In the Shadow of the Arcology

The keening sorrowful wail rose and fell with a steady rhythm, not loud enough to be disturbing but just the right volume to be unnerving.

"How is she?"

I closed my eyes and tried to shut out the tortured soul in the next room as I looked up at my brother.

"She is fine, I guess. She usually starts towards the afternoon, always at the same time and stops around three o'clock in the morning; I have to give her sedative sometimes."

David looked at me in shock. "Dear god! And she has been in this condition for how long?"

The wail turned into a lullaby and then back into keening sorrow.

"Ever since the Arcology!" I didn't mean it, but it didn't help, the name came out as a bitter curse. It tasted vile and bitter; if I didn't know better I would have tried to gargle some cleaning fluid just to get the taste out of my mouth.

"Simon, you can't be serious, that's more than two years ago? What about treatment, there must be something better than this?"

"David, I have already talked to every expert there is, it’s self-induced, there is NOTHING I can do, nor can anyone else!"

I looked up and shook my head. "The rescue team found her connected to some kind of server, one of the central nodes. She was one of eight other people who were jacked in, she was the ONLY survivor."

"According to the doctors she probably saved herself by turning towards her inner world. God knows they tried to help her, we tried for two years. After that I found it better that I took care of her than some mental institution."

The keening turned into a sobbing wail and lost itself into tears.

David plopped himself down in the opposing sofa and sighed. "This wasn't exactly the family reunion I had planned, what was she doing in there in the first place?"

I refilled our glasses and looked at the bottle, the whiskey was almost gone. "She had just got her new job; she was assistant security decker for mall security."

I reached for the remote and switched on the Trid.

As the voice of the sports commentator droned on I was lost in memories, memories three damn years old...

Christmas, and almost cold enough for snow, but not quite. I was sitting at a coffe shop two blocks from the Space Needle when my phone rang.

"Simon speaking."

"Simon, its Linda, something has happened!"

The voice was panicked and nervous, both piqued my curiosity.

"What?"

"I was about to meet Helen outside the Arcology by the old bookstore, you know the one, the one with a Danish owner?"

"Yea, I know, what about it?"

"It's not about that one, it's the Arcology, it's on a total lockdown, and fifteen people have been killed so far by the automatic defenses!"

"WHAT!"

"SIMON!"

I was forcefully jerked back to the present by my brother’s voice as he stared in shock at the Trid.

"...No-one knows who they are or what they want but the recent deaths and assaults against Matrixcafé's and Hostclubs have revealed one thing, they only target Deckers."

I looked in confusion for a moment as the images filtered through my booze infused mind.

"...12 dead as the Matrixclub "Binary Bit" was targeted late last night, the only visible trace after the attackers was the legend C.O.D."

The keening stopped instantly.

There was a short moment of silence before the door to my sister’s room was flung open with such force that two paintings were flung to the floor.

I stared in shock as Helen stood watching us in the door. Her eyes blazed with life, and anger, an anger fueled from three years of hell.

"C.O.D."

It took me a moment before I realized that she had spoken, it was the first time I had heard her speak for three damn years.

"Simon, I hope for your sake that you still got my deck. Get it for me, NOW."

I watched in complete and utter shock as she moved to her old closet and opened it with an angry snarl.

"What..." I managed to croak as she brought out her deck and checked the date on the Trid, she paled somewhat when se saw the year but brushed it off.

"Three years Simon, THREE fucking years before SOMEONE would say their name, three years before they even revealed themselves."

"Who?"

"Who Simon, can't you guess, those fuckers who played ping-pong with my brain in the Arc! THIS time things will be different, I know each and every one of them by name and I will hunt them down for what they did."

Her eyes danced with joy, a joy that scared the living hell out of me, the huntress was back in the shadows, and someone had pissed her off.

Poor bastards.

Chapter Two: Diana the Huntress

City: Denver
Location: Matrix Cafe?Quickjack?

