Session Start: Sat Jul 17 15:10:50 2004 Last time, on Hunters. A typically odd day at Takeuchi Memorial got hijacked by a rather atypical crisis. The city was flooded with Sea Magic, like when a Ningyo appears, except many many times stronger. The entire hierarchy geared up for war, and the team got marching orders to track down the source of the magic and call in the cavalry. Leena, though, didn't wait for instructions, and went charging off on her own. She ran into Darkmoon and Haruko near the target location, who acted as a... calming influence. Mostly. Though the Hitachi-2osen Group might not agree. The Sea Magic seemed to be emanating from the top floor of their administration building, on a site where ships and large sea structures were located. Taki tried sneaking in, with mixed results. The others took a tour. All of them saw a Ningyo plunge out of the building and into the sea, Taki particularly getting an up-close and personal look. Afterwards, Sakura called and extracted an initial report, as well as a promise to get everyone together the next morning at the Agency. [Tuesday, January 20, 2004 - 800 local time] [The Blossom Detective Agency] [session start] * Maya is very much there, ahead of time and looking more than a bit unhappy. For her, of course, that means that she's got an even face on instead of a smile. * Secretary waits in the lobby for the others. * Lord_Darkmoon shows up a bit early, dressed in his school uniform and a medium-heavy coat. * Leena hasn't had time to do her hair- it's just been brushed out, not even a ponytail, and it billows behind her in waves. She's in her school uniform, mostly out of morning habit. * Leena jogs up, bouncing rather than non-bouncing on the way. * Lord_Darkmoon is, as always, impeccably groomed. Must be that tessen's magic. Or maybe it's part of the transformation. Good morning, Darkmoon-san. Good morning, Madam Secretary. *bows* * Secretary bows a little more than politely. And Leena, nice to see you. * Leena jumps on Darkmoon's back when he bows down, and waves at the Secretary from there. "Hiiiiii~!" Hey, Rinada, Leena... * Haruko is there in normal clothes, being as unobtrusive as usual * Maya can't help but smile at Leena's antics, but not too much. "... oh, Haruko. I didn't notice you were here... sorry..." You all should go on back. * Lord_Darkmoon manages to catch his balance and stand, holding Leena up where she's holding on to him. Laughing slightly, he says, "Good morning, Leena." "It's ok, no one ever does" * Lord_Darkmoon nods and goes on in. "Greetings, Maya, Haruko." * Leena grins. "Good morning, Darkmoon!" She then waves at everyone else from her perch. "Hi, Darkmoon" No, it's not okay.... hm, we'll talk about it later. * PrincessSakura sticks her head out into the lobby. "Hurry up." * Leena nudges Darkmoon with her knees. "You heard the lady. Hurry up!" * Secretary closes the door once everyone is through, waiting out in the lobby this time. You can hear her typing at a breakneck speed. * Lord_Darkmoon stoically heads in, manfully ignoring the indignity of his position as Leena's mount. * Haruko sneaks through the door before it closes * Anzu is also typing at the communal computer. * PrincessSakura looks grumpy this morning, like she needs more sleep. * Maya steps inside as directed, takes a seat and just kinda flumphs. "So, Sakura... what's on the agenda?" * Leena waves cheerfully at Sakura. She doesn't glomp her, for obvious reasons. "Hi Sakura!" * PrincessSakura grabs Leena by the necktie, and drags her don into the conversation pit. * PrincessSakura points at the couch. "Sit." * Lord_Darkmoon bows to Anzu and Sakura, now that he's not being ridden. "Good morning, my Lady, my Princess." * Leena erks at both the pull, and the sudden seriousness. O... okay. *sits* * Haruko waves slightly to Sakura * PrincessSakura is blanking everyone else out right now. Leena, do you have any idea how lucky you are? * Maya notices the cold shouldering, and just stays quiet, looking like she's worried a little about Leena. ... a little bit. * Lord_Darkmoon stands in his usual spot, watching and listening with a blank, attentive expression. I had to lie to the other Princesses and Her Majesty to cover your ass. ... why? What happened? And why didn't more people show up there? ...they heard, thirdhand, that you didn't report in for orders yesterday when the... situation started. I told them that I called your phone directly. Yeah, I was going to the situation! Why didn't anyone else show? Something that big? What the hell were you thinking?!? There was something going down, and whoever was in charge of the area would need all the help they could get! This is a team, not a bunch of testosterone-driven gloryhounds! You have a role, and that role is as a member of the team. You didn't do your duty, little girl, and who knows what could have happened! * PrincessSakura is livid. * Leena doesn't sound so much angry as confused, now. "Why would something like -that- be relegated to -our- team?" Because the highers-up said so. .... * Maya shrugs lightly from her seat. There was a PLAN for this. You don't go throwing Ladies at a big fish! That had to be at least a Ningyo Princess, maybe the Queen of the Sea herself. If we charged in one at a time, we would get SQUASHED. We - *gestures around her* had the honor of the most important and dangerous duty - you were there to scout for our Queen. Relegated, my ass. * PrincessSakura collapses onto a chair. .... the Queen? * Lord_Darkmoon turns on his heel, and goes into the kitchen. * Leena frowns, thinking. "... so why did you cover for me?" Yah. She was in a helicopter coming across the bay, waiting for your call to tell her where to blow shit up. * Maya sighs heavily, not paying much attention to the conversation at this point. I swear, Leena, the next time you go haring off like that, I *will* give you to Squeegee. ... so I guess all those calls at the table were telling the Ladies not to go. *sigh* No, they were telling them where *to* go. We chose a staging area in a park a couple klicks from where you ended up finding the fish. You should have seen it - we had a hundred Ladies there, ready to attack. ... no wonder it ran