>>31191349
If we get a house, can we fortify it to the max?

File: 1396319370494.pdf-(3.78 MB, PDF, WETFLOOR.pdf)

3.78 MB PDF

You are Michelle St. Claire, and today is your second day on the job.

Sort of. You've been given today off after an exhausting previous day killing men in tracksuits and executing idols.

At least it pays. You're pretty sure you made more yesterday, paid in cash, then you did during your entire two year term in the Army.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/WetworkIdols @WetworkIdols
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Wetwork%20Idols%20Quest

>>31191403
Limited by budget, good taste, and if there's an overbearing home owner's association.

Discretion is probably the way to go, though.

>>31191349
lets get a house. Much more comfy

>>31191349
>>31191413
OK, but a house, with a large yard, modern tastes and no HOA. Have no neightbors.

Gonna start writing at the hour.

>>31191349

You swipe your bus pass past the reader (Christ…) on the bus and walk through after the small gate lets you pass. You sit near the back where it’s a little more empty and place your things on your lap.

A house could be nice. Something with a yard. Maybe a pool in the back?

Maybe not. That’d be a lot of work or money. But definitely a yard, and not too close to any neighbors.

Or at least a good, tall fence.

And something modern, like all the magazines and advertisements you read at FOBs while being told to hurry up and wait.

You idly wonder what marble costs as you step off your bus and into an elevator. It bumps and grinds a few times on its way to the...third floor.

At least it’s a short ride.

And no goddamned HOA. Christ. You don’t need to experience much of a HOA (you certainly didn’t…) to understand how irredeemably terrible they are. Mandating garage door colors?

Fuck that. You’ll paint it whatever color you want.

Quickly stashing all your leftover clothing into one of your two duffel bags, you spread the pamphlets and brochures and handouts and all sorts of real-paper stuff on the bed and lie down, looking at the pile. You sort out all the apartment or condo or whatever papers and push them aside in their own pile.

So...well, at least you’ve narrowed it down.

Sort of.

At least it’s getting clearer, though. Downtown and the waterfront are all the super-new and ultra modern developments. You might not even need a car, if you’re lucky, since the complex isn’t that far away.

Inland are older construction, but they’re less expensive a month (you’re not sure if that matters, really…). They tend to be bigger for less, anyways.

Well...you need to make a decision sooner or later.

>Something near the water or downtown, maybe with a view or even your own beach
>Something inland, maybe on a hill looking west or with some fruit trees
>Other

>>31192414
how big a price difference are we talking between the two option?

>>31192414
>>Something inland, maybe on a hill looking west or with some fruit trees
Gardening is good for the soul, plant a tree for each life we take. That'll help with the regrets.

>>31192414
>Something near the water or downtown, maybe with a view or even your own beach

>>31192414
>Something inland, maybe on a hill looking west or with some fruit trees

>>31192501
You don't make enough to afford all that land. Issue of scale.

>>31192482
Around a 2.5 to 10% decrease in per-month costs, but this, of course, depends. Burough/neighborhood, square footage, amenities, etc... all obviously factor into the price of a lot/property.

tl;dr: Basically depends on what you're interested having installed/available/integrated/etc into the house, or if there's any sort of unusual perk (your own private beach with privacy screens, for instance)

>>31192577
if its not that big a difference, lets live in style

>>31192414
>>Something near the water or downtown, maybe with a view or even your own beach

>>31192414
>>Something inland, maybe on a hill looking west or with some fruit trees
We can use the money saved to get a car.

I'll start writing in about ten minutes. Seems like people are slowly filtering in, so I'll give them a (admittedly brief) window to get up to speed.

>>31192414

You start flipping through the inland located properties. You’re not entirely convinced, yet, but you need to start somewhere, and it would be easier to have more for less inland, even if you’ll need to invest money back into a vehicle or...something.

Anyways. There were a few you liked.

>There’s this one located on what’s something between a really big hill or a small mountain. It’s the largest property by far, but has neighbors on the directly adjacent south and east lots. Three story house, four car garage. Large backyard (sideyard?) with infinity pool facing west. Access street, front door and lawn on north side. Not so busy, but fairly visible. Your paranoia is uncomfortable with all the ways someone could hide and surveill you. Maybe nosy neighbors. You know how wealthy people can be.

