May 08 04:39:30 108 PA - Chat and Decline

From Chronicles

May 08 04:39:30 108 PA.

TRADEWINDS COFFEE SHOP

Just after sunrise is always a nice time to be around, and so it is that Gabriel is indoors, seated near one of the large pane glass windows. They used to keep out the cold, new they're keeping out the hot. Or at least warm. There's a magazine of some type on the table before him that he seems to be idly flipping through in between sips of coffee. Unusually, he's not being exactly proper, with his legs up on the chair next to him.

Erica walks into the coffee shop from the warm spring outside. She walks up to the counter and orders herself a pot of tea from the barista behind the counter. She takes the mug and pot of tea and turns to look around the little place. She notices Gabriel quickly enough and heads over to where he is sitting. "Hi Gabriel."

"Erica, hey! You out early, too, huh?" He begins to stand politely... but as his legs are already engaged, it becomes too awkward, and he just snickers at himself and offers his friend a shrug. "Tea? Here I thought that every military man and woman had a hankering for coffee," Gabriel ends with a smile.

Erica shrugs her shoulders. "Well I don't want to go running out in the heat, so I get up early for my runs." She sits down and pours herself a mug of hot tea. "I don't like coffee. I prefer soda or tea. Coffee is too bitter and too expensive. I mean it takes a lot to import it. At least tea you can find most places."

"Eh, coffee is the fighting man's blood. Or woman's," Gabriel quickly corrects himself. "Of course, I've discovered that sweetening the hell out of it is rather pleasant." Indeed, the black coffee is now a nice light mocha color. "Where do you go for your runs? I just hit the trails with a light pack. You run in the city walls?"

Erica chuckles as she shakes her head. "South America isn't exactly an easy place to get to you know?" She says before taking a sip on her tea. "I thought whiskey was the fighting man's blood?" Laughing to herself she shakes her head again. "I usually run the landing strip. I do about 10 miles a day."

Gabriel nods appreciatively. "That's a decent run for a morning's exercise. You do it in full gear, or just standard clothes? What about other exercises?" He eyes Erica slightly. "Have I ever seen you going into or coming out of the gym?"

"Mostly I just run in regular clothes, but I do run in full gear. Sometimes I use my armor and take a run around the city, but I'm much faster in my armor." Erica says with a bit of a shrug. She blows on the tea before taking another sip. "I don't know, but I go to the gym often enough. Practice my gymnastics and run on a treadmill if it is too nasty outside."

The older man rolls his eyes in good-natured laughter. "Oh, people exercising indoors because they can't handle the weather. How the mighty military has fallen." Gabriel winks, and heartily. "In the Raiders, we didn't get a break. It was time for event 'X' then even 'X' was done. Indoors, outdoors, rain, heat, blah blah blah, didn't matter. But, and I don't mean this in an insulting way, I'm fairly certain that my training was significantly different than yours. Not saying better or tougher, just different."

Erica rolls her eyes as she chuckles. "Well sometimes it is too cold or too hot, and I don't want to pass out or lose a toe to frostbite. The nice thing about the treadmills is you can program them for a route. Like running uphill for five miles then up and down for another five. I like treadmills. I'm not in a unit anymore. I am just trying to keep up for my merc career."

Gabriel rolls his shoulders and takes another sip of coffee. He flips another page of his magazine which appears to be something akin to the ancient 'Popular Mechanics.' "I figure that if you've been doing what works for ya, you might as well keep doing it. No reason to fix what isn't broken, right? Besides, as my drill sergeant would have said, 'It builds character you weak motherfucker who isn't worth the stain left in your underwear when you take a shit!'" He winks again. "A very colorful man."

"Yes I think drill sergeants everywhere are very colorful. My drill sergeant was a real bitch. Made us swim miles in the lake, and that isn't a very warm lake let me tell you." Erica says with a shudder to empathize her her point. "I hear they have a pretty good boot camp set up at MercTown to help out new mercs there. Not everyone has formal military training."

