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SCION: CHAOSIUM! "Awakening"


Nina

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Raiko nods firmly at Tenchi's statement. The time was coming where they would have to take up the reigns, and it was best to get Ackerson and the board ready for that. She dared to think that it would be a bit of a culture shock for them. But that was some time in the future yet. She could only sigh in frustration at his commentary about Matt.

 

"I will need to speak with Mr Sorrum. I had already told him explicitly to do so. That he then went to call Ackerson instead of doing what he should have in the first place. Though, I'll need to remind you brother, that we will be missing Ackerson with our trip taking place the day after tomorrow." she eyes Juno for a second. They would leave talking her into coming till after the police, she reckoned. She didn't want it to appear as a bribe for the womans silence.

 

She grumbles to herself as she is calling Matt over, it was politics and optics everywhere tonight, seemingly. "Mr. Sorrum. We just spoke to Ackerson. Call the Commissioner. Now." It was a wonder the rain around her didn't freeze solid under the glacial tone and arctic gaze and sending him on his way, under absolutely no illusions as to just how thin the ice he was treading was.

 

She turns back to Juno as they are once more left alone, and snorts at her comment. "Nor are we paying you even remotely enough for it." She delivers the line almost deadpan, but there's a hint of a smile belying the humour behind the words and the lack of seriousness she held them.

 

18 hours ago, Juno Reyes said:

"So...you two really don't know what this was about? Because when I talk to the police, I'll have to tell them that our only suspect specifically told me to give you two a message. That's not going to look great."

 

What little humour she had expressed fades at that loaded question. She desperately wanted to fidget, but years of etiquette forcibly stills her hands. She appears deep in thought. She absolutely hated that this couldn't just be dropped, but the Woman was right, and their interactions with Yojimbo really needed context. She sighs, taking a deep breath in to fight the already rising anxiety.

 

"Before tonight, Tenchi had never met Yojimbo, and I had only met him the once." she pauses again, running her fingers through her now thoroughly sodden hair, slicking it back "I don't know how much you know about us, it's something we generally tend to keep quiet about, though I'm sure the articles still exist somewhere if you go digging for them. About 20 or so years ago. We had just started boarding school. I'll skip the details, if it's all the same, but suffice to say I was kidnapped. They had just decided to kill me when Yojimbo arrived. He slaughtered them and then left." leaving her there, sitting among the remains, too scared to move, till she was found by her rescuers. She clenches her fists, willing her heartbeat to slow and some feeling back into her numb fingertips.

 

"That is the only interaction we have had with him till tonight. We do not know his intentions. We don't know the why of his actions. But he seems to have some favourable inclination towards us." she grimaces, suddenly feeling much more older than her 20 something summers. It was a very brief explanation for the event, but god, living it twice in one night was taking it out of her now.

Edited by Kaoleth
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"Holy Shit."   It definitely broke the calm cool facade that Tenchi always had, but that was the level of his shock at what Raiko had just done.   He looked to Juno, and sighed.   "What she just told you is the truth. Neither of us knows Who Yojimbo is, and I will say one more thing.  What you just heard, you are the only other person, aside from myself, that knows that.  Our best friends, Our parents, no one else knows what you now know, save us, and him."

The importance of this wasn't lost on anyone, and still there were no threats.   They couldn't just say to be honorable, and then demand someone lie to protect them. Tenchi sighed inwardly.  Karma was a fickle thing.

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Juno's eyes switched between Tenchi and Raiko again...it was hard to keep looking at just one of them, the way they kept jumping in on each other.

 

"Okay," she said, holding a hand up, palm out. "Okay. Wasn't...expecting that, but look, the police aren't going to ask me for any of that. I'll just tell them what I saw and heard. What you tell them...that's up to you guys. That's none of my business. Besides, it probably wasn't even the same guy, you know? That was a long time ago."

 

Of course, that made it...weirder, didn't it? Because one crazy overprotective psycho murderously defending you was one thing. Two? Was it a hereditary position or something? What the hell was even going on?

 

So yeah. She was glad to wash her hands of it.

 

"Anyway," Juno concluded, a little awkwardly. "If that's all, I'm gonna go sit down for a bit. It's been a night, you know?"

