[color=gray]She wanted coffee. Claire said something about making some, but Eddie dismissed it out of hand. She wanted a latte, something hot and sweet, something she might regret in an hour. Watson wasn't exactly the best place for such a request, but there was a spot that wasn't too far of a walk. She just smiled at Emmerick as he asked if she wanted him to go with her as she walked out of the front, a touch of amusement as she folded her hands neatly into the front pockets of the black leather jacket that fit snug around her upper body. 

The shop was off a main street and not far from the water front, with enough eyes and access near an NRT station and an NCPD substation that it was a common haunt for a surprising cross-section of Night City residents. You were just as likely to find a corpo suit as you were a street artist as you were an Afterlife Fixer. The sound system was some hazy lo-fi jazz beat, the resident milk steamers behind the brass counter were abuzz with a small rush when she walked in. The mental math of the line, combined with the walk, and the time she needed to be back wasn't lost upon her. She might be late.

She just really wanted the drink. 

Memory was her companion in the line as she waited, and even after she gave her quick mocha latte order and posted up with a shoulder leaned into the wall near the Order Pickup counter. Cold mornings in East Texas, truck driver seat synth-leather still frozen and hard from the night in the early morning. The drive through the pines as red morning light. The rusted water tower, the small town city center, the century year old red brick building with the large front windows and the glass panel door she had to unlock as the first, and usually only, employee there. 

"Long wait?"

Her blue eyes flicked over to a smiling man with dark hair, pretty eyes, and a warm expression. It was the kind of moment she faced from time-to-time; did she coldly tell him to fuck off and expose herself as one of the dangerous in Night City? Did she smile and casually give a little laugh, like she was off to a normal job and a normal life? Before her mind seemed to make a decision, she felt her lips curl into a smile and heard herself give a casual little laugh. "Oh, yeah. Not that I'd let that stop me."

He laughed in return, clearly making conversation. "The determination is admirable. I remember when this place wasn't so crowded. I keep waiting for them to make it a chain."

"Eager for the quality to drop off a cliff?"

More laughter, "Inevitable in this city, I guess. I'm Ben."

Eddie felt herself stare a beat longer than was normal in such a situation, not that he seemed to notice. "Eddie."

He looked impressed. "Not everyday you meet a pretty woman named that. Where are you off to after this?"

"Meeting," she said, through laughter that teetered close to incredulous. He was after more than conversation. 

"Oh yeah? I'm with Arasaka, up the water front. What about you?"

The smile she offered was guarded, her bright eyes instead offering amusement behind the shield and armor of her demeanor. "Private firm." The girl with the bright pink chrome arm and the brighter pink hair under a black beanie called to her from behind the Pickup Counter, a quick re-balance and she was on her feet to grab the drink and thank the girl. 

"Good luck with the meeting."

Eddie couldn't help the smirk. "I'll need it. Good luck with the Arasaka Water Front, Ben."

Emmerick perked an eyebrow as she walked back through the front door of Afterlife, that and a chuckle the giant's only reaction to Eddie's return sipping on the large latte. Claire motioned to the back, "They're all waiting on you." 

[i]Oops.[/i] The assembled would probably take it as some kind of intimidation or screening tactic. Some sort of 4-D Holo-Chess move. Eddie had a reputation, afterall. Even if you worked with her before, you didn't seem to know her any better than you did when she was still just the mysterious Afterlife Fixer you hadn't met before. All she had to do was smile and stare, half the time, to keep the reputation people had heaped upon her. She was private, she was careful, and she was selective.

Apparently that was unusual among Night City Fixers. 

[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/A4IsOXN.jpg[/img][/center]

The Crypt of Afterlife was more crowded than it had been when she left to retrieve her warm drink, though her eyes stayed on the drink as she took another long sip as she walked into the Crypt and towards the center of the room, just in front of the raised section of the room, at the table next to the desk with the console and monitors that were turned off at the moment, Crispin Weylend with arms crossed standing on end, Nix casually leaning against the desk on the other. She took up the center, scanned every face in the room as she took a last sip, and placed the mocha latte on the table in front of her. 

"Gentleman, ladies, welcome to the Afterlife. Everyone had a drink? Good. Everyone sober?...close enough. Alright, before we get started, no one's on the line yet. The job I'm about to propose is both highly lucrative and highly dangerous. If that doesn't sound like your particular kind of poison, help yourself to a free drink or two on us upstairs with Claire. No hard feelings."

She waited. No one moved. "The job is a series of operations. The first one is a hit; a regional Militech manager. Location is the Militech Industrial Center in Arroyo. It once belonged to Arasaka, but was sold when Arasaka needed liquid capital after the incident at Arasaka Tower earlier this year. The firm that oversaw the sale had a lot of details about the site in a data fortress that our friend Nix here recently liberated for us. Surveillance indicates this is the location Militech is running increased Badlands and border operations out of, it's a vehicle depot and storage facility. This is a false flag operation; you'll be posing as an Arasaka strike team."

She turned and stepped to the side, allowing the monitor behind her to activate and display the facility in question.

[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/S1hgdSb.jpg[/img][/center]

"Notice the AV landing sites and the heavy security around the vehicle gates. We have Militech codes for the gate, so entry should be smooth. Since we can't leave any crumbs given we're hitting Militech, we'll have to source IDs from a Badlands patrol the same day, before they get found and reported. The vehicle we'll need, a Militech Behemoth, will be stolen from a repair depot in Jackson Plains. We know it's there, we know it's a soft target. Arasaka gear will come from a Tyger Claw crew that was given it from Militech for their own false flag operation, so nothing to trace back to us. We know the gear is there, not as soft a target as the repair depot...but that's why I'm hiring professionals."

Her smile was small, but evident, before she moved on. "Several possibilities on target location. Tagging him will be the off-site Netrunner's primary responsibility after infiltrating the system. Two teams; one goes for the target, the other secures escape transport. Recon shows some of the AV landing pads have been converted for a pair of Zetatech Valgus. AVs are an option, but they're much easier to track than a Valgus, so we steal the Valgus gunship. Pickup the hit team on the roof of the main building, and get the fuck out. Landing zone is an old Aldecaldos camp site in the Badlands, secure and hide the helicopter and we'll have transport to get both teams back to town."

A quick swipe on the monitor, and a warehouse came up, empty, large, former industrial. 

[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/0kEeY1I.jpg[/img][/center]

"Site for prep storage and team coordination will be provided in Heywood. We'll have everything from an armory to a clinic, to a basic kitchen and bunk rooms. This will be the one and only time we all meet here at Afterlife. Everything from this point on will be at the site in Heywood. Both for this operation, and subsequent operations for the job. After each operation there will be a payout, and a short break in time to make sure the heat never gets too high on us. Run your errands and see your outputs during the breaks. Client has three operations lined up, although it's possible another gets added later. Payout for the first is seventy-five thousand, that will include a bonus if the Valgus is in good condition at operation's end; we have a Fence willing to buy it and strip it, but only if it's in good condition. Questions?"

Eddie went for her latte, almost surprised to find it still warm given the near morgue-like chill of the Crypt. "Oh, and if you need gear or equipment come see me after; whether guns or chrome or tech, we'll know where to get it at a favorable price."[/color]