IAV Ranjit: "New Vegas Roulette"

[Imza Tsenko]

THIS was her kinda town!

Imza Tsenko hiked her brigh orange bag a little higher on her shoulder, careful to sidestep the prostitutes and pick-pockets that lined the Strip. The neon lights blasted the skies of New Las Vegas like a nuclear blast, illuminating the mad oasis on the edge of a wild desert.

"I'm a party girl, in a party world!" The little gypsy performer mis-sang as she headed for the hotel casino where she'd been requested. There was a pink edge of guilt for leaving The Dancer for so long, but she was leaving the ship in tip-top shape, and they were just making a routine run for Fanty and Mingo, after all. Gwen had been awesome about it, actually encouraging Imza to take the gig. It was only for a week, the Captain had said, and they'd pick her back up on their way through.

But it was what was behind their eyes when they waved goodbye, the words they didn't say, that made her hesitate. 'Forget about Preston,' their eyes said. 'He was too good for you anyway. Go, party, dance, make some coin, and when you come back to the ship, he'll be away on Jiangyin, and everything he left behind will be gone, maybe even how you feel right now.'

They were sending her on a charity run to mend her broken heart. No. Not broken. It was just a little cracked, like a bruised rib- It only hurt when she breathed.

A singer in pink illuminated sparkly tights leaped in front of Imza, singing "Vegas, Baby" and she laughed in spite of her pathetic ruminations. Straightening her shoulders, she regained her step and trotted up the wide marble steps of The Blue Diamond Casino.

Strolling directly to the front desk, Imza blew a huge pink bubble and turned backwards so that she was looking up at the Guest Services Representative, "The Incredible Imza!" Her gum popped with a snap and she grinned, "I have a reservation. And drop Deliono a message that I've arrived, will ya?"

OOC: Welcome, Ranjit-ers, to an all new adventure! ;)

[Jenni Wan]

Sixth Floor: Room 610

Jenni watched the two screens in front of her with eyes that never wavered and barely blinked. The two glowing screens were broken into four frames each, tapped directly from the hotel's security feed.

Elegantly beautiful as always, the assassin was in work-mode, black hair slicked into a pony-tail, simple black wrap-style dress offering comfort and modesty. Tsenko had arrived. That part of the plan went ahead a pace.

In another screen, Deliono was moving across the casino floor, headed for the grande entrance and the reception desk, where Tsenko was, even now, gathering her key and luggage together.

Covering two more of the boxes, the cavernous convention hall was a chaotic ballista of action, electrical sytems firing here and there, tables and chairs flying, boxes stacking everywhere as the mule-crew set up the annual festival of all things Technology. Tech-Mania: a rabid festival of geeks and freaks all trying to prove their latest toy was the greatest toy.

And above it all, the waving banners of Blue Sun Technology division declared their dominion over the kingdom. Their central pavillion was cloaked in silver cloth, completely hiding the goings-on from curious on-lookers. Jenni's gaze trickled over it, taking it in as a mother takes in her playing child.

Across from Blue Sun Technology waved the brown and orange banner of Iskellian Tech. Their pavillion, smaller perhaps, but no less imposing than Blue Sun's, was also tented, in plain white that made their dull coloured banners seem to spangle brightly on the simple background.

Blue Sun and Iskellian were rumoured to each be unveiling their own versions of virtual reality headsets. Oh, VR games had been around forever, and the headsets available were excellent, but both Blue Sun and Iskellian claimed to have taken the sets one step further... into the very mind of the player themselves.

The last screen on her page had nothing to do with the hotel, and Jenni nodded slowly as that feed gave her the last bit of information that she needed.

Jenni glanced over her screens one more time, confirming that all was in place, then tapped her headset, opening the channel to the man moving across her second screen, "Deal? We're on. Put your girl in place. And give her my best wishes."

[Blake]

He went for the wool dress coat that night. It seemed like leather might be out of place, but it was too cold--for him anyway--to be without a jacket. As soon as he had landed on Santo, he had found an open network and send a wave to his wife, reassuring her that he had gotten there alright.