so fast. It must have known, somehow. * Maya glances over again, just for a second. * PrincessSakura half-smiles. * Haruko makes a small sound at the thought of a hundred Magical Girls all at once. * Leena sighs, and slumps back into the couch. "... sorry." * Lord_Darkmoon comes out of the kitchen, bearing tea on a tray. Setting it on the table, he pours 6 cups, and takes one for himself. "This particular blend is supposed to be better than coffee, for an early morning." * PrincessSakura looks Leena in the eye. "And are you going to follow procedure next time? Or does this need to be an order?" * Maya helps herself to some tea. "Mmmm. Thanks, Rin." * PrincessSakura grabs the cup and chugs, still watching Leena. * Leena sighs, closing her eyes, thinking. "I'll try." * Haruko takes a cup politely You'd better. * Lord_Darkmoon suppresses a chuckle, sets down his own cup, and refills Sakura's from the pot. Not to sound like I'm the bad guy, Leena, but I'll be keeping an eye on you. We have to work as a whole, and that goes for even when I'm not around. * Leena rolls her eyes. "How was I supposed to know the big bad beacon was supposed to be our team's job? Geez." You were supposed to know to find your teammates, and go to the office when called. * Lord_Darkmoon sips his own tea, not saying a word. No excuses. We get our info from Sakura and the Queen, so... * PrincessSakura downs a second cup of tea, just as fast, but starts to look more awake. ...I'd also suggest not making a habit of following Ningyo through high windows and into their home turf. But that is merely a suggestion. * Maya looks up from her cup. "It's just going to have to take time learning how to... wait. As overly-cautious as that sounds." ... yeah, that was a spurt of the moment thing. I kept -feeling- it so strongly, I couldn't stand it. * PrincessSakura smiles. "I won't hold you to that one." * Haruko sits and waits * Anzu stopped typing a while ago. She was looking somewhat pale as Sakura chewed Leena out, but now seems somewhat relieved. * PrincessSakura looks around. ... well, I'm sure you wanted to do more than yell at me. What else? Oh, hey, good morning everyone. Thanks for the tea, Rin. Good morning, Sakura. ^^; * Lord_Darkmoon bows politely. "Good morning, my Princess. You looked like you needed it." There were a couple of things... Rin summed events up pretty well yesterday over the phone, but I just wanted to see if there were any details you were struck by. * Lord_Darkmoon 's expression becomes suddenly more guarded. * Leena sighs again, closing her eyes and leaning back into the couch heavily. Then perks up again when Rin gets mentioned. You were the ones on scene - what did you think was going on? The place had a lot of water operations. Boats, big ones, and they even mentioned an oil rig. I'm not sure how the Ningyo figured into it, but that's way too many coincidences. * Lord_Darkmoon sets his teacup down with a bit more noise than necessary. "I think...the Queen of the Sea - or maybe a Princess, whatever - was meeting with humans. With the CEO of Hitachi-2osen Group." This seems to disturb him greatly. Yeah, the Ningyo was in the CEO's office. There's no mistaking that one. * PrincessSakura raises an eyebrow. A real conspiracy, huh? ... It would make sense, I guess. Natural allies. * Haruko pipes up slightly. "Um, the Wicked Witch worked with human agents..., so maybe this Queen of the Sea would too." * Lord_Darkmoon finds a seat and collapses in it, picking up his tea and studying it as if it were the most fascinating thing in the world. * Anzu blinks, then tries not to laugh. Well, if someone's offered the right price... But... what does he have to offer the Sea? * Maya sighs. "It's a shame some are convinced that we can come to terms with the Ningyo. It's just not going to happen." ... I don't know. Would they be one of the groups subverting the Yakuza? Perhaps...we should be asking what the Sea offers them. I suspect Leena is right. How big was that shipyard? That would be just petty cash to a company like that. So...you don't think they're behind the assassins? *sounds almost...hopeful* But couldn't a waterway like that make for a staging area? It's not too far from the city proper, right? If they wanted to, then could just ruin it and put a dent in shipping and whatnot. ..... You have a good point. It's kinda scary. I'll have to sic Squeegee on them, see if we can get some forensic accounting action going. By 'sic', you just mean her...financial acumen. Right? Mostly. ... Heh. Everyone has their uses. ^_^ * Leena crosses her arms, and 'hmphs'. Don't ever underestimate Squeegee. I think she knows more about political power in Tokyo than the Prime Minister does. * Lord_Darkmoon takes a gulp of his tea. And another. Now that's just frightening. Did you see in the office? Could you tell what was happening in there? ...not exactly... No. We were in the room next to it, then the Ningyo was spotted out one of the windows. I went after it, and I don't know what happened after that. After Leena...pursued the Ningyo...only one person came out from the meeting, to essentially shoo everyone who didn't work there...out. Too bad. You smashed through the wrong wall, Leena. We were supposed to meet the CEO, that's what the tour guide said. * Lord_Darkmoon shifts uncomfortably in his seat. * Leena glances sympathetically at Darkmoon. Um... I don't know an easy way to say this...but...I have to tell you all, just so you know... Hm? * Haruko listens * Leena nods encouragingly at Darkmoon. "Say what you mean with us, remember?" * Lord_Darkmoon takes another gulp of his tea, seeming surprised when he finishes it. Raising his eyes, he looks at everyone, takes a deep breath, and exhales, "My father was there." I... see. There's more to this than I want to know, isn't there? Was.... there? * Lord_Darkmoon nods, and swallows, suddenly unable to meet anyone's gaze. "He was...the man who came out of the office, to cut the tour short." *blink* He's not the actual CEO, though, right? The office the Ningyo was in. No! At least, he acted like he wasn't...I can't imagine why he would be... * Lord_Darkmoon nods to Leena's statement. Well. That's... problematic. * Maya