>There’s a small single story house even more inland. Two car garage. Very...average. Old construction, no modern amenities at all. All manual appliances, no smart glass, no exotic or luxury material. Small yard, front and back, with grass that’s starting to go brown. Connects to busy street. Your paranoia is uncomfortable with how easy it would be to have some cars perform rolling surveillance. Lots of neighbors and fences that aren’t even as tall as you (and at five foot seven, you’re pretty average).

>There’s this villa-style house, short and wide, in a newer development closer to downtown. Red stucco walls and spanish tile roof. No appliances installed. Some smart glass. Close neighbors but thick walls with growth. Your paranoia is uncomfortable with the prospect of allowing strangers in to “install,” anything you might need, buy, or want. One car garage.

Hmm. You fan the three in front of you, although you find yourself glancing at the downtown/waterfront brochures more than a few times.

You find yourself most drawn to…

>House #1
>House #2
>House #3
>Put a pin in it and take a look at the other properties

>>31193261

>Hit the character limit.
>If it seems that Michelle is uncertain, unclear, or flip flopping, that's because she is - your votes are the little voices in her (our) head(s) that agree, fight, debate, decide, and otherwise run our lives. The more unanimous the vote goes, the more confident Michelle is that she's doing what she wants/what she thinks is right for her/etc.
>Ties get rationalized the way they usually are...by going "I'll deal with this later." (Which is how the housing situation ended up being put off until now, and could still potentially be put off today)

>>31193261
>Set aside House #1 & #3 and check out the downtown/waterfront properties

>>31193261
>House #3
Worst case scenario we ask to Michelle help us find someone she trust to install stuff for us

>>31193382
this

>>31193261
>>Put a pin in it and take a look at the other properties
Else,
>House #3
DIY Timez

Writing in about five. I'm glad I started the thread earlier than I usually do.

>>31193261

You like the villa, and you like the first house a little less, but...you’re not quite sure.

They’re not quite grabbing you. You brush aside the middle house and put the other two in a new pile and start looking through your other stack.

Contrast is hard to miss. The houses you were just looking at were old style, lots of wood, nice, neat rectangular lots. Square. Solid, mostly.

These new ones are much more modern. Steel, SPD smart glass, stone and wood used for accents, statements, aesthetics rather than being structural. Long and thin instead of sqaut and boxy.

Maybe one of these is your place. You flip through.

>[1/2]

>>31194034
>First on the stack is for a house on some bluffs overlooking Lake Saint Clair. Three stories, but the bottom level is the garage. Long, sloping driveway leads to a three car unit. Modest backyard with waist high smart glass fencing separating you from an eighty foot fall to the lake below. Modern amenities. Your paranoia is uncomfortable with nothing but three feet of glass plate separating you from a very long fall.

>Second is a lot about the size of the average house inland you just looked at, but… actually, there seem to be a lot of similarities. The house is old construction with wooden bones and stucco exterior but the neighborhood is middle (compared to anyone who lives on Saint Clair or Eerie, anyways) income, working class. Most of the appliances have been replaced although only one or two of the windows are smart glass. Very dense neighborhood population. You’ll have lots of neighbors. Cozy backyard. Your paranoia is uncomfortable with the prospect of all these new people you’ll be in contact with.

>The last one you have is a house located on Lake Eerie at the south terminus of downtown Echo. Wide two story, five car garage house with private beach area cordoned off by thick privacy fencing. Long flight of handsome wooden stairs coupled with elevator. Privacy fence extends fifty feet into water. Access points in fencing for authorized to move through. Modern amenities, smart glass.

>#1
>#2
>#3
>Other

>[2/2]

>>31194046
>>#3

Three seems decent. One isn't bad either though.

>>31194046
>#3
Looks expensive tho

>>31194046
>Other
Keeeeepppp loookingggg....

#3 seems a bit much, I don't even know why we need a beach and 5 car garage. We gonna make a family?

>>31194046
Whoops, small addendum regarding #3:

>Your paranoia is uncomfortable about trying to blend in an area this wealthy.

Forgot an essential bit of information!

