>>929789
“We’re gonna have to take that FutureSight back, you know,” you tell Sal. It’s less a reminder and more a statement of intent. “I can’t imagine what she’s picked up from it…” Especially if somehow she stumbled upon history of her OWN world that shouldn’t be known. Who knows what she might be able to do with it...

“That’s less a worry for meeeeeeee, and more about what she’s been saying about paying a visit over here. I’m veeeeery curious about how she got here and how she left…as that just isn’t a thing that’s allowed so breeeeeeezily.” Right, that was the other thing. Moving to the Intersection was generally a one-way thing. You personally hadn’t known of ANYONE who’d been taken to the Intersection, then brought back without exceptionally extenuating circumstances, or some major rewiring to their head- the sort that left them believing their experiences there were just a dream, with no evidence whatsoever to suggest otherwise.

A thought starts to form in your head. “You wouldn’t happen to know about her ‘savior’, would you?”

“Mmmm, well. Technically, that could’ve been aaaaaanyone. But I will say that off the top of my head it sooooounds like someone at Flashpoint might’ve made a little oopsie.” Hoo boy. If Flashpoint had screwed up like that? Would NOT look good for them. “Iiiiiiiif that’s the case, then they’re likely still around, because I haven’t sensed any...ejections, as of late. Veeeeeeeery interesting...”

You start to respond, before a gasp takes you out of your mental conversation. “You can tell! It’s so hard to imagine, I know! But it HAPPENED! It was AMAZING!” She latches onto you like you’re a lifeline. You do your best to lean back without actually leaning much. It’s hard. “I NEED to see them again! Somehow! I have SO MANY THINGS I can show them!” Why is she shaking? It’s unnerving. “I’ve been following every story and rumor and legend I could find! And I think I’m on the trail!” She hugs the FutureSight close to her. “And this beautiful arcane device of knowledge is what will help me bring them back!”

“Actually,” you start, but then-

“Juuuuuuust a moment, superstar. I’m havin’ a liiiiiitle think. And I’m wondering...perhaaaaaps this might be one serious opportunity. If we figure out who dropped this oh-so-valuable toy, it could pay off quiiiiite well in the long run.”

“Would still be better to hold on to it, I think,” you note. “It’s dangerous in her hands, and if worst comes to worse, we could likely just give it back and have Flashpoint owe us big.”

“Mmmm, quite. I had the mind to simply keep it as is for simple proof purposes...if Flashpoint’s little indiscretion came to light, I can imagine quite a number jumping ship...for their own safety, of course.” Hm. That was also a point.

>Try to take the FutureSight back.
>Don’t say anything out loud, let her keep it for now.
>Other

>>929806
> let her keep it for now
So Sal wants to leave it with her so he can go to the higher ups and say "looky what they did!"?
She had had it for a while and the worst that has happened is non-contagious insanity so I don't see the problem.

>>929806
>>Don’t say anything out loud, let her keep it for now.

It's been with her this long without any problems aside from people thinking she's crazy. What's the worst that could happen!

I absolutely loathe the way Sal speaks, because I have a co-worker who is *exactly* like this. You'd think it's something you only hear from a TV character, but no.

>>929806
>>Don’t say anything out loud, let her keep it for now.

HERE COMES THE MONAAAAAAY

>>929867
>>929999

Bit more to it than that.

Writing!

>>929806
You’re just gonna let this play out, then, if Sal’s being so blase about it. You ARE kinda curious as to why Sal thinks he can get something out of this if she’s had it for so long, though...but, eh. He’s your boss, so you’ll abide by what he wants. Chances are he knows something you don’t about this all anyway and he’s just not telling you, the lout.

She starts tap-dancing back inside as she hums to herself, and it’s only then that she finally notices the package you’d intended to deliver. “Oh! Oh heeeey! It’s from sis!” She quickly grabs and tears at the covering, almost like a child. In no time at all, she’s holding a letter, a picture, and what seems to be some kind of necklace, with the figure of a star on it. You can tell said necklace isn’t all that new...but judging by the way she’s gawking at it, it had to at least have some sentimental worth.

