with this place after the last time I saw it." And she does look around, especially with the elevating view the fire escape provides.

"A meeting with a view..." Leonard is less than thrilled, considering his fortune with things like damageed buildings and rickety fire escapes. He can only hope that his luck changes with this particular ascent. The area does look quite comfortable compared to the rest of the Dregs, he supposes.

"A lot of things can change when you have so many people working towards a single goal." Jake replies in agreement. The fire escape is well maintained and quite strong, but still a fire escape. He gestures to what looks like a pully elevator under construction at the corner. "That should be ready next month, make people and supllies up to the greenhouses much easier." He explains as they ascend. Also as they ascend the view of the sector becomes much more defined. A full third of the wall is visible. Though functional at ten feet high a good sized workforce is focussed on improving its structure. Outside the ground is being excavated to further increase the height via a wide trench.

Vixen takes in the place with a thoughtful air and as they reach the top she says, "Good works. Hopefully there will be enough room." It's not hard to notice there are a lot of people about. Her expression lingering in the thoughtful as she looks around at the top of the fire escape, shifting aside to not block Leo from stepping off of it. Then she turns, looking for Strala. "Maybe we'll help get some of the hounds off your back."

Leonard isn't in terrible shape and keeps up enough to step off when Vixen makes room. "That wall should handle most problems, I'd think. Once it's finished." He nods to Jake. "It's amazing what you can accomplish with enough help." A glance around. "Where is this Strala?"

"Up here." Jake answers as the reach the top of the factory. He gestures to a lookout post on the south east corner of the building. Offering perfect view of two thirds of the secotr it is ideally located, its view then reaching deep into the drags on a clear day. In it stand one, very very large woman. "Strala, outsiders to see you about recent occurences." Jake says simply to get the large womans attention. She nods, turning away from the view to take in the two, resting two of her four arms on her waist. "Welcome, I'm Strala, Emily's second while she remains at the city gates to greet the new arrivals." She greets, reaching down to shake hands. Considerable, she's at least 13 feet tall. Clad a patchwork of dogpack armor she looks quite formidable. But her tone a demeanor manage to be friendly enough. "Vixen and Leonard, both creditied as contributors to us gaining this site to settle." Jake intorduces, gesturing to the pair and Strala nods. "Thanks Jake, you may go."

Vixen is a bit surprised at who Strala is, but after that moment she relaxes and steps forward. Reaching up with her free hand to shake the one given. "Trust me, this wasn't first choice. You folk would probably be living better out there where you have room to spread a bit and land to do something with." She still sounds a bit disgruntled at the prior results. Though she lets that slide again and she says, "Heard you had some people go missing. Haven't found any solid leads yet, but I did hear of some new, only barely damaged armor going on sale. Timing was a bit too close to be coincidence. So I went sniffing. I think I might have a suit you'd know, if you guys mark your gear. Or personal marks." She lifts the bag. "Gladiator. Not more than some scratches. If they are farming your people and this is from one of them, they know what they're doing."

Strala may be friendly, and possibly very matronly, but Leonard is quite content to shake a hand rather than face a hug. "A pleasure." He quiets after, since Vixen moves promptly to business.

Strala nods looking to the mentioned duffle. "I can confirm your suspiscions if you with. I have psychic aptitude to tell me about the owner of the armor." She explains before slightly shaking her head. "I doubt the fate is any different from the rest who have been taken." She laments with a sigh before giving Vixen a very stern look. "Yes, they know exactly what they are doing, and that we can do nothing about it, directly."

"Not unless we find out who," Vixen replies. "If this is confirmed, I might be able to go back to the seller. Flatter them and butter them up, start tracing back towards the source. Find out who did this and then something can be done." Her own expression turning more serious. "Then make them a message that they'd better watch who they're fucking with. You want to get left alone? You have to make sure people think twice before they do anything against you. Someone always will because someone always wants to prove they're tough. But the stronger you look, the less there will be who mess with you."

"How so?" Leonard can't help but ask of Strala's assessment. The refugees are not the most potent force in the neighborhood, but that doesn't explain the precision. He then turns a smirking nod to Vixen. "If it's not worth the effort, thieves and bullies will go elsewhere."