scoots over to Rinada and pats his shoulder. "Are you alright?" But from what he said, he definitely works closely with him... *nods at Maya's question, though not noticing the pat* ...and he was hiding something. I...tried to ask some subtle questions. He almost flat-out lied. He always clenches his jaw when he's lying... *almost to himself* He didn't know you, right? ...no, of course not. * Lord_Darkmoon snaps out of it, shaking his head. "Of course not. We're anonymous. Thank goodness." It's okay. You don't have to apologize for him. Whatever he's up to, it's not your fault. I know you're living alone... are you estranged, or could you maybe go and visit? ... yeah, it might be time to check up on him and try to figure out the 'why' of all this. ... he'd have to untranform for that. * Lord_Darkmoon looks up at that. "Visit? Estranged?" He blinks. "No, I just live alone because Father got a new job, and could afford to move the family to a nicer, more traditional home...but I didn't want to leave my school, so we worked out that he'd let me stay here, for my education." But...I've not even been to the new house. Ever since...well school, and...you know. We exchange letters regularly, and I think I've got the phone number... Maybe when you have some free time. * Lord_Darkmoon nods, collecting himself. Which... will not be today, I'm afraid. * Leena puts up a hand. "I'll go with you! ... unless, you want to see him alone, that is." * Leena blinkblinks at Sakura. Because you all have a job. * Lord_Darkmoon looks up, dark eyes calm once more. "What kind?" * Maya perks up. "Hm?" The usual. * Leena sighs. "... well, at least I won't have to finish up my hair for school." * PrincessSakura snaps her fingers at Anzu, who jumps up from her seat and starts passing out folders to everyone. There was this bow braid thing I wanted to try. Ooh, story! * Lord_Darkmoon accepts his with a polite nod. * Haruko opens her folder * Maya quirks up an eyebrow at the finger-snap, but takes her folder and starts poring through it nonetheless. Inside is a short dossier and two glossy photos. The photos are of a magical girl, transformed and not. * Leena dumps the contents out onto her lap, and flips through them. This is Lady Octane. She's your protectee starting today. ... and that knocks out going to the range tonight, too. * Lord_Darkmoon looks through it without messing up the folder or the order of its contents. "Indeed it does." ... where is all the character information? There is no likes, dislikes, what about her favorite food? ... Octane. * Maya gives Haruko a strange look for just a moment. Nineteen years old - she's attending a trade school west of Tachikawa, where she's learning advanced engine tuning and fabrication. * Leena looks for the part about her powers. With a name like that, they gotta be cool ones. She's an excellent Ningyo combatant. Very good speed, and a napalm-like blast. Nasty. ... hopefully we can finish a plan this time. The pictures show an older teenage girl. In the normal form, she's cute, lithe, and wearing an oil-splattered garage smock. Looks a bit tomboyish. That means she won't panic so easily. Transformed, she has on a *tight* bodysuit - it looks like motorcycle leathers, with blue and yellow accents. She's busty, almost classically beautiful, and has a stern expression. Her Majesty actually offered her a promotion when she graduated from high school, and she turned it down. She didn't want the extra responsibility. * Maya peers at the transformed pic for a second, fights down a few dozen pangs of envy, then finishes the dossier. "What do we know so far about the assassin's plans?" ...Her Majesty allows people to refuse? Sometimes. The other Princesses weren't too excited about allowing a gearhead into their sorority. * Lord_Darkmoon did not seem overly reactive to the pictures. Then again, he's good at concealing reactions, sometimes. Maybe. And she had another candidate at hand. So she's been in the business for a bit. * Lord_Darkmoon smirks. "I see. That makes more sense." Anyway, this alert comes straight from Her Majesty. Something will happen to this girl in the next few days, and she has an especially bad feeling about it. Who was the candidate, Sakura? ... * PrincessSakura ignores Maya. * Maya takes the hint and shuts the hell up. We need to come up with a plan for real. ... if Kenji was here, that'd be great... We're going to actually have to miss school for this one, aren't we. I had to get you in really early this morning because her trade school classes are half-days on Tuesdays and Thursdays. You need to be in place watching by 1230. Hm, okay. We should put together a quick gameplan, then. It's about a fifty minute train ride out there, so you have about 90 minutes to plan. Um, what about our education? * PrincessSakura eyes Haruko balefully. School comes second, especially for the school we go to. But what about getting into a good university... I'll have to be an office lady my entire life! ...Kenta's -not- going to like this. But he'll just have to deal. *mumbled* Get used to making up work. You'll get a lot of help, and this is actually counting as credit. Oh, well, ok. ... I'm sorry, Haruko. But you'll really have to pay attention now, because this is for real. And... if you're smart enough, the Queen can arrange whatever you'll need. Not the Queen again...