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Post by Spinister on Jul 1, 2010 19:39:27 GMT -5
Spinister stares down at the body and then over at the injured woman, wondering if he has to report this. Is this woman even working for Mother Theron? Does that even matter? Will she actually help K'ire or just speed her towards death?
It's just a shame that no part of Spinister knows enough to make a sparkly vampire comment.
Well, okay, the medic looks to be bleeding out, but Spinister is just going to have to assume that the medic is supposed to be here, if she knows her way around the fridge. An imposter wouldn't know about the fridge that what much ease. Spinister hopes. So, he grudgingly creeps in, avoiding the wet on the floor as best he can - trying to avoid leaving footprints at all, and he lays K'ire down, staring at the medic, his rifle still in his left hand.
He asks, "How much do you know?" and he gestures vaguely with the rifle.
Mother Theron moves up a notch in Singe's estimation. It doesn't mean he likes her - quite the opposite. It's just that using people is very, very Decepticon. Singe climbs onto the arm of Kup's sofa, trying to peer at the papers himself. No way he wants to let Kup hog all the intel!
K'ire was on Blight, wasn't she? Back in the day.
So maybe Weveil was worried about being next, but...
Singe says bluntly, "Jill is dying while we sit here and have tea. Can we get to the point?"
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Post by SceneMod on Jul 2, 2010 20:34:03 GMT -5
Temple of Shards
The folder of information is actually much, much more thorough then any of the information Pritie gave them. It includes exact locations of where almost every victim was found- all within a mile radius of an old, abandoned meat packing plant. It also includes a notation that the plant is actually privately owned, not a corporate throwaway, but the property records for it are sealed, so exactly who owns it isn't known. There are even some negatives, which when held to the light will prove to be crime scene photos. Very graphic, very nasty, very unsettling crime scene photos. The kind that would break a PG-13 rating. In many cases the person was tortured to such an extent that there are literally no identifying facial features. Some victims are missing limbs, or giant chunks of flesh. There are also originals of CSI reports, medical examiner reports, DNA and fingerprint ID confirmations where applicable...whatever sources Jill had, they were very, very good ones- and probably very expensive ones, as well.
The look Mother Theron levels on Singe at his comment is not a pretty look, and really drives home the idea that she's from a predatory species. She's looking at the Nebulan like he might make a tasty snack.
But the look only lasts a second or two, and then her eyes close as she settles back into her chair. "Not yet," she mutters, "Not too many hours left, but not yet. You're right on one thing though; there's no more need to waste time. You've got all the information available now. It just remains to see if you can actually use it."
"Blight is the common name for a variety of drug offshoots from the military weapons cocktail of the same name. Was originally designed to heighten sight, hearing and smell, while dulling down pain receptors to almost nil. It was considered a success until the Spec Ops guys that were in the trials began to decay from the inside out if they didn't get regular doses, starting with any point of insertion or application of the drug. I forget which planet it originated on...."
"At any rate, it was scratched as an enhancer and turned into a weapon, one that was one-hit addictive as well as possessive of increased entropic properties. I hear there are even bullets that can act as carriers for it, but I've never seen it used like that here. The derivatives that made it to Pz-Zazz are the medical grade, and the gutter mix. The street stuff has been tweaked to provide heightened tactile sensation as well as the other senses, along with numbing the mind. It's why the prostitutes get hooked on it more often then not; easier to be enthusiastic with a john when every touch feels good, easier not to consider what she's doing to herself when she can't feel anything in the head." Her hands are gripping her cup a little too tightly. "Anything else?"
Rookery Safehouse
The medic doesn't sparkle, she's just fashionably pale, like all proper vampires!
"I know that you just yanked some Family dear to Mama out of one of the damned Enders's hospitals. I can tell that the girl's half dead by listening to her breathing and her heartbeat, and her blood smells sour. She's been shot full of stims and hypnotics, no pain killers, and she's been getting a continuous supply of med grade Blight." A pause, a tilt of the head, "And she has a pacemaker which she shouldn't have."