“Oh wow...she found it.” You can hear her mutter under her breath. Suddenly, she shakes her head to clear her thoughts, looking at you as though she just recalled your presence. “Aha, sorry, sorry, sorry! Just a family thing, nothing much next to infinite knowledge and meeting impossible beings in the flesh! Or whatever it is they’re made of! Once I finally get everything I need to open the rift, they’ll see it, and come running!”

Huh. Rift? Pft. Like that was even a thing. She’s not going anywhere without a handler to do it for her. Even if she figured out some sort of dimensional travel, it wouldn't get her to The Intersection- as far as you know, anyway.

>Any further questions?
>You’ve spent enough time here, time to get back to business.
>Other

>>930325
>You’ve spent enough time here, time to get back to business
I would like to ask her if she remembers any names or identifying features but don't want to waste updates on useless babbling.

>>930325
>>You’ve spent enough time here, time to get back to business.

>>930368
Any information Sal feels like sharing is less trouble and worth more, most likely.

>>930325
>>You’ve spent enough time here, time to get back to business.

We've got some frontier to level still.

Crap, meant to say writing a while back.

Writing!

>>930325
>Other
Tell her to not do something stupid, our Handler would NOT want her to do something stupid.
Basically bludgeon into her head that yes, not only do we believe her, but that we are in the same working field as her savior, and that the Beings who created the place she went to are not going to be happy if she does something stupid.

>>930368
>>930376
>>930504
My concern is that she's had the FutureSight long enough that she might have stumbled upon the plans for an inter-timeline portal device, since the Dealmakers have encountered civilizations that can cross universes (but not as well as them), and she could cause a lot of fucking trouble if she succeeded in making one.

>>930325
You just eventually sigh and shake your head. You have other things to do, and people to avoid. Frankly, you’ve spent more time here already than you expected to, and you’re got a lot of ground to cover in order to make it Motley. It’ll be a couple of hours, likely. Hopefully no one will talk too much of you if any pursuants come around here.

You simply give her a single nod- and before you head off, you lock eyes with her. “Be careful, alright? I can’t imagine anythin’ good would come of it if you were to pull anything that your savior or their folks might consider...impolite, if you understand, yeah?” The way you glare at her, even she stands stock still, simply nodding her agreement to the point where her hair starts going wild.

That all settled, you decided to head out of town at an angle. No need to cross all the way back through just to jump off again. You swear you can still feel eyes on your back as you leave, however. That girl really is kinda of a special nut.

It’s indeed some hours before you hit Motley. There were only a few people you saw, though- and they didn’t seem to pay you much mind, if they noticed you at all. Probably because they were all high-tailing it in the other direction. As you close in, though...you can guess why.

You’re hearing gunshots. Loooots of gunshots, yells, and shouting. Motley’s become a warzone.

Something BIG broke out. And part of you is certain that Cain is involved.

>Priority one, locate Cain. You’ll have to be sneaky if you want to avoid attention...
>Get in, put a stop to the fighting yourself if you have to. It might involve being more brutal than lecturing, though.
>Other

>>930636
>Priority one, locate Cain. You’ll have to be sneaky if you want to avoid attention...
Our client can't pay us if he's dead.

>>930636
>Priority one, locate Cain. You’ll have to be sneaky if you want to avoid attention...
Put on the fake moustache disguise

>>930636
>>Priority one, locate Cain. You’ll have to be sneaky if you want to avoid attention...

Don't want to look too showy in front of the bossman.

Whos the boss now bossman?

>>930636
Alright, you’ve gotta move quick, and silently as possible. First priority was locating where the hell Cain was in this clusterfuck. It’s easy getting into the town limits, mind- you can hear most of the hellraising going on near the center of town, judging by your ears. Of course as soon as you think that a group of riders barrel around the corner, forcing you to jump into an alleyway asap- they all careen past you, being chased by a pair of riders who’re simply yelling them out and brandishing melee weapons- no guns as far as you can tell when they blast by.

You move as quickly as you can- but it’s then you realize that you’re not entirely certain where Cain might be in Motley. Damnit, best to keep off the main roads, then. Make sure you’re not a target. Taking a springing leap outwards, you quickly shift from alley to alley, taking notice of any fights breaking out; you can hear steel clashing, too, now, and see its source: the various swords, hammers, and other weaponry being used against each other between whoever’s fighting.

