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| Standing On The Shore of Fate; What happens when you hear a familiar name on the TV...? | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jun 29 2012, 03:47 PM (518 Views) | |
| vicroc4 | Jun 29 2012, 03:47 PM Post #1 |
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(Micah's reaction to what he would know of the current OCverse storyline - he never got directly involved as he would've with Lightning in Alcatraz. I apologize for the length of this first post, but I struggled with the setup >.<) --- Business at SureShot was - no pun intended - booming. With the stability of the political situation seemingly deteriorating, it was understandable that the populace had a desire for the security that their government could not deliver. The citizenry, fed up with the seeming inability of the NOL to deal with what at first glance seemed to be a series of random, pointless terrorist attacks, decided to take things into their own hands - any weapon had suddenly become fair game. Of course, the NOL was also placing an enormous demand on weaponsmiths in general, and SureShot was getting a fair share of that as well. Despite being so busy, Micah still wondered on occasion what had happened to the man he'd met in the plaza in Kagutsuchi - the one with the curious guitar Ars. Hua Roan Textiles, his primary supplier for gun bags and cases, had agreed to the odd request - in fact, they were eager to start. But no word from Rust meant that those plans were effectively on hold, as they needed some more information about the Ars's dimensions and energy output before they could start work. Those moments of worry were becoming fewer and further between, though, as Micah was forced to bury himself in the steadily-growing backlog of work. He was even considering hiring someone to specifically run the counter, as he needed as many certified smiths in the back room as he could get. He'd gotten as far as writing up an ad to put in the classifieds, before getting pulled away by yet another angry customer. Still, there were moments when he had to take a break. Or, more accurately, when one of his employees forced him to take a break. He knew very well that he had a nasty habit of trying to overwork himself, and he had made it known to his employees that this sort of behavior was not to be taken lightly - even if it meant telling your boss to go sit the hell down for five minutes. He was in the middle of trying to pry a rusted slide loose from the rails of an ancient M1911 knock-off when Callie McLister - the sole female gunsmith in the shop, his assistant manager, and all-around "shop mom" - said exactly that to him, and more. "Micah, let it go. The damn thing's probably pretty well fused together, and that chisel ain't helping any. Go take a damn break before you damage either it or yourself." A low growl was his only response, which brought him a gentle cuff on the back of the head, and another admonishment to take a break. Blinking, he set the gun and chisel down and rubbed his eyes with the backs of his hands. Turning on his stool to face Callie, he shrugged sheepishly and replied, "Uh, right, right. Hunter's vision was setting in again, I guess. Sorry." Standing up and stretching slightly, he asked, "Could you maybe see if you can find some WD-40 or some other sort of anti-rust around? I couldn't find it last I looked, which is why I was wailing on it with the chisel. You get that, and I'll take fifteen. Deal?" Callie laughed, shaking her head at his attempt at negotiation. "Just go, Micah. I'll get it loose. Jack's got the register, and Stephen's doing final checkout on that 16 for Olney right now - Will's with him in the range. We've got this right now." Finally relenting, he started moving towards his office as he said, "Alright, alright. You have the conn, then." She replied with a cheeky, "Aye, sir!" and a salute that Micah only half-saw as he turned. His response was an irritated flick of the tail, and a middle finger extended in her direction - and a smirk on his face that gave away his true intent. This, of course, triggered more laughter from Callie, which followed him into the office. --- Nearly twenty minutes later, Micah started awake from what he'd intended as "resting his eyes for a minute." The cold nose of the shop mascot was nudging his hand, but Ed backed off and went to curl up in his bed as Micah returned to a sitting position. An innocent look met Micah's questioning gaze, but the small television in the room distracted him before he could give the dog a lecture. The TV was set to one of the city-wide news stations, and the reporter was doing his level best to remain calm as he reported on what the tagline claimed was "Wadatsumi Under Attack: Terrorists Strike Novus Orbis Librarium Branch." Micah watched in horrified