 

It occurred to her that she oughtta call her dad, and then wasn't sure if she should do it now or after the cops were done with her. Maybe after. Then she could just sum it up and assure him that it was all over, and he wouldn't have anything left to worry about.

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Raiko acknowledges Tenchi's words with a nod, shrugging at Juno. "Not many people do, which is the way I prefer it, if I am honest. I prefer to dwell on it as little as possible."

 

She nods to the rest of Juno's commentary, even if she knew it in her bones that it was the same Yojimbo, she would let the point lie. No point in belabouring it. The laugh she lets out is almost strangled.

 

"Yes. It has. Too long by far already." she grimaces "This being said, once we are all done speaking to the police, we would like to speak once again before you leave." and then they got to persuade her that said impossibility wanted her to come with them for a trip to Colorado. Don't think there was any way of managing that without appearing any more unhinged than they already appeared. Marvelous.

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11 hours ago, SCION STORYTELLER said:

Detroit...

 

Karlee took the phone and watched him while he asked his questions.

 

"What you do on your own time is your own. But I need to make sure your the man for the job." 

 

She looked down at the phone and scrolled, paused, her eyes cut up to look at Try, then she scrolled again. and handed the phone back.

 

It showed a 1968 Olds 442 Convertible which had seen better days, "That is my brothers last purchase, he bought it only a few days before his death. It is still in the former owners possession. If you want the job I want you to go and pick it up, and bring it back to me. Preferably with you driving it, but if you have to bring it in on a trailor that is acceptable. I will pay you ten thousand dollars up front plus any expenses you incur. If you can deliver the car in working order in seven days I will give you a double bonus."

 

"I'm in. Just get me the address of where to pick it up, and where to deliver it to. What is the name of the former owner? Is he aware i'm coming for the car, or will he be made aware?" Try ran his left hand through his hair, and nodded, "Not like I can afford to turn down that money anyway, but it sounds like a challenge i'd like to take up. You said seven days? I'll be there."

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Detroit...

 

Karlee gave him a printed sheet she took from her hand bag, it had an address, a name, and a phone number for Walter Cobb, the address was to a Cobb Automotive in Snowfield Colorado. There was also her contact information and the delivery address which was in Lenapah, Oklahoma.

 

She then handed him a MasterCard debit card, “Activate that to set your pin, the ten thousand will be accessible from that card. You can use the card or if you don't trust me, you can transfer or with draw the whole amount.

 

Your seven days will start at six Am tomorrow, so you have about twenty hours free for a head-start or whatever. Do you have any questions, Mr Burton?”

 

 

 

 

Los Angeles, California... the next day....

 

It was almost 4:00 AM, before Juno was finished, or rather the cops were finished with her, for now. By the time they let her go, not only were the city, county, and port authority involved, but also the DEA, the FBI, and the ATF. And then there were the representatives of Homeland Security, the Coast Guard, the Navy. The only thing missing was the CIA and Juno wasn't too sure about that.

 

She saw that her dad was up when she came in, but not mom. Which meant he probably hadn't gone to bed cause mom always got up when he did. He was at his computer set up in the corner of the living room facing away from the TV on the other side of the room, surfing the web looking at all the crazy shit that floated on the fringe, conspiracy kook stuff. Her dad was into that now, ever since the accident.

 

He glanced at her when she came in then held out and empty coffee mug, “Fill that would you.” It wasn't a request it was an order. As she took the cup he gave her a serious look, “Your brother came by late, after midnight, he was pretty out of it, high I guess. He acted like he was alone but I saw his friends parked down the street so's I wouldn't see them.” He pointed at a smaller video monitor mounted above his computer screen which was attached to a feed to some security cameras, he had had her install around their old house. “Fucking idiots.”

 

Dad only ever swore when he was uptight and then only when omo was out of earshot. “He was looking for you. Told him you weren't home, which was true, but he didn't believe me, wanted to look in your room to be sure I wasn't lying.

 

“Why you so late anything to do with that mess at the port they reporting, something about drug boat and a bunch'a shot up cartel assholes?”

 

-----------

 

Beverly Hills...

