Ask [Sneeve] You Wouldn't Download a Washing Machine

[Acklay]

Mars liked getting into places she wasn't supposed to be.

It was part of what made a good slicer. Ambition, curiosity, and adaptability. Skill too, of course, but skill came with time and experience. Mars had gotten to where she was today because when she saw a barrier, her first instinct was to find a way around - or through - it.

There was one obstacle in particular that Mars wanted enough to put her feelers out for another slicer. The Crimson Dawn had been working on expanding its operations, and Sneeve was next on their list. The planet had a decently large population, and more importantly, a laundromat chain. One could probably infer why a criminal organization would have an interest in building full of washers and dryers.

That chain, Suds', was the place she wanted to get into. The slicer she'd hired for the job had a small but solid resume of shit they'd gotten their own fingers into. She'd hired them under the moniker 'Aacklay' and had informed them she'd be waiting for them at one of Sneeve's various spaceports. If they were good, she might see if she couldn't recruit them into the Crimson Dawn.

For now, 'Aacklay' leaned against one of the walls in the spaceport, wearing the lower section of her mask and tapping away on the screen of her datapad. She had everything she needed with her for the task ahead, and all that was left was to bring her partner up to speed and head on over.

tag: @Arcangel

 

[Yvon]

Yvon had travelled to Sneeve on contract for a job. They weren't sure of all the details, other than that a fellow slicer had reached out to them on the net to contract their services. Yvon was cautious, working under the monicker of NoVa when it came to jobs like this. Yvon had arrived with their usual slicing gear, as well as an identity concealing set of armor, if one could call it that. A blast vest and a helmet weren't much in the way of armor as far as most beings were concerned, but for the Echani it was almost uncomfortable.

Otherwise Yvon was unarmed. No blaster to their name, only feet and fists that could easily crush the life out of anyone that dared to step to the slicer. Not that Yvon wanted violence, they detested it... or at least they detested getting their hands dirty.

Yvon spotted their client, a woman with a mask attached to her face. Yvon approached the fellow slicer cautiously, not really paranoid about a trap, more just as a professional courtesy. Walking up to one of the pay dataphones that lined the wall next to where 'Aaklay' stood, Yvon picked up the receiver and talked as if they were talking into it.

"You Aaklay?" They asked, their voice concealed by the neutral digitized base of the helmet. Yvon nodded as if someone had spoke on the other end of the phone. "I'm NoVa. Here for the job." Yvon stated simply. Sometimes it was best to get straight to the point. With that sorted, they hung up the phone receiver. "Lead the way."

@lizziie

 

[Acklay]

"Yeah." Mars lowered her datapad into her pocket and stared straight ahead. "Good to meet'cha. This way." The masked slicer turned away from NoVa, walking away from them as if the two had never spoken at all, but already having motioned for them to follow.

The cyborg would walk through the hall of the spaceport until fresh air filled her lungs, after which she took a sharp turn to the right and started down the street. Her pace slowed, and she would wait for NoVa to catch up with her before she spoke with them again.

"We're headed for their corporate office further into town. We'll need to do a bit of reconnaissance - check the premises and prod the networks - before we get straight to work."

Mars stuck to the edge of the street as she walked, though there wasn't much use in trying to hide. The spaceport city was going to be the most diverse in all of Sneeve, but they were still two near-humans on a planet of short sentients.

"How long have you been slicing?"

tag: @Arcangel

 

[Yvon]

Yvon got all the confirmation they needed as Aaklay confirmed her identity. Yvon, or NoVa, followed at a distance. Discretion was the name of the game and public sightings might mean little to the normal operator, but to those who thrived on anonymity, it was everything.

Yvon caught up with Aacklay in the alleyway, silent as they listened to the initial objective of their mission. It sounded like a bit of easy reconnaissance, which meant the real part of the job came later. No need to hire an outside operator just to prod a few firewalls. "Sounds simple enough." Yvon replied in the digitized voice of NoVa.

Yvon cocker their head and glanced at Aacklay at her question, Yvon's helmet angled silently there as they walked and stared for a moment before turning their attention back to the path ahead. "How long..." Yvon trailed off for a moment, the digitizing voice scrambler producing a fading static-y sound at the trail. Yvon's mind scrambled to their earliest memories, a screen always available, simple blocks of code a fascination. "Since I was a child." They finally answered as they got closer to their destination. A non answer really, Aacklay had no idea how many years they were.

