2023-09-04: Tempest in Azadistan: A Change in Plans

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<Pose Tracker> Sousuke Sagara has posed.

In every nation, in every season, somebody is mad about the government. The trick is connecting the right hearts in the right order to ensure action occurs.

They know the man as Persimmon. A pseudonym, of course. He has quietly funded the growing opposition to Marina Ismail's schemes of opening the nation's borders to more international investment. In this era of a corrupt and hateful Federation, what foolishness that would be! What a betrayal of good sense and order!

Tailleur Persimmon made sure such thoughts resounded in their heads, too loudly to consider the wider-scope consequences of their actions. This is his role.

He waits patiently in the small room in the back of a local smoking lounge. With him is a blonde man with glasses - Vincent Bruno, a man formerly of the Shuffle Alliance, and now in the winds. He is one of the several people Monsieur Persimmon has asked his co-conspirators to come meet today.

Both have water. Bruno is currently attempting to figure out how the hookah Persimmon brought in - to calm everyone's nerves, you see - works. 

<Pose Tracker> Gary Biaggi has posed.


       The bell at the front of the lounge can be heard as another guest enters the fine establishment. To the average person this guy was also an average looking good guy, wearing a red tank top, some cargo pants and a pair of good stout working boots. A white tatter shemagh currently adorning his neck. Looking around for a moment he shakes his head. "Oh brother, what fun did you get me involved in."

        Stepping into the establishment, he simply stands near the entrance waiting for a moment. His hesitation gives him time to reflect on what as brought him here, thinking back to a short time ago, when out of the blue he got a phone call. Thats not necessarily an odd thing, people get phone calls all the time, even good guys can get phone calls. It was even rather casual, ' Hey there, brother, need you to do me a favor. I need you to watch after my kids and make sure they behave themselves. You know, make sure they only get up to the right kind of mischief and all.' So there was nothing he could do, he said yes and one thing led to another here he was in Azadistan

        As the trip down memory lane ends the new patron to the smoke shop laughs and waits for a moment before making his way to the back of the smoke house and into the back room taking a look at the two people already there. With a toothy grin the man smiles to the other two, "Greetings to you both. I am Ali Al-Saachez, at your service." 

<Pose Tracker> Xia Twins has posed.

It has been a good several months since Gauron resurfaced, in attempt to hijack Mithril's elusive Tuantha De Danann. As far as anyone should be concerned, that man has once again died - this time for good. But is that really the end of the story?

In the aftermath of that storm, he's been reduced to permanent bedrest - cancer is soon to claim him in due time. On the other hand, the loyalty he inspires in his two charges - a pair of twins he personally raised, isn't dying anytime soon. When Gauron wants something done, Xia Yu Fan and Yu Lan will make it so.

They perhaps stand out more than the others gathered at the smoke shop - trench coats and vests are simply how they dress. Not to mention, they're clearly too young to legally smoke, nor do the see the appeal in the slightest.

Nor do they care about the precarious politics of Azadistan and the Advanced European, rather they are here on behalf of their Sensei's old companion.

Yu Fan approaches Ali Al-Saachez first - taking his hand with an iron grip. "You're the one Sensei called on? You don't look like much... but I suppose you're still alive for a reason." Yu Lan comments from behind her sister. "In any case... we look forward to seeing what you're capable of." Yu Fan adds, sizing the man up with a piercing gaze. She does not carry any weapons - right now.

Vincent Bruno also catches her attention only briefly. A spineless man, she surmises. 

<Pose Tracker> Baa has posed.

       'Baa' throws his arm over the back of the adjacent booth and leans into view, gesturing with an empty shot glass. "God is great, no fucking way. Al-Saachez, back from the dead? Really? I thought we killed you'n your Krugis assholes back in '88."

       An older Azadistani man, with a cruel smirk on his face. He's wearing a dusty robe, and when the newcomers' eyes adjust to the dim light, there's just enough of a glint of metal between the hem of his robe and his boot.
               "So this is your crack team, some girls and a washed-up ideologue? Whatever, as long as we're gonna fix that broken congress and its bint figurehead. Percy, we finally ready to go?" 

<Pose Tracker> Sousuke Sagara has posed.

Persimmon stands out unavoidably - fair skin in this land of harsh suns, though he has tanned up over the weeks. Black hair; green eyes. He has a beard, but it lacks the lifelong fullness the people of this region often prefer. Bruno is clean shaven. Both are dressed to blend in as foreigners, with button-down white shirts that don't particularly pass for thawb but, to the mind of someone who doesn't know any better, looks sort of similar.

Persimmon chuckles obligingly to Baa's quips. "Oh, you'll find them quite adequate. One of the great truths of this world, my friend: Good machines are a waste without even better people."