 

The twins hadn't been kept nearly as long since they hadn't actually been aboard the boat and by 2:00 AM they had been back aboard their helicopter and in a short time were at the estate where they were met by their mother.

 

Myra Shirahara, formerly Myra Kortner, had met the twins father when she had been a junior at Stanford. Seizo had wowed her at an Interscholastic Conference where he had been speaking and she had caught his attention as well. Even though he had been twelve years older He had hit all the marks. He wooed her, won her, and six months after her graduation they had married.

 

During their long marriage she had forsaken her career to support her husband and raise their children, but had always been a sounding board for Saizo and was well familiar with the American branch of the huge Japanese conglomerate. With Saizo, gone and her children now home and part of the company Myra had retreated from the spotlight and had been quietly pursuing her unfinished education.

 

The raging storm had slackened to a slight drizzle by the time the helicopter landed and the twins approached their mother who was still in a bed clothes and robe.

 

“Dwight called. He said there was some trouble at the port and that you two were involved. Whats going on?”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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On 3/4/2021 at 11:22 AM, SCION STORYTELLER said:

Suruç, Turkey…

 

The sick man lapsed back into incoherence and then seemed to settle into a deep sleep. At an inquiry form the two women about this Sufi, Karam agreed to show them where he was.

 

They went in Valentine’s Rover, Valentine driving and Karam in the passenger seat directing, Kamala was alone in the backseat. The drive through the camp was slow.

When establish the camp at Suruc had been built to house at most four to five thousand refugees, but at the height of the refugee crisis, over thirty thousand had occupied this expanse of desert, while the population had dropped with the opening of newer camps there were still over twenty thousand refugees in residence in the squalor of the manufactured city. There was no running water, it had to be trucked in daily, food was limited, there was little medical care and even less medical supplies, and with  ring of security keeping the refugees from spreading into the country, it was more prison than anything else.

 

The Rover left the camp and after some argument with the soldiers at the security gate, was allowed to continue on. From there it was not far, about a kilometer from the wire fence they left the road and traveled across country another few kilometers when Karam called for Valentine to stop.

 

“There you thin line of smoke, that is the Sufi’s fire. It would be best to proceed on foot so as not to disturb him.”

 

The three trudged the final few hundred meters to the Sufi’s camp. The camp occupied a small ancient oasis, with a few trees and a well. There was a young boy who tended the fire and the animals, a few goats, he also cooked for the holy man who sat in an open tent away from the fire and the well.

 

The boy said nothing to them as they came into the camp, he only watched them and when questioned  remained silent but pointed to the tent. In the tent sat an old frail nearly bald man with a long white beard. He too watched them approach with eyes that were clear and alert.

 

Suruc, Turkey

 

Valentine approached the tent, bowing low and then sitting across from the man respectfully. "Sufi, we were told you were the Guardian and could lead us to En'Gannokt. There is a man in our camp that is terribly ill. This illness - we need to know where it came from to keep others from falling ill as well." 

What we need are directions and a whole Hazmat team! At least I still have some cards left. If we can backtrack the man, we can at least tell people the general area to avoid. Who's doing some with radiation out here?

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8 minutes ago, SCION STORYTELLER said:

Detroit...

 

Karlee gave him a printed sheet she took from her hand bag, it had an address, a name, and a phone number for Walter Cobb, the address was to a Cobb Automotive in Snowfield Colorado. There was also her contact information and the delivery address which was in Lenapah, Oklahoma.

 

She then handed him a MasterCard debit card, “Activate that to set your pin, the ten thousand will be accessible from that card. You can use the card or if you don't trust me, you can transfer or with draw the whole amount.

 

Your seven days will start at six Am tomorrow, so you have about twenty hours free for a head-start or whatever. Do you have any questions, Mr Burton?”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Try shook his head in the negative and shook Karlee's hand again, "Not at this time. Thank you, ma'am. You won't be disappointed. I guess I'll see you shortly in Oklahoma." He waited for her to exit the room, did a little happy dance in place when he was sure no one could see him, and then got out his phone. Following the activation of the debit card, he searched for the soonest flight to Denver International Airport. He found a good, non-stop flight that he could still make, then he headed in to the office to talk to his dad. 

