Poolside
Dives into the pool for a quick dip while no one is around

#r-ncnorth Echo Fenix, IRIDIA and Peregrine P. Olveira head to the Bounty Hunter's Guild (North Office) to negotiate a deal that will quash Echo's outstanding bounties.

They encounter the slimy, creepy bounty negotiator Kendo Kirkpatrick, who unveils the only way for Echo (and whoever agrees to help him) to get the hunters off his neck; a high-risk 'Self-Deletion Bounty' for Maximo Kurtz, one of the biggest war criminals of the 21st century.

stirring in the night

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IRIDIA nearly fumbled the can you tossed when you went on about IRIDIA-smells.

"W-What does that even mean?!"

She appeared mortified, tugging down a lock of her hair under her nose. She barely lit up, like once in a blue moon! Emphasis on blue!

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"Hell, with a $150,000, we can afford a one-way ticket to Mars." Screw the moon. Yes, he says it loud enough for Kendo to hear on their way out. Just to make him twitch a little more.

"I've got the blueprints for the vessel. I'll work with Eir and get something built. Better than whatever Militech wanted us to use."

Your hand on his shoulder gets him to look at you curiously. A slow nod of his head.

"We bueno. Better than bueno. I don't have to smell IRIDIA smells before bed tonight." You did have a certain fragrance to you.

Small talk. Teasing talk. Light mission talk. Until they're on the outside. He has no idea what you just discovered, but he absolutely doesn't trust Kirkpatrick or anyone else in this building.

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You...you mentioned his face.

A shaky, black metal hand reaches up to touch his chin and then his frozen in place teeth. Eyes blinking back non-existent tears since his ducts were removed.

Clearly, it was a sore spot.

Turning his back to you all, waiting for you to leave.

He will absolutely start shopping for a new, better face. Maybe something from the Calamity line?

Yes, Miss.
purr...

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Oh, he's picking up some racism. Not the fake, teasing kind he says Bamboo the Cat has. Actual racism. Though technically, it's classism. Echo just grins through it. He got what he wanted.

And when IRIDIA comes back...he's certain she got what she wanted. To her...

"Are the toilets nice? Should I make a trip before we go?" He reaches into his armchair compartment for a can of Spunky Monkey to lightly toss your way. He's seen you drink it a few times. Assuming you liked it.

Bounties are temporarily suspended. He hides it, but his heart skips a beat at that. He can go home. Haven can go home. They can sleep in their own bed tonight after all that's happened.

With that, Echo unreclines the chair and pops up to his feet. Snatching another bottle of beer and some more snacks from the side compartment for the trip home.

"IRIDIA...Perry...I do believe it's time for us to go. We've got jaws to snatch things out of." Jaws of victory or defeat and snatching victory or defeat out of them...he's not sure which was which right now, but he's sure he can figure out the good combo.

"Kendo, you better start shopping for a new face. I'll be in touch."

A bow of his head before he waits for security to assemble and escort them out.

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"Damn, look at that, Echo — Dead Man Walking status."

She didn't even know it was possible. Thirty days, and either you pull off the impossible or they were all very possibly obliterated.

Who says you can't have a good time in Night City?

"Cool, so that's twenty-nine days to get stoned, and one day to try and hitch a ride to the moon…" she added with cybernetically-enhanced sarcasm.

"Let's go secure the containment vessel first. That's probably priority 1…" she opined out loud, having sent bloodhound protocols for mentions of that very same out into the wild NET. Seeding the things that any antagonists or bad actors might be counter-intel'ing for.

"We good, then?" she approached Echo Fenix, hand approaching his shoulder. Did he ask about what happened to Haven? Was not asking about it a test of some sort, for him? To see if Kirkpatrick even offered any info, or even knew about what she'd been hit with?

come here then

For you I do.
grin...

Steps in

Have a few minutes?

Hi!

waves

Looking in..

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There's an audible wince at the demand for a large equipment stipend. It sounds like metal scratching together. And then a full-on metal shriek at the added demand of an armored Aerial Vehicle.

Kendo blinks a few times. Turning his back to you and Perry with his finger up to his ear. Silently negotiating with his supervisor, finance, HR, and accounts receivable. Give him a minute or two.

Then he'll turn back around. Metal mouth happy. Eyes narrowed and angry. Digital voice hissing and harsh.

"Alright, you little nomad bastard. You've got it. But if you gonk this mission up, I'm dead. Literally." The expenditures were too much now. And his overseers did want to kill him for a few other things this past year. Now they just needed a good, final excuse to pull the trigger.

Kirkpatrick only then notices that IRIDIA has re-entered the room. So he raises both of his hands and waves them at the screen.

The bounty files for IRIDIA, Echo Fenix, and cell.0.phane (in absentia/transference) appear on the screen. The words "Temporarily Suspended" flash over the projected files.

Kendo takes a deep breath. Composing himself. And he's right back to cheery, salesman/game show host Kendo.

"By agreeing to take on a Self-Delete, your bounties will be temporarily suspended for the next 30 days until you complete the mission. Forward me the names of anyone else you bring into this mission with active bounties and they will be suspended as well."

"Upon completion of the mission, if you agree to the Platinum Untouchable favor, they will be erased and no further bounties will be added to your file."

"If you do not agree to Platinum Untouchable, your bounties will be reactivated within 15 days of successful mission completion."

And there it is. You can go home Mr. Echo. For now.

"If you abuse any of the mission stipend for your personal benefit, make no effort to complete this bounty, or attempt to leave Night City during this 30 day period...a full-scale Six Star Bounty will be put on you for instant termination."

Translation: Don't f*ck them on this, Echo Fenix.

tumbling in...

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IRIDIA collapsed that flatscreen back down to a segmented metal tube and tossed it back into her purse, flushed, and then sighed to herself.

Something about the vibe of this mission and the account of the previous failed attempts, its escalation to the status of 'Self-Deletion Bounty' troubled her even beyond the fundamental, superficial details about it.

She exited the Ladies' room under the watchful eye of Tampere and was escorted back to the meeting room where Kirkpatrick seemed to be… was he finalizing with Echo Fenix?

"Oh, did I miss the ritual handshake and staring context? I think Mr. Kirkpatrick has the advantage, in that one."

Her gaze circled the room as Tampere took his position again in the loose interior perimeter of guards, like no that can't be it, right?

She didn't have the time or the power to attempt anything risky, not here and not now, so her hardware stopped short of trying to pull a scan that went beyond skin-deep.

Yeah, nothing. Not without knocking on some doors she didn't want answered, rousing suspicion she wasn't prepared to duel with.

"What's our status? We prepping to go leap into some waiting jaws? Do we have a temporary stay on the Richter aggro, Mr. Kirkpatrick, so that he's not liable to compromise this mission?"