[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/OT2VZqR.jpg[/img][/center]

[sub]Collab with [@Apollosarcher][/sub]

"Do you think he's a mole?..." For some reason, a reason she would never understand, the young woman lowered her voice to a whisper and leaned closer to her from the leather chair adjacent to the couch, "they do that kind of thing? They do, right?"

The young woman once too scared to do much more than apologize for nothing the first time they met was now sharing thoughts of espionage and conspiracies of the streets and the Corps that towered over them. Sora's response was a loud, loud, draw on a straw from a suddenly empty cup and the kind of look that could make Enstein feel like a fucking idiot. 

"No, I don't think he's a mole. Would Wakako Okada try to plant a mole on me using an edgerunner of her own recommendation?"

Suddenly Emily looked less certain, withdrawing the few inches she had leaned forward just moments ago. "I guess not?...but like, why not?"

"You do know I'm more lethal than an entire small army of armed men, right?"

Emily's dark blonde brows furrowed, and her back shot up in straight-edged posture. "Are you serious?"

"Oh, yeah."

Sora didn't have to look to see the complex math going on in the blonde's pale green eyes. [i]Am I safe? Just how dangerous is more dangerous than a 'small army of armed men'? She wouldn't hurt me, right? She'd just fire me, right?[/i] "You're safe, Emily. You're amusing, you're well meaning, relatively bright, and I like the way you look from behind when you bend at the waist." The young woman's face went from relief to shock and an uncertainty about the words she'd just heard in the beat of a heart, but Sora ignored it, stomping right past the moment, "If Wakako wanted to set a mole, she wouldn't be so obvious. Because obvious would be easily seen through and exposed, which would just make me angry, and after the warning I gave her...there's a reason the woman has outlasted every husband she's ever had, and it's not dumb luck."

"That makes sense. So this guy...this," Emily shot a look down at the datapad with a tilted look, "...Duston Rhodes...wow, Dusty Roads. If ever there was a Nomad name, right?"

Sora blinked, paused, and looked up at Emily as blank as an empty wall. "...huh, yeah."

The young woman blushed, even if for only a beat, "Not a mole? Can he be trusted?"

"I don't even trust you, why would I trust him?"

There was unexplained silence as Sora looked back down at the spreadsheets she studied, she didn't expect Emily to just stare at her in silence. "You can, you know? If you're that dangerous, that means being the only person in this building this close to you, I'm in some vague level of danger? That's fine. I accept that. You've already done more for me than anyone else in this company, ever, so you can trust me." But when the depth of emotion in the young woman's voice came through, Sora looked back up, but she wasn't done. Her green eyes danced, anxious, uneasy, up and down and back to Sora's brown-black eyes. "Do you have me followed?"

"No. I followed you last night. I stalked you the day before I approached you. I've been inside your apartment."

It hit Emily by surprise, but she didn't look shocked. She didn't look scared. Her green eyes just stared at Sora's with a new found intensity. "You can trust me. I don't have anything to hide...did you stalk him?"

"Rhodes?"

"Yes."

Sora's head gave a casual, little shake, as she unfolded her legs from underneath her body on the large leather couch and gave a lazy stretch in full black and white suit, long black hair reflecting the ambient light of the office, "No. I just found out about him. Nomads aren't office workers. I saw his car, I saw him, from vid footage stolen from NCPD servers. He's done it all, the legal, illegal, even driven celebs around. He moves around a lot. Seeing old contacts, getting his face seen, looking for work."

"Why wouldn't he want to work for you? I mean, you're both Arasaka and a big deal in Arasaka?...also what celebs?"

Her palms rested flat on the small of her back, and lightly pushed, the sound of a few pops and cracks sounding loud in the side lounge of the office. Again, Sora felt herself shrug. "He probably will, even the danger I represent is less important than a high level Arasaka contact for a 'Family' man. That kind of contact is worth more than Eddies to a Nomad family. He likely didn't find out it was an option until I had Wakako send him the message, and had you send the follow up appointment request to his phone. And...I don't know, the famous kind?"

"Is he dangerous?"