>>31194196
grrrrrr

>>31194210
Sorry. Michelle can't turn off her (")danger(") sense/PTSD.

>>31194179
Michelle seems like she's in a place that's largely unconducive to dating, let alone giving birth/being pregnant/raising a family.

Although if she wants to try dating...

I'll start writing in about 5.

Rolled 4

>>31194046
>#3

>>31194046
woops, something drew my attention away

>#3

>>31194196
We are rarely going to be home anyway. We need to get a Doberman to keep the party kids out though.

>>31194447
or an autoturret system that lets them in and then when the party is at its climax it activates and shreds them without damaging the house, so we get to go through the loot when we come home

>>31194046

You like the beach house. You...aren’t quite sure, why, really, you’re less sure of what you’re going to do with it, and even less than that if you’ll be able to get comfortable in that neighborhood.

Maybe your neighbors will be apathetic.

Maybe you’ll have to learn how to act and blend in. The more you blend in the less likely someone will be interested enough to watch you… Although you doubt you’d be home very often, or for very long. You do value the basics, though. Only those in the service understand the value of a really, really nice shower stall or bath tub.

Your hand hovers over your phone. If yesterday’s paycheck advance (about 2200, before taxes) and today are how business usually is, well...you can afford it.

But should you?

>Call the real estate agent. You want it.
>Let it go. You can deal with it later.
>Other

>>31194586
>>Call the real estate agent. You want it.
Life is short and our chosen profession is dangerous, lets treat ourselves nicely

>>31194586
>>Other
Arrange a tour, get to know the seller, interrogate why they are moving away.

>>31194586
>>Call the real estate agent. You want it.

It would be kind of a let down to get this far and then back out.

>>31194667
It wouldn't be right of me to leave something like that out.

>>31194649
this. Let's check it first

Writing in 5.

>>31194775
Sorry for this post taking a while. It's a big one and I ended up tossing and rewriting one draft.

My apologies. Haven't forgotten, just working.

>>31195425
Last post for tonight? Cause I am so sleepy.

>>31195472
Magic eight ball says 99% chance of more posts after this.

>>31195491
only 6:30pm here, I'm good to keep going

>>31194586
Yes, you want it. Right now.

You start punching in the number and your phone autocompletes the last four digits for you.

It rings. Someone answers on the second.

“Saedar-Krupp Property Management, office of Florence Jones.”

You’ve never liked phone conversations.

“Michelle Saint Claire calling about the Pointe Aux Peaux property.”

“Of course, one moment please…”

You’re put on hold.

This music is awful. After a minute of being subject to it, the line comes back to life.

“Good morning, Miss Saint Claire. Is there news?”

“Yes ma’am. I would like it.”

You hear a pinched sounding exhalation. You can’t see it, but you can hear her pull a smile back on her face. “Of course, Miss Saint Claire, assuming you’re willing to sign the lease papers and furnish the ten thousand dollar deposit in addition to the fifty-five hundred monthly payment.”

Math was never your strongest subject in school, but you can do enough in your head to know fifteen grand is something like half what you just made.

...but it’s also only half of what you made for a single day. You’d like to get a more thorough tour, though. For fifteen thousand surely you can buy a comprehensive visit.

“If it’s not too much trouble, ma’am, I would like it if you could give me a more thorough tour before I sign anything.”

“Yes, Miss Saint Claire, I suppose you would. I will meet you at the gates then. I will leave immediately.”

“Thank you ma’am.”

The call ends. You better hurry. You pack away the small papers and sling the smaller of your bags over and on your back and the larger one over your shoulder.

You totally made check out time too. Awesome.

Your connection to get to the house puts you on three busses and a fast moving monorail. You end up walking three or four long, curved blocks, and then a distance equivalent to half that just along Pointe Aux Peaux.

>[1/?]

>>31195667
At least it’s a good looking street with sidewalks. Not to mention IED free, although you can’t stop scanning it and the road as you walk along.

You see Misses Jones’ small, silver sports car in front of the gate. She looks like she’s been here for a while.

“Sorry ma’am. I don’t have a vehicle.”

Her forehead pinches tight as her smile remains locked in place. “I haven’t been waiting long.”

You doubt that.

