Night City Stories - Afterlife
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		<h2 id="linktree">Play-By-Post: Bondage, D/s, S&amp;M =&gt; Bondage: Human Small Groups =&gt; Topic started by: Primarch on 24-11-2021, 01:36:45</h2>
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				Title: <strong>Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Primarch</strong> on <strong>24-11-2021, 01:36:45</strong>
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				<div align="center">(https://64.media.tumblr.com/840ba8a5ef3725c00281f623ce407354/d341939509a57dca-46/s540x810/6096c271976de74de166a25edc9b8a242273fd15.gif)<br><em>As the old saying goes "There is only one path in Night City worth walking: the one that leads to the Afterlife." Once you make it here, sooner or later, everything else opens up to you. The Afterlife is an iconic bar where the who's who of mercs and first-rate fixers gather to kick back or conduct biz. It's also a major nerve center for the city. This is place where the biggest deals get cut and the job rewards have the most zeros tacked on. Stop here to spot big names such as Rogue, Dexter DeShawn and that guy who "drank with Morgan Blackhand once"... Speaking of , it's said Blackhand's ghost still wanders the bar, switching off the safeties of customers' holstered guns. Of course, it's probably best to check that out for yourself. That is... provided you've earned enough street cred to get you through the front door.</em></div><br><div class="codeheader">Code: <a href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="return smfSelectText(this);" class="codeoperation">[Select]</a></div><pre style="margin: 0; padding: 0;"><code class="bbc_code">[floatleft][img height=250]URLHERE[/img][/floatleft]<br>[b]Name:[/b]<br>[b]Location:[/b]<br>[b]Tagging:[/b]<br>[b]Content:[/b]<br>[hr][hr]</code></pre>
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				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheVillain</strong> on <strong>24-11-2021, 05:40:25</strong>
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				<div class="floatleft">(https://assets.vg247.com/current//2013/12/infiltrator-artwork-epic-games.jpg)</div><br><strong>Name:</strong> "Jack B. Nimble"<br><strong>Location:</strong> C-Team HQ -&gt; The Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Open (Toward the End)<br><strong>Content:</strong> Murder, French<br><hr><hr><br>When people debate the merits of a Loud Merc vs a Quiet Merc, these days Redbeard vs Nimble always comes up. Rogue was not involved in those debates because she knew the right answer. The answer was whichever was better for the gig. The part that didn't get around as much but was probably obvious in hindsight was that "Jack B. Nimble" agreed completely with this assessment. And usually, Vane was the better of the two options. But sometimes - a more discrete touch was required.<br><br><em>At first I thought it was just rumors and the kind of drunken bullshit you hear at a bar at 3 AM, y'know? But when you hear the same story from three separate witnesses, you start taking an interest. Now that my informant confirmed the accounts, it's time to dive into the action.<br>Look, I don't wanna sound like some naggy old crone, but back in my day workers knew how to stand up for themselves. Instead of fixers they had unions to fight for their rights. I know, I know. Anyway, now with the unions gone, these workers can't afford to hire fixers on starvation-level salaries. Lucky for them, I like to do some pro bono work from time to time. You know, a little something for the public good.<br>Onto the fine detes. Vincent Vega - the kind of scum who writes "cracking skulls" in the hobby section of his CV. Well, that's exactly what he's doing in Rancho Coronado. Cracking skulls. Not only that, but he's got the full backing of the corp execs, who'd rather give their workers brain damage instead of a 2% raise.<br>Vega and his people've been terrorizing the whole neighborhood. Workers've had enough - who the fuck wouldn't agree? You're gonna find Vic Vega and end that psycho for good. Maybe then the corpos'll realize they crossed the line.</em><br><br>Vic Vega, the CEO of C-Team Services. Basically a smaller corp that made its money handling technical issues for other corporations. Normally, not something to care about - except when his workers tried to unionize he took the one in charge of the effort and *literally* beat the man to death in front of the other workers.<br><br>Here was the hard part. First, the building was full of innocent workers. If someone were to go in guns blazing they'd probably kill more poor gonks that were just trying to make it through their day than even people loyal to Vic. Let alone trying to fight. The request was that he take out Vic and <em>only</em> Vic, in a way that made it perfectly clear to the next Vic that the people who they were stepping on were still people.<br><br>Or at least that the little pee-ons weren't as helpless as the corporate executive class thought.<br><br>Granted, even Jack was surprised that a window on the second floor was not only unlocked but left open. It was also to an empty conference room, to which he could actually *see* Vic's office. Between this room and the office was only another conference room with only 2 guys that were even arguably paying attention to anything other than the screens right in front of them.<br><br>Jack can hardly believe it, A quick scan to be sure - but there it is.<br><br><em>Jack Be Nimble</em><br><br>He slips in the window and silently takes too the carpeted floor. Carpeted! Jesus fuck, even Vane could have done this job quietly if he could get up here. The other conference room had one of the "bodygaurds", but even that's only in the sense that the guy was obviously packing. Jack B. Nimble wasn't a netrunner, but he did know some people. He delivors the program into the conference screen and it instantly seems to go on the fritz.<br><br><em>Jack Be Quick</em><br><br>Vic Vega was typing up a report at a workstation that faced an outside window. Jack tiptoes in, and quickly puts a hand over Vic's mouth while sticking a knife between the man's 2nd and 3rd ribs, slightly upward. Not even a scream, he just has to hold Vic still for the seconds it takes for him to lose consciousness...<br><br>Then he's gone.<br><br>There's going to be a lot of blood in the carpet when someone checks on Vic, Jack is careful not to step in it and to get as little of it on him as possible but Vic's got this office so whipped with fear that it could be hours before anyone checks on Vic. With a bit of care Jack can even leave him posed like he's still working, if maybe looking up from the screen.<br><br>He doesn't even have to go back the way he came. He just opens a window and slips out into the early evening. His fortified ankles take the fall for him and it's like he was taking a stroll the whole time.<br><br><em>Jack Jumped Over The Candlestick.</em><br><br>Calling up Rogue.<br><br>"<strong>It's Done.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong><em>I'm not hearing anything from the feeds. I take it that means it went well?</em></strong>"<br><br>"<strong>You'll be happy with the results, yes.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong><em>Problem, Jack?</em></strong>"<br><br>"<strong>Nothing I want to talk about in public, Madame.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong><em>Smart. Come by my Office.</em></strong>"<br><hr><br>They say the only path in Night City worth walking is the one that goes through the Afterlife. "Jack B. Nimble" didn't really hold that opinion, but then again when you're being blackmailed by the Queen of the Afterlife you might get less of a romantic view of the place. "Jack" steps in a bit early, before the bar officially opens. He bouncer knows to let him in anyway. At least he had time to put away some of the more outlandish parts of his gear.<br><br><div class="floatright">(https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/cyberpunk/images/b/b6/Char_profile_claire.png)</div>"<strong>Oh hey, Nimble. What'll it be?</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>Do you have 2014 Delamotte Blanc de Blancs?</strong>" he asks with a smirk, and Claire the Bartender gives a loud single guffaw. That was their little running jokes, Jack first requesting some ridiculously expensive Champagne. So much so that even upper level execs in the Corporate Towers would have a hard time finding it. Let alone the Mercs and Fixers at the Afterlife. Of course they never had it, and the fact that he did it <em>every time</em> was something of a running joke that kept getting funnier and funnier with each new type of ridiculous alcohol he came up with.<br><br>"<strong>Water it is.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>How'd you know?</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>Everyone that gets here this early has Biz, usually with Her, and wants to keep a clear head. I'll put it in a green glass for you though, for a price.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>...Alright, one guess.</strong>"<br><br>Everyone who knows Jack B. Nimble knows that's not his real name. But nobody knows his real one.<br><br>"<strong>...Déodat?</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>What? <em>How did you know?</em></strong>"<br><br>Everyone who knows Jack B. Nimble also knows that Jack is a Liar. <br><br>"<strong>...Fuck. I'm not even close, am I?</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>That's cheating. Good try though.</strong>"<br><br>Jack B. Nimble smiles, and gives a grin. Still, despite the less than ideal way he sometimes got his work, there were worse fates. Just ask Vic Vega.
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				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Wolfling72</strong> on <strong>24-11-2021, 18:15:55</strong>
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				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.imgur.com/a7M7riq.jpg)</div> <div class="floatright">(https://i.imgur.com/ls8oFYs.jpg?1)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Devi/N0Liss (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16039447#msg16039447)<br><strong>Location:</strong> In between ---&gt; AfterLife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> <strong>OPEN</strong><br><strong>Content:</strong> There are thoughts, in the abyss. There are also...echoes.<br><hr><hr><br><em>She rides the line, fingers tapping out ridiculous notions as eyes gaze inward, upward.&nbsp; She sees it, all of it but there is no way to stop the flood of data as it connects with synaptic efficiency and rolls through her frontal lobe like some sort of out-of-control steam engine. The Black ICE beckons, a thought, a millisecond, a breath away but she can avoid it, that slick yet wholly guttural feeling of <strong>NOT NOW</strong>. Ach, she hates it.</em><br><br><div align="center"><strong>0010101101<br>1001110001</strong></div><br><em>Do others see the world through a fall of binary rain? She can't imagine that anyone other than another <strong>NetHead</strong> would comprehend the beauty of a language that broke down to a simple <strong>yes/no</strong>.&nbsp; They would have no way to appreciate it, not like she did. They couldn't access the deepest of rivers, the flow of information that screamed it just wanted to be free. She knew that. She had always known it. Let the corpos try and bound it round with ICE and protocols. She'd break it out, burn it all down around her so that everyone would know. Everyone.</em><br><br><div class="floatright">(https://scitechdaily.com/images/Black-Hole-Hologram-Concept.gif)</div> <div align="center"><em>/Users/username/Library/LaunchAgents/com<br>.getdropbox.dropbox.integritycheck.plist<br>.getdropbox.dropbox.timegrabber.plist<br>.getdropbox.dropbox.usercontent.plist<br>/Users/username/Library/.dropbox/</em></div><br><em>The beauty of a backdoor, using a malware kit from before the age of black ICE when no one had pictures to press in their minds' eye. When no one understood that commands had to be just right or the deck would toss it like the <strong>GARBAGE</strong> it was. What was that acronym? Ah, yeah. <strong>GIGO</strong>. Stupid. Did the corpos not pay attention ever? The HOLE opened and she slipped inside and found:</em><br><br><div align="center"><strong>Execute? Y/N</strong></div><br><em>Of course she pressed Yes. Of course, she did. Suddenly, the information flashed and flipped drawing attention to random files with numbers and letters marking them as important bits.&nbsp; A simple press and the data split into two, copying unmarred code to be downloaded later while tweaking what was left, just enough to screw up the files left behind. The owners of said information would no longer find it perfectly correct. Now, they would be just a bit wrong, a bit off. <br><br><strong>Perfection.</strong><br><br>The colors flashed. <span style="font-family: courier;" class="bbc_font"><strong>'Time's up!'</strong></span> Go back, go back. Finger swipes, things put back just right, no lingering traces. ERASE!! Head pounding, heart pounding. Go. Go. GONE!</em><br><br><hr><hr><br>Devi pushed a shaking hand to her forehead, rubbing at the spot where her deck heated her forehead as it cooled down, the inner processes finally settling into something she could handle. Immediately, she made a cuppa tea and drank it down, needing the influx of caffeine to offset the headache she knew would be happening at some point. How could it not? She'd skated too close to the ICE this time. Should have been prepared for that. The firewall they'd invested in was backed by the nothingness of the previous webspace. <br><br>She'd have to let Norrie know. Maybe.<br><br><em>An hour after her initial run, Devi strode into <strong>AfterLife</strong>, her small frame covered by hot pink pleather and black mesh. She found the combination quite soothing but most stared at her as if she'd killed their mother. She found that soothing, too. Stepping into the biz bar made her shoulders loosen, lengthened her stride, brought a smile to full lips. Someone would be around. <br><br>They always were...</em>
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				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Primarch</strong> on <strong>25-11-2021, 00:43:26</strong>