"Just stay safe, okay? I don't know why you had to take a job on the Rim. Desk job would have been just as fine. And less dangerous."

"I know, bao bei. I promise that I will do everything within my power to come back safe to you and our kid, alright?"

The woman on the screen smiled. It brightened up her face and made her look 10 years younger. "You promised it, Officer Powers. Now hold to it."

He smiled back before nodding. "I will, Juliana."

As Blake thought about it now, he wasn't completely sure why he had taken a Rim job either. He knew there was enough "action" on the core worlds, it wasn't as if he had to come out here to search for it. Maybe it had something to do with what his father had said to him once, about needing to live a little before settling down completely.

Good a reason as any, he guessed.

With a slightly quickened step, he made his way into the casino, pausing at one of the shops within to stare at a pair of earrings. They would look nice on his wife....

....five minutes later, he walked out with a lovely pair of earrings on their way to Sihnon and much less money than before in his pocketbook. He might have once payed slots or cards to win it back, but he was here waiting for the Ranjit and thus is almost official capacity. Wouldn't do to be seen gambling as a member of the Alliance Patrol.

He sat near the front desk and waited instead.

[Deliono]

"Deal? We're on. Put your girl in place. And give her my best wishes."

Deliono strolled off the casino floor, through the faux marble corridor and into the wide, well-lit reception area. Tsenko was at the desk: He recognized her instantly. A few patrons were in line, and a few others waiting for cabs, or bellhops, or hookers, or just waiting for luck, were lounged in the chairs and sofas that broke the reception area into seperate seating sections.

His old attire of black t-shirt and black slacks, so crisp and efficient and comfortable, had altered slightly. Over the usual, he now wore a dark grey pocketed blazer. That it was tailored with ballistic material in the lining featured less in Deal's wardrobe selection than the pockets, in which his still-bandaged right hand now rested, hiding his remaining three fingers and thumb from public view.

"Miss Tsenko." Deal extended his left hand to the gypsy wayfarer, "Welcome." The casino manager took advantage of her powerful shake to pass off the earpiece cupped in his palm. Glancing over the nearby patrons, he gave her a warm wink and raised his voice for the advantage of any eavesdroppers, "Congratulations on winning our Vegas Highlight Package. I hope you'll enjoy your vacation stay, and if there's anything we can do to make your stay more pleasant, don't hesitate to ask."

"Thankee, Mister Deliono. Lookin' forward to the party." The slight dark creature winked back, using the excuse of taming wayward curls to she slip the earpiece in.

"Enjoy yourself." He gave her a parting wink and a warm smile. She had changed a bit since he'd last known her, this procurer of artifacts, lover of adventure. There was something in her eyes, something steadier, calmer. Perhaps, Deal thought to himself, she was just getting older. Like they all were.

A last glance over the room, eyes briefly lighting on the man in the wool coat, lounging in a wide chair. Alliance? Deal shrugged it away... Even cops needed to vacation. And their money was as good as, (and their credit slightly better) than most other folk.

It was lookin' to be a good day indeed.


It had been arranged with Snap and Pain that Deal was gonna lose a finger for screwing up the Kasern deal, (and for hurting Melissa! BASTARD!) but when Snap left we dropped playing it out. I took his finger anyway. 'cause, he deserved it!

[Kendrick Rayner]

Ken sat patiently on a bench outside in the heat.
"Why am I stuck on this rock of all places waiting for the Ranjit and her crew."
Ken sat there thinking. He had been staring at a little black box in his hand for the past two hours in the blazing heat. He only opened it twice to look at the gold necklace that had a large red sapphire. It even had matching earrings.
"Well what am I going to do now? I don't think ill be seeing pew anytime soon. Gorramit my luck has definitely turned just not for the better."
He patiently looked around to see if he recognized anyone from the roster photos he had been staring at the entire trip here. He stood in his fatigues and looked around his pack on his shoulder and his pistol at his side he really didn't look like someone to mess with if you just judged him by his gear but his demeanor said otherwise.
"Well I suppose I should go see if they've docked yet."