He motions. "The good man has introduced himself, of course. It sounds like his reputation requires no elaboration. The young ladies are Yu Fan and Yu Lan of the Xia family. Until recently they have been engaged in a long-term contract. We are quite fortunate to have them aboard." He smiles. Just a little nervous. They were recommended to him, and their histories are impeccable, but...they aren't on any of his lists, you see.

Bruno has turned his attention to the arrivals. He's former Mithril Intelligence. SO many Mithril and Shuffle Alliance assets come out of the Impact Wars and the Middle East...he has the background to swallow hard at the sight of Ali al-Saachez in the flesh.

Yu Lan looks at him briefly and he forces his spine up straight, because projecting weakness gets you killed in rooms like this.

Persimmon turns his smile back on Baa. "The time is ripe. We have our people, and yours have been training on the machines for months. Shortly, Marina Ismail will personally tour the facilities of the power station."

He holds out a hand, palm up, welcoming. "I am sure she will welcome the opportunity to meet such engaged citizens." 

<Pose Tracker> Gary Biaggi has posed.


       Ali looks at the twins and is absolutely judging them as if he was looking at a piece of fruit. He even takes a moment to stroll around Yu Fan and tries to find what Gauron saw in the two. Perhaps there was something to the two that still hadn't been seen. Just as he is about to give a retort to Yu Fan when an old man makes his presence known.

        This is enough to bring the predatory eye off of the twins and all on Baa. His hand slips to his pocket as he wraps a finger around a karambit and tosses back a snide comment, "Well you know, you guys couldn't kill a bunch of kids still in diapers and a washed-up ideologue. So I'd say you need as much help as you can get old man. Perhaps I can find a few people to help chew your food and wipe your ass for you too." Ali stands there as he stares at Baa hoping Baa to take the bait. That is until Persimmons speaks.

        Listening for a moment Ali raises his hands to show them empty, " Thats right we are all on the same side. Let us all get along." Another smile is given, this isn't the same smile Ali gave earlier, this is the practiced fake smile of Gary Biaggi. Turning to face the organizer of this get together he says, "So out target is Marina Ismail, if this is an assassination then we have to many people. I'll take the kids on an outing and take care of it, real bonding experience." 

<Pose Tracker> Xia Twins has posed.

That older man, calling himself 'Baa' and his snide, dismissive remarks gets Yu Lan to grit her teeth. Yu Fan places her hand on her shoulder. "Yes. That's us." She answers him simply, in her sister's place.

Persimmon takes the liberty of introducing them, then. "We both find advertising ourselves to be pointless," Yu Fan explains. "We prefer to let our skills speak for themselves, you see." Unlike the men in the room, she does not smile. But she can sense those nerves like a hawk.

Both girls listen much more attentively as Persimmon explains the mission in clear terms. "Marina Ismail." Yu Lan repeats. "I don't care if she's a princess. Once her bodyguards are out of the way, she'll be no easier than anyone else. It won't be a problem." Yu Lan appends. In other words, mission accepted.

Ali Al-Saachez elects they take care of it as a bonding experience. Yes, he speaks like Sensei. And he must be the type to savour a kill just the same. "If we complete the job correctly, then there will hardly be any time for 'bonding', no? Once we take care of this... no doubt there will be other missions to end to." The twins might not care about the fate of the princess, but they are no less aware of the fallout that will come. A fallout that will only create more jobs for them. 

<Pose Tracker> Baa has posed.

       The Crusader fills his glass with the intoxicant on his table, and turns his gaze back to Persimmon.
               "I know me and mine are committed to this, Percy, but I still don't know what you get out of this. We'll fight and die to purge the infection here, and if you're backing me up, that's great. But we're all good men--men, not boys and girls--and good soldiers. Don't want any greenhorn brats getting spooked the first time the shells fall and shooting their fellows instead. Seen 'nuffa that my career."

       He tosses back the liquor. It burns, but goes down smooth. No, what sticks in his throat are those Conservative senators who've let a little girl welcome jackals into his home.

       Ali turns his smirk on Baa, and the old man bristles, slamming his shot glass onto the table. He stares back, resentful violence coiled tightly around a soldier's discipline, and there's a little twitch in his flesh and bone leg, until Ali diverts his attention to Persimmon again, raising his hands up.

               There's a moment more of tension in the old man's face, before he finally bursts out in uproarious laughter. "HAH, bahaha, hahaa! I see, I see, I see why you're still alive, Al-Saachez. God is great. If I weren't so certain they'd shiv me in my sleep, I'd take you up on that offer--at my age, I don't mind getting creative with 'respect for your elders'."