 

When he walked into the office, his dad looked over his shoulder at Tryfon and raised an eyebrow in a questioning look. Try's shit-eating grin was all the response his dad needed, "So, what'd the pretty lady want from a mook like you?" 

 

Try chuckled, "She needs a caretaker for a big collection of classic muscle cars. Someone that can repair and maintain them, but also doesn't mind living in the middle of nowhere, apparently. It's a live-in job situation. I can do my own work too, but priority is the collection. Also, I have to go and secure her late brother's most recent acquisition and repair/drive the car to her house. It's a '68 Olds 442. If I can do it, I get the job and a nice bonus. I'm gonna head out this afternoon, and get a head start. Can I take the rest of my shift off to get ready, tell mom and leave? Or do you want me to leave tomorrow and finish my work here? The timer officially starts tomorrow at 6 am. What do you think?"

 

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Tenchi smiled at his mother.   While not a tall man, what height he did have he knew came from her genes.   "There was a situation,  a boat tied to one of our docks. Inside, the bodies of some drug runners, their weapons, and drugs.  One of our guards investigated,  along with her supervisor, then they called it into Matt.   He called us and we head out there.    After abit of back and forth, including some with Dwight, Raiko and I decided the best course of action was to follow proper protocol and brought in the authorities.   That wasn't what Dwight wanted of course, but it's a decision we can both sleep with at night."

He nodded.  "Thankfully, we didn't actually set foot on the boat, so we weren't detained as long as some of the others."

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“Why you so late anything to do with that mess at the port they reporting, something about drug boat and a bunch'a shot up cartel assholes?”

 

None of what Hector had to say was good news to Juno, but she was way too goddamn tired to deal with her brother right now. Only her dad's agitation kept her from just kissing his forehead and flopping into bed fully dressed.

 

"Si papi," she sighed. "I was working at the dock it came in at. There was a big company thing, the owners came down and everything. Then when that was over, I got to do a police report, and that went about how you'd expect. It's done now though."

 

Juno took a sip from her own cup...just water for herself at this hour...and focused on the computer monitor. "Oh for...would you stop looking at that shit? You're going to get brain damage. It's practically already sunrise, go to bed. I promise the internet will still be here when you get up, okay?"

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Raiko was listening with half an ear as her brother and mother spoke, digging through a closet. Pulling out two towels, she throws one to her brother who without breaking the conversation nabs out of the air, while she starts towelling her hair to get rid of the worst of the damp. She nods as he finishes, piping in her own agreement to their mother.

 

"Frankly, I'll be surprised if the entire company knows about it before sunup, with the way people are calling each other." she steps up, pressing a quick kiss to her mothers cheek. Stepping back, she shrugs "There will be an investigation, of course. With the way the Alphabet soup were swarming around, but we can rest easy in knowing we did as we should. I dare say it won't be the last we hear about it, but for now, there's no point fretting over it." she offers a shrug before nodding in the direction of the kitchen. "I'm half frozen though, so I'm going to see if I can scare up some tea. We can speak more on it once we have some heat in us."

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2 hours ago, Valentine Elena Adama said:

 

Suruc, Turkey

 

Valentine approached the tent, bowing low and then sitting across from the man respectfully. "Sufi, we were told you were the Guardian and could lead us to En'Gannokt. There is a man in our camp that is terribly ill. This illness - we need to know where it came from to keep others from falling ill as well." 

What we need are directions and a whole Hazmat team! At least I still have some cards left. If we can backtrack the man, we can at least tell people the general area to avoid. Who's doing some with radiation out here?

 

*Suruc, Turkey*

 

Dealing with the camp guards always put an acute strain on Kamala's good nature, their brutal arrogance and the reminder that no shortage of Turkish weapons of war had taken their toll on Kurdish communities under the pale justification of 'restraining militant elements'. Worse than the Regime in their way devoid of even the pretext of viewing her as a taxpaying asset. Someday it would different. Someday the world would smile on them enough to give them room to breath after deciding her people didn't deserve a safe square of land on the map. Someday.

 

But this was today.