“I see you’ve brought your...belongings.”

“Yes ma’am. I’m very serious. I just want a close look before I sign.”

“Let’s begin then.”

She motions you toward the front gate and keys in a code on a cleverly hidden pad. “There are cameras running facial recognition software combined with an implantable RFID tag. Once you sign all you need to do is show your face briefly for the camera and that along with the scanner will unlock the gate for you. You can add others at either a RFID, facial, or both clearance level to the whitelist if you’d like.

Three foot thick, eight foot tall reinforced steelcrete walls with white stucco finishing. Hardened steel gate for vehicles, also eight feet tall. Kentucky blue grass lawn with automatic watering systems here in the front lawn.”

She walks and talks and comes to the front door.

“Brazilian rosewood door sandwiched between aluminum inset in a twenty four by sixty eight grid with acrylic rods. Let lots of light in during the day. I’ll show you.”

She pushes a small lever on the handle of the door and pulls it open, motioning you in and closes it behind her.

You see what she means. Although the points of light are well defined, it’s also a very soft light. It reflects well off the polished hardwood floor.

“All the flooring is also lacquered and sealed Brazilian rosewood. Let’s swing by the kitchen.”

>[2/?]

>>31195675
The two of you walk deeper into the house. It’s much wider than it is long, maybe only thirty or forty feet. The kitchen is on the east side with lots of plate glass and a view of the Eerie.

“SPD smart glass wall to wall. Italian mined and exported Sienna marble counter tops. Triple stainless steel sinks and a full set of damascus steel cutlery with locally logged wood handles. new model smart appliances.”

She leads you on. There doesn’t seem to be any table settings, glasses, or other kitchenware. Likewise, the living and family rooms are all undecorated and unfurnished.

“There’s a smart grill out there You’ll need to furnish the patio and balcony yourself. We’ll take a quick look at the beach and lake.”

She leads you through a large sliding (smart)glass door and out towards the back. A cream colored beach and sparkling blue lake join you.

“Elevator and stairs to the ground. Privacy screen can be set to anywhere between perfectly transparent and perfectly opaque, depending on your mood and activities. The self-cleaning meshed fencing allows seawater to travel both in and out while also catching any unsightly or undue debris or wildlife.”

She takes you back inside.

“First floor has three bedrooms, one office or work space, as well as a large den. The bedrooms each have their own, modest bathroom. There’s a larger powder room with smart glass mirror as well. Upstairs now.”

You climb the stairs. “Top floor has another, large living room/den area, as well as an office. There’s another powder room up here in addition to the master bath adjoined to the master bedroom.

Now then, for your room.”

You’ve noticed that all the doors slide into the wall instead of being hinged. You like that.

Mrs. Jones waves you in ahead of her. Wow. Nice view from up here.

>[3/?]

>>31195688
“East wall is one hundred percent tempered smartglass. Just like the other panes in the house, you can trace with a finger or command it via a networked device for selective tinting or wallpapering. The walk in closet is here on the north wall. Past here in the west wall is another more intimate office space. Let’s look at the bathroom.”

She leads you into it.

She begins pointing things out, “Like in the master bedroom, this east wall is SPD smartglass. Set it to one way and you can get ready to the rising sun over the lake, or at night select a feed of the setting western sun and bathe to a setting Pacific sun.

The flooring and walls are black marble with vibrant crimson veins imported from Greece. The water closet is there in the northwest corner behind that door. The bathtub is behind us here. It sits three feet tall but stands at five feet deep. Same black marble as the rest of the bathroom accented with polished and lacquered African ivory. The shower is right here along the southern wall.”

“Ma’am, I don’t see anything.”

It seems she’s pointed at nothing.

“Right here, Miss Saint Claire.”

She knocks on a large plate of glass suspended by two dark, polished metal arms jutting from the wall.

“That doesn’t look like any shower I’m familiar with, ma’am.”

“The shower head is above us, and the control panel to adjust it and the other features are here on the wall. The entire room is waterproofed. The room features a gentle gradient that directs all waste water towards the west wall. There’s also a sound system controllable from either the shower or bath positions.”

>[4/5]

>>31195692
She leads you back downstairs and leads you towards the marble island in the kitchen. “And that’s the property, Miss Saint Claire. You said you were serious?”