The medic swears in a Chthonic langauge before draining the bag and reaching for another bag. She turns and moves toward K'ire, completely ignoring the rifle pointed at her by Spinster. Unless stopped, she starts to set up a transfusion rig. She keeps talking as she works.
"I also know that a tac team just busted in here, killed Mort, and tried to kill me. Thank Goddess I'm a Setite, or they'd have ruined more than a pair of perfect breasts. If she didn't need attention now we'd be getting the hell out of Sin, instead of hoping they don't come back after you and your little cyborg rifle-man."
She grins grimly at Spinister, fangs glinting in the dim light. "So be on the listen. I'm gonna be distracted for awhile." She then sets to work on trying to stabilize K'ire.
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Post by Kup on Jul 2, 2010 21:22:55 GMT -5
Kup glares up at Mother Theron. "Why wasn't this stuff given to us from the start?" Then he waves his hand absently and puts the folder what Singe can see the contents. "Nevermind. I'm sure you got some convoluted justification that'll just piss me off more."
He shakes his head. "At this point, I'm pretty leery of any place that's got a big sign pointing to it sayin' 'Check here,' but considering what we had to go through to find that sign..." He shrugs. "It's probably another damn trap."
His lips pull back into a smile. It's not a pleasant smile. In fact, it's downright vicious.
"Good thing the condition of the mark for this one wasn't specified." Because at this point, Kup is doubting that he'll be able to leave anything recognizable.
He reaches for the folder again. As soon as Singe is done looking over it, he'll grab it and stuff it into subspace.
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Post by Spinister on Jul 3, 2010 22:24:02 GMT -5
Spinister does not stop the medic, but his head tilts at the mention of a pacemaker, but Hairsplitter gives him a reference frame. It's an electrical device to keep a heart beating, a heart being like a fuel pump but often more important. Oh. The blasted thing is probably radio controlled to remote-trigger K'ire's death if the killer feels like it and also to monitor her location. Spinister inquires, "Can you remove the pacemaker without killing her? Could be a tracker or a killswitch."
Blegh, stupid organics, having messy slop that they need to keep inside and getting infected so easily. Spinister doesn't know how Hairsplitter and Singe stand it.
I somehow get by, boss.
Not a lot of signs of a struggle, but the way the bullet holes line up, ah... "...you played dead? Any idea why they came after you?"
However, she's asked Spinister to listen, but what he really does better is watch. He transforms to his helicopter mode on the floor, where his sensors are the very best, not tendering any explanation.
This whole thing does smell like an inside job, because the very 'safehouse' he was directed to is so very bad compromised. Perhaps that church father? K'ire mentioned a 'he'.
And then it hits him that those snipers didn't miss at all.
Oh.
Singe looks through the files second-hand as Kup pages through them, his expression pretty blank, thoughtfully intent if anything. Finally, he muses to Kup, "Think the victims were alive through all of that or if some of the mutilation happened post-mortem?" When that much flesh is removed, shock alone could kill, and then there's blood loss... and Singe doesn't even know if it matters or not, though it does say something about the style of the killer.
He bets she isn't actually going to send anyone to check that abandoned meat packing plant, because she's got some 'compassionate' idiots to go spring any traps there for her, which just burns Singe up, though not literally. Frag her and the horse she rode in on; he's got a nuclear reactor for a heart and contains more of the daily dose of weapons grade plutonium than anyone needs.
Singe chatters up at Kup, rudely switching to Idyllic Stanixian, "The safehouse she sent Spinister to just had a tac team go through it that killed one of the medics and wounded the other. Reeks of an inside job. K'ire's hopped up on Blight and has a device implanted in her that she oughtn't."
And Spinister, a part of him, is dying, and Singe can't do a damn thing about it right now, but Spinister does get his fool self killed, there'll be a nuclear pyre for a funeral.
