Making Contact

Log Title: Making Contact Characters: Ar-Gent Silverfinger, Jazz, Natalia, Pale Peony, Poise, Sci-Nide, Sinatra Location: Pripyat, Ukraine Date: TP: Evil Junkion TP Summary: A strange Junkion shuttle stalks the Chernobyl Exclosion Zone. What does it want? We find out. As logged by  Ar-Gent Silverfinger Log session starting at 19:03:53 on Saturday, 21 July 2018.

Spaceball-1 clomps at the edges of the Red Forest, as it has lurked so often lately. Today, it approaches the nearly abandoned town of Pripyat and waits.

Natalia has been in Pripyat for a while as she has been deemed 'expendable' by her family and nobody wanted to volunteer to go anywhere near the radioactive town. She thinks to herself, "Damn him! Why'd he have to take me down with him?"

Less than a week ago, the rat Bus (a 1972 Alvis Stalwart) was in South America. This morning, it arrived in Kiev aboard a USAF C-5 galaxy... by lunchtime, the truck's driver, and his rats, were making fast friends with the guards who patrol the Zone of Alienation and keep it safe. He should've been out and looking for the unusual shuttle shortly afterwards... but everybody wanted to meet the rats, and they had to wait for Dimitri, Igor and Sasha to get back from their patrol... then Vladimir and Alexandrov... and so on.

It was only the fact that the Spaceball One was briefly spotted on a camera that reminded them that's what he was supposed to be here for, and he's given a UAZ to drive, so that the rest of the rats can stay back in the (relatively) safe area of the control zone, and only the four-rat mission team with him need to take the (slightly dangerous) radiation protective drugs. Before setting off, he attaches the Apopo flag to the antenna, and starts to drive.

A little distance away, Pale Peony sits astride her motorcycle. She's wearing a pale pink jumpsuit, and her bleach-blonde hair is pulled up into a fauxhawk. A katana is sheathed across her back. She's close enough to the action to monitor what's going on, but not enough to be immediately sucked into the action if things go wrong. Who she is or why she's here shouldn't be apparent to anyone present.

The Nebulan explorer and thrillseeker Poise has been investigating the newly 'discovered' planet Earth. Of course this also means that both Cybertron and Earth have 'discovered' Nebulos by proxy, which she has been less thrilled by. Her alien hovercycle can now be found in the steppes of old Russia and the Ukraine. The little Neb gets around, it seems!

Poise considers to herself why so many planets seem to be in full blown and unending civil war. Cybertron, Earth, and as it turns out...Nebulos itself. She poured on a little more speed. She went on her galactic tour to /avoid/ war, and yet it seems to follow her. For a few minutes, she clears 350 mph as she opens up the turbines, relying more on her systems holographic display to avoid issues than her own piloting. What about this made her so upset? Was it knowing so much of the galaxy was at war...or was it the fact that she didn't choose to do anything about it?

The Porsche 935 Turbo is probably very likely out of place here but there's something about the way it zips through town and past things that makes it almost seem like it knows its way around here. Which means that there's probably just some rich dude using it to pick up chicks or something.

When it passes by and the tinted windows catch any light, the driver can be seen. A stylishly dressed individual rocking a pair of sky blue glasses and looking forever equal parts suave and debonair. He almost seems to wink at any random passer-bys as the Porsche speeds past. Still under the speed limit, of course. He doesn't want to break any laws.

The completely normal vehicle may or may not be doing about fifty scans a click on anything and everything that it passes. There's some serious sensoring and surveillance going down right now.

GAME: Sci-Nide PASSES a TECHNICAL roll of Very High difficulty.

Spaceball-1 seems to move in response to the sounds of approaching vehicles. It turns, so that the side of the shuttle where the hatch is faces the main road. It lets out a hiss of air and a cloud of completely unnecessary vapor as the door unseals.