You can’t really make out any major differences between who’s fighting- they all look like random folk...you gotta admit, whatever happened must’ve been insane.

Another rounded corner- and to your mild shock you can see what seems to be the crushed remains of Mr. Cain’s traveling stagecoach. Crap.

It doesn’t take long to run up and check things. No bodies, no blood. Nothing useable, either. Just smashed glass, wood, and such. Good, means he might be alive still. You quickly move out of the open to better cover as you try to get closer to the major source of the sounds. As you peer around the corner, you’re forced to look away rather quickly- the fighting in the streets is massive, and a great many are trying to hide behind objects and take potshots, while others are trying to actively jump in the fray. No way you wouldn’t be spotted walking around.

A couple of stray shock shots suddenly impact the building next to you, and you figure that’s enough of hiding there. You quickly leap up to the top of the building you’re next to in order to get a better vantage point on things- they might stumble on you from THERE, but that’s not quite the case now.. And it’s here you can kind of figure out a general idea of things...it DOES seem like there’s two sides in particular- and from what you can tell, the aggressors are trying to force their way towards what seems to be the opposite end of town. You’re unsure why- but you can see people going into and out of the Town Hall and the Doctor’s office, respectively.. The defenders are doing the best they can with hit and run tactics, but they’re slowly being chipped away…hm.

>Head towards the Doctor’s Office.
>Head towards the Town Hall.
>Other

>>930989
>Head towards the Town Hall.
Cain seemed to like getting the Mayor on his side first.

>>930989
>Other
Since it wasn't really clarified where either location was, we should just head towards the end of town the aggressors are heading towards. Given Cain's reputation, he's probably what they're after.

>>930989
>Head towards the Town Hall.

>>930989
>>Head towards the Town Hall.

uhh, just a quick, slightly unrelated question: did anyone archive the last thread?

>>932078
Did not, but you can find it here https://yuki.la/qst/892945

Someone who is on the irc can ask LL to add it I suppose.

>Head towards the town hall

>>930989
>Head towards the Town Hall.

>>932078
Last thread has been archived.

>>932466
Yay

>>930989
>Head towards the Town Hall.

I'm not dead, but they fired a couple folks at work, so guess who's filling in until they get new blood? At least it's money...

>>936095
Buy a monkey to update while your gone with the extra cash.

>>936095
Buy an infinite number of monkeys and typewriters, and eventually you'll have the entirety of MGFHQ just typed up.

Pretty sure that's what overtime pay is like anyways

>>936095
Just take care of your health, Handler.

>>936095
be safe handler
don't get overworked or something, I read up somewhere that people who work through the night till morning live 10 years less than people who work at daytime in average.

>>942141
Biological clock is a bitch; night shifts tend to eat away at the quality of your sleep, the equivalent of 1 hour / week IIRC, and also increase weight.

http://www.nursetogether.com/7-wellness-tips-night-shift-nurses

Gotta say, I am disappointed that Lorelei isn't keeping secrets from Miranda and Cain. Would have been fun watching her run a scam.

>>942272
She's greedy and unfocused, not stupid. She might have tried that in the past, but she's worked with Miranda long enough to not do something that'll endanger the primary contract when she's on a job with her.

>>942272
That's just bad. Why?

>>942272
So we have two extremes in this quest.
Moralfagging and projecting
Lolrandumb

Lorelei is here thanks to her friend Miranda, a coop contract; if the primary contract fails because of her causing trouble, there probably is a penalty for that, as it'd be equivalent from voiding the contract from her side. This kind of betrayal probably goes beyond stupidity, as she'd cut the meager support she has that prevents her from getting ejected out of the Intersection and into the shiny void.

>>930989
The Town Hall’s your best bet, you figure. It’s a bit further away, but as the town’s laid out, the difference in distance is largely negligible for you. You can hear a few shouts from some of the combatants as you drop to the ground and start moving- at first you think you’ve been seen, but no, it’s just a bunch of yelling- someone’s trying to take up the role of general.You can’t help but think that won’t last very long.

It’s surprisingly quick going so long as you stick to the side streets and rooftops- most everyone is looking more towards whomever’s trying to shoot at them than the unusual figure moving towards the town hall.