*mumble quiet* * Leena looks around the room. "Who do we have... me, Maya, Darkmoon, and ... Haruko." Well, I have to deal with her for the most, Haruko, so don't worry. ^^ * Lord_Darkmoon looks sympathetically at Haruko for a moment, then speaks. "Well, to planning. I didn't think we'd be getting a mission today; I did not bring Aka or Tsubasa. But I can summon Tsubasa, at least. Aka would take too long to get here." ... in all honesty, it's not *that* bad. * PrincessSakura looks at her watch. Ack! Time to run, Sakura? We should get going now. We can plan on the way, and getting their early would be good. I have to run - Squeegee wants me for a business thing downtown at ten. ... we'll be a small team. I'd ask if I could bring the gun, but I'm still not comfortable with it yet myself. ...it's weird - she's really bringing me into a lot of her stuff. I don't know what her plan is, but somehow I figure in it. Be careful. No way, Leena, not yet. The secretary has very firm instructions on that. Not a bad idea, Leena. Hopefully it all doesn't go down too quickly, though. Getting a feel for the area would help out. Anyway - running now! Good luck. * PrincessSakura dashes out the door. * Leena looks Haruko in the eyes. "And we need to help Haruko." * Anzu gets up more slowly. Um... excuse me? ... yeah, Haruko. This will be her first job... yeah, Anzu? * Lord_Darkmoon looks to Anzu. "Yes?" * Leena 'hmms' at Anzu, looking her way. "Yeah?" * Anzu tears up slightly. Help me? What's wrong, my Lady? *looks concernedly at Anzu* I just wanted to say... thank you for getting me away from Pie. Sakura's a bit brusque, but she's so much more sane to work for... * Lord_Darkmoon smiles. "You're quite welcome. I'm glad you're happier." * Anzu sniffs. * Maya smiles a little, letting that be reply enough. * Leena nods slowly. "All that's left is Hardhat. How's Amp doing?" And... good luck with Lady Octane. Take care of yourselves, too. Yeah, Amp. I wonder about her sometimes. Amp is... better some days than others, but I think she's adjusting. * Lord_Darkmoon nods politely. "We shall. You, as well. Watch Sakura's back with Squeegee around, please." I will. Thank you. * Anzu bows, then dashes out after Sakura. ... heh. It's stuff like that that makes this job worthwhile. * Leena waves at Anzu as she dashes off. ".. we should get going, too." * Maya stands up, finishing her now-cool tea. "Anyway, we should get going. And Haruko... this job is going to be unlike anything you and your friends have ever done." ... and it probably won't be enjoyable, either. * Haruko looks slightly miserable. * Lord_Darkmoon collects the cups and places them on the tray, taking the tray to the kitchen before rejoining everyone in the main room. He opens the door for the ladies. Fighting the Wicked Witch was never this hard. Dumb old Dragon King, and stupid Sea Queen. There you go, take it as a progressive challenge. You'll hate it. ... you really will. But it's gotta be done. Shall we exit? *gestures out the door* Yeah, it really does. * Leena hops back on Darkmoon's back. "Let's go!" ... * Maya is already on her way out. "This is the battle that helps win the war, you know?" * Haruko wanders out mumbling about various villains the Mystical Warriors have fought * Lord_Darkmoon , on the way out, somehow manages to bow to the Secretary with Leena on his back. "I am sorry, Madam Secretary, but time does not permit me to clean up after myself. I would appreciate it if you could find time to clean the tea set that is by the kitchen sink. Good day." * Maya wanders closer to Haruko. "Hey... can I ask you something?" Me? I'm not sure I can help, but sure.... The Secretary looks like there's nothing she would enjoy more as she bows back. When we have some time, could you tell me about all the... er, adventures you and your friends have had? * Lord_Darkmoon follows the others. Well, not Leena, as she's behind him, but you know what I mean. Maya: Oh, really!? Yes, I'd love to! Then it's settled. ^^ * Leena chimes in. "Yeah, I'd like to hear them too!" Leena's got a lot of stories, too. Most of them center around things getting broken. ^^ Sakura wasn't lying. Tachikawa is a loooong ride west, and the team has almost an hour to figure out their plans. We can have a sleep over! I'm sure some of the Warriors might want to come too! Right. So. How do we want to handle this, Maya? You're our only ranged fighter here...unless Haruko's friends can do that, too? * Leena waits until getting on the train to get offa Darkmoon and get serious. "So... previous plans." Oh yeah, all the Mystical Warriors have ranged attacks. ... a sleepover wouldn't be that bad of an idea, I suppose... maybe at the Agency something---ah? Oh. Well, I guess the tried-and-true. Though they aren't very long. ... but we need to get an idea for her routine and places that might make for excellent ambush points. * Lord_Darkmoon nods. Most of them have been mine, and most of them haven't been that great. Tried-and-true works, but not good enough. We've just been getting lucky so far. We already know we're not gonna know the point or time of the attack, they're triggered by a Ningyo. We can't assume that, though. All it would take was one assassin somehow recognizing her untransformed... ... there's only one way that's going to happen. And if that were the case, she'd be hit during class. A lot less of a mess, and even easier than a tired magical girl. Very well. Our best bet, I think, is still to try to get the jump on the assassins as they come out. ... you think the Mystical Warriors could help with that? More or less. But that would require being close while not being obvious. The same as always. Well, they gotta come from -somewhere-. If there's only a few buildings nearby, we can watch those... They might be able to, but none of them are really stalkers... And if the Mystical Warriors help out Octane, and escort her away real quick... ... that is a benefit of having them around, I guess. *sigh* If only we -did- have a good way of creating a decoy, to lure them out in a situation of our choosing. Haruko, you think they'd be up for helping Octane out with the Ningyo fight when it shows up, get it over and done with as fast as they can? With any luck, the fight'll be over before the assassins can get there. ... but they're always on time. So it'd have to be real quick. Very quick. And we don't know *what* sort of people we're facing, so... mmmn. Always too few knowns. This'd be so much easier to pull off if we could just -talk- to her. Waterfall's pretty sporty, so she'd probably be the best be from our team. Tell her to get the fight over with and get out of there as fast as she can. Leena: They might be, depends on what the Dragon King's minions are up to then. Norcliff: You think they can spare her? That'll we'll be supporting her to that end, that all she needs to do is get out of there. We can't contact them... as bad as that can be. Rules are rules are rules. If we could just -talk- to her... she'd be safe. It's stupid if she