SYSOP Scanbox:
Ok people, there is no need for alarm, our security is top notch. There is no way someone could harm you in here ok!

IC-breaker:
Yea, right. I have seen pancakes with higher security than your server ok!

Manta Ray:
Nah, pancakes have slightly worse virus protection [
 ]

Seraphim:
[
 ]

SYSOP Scanbox:
Very funny.

Manta Ray:
Hey, has anyone seen FALLGUY around lately? I’m getting worried.

Seraphim:
Yup, I saw him yesterday at node 14, something about Stealing candy from a child? The host there didn't agree with him.

Gambler:
*Chuckles* I can understand why, hey, anyone got a job for me, I’m somewhat bored. And my team is nagging on me that they need some extra cash. Call the High Rolling Pack? If ya need anything.

Gambler:
Note: We are located in Seattle.

Armadillo has entered the channel
Rook has entered the channel

/)&&/)(%&(/ so#¤)/&?)( many!#?=)= toys for/#¤%?#¤ us brother...

Yes&/%/¤ brother...&%/ many toys...

SYSOP Scanbox:
HEY! What the frag is %¤#&%¤!&#%¤

SYSOP Scanbox:
OMYGODWHATEFUCK)/&(&%/%¤

Why (&%&%¤%& do you /%¤!&%¤# struggle, give in to my/our will#¤&¤%(/

SYSOP Scanbox:
EVERYONE! GET OUT, NOW!

Sysop Scanbox has been disconnected from the channel.

Seraphim:
What the fuck is happening, wha...oh shit.< FUCK YOU FRAGGER/&¤&/¤/&#&/>

Seraphim has been disconnec /&¤/%&#&/ SERAPHIM HAS DIED/&¤/(%&9
As will the rest of you pathetic beings(/%&¤/¤/(%

Manta Ray has left the channel.
Diana has entered the channel.

Gambler:
Oh shit, what the hell is happening?

¤/&# Those who doesn’t understand the true gift of the immortal shall perish (/%&(%/

Diana:
Well, well, well...

Diana:
Armadillo, Rook, is this a good way to greet an old friend?

Armadillo:
?

Rook:
?

Diana:
C.O.D, not very imaginative, let me take a wild assed guess.

Diana:
Children Of Deus

/%¤& You know (/%/¤% ofour&%#& precense&¤#%¤?

Diana:
Yes, where the rest of you, eight more, there are are eight more...targets.

%&&%# You challenge?%¤&%#& You DIE!/&¤&¤#

Diana:
I beg to differ...

#¤%#&/%¤/(?&%¤)/¤)%(&&=??/)%)(¤&?(%#/&??(#??(¤???(%??%(?%(??=(¤)(&)/¤(&#%)(/#WHAT ARE YOU DOING YOU BITCH!!!()&(/%/¤%&#&¤?%&!?&%¤/&&&%YOU ARE (%/(#&¤?&¤

Armadillo has been disconnected.

%?#¤#% This is unfortunate¤%¤#/&)( Command must be told#¤%#?¤/

Rook has left the channel.

Diana:
DAMN! Cannot even initiate a trace program, clever little bastard.

Gambler:
Um, excuse me, but what the fuck just happened?

Diana:
So you need a job Gambler? Ok, I got one for you. I'll send you a message; check shadow land for someone called Huntress? She will give you further instructions.

Gambler:
What’s the pay?

Diana:
We shall see, that depends on how many you are and how good you are. A note of caution, Rook and Armadillo was two out of ten, since Rook got away they will know that we are coming for them. Or at least that I know of them.

Gambler:
Wetwork then that’s more expensive.

Diana:
Oh yes, definitely a wetwork, very wet indeed. Or perhaps a well overdue cleansing.

Diana has left the channel.

Gambler:
Well now, that was certainly...interesting.

Gambler has left the channel.

....

Rook has entered the channel.