It’s when you get a bit closer that you can see that you might’ve been right- there’s a large portion of scrap metal sitting in a pile off to one side of the two-story building. Judging by the various wirings, strange melted metal, colored dust, and glass shards, you can only come to the conclusion that THIS is one of Cain’s Metallos. Looked vaguely human, as far as you can tell. A quick glance up affirms that it was likely pitched out of the window.

No real time to risk casing the area- you quickly leap up to the second story, stepping through the broken windowpane into what appears to be an office, and take in what seems to be a scene of carnage. There’s several bodies- one of them you recognize as being one of Cain’s personal guard you met him with, seemingly clutching his abdomen as he lies still. Cain himself doesn’t seem to be among them, however. There’s someone slumped across the large desk as well, but his face is crushed in- hard to identify, although you think it’s likely the mayor. There’s several books scattered, what appears to be old parchment, strange masks, and some other metal Metallo parts left in here, as well as some paperwork on the desk you can see underneath the fallen man at the desk. On the whole, you can tell that whatever struggle happened in here, happened relatively quick- aside from the few fallen books, it’s largely bodies in here.

Looking outside, you’re not certain you have a lot of time to mess around...

>Investigate the desk area.
>Take a look at the fallen guard.
>Search the other bodies.
>Just move on, Cain’s not here.
>Other

I got a surprise day off!

>>949396
>Take a look at the fallen guard.

As his personal guard, surely they have something valuable on them right?

>>949396
>Take a look at the fallen guard.

>>949396
>Just move on, Cain’s not here.
Is there a trail to follow? He might be getting lynched right now!
When we find him we will finda mock trial being held by blueshirts with Lorelei speaking for the defence and dragging the proceeding out for giggles.

>>949506
Do we kill everyone, because it's easy? Or do we show some restraint, because presumably our client would like some customers to remain alive.

The guard's name was Jacob. His hobbies included ropin', fightin', and making bad jokes about the scenery.

Writing!

You quickly decide that the guard is worth a once-over. Quickly checking him out, you notice a wicked looking serrated sword- it’s thinner than the Flamebringer, though. It looks like it has some sort of small engine on it, but you’ve got little time to really dig into it. He also has a strange gun, a vertical double-barreled affair. Checking it reveals it doesn’t actually have ammo. Strange. Flipping him over, you’re met with the blank stare of a dead man, and a bloody chest area- as something clatters to the ground as his position is shifted.

You quickly take a look at it and notice that it’s some kind of golden...key? Chip? You didn’t think that a universe with this tech level would have anything like computer chips, but that’s your closest guess, judging by the rectangular shape. No small bits like a computer chip, though, just a few strange wires and connectors. You decide to pocket it. Might be important, considering how he was cradling it.

Soon, you start hearing yelling coming closer, however, and before you can react, you can hear thumping sounds coming from below. Seems like there might be a barricade downstairs if they’re trying to break their way in- and it won’t be too long before they do. Taking a quick look around, you see nothing that could really lead- wait.

Scuff marks. Hard ones, like something was being dragged intermittently somehow. You’d nearly missed them at first because they were outside the door, open though it was.

>Follow the tracks before the mob makes their way in. Cain takes priority.
>Thin the mob out before they cause any complications.
>Other

>>949733
>Follow the tracks before the mob makes their way in. Cain takes priority.
Cain is an android and the golden chip is his memory matrix.

>>949757
If we show it to him he will say "this doesn't look like anything to me".

>>949733
>Follow the tracks before the mob makes their way in. Cain takes priority.

Tracker tracking tracks. Sorta.

Writing.

>>949733
Gah, no time. You’ll have to just move quickly and carefully. The scuff marks aren’t the most obvious, but they’re clearer to see than before as you bound out of the room and into the small hallway. You can hear the thumping getting louder as you race down the hall, and follow a broken banister down towards the ground floor. The scuff marks lead to a different room near the back, it seems, and you just reach the rear exit before you hear wood splintering.

“SPREAD OUT N’ FIND ‘IM!” Well, great. You continue into what seems to be a sitting room, lined with various lamps, maps, and other such paraphernalia. No one present, though. Which means you need to figure out just where they’re hiding...you’d be surprised if there WASN’T some kind of hidden room in here.