ends up dead just because we can't talk to her. Did the queen make these rules? Who else? The train rumbles on westward. The suburbs get lower and lower at each stop, though it's Tokyo after all, and everything is packed tight. I figured, she doesn't seem to like being nice to any of the girls. Well, we can't inform others of what we do. Or about the assassins, so we're a bit handcuffed as to what we can and can't do. ... all we have to do is tell her to end her next fight as quick as she can, that she'll have help and she has to scat as -soon- as it's over. That doesn't reveal anything. It's still contact. Remember Gothic and Deer. ...remember the Secretary at the mall. * Lord_Darkmoon looks embarrassed. Um, what is all this you are talking about? ... if we can't warn her, then what about stalling her? Wouldn't work. To get the assassins to show, they have to see their quarry. We can't warn her, but could one of the Mystical Warriors? We'll have the firepower between me and the Mystical Warriors to take out the Ningyo. If someone else stalled Octane, then she won't be there to be targeted. They aren't part of this little team. With Gothic and Deer... well, we met up with them one day and things didn't go well at first, Haruko. * Maya looks Haruko's way and honestly ponders that. ... the Queen might not take that well. Damn it. * Leena glances at Maya. She wants to tell Haruko to got for it, but Mayas the leader and all. The assassins are picky, remember? If Octane doesn't show... They're also persistent. Then they'll lie in wait for the next time she -does-. * Leena glances at Darkmoon, and closes her eyes, before saying, like she hates suggesting it, "You could order Octane to stand down." And they could possibly change their plans. We're going to have to take the fight to *them*, one way or another. Even if it means having to sit back until contact. For whatever reason, these bands are persistent, but only have one target. So, to keep Octane safe, we must kill her would-be killers. ... to take the fight to them, we need to take a prisoner, get information somehow, or get the jump on them before that start on Octane. * Lord_Darkmoon looks at Leena, aghast. "No. Never that. You know how much -you- hate being held back from Ningyo fights, and it's your MISSION to do so." ... yeah. I hated saying that idea, but... I hate guns, too. *sighs* The Yakuza from before have one, but I imagine he's dead now... mmmn. This sucks, but it's all we have for now. We're going to have to stick with it, since so far it's worked... there's been some close calls, but it's worked. ... I know I've said it before, and it's been shot down, and it's probably not a good idea, but if we can get one alive... I think...hm. I think Leena's on the right track; if we can get Octane away and safe quickly after the assassins show up, we can "play" with them a bit more. Try to take one alive. But -only- if Octane is already safe. They obviously don't care what happens to them, so long as their target dies. ... we can't risk Octane to do that, though. Still, that would mean contact. You could play it off as being in-town and sensing the Ningyo, though... If the guns are already blazing, who gives a damn about contact! The train slows for the stop in Yaho, the last village before Tachikawa, and conversation is momentarily drowned out by an airplane flying low overhead. * Maya stares down at her shoes. "Point..." That's to consider later, though. Maya? How do you want to place us, to follow her? So... plan. Cover Octane long enough for her to get away, and Darkmoon... if she doesn't leave, Order her to do so... and once she's safe, we concentrate on the assassins. We want one alive, if possible, but we're not gonna risk anything for that. Sound like a good plan? Well, we don't have Taki, so we're a bit undermanned for sneaky things. We're all going to have to pull our weight equally, so we should spread out a bit and just observe, like with Anzu that one time. And... Leena. * Maya looks Leena's way. "The problem is that if they decide to pursue her, then she might not be able to avoid the fight anyway. Still, it's something to consider, maybe even try. But ONLY when we know she's got a safe out." So she doesn't run alone. Someone will go with her, in case they send a loner after her? * Leena holds up fingers, counting. "... but we really don't have the numbers for that." Our ultimate goal is to make sure she stays alive, so... if we can pull that off, I'm all for it. And you have a point, we're not too good numbers-wise right now, even with the Warriors. ... and Haruko. * Lord_Darkmoon nods, looking out the window. "We're here, it seems." * Leena turns to Haruko. "This will happen quick, and there will be guns, and people will die. .. I don't know if you're ready, but if you can't handle it, we won't fault you if you stay out of it." o_O When I said I wanted out last time, I got told I couldn't quit.... None of us can quit. No, but you can wait 'til you're ready. * Maya sighs. "I... I guess I don't mind. This for a good cause." Once we win this war, we can look back and know we played a part, you know? Well, this Lady Octane, she'll die if we don't do anything, right? She will. * Maya takes a second to lean over Darkmoon's shoulder and look out. "... mmmm. Yeah, she will." ... Yeah. I guess I have to try to do something then. I can't promise I'll be any good at it, but I can't just let another Warrior of Justice die. The train pulls into the north side of Tachikawa. This stop also services the airbase just to the north and so there are a goodly number of people getting off here. Let's go. * Maya gets up and heads for the exit. * Lord_Darkmoon rises, and gets off the train. Good luck to us all... * Leena steps off the train. The notes in the folder indicate that Lady Octane's, whose real name is Megumi Horiuchi, trade school is only a kilometer east down the main road. * Maya is already putting foot to ground, scanning about the entire time. So, we walking? Mmm-hmm. * Leena makes a slight detour to transform and change, before catching back up. It's a brisk walk on this January day, but the destination soon looms into view. It's almost a full-fledged college