The door falls open, and because no Junkion anywhere can resist a good movie or TV reference, the inside is lit from within as a figure steps out and down to the ground.

The shuttle unseals, with a slight hiss of pressure equalization.

Ar-gent Silverfinger steps out of the light and vapor show. As always, he is extremely well dressed, suit and bowtie. He takes out a pack of enercigs, casually removing one and returning the rest to whatever compartment they came out of. He lights it and takes a long drag, looking around.

Ar-gent Silverfinger

A tall junkion whose armor is mostly a matte black patterned after a business suit, complete with shiny dress shoes. White shows through where the 'suit' falls open, with a perfectly adjusted bow tie. Silverfinger's hands are, in fact, silver, and he wears a black patch over one eye. Which eye it is changes from scene to scene. He is often seen with an enercig either in hand or holder.

The UAZ stops a relatively 'safe' distance from the Spaceball.

Moving stealthily, Sinatra and his rats hop out, on the opposite side to Ar-gent, staying low as they drop down into the ditch on the other side of the road and moving closer on foot, attempting to remain relatively unseen as they get closer.

Natalia points her HD Video recorder at the figure and begins to send a transmission to Moscow. Her radio is on and she gets the command she dreads:  "Advance"

She slowly exits the house she has been staying in and tries to look as non-threatening as possible.

(Radio) Sci-Nide sends you a radio transmission, 'It seems MI-6 has sent an agent in the Porsche and given them some sophisticated intelligence gathering equipment.'

A holographic image flashes on Poise's screen, enough that she slows down considerably from her crisis of conscience. Her powerful sensor array catches sight of a spacecraft in the area, as well as displaying your standard environmental concerns. Radiation wasn't an issue for her, of course, at least not nuclear radiation. The ship landing attracts her interest, and while she had no specific duty or job to attend to, this was her life, to explore and enjoy the rest of the cosmos.

Her eyes drift off for a moment, 'anywhere but Nebulos', she muses sadly.

The hovercycle is a bit ostentatious with its speed and coloring, and the tiny, but fierce Poise approaches Spaceball-1. While her cycle does have a pretty menacing chain gun on the sidecar just before her sensor suite, it isn't currently active. The optics pops back up, showing a picture of the inhabitant of the ship. "Is that another Junk? Huh. They're all over the place here."

(Radio) You transmit, "Good to know, Steed." to Sci-Nide.

Poise sends a radio transmission.

Sinatra sends a radio transmission.

The Porsche pulls up not too far from Spaceball-1 and the door swings open. The stylish guy was hops out and bumps the car door closed. A hand goes up to run his hand over the cornrows that are in his head and he crosses his arms and leans back against the car.

"Huh. That thing is huge." He checks his watch and grins a little bit and starts off in the direction of the others that have already started to gather. His whole body seems to flicker a bit as he moves farther away from the car but that's probably just a trick of light, right?

It doesn't take long for the dapper Junkion to notice the one person actually approaching him. He nods to Natalia. "I'm looking for the man in charge," he says. "You wouldn't happen to know who that is, here?" He gives her a winning smile.

Natalia says with false bravado, "I represent those in charge. Who are you and why are you here?"

Sinatra spots Natalya and frowns. He clicks his teeth to get his rats attention. "<< Rats, listen.>>" He says, in Swahili of course. "<< I don't think this is good... if it goes bad, and she gets away from the first salvo, I want two of you to lead her this way.>>" He says, unslipping his AK-47 from its sling, just in case. He watches everything, pulling out his GI Joe-issue ruggedized PDA. From his (relatively) concealed position, he begins filming, and streaming it back to Joe HQ.

A transmission comes through Poise's radio system, and it takes her a moment to ID the human. They all look alike, you know. Her sensor package IDs him as 'The one with the little mammals', she replies to the call as she approaches the scene, noticably close enough to be seen, but pauses before interrupting the current conversation. << Oh! Hello again! I remember you from....>> The hologram pops up from South America, and labels it as such, << Earth. South America. Right! You had the little mammals. So you think this is bad news? I'm not so sure. They seem mostly harmless if a bit passionate about their hobbies.>>

The head of the walker slowly rotates to surveil its surroundings; capturing images and notable details of those present. It doesn't appear to be menace, merely observing.