This post has been edited by Kendrick Rayner on Apr 27 2010, 09:00 PM

[Lt. Pratt]

Lt. Pratt, dressed casually in black slacks, a loose woven pale blue button-down short-sleeved shirt and his ever-present white-soled sneakers in a matching shade of pale blue, strolled off the ship. Over his shoulder hung a simple black overnight bag. His eyes, shaded with stylish red-tinted sunglasses, scanned the docks.

"Rayner, I take it?" He greeted with a smile, "Stow your gear and get changed. We're U.C. on this one. "

Turning to the others, he gave them a grin, "Okay, we arrive in ones and twos, nothing suspicious, nothing out of order. Rayner, Roth? We're doing the Guys Bachelor Party. When we get there, we meet up with Blake. I booked us a suite on the tenth floor and we'll use that as base of operations."

"McFinn? Czesky? You two are one cute tech-geeky couple just lookin' to check out the new bling from Blue. You're registered at the convention under the name Mickelson. Feel free to wing it, but keep us apprised of any developments."

Pratt ended his directions with a grin and a wink, "I'm taking a taxi over. Everyone feel free to find their way."


-------------
Fifteen minutes later, Commander Pratt was rolling through the casino doors, stripping off his sunglasses with a flourish. Spotting Blake, sprawled in a lobby chair, he headed directly for him, "Heya, man! Long time no see!" thrusting out his hand, he fired the good cop a familiar grin, hoping that he picked up the cue and rolled with it, "Great to see ya."

Cupped in the palm of the hand he extended was an earwig com-unit. "I'll get us checked in and we can start celebrating!"


OOC: EVERYONE SHOULD FEEL FREE TO POST AT THE CASINO WHEN READY. Jax, just gm Nadine along. She'll roll with whatever you come up with. Anyone has any questions PM E. :)

[Blake]

Blake stared at the people coming in and leaving, some happily carrying more than they came with, but all leaving with far less than they had hoped. He smiled a bit when one man came in with two others. One of the others was wearing fatigues and looked too much like an old hand in the military to be anything else. He did looked a bit young though. Then again, most people looked young to him. Including the man who was coming towards...oh, hey, that was Pratt.

He tilted his head and stared at him as he came closer. "Heya, man! Long time no see! Great to see ya."

The cop took the offered hand and palmed the ear wig unit in his own before performing the time honored tradition of males everywhere: the man hug. You know the one, with the hand holding and the back slapping before pulling away. "You old hwoon dahn! You said that you had something planned, but I didn't know it was gonna be this good! Whatever you do, don't tell the wife, alright? Blake grinned, as though remembering a years old joke that he was actually only coming up with on the spot.

Thinking on his feet. He could do it, just maybe not the best.

The hand with the earwig in it went into his pocket where he dropped the tech, but left the hand there. He would put it in later when it wasn't so obvious.

[Geraldine Freya]

Geraldine had followed the rest of the team off the ship. Pausing for a moment, she put on a black coat over her evening dress, picked out for her role. She watched the captain then. He had really fixed up now. Well, he was generally a good looking man but it was true what they said about people looking a lot better when they dressed up.

"Okay, we arrive in ones and twos, nothing suspicious, nothing out of order. Rayner, Roth? We're doing the Guys Bachelor Party. When we get there, we meet up with Blake. I booked us a suite on the tenth floor and we'll use that as base of operations."
"McFinn? Czesky? You two are one cute tech-geeky couple just lookin' to check out the new bling from Blue. You're registered at the convention under the name Mickelson. Feel free to wing it, but keep us apprised of any developments.""

Alright, so ones and twos, the captain instructed. The blond nodded to this and continued to as he made sure to point out that nothing should be suspicious or out of order. Alright, she got that.

"I'm taking a taxi over. Everyone feel free to find their way."