campus, except virtually all of the buildings have multiple garage doors. This is... something. * Haruko looks at Mallet. Are we supposed to walk around transformed? There are a decent number of students walking about, virtually all of them male, slightly overweight, and looking like they've been working with motors. * LadyMallet bounds back up to pace, still in her school uni, and nods at Haruko. "... if something goes down, we don't have to transform before reacting." That, and the anonymity helps a lot. We tend to transform and put on normal clothes above our outfits to fit in. I'm not requiring it right now, but it's probably a good idea. * Maya looks for a hidey-spot. ... do I need to hide my hair again? There are a surprising number of parking lots near the buildings, and the vehicles provide lots of mouthwatering blind spots. * Lord_Darkmoon walks over to a tree, and holds up a finger. Tsubasa swoops down and perches on it. "Nice to see you made it. You remember the girl I showed you?" Tsubasa chirps. "Good. You're going to follow her for me today. Okay?" Tsubasa chirps again, and takes to the air once more. Darkmoon rejoins Maya, Leena, and Haruko. * LadyMallet looks around at all the different approaches. "... it's never easy." * Maya takes a moment to sneak off, and returns a bit later, tucking away her tophat and eyeshield into the satchel he was carrying. "No, it never is." ... can someone watch for people while I change..? The mission notes indicate that Megumi's last class is in the Honda-3 building today. A handy campus map shows you where that is... but there's almost an hour before the class is over. ... we've got a little bit of time. Er, anyone? Sure, I can watch. Okay. * LadyMallet keeps watch! Thanks. * Haruko hides behind a car, and, looking around nervously, disrobes, changes her clothes dissolving off her shortly after the sequence is finished, and then quickly redressing. * Lord_Darkmoon examines the surroundings, idly placing himself in the position of an assassin, and trying to see where he'd hide or observe from. * LadyMallet doesn't spook Haruko in mid-change, or point her out to all those males, because that'd be mean and nasty to do. The campus has a lot of pavement, and many motor vehicles in various states of assembly all around. Ready, Make-Believe? ... Is the hair ok today? * LadyMallet stares at MB's hair. "Um..." There are a few carefully-trimmed trees - mostly dwarf fruit trees that would be difficult for anyone to climb or perch in. ... can you make a hat or something? A big one? I can. Yes, a hat would be good. ... right, that again. ... I need a mirror.. * Lady_MakeBelieve concentrates for a second, before popping one into her hand. * Lord_Darkmoon hands MakeBelieve the Tessen. * LadyMallet digs a baseball cap out of her bag, slipping her tiara with the glowy gem in the center of it into it, and slipping that on. Darkmoon: I should do what with this exactly? You can change how you look. I managed to look like a completely different magical girl using it. ... how does it work? Just wave it over what you want to change, and envision the change. * Lord_Darkmoon smirks. "It's how I do all my clothes-changing while transformed. And, sometimes, even when not transformed." ... don't they start to stink? * LadyMysteria chuckles softly. "Let's hurry, we need to stake the area out." * LadyMallet looks around for good escape routes! Not at all. Can clean 'em, too. * Mara shuffles up behind MakeBelieve. "I do believe you look stupid in baseball caps." * Lady_MakeBelieve looks in the mirror, posing the tessen over the back of her hair and starts concentrating for a second. Ack! Mara! Where did you come from? You left this at home. * Lady_MakeBelieve drops the mirror, which vanishes before it hits the ground. * Mara produces a wide-brimmed sun hat. Very hiding. * LadyMallet waves to Mara. "Which one are you again?" Oh, thanks Mara. * Lord_Darkmoon reclaims his Tessen, then. * Lady_MakeBelieve hands the Tessen back. The campus is relatively open - it just sort of segues into the dorms, which then segue into the surrounding housing and businesses. You could run in any direction and get somewhere. I'm not sure what you mean, did I get a number? ... gyah! ... it'd be easy to get lost in this place, especially if you lived around here. * LadyMysteria just peers at Mara, suddenly noticing her. * LadyMallet blinks at Mara. "Number? Okay, you'll be Seven!" * Mara facefaults. "I'll try to remember that." * Lady_MakeBelieve swats at Mallet Hm. I think I'll try fitting in with the local students. I'm usually best at hiding "in plain sight", so to speak. * LadyMysteria stifles a snicker, the shock quickly wearing off. "Another Warrior, I presume?" This is MaraMara, Sailor Waterfall. * Lord_Darkmoon gestures with the Tessen, and is suddenly dressed - and smudged - like a grease monkey. His hair's nicely concealed under a mechanic's cap. You met her last time Sailor...Sunbeam, wasn't it? ...I remember the last one. Nice to meet you, Mara. * LadyMallet is swatted! ;_; Sailor Waterfall, actually Sunbeam showed up before me, if I remember her incessant rambling correctly. A passing student bumps into Mara and drops the large toolbox he was carrying. "Oh, excuse me." * Mara stoops down to help pick up the toolbox. "I'm terribly sorry." * LadyMallet blinkblinks. He quickly picks up the loose tools and lugs them into a nearby garage. My apologies, then, Mara. I will endeavor to remember next time. *Kunzite-grins* Gack. Well, that answers one question. Shall we? The minutes pass quickly - Leena finds the campus snack bar and gets ice cream cones for everyone, then the group goes and stakes out the Hond-3 laboratory. Mmmm, Ice Cream. Glad ya like it! ^_^v * Lord_Darkmoon finishes his both quickly and neatly. It didn't even have time to melt. * Mara eats as messlessly as possible. * Lady_MakeBelieve slowly licks away at hers, eating it only slightly faster than it melts Since this is a school of higher learning and not a grade school, there is no bell - the students just start coming out of buildings in a disorganized, relaxed manner. * LadyMysteria obviously doesn't waste time enjoying ice cream. Still, when the