[The sun shines upon Redrock City! Because we love Redrock City. That's where everyone's favorite gunslinger is being held, after all, eagerly awaiting his trial!] [(Or least favorite, but he has shiny teeth.)] [It's slowly approaching noon, and we see Mikoto entering the inn. No Millie's with him. What could have happened! Perhaps she was kidnapped by ninja, but that's another plot device for another time.] [Session Start!] (NINJA!) (I'll show ya a frackin' ninja..) * Jinx had wandered back shortly earlier, he grins as Mikoto arrives. "So.. I was thinking, we wouldn't need to buy slaves.. we could buy ore! Perfectly legal ore. Or whatever he mines." * Mikoto does in fact enter said inn. His expression could only be described as 'conflicted', and he gives a weak smile as he's spoken to. "Well, about that..." Problem? * Mikoto sighs and has a seat at the table. "Millie and I discussed the 'plan' when I saw her in the jail. I just... didn't expect her to up and leave without saying a word to anyone but me." * Mikoto makes a face. "I don't know WHY I didn't expect it. It's a very typical Reinhart response." * Jinx keeps a slight grin. "She has a habit of keeping you on your toes. Anyways, what's new? * Mikoto breathes out and fans his hands out on the table. "She's gone to get Running Cloud. By train, I think, as that's the direction she left in, but I don't know for sure. Meanwhile, I'm staying in Redrock in case Running Cloud gets here ahead of Millie, or something goes wrong with the trial." * Jinx nods. But, we did remember something interesting while we were talking with John. The truth is, even if it's in a very small fashion, Will owes us. True enough. So... we thought you as spokesman with the others as... I suppose you could say 'bodyguards'... would visit Will, take credit for saving the coach from Alexis, and see if you can convince him to come to Redrock. * Jinx snorts. "Me, spokesman? Sure about that?" * Mikoto grins. "He may be a totally reprehensible piece of human garbage, but... doesn't it seem like you'd know how to talk to him better than I would?" * Mikoto pauses briefly, then rubs his temples. "That doesn't mean what it sounds like it means." * Fanfan spots Mikoto and Jinx and walks over. "Problems?" * Jinx smirks a bit. "Don't worry about it. Right, well I'll do it, but no guarantees." If push comes to shove, simply say you found out John was a wanted criminal and turned him in for the reward. It's almost true. * Fanfan sits down and frowns a little. "Are we changing plans again?" * Mikoto nods at Fanfan. "By necessity. There's more information that I should share..." * Jinx nods. "So, why do I want him to come back here? Oh, go on." * Mikoto rubs his face. "John's being put on trial. Tomorrow, I believe." I...see. There was no way to delay that? Not that I'm aware of. Guess that means we should ge going. * Mikoto shakes his head. "The sherriff quite frankly doesn't care. Problem being, there's nobody to speak in John's defense. If he's found guilty, he'll be hung." The only person who can even have the trial delayed is Will Rogers himself. Well, we could always hire some witnesses in a pinch, stall things, but Will's the real problem. So, why do I supposedly want him to come here? To delay the trial. The sherrif said he'd at least slow the process down a bit if the only person considered a real witness showed up. If we can get Will here, that should at least buy us time to think of something else. * Jinx frowns. "So I'm asking Will to do a favor on John's behalf?" * Mikoto shakes his head. "Not really. Well, you are, but Will won't see it that way. Think about it. There's no evidence linking Will to the crime, really, except John's word and he's skipped a trial once already. But John said he's an arrogant bastard and to appeal to his ego... and what's more satisfying than seeing the man you framed for murder hung when you know you did it?" Perhaps we could put it a different way. Say that without his testimony, John will go free. Could we not make it seem as if John were not in as bad a legal situation as he is? ( Sure. Hire a lawyer :P ) * Mikoto knits his brow. "I'm not sure I follow." * Jinx nods. "Maybe. I might be able to play that. Angle for a bigger reward by providing him this