"Yourself? Or is this an employer/client question privilege thing?" Yvon asked, musing aloud. Some employers liked to maintain a sense of distance from their contracted help. It mad sense they supposed. "However long, you decided you needed me, didn't ya?" An almost staticky sense of mirth leaked through the scrambler as Yvon spoke in NoVa's voice. If Aacklay was observant she might see the slightest shake of NoVa's shoulder's beneath their enshrouding overcoat, possibly indicating a laugh of amusement.

@lizziie

 

[Acklay]

"So a while then," she acknowledged with a plain tone. "You've probably been at this longer than I have." She had no idea how old they were, but if they were older than her, it was likely they had at least a decade of experience. If they were competent too, hopefully, they wouldn't fuck things up and leave her regretting her decision to bring someone else along with her. Only time would tell, and until then, she'd be keeping an eye on them.

The masked cyborg chuckled when NoVa asked about herself, then immediately followed up with what seemed like a jest to the woman. "I might hide my face, but I'm not going to play Mr. Mysterious," she began as they turned out of the alley and began their way down a side street. "I started slicing in my mid-teens. I already had a bit of programming knowledge from working on cybers, so it wasn't too hard to pick up." For her, at least. There wasn't a ton of overlap though, so maybe she was just inclined toward it. It didn't really matter. Mars turned her head to look where she guessed NoVa's eyes were."And I know I hired you for this, but don't think of me as a boss. If we want this to go smoothly I need you to be able to think on your feet and make your own decisions. From this moment on, we're partners, got it?"

Whether NoVa responded or not, she would turn to look back ahead and continue walking. They would arrive at the Suds' corporate office soon enough, and there would be little time for small talk after they did. Mars had no qualms about chit-chatting before the mission, but she flipped a switch when it began.

tag: @Arcangel

 

[Yvon]

Yvon remained silent as Aacklay voiced that NoVa might have been at this longer than her. Yvon was terrible at judging people's ages, and with as much cyberware as Aacklay was sporting... well who really knew. Yvon was confident in their skills, thats all that mattered.

"Mister?" NoVa's voice warbled, followed by another shake of the shoulder's as Yvon laughed underneath their helmet. They didn't elaborate on that anymore however, instead focusing on the follow up. "Self taught slicer's are the best anyways, none of that fancy and rigid academy teaching." NoVa said. They had ran up against plenty university educated slicer's in their years cruising the net. They usually lacked imagination. They were predictable.

"Got it... Partner." The words felt weird coming out of Yvon's mouth. Even through the voice scrambler, Aacklay might pick up on the hesitation. Yvon was used to working alone. Solo. They were never much of a people person, no matter how much they might joke. People... Yvon had never quiet understood them.

The Sud's corporate office lay ahead. Whether the office was the entirety of the tall office building that it inhabited or just rented a few rooms, Yvon wasn't sure. They were leaning towards the former however as the Sud's logo lit up the street, shining large and bright against the dark duracrete tower. "You didn't hire me just to help with your laundry I hope." NoVa said quietly as their eyes scanned the tower. Already their sharp eyes picked out several cameras studding the building. Producing their signal tracer from the inside of their coat, a few moments passed before Yvon shook their head.

"The building is locked out of the holonet. Camera's are hardwired." NoVa said with a sigh which sounded like drawn out static. Yvon wasn't really looking forward to doing anything. They had been hoping this would be easy. Stand outside, lock onto the building holonet and then wreak whatever havoc was needed from the comfort of the alleyway. Unfortunately this job appeared like it was going to have to be a little bit more... hands on.

@lizziie

 

[Acklay]

Mars snorted at Yvon's comment, indicating her amusement with their comment about the laundry. She didn't bother to explain at that moment though, as the other slicer brought up the cameras before she could.

"That's fine," she muttered, despite sounding just slightly inconvenienced. "Do you have a way to jam their signal? Any interference devices on you? I can jack in if I have a second to get close." The woman turned her wrist over and used her other thumb to briefly show a jack embedded into the metal.

"If not, we'll need to find a way to briefly cut the power. If it's just a flicker, it shouldn't bring too much attention, but it should be enough for me to find an in." Mars adjusted the mask on her face, then procured the top half from her bag and spent a moment to click it into place. The HUD lit up before her eyes, and she zoomed in on the premises.

"Looks like there might be a power box around back. Lets go take a look."

tag: @Arcangel