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				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.imgur.com/r1Jckqn.png)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Vane<br><strong>Location:</strong> Outside Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> OPEN<br><strong>Content:</strong> Maelstrommers getting dunked on<br><hr><hr><br>The Solo everyone knew as <em>Vane Redbeard</em> was a common sight at Afterlife. Having been involved in the Merc scene long enough to be one of the big names in the Biz it was not surprising it had become his drinking establishment of choice. It was also a great place to be when work came up. He was generally on hand when Rogue was putting together a job. Plus the place just had a charm all of its own, steeped in the history of his people. <em>The Solo's</em>. Plus of course one had to appreciate the general social benefits of frequenting a place like Afterlife. Where else would you meet such a plethora of unique specimens? The denziens of Afterlife were the filthiest breed of brilliant and the wildest incarnation of liberated. Vane had even heard stories from that guy who once drank with Morgan Blackhand. <br><br>In days gone by people had commented on his car. They'd joke about how much money he must have or make a quip about the sporty car and his distinctly mismatched appearance. It was always in good fun. Guys being guys. They had been ripping each other on their car since cars were horses. These days only the new kids and the tourists batted an eye when the Redbeard Caliburn pulled up. Sure enough the door slid up and out stepped Vane, those darkened aviators hanging off his face despite the sun long since having gone down and beat up old shirt draped over his equally beat up (and heavily reinforced) vest. Construction worker-chic in a rich man's car. Hopefully Rogue would have some work because running that thing was killing him. No matter. There was always work. His street cred was good as gold. Some prick would hire him just to be able to say they had hired him. Once word got our his enemies would melt away. It had been difficult for someone as generally pleasant as Vane to cultivate a reputation like that but occasionally it let him rake in the eddies without needing to cave someones head it. That being said it was nice to have the option. <br><br>"<strong>Here's our gonk!</strong>" He had not taken a step away from the car before someone made the call and earned his attention. Green eyes concealed behind the aviators caught sight of the source quickly enough. A gaunt trio so brutally twisted with cyberware they had been rendered more a caricature of humanity. Maelstrom. A classic fixture of Night City. "<em>Well what do we have here? A busted metal dildo and his two cracked chrome anal bead buddies, what can I do you for?</em>" Vane had about as much time for Maelstrom as he had some shit under his shoe. Both annoyances he prefered to just scrape against the sidewalk. Regardless of his astounding wit the three approached him with all the confidence of men who knew what they were doing. "<strong>Hilarious, should have stuck to comedy. But ye didn't and now someone's paid a whole bunch of eddies to see you dead. We're here to make that happen.</strong>" As if to highlight the severity of his point the lead Maelstrom hard man pulled up big old Lexington handgun, the business end a couple inches from Vane's nose. <br><br>Then Vane slapped it out of his hand. To be more precise the state-of-the-art microrotors implanted onto his titanium bones kicked in, allowing him to move his hand faster than should be humanly possible. The hand itself of course being his primary moneymaker with his infamous gorilla arm cyberware. Suffice to say a slap from Vane Redbeard was rather unfortunate thing to experience. With that in mind it was perhaps no surprise the Maelstrom hard man went through a moment of impotent disgrace and shocked pain as his gun came to a rest a few feet away. "<em>Did you walk all the way across the parking lot just to pull a gun on me? Ah lad, you must be thick as shit. Its a gun, it works from across the parking lot. That's the fucking point of a gun.</em>" Vane wasn't angry but he was disappointed. He had hoped men sent to kill him would be of a higher quality. If nothing else out of professional courtesy. No matter. This was the part where things kicked off. <br><br>With the dramatic execution ruined &amp; pride wounded the other two Maelstrom boys went to pull their own weapons and avenge the honour of their slighted comrade. Of course at this point they were all within the Irish former Corpo's 'range of murder.' Not that he planned on killing the boys. A firm whoopin' would do just fine. One went to pull out a submachine gun, Vane kicked a boot into his shin and caused him to tumble mid draw, the other he caught with a jab straight to the throat. That one got the worst end of the deal. Vane's gorilla arms were upgraded with the 'animal knuckles' feature. Very sharp. He dropped like a sack of potatoes and started gasping for air. It was at this point the first one hand regained his composure and drew a knife. He was mid swing when Vane caught him with a big, open palmed, full force slap across his metallic face. The Redbeard Solo could almost see the cartoon stars twirling about his head.&nbsp; <br><br>Sure enough morale was broken and they decided to try run. 'Big Red' as he was affectionately known by one of his usual Afterlife associates picked up the previously dropped handgun and hurled it after them, cracking one right in the back of the head. Like an athlete who had scored the big point he threw his arms up in the arm and let out a cackle of delight while turning his weight to face what people were standing outside the drinking establishment and enjoying the show. "<em>For fuck sake lads, some start to the night. Didn't think I'd have to deal with that shite until I was well sauced.</em>"&nbsp; 
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				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Angie</strong> on <strong>25-11-2021, 02:46:32</strong>
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				<div class="floatright">(https://i.imgur.com/aH3M4Vr.jpeg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Choko Tanaka<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> OPEN<br><strong>Content:</strong> Fixers gonna fix<br><hr><hr><br>Choko very rarely left her apartment. She had a lovely little place in Japantown with a small zen garden and plenty of AR art to cover her walls, some even ad-free! But she couldn't mix a drink to save her augmented ass, so when you wanted a decent cocktail, you came to the Afterlife. All the way to Watson for a drink? Well, it wasn't like she couldn't do her usual business while there. She avoided making deals or discussing contracts while at the Afterlife, out of respect for its owner and the Queen Fixer on site. But that didn't mean she couldn't do other things related to the business of being a fixer...<br><br>The staff knew her usual. She had a small weakness for the Johnny Silverhand drink. She didn't normally go for tequila, but something about the way it got mixed up here...maybe it was the agave. That had to be it. Regardless, a quick transfer of eddies and the bar would have it delivered to wherever she sat. A good thing too, as she was quite distracted by camera feeds.<br><br>Do you know how many cameras are operating in Night City at any given time? Enough to give a heart attack to anyone who even pretended to care about privacy. Every drunk pissing on a street corner, every lame college kid trying some new preem pick up line, every mugging, stabbing, murder, all of it was filmed. Recorded, not so much. Night City PD couldn't keep up with all of it and barely tried to. Half of those cameras were corpo interests anyway. One feed in particular stopped her. She recognized the big one. Redbeard, yes? The three Maelstrom gonks had their backs to the camera, but she saw the irons, and the one pulling a pistol on Redbeard. <br><br>And <em>saved.</em> She had a thing for finding little highlights of some of the better known mercs out there. People loved violence, and while it wasn't as good as a braindance, straight video still had its charms and its market. These little 'clips' she kept publicly available. Just another piece of video content in an endless sea. But, it was still fun to watch. Seemed like we already had a wonderful cast coming tonight. Sadly she hadn't brought her katana, but the cyberware she had still made her quite effective if things got too rowdy...
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				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheGrandAdmiral</strong> on <strong>25-11-2021, 20:16:02</strong>
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				<div class="floatleft">(https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/007/768/089/large/renzo-mejia-montes-black-canary-katheryn-winnick.jpg?1508374765)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Ekaterina "Katheryn" Belova<br><strong>Location:</strong> The Afterlife <br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Having a drink<br><hr><hr><br><em>“I was a licensed investigator who knocked off somebody who needed knocking off bad and he couldn’t get to me. So I was a murderer by definition and all the law could do was shake its finger.”* </em> If she ever had an autobiography written about Ekaterina Belova (or Katheryn White for the ones who could not pronounce her Slavic name) that would have been the first paragraph.<br><br>A washed up Private Eye, an ex detective from the NCPD, kicked out because she could not drop a case when told so. Kicked out because she could not close her eyes and to turn her head when told so. At least she got to keep her life. Not that you could call this a life though... But the fact remained, a lot of her colleagues would simply get a bullet to the head in some back alley or end up in the toxic waters near the port. All written down as mugging or <em>they wanted to swim</em>.<br><br>Now she was drowning her misery at the Afterlife and it was not even night. Or was it? She could not keep track of the time. The cheap bottle of half-finished vodka was standing in front of her reflecting the few lights at the place. <br><br>Yeah, yeah, she was aware of the stereotypes, but it reminded her of home. Even though she had never been to the place... Nor would be able to. After all SovOil does not forgive, nor forget. So the moment she stepped on Soviet ground she would be taken in, tortured then executed out of sheer spite.<br><br>Her cheek was resting on the dirty surface of the table, her half-burnt cigarette still smoking and small bits of ash were falling in the tray. Katheryn grimaced and put it back in her mouth and gave a pull, then exhaled the smoke. Not the most comfortable position to do that, but she did not care. <br><br>It did not matter... nothing mattered. <br><br>Her PI services were not that sought after. No one really cared if someone disappeared, or at least the ones that mattered, the ones that would give her a lot of eddies and connect her to their friends if they needed her services. <br><br>Her former colleagues shunned her, aside of River who gave her a case or two on the side, but he had his own investigation going and there was no way he could include her as she would taint it with her presence. <br><br>Aside of that she kept a file of some interesting things that she had noticed, but currently lacked the resources to pursue. Lots of cloak and dagger shit happening in Night City and if you could piece together the puzzle you could either profit or... get killed...<br><br>Or even both...<br><br>So to make ends meet she took odd jobs as an enforcer. Despite her looks she was a capable fighter and as an ex-cop she knew how to intimidate most street level morons. Those were okay jobs. The ones that she hated were consulting some smug piece of shit how to get away from prosecution on technicalities. <br><br>Though, occasionally even those could be satisfying when the detective in charge was one of the bastards whose guts she hated. In a sense she was flipping them by doing this. <br><br>Katheryn sighed, this silver linings bullshit was not working today. Hopefully someone could swing by and give her a real PI job... or any job... beggars can't be choosers amirite? <br><br><em>OOC: * the quote is from Mickey Spillane, The Mike Hammer Collection: Volume I </em>
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				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Andronica</strong> on <strong>26-11-2021, 03:08:54</strong>
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				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/5b/fd/68/5bfd684acbbaa2ce635387ab576f324e.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Valkyrie (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16040058#msg16040058)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Black Lotus Tattoos --&gt; Afterife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Karma --&gt; Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Blood, language<br><strong>Mood:</strong> Killer - slowed // reverb (https://youtu.be/f1-UaZaLPbQ)<br><hr><hr><br><em>Drip.<br><br>Drip.<br><br>Drip.</em><br><br>The red drops fell and blended into the black asphalt of the alleyway, churning into pools where rainwater collected from the leaking awning below a myriad of flashing neon signs. Katya turned her head to the side and spat out a mouthful of blood. Indelicately she brushed the back of her gloved hand over her lips and the underside of her probably broken nose - it didn't hurt, not much did these days, but she could still taste the coppery sweetness. Who knew his head had reinforced titanium? Or that he would use it when his insultingly small switchblade failed? <br><br>The fixer certainty fucking <em>hadn't</em> shared that little nugget of wisdom with her prior to going in...Though the eddies were prime. <br><br>At least she had something to show for it when she came limping back to the basement. Katya was lucky enough that Karma didn't seem to mind her dropping by occasionally to pay off her steep bill without using the front door.<br><br>Swiping her bloodied hand down, she hit the small console on the door concealed in the otherwise flush wall; an emergency exit of sorts, just in case shit went sideways. The door pulled away from the seam of the posters. Kat stepped in quickly, concealed in the shadows under a convenient guise of black leather and dark composite carbon fibre plating. Just as it opened, the door shut with near perfect alignment. Immediately inside was a narrow stairwell to the sublevel lit with a few old flickering bulbs recessed into the wall. Kat followed the route down to the basement and walked into a room she knew very well.<br><br>Remiss as she was to dirty the floor, she was already tracking in a bit of rainwater and whatever other detritus made up Night City's streets. The sealed concrete floor of Karma's basement had seen much worse.<br><br>Despite the beating she took her arms were still nimble enough to pull back her shoulders and make her jacket taut. Dropping her limbs loosened the sleeves down until she freed one arm and swung the jacket off with the other, wearing only a grey tank top underneath. It landed with a muffled thud on the stainless steel table gleaming just off centre of the well lit room. As she rolled her newly freed shoulders something clicked and--<br><br>Ok, maybe some things still hurt. <br><br>"Mm.." A low grumble seethed through her clenched lips. Katya reached back to feel around her left shoulder blade. The prick of metal bit back and she pulled it out easily, examining the knife tip. So that's where his switchblade went.