¤%#"&%¤/& Target has left, initiate trace program¤##¤&#¤&#¤&

Rook has left the channel.

...Trace check...identity "Rook" located...Initiate "Trojan Horse".

...Trace program captured...Initiating metamorphosis.

...Metamorphosis finished...Trace program converted...starting tracking.

...

Helen pulled out the wire from her temple with a sigh of barely hidden joy as she watched Rooks program doing her work for her as it speed along the artificial network to tell him it had failed. It had failed for him, not for her, who would suspect someone for tracing a trace program, and steal it.

She now had a location of her prey, and what is the old saying about hunting...

Location, location, location...

Let the hunt begin.

Gambler took off the trode rigs and disconnected the turtle from the I/O port.
"Thank you Gwen for those Die Hard programs. " he put the laptop away and went to the fridge for a cold soda.
"Hmmm. Deckers don’t lie, this Jolt is great for the caffeine needs." Turning to the trideo he punched up the number for Gwenyvere and waited for her construct to come up on the screen.
The construct of Marilyn Monroe but in a mid-evil style dress came up on the screen. "Hoi Gambler, what can I do for you handsome. Or is it maybe what I can do to you.", she said with an evil grin.
"No Gwenny, this is biz, we can deal with pleasure Friday after our date. What I need is for you to keep one of your smart frames on the shadowland board with an eye for a message for the team from someone called "Huntress"
"Holy drek, she's back! Null sweat hon, will take care of it personally, not with a smartframe, I wanna talk with her myself.
"Thanks love, pick you up tomorrow at 7?"
"Yeah hot stuff, and don’t you be late, I may have to pin those beautiful ears back with what I do to you if you are.
"See you at 7 then dear, night."
"Night"
With Gwen on that trail he dialed up the communal drop box for the group. No, not a group but a pack, With three members of the group magically active and following the totem of Wolf this was definitely a pack. Leaving instructions for all to meet on Saturday evening at the warehouse for a possible job he then returned to the couch to finally catch up on some sleep that had been eluding him earlier.

City: unknown
location: Shadowland
welcome to shadowland Eboard: Lady Morganna

sysop: Captain Chaos
Hello folks we are open for all business

Lady Morganna: Hoi Cap, looking for a drop from huntress. Mind if I leave a smartframe to notify me.
Captain Chaos: Null sheen chummer will keep an eye on it for ya also, make sure no one tries to molest it. Lady Morganna: thanks cap will be back later to check it
Captain Chaos: chill
Lady Morganna has left one (1) program on the board:
Lady Morganna has left the board

Shadow of the Arcology part Three: Happy Hunting

shadowland BB:
message incoming:

Message From: Huntress
(Huntress@Stardust_In_Shadowland.Com)
Message To: Gambler

SUBJECT: Huntress Calling Gambler

> message scanned: 0 viruses
> message downloaded: 100%
> message content: text.doc
> Transmit message to: dropbox 135A086C
> message transmitted: dropbox 135A086C
> security protocol: initiated
> self distruct/path burn: initiated

Information:
I do not know how much you want for the job but my budget is somewhat limited but I think we can come to an agreement since I will stand for the information and some of the legwork.

I will not be a “Johnson”, we will be working together (more or less, my hunting ground is the Matrix, yours are the
streets).

This is your target:
I want him alive, he has a lot of information, and I want to meet him, face to face. He and I have many memories to discuss:

You have to check each of the aliases that he has, I do not know which one he uses; only that he has four different SIN’s.

Name: Howard Lémarcus
Matrix Alias: Rook
Known Alias: Jason Worthler,
Thomas Kingsley,
Jared Sommers,
Peter Ransom

Age: 36
Metatype: Caucasian Elf
Magically Active: No
Height: 172 CM
Weight: 82 KG
Eyes: Cyber eyes (Design unknown)
Hair: Black
Blood Type: A

Medical Record:
Lost one Kidney due to allergic reaction from Ares “Cringle puff” cereals, cloning failed, needs medication daily. According to some receipts on one of the aliases he takes a medication
known as “Mephrillion”, without it he will develop shakes much like those with the Parkinson disease (before the vaccine was available).