The older man groans. "The Crucible at Camp Lejeune. Last two weeks of Basic boot camp. They send you out into the swamps of Georgia, give you an objective and limited supplies. Everyone wins, or everyone in your platoon loses and you start over. I hated those swamps." Gabriel hoists his coffee mug slightly. "Still, I ended up in a lot worse. I guess I should have been grateful." He then nods sagely. "I do know about surviving and fighting in different areas, that's for sure. Trained and executed." Not a brag, just a statement.

"Yah we did something like that except in the north up in the Yukon. It gets damn cold up there at nights. Some nasty critters up there too. Have to watch out for the Wendigo." Erica says with a little frown before she takes a long sip from her mug of tea. "Wasn't a lot of point in learning to fight in a desert in Lazlo." She says with a chuckle.

Gabriel clicks his mug on the saucer and smiles. "Yukon? Been there, done that. Well, without the Wendigo. I'm going to assume that's another new horrific demon creature. I had to deal with the cold and exposure, mostly. Caribou aren't predators, and polar bears don't bother to attack humans unless you piss them off - usually by threatening their offspring, but little else." He frowns a little, eyes remembering. "I was all over the globe, Erica. Unfortunate things that needed to be done, but at least I got a better view of the world than any billionaire tourist, right?" He grins over his upraised mug.

"Well the world is a lot bigger now. Got dimensions all over the place." Erica says with a chuckle. "You could always do some real traveling. I have heard about some interesting places out there." She takes a small sip from her tea and then refills her mug from the pot. "Wendigo's eat sentient flesh. Very nasty spirits, or monsters."

The older man frowns. "Great, another man-eating monster. Let me also guess - you can't take it down with a rifle, either. You need a tank's cannon to do it." Gabriel sips from his coffee again... still frowning a little, but then shakes his head. "No, no. No dimensional traveling for me. Did it once, that was enough. I didn't just lose my soldiers, or my charges, or my wife. It ripped fucking knowledge right out of my head. I don't remember how to drive a car. My knots are worse than a first year Boy Scout." He hesitates, then shrugs. "All that swamp training, all of that work around the world, and I don't remember how to swim. Don't want to take the chance of losing more, just to see the sights."

Erica shrugs her shoulders. "Don't know never ran into one of them. I was always told to just listen for the howl of them hunting and to get away as quickly as possible." She pauses to take another sip from her tea. "Could go see the sights of phase world. I hear it is the biggest market in existence. Some giant city or something. Sounds pretty cool. Heck well if you want I could always teach you how to swim."

"Thanks, Erica. I think that rather strangely, swimming may be low on my list of things to remember. This environmental body armor's just like really heavy SCUBA gear. You don't swim underwater, you walk. Either way, you get where you're going." Gabriel smiles at the irony of that one. "Phase World? What is it, like the Tijuana of the, um... damn what's the word..." he drums his fingers ".. oh, Megaverse? You want it, you can find it there for the right price?"

"You know it is kind of dumb to use references to things that I don't know about right?" Erica says with a roll of her eyes as she shakes her head. "I don't know it is some big market place. I heard the Naruni have a giant ass place to sell their gear out there. Place where you can get anything in the Megaverse."

Gabriel laughs aloud and holds a hand out. "So like I said, it's the Tijuana of the Megaverse! What's a Naruni?"

"Oh they are a group of inter-dimensional arms dealers. Coalition along with a bunch of other arms dealers ran them off of Earth a few years back, but I have heard they are making a strong comeback since they opened up a shop in Merctown." Erica says before taking a long sip of her tea. "I still don't know what a Tijuana is."

"Wow. They make good stuff, or just successful because of bulk?" The man then leans back, leaving his mug untouched for a moment and thinking briefly. "Okay. You know the southwest part of the New West, right? New Mexico and Arizona? Or at least what used to be New Mexico and Arizona?" Gabriel cants his head to the right by a few degrees, waiting to see how much detail he needs and can use.