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Post by SceneMod on Jul 3, 2010 23:57:18 GMT -5
Temple of Shards
Mother Theron sips her tea. (Does that cup every empty?) By now the duo might have figured out that she uses the motion to give time to school her expression.
"Because the idiots who hired you didn't have it, obviously. I dislike being a step behind the curve, and that's where I've been this whole mess. It took me entirely too long to track down where Jill hid all her research. I barely had it together before you showed up here." Another sip. "Didn't even really look over it. What little I've said and know is stuff that Jill mentioned to me, time to time."
Her eyes narrow as Singe pointedly switches to a language she doesn't understand, but she doesn't protest.
"You two can show yourself out."
Rookery Safehouse
The medic blinks as Spinister turns into a helicopter.
"Well. That's different."
In short order she has K'ire hooked up to monitoring equipment as well as what seems to be a dialysis rig of some sort. The clinic isn't tricked out like a proper ER would be, but it has some interesting equipment, for sure. In short order, K'ire's blood is being filtered through the equipment.
The vampire adds first one syringe into the mix then another. K'ire, who even in her faint has looked stiff and pained, finally seems to relax, though her eyes still don't open. The medic smooths a hand over the girl's forehead and sighs.
"Even if I were equipped to do a major surgery like that here, I couldn't even consider doing it until she was stronger. Yeah, what's in her might kill her if it stays. But trying to take it out now will definitely kill her."
She moves over to another cabinet and starts to pull out several supplies. They get piled onto a cart, and then she moves to another cabinet, this one with a keypad lock. She hesitates, looks at Spinister, and then punches in the code. She plucks out a few vials, the liquid shimmering in the odd lighting.
"Name's Inanna. And yeah, I played dead. Most vamps would be dead or at the least in torpor with their heart exploded, after all. Goddess knows why they came here or what's going on with you. Politics, most likely." She makes a face at that idea. "I just patch people up."
"I have to get all that mess filtered out of her blood before I can even attempt to deal with the Blight effects on her body. I've given her a bit of a pain killer and a sedative. I wouldn't normally. But whatever version they pumped her up with...it's aggressive, more so than what I'm used to dealing with. I just hope the normal treatments work." Inanna checks on K'ire, sets the vials on the table, then moves to stand in front of the helicopter.
"You want me to take a look at it?"
Yeah, you still smell like death, Spinister.
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Post by Kup on Jul 4, 2010 19:43:06 GMT -5
Kup scowls as he tucks the folder into subspace. "They're prolly alive as long as that sicko can keep 'em that way," he growls.
He looks up at Mother Theron and shrugs. "Yeah, I can show myself out. You got some leaks to plug, anyway." With that, he turns and strides towards the door.
OOC: Skippable to allow for a time-delay when heading for the warehourse/let Spinister get caught up.
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Post by Spinister on Jul 5, 2010 0:22:29 GMT -5
Spinister tenders no explanation. Yes, he is different. His species does not seem to naturally exist in this reality. He files away her information on vampire killing and notes that if he ever needs to kill her, he shouldn't go for the torso.
He rises back up into robot mode, where the bullet wounds are, crumbly-edged, and he gestures at them, inquiring, "You do robots?"
Spinister needs to know much time he has left. Singe is with Kup, and Spinister is very fast. There is obviously a treatment, though it may be uncertain. Spinister may have days before he needs to worry overly much. He might have seconds.
Inanna played dead. That's kind of... it reminds Spinister of... Spinister wishes he could call Needlenose, but the whole blasted planet seems to be compromised.
Singe does call as he departs, "Just one last thing. I need a list of everyone who knew about that 'safehouse' you sent Spinister to."
This freaking room is probably bugged, if Mother Theron is on the level or maybe even if she isn't, unless that safehouse was just hit due to close proximity to Angels of Entropy, but still, the location had to be spoiled somehow.
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Post by SceneMod on Jul 5, 2010 9:41:21 GMT -5
Temple of Shards
Mother Theron doesn't turn to watch the duo leave. At Singe's request, she snorts.
