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 Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 6:15 pm
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Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 6:18 pm
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Posted: Sat Feb 17, 2007 9:25 pm
"Who?"
"Mr. Brown."
"I'm sorry, but without an appointment you-"
"Then make one."
"What?"
"An appointment. Make one."
"Oh, yes, just a moment..." the receptionist checked her computer. "Mr. Brown has an opening on-"
"Now."
"Excuse me?"
"He has an opening now."
"I'm- I'm sorry, sir, but it doesn't work that way."
"Just pick up the phone and call upstairs, sugar. You wouldn't want to keep him waiting."
"...and... who may I say is calling?"
"Black."
"I'm sorry?"
"Mr. Black."
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Posted: Sat Feb 17, 2007 9:59 pm
The automatic panes of glass known that some people knew as "design-savvy" doors slid open to allow yet another human being entrance. It wasn't a dramatic reveal for obvious reasons. The first being that the doors were made of a transparent material, and the second being that the man walking in was no stranger to the building. That person was Joseph Brown, and judging from the two paper bags in each arm he just went shopping.
Of course he noticed James, considering the kind of relationship the two had (one based on vandalism) he had to keep an eye open. He'd seen him a few times at HoH, course then they were both on business and conversations couldn't be started. Now was a good time though.
The problem was when Joseph began walking to James the secretary had already called, and by the time he was near Mr. Black a series of events had happened. First call screening, then forwarding, then some crap with satellites best left unexplained, the the receiving of a signal by a portable device, and a mechanical device creating sound waves to signal the acceptance of that signal.
Joseph's cell was ringing. The secretary was attempting to ask him if he had time to see a Mr. Black.
"James." Joseph skipped the hellos and went right for the favour, "Can you answer my phone, my hands are kind of full. It's in my front coat pocket."
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Posted: Sat Feb 17, 2007 10:07 pm
"Eh?"
James looked over his shoulder as Mr. Brown entered the building in a less-than-dramatic but still perfectly timed fashion. Entrances were 10% event and 90% timing - timing was everything.
'So that's him, huh?'
The two had never met... though with all the security cameras in this building there was no way that Mr. Brown hadn't at least seen some footage of his last little visit to the office, so it didn't surprise him at all to be identified so quickly. He'd gotten a file on Joseph, but that was it... damn thing didn't even have a photo attached.
Without missing a beat James reached into Joseph's coat pocket and answered the phone.
"Hello?"
"Er... hello, sir."
"How can I help you?"
"I... you... you wanted an appointment, sir."
"I'm sorry, you must have the wrong number."
Then he hung up.
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Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 9:52 am
"I couldn't have handled that better myself." Well, he could have. Usually he put on a fake asian accent and proceeded to ask them if they wanted kung-pow chicken. Completely ignoring the fact it was impossible to connect to a chinese food restaurant using an in house connection.
"Miss." He turned to the desk worker as he spoke, "Make sure you turn away all walk in guests with no appointment. I'm a busy man, I've got things to do. For example, I have to have a meeting with this walk in guest with no appointment."
Then he returned to James.
"Office?" He made a motion with the bags towards the awaiting express elevator, "Or can you not go up a few floors without having to traumatise someone?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 10:42 am
"I prefer to leave my mark."
And then to the office they went? Likely, but not certain...
"I'm here to see a man about a virus."
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Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 10:55 am
"Then you've finanly found the right man." Joseph unflateringly waved his a** infront of a sensor bar, the cardkey was in his back pocket.
The door slid open, two men entered, the door closed. Perhaps somebody would be able to take a normal ride in an elevator for once.
"No need for introductions right? You know me, I know you, we've both probably done business with each other by proxy. Who pays atention to that right?" His shrug caused the contents of his bags to rattle, "I suppose you're here for the same reasons the Demon came earlier. Digging up dirt and all that?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 11:05 am
A normal ride? What were the chances of that?
"It's his garden, he can dig it up all he wants. I just supply the tools."
James scratched the back of his right hand as the elevator rose. Whatever kind of ink that Tadashi had used was a b***h to get off, even if the magic in it had long since faded. That was the reason he was still wearing gloves today - people would probably get the wrong idea if he went around with a picture of the Triforce on the back of his hand.
"There's two reasons I'm here. Your virus is the second... despite his ardent pursuit of the thing he hasn't really been forthcoming with the details."
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Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 11:17 am
"I wouldn't imagine he would be." Another rattely shrug as the doors flung open. As James knew from his last adventure, the express elevator went directly to Joseph's office. The next thing CI's man would notice is the cleaning staff were defiantly on their game.
"Sit down if you want, I'll unload this crap later." Joseph unceremoniously dropped the two bags on his desk, "So what is the first reason a man associated with one of Gaia's megacompanies would want to come and see me for?"
"I'm hoping not industrial espionage," He held up two sets of crossed fingers, "please don't be industrial espionage."
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Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 11:48 am
"I'm here to see a virus about a man."
There was a long pause as James produced a stick of spearmint gum and began chewing.
"...and industrial espionage."
Joseph's staff really seemed to be on top of things... though they hadn't wrecked up the place so badly the last time they'd crashed the party, it was surprising that they were able to get that permanent marker off of his desk. Those things were notorious for being hard to remove... after all, they were permanent. It was all a pretty sharp contrast to James' office; papers lined up in cardboard boxes carelessly stacked in corners or slid under the edge of a desk.
Of course, the simplest way to keep someone from finding anything if they go through your files is always to have no real organization to them whatsoever. It'll take a skilled spy longer to go through a cluttered shelf of files than it will for him to copy a hard drive or crack a security code.
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Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 4:39 pm
Of course people would find very little in Joseph's office at all. This place was more like a living room, a place to entertain guests and potential business partners.
The head of the company collapsed into his big fancy CEO chair. Upon spying James' gum he nearly tore a drawer off it's rollers trying to get his own. As he popped one of the pieces out of the foil the other man would be able to see the label clearly: "NicoQuit, Mint Flavour".
"It should be called a** flavour." Joseph's face contorted in disgust as he began to chew, "S'pose to be better in the long run though."
"We'll get to the espionage later," He pocked the gum and slammed the desk drawer closed, "What do you mean see a virus about a man?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 5:50 pm
Nicotine gum? It seemed like Joseph had a serious problem with the cancer sticks, and by the fervor at which he ripped that drawer off the hinges he might as well have been licking the patches. Silently, James reminded himself how glad he was that wasn't to that point...
"The virus," he said, flopping into an armchair against the wall.
"It's sentient, isn't it? I've heard it referred to as a person..."
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Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2007 8:42 pm
"So you're here about Variant Thirteen, eh?" Joseph slumped back in his chair slightly, seemed that virus haunted him in all sorts of ways, "Course I kinda figured that since people only ever ask me about one virus."
"What I'm more curious is the 'about a man' bit. Something the Virus knows that James Black does not?"
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Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2007 9:13 pm
"Right," James said, pacing past the end of the desk and flipping one hand out to grind his fingertip against the desktop, "remind me to espionage you about that later."
"Well, this 'man' seems to have more than a few skeletons hiding in Thirteen's closet... and unless for once 'that man' didn't get up at the crack of noon, he'll probably be here for those skeletons soon enough."
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