<br><br>Careful not to make even more of a mess than she was already (just by existing), Kat palmed the shard and dumped it into the disposal unit at the end of the clean galley-style counter. She started to pull off other layers then; cupping the underside of her half visor with the opposite hand she pulled her techgogs off from the bottom up. A curtain of dark brown hair slipped out in a messy pony tail to splay over her pale nicked shoulder.<br><br>The lack of pressure made her nose run anew but thankfully she was over the sink anyway. Turning on the faucet she splashed lukewarm water onto her face hoping it would look some semblance of clean-ish. Then Katya turned to the coffee machine and flicked it on. She chewed the inside of her cheek while she waited for it to percolate. It took an embarrassing amount of will power to stop herself from getting impatient.<br><br>She didn't have to wait long until she heard the tell-tale rhythm of Karma's footsteps coming from the parlour above. Without looking up when light streamed into the open basement stairwell, Kat fished into her pocket for a chip and laid it out on the counter. <br><br>"Four thousand eddies." Finally, she turned around so her lower back rested on the counter's edge and crossed her arms over her chest. Her tone became more sombre, and she sniffed loudly to stop her nosebleed. "It was a dead end, though." Her dark eyes moved toward the coffee maker and then back over to Karma; both orbs a warm amber brown while the left pupil reflected green, giving away the impressive imitation was cold dead cyberware. The scent of fresh coffee started to waft in the air.<br><br>"This shit smells like old petrochem," Katya added nonchalantly.<br><br>She was bad at small talk too, obviously. Though it roughly translated to: <em>drinks?</em><br><br><hr><br>Afterlife pulsed brightly in front of Katya's currently bare face. She didn't like to go without her visor even though Karma fixed her up real nice; only a few thin scars from lip to ear and above her dead eye. However, the urge to drink herself into a deep stupor definitely overwhelmed her usual inability to be social and play nice. Tugging the lapel of her leather jacket up, Kat saw the hulking beast that was Emmerick give her a once-over from her periphery. Small nod. That was the green light.<br><br>At Rogue's house she followed the rules. Especially for such good drinks.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Angie</strong> on <strong>27-11-2021, 01:30:57</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatright">(https://i.imgur.com/aH3M4Vr.jpeg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Choko Tanaka<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> OPEN, Kathyrn, Jack<br><strong>Content:</strong> Fixers gonna fix<br><hr><hr><br>There were some new faces in the Afterlife. Or more specifically, one new one (to Choko, at least) in particular. She looked like she was not having the best of days, and a quick scan revealed why. Ekaterina Belova. Ex NCPD. Connected to a certain politician after exposing his son. Well, exposure was all well and good, she supposed. Someone like that politician's kid, she'd have preferred a bullet in the head. He was just another scumbag who thought his wealth and prestige meant he could do whatever he want to the destitute on the street. There was no changing a kid like that.<br><br>But she put her moral judgement aside. Now, while this was Rogue's house as far as fixing went, but she had a job in mind, something that would be almost beneath Rogue herself. Finishing her drink, she rose from her seat and gently made her way over to where Ekaterina sat. "Miss Belova." She said, giving a slight nod to her. "I have heard that you are a private investigator. It just so happens I have a certain difficulty that would be perfect for one with your skill set." She said. "Might I sit? 'Tis much easier to discuss a matter like this when we are both seated comfortably."<br><br>She eyed Jack having a little conversation with the bartender. With a thought, she composed and sent him a message. <em>Do not stray to far, Shinobi. I have a little something, a light snack for one of your skills. I'm offering it to someone new, but I will require you if she does not accept.</em> Another thought, and then another message. <em>Actually, might be best for you both to hear this. You are not opposed to group projects, yes?</em>
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheVillain</strong> on <strong>27-11-2021, 03:49:44</strong>
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			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://assets.vg247.com/current//2013/12/infiltrator-artwork-epic-games.jpg)</div><br><strong>Name:</strong> "Jack B. Nimble"<br><strong>Location:</strong> C-Team HQ -&gt; The Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Open, Kathyrn, Coko<br><strong>Content:</strong> Biz, Choom.<br><hr><hr><br><div class="floatright">(https://vz.cnwimg.com/thumb-1200x/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Louis-Garrel1.jpg)</div>He got the message and he thought it was chuckleworthy. She called him a Shinobi. That was pretty good actually. The thing was that in this time to be a "Shinobi" you didn't really need a cloth mask over your face the whole time. Just have a decent set of chrome eyes to fuzz out your face on cameras. Pretty much did the same thing, especially when people voluntarily put cameras in their eyes.<br><br>The "Shinobi" gets his "hard liquor" and sizes up from the bar.<br><br>"<strong>Better luck next time Claire.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>I'll get you next time, Jack.</strong>"<br><br>Stepping up, he sends a message to the Queen of this place. Blank, but the code they know. She sends back a number that isn't zero. That means not yet, Rogue still had some business on her plate before they could talk. That's fine. The next message goes to Choko.<br><br>&gt;&gt;<em>That depends strongly on the project, and the group.</em><br>&gt;&gt;<em>But you definitely have this Shinobi's attention.</em><br>&gt;&gt;<em>Would you prefer I introduce myself or just happen to overhear from the next booth?</em>
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Kuroneko</strong> on <strong>27-11-2021, 08:48:16</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://images2.imgbox.com/86/71/qabzUuqc_o.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Karma (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16039378#msg16039378)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Black Lotus Tattoo --&gt; Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Katya, OPEN<br><strong>Content:</strong> Conversation, Blood and Drinks<br><hr><hr><br>“This is going to sting.” <br><br>The warning had come some time ago, but it held true even more now than it had when initially given. The needles of the tattoo gun moved at a rate of over 100 times per second, depositing ink 1.5 to 2 millimeters underneath the client’s skin with every sweep of the needles over their skin. The hand holding the gun belonged to a master artist, expertly drawing out an intricate design while the gun let out a steady, buzzing hum. Back and forth the gun moved between the tiny cups of ink and the client’s arm as the artist worked on the tattoo, gradually filling in the outline with careful shading and masterfully blended color. In short order it was done, the excess ink and blood was wiped away, the skin disinfected, and the newly minted artwork was covered with a dermabandage. It only took a few more minutes to transfer the eddies into the artist’s account, and the client was on his merry way with a shiny new piece of ink. <br><br>It was the last client of the night. Now all Karma had to do was clean up their station and the rest of the evening was theirs. That is, until the perimeter alarm was triggered, and the security system pulled up a warning on the nearest terminal, showing where the breach had occurred. The basement. Karma had a <em>lot </em>of high-end equipment in the basement, where they practiced their true artform – specialized cybernetic surgery for just about anyone that could afford their fees. So, even in a case like this one, where entry to the building had been acquired through an authorized access code, Karma was vigilant. The code was bio-keyed and linked to the codes in the cyberware of the person that had used it, specifically designed by the good doctor themselves. As such, it was highly secure. There was only one other person besides Karma with a code, and though highly unlikely, it was still possible that the code could be taken from her with a good enough hacker. Coupled with a very specific part of her cyberware, it would be possible to gain access to the clinic, and the inventory of cyber, bioware and dermal implants waiting to be installed. The street value would set up someone for years. <br><br>Consequently, Karma was cautious as they abandoned the tattoo station and made their way down the stairs to the surgical suite with the light from above at their back, pausing only to pick up the GENJIROH HJKE-11 Yukimura along the way, just in case things went south. Their footsteps were soft on the stairs as they padded cautiously down them, eyes glowing green in the low light, picking up every detail. Blood and rainwater on the floor, the stain of whatever was out on the streets tonight, the sight of a familiar jacket on the operating table, it’s owner standing at the counter on the far side of the room, and the smell of coffee brewing in the pot. Karma lowered the weapon in their hand, long fingers engaging the safety as they stepped into the room. <br><br>Karma was tall and lithe, dressed in synth leather that clung to their body, pants and a jacket with some kind of tight fitting shirt beneath it, all in a shade of black that somehow reflected shades of green back when the light hit it. Their long hair was braided tight to their skull on the sides, falling down over their shoulders in a fall of inky layers that brushed high cheekbones. “Katya,” they said simply, voice soft and low, a warm mixture of whiskey and honey. <br><br>Their gaze followed Katya’s movements as the chip was laid out on the counter, listening to her recount the details of her evening. “You’re hurt,” they said, after nodding to acknowledge the amount. Karma had not insisted that the woman repay her for the reconstruction of her body, but understood Katya’s need to do so. <br><br>A smile pulled at one corner of the Ripperdoc’s mouth at Katya’s assessment of the coffee’s quality, as well as what the woman was really saying. Over the years they’d known each other, the two of them had developed a rather unique way of communicating that others rarely understood. “That’s because it’s real,” Karma told her with a wry smirk. “You’ve drunk synthjava for so long you can’t appreciate the smell of the real thing.” Crossing to the counter, the doctor switched off the coffee maker, now that its cycle was finished, and then quickly pocketed the payment chip. “And yes, I’d love a drink.” <br><br><hr><br>Karma followed Katya into Afterlife once they’d been waived in, assuming that Katya would follow unless a fellow merc waved her over. The doctor didn’t spend a large amount of time at the bar but showing up there was good for business – tattoos as well as their real work – so they tried to get there at least once or twice a month. The bar was loud, already filled with some of the regulars, but it was the best place to order a drink. After that they’d find a table and camp out. <br><br>“Hey, Doc. Long time no see,” Claire said when Karma approached the bar. “What’re you having?”<br><br>“Yuzu sour, please,” the doctor replied.<br><br>“You want synthsake or the real stuff?<br><br>“You know I want the real stuff,” Karma said, eyeing the bartender. “Real yuzu, too.”<br><br>“I know, I know, I shouldn’t even ask anymore,” Claire replied. “I’m just never sure with the solos, ya know? If they have a bad week, they don’t wanna spend the eddies.”<br><br>“I hear that,” Karma replied.<br><br>“And for you?” Claire asked Katya.<br>
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Wolfling72</strong> on <strong>27-11-2021, 14:56:27</strong>
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			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.imgur.com/a7M7riq.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Devi/N0Liss (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16039447#msg16039447)<br><strong>Location:</strong> In between ---&gt; AfterLife<br><strong>Mentioning:</strong> Jack | Choko | Kathryn | Katya&nbsp; <strong>Tagging:</strong> Vane | Karma<br><strong>Content:</strong> Here and now, we see beyond the veil.<br><hr><hr><br><em>She hadn't even made it properly in the door before a commotion occurred. She'd turned, only to see Red lining 'em up and spanking 'em down and not even in a sexy way! A shrill whistle and random clapping was her payment for the moment's entertainment. Why anyone thought those <strong>idiotas</strong> would be enough to handle him was anyone's guess. Maybe those particular <strong>gonks</strong> had earned themselves a stern lecture from their betters and those shadowed <strong>Dorphers</strong> thought Big Red would deliver it quickly enough?&nbsp; Who could tell? The <strong>Edge</strong> always beckoned and those with the skills could dangle on it forever. Others? Well, they got hit in the head with their own firearm.</em><br><br><span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"Makin' friends everywhere ya go, huh?"</span> The teasing words were tossed over her shoulder in the Big Man's general direction even as she finally finished shifting her body inside. A final bit of teasing was cut off by the closing of the door. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"Why you always get done so qui--?"</span><br><br><span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font"><em>'Okay...'</em></span> The thought wriggled through her brain as she allowed her gaze to flick over those already ensconced inside. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font"><em>'Huh...'</em></span> She noted Choko with her fine self and tossed a hand up to give a wave to Jack who seemed to be tormenting the tender, as usual. Her gaze flicked over someone seriously engaged with their drink and the fact that Choko noted <em>and</em> moved toward them caused a prickle of interest. However, one never flung themselves in uninvited, right? Best to get a drink and move off.<br><br>Suiting actions to thought, Devi set off to do just that. Moments later, she felt a frisson of awareness as someone else joined the motley crew. Whipping her head slightly to the left, she noted the arrival of the ones she thought of as <strong>Amazonian Babe</strong> and...<strong>Karma</strong>. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font"><em>'So lovely...'</em></span> It was hell, crushing on the unattainable. Vane? Karma? Yeah. She had no chance. Still, she liked what she liked and both of them...had it. The good thing was that Karma genuinely seemed to like her. They were friends so she didn't feel too badly about accessing her <strong>Agent</strong> and shooting a text message their way.<br><br><div align="center"><span style="font-family: courier;" class="bbc_font"><span style="font-size: 10pt;" class="bbc_size">Ya never ask me for drinks.