"Too many. It's a clinic for those who for whatever reason don't want to call attention to themselves; most of our operatives know of it, and our others."
Operative. Interesting word choice.
Rookery Safehouse
Inanna shrugs, "Technologicals aren't my specialty, but we have too many of them running around for me not to be able to treat them. What is my specialty is Blight addiction and damage." She smirks a bit, not missing the grim humor in a being whose very existence spits in the face of entropy knowing how to deal with an entropic drug.
She cocks her head, listening for a moment to K'ire's vitals and to the machinery before kneeling next to Spinster. Gently, she checks the bullet burns, saying nothing, her expression schooled to professional neutrality. At length, she rises and moves toward another cabinet.
Her chest is almost completely healed up now, by the way.
"Will you let me take some readings? You're a species I'm not familiar with; even your basic construction materials smell odd, so it's hard for me to know what your baselines are. If you aren't comfortable with that, I'll do my best without."
She takes a few instruments out of the cabinet and continues, "Same type of Blight the hospital used on K'ire, but adjusted for robotic systems. I recognize those markers, at least. It doesn't seem to be as aggressive as what was used on her, but that could be because of your unique makeup."
"Have you noticed any changes in your perceptions or senses since getting hit?"
OOC: Spinster may have noticed, to varying degrees and intensities, an increase in his visual acuity (including his various sensor arrays), an increase in tactile sensitivity, and he might eventually find his hearing to sensitive just below the the point of pain. Also, if he thought he had steady hands before? Yeah, he's a rock.
Basically, it's like the sniper got hopped up on an instant sniper drug, and it magnified everything one hundred fold. However, given that it's just a generic robotic mix, not one geared for Cybertronians, effectiveness and speed may vary.
Systems-wise, he'd have some slight numbing spreading out from the burns, and the whole area might feel...fragile, so to speak.
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Post by Spinister on Jul 5, 2010 22:57:07 GMT -5
Singe takes his parting shot, "Better say a few extra prayers for Mort, sister," and he's gone, trotting after Kup.
Spinister considers his options. She could be lying, but, gnn... He pulls out a datapad and says roughly, "These are my baseline readings." He gestures.
A good airport scanner could give anyone these kind of readings, and she can hopefully check what he has now against what he should have. It's not like he's showing her the fake schematics he knows the Decepticons medics, and he never shows anyone his real schematics.
Spinister takes a moment to focus himself, to really think about what is happening to him and not feel, and he realises that he's already doing that. He looks at his hands, they're not shaking at all. They never shake. If they were shaking that would actually be a relief.
This is the kind of poison that Spinister would never notice, because it's just making him more himself. And making his armour more fragile. That too.
He hisses out lowly, angry with himself, "I didn't notice, but now that you mention it..."
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Post by SceneMod on Jul 5, 2010 23:38:22 GMT -5
Inanna takes the datapad, though she does give Spinister a questioning look. Cagey fellow. She hooks up a wand into the pad, a wand which...really does look a lot like an handheld airport scanner. Slowly, and with practiced moves, she takes her scans. Once done, she sets the datapad and wand down on a cart.
"Hold on, I need to adjust the settings on the dialysis machine."
She does that, and also seems to be giving K'ire another once over. Inanna frowns and smooths the girl's hair off her forehead.
"She had a terrible time coming off it once before," the medic murmurs softly, "It isn't something people tend to survive leaving behind twice. That's why you're not supposed to treat a former addict with the medgrade."
She turns back to Spinister. "It's an aggressive form, but your systems seem to be resisting it. You're made of some pretty interesting stuff. You've got a few days at least before it hits anything vital, I think, unless something happens to increase the spread."
"And you are dialed up pretty high, but based on your baselines, and your reaction to my question, I bet you wouldn't have noticed if I hadn't asked. Well, at least until you got hurt again."
The medic pauses, again looking hesitant. One hand touches the three vials she pulled from the cabinet earlier.