Gerry couldn't let out a smile as she heard him say what he said. A taxi was definitely an option, she said holding her small purse for that matched her dress. "Well then, I'll be doing the same. Anyone wants to come with?" She said with a soft smile as she looked at the rest of the crew as she called for one. She wouldn't mind going in on her own but if anyone of the ones joining her wanted to follow her, she was more then fine by it.

[Kendrick Rayner]

"Rayner, I take it?" He greeted with a smile, "Stow your gear and get changed. We're U.C. on this one. "

" Yes Sir"
Ken promptly stowed his gear on ship and immediately changed into his civvie outfit. ”looks like first mission would be trial bye fire” Ken thought. Since he didn’t know many of the crew he would ave to rely on instincts and his sharp mind. He grabbed his undercover badge and his jacket holster and pistol. He never went unarmed into a rough and tumble sitch and this looked like one right out of the play book with everything well concealed. He relaxed and prepped his mind for the work ahead, a bachelor party. He put on his best smug face and walked into the hotel looking for Blake.

About twenty minutes later, Ken promptly strolled through the doors. He looked around with a smirk and spotted Commander Pratt and Blake in the lobby. Ken waved at Blake once he recognized him and smiled. He jogged to him and flopped down on a couch next to him.
" Man am I looking forward to tonight." Ken said exuberantly

[IAV Ranjit]

ADMIN PLOT PROGRESS:

The opening night of Tech Con has begun, the first browsers hastening in to peruse the offerings and gather in anticipation of the unveiling of the latest, greatest technologies. Among them, Nadine Czesky and Bobby McFinn stroll in tech-geek heaven. The air is filled with excitement on this first night of the three day extravaganza of all things wired.

Only the Blue Sun booth is quiet. A few wares are on display on front tables, and a handful of scantily clad blue-painted ladies prance about modeling the latest in wearable computers (and little else), but the pavillion itself remains cloaked in secrecy. Here and there a scientist or technician wearing a Blue Sun logo'd slips in, or a suited executive flashes an ID badge to gain admittance, but no regular purveyer of goods can catch so much as a glimpse behind the curtains.


In the hotel's open floor bar/casino, Roth, Blake, Kendrick, and Pratt are 'bacheloring' it up. Upstairs in the suite reserved for them the Ranjit's top men were all caught up on the mission and those involved in it, and surveillance equipment established. The drinks are cold, the ladies are hot and the blackjack tables are hotter, gentlemen. Just try not to forget why you're here. ;)

Wade, Dinah and Freya have arrived by taxicab, dressed to the nines and ready to play, but whether that involves the slot-machines or the poor soulless lads who's heads turn to watch their grand entrance remains to be seen.

I'll drop a short series of posts, and then we'll be good to go, kids!

The stage is set, and the players have taken their marks

[Nadine Czesky]

Nadine edged through the convention hall, noting that it wasn't as crowded as she'd expected. Still, it was only the first night. Many attendees were just arriving in town, and even more were probably enjoying a night out on the town.

Unsure what to wear for going undercover at a tech-convention, she'd finally given up and gone with her regular civilian clothes. Black denim jeans, a slightly over-sized black t-shirt with the Med-Acad Osiris seal embroidered on the left chest, and comfortable thick-soled brown leather shoes made up her outfit. Her smart-lenses were acting up and she'd had to wear her clunky old plastic-framed student glasses at the last minute.

She had no idea that she fit right in with the rest of the crowd.

Pausing to pick up a flyer from a booth announcing new breakthrough in graphics-interfaces, she glanced sidelong at Bobby, wondering what he was thinking about. She hadn't really had the chance to chat with him since BJ had arrived. Of course not, he's got his family here. That's far more important that spending time with you. "Hey, Bobby?" Her gaze trailed to the huge covered pavillion, and across from it, the lower but still impressive tent of Iskellian Tech, "If anything here's worth stealing, I'm guessing it's gonna be up there, not down here with the minor players."