Known Affiliates: Armadillo DECEASED
King of Spades ACTIVE
Whisper ACTIVE
Asp ACTIVE
Aganemmon ACTIVE
Sphinx ACTIVE
Daedalus UNKNOWN
Haephestus ACTIVE
Darius ACTIVE

Notes:
All known affiliations are Matrix Aliases only, no further information is available at this time

I know each of them by name only, but I must make some extensive background checks to crack down on their new aliases.

I have never met any of them in real life, only their Matrix Avatars, I wish I had more but this might be a start for you.

Daedalus is the ringleader, and by far the most dangerous, watch your back.

WARNING: Do not attempt to get them on the Matrix, they are good, very good, hopefully I can be a match to them, at least as long as they are separated.

Notes continued:
They are a failed experiment of Deus and are at a constant contact with each other when they are in the Matrix, I do not know how it works but it is clearly some kind of transmitter. If one of them identifies you ALL of them will know about you, let them focus their attention on me while you take care of the REAL work. I’ll keep you updated on any information I can find.

> Message terminated: end trans


Gwennevere looked on with a little apprehension as she reread the message. This was big, and it would take all the group could possibly pull in to do it. Then she refiled the message, encrypted it to the teams private encoding and sent it to everyone on the team with summons for a meeting at the warehouse. She then jacked out and picked up the hardcopy of the message and finished preparing for her date. Gambler would be there in half an hour and she still had to find the right shoes to wear that night.


Two days later:

"Alright team lets go over this one more time to see if there are any more questions." Gambler said as he pulled up the message on his pocket secretary. "The job is supposed to be a simple snatch and grab of a subject, one Howard Lemarcus, and deliver him to our employer at a pre-designated location. Now Gwen and I have been doing research on the target and have found out this info on him and his warehouse hideout." Gambler points to the pin board on the wall.
"1, Automated defenses are light but sensitive, I watched a devil rat try and cross it and it didn’t make it halfway through intact, and they were using gell rounds."
2, Food and supplies are delivered once every two weeks to the loading dock at the back of the warehouse.
3, The only lines going into that place are electrical, there is nothing coming out as far as tapable lines for phone or matrix so he must be decking via satellite hookup.
4, The place's air defense is heavy, but only non-lethal jammers and jaberwockies,
5, The place is magically warded so we have no idea on how the interior security is or where in the building the target is but we know for certain he is there because he supervises the unloading of the supplies when they come in. "
As Gambler finished going over the info they had acquired the team looked it over once more and TC spoke up, "Ok, we have a target and an employer, but how much are we getting paid and why?"
Gambler answered, "Well the employing party cant really pay us except in trade with information when we need it," at this the team groans, "but, the UCAS government is offering a 50 thousand nuyen reward for each member of the COD dead or alive."
"So where is the warehouse located at?" Wulfgar asked.
"Probably way out in BFE." TC grumbled.
I answered, "Actually it’s just down in Pullyallup, TC didn’t you make a friend from down there during the blackout?"
"Yeah," he answered, "Her name is Love, or so she said. Said to ask for her after dark, she's a vampire so I don’t know what kind of help she might be."
"Might be of some help on the outbound trip." I answered.
"I'll look into it.” he said.

One week later:

"Its time," Gambler said as the team took the delivery van over from the grocers.

"I still wish we were getting more than the government bounty on these drek heads.", TC grumbled as he climbed into the back of the delivery truck.