 

She bowed and knelt as well. This camp, small and sparse and clean in the desert terrain around them, soothed her and she could see why the refugees who could talk or sneak their way past the guards did so. This was the dream, really, old Arabia before the blood and the oil and the foreign money all mixed to bring out the worst in people. Out here, if you could find water and food and shelter for the night, the brutal trinity of survival, you were... Good. Uncluttered. Clear. It was never that easy, of course, but the *essence* of the dream was here. It made the Syrian medic smile as she looked over the camp waiting for an answer to Valentine's question.  

 

Part of her suspected that the answer wouldn't be anywhere as simple as a weapon's cache, the little niggling nibble of today's uncertainty chewing at the tired pillars of her routine assumptions. The Suffi certainly looked like one of the few who through clean living and virtuous thought had come back with something worth sharing.

 

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On 3/5/2021 at 9:50 AM, Stacy Rene McQueen said:

Why the fuck did she find this embarrassing, Stacy shook her head, "Okay we did meet at that resort, but not at the resort. Look I'm  sort of an exotic dancer, I work in clubs but I also do private functions, Parties, conventions, things. I was at the resort in that capacity and that's where I met Jim. Those guys out there, both of whom are married, were also there.

 

Jim and I started talking and we hit it off. Look I am no angel and yes I do things for money but That is not how it was with Jim, I liked spending time with him and him passing like that . It is devastating.

 

I'm here because while I don't live here in Denver we had a thing going on and there were pictures and videos exchanged. Neither of which need to see the light of day. And that is the truth and that is why I am here. I want to protect Jim. The worlds already seen me naked."

 

Ali flushed in embarrassment. "Uh, say no more!" He understood Stacy's feelings on the matter perfectly now, and equally the sense of awkwardness and hostility the guests and Loraine respectively displayed. In fact, he could just feel his mother's icy contempt reaching out to the room all the way from the East Coast - for that was how she would regard Stacy being a stripper - much less Ali being in the same room as her.

 

"So... you go ahead and do that." Ali quickly said. "I don't know where his phone is, sorry." He pulled the door open and then stepped through, shutting it behind him to give Stacy the privacy to clean up the dirty material. He mopped at his heated forehead, feeling a line of sweat. Well, one mystery solved, but nothing about the tickets. How much did they cost, anyway?

 

Ali decided to head back downstairs and clear his head with a drink.

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Los Angeles California...

 

Their mother nodded deciding not to press and led her children inside where she sent them off to bed.

 

The next morning after a big breakfast the twins began clearing their scheduled for the upcoming trip to Colorado.

 

At mid-morning they were visited by a detective and had to answer some more questions but nothing out of the routine for a case such as this. They were assured that nothing so far indicated any involvement of the company but they are concerned about the missing perpetrator and his strange message about telling Officer Reyes' bosses his name, and whether that meant her direct bosses or the corporate bosses.

 

“Any thing about anyone calling themselves Yojimbo mean anything to either of you?”

 

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Try....

 

His father hadn't any objections and in fact had encouraged his son in this new endeavor. The rest of the day was a whirlwind. He booked a flight into Denver, for that evening, made reservations at the only commercial place to stay in Snowfield, the ski resort, and it was expensive but with Ms. Lightfeather picking up the tab, he wasn't worried. He booked it for a full week in case he decided to see if he could get the car running well enough to drive to Oklahoma.

 

He tried calling the mechanic, Cobb, to get some more information about the condition of the car, but only got automated voice mail.

 

He also had to rent a car in Denver to drive up to Snowfield, which was going to be inconvenient. The resort was located high up in the Rockies and was a good three hour drive from Denver in good weather, and the weather service was forecasting thunderstorms, heavy rain or snow. He had requested a four-wheel drive truck but was told that they couldn't guarantee availability, which was a concern.

 

The flight was uneventful for the most part. As the plane entered its final flight approach the weather front arrived and the plane entered some turbulence. Try noticed that a man a few rows ahead seemed to be having a bad dream but he woke up and nothing came of it.

 

He stayed the night in Denver and the next morning made the long drive. He did get a 4X4, just not his first choice, it was a Toyota Tundra, and would do at least to get him there.