She speaks as she pulls out a small packet of papers and a pen from her handbag and lays them on the island under her.

>Yes ma’am I am
>On second thought I don’t think this is for me
>Other/Write In

>mein goot this was a big one. Hope I gave you all a good tour/sense/feeling of the house.

>>31195699
>Yes ma’am I am
its a fucking awesome house

where did the other anons go?

>>31195929
To bed, presumably. Damn late for anyone who isn't PST/Alaska/Hawaii time in the US/abroad somewhere.

Sorry for me being quiet, though, I had to take a dump.

I'll starting writing in 5. Took me four goddamned tries for the captcha. Christ.

>>31195699

“Yes ma’am I am, but can I ask why this house is available?”

You sure hope you are, anyways.

“The owner has been relocated abroad for a duration of at least a year and wished to generate income with it during his absence.”

“Oh. Okay.”

Mrs. Jones smiles at you. You feel uncomfortable. It looks predatory.

“Please sign and date on lines one-a, two-a, two-a, two-b, and then once more on the final page at the bottom. By signing you are agreeing that you are responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the house and that you agree that upon the termination of this lease agreement you will leave the house in the exact condition it was - no holes in the walls, Miss Saint Claire - when you signed and dated the lease agreement.

Do you have any final questions before you legitimate the contract?”

>Write in
>No
>Other

>>31196251
>No

Now we might need a mode of transport so we're not taking public transport constantly

Writing in 5 with the intent to end the session for tonight.

>>31196251

“No ma’am I don’t.”

“Excellent.”

She offers you a pen, which you take. As you sign through the documents she says, “There is the possibility of renewing the lease should the property owner be unable to return. I will send you the details when that becomes relevant.”

You finish the last page with a big MICHELLE ODETTE SAINT CLAIRE.

“Method of payment?”

You hand her your small RFID chipped card and she passes it over a small device pulled from her bag and hands it back to you.

“Excellent. The funds have transferred. Please extend your hand.”

You, from habit and instinct, extend your right arm.

“Your real one please, Miss Saint Claire. I’m going to chip you with the RFID tag for the house. It should be sensitive enough as long as your hand is nearby, but you may find you need to use both or your left hand to access anything sealed by the RFID lock.”

She tells you to squeeze your thumb and index finger of your left hand together as she pulls out a small hypodermic device and places it to your skin and fires the plunger.

That could’ve hurt more, you suppose, you think as you wipe away the blood.

“Enjoy your new home, Miss Saint Claire. You have a wonderful view of the lake.”

She packs her things back into her bag and shows herself out, leaving you standing in a kitchen with nothing but a set of knives on the counter in terms of furnishing.

Well...you’ve been in worse spots before.

END SESSION

Feedback, comments, questions, etc can go here and I'll answer them before I go to bed in about thirty minutes.

Be sure to follow me on twitter @WetworkIdols to stay informed about when I'll be running the quest.

>>31194196
>>Your paranoia is uncomfortable about trying to blend in an area this wealthy.

>>31195667
>“Saedar-Krupp Property Management, office of Florence Jones.”
>SK

Seems like our paranoia was well placed.

That being said, if nobody else has spotted it this thread, i'm not gonna bother correcting them and see where this crazytrain leads.

Sleep time.

>>31196642
Lofwyr probably doesn't have any interest in American idols. Probably.

>>31196642
>That being said, if nobody else has spotted it this thread, i'm not gonna bother correcting them and see where this crazytrain leads.
Wut

you got some splaining to do

>>31196642
>>31196659
Now you've got me really paranoid and searching the archives for fuck knows what but I'm not finding it, care to elaborate?

>>31196734
I don't think it's my place to comment on it further than saying that Saedar-Krupp and Lofwyr references to Shadowrun.

I bet next thread there'll be some discussion.

I'm signing off here.

I'm going to try something different next thread and open with my post but also take any questions/etc at the start of the thread rather than at the end.

Think that'll be a lot more effective than the status quo.

See you all next time!

dammit I always lose this

>>31197286
wut

If you mean miss this, OPFOR has a twitter you can bookmark for finding threads