"Well were not so get used to it! Besides, if this woman is as good as she seems she will make one hell of a contact in the Denver area.” Gambler replied

Slasher and Gambler took the front seat and Jackie, TC, and Diamond the cargo bay of the truck before they pulled out toward the target area. It was a fairly simple and strait-forward plan, take the truck, impersonate the delivery personnel and grab the target before he even knew what was happening, much less able to activate the defenses.

"Hope and pray that Mr. Murphy is on our side tonight and not his, and remember rule 10." Gambler said as they pulled out toward the target.

Slasher looked at him unknowingly, "What’s rule 10?", he said.

Gambler replied, "Rule 10 of Mr. Murphy's Laws of Combat. It states that no plan survives the first contact, intact."

"Oh." Slasher said.

"Two minutes to target, everybody lock and load." Gambler subvocalized.

Shadow of the Arcology 4: FIRE IN THE HOLE

All seemed to be going well as Slasher backed the truck up to the loading bay. The target came out to meet the truck and pay the bill, and the three of us got out of the cab to "unload" the cargo. Something gave us away though, because as we opened the back door to the truck, the target jumps back through the doorway.

"I think he saw my pistol!", I said as the wall opened up with hidden gunports.

"He's jacked into the house security systems" Diamond called out as SMG and pistol fire opened up on us and we dove for cover.

"Frag!" I yelled over the din of gunfire as I pulled my salvette and Diamond pulled her predators.

"Fire in the hole!" slasher yelled as he hurled a high explosive grenade at the wall containing the gunports.

Over the com system TC hollered "What the frag is going on out there guys, the boxes are getting chopped to pieces in here and we are next if you don’t get us out of this over grown refrigerator."

Have you out in a minute omae," as I say this, the grenade goes off taking out about half the gunports and Slasher goes after the door to the back of the truck to open it for them.

The latch comes open and out walks TC, Jackie and Wulfgar. Jackie had a bullet barrier up and moving forward, protecting the lot of them as they exited, then suddenly it was anchored 8 inches from the wall. Making the bullets bounce harmlessly out of our direction and away from the door.

In we went now with all the usual professionalism of the team. Slasher had his handblades and cyberspurs extended ready to slice through anything, Jackie had another barrier up to protect us from behind and everyone had there preferred weapon out and loaded with either ex-explosive rounds or gel rounds. TC was the designated take down man, with a shotgun full of net rounds and Jackie was ready to back him up with spells.
Looking back on things, lettuce, real lettuce anyway, makes great bullet barriers, especially when boxed up.

I must thank all that’s holy for that second bullet barrier. Having seen that the sentry guns were hidden in the crates that filled the building we used Slasher's thermal-vision to look for them while Diamond tried to deactivate the security system. Slasher moved forward and spotted the crate on the corner was hot from the electronics to control its gun. Switching his goggles to thermo, and using his smart link TC blasted the control runs just as Diamond got hooked into the security systems diagnostics.

"That’s nine down folks" Diamond hollered out. "There's sixteen left throughout the building, and I’m trying to locate them now."

Well see if you can shut them down." TC hollered back.

"What do you think I'm stupid." she retorted. "On second thought, don’t answer that."

TC laughed "I'll let you know later"

"Drek. sorry folks can’t shut it down from here," Diamond yelled. "I can let you know how many are active, and how many are down, but that’s it."

"Chill." I reply "Sixteen rights?"

"Yeah." she replies

"Let’s go get him folks." I say as I start for the far wall.

I don’t know what warned me or set me to diving backwards, but as soon as I cleared a block wall another of those sentry guns opened up on me. Luckily for me it missed.

"Grenade?" I yelled as I came back up and TC tossed me an offensive High Explosive grenade. "Fire in the hole!" I yelled as I pulled the pin and tossed the grenade behind the wall. The grenade going off silenced the auto-fire. And I continued down the concrete walkway.

"Fifteen!" Diamond hollers out.

"Anyone know what’s in these crates other than the sentry guns,” I asked.

"Quickcrete" came over the radio as Diamond answered. "We aren't gonna move these without a fork truck. But their also gonna absorb frag near anything we throw at them weapons wise."