At the controls Sci-Nide has separated the various onlookers onto different screens while he looks for any information that is easily, or sometimes, not so easily acquired. The 'man' walking away from the Porsche gets the most scrutiny, and when the scientist spots the flicker a grin spreads behind his mask.

Sinatra kisses his teeth again at Poise's response, thumbing his radio. < Nah.> He radios. < I remember reading somewhere, that guy's bad news. You ever seen a spy movie? He models himself on the villains.>

(Radio) Sci-Nide sends you a radio transmission, 'The agent that stepped out of the Porsche is a hologram. Be aware the vehicle may have hostile intentions or coule be a trap.'

(Radio) You transmit, "I hear that. Play it cool. Play it nice." to Sci-Nide.

Ar-gent Silverfinger produces a tiny (for him) business card and leans down to offer it to Natalia. "The name is Silverfinger. Ar-Gent Silverfinger. I'm a business man, and I have a proposition."

You paged Natalia with 'The card says "Ar-Gent Silverfinger, CFO, Evil Inc." and has a picture of the Disco Star on it.'

Natalia nervously accepts the card and says in a shaking voice, "We are listening." She remembers to keep the recorder pointed at Ar-Gent Silverfinger, as if the constant reminders to do so and quit shaking are not enough.

Sinatra continues to film what's going on with his datapad, whispering into his radio.

Sinatra sends a radio transmission.

If anybody runs any facial recognition on the Porsche driver it'll come up as Jack Morris. Actor. Star of the Magnum, P.I. ripoff series: Bayside Nights.

The celebrity keeps a smile on his face and the flickering stabilizes almost as quickly as he gets nearer to those having this insane conversation.

"Hey, uh, Second Hand Smoke?" Jack waves a hand to try and get some attention in his direction. "This isn't like gonna' be a thing, right? Because I've got a call time in about twenty minutes and... I don't wanna' rush if you're about to like, I dunno, kill us all?" Jack nods up towards the ship.

"I've seen a Mars Attacks like a hundred times..."

While Jack tries to get some conversation going, the misdirection goes on because that Porsche he rolled up in is gone.

Sinatra looks over at the celebrity and facepalms. "Jus' when it couldn't get crazier." He tracks over to show Jack Morris for a moment, before turning the camera back on Natalia and Ar-gent.

Ar-gent Silverfinger waves his hand, distributing more of that smoke around with the casual gesture. He turns a reassuring smile on Natalia and the actor. "We come in peace." He waves towards a little tourist cafe. "Would m'lady care for a drink? The middle of a dusty road is hardly the best place for a beautiful flower."

"Da." Natalia says as she thinks, "This is going fairly well..." To Jack she says, "Sir, if you are not military personnel, you shouldn't be here. And I am the only military who is supposed to be here."

Sinatra laughs quietly to herself. "<< Listen to this liar.>>" Sinatra mutters. "<< We are in the Ukraine. She's Russian. She's not supposed to be here.>>"

He pauses, thumbing his radio and sending a message back to the Ukranians back at base. It's difficult, because only two of them speak English, but eventually he gets through. "Ah! We got a problem... Russian Military, probably an officer, struttin' around like she owns the place."

Jazz fades into the shadows without a sound.

(Radio) Sci-Nide sends you a radio transmission, 'The Porsche has moved behind a truck large enough to conceal a Cybertronian Spy. I would suggest positioning yourself to block more of the door if possible, without making it look forced.'

(Radio) You transmit, "Could be a problem, old bean. I'll see what I can do." to Sci-Nide.