"Part of our agreement with the family on holding this area is not to incite violence with the other gangs. Protect and look after our own, keeping ourselves out of the business of the others." Strala starts to explain before grinning at Vixen. "We know exactly who is behind most of the disappearances, those that reside in the junkyard. And the abductions arent as precise as they seem. We were simply the first victim to call for notice." She continues, watching them both for signs of understanding on the situation.

Vixen frowns at the mention of the Junkyard. a soft tension touching her. Then relaxing as she brushes whatever aside. "That's a fat load.. but I suppose guns that aren't yours will do." Her thoughts turning towards other things. "Do you have faces or just them in general?"

Leonard purses his lips as he considers that. There are any number of things that could reside in the junkyard, and whispers of even more. "I hope that something can be learned from the armor." With the clarification, he's no longer certain how helpful the attempt will prove.

"The armor will tell us who, and if he's not already been confirmed a victim it will serve to that purpose." Strala says with a slight nod to Leonard before turning to Vixen with a slight shrug. "From what we've gathered, much of what happens in the part of the dregs lacks any sort of structure. Very chaotic power base thats often not integrated in its actions. This seems to be the case for those doing the abductions. The rest of the residence are interested in the results, but equally wary. Another faction even seems to be developing a counter defence to the methods. What we've determined through psychic sensing thoug is that a number of entities are manipulating the faction. The victims are tortured and killed in offering for the service of the entity."

"Blackpools," Vixen suggests. "Been a while since I got close to that pit, but last time I did, that was the name I got. Though who knows what the mess in there calls itself now." She makes a face. "If I had enough, I'd just blow the whole place to slag. But the last thing we need right now is a full on Purge." She pauses, then wonders, "Who is trying to set up defense? If someone else is on this, might as well see if we can't coordinate."

"So the people are the victims, and their equipment is just an afterthought?" So much for Leonard's assumptions of petty muggings. He'll allow Stala whatever space she requires to study and sense through the armor, but has nothing further to offer while he considers.

"Pretty much." Strala confirms to Leoanrd as she kneels down to examine the armor. She shakes her head regretfully at Vixen as she makes a summary inspection. "We dont get much more than hearsay at the moment. Dont have a large intel setup, focussed on building for the inevitable dispute. So sorry to say I dont have a name for you. Though from what I've heard, you shouldnt have much trouble finding it, now that you know what to look for." She points out beofre lapsing into a trance as the armor is assessed.

Vixen turns towards Leo and tilts her head slightly. "Figures it has to be people you can't reason with and screw with their bottom line. I prefer them to psychos. Only thing you can do with psychos is put them down and there are always more of them waiting to take up the space."

For a moment Strala looks to be in trance, delving the screts of the armor. "Defitinely feels like it belonged to one of ours, right mind set." She says softly as she feels out the details, cant get the image of who yet, maybe if I push deeper.." Then she grows deathly silent, terror overcoming the massive womans expression. She shrinks back defensively and then starts screaming and wailing in utter agony. Curling up into a fetal ball, her torture goes on for a full five minute before it breaks, leaving her in unctrolled sobs of pain and anguish.

Vixen glances back towards Strala as she gives an initial report, nodding. And she's looking back towards Leo to say something more before the stronger reaction comes. Which causes her to literally jump, then spin around. Her mood shifts, energy keying up at the fullness of the large woman's response to what she sees. She steps back against Leo and says softly. "I don't know if I want to know what she saw." Not really sure what to do for a moment.

After the first comment from Strala, Leonard is about to listen to whatever Vixen was about to say. Then they're both startled, and his first reflex is to grab for Vixen. Luckily for him, she moved to him and not for Strala; a direction he didn't have time to be sure of. The sight and wail pain him, still. "I don't think she wanted to know what she saw, either."

A few more minutes and Strala slowly starts to regain her composure, shaking the nightmares from her mind. By that time two guards have joined the group, alerted by the screaming. "Wasnt them." She said right off the bat to put the guards at ease, still recovering. "Still alive.. Over a week and the damn things keeping him alive, just to see how much he'll take. How far he can be pushed. Utterly evil bastards.." She mutters, still quite shaken as she starts to recover.