fascination as the reporter described the attack, complete with clips of the branch building, which looked as though it had been ripped open by some giant claw, set afire, and the twisted, charred remains scattered across a full city block. Turning to yell for Callie to turn on the TV in the warehouse, a mugshot caught his eye. "... the man thought to be responsible for masterminding the operation, Rusty Hetfield. Originally thought to have been killed in the attack, recent information indicates that he is very much alive, and on the run. Already on the NOL's wanted list at B+, his status has been upgraded to an S, placing him at the same level as the man he is believed to have been mentored by - Ragna the Bloodedge. "It is yet to be confirmed if the second suspect has survived the injuries he is believed to have sustained. Jagd Metschulin, an operative for the Lowland security firm Monoc Securities, is believed to have provided equipment and support for the attack via Monoc's sizable resources. The NOL is, at this time, requesting any information about these two, as well as anyone else that might have assisted in the planning or execution of the attack..." Micah's brain locked up. There, on the screen, was the face of the man he'd helped evade the NOL in Kagutsuchi not more than two weeks ago. Next to him, the colorful mercenary, whose company SureShot had a contract with for the manufacture of a hard-to-acquire round originally meant for use against light armor vehicles and other materiel. In fact, it seemed likely that some of those rounds had been used in the attack - a pattern of scorched holes stitching its way up a twisted metal girder could very easily have been from Jagd's M2 Browning. He'd just packed another crate of them the day before yesterday, during a slow period, to be shipped today... A whimper drew Callie's attention to the manager's office. Worried, she set the gun with the stuck slide down - it still hadn't come loose - and headed over to the office. Micah - being a beastkin - occasionally made some odd noises. Most of them, she had learned over time to ignore, but there were some that immediately caught her attention. That whimper was one - it signaled severe distress, and possibly an impending breakdown. Knocking on the door, she was a bit surprised when it swung open with little resistance. Her boss was sitting on his office chair, slowly shaking his head, which was cradled in his hands. The small TV in the office was still droning on and on about the attack, and it didn't take too much to figure out that Micah's outburst was in some way related to this news. Frowning, she asked, "Boss, you okay?" His voice was muffled at first, but then she heard, "... Jagd Metschulin." He looked up at her. "Do you know who that is? That was our initial point-of-contact for the contract with Monoc. Rust Hetfield's the guy I helped escape from the NOL in Kagutsuchi. I was waiting on him to call me back about a bag for his Ars." He gestured to the screen. "They're apparently the two primary suspects in this mess. God only knows if Metschulin dragged Monoc into this, too, but they seem like a close-knit bunch. I can't imagine that they wouldn't know." As if on-cue, mention was made of the mercenary company as possibly assisting in the raid. Micah glares at the TV for a moment, before continuing, "If this is the case, then it's entirely probable that some of our ammunition was used in this attack. The Librarium's not stupid, no matter what I might say about individual members. They're gonna put two-and-two together. They're gonna trace that ammo back to us, they're gonna see that I'm a wolf beastkin. Then they're gonna look into their witness reports and see that it was a wolf beastkin that helped Hetfield escape in Kagutsuchi. Since, clearly, those two are linked somehow, they're gonna think I'm in on it, too. Which means that before too damn long here, they're gonna be looking for me." He drew another breath as though to continue again, but Callie cut him off. "I believe that what you're about to say, Micah, is that you're going to go on the run. Because you and I both know that there's no way in Hell that you would turn yourself over to those bastards." Startled, Micah looked up at her and stuttered, "W-wait, what? But what about you guys? What about SureShot? I have to do what's best for the company!" She slowly shook her head. "You don't have to worry about that. I'm going with you. Jack and Steve have already made their opinions clear enough on the Library that I'm sure they wouldn't take much convincing. Will... well, he's even more of a kid than Jack. I don't know how he'll go, but he's only been with us three weeks. Easy for him to get out before things go downhill. As for SureShot...? Well... we'll take it with us." Ears back, Micah sputtered, "Take it with