<br>I think I might feel offended.<br>&gt;_&lt;*</span></span></div><br>If by chance Karma looked her way? Well, they'd be met with a grin and a wink. After all, the acknowledgment was all she required.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheGrandAdmiral</strong> on <strong>27-11-2021, 21:21:11</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/007/768/089/large/renzo-mejia-montes-black-canary-katheryn-winnick.jpg?1508374765)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Ekaterina "Katheryn" Belova<br><strong>Location:</strong> The Afterlife <br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Choko, Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Having a drink<br><hr><hr><br>Despite having drunk enough to make a man not being able to stand straight Katheryn retained her power of observation. Lots of colorful people came and went. Some she even knew from her days at the NCPD. Well there they were just pictures with a WANTED sign underneath. Funny how they were under the cops' noses. Or just the so called law enforcers didn't actually care as long as they get their bribes...<br><br>That made her grimace and pull from her cigarette. Something caught her attention. A female figure was moving towards her. A pretty one, an Asian by the looks of her. Maybe she thought she was a hooker? Ekaterina surely dressed like one. After all she did not want to look like a cop at a place like this... She wondered whether the woman needed an Investigator or some company. <br><br>Right now she did not care, as long as there would be eddies and something to do...<br><br>Katheryn sat up and pushed away the bits of ash that had fallen on the table. Hopefully she did not look that drunk. Hearing her name made Ekaterina blink. So, it was going to be work. Then the woman proceeded to confirm that suspicion. <br><br>"Sure thing." she gestured to her that she could sit "You have me at a disadvantage, Miss?" Katheryn spoke slowly as not to slur too much. She would have to sober up quickly. "Tell me how I may be of service?" 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Angie</strong> on <strong>28-11-2021, 00:17:50</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatright">(https://i.imgur.com/aH3M4Vr.jpeg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Choko Tanaka<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> OPEN, Kathyrn, Jack<br><strong>Content:</strong> Fixers gonna fix<br><hr><hr><br><em>Just ears open for now. No sense introducing if the lady here rejects it.</em> She messaged back to Jack, inviting him to listen in. While any approach would work for what she had in mind, she wanted someone who knew how to keep things quiet, in case her intel was bad. Then a message to Rogue. <em>Apologies, but I have an opportunity to-</em> <em><strong>You don't need permission. Do what you have to do, Choko, I really don't care.</strong></em> Rogue could be quite blunt in her interactions, but Choko still preferred to ask permission. Last she needed was Rogue having issues with her.<br><br>"I am Choko Tanaka. I specialize in jobs that require your skill set. Or specifically, an investigation." She took a seat as she spoke. While the lady seemed deep in her cups, Ekaterina was making a solid effort to listen. Good. She had a certain strength of spirit, then. "You are familiar with brain dances, yes? Specifically, XBDs. I prefer not touching the ones with the Xs myself, but a situation has arisen where I can no longer ignore it. I hope you are also familiar with Maelstrom. I have credible information of Maelstrom producing a new line of XBDs, ones that in theory override the safeties inherent to the machinery." She paused for a moment. Normal BDs, even the illegal ones, ran through a biofeedback filter of sorts, preventing the user's body from actually duplicating the actions depicted-such as, for example, actually dying if viewing a snuff XBD. "There have been reports of users flatlining after experiencing one of these newer ones. Their brains, unprotected by the biofeedback filter, actually experience death full on and simply...shut down."<br><br>"So what I require is two fold. Finding where in Maelstrom territory they are recording these XBDs, and also discovering if whatever they are doing with the editing is actually causing this issue. I am willing to pay for any actionable information, with the largest chunk set aside for whoever discovers the truth behind these deaths. This is a personal contract, no client except me. If you are interested, I can give you coordinates to the suspected location of the facility." She maintained a very stoic expression. It was a trick she had picked up from Wakako. Even though this was a personal mission, there was still money involved. Would be best not to reveal too much about your emotional state.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Andronica</strong> on <strong>28-11-2021, 22:45:30</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/24/8a/9c/248a9c6846a134e051550feb2f5edb3e.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Valkyrie (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16040058#msg16040058)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Karma, Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Listening...<br><hr><hr><br>Taking a seat at the bar, Katya felt a smirk tugging slightly on her lips as she heard Karma get right down to business. They were soft spoken at times, strangely gentle in their work going beyond the mere delicacy of a tattoo gun - or other implements - but other times there was a sharp cadence in their tone which made Katya pause. Though they were friends for a few years now there was enough she didn't know about the ripperdoc that they couple spend a lifetime of nights chatting at Afterlife and she'd still come up empty. Part of that mystery was maybe what endeared Katya to her friend. She could appreciate secrets.<br><br>"Bossy tonight, aren't you?" teased Katya. She inclined her head towards the ripperdoc in a playful manner without fully turning to face her on the bar stool. Her long fingers traced around the luminescent counter top while Claire sorted out Karma's order. Then, hers.<br><br>"Whisky with a splash of agave," requested Kat, raising two fingers together to indicate the amount. Claire turned to pull a bottle of O'Dicking down from the shelf when the solo piped up. "And some ice." Maybe she'd swirl it around her drink a bit. Mostly though, it was for her nose. It still stung.<br><br>When the clear tumbler of whisky slid across the bar top it went right into Val's open appreciative hand. She took a sip and savoured it like it was real water before sliding her eyes toward Karma, ready to ask what they wanted to get up to that night. Through the din of Afterlife she heard a voice nearby, soft and clipped, from a nearby booth behind them.<br><br><em>"I have credible information of Maelstrom producing a new line of XBDs, ones that in theory override the safeties inherent to the machinery."</em><br><br>Katya's back straightened with tension. She wanted to unwind tonight but maybe that just wasn't in the cards. Her head tilted towards Karma to check if they also heard.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Andronica</strong> on <strong>29-11-2021, 01:01:48</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatright">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/3e/71/47/3e7147a5f920ef59b679e2ec245fa8e4.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Evangeline (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16040060#msg16040060)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Ready for drinks<br><hr><hr><br>A neon pink bob moved sharply ahead of Eva with an indecipherable shout. When she looked up, a familiar face was waving excitedly back at her. Clad in white short-shorts and a stringy little crop top that matched her hair (cut so high you could see every curve of her generously modified chest) the slim, tanned creature came rushing over. Her heels frantically tapped the sidewalk as she closed the gap to Evangeline.<br><br>"Evaaaa!" the other Joytoy practically screeched. It made Eva friend snicker a bit at the exaggerated tone and she wrinkled her little nose.<br><br>"Hey!" replied Eva with slightly more subdued excitement. She got an armful of the wispy Joytoy, Astra, who pressed up against Evangeline's long sleeved shimmering opalescent dress, with mesh cut outs that followed her contours on the side from mid-thigh to neck. The sequins reflected the neon pulse of Night City around her just like her matching silver platforms.<br><br>Astra cocked her head eagerly when she got out of the hug. "I haven't seen you around our old spots. Where you been?" Before Evangeline could answer, Astra pulled a sly face and leaned back. Her fingers artfully tapped Eva's chest while she grinned. "Oh, did you get yourself a new guy? Like that Cor--"<br><br>"Nah, I'm... doing other things now. New haunt," Eva interjected and rolled her shoulders casually. The content smile on her plush pink lips looked real enough that Astra didn't seem too fussed about asking more questions.<br><br>"Fine, do your own gig. Just know I miss ya." Astra pouted. Suddenly, the spritely Joytoy grabbed Eva's blush boa and wrung her hands around it once, twice, and pulled them close again. "Do you have plans tonight? We could go out like we used to down Charter Hill?" Her silver eyes looked so big and wide that they gave the moon a run for its eddies. Though, Eva ran her hands along Astra's arms and shook her head.<br><br>"I have plans tonight but I'll catch you soon, yeah?"<br><br>Astra's mock sigh was drawn out a few seconds before her smile came back. Her hands dropped the boa, letting up on the almost seamless junction between their silky bodies. "Hold you to it," she purred with a wink. Stepping back, the electric pink bob jostled with the Joytoy's steps as she continued heading down the sidewalk after another drawn out wave of goodbyes.<br><br>Back on the warpath to Afterlife for a good drink, Eva sauntered up the next few blocks with a little knowing smirk on her face. As she approached the club she felt her pump skid in something silky wet on the ground: blood. "The hell...?" she murmured, pressing on with a huff. Really, she shouldn't be surprised about stepping in unsavoury things here, probably from some bar fight that Emmerick 'guided' outside, but she <em>just</em> bought these heel. Speaking of the big guy...<br><br>Evangeline stopped short of the door where he was filing people inside after a scrutinizing look-over. His steel lined jaw canted in her direction and she beamed at him.<br><br>"Emmy, looking good tonight," Eva complimented him and patted her hand against his leather clad arm. Discreet as it was she caught the ghost of a grin on the corner of his thin mouth. Only Eva could charm the colour back into his chrome cheeks even when she didn't have to. <br><br>Inside Afterlife, the sound of the club reverberated through the floor and the walls all around her, making her immediately feel at home in its vibrant atmosphere. And as luck would have it her usual small corner booth, a little cubby hole in the wall really, was free. Eva made a bee-line over without bothering to order any drinks from Claire first. Something told her she wouldn't have to.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Kuroneko</strong> on <strong>29-11-2021, 09:11:24</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://images2.imgbox.com/86/71/qabzUuqc_o.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Karma (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16039378#msg16039378)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Black Lotus Tattoo --&gt; Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Katya, N0liss, OPEN<br><strong>Content:</strong> Conversation, and Drinks<br><hr><hr><br>“I just know what I want,” Karma replied, not rising to the lighthearted bait in Katya’s words. “And, I’m happy to pay for it, <em>ne</em>?” Their eyes slid towards her friend as her head tipped in Karma’s direction. They lifted one eyebrow at Katya’s choice of drink, but they’d never comment on it. Drinks were personal, and everyone had the right to drink what they wanted, however unusual it might seem. <br><br>Their drink arrived with a fair amount of care on Claire’s part, and Karma took a moment to appreciate the sight, along with the aroma of the fresh yuzu in the glass before wrapping the long fingers of one hand around it. Katya’s drink came sliding across the surface of the bar a moment later, as if they were in an old western braindance, to slip right into her open, waiting hand. Karma pulled a corner of their mouth up in a lopsided smirk, chuckling softly as they listed their own glass, letting it hover below their lips to savor the temperature and scent of the drink one last time before sipping. Then the words came floating softly from a group sitting a bit further away, and Katya’s tension was visible in every tense line of her body. <br><br>Choko Tanaka. Karma mentally shook their head, drink still untasted as they listened to what the little fixer was saying. Personal mission, only paying out for the how as well as the where. What about the why? Karma supposed that was the personal part, and clearly Choko wasn’t planning on giving that information out, not just yet. Or maybe ever. <br><br>In all fairness, it didn’t really seem like Royce’s cup of tea. The tech to create the kind of BD’s that Choko was describing was likely beyond his ability, but the doctor knew that he could get his hands on someone who had the required skills. “Go on,” Karma said to Katya, nodding slightly to indicate that they had also heard what was said. “I know you want to check it out.” They finally took a sip of the drink. It was sweet and sour with the sharp tang of alcohol, and absolutely perfect. “Go zero it out.” <br><br>There was no stopping Katya from checking in on any activities relating to Maelstrom and Karma knew it. It didn’t matter what you said or did; you just got out of her way. It wasn’t permission as much as common sense, and both knowing who Katya was and respecting that. She’d let Karma know what was going on once there was something to know. So when the text came, their attention had already moved from Choko’s conversation, ready to invest in other matters. <br><br><br><div align="center"><span style="font-family: courier;" class="bbc_font"><span style="font-size: 12pt;" class="bbc_size">I didn’t know I was coming out tonight, otherwise I would have.<br><em>Sumimasen</em>. &gt;_-</span></span></div><br>They sent back. <br><br>Turning on the barstool, Karma looked back over their shoulder, searching for where N0liss might be hiding in the bar. When they finally located her, they added another message.<br><br><br><div align="center"><span style="font-family: courier;" class="bbc_font"><span style="font-size: 12pt;" class="bbc_size">We can rectify that now, if you like.</span></span></div>