 

The drive was challenging it began with rain and high winds, but less than an hour out of Denver turned to snow. It wasn't blizzard level but then Try wasn't used to driving at high altitude in snow. It took almost five hours but he did make it to Snowfield by afternoon.

 

Snowfield was nestled in a high valley and boasted that it was the highest elevation ski resort in America. The town was small and quaint with an off season population of just about 1500, that population would swell to about three times that during the height of skiing season, which lasted from mid October to late April or early May. The resort itself was visible above the town and accessable by a twisting turning road that ran for about two miles. Further access to the snow slopes and the resort by three restricted service roads.

 

It was late afternoon when Try pulled up in front of Cobb Automotive. Cobbs was a combination service station, mechanic/body shop, and automobile showroom. Try was greeted by a man his age who identified himself as Jason Biggs, and made a crack about not the actor. He immediately tried to sell Try a car, but when Try stated his reason fro being there he led him to the Garage and Walter Cobb.

 

Cobb was under the hood of a huge Dodge custom pick-up, and that was literally under the hood. Cobb was kneeling on the front the truck leaning into the engine compartment. Cobb was a little person.

 

The bearded man in the truck peered over at Jason and Try and barked “What is it?”

 

Spoiler

Walter Cobb   Cobb.thumb.jpg.e802550fbbe4ae2ab5746c4cddc74477.jpg

 

 

 

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Los Angeles, California....

 

 

“Yeah yeah, look at this.”

 

Juno glanced at the screen and saw a lurid headline 'End of World Cults!'

 

“It list all these different cults and religious groups from all over the world, all of them preaching the end of the world. You call it crazy but it's too much. All over the world...”

 

Juno watched as her dad became absorbed in the screen and she shook her head and headed to her room to grab her robe bad then grab a shower and get some damn sleep.

 

She pulled up short when she entered her room. Some things on her dresser were out of place and one of her drawers wasn't quite closed all the way. And there on her bed was a ripped piece of paper and a cheap cell phone, the prepaid kind, known in the trade as a burner phone.

 

The note read, 'call me use this phone', no signature and nothing else. She could tell by the shaky scrawl that it was her brothers writing.

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On seeing the state of her room, Juno already knew what the situation was. Money. She was too tired for this shit. But even if he was a screwup, he was still her brother.

 

She reached down and picked up the phone, then checked her own phone's contact list for the last known number. That number went into the burner phone, even as the dull edge of anger and annoyance simmered down to unease. It wouldn't be the first time Carl had bugged her about money, but usually it had a playful tone to it. This felt different. Searching her room, leaving a phone. It felt...desperate.

 

"What've you gotten yourself into?" she murmured aloud as the phone rang in her ear.

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Sitting back in her chair, gives a thoughtful hum. Whoever he was, Yojimbo was owed a debt of gratiitude that she could not deny, and she felt, in her bones, that even with his brusque manner and frankly terrible method of interacting with children, that he was an ally to them. She would be hard pressed to say where this certainty came from, but it was there. As such, she didn't want to throw the man, whoever he was, under the bus. Nor, admittedly, did she want to fess up to her previous interactions with him when she was a child. It had been hard enough talking to Reyes about it, and that was because the man seemed to have taken an interest in her as well. She would be damned if she was going to go through it with some random cop.

 

"In Japanese culture, the Yojimbo is a bodyguard or a bouncer. They would usually protect a person, but have been known to be hired for properties as well." she offers the Detective a shrug.

 

"It's also a film from 1961. Depending on who you ask, the best movie ever made. Two warring crime lords seek to attain the services of the Yojimbo in question. If westerns are more your thing, A Fist Full  of Dollars was also based on it." she shakes her head at the officer, offering a slight smile.

 

"But this is all besides the point. I can't say with any certainty why someone styling themselves after a traditional Japanese bodyguard would be running around our docklands cutting up Smugglers." though she hoped to be able to rectify that once they reached Colorado.

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Beverly  Hills...