Sora's eyes narrowed, just a little, as her head tilted down and looked at the young woman. A hard, analytical, look. "He's an edgerunner. Yes, he's dangerous. Is he as dangerous as I am? No. Highly, highly doubtful."

Emily looked less than sure in that moment, pale green eyes flickering down, and back up again at Sora's applied gaze. "Do you like hurting people?"

"...sometimes," she said gently, lips in a faint warm smile.

Emily moved on quickly, tucking a strand of darkened blonde hair behind her ear, and going right back into the serious office worker, "I looked up the other name. James Vander...heiden, hayden? It's a hard name to pronounce--"

"--Vander-HYE-den."

Emily stared up again, the expression writ plain across her high glossed and artfully make-up applied face: [i]Oh. You're kidding me.[/i] The tone wasn't quite as heavy as the look, some level of fear of Sora or unease about offering any real amount of sass to her new boss kept the young woman holding back, but there was enough trace elements to recognize, "So you've heard the name before. Yeah, him. So he's Canadian, or, well, was. He's dead."

"I knew he was dead, some people blame me for killing him."

"Did you?"

Sora sighed, deeply, as she retreated from the lounge section of the office back towards the office. Back towards the pack of cigarettes. With a light and a deep inhale, and lighter exhale, Sora's voice deepened from cigarette smoke finally voiced, "Depends. It was a rapid deteriorating orbit for both of us. Had I not been chasing, he wouldn't have died. Had they been better, had a little more luck, they would have survived. The other one survived, though I never did find her by the time I woke up after splash down. So was it my fault?" The sigh, this time, was much smaller and hidden in the act of the exhale of smoke, "Depends who you ask."

"...so, Canadian, worked for PetroChem as a Special Operator. Security. His record is pretty impressive. He disappeared from Canada, though he was still an active employee at that time. No real explanation as to what happened, Intel thinks it was inter-PetroChem politics he ran from. Shows up in Europe as a mercenary. There's a German marriage license, some work in Russia, then Europe again and shortly after that he's placed on an Arasaka-Europe watch list. I'm guessing that's when you come in?"

"Shortly after, but more-or-less. Any family?"

"None alive."

That, Sora thought, was deeply disappointing. "The other name?"

"The Republic of Texas responded with a non-response. I did like you said and used your clearance level to push them, but the Republic of Texas--"

"--doesn't care, yeah. Go figure, a bunch of Texans are the most stubborn and independent minded government left on the planet. They make Neo-Soviets look open-fisted, and make the Chinese seem trusted. Did they at least acknowledge the existence?"

"Uh...I have it, here," Emily shuffled a few datapads, and picked up her phone to read the screen, "they said, 'The Republic of Texas Attorney General's Office cannot comment on any entities, operations, or subjects that may, or may not be, included in the records sealed under the Sealed Records Act, Republic of Texas Congress. We apologize for any inconveniences this may cause our Arasaka friends."

"She exists, but we can't say she exists, and we can't say she exists because all facets of her existence have been sealed and classified. Great. But, hey, they called us pals. Cool. Thanks for trying, anyway...he's here."

Emily stood up, confused, "Can you...see through the door, or...nevermind. Should I go?"

"Yeah, invite him in."

Emily's heels were the only sound in the office as she walked across at a hurried clip, reaching the heavy office doors and slipping her slender frame in between door and frame so she minimized how much of the office was viewed as she exited. The blonde with the shoulder length, straight, salon styled dark blonde hair and the salon styled makeup in the white synthsilk blouse and leather black skirt, with black stockings and heels to match, smiled at the security escort before looking up at the man's face.

"Mr. Rhodes? Go ahead in."

She held the door open, and closed it behind him, as Sora leaned back against the front of her desk, staring at him, one arm over her chest, the other bringing the cigarette to her lips for another heavy drag, the modified Techtronika SPT32 Grad Power Sniper Rifle laid across the desk next to a cup of tea, a pack of cigarettes, a lighter, a computer terminal, and a few sheathed katanas. 

Night City dazzled behind her, the entire back wall of the highly positioned office in Arasaka Tower floor-to-ceiling windows with an impressive view. She was little more than a silhouette with a tiny orange cigarette glowed face between his eyes, and the view.