You check your surroundings as quickly as possible without just glancing- there’s only one more major scuff mark, and it looks in the direction of the wall opposite the fireplace. No time for figuring out the normal entry- you give it a quick punch once, twice- and suddenly there’s a quick *crack* and part of the door opens- to reveal Cain, backed by his remaining bodyguards, and someone you don’t recognize, as well as at minimum seven fully functioning Metallos. They all seem to vaguely resemble humans, kind of like how robots would have been presumed to look in the old days- boxy chest, rounded feet, with lights for eyes, and strange clamp hands. You can see there’s also a couple of smaller ones, too- they resemble armadillos, actually.

Oh, there’s also the matter of the guns pointed at you, too. Fortunately, Cain is quick to recognize you, as his eyebrows shoot up. “What in the…! Well! You certainly know when to show up! Here I thought this would be my last stand...”

The other man- a younger fellow but with spectacles, a vest, and a slight beard, looks at you curiously from behind his rifle. “Do tell, Mr. Cain, who is this?” He has a higher pitched voice, but strong and steady- very clearly a man who’s seen combat before, judging by his posture.

“This is some of the hired help, Mr. Trench, and if she’d be so kind as to step in before those madmen find us?” You quickly do so, and Mr. Trench pulls a level that quickly closes the wall behind you. As it does so, Cain wastes little time in turning to you. “I suppose you’ve a lot of questions at the moment, but we’ve little time, so you’d best ask the important ones real quick.”

>How are you planning on getting out of here?
>What caused this battle?
>Who is that man?
>Other

Continuing tomorrow!

>>950663
>How are you planning on getting out of here?
>Other
"Is there anyone in this town you want still alive after I'm done?"
Our job is to kill the opposition that our client directs us towards. If every single troublemaker in the Frontier is dead, then it can be considered "tamed".

And he didn't purchase any riders to minimize collateral damage or reduce casualties.

>>950663
>How are you planning on getting out of here?
Because you could just huddle in you panic room while I take care of the insurgents.

>>950711
I'll pitch in my hat for this vote!

>>950739
I don't think he, or most of our clients, realize that when they hire Miranda Styles or Silver Eye Solutions, they purchase the services of a troubleshooter than can be as specific or as broad as the contract terms.
We can be an assassin that gets in and out with only the target being the casualty, or we can be a walking genocide that can leave entire regions devoid of human life.

We should look into biogenic weapons, like trilithium resin, for the contracts that call for that level of depopulation.

>>950778
Blame Sal for that. The bigger outfits are much more specific and detailed about their jobs.

Can't wait to get into THAT.

>>950794
>Sal has been vague with the services that we can offer
Is this
>this has led to clients taking their business to more professional and detail-oriented merc outfits
or
>the jobs that we do get, Sal doesn't properly scope out our work and client expectations, so we ended up passing on lucrative genocide contracts

>>950819
More the latter than the former, but it's less negative than all that. Sal's decent at picking up contracts...but being an eldritch abomination means you get to choose how hard you feel like working that day. He's just lazy sometimes, and galvanized some others. Some jobs really ARE just that open-ended, though.

>>950711
This looks good, though I'm wondering if we should hand over the chip-like thing we found on the guard as well.

>>951098
Oh yeah, giving him the shiny might be nice

>casual talk for genocide for dosh
I mean, I can get along with enacting genocide for more dosh, but I'm worried that the randumb murderhobofags might see this in their weird way and start voting for the absolutely dumb things whenever possible.

>>950663
>How are you planning on getting out of here?
don't need to ask the other two now, do that later.

>>951098
Not now. we can keep it until we get out of trouble. I mean, not like keeping it for a moment until safety comes is a bad thing.

>>950663

>>950711
Sounds good, but we should mention the bit about riders to minimize collateral out loud. See if we can't hike the price right now if it turns out that he has indeed a bleeding heart of gold.

"Avoiding collateral is a flat 25% increase on top of the base contract. More finesse and more work is reflected in the payment for services rendered. You have until the first hostiles reach us to make your decision."

>>952044
True that is a possibility, personally I just want to make him uncomfortable and wring out some extra money out of him.

If we do end up getting told to genocide the opposition I think a show of force will stop the hostilities quick. His men can play firing squad later.

Hm. Page 8. Think I'll start a new thread.