She snagged a button that read 'WIRED 2B GOOD' from a booth displaying ceramic hard-line tech and pinned it to his chest with a teasing smile, "I'm wired to be bad, myself, but that probably doesn't sell cable. What do you say we get closer to the big Blue?"

[Lt. Pratt]

Pratt wrangled his way through the casino with Kendrick and Blake, keeping an eye out for Roth. The three ladies of the Ranjit strolling trhough the door turned heads in their outfits, and Pratt, acting the frat-boy, gave them a wolf-whistle as they passed. He'd pay for that later from both Dinah and Wade, he reckoned.

Spotting the casino's manager, Pratt hid his interest by dropping a few tokens into a slot machine and letting it spin. Activating his com, he muttered under the ringing bells and clanging tokens, "That's Deliono, there by the craps tables. Blake? See if you can get closer. I'll edge in from this side. I'm betting he's com'd, maybe we can jack his channel."

[PFC Wade]

Wade walked between Freya and Dinah, striving to imitate their elegant long strides, the confident tilt of their heads, the way they moved so effortlessly, with so much class.


She was trying.

But this gorram stupid tiny black dress kept slipping its spagetti-gose straps down off her shoulders, and she felt like her bosom, (not that it was a BIG bosom, by any means), was just hanging out there like a gas cloud on a red-giant, and the ridiculously tiny handgun in her useless handbag was HARDLY what could be called a weapon, and the lacy panties were riding up, and the silky stockings felt like they were slipping down, and she was gonna trip over these stupid heels and break her neck!

Her dark hair was loose and down around her face. If things got ugly, how was she supposed to fight with HAIR in her eyes? The glitzy jewellry on her ears and around her neck and wrists felt like it weighed a ton- and it didn't even have explosives or poison in it at all.

They strolled through the doors and onto the casino floor, and Wade looked to her two role-models with a smile she didn't feel. She felt, really, like stripping off these stupid clothes and shooting something, especially that idiot who wolf-whistled at them! (She couldn't see who it was through the cloud of fine hair clouding her peripheral vision., but if she could see 'em, she'd shoot em!) "So, we're here! What do we do? Play a game? Or get drinks?"


Or go back to the ship, put on real clothes, and get some real work done!

[Maxwell Edison Roth]

Roth sat at the low-stakes blackjack table in his best suit, a solid black silk affair with a vibrant red tie. Not only was it arguably the most expensive clothes he owned outside of his tactical gear, it also comfortably concealed two backup pieces. To the cop’s consternation, he had only these two firearms on him at the moment, as Pratt had been adamament that he leave his Silver Hammer and service piece in the room, citing their overconspicuous nature. Some nonsense about a grenade launcher not fitting in with the whole ‘bachelor on vacation’ guise he was to uphold on the mission. He had also told Maxwell not to drink, an order he immediately took to mean that he must drink…to maintain his cover.

So he sat at center seat, playing the table slow. The small line of credit he had been extended for the op by the alliance had grown by a two hundred credits already. But he was also getting rapidly bored with this stratagem, and as the dealer shuffled the deck he put a fair amount of chips on the board, a hundred and twenty-five credits, drawing looks from some of the other players. The disturbingly overattractive dealer smiled enticingly at him. She had milky skin, shoulder length dark hair, curves in every right place, and luminous eyes that seemed designed to make a man forget what they were doing for a moment. The name printed on her tag threw him as unsuited to her beauty though.

I mean, what kind of parent saddles their progeny with a name like Faye anyways?

The cards were dealt out with smooth precision. Max twisted his glass in his coaster as a king and six came out. The dealer was showing a five. While the other players had their turns, Max took a moment to see if he could spot Deliono at the craps tables a few aisles over, as Pratt had pointed out. However, being seated as he was, no such luck. As much he hated to admit it, a change of scenery was in order. So he split a playful smirk at the dealer as his turn came about, pushed another hundred twenty-five forward, and sapped the last of the fluid from his glass.