"They make really good stuff." Erica says with a slight grin. "Great dealer in all sort of weapons. They also make force fields that you can install inside your armor. Make that armor last a while." She says with another smile. "Sure I know a bit about the west. Lots of vampires out there. I hear there is a big city out in Arizona called Arzno."

"Force fields, huh? Nice. Hope they run off of something more powerful than a nine-volt battery." But Gabriel frowns. "I don't know Arzno. Never seen a map with it. But okay, you know Arizona, that's good. I don't suppose you have any idea of where my country's southern border is. Even roughly? You know California? I haven't heard much about it now. Maybe it's gone. They always said it was going to fall into the ocean."

"They run off of e-clips. Drain them fairly quickly but still can protect your armor from a good shot." Erica says before shrugging her shoulders. "Yah Arzno is supposed to be by some giant golden canyon out there. What country? I don't know anything from the crazy time you come from. I don't really know what is out past the Colorado Baronies. Just heard about Arzno from rumors and what not."

Bartholemew strolls into the place directly making his way for the counter to get a cup of coffee. He doesn't notice any recognizable faces at first, intent on his prize, a hot cup o' joe. It's not until he turns from paying the guy and is sipping on his coffee looking for a place to chill that he notices Erica and Gabriel chatting together near the window. Heading over that way he takes a seat on a bench next to them, "Hey. How's it hangin?"

Gabriel rises to shake Bart's hand, as men do. "Morning, Bart. You coming in from on early run, too?" He nods his head back toward Erica. "I'm good, I'm good, c'mon, sit down. My feet just vacated a third chair for you." Indeed, they have.

Erica looks up as Bart comes over to the table. She gives him a friendly smile and a nod. "Hi Bart. How's the merc unit coming along?" She asks with a little amusement. "Anyone screw you over yet?" She asks with some obvious sarcasm as before she takes a sip from her mug of tea.

Bartholemew gives the man a hearty handshake as he gets up to move to the other seat to join in the conversation. "Good to hear. Actually I'm up early to hopefully meet up with some merchants about some Vibro Wire." then looking over to Erica with a smirk, "Give it some time, we've yet to go on our first hunt." Then with a smile back to Gabriel, "Speakin of which, I'm guessin you're with Erica here, gonna go at it as ya have?"

Valeriya walks in, sword, pistols, leather, her usual casual in town wear. A quick scan of the shop and her eyes lock on Bart shortly before her stride takes her right to him. "Got something for you. But probably overdid the gift wrap" She says cryptically before smiling at Gabriel and Erica with a nod. "Hey there."

It's shortly after sunrise, and the shop isn't very populated yet. Bartholemew, Erica and Gabriel are seated off at a small table near the eastern windows. Gabriel considers his response. "I suppose. I'll admit that any of my plans on a grand scale are quite long term. Your meeting was very interesting, and obviously it has a lot of merit. Unfortunately though," he takes an inhale "I'm going to politely decline. Just some uninvited, vague advice, I think that there's more planning to be done before something like that can really be approached successfully. But it's still a good idea, and I hope that it works for you - and I do still appreciate the consideration of inviting me." He looks up as the tall woman approaches. "Hello, Valeriya. You might be more relaxed if you stopped carrying an arsenal around town, y'know." Gabriel does grin politely, what most would recognize as a friendly jest.

"You have enough shady people with your little deal that I would be too worried about watching my own back." Erica says with a shrug of her shoulders. "Sorry but I don't want to work with people that I don't trust at all." She says with a smile towards Bartolemew. "Be careful with yourself. Watch your back." She looks up at Valeriya as she arrives and she returns the nod with a slight nod of her own.

Bartholemew tilts his head slightly to the side and smiles to Val giving her a slight nod before turning his attention back to Gabriel, "That’s fine, it was an offer to be taken or not. Whatever either of your reasons are, it's all good." he gives a slight nod and grin to Erica, "Sometimes ya just gotta trust someone else to watch your back. Unless ya got a million eyes." he chuckles. "Well, I'm glad I caught ya." sipping his coffee some, "I'm sure we'll see each other out there somewhere." then turns to Val, "Shall we go talk?"