Vixen doesn't seem too worried about being implicated, it would be a stretch to think they could do that to someone. She is, however, worried about what she says. She turns her head to look back a bit to Leo. "I think negotiation is out of the question." She steps forward then, wondering, "Any clues in what you saw.. besides the obvious fact that whoever this is needs to die? Especially identifying marks.. something to pick these people out of the crowd?"

Leonard's wince becomes a full-blown cringe before he nods solemnly to Vixen. "I think you're right." His glance returns to the recovered Slara and shares Vixen's curiosity. "Anything of the location or those present would be useful."

Strala seems mostly recovered now, though vehemently angry. Such a large powerful woman ready to tear someone's arms off is certainly not a comforting presence. She turns away in awarenss to give herself some breathing room. "They were seperate, isolated from the rest of the junkyard. Not a popular place even to the residents. Was only one man there not being tortured. Though I wouldnt have known it if not for the huge grin he wore as he watched. He was bald, and had over half a dozen scars on his face and head. Looks like he's gone off the deep end and taking to mutilating himself." She explains, raising her voice to compensate for the increased distance.

Vixen nods her head, not moving closer. she's not in a mood to push into her space. Instead, she says, "I'll see what I can't find out. I don't have much interest in going into the junkyard. Last time I did, a friend of mine got possessed. Too much bad shit in there unless you've got a lot of guns with you. But I'll see what I can find out. Might have to see if I can't find someone good with explosives."

"He sounds like such a wonderful person to meet." Leonard's sarcasm is stretched with that. "A very large amount of explosives would be an easy answer. That, or the hope that he mutilates himself to excess, but I doubt we'd be that lucky."

"I will richly reward you if you could help him take it to excess. As much as I'd like to do so myself now, I still cant ignore our situation. Now is not the time to pick a fight." Strala states, clenching her fists in frustration.

Vixen nods her head and says, "I'll see what I can do. Not a tower of power myself, but there is usually a way. I'll keep in touch." She turns then facing Leo with a faint twist to her lips. "Never easy. What'd you think? Got any spells to make guys like this explode?"

Leonard nods to Strala. "We'll do what we can." Vixen has her smirk returned. "I'm sure that I can find something appropriate. If not, those explosives will always do."

"Won't just be us," Vixen murmurs, reaching out for one of his hands as she starts back towards the fire escape. "We need some heavy hitters for this, I bet. Though first I'm going to get my nose to the ground and see what I can't squeeze out. Maybe after Whykin we can deal with this. Depends how much prep time something like this might take."

Leonard follows her down the escape, led by the hand, to a point. "More is generally better. After you get ...nosy, of course." He will save further brainstorming for when he's not distracted by the journey down.

Vixen will let him focus on the way down, but once they reach the bottom, she says, "Do you think you can use the armor to do anything like that? Or something else. Every time I hear of things like they they usually need something from the person you're looking for. Maybe figure out what these freaks need people for.. though I guess there ain't much to go on yet."

"You want me to make the prisoner explode?" Leonard may be mixing concepts some, but that's what he interperets. "I can't do much to someone I've never met and can't see, Vix. There could be the means to do so, but nothing even remotely ...convenient."

"What about a picture." Vixen pauses then. "I bet they have a picture of that guy. Would that do? Or do you have to, like, actually meet the person?" She looks back towards the fire escape, then back to Leo. "I don't want you to see bad things, but.." Her lips purse.

Leonard considers as they walk. "I might be able to see what is happening to him, at that moment, or possibly take myself there, but..." he nods with her final comment, "neither sounds like a good idea. Anything more involved would take more time than I expect he has."

"It's up to you, Leo. Might wait a bit either way," Vixen says, turning to continue on. "If we decide to do that, we can come and ask about pictures. Maybe get a few pictures from the missing people. See how many might be alive still. Closure is a good thing, you know? Though I suppose most are probably assuming they're dead."

"I'll look into it?" Leonard can promise the effort, but not the results. "After that," he tips his head back towards the building, "assuming they're dead is probably a pleasant hope, and better for everyone."

"I guess you can ask," Vixen says, her lips lightly pursed. All said, the mix of potential troubles leaves her feeling low. She shifts closer to Leo, leaning against him a little as they head for the gate. "Let's go home. I want to forget about this for a little while before I have to start looking for more of it."