 

Detective Arron gave the brother and sister his full attention, especially when the sister, Raiko told her story, "Yes they are good movies, Bruce Willis did one too, set in the depression, not great but wasn't bad," he glanced at his partner, who seemed amused. "Back to the origin of the word, I believe it is also true that these bodyguards were often clanless samurai, or Ronin, I Think was the term."

 

"I saw that movie, De Niro was pretty good in it, Sean Bean got killed of course" added Detective Cooper as she brushed back her hair with her fingers.

 

"Not the right kind of movie Jill. So, neither of you have ever seen, or heard of anyone calling themselves by this term? Not even, I don't know when you were maybe kids?"

 

Spoiler

Detective Arron 1009617760_DetectivArron.thumb.jpg.0442899775dfed7a7ed32dc58d797613.jpg

 

Detective Cooper  Cooper.jpg.0a9c0d09d34dfbd33a6f4cdd57c5c090.jpg

 

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And with that question, Raiko felt her entire being grind to a halt. They knew something. They had to, or they wouldn't have asked. She had never spoken to anyone about Yojimbo. Only Tenchi, and he would have never told. So how did they know?

 

... There must have been something on the boat. They must have noticed something. For a singular moment, she cursed their desire to handle it properly and not check the boat themselves first. Internally she sighed. Right and Easy, she had said back on the dock. Seems she was more accurate than she originally would have thought.

 

Forcibly dragging her attention back into the present and ruthlessly crushing the panic before it could properly manifest, she leans back in her chair, giving the detective an assessing look and weighing her options. Right and Easy. Right and Easy.

 

"That's a very leading question, Detective. What was on the boat to bring you to ask it?" She hated him, just slightly, for forcing her into this situation, but she wasn't a child any more. She would do what she had to, that she could stand with her head unbowed, even if that meant reliving trauma. Again. For the third time in 24 hours.......

 

Didn't mean she didn't wish her saber was to hand.

 

Spoiler

Gods. Fucking. Dammit Yojimbo.

 

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4 hours ago, SCION STORYTELLER said:

Try....

 

His father hadn't any objections and in fact had encouraged his son in this new endeavor. The rest of the day was a whirlwind. He booked a flight into Denver, for that evening, made reservations at the only commercial place to stay in Snowfield, the ski resort, and it was expensive but with Ms. Lightfeather picking up the tab, he wasn't worried. He booked it for a full week in case he decided to see if he could get the car running well enough to drive to Oklahoma.

 

He tried calling the mechanic, Cobb, to get some more information about the condition of the car, but only got automated voice mail.

 

He also had to rent a car in Denver to drive up to Snowfield, which was going to be inconvenient. The resort was located high up in the Rockies and was a good three hour drive from Denver in good weather, and the weather service was forecasting thunderstorms, heavy rain or snow. He had requested a four-wheel drive truck but was told that they couldn't guarantee availability, which was a concern.

 

The flight was uneventful for the most part. As the plane entered its final flight approach the weather front arrived and the plane entered some turbulence. Try noticed that a man a few rows ahead seemed to be having a bad dream but he woke up and nothing came of it.

 

He stayed the night in Denver and the next morning made the long drive. He did get a 4X4, just not his first choice, it was a Toyota Tundra, and would do at least to get him there.

 

The drive was challenging it began with rain and high winds, but less than an hour out of Denver turned to snow. It wasn't blizzard level but then Try wasn't used to driving at high altitude in snow. It took almost five hours but he did make it to Snowfield by afternoon.

 

Snowfield was nestled in a high valley and boasted that it was the highest elevation ski resort in America. The town was small and quaint with an off season population of just about 1500, that population would swell to about three times that during the height of skiing season, which lasted from mid October to late April or early May. The resort itself was visible above the town and accessable by a twisting turning road that ran for about two miles. Further access to the snow slopes and the resort by three restricted service roads.

 

It was late afternoon when Try pulled up in front of Cobb Automotive. Cobbs was a combination service station, mechanic/body shop, and automobile showroom. Try was greeted by a man his age who identified himself as Jason Biggs, and made a crack about not the actor. He immediately tried to sell Try a car, but when Try stated his reason for being there he led him to the Garage and Walter Cobb.

 

Cobb was under the hood of a huge Dodge custom pick-up, and that was literally under the hood. Cobb was kneeling on the front the truck leaning into the engine compartment. Cobb was a little person.