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheGrandAdmiral</strong> on <strong>29-11-2021, 19:54:46</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/007/768/089/large/renzo-mejia-montes-black-canary-katheryn-winnick.jpg?1508374765)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Ekaterina "Katheryn" Belova<br><strong>Location:</strong> The Afterlife <br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Choko, Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Having a drink<br><hr><hr><br>Now this was getting interesting. If she understood correctly Miss Tanaka was a fixer of sorts. Now she was getting somewhere. Katheryn was willing to take any job offered, but was going to play it cool. After all if she was too overeager that was going to lower the reward and she would not be taken seriously.<br><br>"Pleasure to meet you." she managed a small smile and fished another cigarette as the last one was done. "I hope you don't mind me smoking?" she relaxed a bit as Choko told her what was the mission.<br><br>Ugh, Maelstrom. She lived near the Industrial Sector, those freaks' stomping ground and she had an occasional run in with some of their low level scumbags. But after she twisted one guys' nuts no one tried to force themselves upon her again. <br><br>Though it was a matter of time another idiot thought he had a chance...<br><br>If she were not so desperate for a job she would have done this pro bono. Ekaterina hated their guts and those Brain Dances were stuff of nightmares. She had seen some files of such cases and it was a horror show. <br><br>Katheryn exhaled the smoke through her nostrils and waved it away. Choko also seemed to be trying to play it cool. She took a mental note to do some research. This was not a simple job. It was deeply personal. Normally she was going to press on, Katheryn was good at interrogations, but she was in no position to do that now. <br><br>"Well it was high time someone to take notice of those fuckers." she said at last "I can pull it off, send me all the data you have for this mission." Ekaterina gave a small smile "Also you realize that this is a high risk job and Maelstrom can be very vindictive, so the reward better be good."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheVillain</strong> on <strong>30-11-2021, 05:36:05</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://assets.vg247.com/current//2013/12/infiltrator-artwork-epic-games.jpg)</div><br><strong>Name:</strong> "Jack B. Nimble"<br><strong>Location:</strong> C-Team HQ -&gt; The Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Open, Kathyrn, Coko<br><strong>Content:</strong> Biz, Choom.<br><hr><hr><br><div class="floatright">(https://vz.cnwimg.com/thumb-1200x/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Louis-Garrel1.jpg)</div>Inwardly he whistles a bit at that little revelation about the possible work. The XBD trade was serious before, but now that Maelstrom was putting out ones that were apparently so intense they really could kill the user if they werent careful? An unpleasent thought even by their standards. The great and terrible 'Jack B. Nimble' was going to have to slide in. Might as well do the job right.<br><br>"<strong>Glad to hear it.</strong>" says the handsome man in the booth behind Choko, the one whose put some work into making sure that a scan will just get back just three little words. 'Jack B. Nimble.'<br><br>"<strong>Jack B. Nimble, Former MI6. I hear you're a Private Eye? Splended.</strong>"<br><br>Jack is very good at what he does, and he's also a bit of a Liar. Oh, he can be considered a former spy. He's just lying about who far.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>ravinwulf</strong> on <strong>30-11-2021, 08:01:04</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/914962091771854868/914963133406253086/Lawman_merc.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Kaiden<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Any, NOLiss<br><strong>Content:</strong> Biz<br><hr><hr><br>The Lawman sighed as he strode through the double door, the Animal doorman having nearly turned him away. Here he was though, The Afterlife. So many rumors, and legends flowing from this place, and here he was. Not much a simple Detective could say to make this place more grand than it already was. Dozens of folks sitting round, many of which were probably well above his paygrade to handle or deal with.<br>He let out another long breath as he took a pack of cigs from his pocket and slid one out before placing it between his lips and lighting it. One long drag later and he was felling a bit ore relaxed. He took in the bar once more before his eyes settled on a familiar face. He smiled as he straightened his simple button down shirt before moving across the bar and with a cheeky little whisper into the ear of the Nomad Runner he spoke. "Hey bright eyes. Fancy seeing you here."<br>The beat co p remained near to the pretty runner as he puffed gently at his cig and would smile and wink if she looked at him. He had never met Devi in person, more just as informant on a job in the past. But what he had learned of her on that job he knew her look was very specific and she was a person he had no qualms taking a leap of faith on.<br>"Mind if i join you for a bit, or are you waiting on biz with another client right now?" Even as he asked he looked around to be sure he was not be observed, no real eyes on him as he talked to this skilled young runner before him.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Wolfling72</strong> on <strong>30-11-2021, 16:37:00</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.imgur.com/a7M7riq.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Devi/N0Liss (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16039447#msg16039447)<br><strong>Location:</strong> In between ---&gt; AfterLife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Karma | Kaiden<br><strong>Content:</strong> I am not worth much, choom, but you can have what I am.<br><hr><hr><br>The small chirrup of sound drew Devi's dark gaze toward her <strong>Agent</strong>, there to be greeted with a small apology from Karma. A smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she raised her head only to be trapped by the gaze of the person she'd hoped would look for her. Another small burr caused her eyes to swoop back to her phone, the words found there immediately brightening her features. A drink with her not so secret crush? Yes!<br><br>Of course, she didn't get a chance to move right away. Kaiden, with his so fine he should not be allowed to be on the police force self, had caught her eye and sauntered over, a smile tilting his mobile mouth into something stunning. She paused in the act of rising and instead allowed her fingers to tap out a quick&nbsp; message.<br><br><div align="center"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;" class="bbc_font"><span style="font-size: 12pt;" class="bbc_size">Give me five minutes?</span></span></div><br>Once she hit send, she turned a bright grin toward her newest companion and allowed her gaze to sweep over his much taller form with every bit of appreciation she had to give. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"OH!! I swear it wasn't me this time officer!"</span> Devi gave him a cheeky wink and a bigger grin. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"I mean unless you have it on unhacked video...then it was definitely my twin sister!"</span> <br><br>A bright peel of laughter rang out, drawing more than a few glances but the netrunner paid them no mind. People always looked. She was unusual enough that people needed to check her reality. A happy go lucky nomad netrunner? Those things didn't even SOUND right when put together in a sentence! She did not care, Those who knew her, KNEW her and those that didn't? Why would she care about their opinion? With a shake of her head, Devi returned to the conversation at hand.<br><br><span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"You caught me as I was getting ready to join my friend for a drink. I will be around though, later, if ya need to catch up?"</span> Her concerned gaze caught his own. She didn't think they had any unfinished biz, not since the last bit of info she scored for him, but one could never tell. No matter what he said, she eventually left her table to join Karma at the bar.<br><br><span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"I apologize for the wait. I wasn't expecting to see the good officer here. How's your night faring?" </span> As she spoke, Devi settled herself next to her friend and leaned forward, motioning the barkeep over with a happy grin. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"Two double shots of Stolichnaya Elit, please?"</span> Russian vodka was her weakness and the elite was the very best. She never questioned HOW Afterlife managed to get it, she was just happy they had it!<br><br>As soon as she downed her first shot with a gasp and a wheeze, she twisted slightly to look at Karma. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"I really need to invest in some of your artwork on my skin. How many eddies would it set me back if I had you design something for me?"</span> <br><br>
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Andronica</strong> on <strong>30-11-2021, 16:47:11</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/24/8a/9c/248a9c6846a134e051550feb2f5edb3e.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Valkyrie (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16040058#msg16040058)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Poking the metal bear...<br><hr><hr><br>Katya practically felt every syllable that dripped from the blonde's mouth as it dangled venom along with the quickly diminishing cig. Though there was most definitely no love lost between her and the Maelstrom circle she used to run with, it still irked her to hear about them. Every time a gig came up on Maelstrom territory she usually snapped it up before other solos could even blink, which was entirely the same reckless impulse that caused her to show up at the Black Lotus looking like she went five rounds with an Animal. They tended not to go anywhere for leads but... she had a feeling about this one when the fixer mentioned XBDs.<br><br>A little part of her wondered if, between the botched torturous surgeries, she'd been a main character in one of those nasties - now getting pumped into someone's brain pan to feel it dialed up to 11.<br><br>Even if Karma wanted to stop her (though Katya figured she wouldn't) there was no way to calm that force roiling inside of the merc. She tipped back her two fingers of whisky and made the drink disappear. A piece of ice was popped into her mouth and she crunched it loudly while standing up, then she made her way over to the booth just across and behind her. Katya wasn't really a people-person anymore though, and her social graces were missing. So although she managed not to cause an uproar thanks to the already loud din of Afterlife, she wasn't going to skip over and slide into the little chat all friendly like.<br><br>"If it's Maelstrom you want, you'll need someone who knows them. From the inside." She practically spat the words out with her ire mostly directly at the blonde. Though her eyes turned to slide over to the silk clad fixer whose modded face was difficult to read. "I can get you whatever you want--" Katya reiterated, again turning to look at the beat cop who was half in the table.<br><br>She gestured to Katheryn, scrutinizing the blonde again. "--better than she can go skulking around and blow her cover. I don't care about the eddies... So?" The question hung in the air as her impressively passable cyberware eye fixed onto Choko.<br><br>Yeah, she was selling herself to the fixer more than intended but really, this was an opportunity Katya couldn't pass up. She was intrigued by it being the fixer's personal contract - whatever info she could dig up to use to her advantage in her own little ongoing investigation.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>ravinwulf</strong> on <strong>30-11-2021, 19:45:35</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<br><div class="floatleft">(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/914962091771854868/914963133406253086/Lawman_merc.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Kaiden<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> NOLiss, any<br><strong>Content:</strong> Choom, Biz<br><hr><hr><br>Not at all disappointed as she moved off to join the other beauty at the bar he did stop her long enough to slip her a copy of his detes in card form into her hand. "For later then Bright eyes. Just don't forget or I may have to put you in cuffs next time."<br>With that he let her go as he moved off to find a table in a corner. His eyes were slowly scanning the room, His facial scanner now active. He did pause once or twice as he noticed a few of them didnt register right. But over all no oddities to be found in this holy place of the city of dreams. However one did catch his eye as he seemed severally out of place in here. The scanner kicked back with no ID and he both froze, but quirked a brow. A Spook, here, was rare at best, but then again everyone had to make a living.<br><br>He rose to his feet as he quietly made his way round the bar now. His curiosity would be the death of him one day, hopefully not today. As he approached the table with Jack, Choko, and Kat he did the best he could to keep from drawing attention, but knew that there was always a chance he would just trip over his own feet and land right next to them. He had to wonder what biz a streetkid and a spook had together, and if it tied to any of his cases any intel would prove valuable.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Angie</strong> on <strong>30-11-2021, 22:39:41</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatright">(https://i.imgur.com/aH3M4Vr.jpeg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Choko Tanaka<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> OPEN, Kathyrn, Jack, Valkyrie, Kaiden<br><strong>Content:</strong> Fixers gonna fix...though now she's annoyed.<br><hr><hr><br>She had invited Jack because she knew of his reliability. But now there were far too many flies getting attracted to the honey. This situation needed to be addressed. "If I wanted an open season on Maelstrom, I would have said as much. The intel is credible, yes, but there remains a possibility that what is believed to be happening is not actually happening." She said to the former Maelstrom lady. Her 'ware broadcasted a Maelstrom signature, and her words about knowing them from the inside matched up. "As eager as you are, I am not in the business of wasting time chasing too hard after potential dead ends."