"Hello, Mr. Rhodes. I trust you enjoyed the walk up." It was a rare thing, a walk from the front door of Arasaka Tower to the Senior Executive Level office suites. Few edgerunners had ever made the walk, the last one? V, maybe. "I seek a driver that I don't need to watch over my back around, which excludes everyone else that works in this building. Interested?"

Duston had just finishing rolling his own cigarette in the hallway. He hadn't been their long the call had come after he'd finished dropping off his smuggled goods. Cute little thing stepped out as the tall and well muscled Merc lit it before he stepped in.

Following towards the view he took a breath looking over the city. He couldn't understand how people saw this as beautiful. "If you want exclusive around the clock service its a heavy contract. But, it comes with the best driver and service next to Delamain. I don't talk about my clients work and I do all the service and technical work on the vehicles myself." He explained tipping the stetson to look into her eyes directly.

"Impressive rifle by the way... Now before we hash out our contract. You ask what you need from me. I know you did your homework, suits always do. But you ain't all corpo so you ask me the things that a file can't tell you. I'll give you that brutal Nomad honesty were all known for." He was to the point and focused, a small smile on his lips as smoke trailed out with it. Fresh real tobacco scent too as he leaned against the wall not sitting.

He cut a clean figure, a deep brown duster hung over a flannel button up shirt and a pair of white washed blue jeans. On his head a stetson of similar deep brown like that of fresh soil. "So basics,  Contract, details, and all stay secret... I work for you, not Arasaka." He made the distinction himself which meant he knew something about her at least. He'd done homework too it seemed, even if he didn't have her resources. 

"So... How long’s the gig and what all do I need to plan for? Picking you up in mornings? Safe houses? Gunfights? I gotta know to plan for expenses." He spoke after the assistant had left finally moving to sit.

"Have you ever fought a top tier Arasaka Ninja?"

"Top tier? No. I don't deal in 'big leagues' affairs. I move things, I do odd jobs between farm work, and I don't piss off people who got armies under their command. As for if I've gone up against more than common Arasaka goons. Yes. I'll leave it at that, I don't know what separates one ninja from another. So I can't comment on your definition." He reached into his jacket producing a flask taking a long drink.

"That a problem?"

"We're in true hell when the Nomads start litigating meanings and side-stepping questions. You're not from Texas, are you?" She flicked the cigarette after the wry joke, grey ash fluttering to the pristine waxed and treated maple hardwood floor. "Fair enough…gun fights? Maybe. Picking me up in the morning?"

Sora chuckled with her next exhale, entirely amused by the mental image. "My schedule isn't so standard. How long is the gig? Until my job is done, or I'm done with you, whichever comes first. The pay is sensational. You'd be a body man; whatever odd request. Mostly driving, waiting. I used a Nomad for this last time I was in town. Aldecaldo. Wakako recommended you because she arranged the odd marriage that was between that Aldecaldo and myself," [i]and because she was trying to save her life.[/i] "I'm odd for a Corpo. I prefer to work outside the established procedure and policies of the corporate culture, but my job is my priority…I wouldn't recommend interfering with my function. Any more questions? Or do you want to tell me your special retainer fee now so we can get going?"

"Right, well two things. One my ride isn't gunned up, its armored so shooting starts we aren't focusing on shooting back. Two, no I'm from a traveling clan range across the Northeast to Midwest, sometimes further out. Texas isn't really my thing..." He spoke sitting on the table looking over at her again.

"If you wanna get to work I'm on the clock when you need. But I am more than a driver, not saying you need it but I can help anyway you need. Your paying I'm working however you want letter of the contract doesn't mean I stop." A Merc with a work ethic a strange thing but not bad. "That said, if things get crazy I'll stay with ya but I will speak my mind. You're the boss but I ain't the quiet type." He explained letting his ashes fall of his duster from his cig. 

"Other than that happy to work. You seem like a right peach for a corpo killer." Chuckled Dusty as reached into his jacket for a flask.

"Let's pay Little China a visit, then, I've got a medical appointment that needs keeping."