information." * Fanfan nods. If he believes that without his presence, John will go free and the investigation will be reopened, that might give him more incentive to come along. Ah. * Mikoto leans back in his chair a bit. "It's up to you how you want to proceed, naturally. Anything goes, as far as I'm concerned." * Jinx then grins. "Could also offer to testify about how John confessed some of his crimes or something, for an additional fee." * Mikoto smiles placidly. "Do you see why I thought you would be the best fit as mouthpiece, so to speak?" * Fanfan raises an eyebrow. "Wouldn't that be going just a little too far though?" * Jinx then shrugs. "Maybe.. I'll play it by ear. If I think that angle doesn't work, I'll just say that as my payment, I want him to personally bank me in some big game. Gives him a reason to be there, and I can offer a cut of the profits." Redrock has a fair number of high rollers, it'd be plausible. Er...why do we need payment, again? * Mikoto glances at Fanfan. "Because 'money' is the 'honor' of Teck." * Jinx stretches. "Cause we saved his ass. And if there's one person a greedy bastard can relate to is another greedy bastard." Oh! Because we drove off Alex? Well, nothing more to plan I suppose. I see. So should we gather up the rest and get going? What is your explanation for the rest of us? Bodyguards? * Mikoto nods slowly. "It might be best if you left soon. I don't know how far Garson City is, and we're very short on time. I'll try to do all I can to help John, but I doubt I'll accomplish anything." Damn straight, I'd be a fool to go to him to ask for a reward without them. * Fanfan looks confused. "Why is Mikoto not coming along?" * The saloon doors swing open hard and there stands Millie, looking VERY irate. She puts her hands on her hips as she stomps her way to the bar. * Jinx looks with surprise over at Millie. "Change in plans?" That...that stupid MORON. "You could stop half way. It's only a day's ride from there. Should get there by noon tomorrow." Yeah RAIGHT! * Millie thumps down in a stool and puts her hand on her hat. * Jinx nods. "So no easy way to get to Running Cloud then?" * Mikoto winces, but says nothing. * Fanfan blinks, a little taken aback, but also says nothing. I'd probably save, at most, a few hours by gettin' there by train. Still don't know if it's enough... (What time is it now, IC? Out of curiosity. Still morning?) (Approaching noon.) (So yes, still morning.) * Jinx shrugs. "Well, I should still gathering my 'bodyguards' and going. No promises if I leave now, but failure seems quite likely if I delay." * Mikoto looks at the table, knitting his brow. "It's almost noon. We have so little time..." He looks back at Millie. "Even if you could get to Running Cloud tonight, it might not be enough time." Oh...good point... * Fanfan starts getting up, then looks at Mikoto. "You're not going?" Probably not...should I still go? Maybe you can convince the sherriff.. * Millie blinks and looks up from her stool, arms folded across the bar. Well, if we aren't sure, a guaranteed Millie, beats a possible Millie and a possible Running Cloud. * Millie stands up quickly and pads her pockets. * Mikoto rubs his temples. "We can't convince James of anything. I don't know about the court system. I'm ignorant of Teckian legal procedure." So hire someone. I'll throw in some money. * Millie looks across the bar dumbfounded for a moment. "...that bastard's still got my money." (Watch as Fanfan starts asking the same question over and over again.) The problem is, even a lawyer would have nothing to work with. John was found with the gun and ran out on his first trial. He might as well just stand up in court and shout "I did it!" as loud as he can. * Millie swivels around quickly and walks towards the door. (Haha!) * Jinx frowns. "True, not sure we can afford a lawyer good enough to stall that." * Mikoto looks at Fanfan. "I'm a little suspicious, I think. I'm not really bodyguard material. It might be better if I don't go." Ohh...I suppose you are right... ( Ha, he just doesn't want to be around when Will KILLS US ALL. _ ) ( * John whistles.) ( Can you blame him? ^_~ ) ( Well, no. But still. ) Should we take Sakura? She's intimidating as hell, but I think she'll cramp my negotiating