From her motorcycle nearby, Pale Peony smirks. Once again the Russians stroll into the Ukraine and act like they own the place. She's sure the American president won't say a word about it, either. She puts down the kickstand and steps off the bike, moving quickly but silently through the trees to get closer for a better look.

Pale Peony fades into the shadows without a sound.

Jack raises an eyebrow as he's spoken to like he doesn't matter. "Hey. I was in the G.I. Joe made for TV movie: Yo, Joe! so don't talk to me about being military. You may remember me? Codename Silk?"

Jack continues to try and keep the attention of those that are gathered around this sudden arrival.

"Come in peace, huh? That's great news. Welcome to Earth. I'm Jack Morris, movie and television megastar." Jack flashes a smile. "If you want me to autograph anything..."

As for the Porsche, it has disappeared behind a giant truck nearby. There's some silent twisting and silenter twirling before JAZZ presses his back against the truck and raises his arm up to check how much Holo-Footage he's got left to play. He's got to find a way on that ship. The hatch can't be the only way on. Spaceships never have just one way on and off.

Time for a little smoke and mirrors.

Ar-gent Silverfinger takes a couple steps back towards the shuttle and taps on the door. After it opens some, he holds up three fingers. "Drinks for everyone." After a moment, a weird, half-sized and ugly junkion hands out a tray with three glasses on it. One very tall glass with energon, and two human-sized glasses with ice water and slices of lemon.

Natalia rolls her eyes and thinks, "Great, a big shot American who thinks he knows EVERYTHING!

"I'm going to kill that miserable half-breed..." she growls quietly as Moscow begins loudly transmitting more orders. She looks at the water and politely accepts it, saying, "Thank You."

Poise sends a radio transmission.

Sinatra sends a radio transmission.

Ar-gent Silverfinger takes a seat on the ground, the better to put himself on a closer level with his guests. "To business!" he toasts, drinking some of the energon. "To put it simply, we'd like to do the local people a favor." He gestures to the dead trees. "My compatriot is an excellent scientist, and he's heard of the plight of this town. It has moved his cold, steel heart. He wants to offer his services to restore this land, to make this wasteland bloom again."

Sinatra sends a radio transmission.

Sinatra blinks at what he's hearing. He frowns... he can't take it anymore. He stands and steps forward. "Dis woman does not have the authority to negotiate for that!" he shouts, walking forward, with his rats at his heel. "She is Russian. A nation that /used/ to own this land. This land belongs to the people of the Ukraine. She is a liar!"

Poise sends a radio transmission.

Sinatra sends a radio transmission.

At Sinatra revealing himself, Moscow starts barking orders again, and Natalia says, "And where are YOU from that YOU have any authority here? My organization has great plans to bring the Motherland back to her former glory!"

Ar-gent Silverfinger leans back, crossing his ankles and folding his hands over his stomach. Ah, the entertainment has arrived.

Sinatra holds up both hands. One of them contains his permits from the border guards, on official Ukranian Government letterheads. It's stamped by the Ukrainian Embassies to Brasil, the USA, and the UK (because of the route he had to take to get here).

"I am Sinatra," He says, once he's walked up close to the pair. "I am here with permission of the Ukranian Government. GI Joe requested permission to investigate the strange ship flying around." He motions to Starb*cough* Spaceball One, then looks to Natalia. He grins. "Don't worry. The border guards for the Zone of Alienation already know you are here. They've probably finished arguing about what to do and started to radio it up the chain. You have, maybe, an hour before it reaches Kiev. After that..." He smiles widely, letting his AK-47 hang loosely its his strap as he holds up his permits.

One of his rats does hop up onto his belt and, hoping to remain unseen, undoes the clip holding his pistol in its holster.

Jack Morris just listens in. He's not exactly down with water either. He's a supermegastar. He checks his watch. "Welp, this was as uneventful as the last time I auditioned for Dancin' with the Cybertronians."