us? The Hell, you say! There's way too much equipment here to lug with us - no matter how we pack it. And I wouldn't ask you guys to do that anyway - you have families, lives. I can't take that away from you. I'm the dumbass that helped Hetfield out. I'm the dumbass that signed that contract with Monoc, not you guys. I'm the only one that should suffer here. No, I'll turn myself in. Maybe I can explain to them that you had nothing to do with it." Callie's index finger ended up less than an inch from Micah's nose. Her face was livid, grey eyes flashing steel as she said, "Dammit, Micah. You know that's not possible. If you turn yourself in, you might as well be turning the rest of us in! If we're going to die, anyway, it would be a lapse in your duty to us if you didn't give us the chance to do something meaningful before we do!" Taking a deep breath and letting it out - and gently moving her finger out from in front of his face with one hand - Micah said, "Look, okay. If it gets that bad, fine. But let's take this slowly. Maybe they won't notice?" Laughter, hard and sharp, burst from Callie's throat, and she said, "Fat chance of that. But you're right. We need to make a plan first. We need to see how much support we have. That way, when the Librarium comes knocking, we'll be ready. I'll gather the troops. You try to get more information - maybe your contact at Monoc will be helpful?" He shrugged. "I can try. I don't know what help they could offer, though. They're in as deep shit as we are. I'll call, but no guarantees." She nodded, replying, "That's all you can do." Then, slowly, she turned and walked out the door. leaving Micah with his own thoughts. Micah picked up the phone on his desk He began poking through the ream of sticky notes on his desk to find the number he was looking for, and dialed it carefully. Maneuvering the headset to his ear, he listened as the line on the other end began to ring... |
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| Gleam | Jun 29 2012, 04:39 PM Post #2 |
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The phone rings twice before it's snatched up hard enough that the crack of plastic against plastic is audible. "MONOC Securities, Siobhana MacClatchley speaking." A smooth, and familiar, voice answers. "How may I assist or inform you?" |
Class. Dig it up, dust it off, hang that shit crooked on an ear. My halo's a land mine rind, amigo.
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| vicroc4 | Jun 30 2012, 04:23 AM Post #3 |
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"Hello, Ms. MacClatchley," Micah started, hoping that his nervousness didn't come through on the other end, "This is Micah Cholin, from SureShot Firearms and Gunsmith. I wanted to ask about the disposition of our recent shipment. Did you receive it okay?" There. Casual enough, or he hoped. Maybe it'd get a foot in the door, and he can ask the bigger question later. |
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| Gleam | Jun 30 2012, 09:32 PM Post #4 |
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"Ah. Micah." Siobhana sighs. "Yes, we recieved it well enough." A wry tone enters her voice. "I assure you Jagd found it most satisfactory." There is a momentary pause. "In the interest of fairness I will point out to you that my firm is currently under investigation by the NOL, and thus further association is likely to tarnish your business's reputation." She comments. Edited by Gleam, Jun 30 2012, 09:32 PM.
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Class. Dig it up, dust it off, hang that shit crooked on an ear. My halo's a land mine rind, amigo.
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| vicroc4 | Jul 1 2012, 03:23 AM Post #5 |
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Micah doesn't miss how she mentions Jagd, but ignores it for now. Instead, he says, "Ah, yes, I did realize that. However, I'm afraid I may have already, er, 'tarnished my reputation.'" Taking a deep breath, he goes for it, "I'm presuming that your company is under investigation due to Mr. Metschulin's suspected association with the attack on the Wadatsumi NOL branch. You are aware that there is another suspect, one Mr. Rust Hetfield?" |
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| Gleam | Jul 1 2012, 07:49 PM Post #6 |
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There is a sigh on the other end of the line, and the creak of leather as Siobhana shifts in her chair. "Mr. Hetfield is currently recovering in our medical facility." she answers, some of the tension flowing out of her voice. "Time is rather vital for my people right now, Micah, so I will presume that you are uninterested in enduring a heavy NOL investigation." |
Class. Dig it up, dust it off, hang that shit crooked on an ear. My halo's a land mine rind, amigo.