<br><br>And now there was even another. One who was at least being respectable, and only listening in. A situation she had set herself up for, but at least one of them was waiting his turn to speak. "I am willing to make this more of a crew effort, but I only want to know if the location I have is making the XBDs, and if they are, if they're being programmed to override safeties. While I am not concerned if we end up with bodies, the quieter this is done, the better. Hence why I want an investigator." <br><br>She turned back to focus on Kathyrn again. "Well. You have interested parties. The payment will be competitive, regardless if you go as a group...or as solos. Though, against Maelstrom, I highly recommend working as a crew. They certainly won't let you in the front door for something like this. Additionally, I am having trouble finding any person who has these particular XBDs for sale, or else I would have analyzed one myself. I'll throw in a bonus if someone does bring me one." She sat back a little. "I'm not about to force a bunch of mercs to work together. If you want to work together, make introductions. Sell yourselves. I know what you're all capable of, but it's refreshing to hear people say it."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Primarch</strong> on <strong>01-12-2021, 01:35:15</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.imgur.com/r1Jckqn.png)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Vane<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Eva<br><strong>Content:</strong> Just one smooth choom<br><hr><hr><br>With his first piece of drama already out of the way the Irish (or at least, Irish descent) Solo released a sigh of relief. While he had no fear for his life certain implants tended to get into hype mode almost immediately. It was probably be best if he avoided any uppers for the next little while. Just in case. There was a certain multi-coloured powder that tended to set off internal alarms to such a severity his ripper doc felt a sympathy heart attack from half way across town. The price people paid for being a chrome demi-god. <br><br>Taking a moment to brush some imaginary dust from his shirt Vane finally strode inside, a relaxed smile gracing his face as the oppressive loud music started to reverberate in his chest. Afterlife wasn't the sort of place one went to for a quiet drink. It was a place that made you feel alive. Vane had lost countless nights to Afterlife, a haze of colour and half memories. Getting into an argument with someone that nearly turned to fisticuffs but before long being shoulder to shoulder in solidarity while they serenaded some poor girl who didn't want the attention. Getting post job drinks when you were particularly flush with eddies until sunrise, then stumbling out of the place and being stung by mornings first light. People still wondered why he wore shades all the time. It was a matter of survival for a regular of <em>Afterlife</em>. Adapting to its beautiful darkness and then emerging into the real world had half burned out his retinas. Nevermind all the Biz he had arranged in those walls. <br><br>He passed Emmerick with a wordless fight bump like two old chooms. He was a nice guy, had carried Vane out more than a few times and put him in a taxi. Admittedly Rogue's instructions may have had a hand in that. Vane had made Rogue a lot of fucking money. <em>A lot of money</em>. Hopefully plenty more to come. <br><br>Once inside he took a moment to scan his surroundings, figuratively and literally. A chromed thumbs up or a simple nod to some of the usual faces he recognised. It didn't take long however before he was at the bar counter. "<strong>Claire my darling, I'll be having something fancy tonight. So you might want to write this down.</strong>" the look on her face suggested she did not believe him. "<em>I swear to God Vane, if you say Broseph-</em>" of course he immediately cut her off "<strong>A Broseph Ale!</strong>" it was an old joke of his. Poor Claire had heard it a thousand times but it never stopped amusing him. Or her if she were in a good mood. Though a heartbeat later something caught sight of something in the corner of his eye. His relaxed smile curling somewhat further. "<strong>Actually....two Centzon tequilas, if you'd be so kind.</strong>" Claire's eyes shifted in the same direction his had a moment earlier, if she were about to make some sort of comment however she was cut off with a glance that was obvious even behind the aviators. <br><br>With a pair of drinks in hand Vane started to cross the club floor. Even now he was half-dancing though if it was to the music being played or something in his head it wasn't particularly clear until in defiance of the song blaring out he started into his own. <br><br><div align="center">"<em>i see your eyes, i know you see me,<br>you're like a ghost how you're everywhere,<br>I am your demon never leaving,<br>a metal soul of rage and fear.<br><br>That one thing that changed it all,<br>that one sin that caused the fall.<br><br>A thing of beauty - I know<br>will never fade away.</em>"</div><br>The ending flourish arrived just in time for the Solo to find himself now positioned right before the favourite little spot in Afterlife of one Evangeline. The smile on his face settled into something natural, the sort of relaxed one could only achieve when with trusted people at truly at ease. "<strong>Hey Eva.</strong>" no line or quip. "<strong>How are you tonight?</strong>" something of his bravado had been tucked away and instead Vane simply offered the second glass of tequila. "<strong>Sláinte.</strong>" It was the Irish phrase for 'Cheers!' (though it literally meant health). A gentle tip of his glass to hers before bringing his own to his lips. Finally some of that sweet nectar.&nbsp; <br><br>
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Andronica</strong> on <strong>01-12-2021, 02:47:32</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatright">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/3e/71/47/3e7147a5f920ef59b679e2ec245fa8e4.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Evangeline (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16040060#msg16040060)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Vane<br><strong>Content:</strong> Getting a drink!<br><hr><hr><br>Evangeline had plenty of time to lean back in the little booth she enjoyed on a regular basis, and used it as a hub of sorts to observe the others in Afterlife. There were several familiar faces like herself who had a second home at Rogue's place and another revolving door of fresh faces who she'd never met, and some of them never came back. It was like watching some old entertainment vid from her personal throne as the characters all whirled by in a flurry of sharp alcohol and chrome and stories.<br><br>While she lay one hand out across the small table top, the other elbow was propped up so she could rest her face gently in the crook of her palm. She looked utterly relaxed like she belonged there 24/7. <br><br>From the corner of her eye she saw something, rather, <em>someone</em> coming through the gyrating wall of the dance floor. Eva perked up slightly and pulled herself into a straight sitting position. On her smooth porcelain face a grin tugged the corner of her dewy pink lips. There was no mistaking that beard 'n sunglasses combo and he was heading straight for her. Much to her surprise, Vane was quite graceful as he moved without spilling a drop from the shot glasses he held up like little prizes to deliver her way, crooning some lyrics with gusto. <em>Were those even the lyrics?</em> Honestly, she wasn't paying attention.<br><br>She groaned playfully at the show but that didn't diminish the smile on her face as the bold Redbeard slid over with their drinks. Evangeline gave him the same reply. <br><br>"Vane," Eva purred at him and slid herself further into the booth to provide him some space to join her.<br><br>"Enjoying the atmo. I was just thinking of getting Centzon, too," came her smooth addition and a look of approval flicked up at Vane's face in the form of a wink. <br><br>The joytoy looked up at Redbeard and that sweet smirk had grown to something a bit more cheeky. She could smell it before he handed the shot over. And that was the reason she hadn't bothered to pay Claire a visit first: she had a feeling she was going to get delivery. Like there was some unspoken bond of camaraderie - and more - between them, they were able to play off each other seamlessly. Evangeline reached up and took the shot which she clinked against his.<br><br>"Salud!" Eva repeated. She tipped the Centzon back and then plopped the empty tube onto the table. Gently, Eva pushed it away closer to the centre of the table as she continued scooting aside a few more inches. <br><br>"You seem pumped tonight. Did you only come by to say hello or were you planning to stay awhile and enjoy the view?" Her dainty wrist flicked around the almost 180° view the booth offered. Although, she wasn't talking about Afterlife's guests and they both probably knew that.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheVillain</strong> on <strong>01-12-2021, 07:52:46</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://assets.vg247.com/current//2013/12/infiltrator-artwork-epic-games.jpg)</div><br><strong>Name:</strong> "Jack B. Nimble"<br><strong>Location:</strong> C-Team HQ -&gt; The Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Open, Kathyrn, Choko, Val, Kaiden<br><strong>Content:</strong> Biz, Choom.<br><hr><hr><br><div class="floatright">(https://vz.cnwimg.com/thumb-1200x/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Louis-Garrel1.jpg)</div>Jack actually chuckles a bit at how crowded this table has suddenly gotten. Admittedly some days work is a bit slim but he didn't think it was that slim. Though the one that looked like a former Maelstrom seemed like she didn't even particularly care about the Eddies. Which wasn't a good look in his line of work but to each their own he supposed. Choko wants a sale, alright.<br><br>"<strong>I go by 'Jack B. Nimble'. I'm something of an expert of getting in places quietly.</strong>" he gives with a bit of a smirk.<br><br>"<strong>If you haven't heard of me, that's because I'm good at it. You want proof, Ask Rogue. She won't tell you any specifics because she's good at what she does too, but ask her who she talks to when she wants something done that needs a Quieter approach than Vane can do.<br><br>I can wait.</strong>"
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheGrandAdmiral</strong> on <strong>02-12-2021, 18:49:48</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/912976066476400651/914956771435634768/kat1.png)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Ekaterina "Katheryn" Belova<br><strong>Location:</strong> The Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Choko, Jack, Valkyrie, Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Discussing the job<br><hr><hr><br>Before she could say anything else a handsome man decided to join in the conversation. Katheryn rolled her eyes in annoyance. Like flies to shit... She snorted in amusement. Not that it was unheard of people trying to get in another person's gig and even steal it. That meant that the money was good, all the more reason to take it. <br><br>"Idi na..." (Go f...) she started to say, there was an old film, James Bond or something like that. She had seen some digitized copies and spies did not look like that. Well they were handsome, but were all dressed smartly and never announced they were working for an intelligence agency.<br><br>Ekaterina shot him a glare but before she could protest any further a gorgeous woman approached their booth. Okay, that was getting out of hand! The reward must be at least a hundred thousand eddies or people would not have flocked to take. <br><br>Especially, given that the job involved Maelstrom and striking at one of their revenue sources...<br><br>It seems Katheryn had struck a nerve. Not good for a merc. She gave an amused look. "Well if she doesn't care for the money she could do the heavy lifting and I can get paid?" she chuckled and took another pull of her cig, blowing the smoke towards the woman. <br><br>Oh she was opening mental files on all of them. This could prove very useful.<br><br>Choko was the only one that made sense. A crew would be best. Ekaterina could handle herself in combat, but the Maelstrom lady seemed very suitable for that. Also a self-professed spy, she would need to find out his skills though, but if he was half as confident as he tried to make himself look like he could be very useful.<br><br>And she, as an ex-detective, knew what to look for after the shooting is done. Maelstrom and the James Bond-wanna-be could be her SWAT, so she could analyze the crime scene in relative peace. <br><br>Besides when Maelstrom came for retribution they were going to be focused on those two, they won't notice a blonde poking around... <br><br>"Try not to oversell it." Katheryn gave Jack an amused look, but if he was telling the truth, he could be very useful. Especially if she could give him an idea what to look for. Use him as her eyes on the ground...<br><br>"As long as the pay is good, then I can play with the other kids." she shrugged.<br>
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Kuroneko</strong> on <strong>03-12-2021, 04:34:47</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://images2.imgbox.com/86/71/qabzUuqc_o.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Karma (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16039378#msg16039378)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Black Lotus Tattoo --&gt; Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong>&nbsp; N0liss, OPEN<br><strong>Content:</strong> Conversation, and Drinks<br><hr><hr><br><div align="center"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;" class="bbc_font"><span style="font-size: 12pt;" class="bbc_size"><em>Daijobu</em></span></span></div><br>Karma sent back, returning her attention to their drink, and the drama unfolding around them. It looked like Choko’s honey was attracting all kinds of flies. Even Just Jack ImaspecialforcespilotnoImarocketscientistnoImaformerspy had crawled out of the woodwork to jump at what she was offering. Katya was getting wound tighter by the minute as the crowd around the diminutive fixer added more Maelstrom smack to the conversation. Finally, she got up and moved over to join the little rag tag group, as Karma knew she would, just as Devi sidled up to the bar and took a seat beside them. <br><br>“No worries,” Karma replied. “Can’t complain so far. I’m just enjoying the show that Choko’s putting on, especially now that Val’s getting in on it, <em>ne</em>?” As Devi ordered her drinks and happily tossed one back, they turned their attention back to the ongoing conversation behind them for another brief moment. If Choko was smart, she’d take Katya up on her offer. No one knew Maelstrom, their territory or their fuckery as well as well as she did. Karma could only shake her head at the fixer’s response, returning to their drink and the question Devi was now asking. <br><br>“That depend on what you’re looking to have done,” Karma replied, turning towards her. “The size and placement, color or no color.” They took a sip of the yuzu sour. “I’m sure we can work something out.” <br><br>Karma’s ears caught another snippet of the conversation from the party surrounding the fixer again. “Is it just me, or is someone complaining too much about the response they’re getting to an open posting?” they ventured. “If you don’t want strangers coming into your house, don’t leave the door open, <em>ne</em>? Anyway, how’s your night going? I see you dodged the lawman…”<br><br>