style. ...hm. Do you think you will be saying anything that will raise her temper? She certainly can't stay here. She may be hard to handle, but at least Tairan can keep her in check. * Jinx just looks at Fanfan for a minuute. ( Tairan can? Oh, the armor, right. ) * Fanfan raises her hands. "She and I, and Tairan, were talking after you left. She is not unreasonable. She merely has several easy, ahh...triggers, as I suppose you would say." And she is a good fighter. Not to say that I lack faith in our plan, but if worst comes to worst, we should use everyone we have. Without her, there would only be three of us to stand whatever Will throws against us if he grows suspicious. * Jinx nods. "I don't like it, but I'm afraid you're right." * Mikoto also nods. "Agreed." He pauses. "...what did Millie mean, 'he's still got my money'?" * Fanfan shrugs. "I almost never have any idea what she means most of the time." Maybe she paid before she found out the train wouldn't work. Though she has a pass... * Jinx shrugs. Right, oh, and we'll say that you lot are working for me cause I did you all or your clans a favor. Reference honor and all, I can't imagine Will is used to dealing with that sort of thing, and I want hima bit out of his element. * Fanfan grins a little. "Or you couuld just not say anything and leave him wondering why three armed and dangerous foreigners are glaring at him all the time." Besides, we are there to collect payment. Are we really the ones who need to explain anything at all? * Jinx smirks. "Good thought. And true." * Mikoto drums his fingers on the table. "John said the key was to stroke his ego. Bear that in mind. Anything that makes him feel self-important will help you, I'm sure." * Fanfan bows her head and kind-of blushes. "Er, thank you...ah, should I go inform Sakura and Tairan, then?" Yeah, guess so. Oh, and when we get in there, leave the talking to me. Not saying you don't have anything good to say, but I'm not really a team player when it comes to negotiating. * Fanfan looks a little uncomfortable. "I suppose it would be better for our roles for us to remain silent..." * Mikoto ponders. "If you do have to speak up, be... essentially Shomuran. Play up your foreign nature. It'll make him feel superior and off his guard if he thinks you're incompetent sloteyes who are uncomfortable in the West." * Jinx nods. "If you need to, whisper something to me. And if I'm really fucking up, hell override me. But if I'm gonna work this, I need to be able bullshit without any restraint." * Jinx nods in agreement with Mikoto. Well, we don't want him to think that we are *too* inferior to him, or he will just dismiss everything we say. * Fanfan nods at Jinx. Wouldn't it make him feel more important to be dealing with another important man than to be dealing with someone he views as beneath him? He is a slaver, he probably has enough of the latter already.... * Mikoto shakes his head. "You might think so, but..." * Mikoto ponders. "Think of it like this. If you tie a man up, he's going to struggle against his bonds. The more you constrain something, the more it fights to be unconstrained. Power relationships are a bit of the same thing. The more you try to dominate or impress somsone, the more they will try to outdo you." I say nothing of domination. I mean only to say that if he feels he is being flattered by an important man, that is surely worth more than being flattered by a lesser. (Jinx can demonstrate with his Shomuran finger trap!) Then perhaps better to say: how better to show importance than through three well-cowed Eastern bodyguards? * Fanfan spreads her hands. "Still, I suppose it is Jinx's decision to make, how he wishes to conduct this plan." * Mikoto smiles serenely. "I think that's for the best. You should trust him." * Fanfan eyes Mikoto. "Can you imagine Sakura even trying to think about being cowed?" * Mikoto continues smiling. "As long as she continues to say absolutely nothing, the effect is the same." * Fanfan shakes her head, muttering something under her breath that might be "no wonder you're staying here." * Jinx actually just leans back and looks fairly thoughtful. Running Cloud... I wish I knew more about that jail break before. It seems like it'd shed a lot of light on how to deal with