Jack gives a salute and a wave before turning to flic-- er, head off into the distance to find his car. "... where did I park? Dammit!" And then he's jogging... and fading away hopefully before anyone else sees him.

Behind the truck, Jazz eyes his holometer and spots the depletion. "See ya' next time, Jack." is whispered, before Jazz rolls away from the truck and the ship so that he can come up farther down the road as if he's just arrived. Because, y'know, spies do that. Or something.

"Hey hey hey! What's going on down here?" Jazz flashes a big grin and tilts his visor a bit. "Are you guys havin' a Party in the USSR and didn't invite me?" Leave it to an Autobot to be insensitive about USSR shenanigans. It's a good song, though!

Jazz suddenly fades into sight without a sound.

Moscow goes silent again and Natalia shifts nervously at the thought of Moscow going TOTALLY silent with Ukranian authorities on the way.

She says cattily, "I think you have bigger things to worry about, Nyet? Your country has been taken over by your enemies and they sit in your capital, in your precious White House. You see to your business and I'll see to mine."

She startles at the newcomer but keeps her focus on Sinatra, as he is the most hostile.

Ar-gent Silverfinger salutes Jazz with his glass. "Good of you to make an appearance," he says with a smirk. He turns back to the arguing humans in front of him. "I admit that I'm disappointed. Days showing up on cameras and radar, and the legitimate government can't send a single official. One single Russian, and they're ready to put on their dancing shoes. I feel neglected."

(Radio) Sci-Nide sends you a radio transmission, 'The Cybertronian appears to be Jazz, Autobot Chain of Command, marksman, audial and visual weaponry, and noted music afficianado. Also has half a dozen parking tickets outstanding in New Orleans.'

(Radio) You transmit, "I'll have to look up a local concert and invite him." to Sci-Nide.

Sinatra shakes his head "They're smart. Sent in a professional... it took me this long to get here from my previous posting. I was supposed to observe, report, and advise them on an appropriate response." He looks over at Natalia. When he next speaks, his Sub-Sahara African accent is a lot clearer. "I can't comment on our operations in America. I can only say, our enemies can't even bug an idiot's golf clubs."

He looks to Ar-gent again. "Plus, don't feel too offended. You're just buzzing around being spooky. Her people annexed a part of this land just recently. She's considered an active hostile. You're just... an unknown."

Natalia chuckles nervously and says to Ar-gent, "You're right: They did insult you. I am risking imprisonment and death to be here and they're sending out their best soldiers to capture me while they let you rot. If you were to come with me to Moscow, my capital, I can introduce you to those who know how to treat guests bearing gifts right."

Ar-gent Silverfinger laughs. "Well, I'm afraid I do have legitimate business to conduct here. But if you'd rather my accommodations than a local prison cell, I suppose we could find a place for you. You're not one of theirs, so unless they'd like to try an extradition, you'd be none of their business." He smirks.

Sinatra looks over "You would have him be offended that they concentrate on an enemy over an unknown?" He shakes his head, as words fail him. "An' you claim they insulted him?"

"Okay, okay. Why don't we all just take a few clicks and relax? Nobody needs to do nothin' but chill out. We're all friends here." Jazz's optics pull up to Silverfinger. "Or we can be." And then Jazz is back to trying to keep everyone calm and stop any madness from going down.

Jazz steps forward and grabs a glass of Energon, turning it around in his hand and holding the glass on up for a toast. "Welcome t' Earth, friend! I hope your stay here is as cool as mine. If you need anything, just ask for Jazz." That's pretty much all Jazz wanted to do. Introduce himself. And drink.

Natalia looks towards Jazz and asks, "He is giving me a safe way back to my people."

She continues pleadingly, "Can anyone else offer the same? Moscow thought they'd have more time to extract me..."

Sinatra looks over at Jazz "This is a local matter, Autobot... I'm only here as an advisor to the local security forces. You know, considering it's part of GI Joe's mandate to investigate unknown stuff like this, especially if people think it might be Cybertronian."