people start showing... "Spread out. Watch for her." * LadyMallet spreads out, not sticking too near anyone else. * Mara starts mixing with the nearest flow of people. * Lord_Darkmoon becomes just another student. Really. Keeping a (hopefully subtle) eye out for Megumi. Hopefully, too, Tsubasa is being attentive. * Megumi strides briskly out of the main entrance. She has leather pants and a brown trenchcoat on. Biking goggles are perched on her head, mussing her short brown hair slightly. * LadyMysteria moves into position, keeping Megumi in her sights the entire time. * Lady_MakeBelieve trails along, looking nice and distracted, what she does best, but always keeping Megumi in sight * LadyMallet keeps an eye out for Megumi, too. * Megumi has only a short walk to the nearest parking lot, where she goes straight to a motorcycle. * Lord_Darkmoon mutters into the headset, "Well, -that-'s going to be fun to try to follow." * LadyMallet flips on her headset at that, and sighs. "We get to hitch a ride. Great." The young woman rearranges small items between pockets to balance the load, then unlocks a helmet from the boot. It's a racing-styled bike, a Kawasaki, but at the lower end of that product line and several years old. The aerodynamic cowling has multiple long scratches. Do we have a ride to hitch around here? ... she's going to hate me for this. I don't suppose Make Believe can make us a car or cycle or something. ... ohman. * Megumi slings one leg over the bike, retracts the kickstand, and puts down rubber on her way out of the parking lot. ...hate you for what, Leena...? * LadyMallet runs up to the girl on the bike! ... Probably not. * LadyMysteria growls softly and cups a hand to her headset. "Leena, what're you..." Not nearly fast enough, she doesn't, and is left breathing exhaust fumes. * Lord_Darkmoon smacks palm to forehead. "Leena..." Oh crap, now what? Not like that. We gonna follow, though. Darkmoon, send Tsubasa! ... so much for that. Leena, wasn't that a little obvious if we are supposed to stay hidden? Acknowledged. *his eyes glow purple for almost 20 seconds. He wasn't facing anyone, so hopefully no one noticed. The bird is following before he's done* If she got a good look at me. Was gonna run up and bend her rear tire and run off. ... ... agh. How are we gonna follow her on wheels and not be noticed? Tsubasa says she's heading for the airbase. East and a bit north. * Lord_Darkmoon starts walking that way, almost casually. ... Mallet. * LadyMallet lowers her voice. "So, fearless leader, what no- hm?" * LadyMysteria moves a bit more hurriedly, seeing that matters could get worse in a heartbeat. "You do *not* do anything of that nature without asking me first. Am I clear?" Got it. ... don't get me wrong, we've got to protect her, but you easily could've done something very bad there. * LadyMallet starts hoofing it, since everyone else is. "Well, if nothing happens today, we're gonna need a car or bikes or something." She's there. Tsubasa says she's at a "road place". Near the edge of the base. Hm...looks like the southwest edge. We at least know that much, yeah. Bikes, probably. Bikes stick out like Haruko's hair. Especially one for each of us. Bikes are uncommon on a college campus? ...I hate to suggest splitting up this much, but we should probably, in the future, station ourselves along the route. They'd fit here. Well, four ore more of them following another one, yeah... * LadyMysteria is still pursuing. "A good one, Rinada." They'll think we're a cycling club. * Lady_MakeBelieve looks around The group is making good time in the direction Darkmoon indicated, and they find themselves approaching what looks like a low half-stadium. ...if we have enough to station evenly without me, I can "accompany" Tsubasa, and trail her all the way, too. A large sign is mounted on the surrounding fence - "Tachikawa Interim Racing Complex" ...this must be what Tsubasa meant by a "road place". From beyond the seating come the revving, screaming sounds of competition motorcycles. ... well, I guess we sit and watch. Not like anybody'll notice us with that going on. Racing. And... yeah, I guess that works. Anyone here a racing fan? A few people are trickling into the facility through a gate. I like racing games... * LadyMysteria decides to trickle in as well. Well Mara, up for some racing? * LadyMallet joins the line, too. I guess so. * Lord_Darkmoon joins Mysteria and Mallet, his clothing a bit cleaner now, but not standing out amongst the crowd. * Lady_MakeBelieve stands in line with the other Ladies The staff at the gates extract 800 yen from each of you - it's cheap today, since it's only a practice session. Tomorrow, the posted schedule indicates, there's a late-afternoon race, which will cost much more to see. * LadyMallet suppresses the urge to yell at the fee-extractors, since she wasn't expecting that, and pays quietly. * LadyMysteria pays up, thankful for the Queen's generous funding. * Mara pays like everyone else ... ya'know, tomorrow is a race. I'll bet anything that she's in it. Well, it fits her name and whatnot. Wouldn't that be a little high profile for... exterminators? The small crown mills around the edges of the seating, buying paraphernalia from the bored-looking low-end merchandise vendors. * Lord_Darkmoon looks around the stadium and track, trying to find good places for the team to watch everything, good places for assassins to hide and emerge from, and anywhere from where a Ningyo could emerge. Nothing seems to be. They almost like crowds. It makes for confusion... * LadyMallet buys a baseball cap with a racing thing on it! And exchanges that for her current one. The area is very very flat - it seems to have been an airfield once, before the base downsized. * LadyMysteria looks for a relatively high place to sit. Well, they come with the Ningyo. Would a Ningyo crash the race? * LadyMallet looks around the place. The main entrance is the only one, or no? I'm most worried about the "within the next couple of days" and "very bad" parts of this mission description. As you go up into the stadium seating, you get a view of the track. As motorcycle courses go, it's not long - only ten turns around a 2 km