this situation. Don't know if I mentioned, I do know smoke signals, but I'm not sure if there's enough villages between us and her to get that across. And, well.. it's not the sort of thing one discusses, even over somthing like that. Could you not tell her that we need to see her, or something of that nature? It depends. Even if she gets the message, who knows where she is or how long it would take for her to get here. If she got it, she could respond, so that at least we would know whether or not we could depend on her. (GMs, practicallity check?) * Jinx nods and goes back to looking thoughtful. * Mikoto frowns. "I wonder if the courier even made it to her. But... it might be worth a shot." He glances at Jinx. "I don't suppose other Injuns sell the service for a small fee?" * Jinx nods. "Good thought, they probably would. Should be some in town." Right, so you want to handle that, I can gather my "bodyguard" and get going. (Practicality check?) (bodyguards) (Yeah, smokesignals, Red Rock to RC. That possible?) (And I assume Mikoto could pay someone to do it for him if it was) ("Run Cloud Come Red Rock SOon SHiny Danger") ( *snickers* ) (Entirely possible.) (Well, not from in the middle of the city, but you know. ;P) (right) * Mikoto nods. "I'll do that, then." * Jinx nods. "Yeah.. that definately should work. Feel free to use my name, well, my real name." He then gives an odd smile. "Not that it carries all that much currency with your average Injun communicator, but it couldn't hurt. Much..." * Jinx then keeps the odd smile and shrugs. "Anyways, so I think we're done here." * Mikoto laughs. "I'll save that as a last resort." He then nods. "Good luck. I'm sure you can pull it off." (Point of order: Millie's a freak. But you knew that. That is all.) (She is.) ( What did she do now? O_O ) * Jinx chuckles. "Wanna bet on that?" (She sold all your souls to the evil Wakimbo) ( What, again? ) (It's a daily routine) * Mikoto grins and shakes his head. "Not a betting man." ( Fortunately Jinx already owes his soul to a little old lady hustler south of Red Rock. And until she dies of old age and he gets it back, he's safe. ) * Fanfan stands up. "I will go inform Sakura and Tairan now. Mikoto, good luck with...whatever it is that you will be doing here." * Jinx laughs outright. "You send me to do your negotiating and you're not a betting man. Right..." He continues to chuckle as he heads out the door. "I'll go get Lighting, meet you back here." * Mikoto nods. "To you too. Here's hoping." * Fanfan waves at Jinx in acknowledgement and nods to Mikoto as she heads upstairs. * Mikoto heads out the door to track down a smokesignal person. (... So who's still in there?) ( Mr. Banana. ) (*tosses Fanfan out the window.) ( * Fanfan lands safely! With the magic of ACRO! ) (Mikoto, body roll -2.) 2d6-2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Mikoto (2d6-2) and gets 7. [Mikoto runs into a cowboy as he starts to go through the door! He doesn't fall over or anything, though.] * Mikoto blinks, taking a step backward and looking up. "Excuse me." (It's Roy! The lost Rogers brother.) [The man squints down at Mikoto for a moment. He's been through a rough spots - nose is a little crooked, a tooth is missing, but other than that, he looks all right. A repeating rifle's slung over his back and a wakizashi is at his side. "Ain't that convenient."] * Mikoto raises an eyebrow. "I'm sorry?" ( Scariest. Thing. Ever. If Zeg actually created him I'd cry. ) ["Just have a message for ya and a couple of other people." He looks over Mikoto (haha, short!) and spots Jinx, then brushes by him and walks over.] * Jinx looks over at the guy. "Uh huh?" * Mikoto blinks, stepping to the side and then turning to watch this, walking after the man but not asking any questions, since he clearly wants to talk to a westerner. ["Millie Reinhart? Yeah. She said she's takin' the train after all, and if you need to contact her, send smoke her way." He shrugs. "Figured you'd know what it meant."] ... * Jinx nods. "Thanks." He hands the guy a $5 piece. [He takes it and heads out!] * Jinx shrugs and goes back to getting Lightning. * Mikoto sighs and rubs his temples, deciding to stay where he is. "Not much point in sending the message now." [Session End! Hoo hah.]