He looks to Natalia, thinking. He knows he's on camera, thanks to Poise above (and his own request to her). "You have... an hour and a half, maybe two before they get here, I'd guess." He says, calmly. "It's going to take an hour at least just to get to someone important enough to try and organise a response. Then there's the time to prepare, mobilise... they know there's only one, so it's not like there'll be tanks after you." He's not exactly suggesting anything, just... reminding her of her options.

Ar-gent Silverfinger spreads his hands. "Come, let me take you away from all this, my dear. I get what I want. You get a chance to live a life of excitement. Adventure! Really wild things."

"I might be able to offer assistance as well," says a voice in Russian from the treeline. A woman steps out into the open, wearing an unusual pink jumpsuit and carrying a katana. She emerges far enough to be seen, but allows quite a bit of space between hers and the others. "You've established contact," she tells Natalia in Russian. "Find out what they want in exchange for this 'cleanup effort', and if it is something you can offer them. Then, intelligence gained, I will extract you. You can follow up with them later if a deal can be arranged."

GAME: Ar-gent Silverfinger PASSES a LEADERSHIP roll of Very High difficulty.

GAME: Pale Peony PASSES a LEADERSHIP roll of Very High difficulty.

GAME: Pale Peony PASSES an INTELLIGENCE roll of Average difficulty.

With all that's going down, Jazz finishes his glass of Energon and sets it back down on the tray so hat it can get taken back with the guests. He doesn't want to accidentally steal anyone's glassware. That would be rude! He starts backing away because this looks like its going to end up some kind of... situation.

Ar-gent Silverfinger shakes his head. "Oh come now," he also says in Russian. "Don't you trust me? I've offered the lady a ride."

The woman in pink looks up at Ar-gent with a flat expression, as if she dealt with alien supervillains all the time. "As have I. My trust has nothing to do with it. She expressed a need - I offered to fulfill it. The choice will be up to her." The woman rests her katana over one shoulder, looking questioningly at Natalia.

Sinatra stays quiet to let the lady decide.

Pale Peony looks bored, like she doesn't really care either way.

Ar-gent Silverfinger tries turning up the wattage on his smile.

GAME: Ar-gent Silverfinger FAILS a LEADERSHIP roll of Immense difficulty.

GAME: Pale Peony FAILS a LEADERSHIP roll of Immense difficulty.

"You're on your own. Betray us and you know the penalty." is the final radio transmission she receives from Moscow. She freezes, stunned at Moscow's final words. She thinks, "Better the enemy I know...At least he has a business card..."

SHe turns towards Ar-Gent and says, "I will take you up on your offer."

The woman in pink shrugs and doesn't look too disappointed. "So, what are you going to do with this place if you clean it up?" she asks Ar-gent in Russian, conversationally.

Ar-gent Silverfinger laughs again. "Excellent!" He stands up opens the door, reaching down to extend a ladder so even a human can get up to the steps, which have a smaller set of steps set in the sides. Obviously, he's worked with humans before. "I look forward to more of your company." He leans down and holds out a hand in case Natalia needs it.

At the pink swordswoman's question, he waves his other hand dismissively. "Nothing!" he replies in Russian. "We'll even cart away all the radioactive wastes for them."

Natalia climbs the steps, taking Ar-Gent's hand as she does so.

The woman in pink hms, and nods. "Sweet deal," she says without elaboration. Since she, too, cannot pretend to speak for the people of Ukraine, she lets the matter drop, and simply watches impassively as Natalia boards the spacecraft.

Ar-gent Silverfinger waves Natalia on when she gets to the top of the steps. "I'll be along." He turns and throws his arms open. "I shall return, hopefully for some more civilized conversation. But first, let me attend to my guest." And he tucks away the little ladder and heads up the steps himself.

Log session ending at 22:35:16 on Saturday, 21 July 2018.