Good" I answer as we reach the end of the passageway. "I'm tired of taking chances with these things, toss me another grenade TC." I catch the grenade then pull the pin and toss it into the opening in front of me. All of a sudden four guns open up with auto fire then the grenade goes off.

"Eleven!" Diamond calls out.

"Good." I answer, "Is the jammer holding up?"

"Yeah. Piece of cake." Diamond answers.

"Good, TC, another grenade please." TC hands me his last Offensive HE. "Thanks." I take the explosive orb and step down into the carnage. Past the destruction and into the next passageway, I can even make out the boxes with the guns now. I pull the pin and slide the grenade toward the boxes while I run for cover from both the auto fire and the explosion. I barely make it before the grenade cooks off.

"Seven left, I think the path is clear" Diamond calls out over the coms.

"Confirmed" I say, "Everyone move out."

Down the pathway we went the damage and the opening apparent. A steel cored door barred our path into the room where we believed the target to be.

"Slasher" I said, "Would you please knock for us?"

Slasher chuckled and answered "Sure, not a problem." He then used his cyber spurs to cut away the wood around the hinges and stepped away.

"TC, your turn." I said and TC stepped forward into the doorway, kicked in the door and entered the room. Outside we could hear the report of a holdout pistol followed by the boom of the shotgun.

"Clear, target disabled." TC called out

"You ok" I asked

"Yeah," he answered "Little drekhead didn’t even penetrate the armor."

"Ok then," I said, "Sweep the room for anything useful, shut down the security system, and let’s bug out."

A chorus of affirmatives answered me.

Shadow of the Arcology 5: The Meet

>>Shadowland BB activated:
>>user logged on: Lady Morganna
>>order: Deliver message-81-02
>>message delivered: box name-dues
>>message reads”:

>>Huntress, package aquired. Awaiting meeting destination for delivery.
>>suggest somewhere neutral
>>suggest old Atzlan zone, Denver


>>end Trans:
>>user logged off: Lady Morganna
>>trace burn: initiated

                Denver was exactly as TC remembered it, filthy, fractional, and as self-destructive as Berlin was in the last years of the cold war. With the Azzies kicked out by the dragon ghost walker earlier that year, the rest of the nations fought secretly to take the old Azzie section over. However, Aztecnology wasn’t completely gone. They still had guerrilla forces hidden in their old zone. This made it easy work to slip in to make the meet, but Huntress never made the meet. Then she stopped answering her drop box, but finally she made contact after a week of waiting. The group had been about ready to leave and collect the government bounty on the target. However, the message came in with apologies and the time and location for a new meet. That’s where the team was now, waiting for Huntress to show up and the interrogation to begin. The warehouse seemed as good a place as any, wide-open area to work in, no neighbors for a few blocks, and no one to witness what would happen to the target.

“There is the van we were told about.” Jackson stated as a white van pulled up in front of the warehouse and flashed its lights on and off twice.

“There is the signal.” Gambler said. “Let’s go, and bring the mark with us Wulfgar.”

“Got him.” Wolfgar stated as they climbed out the back of their black van.

With that, the three biggest of the team climbed out of the van. Gambler bringing up the rear, while Wolfgar and TC flanked the mark half carrying him. While the three bruisers of the pack made their way toward the white van, John Wolfbrother climbed out of the back door of their black van, but instead of joining them, he first cast a spell to increase his reflexes, then prepared to cast a massive mana bolt at any one in the van that appeared hostile. Slowly four men got out of the white van; all wore similar looking dark fatigues but mismatched weapons, four men, but no Huntress.

“Where’s the Huntress?” Gambler called out to the men, while stopping about halfway between the two vans.

The lead one answered, “She couldn’t make it, said to hand over the mark and leave with your money.”

“That wasn’t the deal,” Gambler yelled back. “She was supposed to let us know who was next, then wait for us to get them also.”