       Baa takes another look over at the Xia sisters, more appraisingly. That wicked grin spreads again, growing wider across his face.
               "They're less girls than they are weapons, aren't they...?" aloud to himself, not bothering to hide his volume. "Doesn't seem like Captain Uptight's gonna show up tonight... Isn't punctuality a godly virtue or some camelshit? Whelp, alright, then, let's all have another round, even you two waifs! It's on Percy's tab, Percy's!"

               After a moment of holding up the liquor bottle, he murmurs a raspy laugh. "Heh. Chew my food and wipe my ass," he repeats back to Ali, chuckling, "I've never dreamed of such luxury!"

               Then. Something in the old soldier's instincts noticed a change in the air--a subtle shift in the ambient noises of the streets. "Huhm?"

<Pose Tracker> Aleph has posed.

       Persimmon might have heard the crackle of a warning, something about an interloper on his comms moments before a car screeches against the dumpster in the alley behind the lounge. It isn't long before the back room's side door sounds out a BANG BANG BANG BANG
               "Mister Persimmon! Persimmon are you in there?! Hey! Hey, help me!! Hey!"

       It's the voice of 'Aleph', an everyday laborer, build like an ox and about as easy to lead around. Raised in Azadistani traditions, a good heart on hard times; a strong grip of faith and a poor grip on politics. Really, just the perfect kind of powder for men like Persimmon to use as fuel.

       When the door is finally opened, the bulky man on the other side is panicked, wide-eyed, covered in sweat, and he's holding an older man in his arms, hold a man draped in white that matches his long beard. Both the white robe and the white beard are stained with blood, that still drips from the old man's skull.

               "Persimmon! There you are! You have to help me! I, he, I just, but then, I didn't mean to! You have to believe me, I didn't mean to! Please, you've got to help me save him!"


       Looking past the blood obscuring his features... it shouldn't be too hard to realize the astounding truth--this is the spiritual heart of Azadistan, the humble imam known across Azadistan as an even-tempered and charismatic man of the cloth.

       This man is Rasa Massoud Rachmadi. 

<Pose Tracker> Sousuke Sagara has posed.

Hm, what does Persimmon get? His smile remains unmoving. Baa lets him get away with no answering so he doesn't.

Instead, he merely comments regarding the girls: "In a manner of speaking. This world hones many souls to a razor's edge."

"Whether to capture or kill, is up to Baa and his team, of course...but in my own judgment, keeping her life in your hands does seem a bit unnecessary. The Congress will understand their people well without--"

He tips his head to the side, getting something on the earpiece in his ear. Slowly his eyes narrow. Bruno looks to Ali, then to the door, and reaches for the gun stuck in his waistband--

BANG BANG BANG BANG!!

Of fist against door, not a gunshots. Persimmon jerks his chin at Bruno, who grumbles, "I'm not the muscle," but still moves quickly to get the door, swing it open, and--

The muscle arrives. Vincent scowls but steps back, he's seen 'Aleph' here in the documents Persimmon gave him.

He ALSO knows who Aleph is holding. "Son of a bitch! You--!"

"You brought him here?" Persimmon stammers out, clearly taken the whole way aback. He stops, then looks to Ali and the Twins, and hisses, "Hold. For now. Kindly," because he doesn't particularly want Baa's blood on the stones. "Get in here, you foolish ox!" Persimmon says, and actually moves to help his own self.

Bruno notes that as always, a man like Persimmon only plays his own personal hand when things are leaving his control.

Bruno stands aside while Rachmadi is laid out on the table. "Shouldn't be too bad a wound," he says, though he doesn't go for a first-aid kit until Persimmon glares at him. "But this'll fuck up your time table real good."

Persimmon takes a breath, watching the old man tremble.

"...yes. It does."

<Pose Tracker> Gary Biaggi has posed.


       Ali watches Baa out of his peripheral while Persimmon talks and when he man laughs he grins to, "Shiv you? Never." Ali's mind finishes the sentence about there being much more creative ways to deal with those who don't already know they are dead. Still the situation is resolved for now.

        "Oh come now Fan, you'd be surprised just how even the shortest moments can forge bonds of eternity. " Ali grins at Yu Lan. Did he intentionally misname her, did he just confuse them because they were twins, would Ali play such childish games. It appears that there won't be enough time to figure it out as there is a knock at the door and from behind door number 1 is a villager with the religous leader of Azadistan.

        Ali lets out a loud laugh at the sight, "Looks like we are gonna need another Timmy."