course. But it is well-kept. Even the decorative pool in the front-straight infield is clear and pure. A Ningyo attacked a mall, why not a race track? * LadyMallet EYES the pool. ... a pool. Mngh ...and there's our Ningyo-summoning portal. *points to the pool* ... well, that settles that. ... why is there a pool at a racetrack? I'm no racing fan, but I don't think that's normal Given their flare for the dramatic, I wouldn't be surprised if it attacked tomorrow during the race. To make our lives extremely difficult. No other reason. o0\ At least it looks like this place will only have a few approaches. The stadium seating is only about twenty rows high, but it's an arc almost six hundred meters long. The pits are right below the grandstands, within the arc they describe. True. And somewhat more wide-open than most, if this is the place. * LadyMallet takes a spot near the main entrance. ...if only there were a way to station Aka at the entrance without rousing suspicion. He could smell any guns, maybe. Or have it conveniently be stuck shut once the race starts. A flash of blue and yellow catches your eye at track level. It's Megumi, transformed. Her costume looks much like the other riders' racing suits. As you watch, she attaches knee-pucks and puts on a helmet, then straddles a large bike and zooms out on practice laps. ...! ... she works transformed? Huh, I got yelled at for trying to perform transformed once. Lady Mallet sees that while there is only one spectator entrance open today, there are two others in place for busier days. Seems a bit like cheating to me. Yeah, it probably is * LadyMallet grins. "It's not cheating, it's a perk." Not to mention hazardous. What does she register under? Can't be her real name... Well, if she wipes out, that'll all but guarantee she doesn't die... True. The afternoon goes by slowly... or quickly, depending on what each watcher's particular affinity for motorsports is. * LadyMysteria seems to mix time-passing between watching and ring-trick practicing. * LadyMallet loves the stuff! She's watching avidly. * Lady_MakeBelieve chats with Mara most of the time, when Mara doesn't ignore her By the time the sun starts to set, Megumi has qualified (under the barely- counts pseudonym "Meg") in fourth place out of twenty. * Mara does her best to keep MakeBelieve entertained Well, she's good, at least. * Lord_Darkmoon seems to be staring idly into space most of the afternoon. "Hm?" *looks at the standings* Oh. Yeah, she seems to be. The pits begin to pack up for the day, and the sparse crowd files out. Megumi disappears inside without taking off her helmet. * LadyMallet keeps her eyes on Megumi, not bothering to respond to the comments about her ability. Well, she's certainly thorough about it. We done for the day, fearless leader? ... time to leave, yeah. Sun's down, chances of an attack are low. Well, I suppose stakeouts could be worse. * Lord_Darkmoon shakes his head. "I still think it's careless of her to do this transformed. And under a fake name so close to her own." *frustrated sigh* They don't know her real name. * LadyMysteria starts to pack up and head for the exit. * Lord_Darkmoon rises. "So, back here tomorrow? I'll have to skip last hour to make it in time, I think. Maybe last two." * LadyMallet almost-walks out, hopping from one foot to the other in a cross between a dance and a jog. Same as before, yes. And no tire-bending. As the group files out, they notice a large man in a pit-crew shirt in Megumi's colors standing in the middle of the gate. He's looking closely at all the passers-by. * LadyMallet pauses mid-hop, and looks over at him curiously. * Guy 's eyes alight on Darkmoon, and stop right there. Ooooh, yeah. Excuse me! Sir! * Guy pushes his way though the foot traffic to accost Rinada. Sir! * Lord_Darkmoon pauses, turning. "...yes?" He looks most confused. * LadyMallet hops back to Darkmoon's side, now that he's got some attention, and watches Guy, grabbing onto Darkmoon's leg (gently). Are you coming to the race tomorrow? ...probably...why? Well... * Guy does the abashed back-of-head scratchy thingy. ... uh? See, it's sort of a tradition to have pretty girls stand on the grid before the race and hold umbrellas for the riders. * LadyMysteria stays a bit of a ways off, watching. ...and? *now -quite- confused* But... my rider is a rather pretty girl herself, and she told me to go get a pretty guy to hold her umbrella tomorrow. * LadyMallet blinks, and holds onto Darkmoon tighter, glancing from Guy to DM. You could have a pit pass... * Lord_Darkmoon blinks, looks briefly nervous, then grins confidently. Even friendly. "I would be honored." Right, right, good! * Guy grabs Darkmoon's hand and shakes it. Ooooh, Darkmoon, Fraternizing with the wards? * Lord_Darkmoon shakes back, a bit awkwardly, since he's used to more Japanese styles. (i.e. bowing) * LadyMysteria chuckles softly, catching enough of the conversation to get what just happened. Here, take this pass - that will get you to our pit anytime before the racing starts. I'll need you at about 1545, but if you want to come any time earlier, you're welcome to. Thanks so much - Megumi was going to kill me after last month's race if I didn't get someone. * Lord_Darkmoon takes it, and bows politely. "I thank you, sir. I shall look forward to meeting the lovely lady. And it is my pleasure to be of assistance." He turns, waving. "See you tomorrow, then." ... I like her style. * Guy nods and speeds off back towards the pits. Damnit, Darkmoon. It's bad enough you've caught Leena's eye. ^^ * LadyMallet doesn't let go of Darkmoon, for the record, looking every part the possessive girlfriend. ... hmph. * Lord_Darkmoon turns a bit red at that, but doesn't let it enter his voice. "Hey, could we have -asked- for a better opportunity? ... though I won't be able to join in the 'sightseeing' en route, as I'll have to be here already." Leena, are you *jealous* ? * LadyMallet responds much too cheerily, "Not a bit!" We honestly could not have, no. And not having you around's a small price to pay. I just want in on whatever deal he was gonna get. It looked like it was gonna be good. ^_^ [end session] Session Close: Sat Jul 17 19:08:12 2004