"Continual use, like of a medgrade version, will stop and reverse the decay. But the longer you're on it, the more often you'll need a hit, and the more aggressive the decay will be between. Your option."
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Post by Spinister on Jul 6, 2010 20:16:41 GMT -5
Spinister will be very perturbed if K'ire dies, after all the trouble he's taken. He's already annoyed that she is sedated. If only these people were robots, he could just throw them all in a mind leech and pull the data he needs right out of their minds... not that the Decepticons have a mind leech right now, which makes Spinister sad.
Spinister makes a face, as much as he can, given the mask, when she tells him that the treatment... is the poison, and he sputters, "But that'll just turn me into an addict! And I can't take drugs on the job, anyway," not that it stops anyone here, but still. "Can I just hack that part out and walk around with a gaping hole in my side?"
Please, please tell Spinister that this nonsense hasn't gone systemic.
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Post by SceneMod on Jul 6, 2010 23:10:29 GMT -5
She stares at Spinister for a moment.
"No. No you may not. It's systemic. And sorry to break it to you, pal, but you're already an addict. First dose, it'll be at least twelve hours-unless something spikes your metabolism- before you start to crash and burn. But you'll still crash and burn."
She snaps off her gloves and runs her hand through her black hair. "I can get you off it, but you can't start the treatment procedure until you're system's purged the drug fully, which means you have to go through a crash. I'm offering the dug because you...seem to be in the middle of something, and it will keep you from dying in the meantime. Just in case I'm wrong about the acting speed."
"What I'm doing for her will help, but she'll still have to crash before we can restart the detox process. It's just...the way that mess works."
She slips on a fresh pair of gloves, grabs some cloth and tools and then kneels next to Spinster. "I'm going to at least clean, debride and seal these. Exposure to air at the initial site has been known to speed the decay."
If Spinister allows, she does just that.
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Post by Spinister on Jul 7, 2010 14:19:11 GMT -5
Spinister stares back at Inanna. What?
He groans unhappily as she informs him he's already an addict, and he asks, "Crash and burn? Could you be more specific?" For all that Spinister says the words, that's Hairsplitter speaking. Crash and burn is bad when one is a helicopter with brittle blades!
He does let her work on his wounds. As she works. Spinister asks, "If I wanted to take one of those vials later, do I need to shoot myself with it or what?"
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Post by SceneMod on Jul 7, 2010 16:52:35 GMT -5
The medic talks as she works.
"Well, withdrawal varies from person to person. Some people have more of a mental crash, because they can't deal with the abrupt change from having their awareness being so open to it being back to normal."
"Some have physical reactions- shakes, sweats, sickness, general malaise."
"But they all crash, and crash hard. I've...never known a person to actually not go back to Blight once they hit that first withdrawal, not unless they're in the detox program. Crash and burn is just street speak for suffering through the withdrawal."
Done with cleaning the wounds, she starts to seal them with a liquid bandage of sorts, one designed to bond to metals. It may sting a bit.
She looks up at Spinister, "Look, as soon as I have her stabilized, I'm moving her to a more secure-and better equipped- facility. You, er... I'd have to get special permissions for you to come with."
OOC: We can keep going, but this might be a good time to let Spinister catch back up with Kup.
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Post by Spinister on Jul 7, 2010 19:31:39 GMT -5
"Not lethal?" Spinister inquires, because that is the most important thing. In the most nonchalant, unbothered tone in the world, he adds, "'kay. I'll have my boyfriend chain me down 'til I get over it."
Finding chains that will actually hold Spinister will be difficult, but Needlenose is admirably clever when he wants to be, and the mental exercise will do Needlenose some good.
Spinister looks over her work and apparently finds it satisfactory, concluding, "Thanks, but no thanks. I have to find Jill and kill some people. Maybe not in that order. Say..." he tilts his head, "...who all knows about this place?"
Worth a shot, to see if Inanna and Mother Theron are playing the same game.
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