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Andronica</strong> on <strong>03-12-2021, 17:51:24</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/24/8a/9c/248a9c6846a134e051550feb2f5edb3e.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Valkyrie (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16040058#msg16040058)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Choko, Kat, Jack, open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Kind of playing nice with others... begrudgingly <br><hr><hr><br>Sell herself? The thought made Val grind her teeth, causing her jaw to clamp as a little muscle leapt in the side of her neck. She wasn't some lowly gonk trying to scrape by for eddies. While this fixer might not know her personally she was lucky to receive Val's offer - albeit a very aggressive one that was more 'gimme' than 'I can help', because she wasn't very good at <em>sharing</em>. Yet she knew if she didn't play along to the fixer's blase order to mingle then she'd probably lose out on the opportunity. And Val needed any information she could get her hands on.<br><br>Swallowing the fire about to spew from her lips, the solo inclined her head more genially. She caught sight of the blonde and her sagging cig creating a smoky haze around her face. It brought out her eyes.<br><br>"Heavy lifting is my specialty, especially if it involves throwing Maelstromers around. I have a bone to pick with 'em so I could keep all eyes on me while the small one goes snooping." She hadn't forgot about the man in the booth beside them who made his smooth introduction, along with name-dropping Rogue. Either he was top tier or he was just very, very full of himself. Admittedly, he was very quiet, which had its uses.<br><br>"So I can do a... group effort." It was hard to push the words out but she did it - there weren't many people she still trusted besides Karma. Val's dark lined eyes flicked back to the fixer to see her reaction of approval or otherwise.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>ravinwulf</strong> on <strong>03-12-2021, 18:46:43</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<br><div class="floatleft">(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/914962091771854868/914963133406253086/Lawman_merc.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Kaiden<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> any<br><strong>Content:</strong> Choom, Biz<br><hr><hr><br>Doing his best to not seem like he was eves dropping on their little chat, hat with so many bodies just sitting at one able so nonchalant; The lawman found himself looking at each member once more before pausing on an all to familiar face. He had to restrain his shock as he saw a former co worker among the mercs. He ran a hand over his temple as he ran through his memories a bit before he ordered a drink from the bar leaving a sizable wad of eddies for the bartender to leave the whole bottle behind when she dropped off the drink itself. This night might prove more interesting than he first thought.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Primarch</strong> on <strong>03-12-2021, 22:28:42</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatright">(https://i.imgur.com/r1Jckqn.png)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Vane<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Eva<br><strong>Content:</strong> Just one smooth choom<br><hr><hr><br>The Irish Solo slid into the offered space beside Eva. The groan earned by his (what would have been, in any sensible world) award winning performance was exactly the sort of thing he had aspired for. It was the simple things in life he enjoyed. A good Dad joke, and overly expensive hypercards. Also wrestling Animals. Robbing Militech convoys. Militech had some great gear. They should have sponsored him. <br><br>"<strong>I seem pumped? Yeah...some guys tried to jump me outside. Maelstrom. Apparently there's a hit out and they were looking to collect. I'll talk to Rogue later and see what's what.</strong>" If Rogue didn't know about it already, she would know somebody who knew about it. Nobody had a more extensive set of resources for that sort of thing. Super useful to have her on side. She was like a genie, but instead of three wishes she just charged a ton. Vane could only imagine what her bank account looked like. <br><br>"<strong>I think I'm out for the night. See what mischief I can get up too. The Solo lifestyle can be severe, requires equally severe forms of relaxation.</strong>" It was much the same as during his Corpo days. You spend a week working some project, popping all sorts of stress management pills just to get to the end. When it was finally time to loosen the tie everyone had a different way of taking the edge off. Some locked them selves in a hotel room with a giant bag of drugs and a pair of preem joy toys. Some did death races. Some gambled some place where noting being able to clear your debts on the spot would lead to you waking up in a frozen tub with no spleen. Everyone had something, and so had Vane. <br><br>Now he was in a different place doing different variations of the same thing. Truth be told when you had state-of-the-art subdermal armour, a second heart, titanium bones and all the other bells and whistles it made a lot of the job start to seem easy. Night City was like that though. You get a touch of success and you think you can relax. Let your guard down. Victory made some people week. Night City would always punish that particular brand of arrogance. If you let yourself stop being hungry it just meant someone younger &amp; more hungry would take a bite out of you. If you were lucky you'd get a second chance but most didn't. The trick was to never stop being hungry. <br><br>"<strong>What about you? Just here for one quiet drink before heading out or is Eva on a night of play?</strong>" a night of play and such games they played. Vane half smirked into the question while letting his weight fall back into the seating properly. An arm stretched out across the head of the seating. Almost the perfect place if he wanted to bring the arm down and perch it over Eva's' shoulder. 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Angie</strong> on <strong>06-12-2021, 09:02:05</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatright">(https://i.imgur.com/aH3M4Vr.jpeg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Choko Tanaka<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> OPEN, Kathyrn, Jack, Valkyrie, Kaiden<br><strong>Content:</strong> Time to start the show!<br><hr><hr><br>"Well...it seems you're all eager to begin at least." She wasn't quite feeling the team spirit. But eh, maybe it wouldn't be required. With a quick, mental command, she transferred the location of the offending location. Looked like an abandoned warehouse, one of who knew how many were in Night City. It seemed a little out of the way of Maelstrom territory though...close to Heywood, actually. <br><br>"And of course, payment is competitive. Any of you report back with information-even if that information is 'the studio isn't here', you'll all get paid. I'll add a bonus if there's actually anything going on there, anything I can use. Again, everyone who goes there will get the bonus. Don't hide intel from each other. I don't care if you roll solo, group, teams, whatever. Everyone gets a cut." It was the only way to get them to work together. "And it need not be tonight. I would like tonight. But I don't demand it. And it does go without saying, you do need to be on site to get paid. Now...I have a drink to finish." She said, raising the half of her Silverhand that was left. <br><br>"Oh and, once you have investigated...I don't give half a corpo brat's ass what happens to the facility. Or the Maelstrom inside. And because I know you're curious, I offer this contract because I grew up in Heywood. You may extrapolate from there, why I dislike such events occurring in my old home. I wish you a pleasant evening."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Nadore</strong> on <strong>07-12-2021, 05:12:02</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://cdna.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/029/993/352/large/jennifer-wuestling-psyops-samira-final-1800.jpg?1599254192)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Zahra<br><strong>Location:</strong> North Oak &gt; Afterlife Parking lot<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Car ride, then drinks<br><hr><hr><br><em>VROOM VROOM.</em> The sounds of a motorbike can be heard from the inside of a North Oak garage in the wealthy district of Westbrook. <em>Screech!</em> The sounds the tires made as it rapidly drove out of the garage and left the mansion, onto the streets of North Oak before heading into the crowded streets of Westbrook. The bike quickly weaved between vehicles, skipping the traffic of people coming for entertainment or back from work and heading straight onto the highway. The bike went faster than every car that was there, before slowing down and going down a ramp to enter Watson. It quickly drove down the streets of Watson before turning into the parking lot of Afterlife. Its engine roared outside of Afterlife, drawing the attention of everybody in the vicinity.<br><br>"Who the fuck is this gonk?" Some of the people outside ask, somewhat annoyed at the person revving the engine to their Nazare. The person had stopped in front of a group of Maelstrommers, who had been beaten and are now rolling around and moaning on the floor. "Move." The person under the motorcycle helmet said to the Malstrommers who were on the floor. "You're in my spot." The figure said, as it turned the Nazare's engine off and turned sideways on their seat. Two pairs of high heels clicked onto the ground softly as the figure took off its helmet to reveal a woman with neatly fixed, elegant brown hair. She rustled her hair to keep it straight, letting it rest on one side of her shoulder.<br><br>She pushed herself off her bike and grabbed her purse, a purse from Jinguji, and stepped over the gonks on the floor, walking past the people drinking outside and into the Afterlife. "Zahra." Emmerick the Bouncer said to Zahra as he opened the door for her to allow her in. Zahra was dressed in this weird blend of Kitsch and Entropy style of clothing. A High-cut bodysuit, ripped jeans, and a pair of extremely expensive High heels, all custom made.<br><br>Zahra went and sat at the bar before Claire came walking over, giving her a 'Desert Rose.' It's not exactly the most original drink, but it's always on the house, just for Zahra.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheVillain</strong> on <strong>08-12-2021, 02:57:22</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://assets.vg247.com/current//2013/12/infiltrator-artwork-epic-games.jpg)</div><br><strong>Name:</strong> "Jack B. Nimble"<br><strong>Location:</strong> C-Team HQ -&gt; The Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Open, Kathyrn, Choko, Val, Kaiden<br><strong>Content:</strong> Biz, Choom.<br><hr><hr><br><div class="floatright">(https://vz.cnwimg.com/thumb-1200x/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Louis-Garrel1.jpg)</div>Well, the Fixer has spoken. Jack B. Nimble rises first apparently, nodding to the others a bit before stepping back. With a smirk.<br><br>"<strong>I do have a little bit of Biz with the Lady of the House before I can come out to play, but I'm happy to work with a group tonight. Let me give my contact detes and if we're out the door before I'm done I'll catch up. Please to meet you all.</strong>" he gives with a little bow.<br><br>Then he sends a little message to see if the Queen of the Afterlife was ready for a humble supplicant.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Andronica</strong> on <strong>08-12-2021, 18:43:56</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatright">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/3e/71/47/3e7147a5f920ef59b679e2ec245fa8e4.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Evangeline (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16040060#msg16040060)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Vane, Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Drinking... and enjoying the show<br><hr><hr><br>Eva smirked, if only to hide the concern when Vane mentioned the hit. The Joy Toy pressed on knowing he'd elaborate if he felt like it - and he rarely did.<br><br>"So that's what I stepped in on the way in." Evangeline tapped her silvery pump for emphasis. She was of course referencing the blood of some poor dumb Maelstrom gonk whose chrome face Vane had most assuredly painted red.<br><br>The smirk pursed her plush glossy lips as she listened to Vane about unwinding. Oh, she knew a thing or two about how the denizens of Night City chose to cut loose - she lived that - and she knew, at least to a degree, what sort of weight was on the solo's shoulders even while he was trying to release all that pent up high octane lifestyle. Even in a place like Afterlife where fighting wasn't on the menu, it was hard for some people to relax.<br><br>"I see you take your relaxation very seriously, Red," teased Evangeline. She crossed her legs at the knee, causing a shimmer of her iridescent dress's sequins to create a tiny light show against the vibrant and smoky hues pulsing around Afterlife. Despite how glamorous she looked and it seemed effortless, Eva wasn't trying to get anyone else's attention that night. The Joy Toy noted the way Vane's arm slid across the high back of the curved booth seat just above her. While he didn't have to drop his arm onto her there was a knowing look in her eye, one that didn't quite reach Vane's face, as she leaned back comfortably under the length of his arm.<br><br>"Mm." Eva made a small sound of appreciation while she took another sip of the Centzon. Her thick lashes fluttered over to Vane as she spoke.<br><br>"Well that depends if i can find a partner to play with..." Nimble fingers tinkered around the edge of the clear glass.<br><br>Though her violet eyes snapped over to some tall woman in black leather stalking towards a nearby table. She looked pissed, as much as Eva could tell with all that dark shadow smudged around her eyes. Evangeline pulled a face briefly then watched the woman march up to the corner table where a woman in a fine kimono was holding a conversation with some down on her luck blonde. Things looked like they were getting a bit heated in the convo and Eva couldn't help but perk up with curiosity.<br><br>"Oh it's that solo the Maelstrom messed up. Val, I think.." Eva rolled the name around her tongue for its familiarity. A lot of the solos who frequented Afterlife knew one another so she was sure Vane at least heard of her. She jutted her chin - her curtain of glossy golden brown hair shimmered under the light - motioning in the direction of the business going on at the nearby booth. By now he was probably following her stare.<br><br>Then she gently ribbed Vane with her elbow. "Maelstrom came to the front door tonight. Maybe she's heard something too?"