“Well she got someone else to do the work,” the man answered sounding slightly irritated. “Now hand him over.”

"I don’t think so mate." Gambler stated flatly. "You get Huntress on the horn and we will see what she says."

At this point things moved so fast, that most wouldn’t have been able to keep up unless they were already operating on boosted or wired reflexes. As it were, the mark's head suddenly exploded while almost simultaneously the sniper's head did the same. And while the three who went forward for the interrogation ran for cover John dropped to the ground, woozy from the drain and Diamond pulled him into the back of the van.

“Come here you dumb assed shaman,” she said as she drug him back into the cargo area. “The pack may be in danger but you’re out of the fight for now.”

Meanwhile the assault rifles full auto bursts were being answered with the distinctive bursts of a salvette guardian and the reports of two other heavy pistols.

“Jackson we need some cover or these guys are gonna tear us apart” Gambler hollered over the coms.

“Wanjina air support inbound, eta, 10 seconds.” Came the reply from the rigger.

“Morganna, get another message to the drop box.” Gambler continued. “Message reads, system integrity violated, need new box and method, stop. Package killed and lost, stop. Need face-to-face meet for verification and continuance, stop. End message. Did you get that Morganna?”

“Sure did darlin. You want anything else on there, otherwise consider it sent.”

“Good, send it.” Gambler replied and turned back to the gunfight at hand.

The wanjina attack drone made short work of the oppositions cover, blowing their van to pieces with light armor piercing bombs. The two that stayed standing through the bombing run didn’t survive the follow up from the three heavy pistols that rang out. As the two ambushers stumbled about dazed from the explosion they soon fell as high explosive rounds pierced the armor they wore killing them.

“They’re down, go see who they were, and make sure they’re dead.” Gambler called out to TC and Wolfgar as the drone screamed off through the air. “Then we’re bugging out. Jackie, is John and the mark OK?”

“Johns ok,” Jackie’s voice said over the coms. “He’s fighting off the worst headache in the world due to the drain, but alright. The problem is the mark is DOA and I’m expecting the ambushers to be the same.”

“Alright then, as soon as the dead have been checked we are out of here.” Gambler stated.

“Boss, we have banded here.” Wolfgar called out over the net. “You think we were sold out, or just found out.”

“Load up, we’ll discuss it later.” Gambler said quietly as he reached the back of the van.

18 HOURS LATER:

"The return message was simple"; Gwenyvere mused as she read it aloud to the rest of the team.  "Return to Seattle. Stop. Leave message in old drop box reading "package delivered" when you return. Stop. With message leave time for meet at the glass spider that night. Stop. Very few people went to the trouble of keeping or using old tech systems to communicate, especially when verification was simpler with new vid-phones and such. However, this old trick she would have to remember. Western union, almost out of business with the wireless transfer of funds that bankcards and credsticks permitted had almost gone out of business. But once again they found their nitch in the world of the 6th age and went back to their original purpose, secure physical document transfer. No tamperable electrons, no ability to intercept and steal. The worst you had to worry about was getting sent a bad chip or the unit getting destroyed outright. If the package went outside the building not within a western union truck and not out of the truck without western union personnel within fifty feet an EMP burst went off from the package wiping all information from the chip. For the receiving party to open it the delivery person or the office clerk had to unlock the package and place the chip in the recipient’s hand. This security made Gwenyvere very happy as it meant that the chip being tampered with was unlikely and the message 99% authentic. Now the questions was, were they being set up again or was it safe.

Chapter 6

Seattle-6hours later:

                SeaTac! Quiet, peaceful, quite lovely actually in the morning light. Jackson flew the small plane in an hour ago, returning us to our own vehicles and them taking us to the Glass Spider. From the back of the van, Gwenyvere placed the message with the time to meet us. Now there is only 20 minutes left till they show up and we are on our way inside.