"And then I'd be someone else. Because Valeriya doesn’t relax in that fashion. Why own a weapon if it not on your person ready to save your life? I'm not really interested in killing Valeriya at this time but thanks for the advice." Valeriya remarks with a sly smirk in reply to Gabriel before grinning at Erica. "With shady people you see it coming. It's the trusted friend putting the knife in your back you have to worry about." She advises before nodding to Bart and turning to lead out to a more private environ.

"A million eyes? You know the Greek demigod Aegis?" Gabriel grins widely - eyes showing that he doesn't expect anyone to have the faintest idea what he's talking about. His expression to Valeriya is accepting. "Very true, very true. Well said." Erica receives a quiet nod of understanding. "This is quite the little gathering of warriors, isn't it? I'm sure that I'd be laughed soundly out of my shorts if my old unit caught me sitting down in a coffee shop - particularly with a sweetened mug." He grins and raises it slightly for inspection. A nice light mocha color. Not military black.

Erica laughs softly to herself as she shakes her head. "Nope I am not worried about my friends. Thanks for the advice though." She says with a bemused smile on her face. "Have fun discussing whatever you guys are scheming now." She says with a chuckle before she takes a long sip from her mug of tea before turning back to Gabriel. "So when are we starting that job you were talking about?"

Bartholemew follows Val out the door after one last nod to both at the table and a bit of a confused look to Gabe and his comment of gods. With a shake of his head to Erica, out the door sipping on his coffee.

Gabriel offers his own strange looks as the two others abruptly leave. Not that they needed to stay. Just that they swooped in like hawks, grabbed the prey that was an answer, and flew away to eat it. He then shrugs at Erica. "I guess that's done, then, huh? I tried to be a little more vague. I was actually hoping that Bart would take me up on the subtle offer of suggestions. But it certainly wasn't a demand or a requirement." He grins tightly and sips at his coffee, emptying the mug. "Hmm, empty tank." He raises a hand into the air, clicks a few very loud fingers, and gets the attention of the kind but batty teenage girl behind the counter. "Danielle, another one? Thanks!" While she works on figuring it out, he returns to Erica, but quietly. "The Whykin job? Still waiting to hear from Leonard and Sage. Haven't heard a damn thing, but at least there haven't been any merchant reports of any kind of surge yet. Though I'm sure it's building. We just have to get in and get out as soon as we can. I have a map in my pocket, if you want to see what we're looking at." Gabriel smirks at himself. "Yes, I carry around the map, because I never know when I'm going to run into someone who needs to see it."

Erica chuckles and shakes her head. "Why did he bother to sit down at all? I am not as subtle at you. I just wanted to say that I was more worried about Valeriya stabbing me in the back, more then anyone." She stands up and goes up to the counter and gets herself a diet soda before heading back to the table. "Well I could use the credits I guess. That would be nice."

"I don't want to get too philosophical or anything - but I am. The way I see it, if you're going to be doing that kind of thing, you need, or should, have a reason to do it beyond money. A philosophy. Even if it just comes down to something as simple as, 'I took this job because it will do good.' My reason was the defense of my family and nation. Your reasons.. well, I'll assume that it came to the common defense of Lazlo, but I won't put words into your mouth." Gabriel smiles and frowns at the same time. "People like Valeriya, even Bart who have absolutely no philosophy or goal for guidance? I think that they will inevitably either implode into themselves with possibly violent consequences, or they'll become no better than a roaming band of thugs under the guise of the law." Gabriel shuffles his eyebrows. "You know, just to bore you with making you listed to me talk too much." Wink.

"Yah I get the feeling if I got involved with that organization I would have my name linked with things that I didn't agree with. I am pretty sure dirty dealings will be happening with them pretty quickly." Erica says with a shrug of her shoulders before she takes a little sip from her diet soda. "Yah I'm pretty nervous about them. We will see what happens though."