        Ali looms behind Bruno and Persimmons and tilts his head before looking at Persimmon, "Just tossing this out there but you could kill him." He kneels down and pulls an AEU standard issue combat knife from his boot and offers it up. "Dear Rachmadi was found dead in an alley early this morning with what appears to be a standard issue AEU combat knife in his chest. " The gunpowder that such an event would add to things in the area would be absolutely palpable. 

<Pose Tracker> Xia Twins has posed.

"Less girls than they are weapons." Neither twin raises a hand to argue. They've always known that to be the truth, but then again, is there really anything wrong with that?

Yu Lan simply shakes her head at Baa's offer for them to join in for another round. "No thanks." She sips her glass of water. "Alcohol will only interfere with the mission." Yu Fan adds, sharp and pointed. "A foolish mistake many such as yourself have made."

Yu Fan stares at Ali when she is addressed. "Hm? I did not rebuke you," She tilts her head - she knows he must have confused the two, but she decides to make things difficult for him in turn.

She too, leaves it at that, when they all hear that banging on the door. Instinctively, Yu Lan reaches for her hidden machete, and Yu Fan her firearm. "Who is this fool?" Yu Lan asks, eyeing the bulky, panicked man.

Yu Fan's set of eyes focuses on the other, bloodied man. Yes, without a doubt, that is Rachmadi, religious leader of Azadistan. Persimmon's warning is ignored, as Yu Fan moves in closer on the wreck of a man. "Why?" She questions Ali's idea to just kill him. "It's not like he's having any trouble dying himself." She shrugs. "I say we use the old man as bait for our royal highness the target instead." 

<Pose Tracker> Baa has posed.

               "Marina Ismail... Hah, that bint could make a great example if we broadcast her public apology... or her regret for shacking up with foreign usurers."
                       --Oh, Baa, you're so close (just one seat over, in fact!) and yet so, so far.
               "But I've seen would-be kings rise and fall. Those idiot Foreignists don't need a martyr. Once she's dead, let's just drop the fucking building on her."

               When the twins decline the liquor for utilitarian reasons, Baa rolls his eyes, maybe his whole head with it. "You sound like Captain Uptight. Lemme guess, you bints don't swear, either?"

               When the door threatens to buckle from the frantic pounding, The Crusader leaps to his feet, one bony and one titanium. The sidearm at his hip is unbuckled. "What the hell is goi--" His eyes show him what he's got to deal with. "You fool, thrice-damned fool! Lighten your hands and get him in here!"

       The Crusader was an old soldier, and his relationship with piety was matter of fact: If God kept him alive, Glory Be, sure. A rifle was a prayer moving at 1200 meters a second. But even a stubborn old goat knew what it took to keep traditions alive.

               "You shitstain on your grandmother's bones what the FUCK did you think you were doing? Shut the fuck up, I don't care, just get every piece of cloth in this place."

       The Crusader shoved the hookah chamber out of the way and grabbed the hard liquor off the table, soaking his napkin in it to wipe the old man's head.

               "Shit... You really fucked us, Aleph. Why the fuck did you even go near him?"

       He bristles at Ali's suggestion; for as much as the imam's kiddie-glove sermons pissed him off, he's still a Traditionalist and a Conservative... Going soft doesn't make him useless. Doesn't make him useful, but doesn't make him useless. It's the Xia sisters' suggestion that gives him pause...
               "When Rachmadi says 'jump', that Pillow Princess starts hopping like a frog. No sense wasting this..." 

<Pose Tracker> Aleph has posed.

       Aleph dutifully ferries the slackened old man and places him reverently on the table, taking his own overcoat to cushion Rachmadi's head before immediately launching into a lightning-fast murmured litany of prayers.
               "C-Colonel! You're here! Don't let him die! Please, this is all my fault, I don't care what happens next just save him!"

       He sounds less like a Captain and more like lost livestock, but with the way the butt of his sidearm is stained with a holy man's humors... Maybe it's not so shocking. When Ali proposes they leave him dead in an alley, The Pious just about stops breathing for a moment, his fists clenching and his nose flaring. He's no match for Ali, but that won't stop him from laying down his life for his imam. Eventually, as the conversation pivots slightly, he at least stares directly at Al-Saachez, insisting,
               "That's not the healing Azadistan needs! That's not what we're risking our lives for. Right, Colonel? Mister Persimmon?" 

<Pose Tracker> Sousuke Sagara has posed.

Persimmon waits WAY longer than Aleph would be AT ALL comfortable with before saying, "No," to Ali.

Baa and the Twins, though...

"...yes. I agree," he says. "Keep this man alive."

His placid smile slowly falls back into place on his face, a mask of control and calm.

"We can still use this," he decides. "It's a complication...but now we can simply put on a somewhat different kind of show."

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