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheGrandAdmiral</strong> on <strong>13-12-2021, 17:50:25</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/912976066476400651/914956771435634768/kat1.png)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Ekaterina "Katheryn" Belova<br><strong>Location:</strong> The Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Choko, Jack, Valkyrie, Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Discussing the job<br><hr><hr><br>Katheryn put out her cigarette in the ashtray. She was now focused on the job. A cup of coffee or an energy drink should help with the sobering up process. She needed to be at her prime. This was an audition of sorts, real eddies and a chance to stick it to Maelstrom. <br><br>She was both amused and annoyed at being called the small one. Or was it addressed at the secret-agent-wannebe? "It is a party then." she grinned and shrugged "Who will bring the snacks, I will get the booze."<br><br>Then turned silent as Choko sent them the information. She would need to do some scouting before they charged in. Study the lay of the land. Maybe learn if there are any patterns that the guards follow. <br><br>If there were any guards at all...<br><br>It would be suicide to barge in guns blazing. Katheryn nodded to the others leaving and turned her head towards Val. "You up for some recon?" she tilted her head. "If we have to do it, we do it properly."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>ravinwulf</strong> on <strong>13-12-2021, 18:02:48</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/914962091771854868/914963133406253086/Lawman_merc.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Kaiden<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Katheryn<br><strong>Content:</strong> Choom, Biz<br><hr><hr><br>Seeing the group on the move Kaiden waited for them to pass before rising fro0m his seat and following them out. He waited a split second before he walked up to the former detective and putting on his friendliest smile patted her right elbow gently with the back of his hand.<br>"How's biz detective?" He whispered as he kept things laid back so as to just seem like two old friends crossing paths. His smile did little to hide the concern in his face, but he did his best. "Sorry to be listening in, but messing with the borg fuckers sounds pretty dangerous, even for you. Was wondering if you wanted some back up, free of charge, for old times sake."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Andronica</strong> on <strong>16-12-2021, 16:18:47</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/24/8a/9c/248a9c6846a134e051550feb2f5edb3e.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Valkyrie (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16040058#msg16040058)<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Kat, Jack, Karma | Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> --<br><hr><hr><br>The hint of a smirk curled onto Val's lips when the ex-NCPD, probably inebriated as she was, tried to crack a few jokes. It was kind of amusing to see her attempt at humour while also looking like a caricature herself - a pretty one, but still. Knowing that their best bet was to work together probably meant she would have to get used to it and soon. As long as the blonde didn't conduct biz while she was three greasy Nomad Specials deep...<br><br>"Yeah, I'm down for some recon before we go in," agreed Val with a nod of her head. Her eyes slid to the side towards the man who had been contributing quietly from his adjacent booth in case he wanted to chime in. Then her eyes moved back to the blonde hunched over the table, a sizzling haze around that halo of bright hair from each pull of the cig. "But you're no good 'til you rest it off so tomorrow night is better, yeah? 10pm sharp."<br><br>The words were laid on the table like a suggestion though it was anything but. Val would be there even if either of them decided to come along. This XBD business was way too hot to pass up when she was still coming up dry from her leads years later...<br><br>With finality she thrumming her hand on the tabletop before pushing away from it. She walked right back to the bar beside Karma although she didn't intend to stay for another drink. If there was a gig to do she'd need to get ready. So her hand slipped briefly across the breadth of the ripperdoc's back between their shoulder blades like a quiet send-off to not interrupt her chat. Instead she sent a quick message as she passed by.<br><br><em>Got something lined up. Heading home.</em>
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheVillain</strong> on <strong>16-12-2021, 19:39:57</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://assets.vg247.com/current//2013/12/infiltrator-artwork-epic-games.jpg)</div><br><strong>Name:</strong> "Jack B. Nimble"<br><strong>Location:</strong> C-Team HQ -&gt; The Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Closed<br><strong>Content:</strong> Meeting the Queen<br><hr><hr><br><div class="floatright">(https://i.redd.it/uza7i4i58dc61.jpg)</div>The Queen Was Listening.<br><br>Jack B. Nimble went through the security screen like a good boy, only making notes of possible security holes on an unconscious level. He wasn't exactly a fan of this arrangement but as things go it could be much worse.<br><br>"<strong>Hold On, Micro-Wire. Remove the Spool, please.</strong>" gives a beefed up security guy and Jack holds his hands up.<br><br>"<strong>Really, Choom? It's not even Monowire.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>Rogue told me about Prague. Remove the Spool.</strong>"<br><br><em>Rude!</em> Jack grumbles, but to see the Queen he does do as requested. Ugh, recalibrating that is going to be annoying. But at least he gets to see Rogue.<br><br>The Queen was on her throne, a roll of Eddies waiting at the table in front and too her right. Technically she didn't have to do that at all, fortunately she did prefer a happy Jack to an angry One. Blackmail was an ugly word, but it was accurate. Fortunately right now that just meant that occasionally Rogue would give him a job, and when she did he couldn't refuse. Jack also can't help but notice that nobody else was in the room.<br><br>"<strong>They finally found Vic's body a couple minutes ago, its on the feeds. You'd think a man like that would have a Trauma Team contract.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>He did. I got into his apartment last night and got it cancelled while he was asleep.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>So why didn't you kill him last night?</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>Because you made it very clear that his death was to send a message.</strong>"<br><br>Rogue Amendiares doesn't say anything to that, but gives a smirk.<br><br>"<strong>I figured as much, hence why I included a bonus. Tell me about the job from Choko.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>An honesty test, Rogue? You know I'm a Liar. And I know You already Know.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>Your opinion then.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>Sadly, Snuff Films are Eternal. I'd rather not have two Kill jobs in a row but I'm not sure I'll be given the option.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>Oh don't worry about that 'Jack'. In fact, I have the opposite request for you. I have a couple contacts among the Maelstromm, I just want to make sure they get out of this alive. They probably aren't even there. If they are, feel free to take them down if you need too - Hard - but don't Zero them. Understood?</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>I grok.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>Good. Good Luck with Choko and this crew. Sounds like you'll need it, a few hot heads in there.</strong>"<br><br>"<strong>Hell hath no Fury and all that. Should be a fun evening...</strong>"<br><br><hr><br>Recalibrating the Microwire is always annoying, but it could be done before the job. If he was willing to take a few risks. Instead of going downstairs for a car, Jack B. Nimble went up to the roof. A deep breath, his fortified ankles primed, he activates the magnetic tips of the wire and gets going. A quick jump. a release of the wire and Jack starts to swing through the city block and gets to another roof nearby.<br><br>Annoying how he had to recalibrate the microwire, but it had it's perks...<br><br>(https://www.neondystopia.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/parkourbot1-thumb.jpg)
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheGrandAdmiral</strong> on <strong>20-12-2021, 18:48:18</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/912976066476400651/914956771435634768/kat1.png)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Ekaterina "Katheryn" Belova<br><strong>Location:</strong> The Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Valkyrie, Kaiden, Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Making small talk<br><hr><hr><br>"Thank you mooom." Katheryn rolled her eyes at Valkyrie, but internally she knew that Val was right, but would not admit it openly. "It is a date then. But we are only going to have dinner, I am a shy girl." she winked at her. <br><br>But before she could pack it in for the night a man decided to join. Katheryn blinked, not sure she recognized... "Kaiden?" when it dawned on her. "Been a while." she gestured for him to sit. <br><br>"I appreciate the offer." Ekaterina grinned "But you have to talk to the boss first." she gestured with her thumb at Choko. "But we can do some catching up if you want." she said a bit amused. 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Wolfling72</strong> on <strong>21-12-2021, 00:27:01</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://i.imgur.com/a7M7riq.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Devi/N0Liss (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=337984.msg16039447#msg16039447)<br><strong>Location:</strong> AfterLife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Karma<br><strong>Content:</strong> The Biz never sto0ps, but I do.<br><hr><hr>&nbsp; <br>Devi had quit actively paying attention to the job Choko was detailing the moment her butt found a seat next to Karma. It wasn't that she was stacked with eddies but honestly if one wasn't involved, why listen? The moment her first shot was downed and her body relaxed from the onslaught, the young net runner turned her gaze toward the gorgeous ripper doc and allowed a small smirk to curve full lips upward.<br><br><span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"Oh what I want is something to represent my Nation and Familia. Something with strong lines and all black, likely tribal."</span> She allowed a slim hand to press against her own chest. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"Either over my heart or on my solar plexus."</span> A one-shouldered shrug finished her thought even as a rush of darkness claimed the roundness of her cheeks. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"Obviously, I've been thinking about this for a while."</span><br><br>As voices rose and fell in a veritable sea of babble, Devi leaned closer to her companion. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"Probably didn't expect so much interest, ya know?"</span> She glanced over at the little group, her bright eyes lingering for a moment before turning slightly so that she could capture Karma's gaze. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"Not sure what the lawman wanted, though we've worked together before. Still, I am off. No biz tonight. All I need is a drink or twenty."</span><br><br>So saying, she finished the second shot and tapped the bar. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"Two more, love bug."</span> Moments later, she was the proud owner of two clean glasses filled with liquid courage. <span style="font-family: comic sans ms;" class="bbc_font">"As for my night? Eh, it goes well enough. Probably won't stay out too late. A girl's gotta sleep...eventually. How bout you?"</span>
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>ravinwulf</strong> on <strong>21-12-2021, 04:47:53</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<br><div class="floatleft">(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/914962091771854868/914963133406253086/Lawman_merc.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Kaiden<br><strong>Location:</strong> Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> any<br><strong>Content:</strong> Choom, Biz<br><hr><hr><br>The former Apex just smiled as she gestured for him to sit and met her eyes as he heard her comment on the talking to choko about the gig.<br>"Listen Kat, I got the detes from a little eavesdropping i was doing. Hate to sound rude but i trustbyour new chooms bout as far as i could reach my arms. I don't want a cut, just don't want to hear a former badge got flatlined doing a job for a up and coming fixer."<br>He was frowning a bit now as he looked back at the fixer then to her. "Look, one detective to another. Just dont get in too deep on this, and if you need back up just call."<br>He slid her his detes across the table. "You ever just want to catch up then feel free to call as well, but i am sure you got lots on your plate right now."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: Night City Stories - Afterlife</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>TheGrandAdmiral</strong> on <strong>02-01-2022, 17:44:29</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				<div class="floatleft">(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/912976066476400651/914956771435634768/kat1.png)</div><strong>Name:</strong> Ekaterina "Katheryn" Belova<br><strong>Location:</strong> The Afterlife<br><strong>Tagging:</strong> Kaiden, Open<br><strong>Content:</strong> Making small talk<br><hr><hr><br>Katheryn was not sure she liked it. No one did anything for free in Night City. Not even the NCPD. There must be something in for him. The second thing she did not like was Kaiden going behind Choko's back.<br><br>Not that it was unheard of here. After all everyone was in for themselves and whatever you could do to get ahead was fair game. Well, unless you get caught or shot, or both...<br><br>She took the info and decided to store it. Just in case. <br><br>"You can also call me if you need a drinking buddy, though I can't be held liable if you wake up next to me." she smirked and grinned. Kat knew the effect of her looks and usually dirty jokes and rather aggressive flirting threw one's balance off.
			</dd>
		</dl>
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