Nod nod. "We'll see what we'll see, won't we?" He screws up one eye in a scrunch. "That's a quote, but I don't remember who said it. Anyway, I have that Whykin info if you want to see it, or give you a little taste of what else I have. You saw the news vids? About that trouble up at the Plaza?" Danielle delivers Gabriel's coffee, and he quietly slips her a couple of credits with a wink.

"Yah I saw that. Not much of a reward as bounties go, but I guess they are mostly looking for info. I wonder what happened." Erica says as she sips on her soda. "Sure I'll take a look at the Whykin info. Be good to start briefing myself."

As Gabriel reaches into one of his larger pockets, he opines, "If I had to guess, someone wants the bounty, but they don't want to bring too much attention to themselves, either. But that's only a guess. I don't even know if it's a lot of money." His map is unfolded on the table. It's a topographic map with the walled city of Whykin clearly indicated, and a number other lines and points noted. "Here, take a look at that for a minute."

Erica looks over the map while she takes out a small notebook and starts taking some notes. "Nice map. Looks like a nasty place to get into and assault. What is the plan so far?" She asks while taking another sip of her diet soda.

The old man chuckles. "Like I said there is no plan. This is the information that I have so far from what we've put together. But Sage has been, ah.. hell, I don't know let's just say 'thinking' psychically on some things that she and Leo saw. I have information about some new units - a number of new units - that have been stationed at Whykin. Couple of important officers. Vixen was trying to listen in on radio chatter for more information, but I haven't even heard that she exists for about two months now." Gabriel shakes his head, frustrated. "So, I'm taking lead on it. Hopefully I can take my military knowledge and blend it with Sage and Leo.. then you get together with us, and we all figure out some brilliant master plan to save the world from the forces of evil." Big grin. "Comic book reference."

"Well it will take some planning. Hopefully Sage and Leo can come up with some more info with their powers." Erica shrugs her shoulders while she keeps looking over the map. "Hopefully they don't have too many SAMAS. I could fight them, but they are pretty brutal." She says with a slight shake of her head.

Gabriel shakes his head and pokes Whykin. "We haven't seen any signs of aerial activity. At least nothing serious. Most everyone are ground-pounders like you and me - I'm including jet packs as ground-pounders in this one. No heavy aerial weapons. But who knows what they *do* have on the ground at this base. Potential for some pretty serious hardware, if they're moving it in. But I don't want to bore you with details right now. I'll save that for when we all get together." He reaches out and folds the map, then puts it into his pocket, latching it closed silently.

"I would like to get me a nice rail gun, or a plasma ejector. Have to see if I can pick myself up one." Erica says with a chuckle and a little grin. "Hopefully can just use blinder grenades and some flash bangs to take them out and then just blow the place. Things are usually not that easy though."

"I doubt that these guys will be that easy, no. Again, without bothering with detail right now, these are serious units, brought in for a purpose. A handpicked commander of the entire zone, a lower officer who seems to be some kind of legend among the troops." Gabriel doesn't smile. "Whatever and whyever they're doing this, they mean it. But hell, if we win, maybe you'll grab a rail gun." He winks and sips at the mug of coffee that Danielle was polite enough to deliver.

Erica says, "Well that sounds pretty nasty. Have to see what Leo and Sage find out like I said." Erica shrugs her shoulders again and then puts her notebook away and takes a quick sip of her soda. "Doesn't look very promising from what you are showing. Just have to do our best. Oh well.""

Gabriel grins. "I'm going to assume that we have surprise on our side. I mean, who would be so stupid as to attack an outpost that size?" He looks as Erica packs up. "Heading off?"

"We better have surprise on our side, otherwise we will have some serious problems on our hand." Erica says with a little laugh and a shake of her head. "Yah I'm going to get going for a bit. I'll be over at my house for a little bit."

Gabriel starts to stand politely. "You take care. Maybe I'll see you later today. Don't run around and get too sweaty." He winks friendlily.