 

The bearded man in the truck peered over at Jason and Try and barked “What is it?”

 

  Reveal hidden contents

Walter Cobb   Cobb.thumb.jpg.e802550fbbe4ae2ab5746c4cddc74477.jpg

 

 

 

"I'm Tryfon Burton. I'm here to pick up the '68 Olds 442 for Mr. Lightfeather. I was sent to get it, repair it, and drive it to Mr. Lightfeather's estate. I understand it's in your care. I have here identification and a letter from Mr. Lightfeather's sister allowing me to collect the car. It seems that Mr. Lightfeather has passed away. His sister has taken control of the collection and has hired me to maintain and be caretaker the collection. I'm here to pick up the Olds, and if you will allow it, I'd like to rent a bay to work on it for the next 6 days." Tryfon moves over toward Cobb while speaking, and looks over at the engine he is working on. "Nice piece of work. Would you like another pair of hands?" 

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Denver...

 

Ali did the concerned best friend and supporter of the family thing. He mixed and listened to Jim's friends relate stories and even offered up a few of his own. About twenty minutes after leaving Stacy in the office, he saw her come to the end of the hall and when she caught his eye she nodded toward the front door. The without waiting to see if he understood she quickly slipped through the living room when she wouldn't be seen by Jim's mother or sister and out the front door.

 

Ali waited a minute then followed her. He found her waiting in the rain under the overhang by the garage. She was holding a phone.

 

“Did you find what you were looking for?”

 

“I did,” she held up the phone, “and more. I cleared his PC and then I dialed his phone and located it from the ringing. It's clear too now. Of my stuff. But I found something else.

 

You said Jim left you some reservations to a ski resort right, “ she asked?

 

“Yes his mom gave them to me they were in an envelope with my name. Why?”

 

“I was curious about it. He hated skiing you said it youself. I found this on his phone.” Stacy handed the phone to Ali. He looked it was the digital receipts for the reservations in Ali's name.

 

“Look at the date.”

 

Ali looked. The reservations were made and paid for the day after Jim had died.

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Ali blinked, quiet for a few moments as he was utterly perplexed. At first glance, he was tempted to call this a case of someone stealing Jim's credit card information and making a fraudulent transaction, but if that were so, why were the tickets delivered to Jim's house and addressed to Ali? Equally obvious, there was no reason for Loraine or Darlene to make the reservations.

 

Ali shook his head. "This makes no sense whatsoever. Anyway, what am I supposed to do with them?"

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Denver....

 

Stacy watches the emotions play over Jim's friends face as he thinks about all of this. Jim was nice, she had been fond of him, not in love with him by any stretch, but he had been a fun distraction. She felt a little guilty, she hadn't lied to Ali, not exactly, but she hadn't told him all of the truth either. and now this.

 

"Ali, I think someone wants you to go to that resort. And I think I should go with you." 

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Beverly Hills…

 

“Funny you should ask that, “said Det. Arron

 

Cooper flipped her notebook back several pages, “There were eleven bodies found in the cargo hold of the fishing trawler that mysteriously appeared at your leased dock. Those bodies were in a state of severe dismemberment.” She looks up meeting Raiko’s gaze, “Mainly upper limbs and heads but there were a few legs, and one  subject had his torso cut diagonally, left shoulder to right hip. There were several firearms, that had been cut apart as well.”  She flipped her notebook back to the page she was taking notes on.

 

“There was also large number of drugs found aboard with the bodies, so the DEA was called in, and where the DEA goes the FBI usually follows,” said Det Arron, taking over.

 

“One of the best things about the FBI is their administrative functions especially their ability to cross reference. They pretty much do it automatically and one of the services they always cross reference with is Interpol, and Interpol are probably better than anyone at record keeping and cross referencing. So, imagine our surprise when the FBI turned up the fact that you, Miss Shirahara, had been kidnapped when you were a young girl, at school in Sweden, and that  when you were found, unharmed, your kidnappers, all eleven of them, were dead and in various states of dismemberment.”  He holds his hands out palms up questioningly. “Coincidence?”

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