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| vicroc4 | Jul 1 2012, 08:30 PM Post #7 |
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There is a fair pause, as Micah swears mentally at himself. Taking a deep breath and letting it out, he can't quite force his ears back to neutral. Neither is his tone very steady as he says, "I am not. The reason I asked about Mr. Hetfield is that I... helped him out a little while back, in Kagutsuchi. The Librarium is bound to connect the beastkin that helped him there to the one that supplied your company with some of the ammunition used in the attack." He takes another breath. "We both know that the Librarium is going to go after anyone that may have helped Mr. Hetfield, no matter how indirectly linked. There's a fair chance that they will come for not only me, but my employees. They will definitely shut down SureShot." Smiling weakly now, voice slightly stronger, Micah decides to take a gamble. If Monoc is as deep into this as it sounds, it's probably worth a shot. "I guess what I'm getting at is, how'd you like to have your own weapons manufacturer? I realize that you probably already have the capability to repair weapons in-house - maybe even build them. But my team has a fair bit of experience, and it would lighten your workload considerably." Alea jacta est. The die is cast, a plan set in motion. Edited by vicroc4, Jul 1 2012, 08:32 PM.
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| Gleam | Jul 3 2012, 12:54 AM Post #8 |
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"In all fairness, I have already had federal investigators attempting to confiscate blueprints of Jagd's favorite little toy, so I sincerely doubt they would shut your manufactory down." Siobhana replied, a certain tired amusement entering her town. "It would just experience a radical reorganization of staff and clients." Paper rustles. "Your timing is of a piece with our own." She says, at length. "I've been notified that the NOL - the entirety thereof - has mobilized and will converge on Wadatsumi in a little less than fourty-eight hours. I've ordered an evacuation of our compound. If you're interested in throwing your lot in with us, I can send aid your way to help you relocate to the same position." Siobhana's voice gains a measure of satisfaction. "I am quite certain that it is secure." |
Class. Dig it up, dust it off, hang that shit crooked on an ear. My halo's a land mine rind, amigo.
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| vicroc4 | Jul 3 2012, 03:44 AM Post #9 |
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There is a long moment of silence before Micah is able to regain his voice. "... what? Fuck, the entire Librarium is headed this way?" Panic grips him as it slowly dawns on him the magnitude of what happened, but, oddly, he actually sounds calmer on the other end of the phone as certain mental circuits bog down and are forced to reboot. "Isn't that a bit of an overreaction?" Siobhana's offer catches him up short, and he chews on it for a moment. His shop was fairly small, in truth, and there weren't many people working there. Depending on how many Callie had convinced to join them, he had at the most five people to evacuate. There were really only a few large items that they used, and even those weren't entirely necessary - the only one that he'd really consider an essential was the tabletop lathe, and that wasn't all that large in the first place. The rest of it was mostly parts and hand tools, and a small quantity of powder and chemicals that would likely be difficult to purchase while on the run. "Ms. MacClatchley, with that much energy directed at Wadatsumi, I think we all would definitely appreciate the help. We were just discussing whether or not to leave - now, it seems, we have no choice. How soon were you planning on leaving?" |
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| Gleam | Jul 3 2012, 04:17 AM Post #10 |
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Siobhana sighs. "It isn't, actually. It's not so much an attack as it is the NOL consolidating its forces so that its forces stop getting taken out in chunks. We, conveniently, happen to be right on top of a good location for such a reorganization. My firm is pulling out in thirty hours, Micah, but luckily our transport is extremely - versatile, thanks to a new ally I am not quite finished being incredulous of. Some small blonde girl that creates wormholes, apparently." |
Class. Dig it up, dust it off, hang that shit crooked on an ear. My halo's a land mine rind, amigo.
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6:55 AM Jul 13