“Oh, I conjure I’ll double down, beautiful.” A passive smile taunted him a she tossed out his last hit. Providence yet smiled on him! A four of spades came down in all its glory, putting Maxwell to sit pretty at twenty.

The other players had their go and then Faye flipped her hidden card, showing a six of clubs. “Dealer shows eleven. Dealer hits.” Despite himself, Max felt his breath hold as the card was pulled forth. It was followed with a chorus of groans from all at the table, save the unshaven Alliance man: the Queen of Hearts. “Dealer has twenty-one. Dealer wins.” She proceeded to pull all the chips on the table to her while Max stood, grabbed what few chips he had left, and slipped a cigarette into the corner of his mouth all in one fluid motion.

“Here’s to you love.” The cop tossed her a twenty chip and left, lighting the stick while making his way to the craps section. As he moved, Max keyed his comm on.

“Dear Prattle, I am but a lover’s breath from the VIP you expounded on. I will be his neighbor in rest of dice roll momentarily.” Sauntering over, Roth took a position at the table Deliono occupied and set a pair of chips on forward as the die were handed to none other than the man Max was supposed to be tailing. Another smile crossed his face as he addressed the casino employee in charge of his table.

”On my indulgence, place those on pass. This fellow seems auspicious to me.” He motioned at a passing waitress and exhaled from the cigarette, letting a cloud loose. “I would appreciate a Gambler’s Ruin on the rocks, if you would be so kind.”

(Ooc-Gming done with no permission. I heard Craps and ran with it. Lemme know if I was wrong. A Gambler’s ruin is two shots of Goldshlager, one shot of vodka and a twist of lime.)

This post has been edited by Marcus Deckard on May 26 2010, 07:15 PM

[Bobby McFinn]

Bobby kept his head on a swivel, eyes taking in everything. So many people, so many guests, weren't here yet. The mech couldn't fathom the idea: people not wanting to be there start to finish. Sure, money was one thing, but to not even have the desire to attend the entire Con...it was practically an insult to the technological, cutting edge marvels being displayed here. To be fair, Bobby wasn't sure how long he'd be staying, but work was an entirely different matter. It was, in fact, the very last matter on his mind.

Gaze roving over buttons and wires, lights and keys, Bobby prayed BJ would behave himself. The impromptu prayer to a being he wasn't entirely sure he believed in, no matter what others said, was interrupted in mid-sentence as his brain short-circuted over a flyer on graphics-interface breakthroughs. The display, though still in the process of being set-up made it blindingly obvious which system was superior. "Hm... I don't see much difference," a passing stranger noted. Bobby rolled his eyes. Layman. Watching the stranger walk off, Bobby wondered why they were wasting their time here. Someone who couldn't even see the differences in the displays...

Nadine's movement claimed his focus then, sending his thoughts spinning down yet another unexpected path. The blond Med-Acad doctor was his partner for this op and, in a way, his camouflage. If nothing else, she was closer to existing in a civilian capacity than he was, at least as far as their actual ident cards read. Today, however, they were both civilians to everyone they passed. If only.

"Hey, Bobby? If there's anything here worth stealing, I'm guessing it's gonna be up there, not down here with the minor players." Bobby nodded in agreement. "Makes sense. Minor players don't carry the good stuff." Whatever would be here worth stealing, he felt sure, they would recognize immediately. Tech worked that way. Most things worked that way. People liked showing off and, frankly, tech geeks were some of the worst on any world spinning.

"I'm wired to be bad, myself, but that probably doesn't sell cable. What do you say we get closer to the big blue?" Grabbing a button identical to Nadine's, Bobby turned his focus to the booth most likely to catch eyes, even when it was empty. Blue Sun was big. Huge. Even the quiet pavilion stood out, if only for its size. "Blue's the place to be," Bobby grinned, moving closer to the large booth. While eying the wearable computers, he monitored any peripheral movements, wondering if they could get away with lingering long enough to check for familiar faces, frequent visitors. Doubtful.