(Heart of the Dragon) Unveiling of Me...

[Cayce]

The sun had fully set upon the city of Sacramento and the hands of the clock had struck past 10. The clientele inside the Blue Note had begun to thin, for it was a Wednesday evening, but the club still wouldn't close for some hours yet. A local band was upon the stage, their singer weaving a simple spell through the air with a song about the enchantment and vagaries of love.

The Music

Sitting at the bar was a beautiful woman in a blue dress, sipping upon a blue drink. Golden medallion earrings sparkled against brown hair, and her skin was clearly used to the touch of the sun, though there was an undercurrent of fatigue riding beneath the fastidious and elegant exterior. This woman, the Chief Operations Officer of MaxMart Incorporated, the right hand of the Dragon, Baron Fairweather himself, appeared to not have been sleeping well of late. Perhaps that was why she had begun to frequent the Blue Note. An attempt to find relaxation and escape from whatever harried her and kept her from rest.

Or, perhaps it was something else, some mission from the Baron, for this very spot had once hosted the manifestation of the Baron's taint upon the Freehold: Maxine's, a soulless chain restaurant that itself had taken over a Freehold business, the Empty Orchestra. The Blue Note had reclaimed that legacy, erased the claw print of the dragon and took up where the Empty Orchestra had faltered. Yet Dragons were covetous beasts. Perhaps the appearance of the COO, Monique Barsani, was the sign that Fairweather wanted his property back...

...Or perhaps it was merely an ironic coincidence. Or a happenstance manipulated by that ephemeral force that touched all within the Freehold: the Wyrd. Regardless, it was an omen of some sort, and one best not ignored.

[Morgan Bellanar]

Morgan sulked at a corner table, eyes often flickering to Maxine at the bar. It wasn't envy for beauty of flesh or the pretty dress. Morgan was perfectly fine with her urban camo cargo pants, tank, sneakers, and favorite jacket. No, it had to do with the wretched wyrm the norma was known to serve. The Beast was skittish, easily proven by the contents of the backpack lying under the table.

And it looks like she was justified, to her at any rate.

All she wanted to do was relax with a little whiskey after having run around town all. Work was tiring. But the suit at the bar killed any chance for relaxation. Coincidence never entered her mind as a possibility. But confronting Maxine seemed like a risk to the Scrivener. Especially without any backup.

Sipping her drink, ice long melted away, she scanned the room. Morgan was hoping to find other Courtiers. Preferably someone with a, metaphorical, silver tongue. The firey veins may have stunted her stutter, but talking was still not her forte.

Equipment

1-Roll of Duct tape, 4 six inch industrial yellow glow sticks, 1 flashlight, 28-ft ball of twine, 2 throwing knives, 9 Granola bars,2 Water Bottles), First Aid kit, a cheap lighter, a Bottle of hairspray, a road flare, and a Small tuperware holding 4 ziplock snacks bags of: salt, garlic powder, white sage powder, pepper; In/On her she has 1 dagger, 4 throwing knives in a belt carry case with 2 up her sleeves, dental floss, a small LED flashlight, her jacket, and a cellular phone.

[Mhairi Ankaa]

Mhairi entered the Blue Note half ready to put in an application to do some bar work - better then the maid life, that sucked! - when she catches sight of her Queen, and once-fellow stammering Autumn. The elemental changes her destination to the table they'd gathered at. "Looks like it's a ladies night out." she says with a chipper tone. As she slides into a free seat. "So...?" Mhairi half starts, her eyes following those of her fellow Courtiers.

When The Face started plastering itself all over the news she'd had to ask, and to find out that face was The Dragon in his not as flame-y form, made the elemental do a double take, even if she wasn't a Summer she wanted to kick him in the nads for what he did.

And now seeing the Dragon's RL version of Pepper Potts over there with tired eyes and a sparkly drink....well. The Wyrd works in mysterious ways.

[Daniel Leto]

Daniel normally only read the newspaper for the obituaries. Luckily for him a good memory made catching some seemingly insignificant details that were actually important much easier. So it was that flipping through the black and white pages, he did a double take upon recognizing Fairweather. His blood had turned colder than the usual Winter chill as he read the article.

He’d then immediately hopped on the internet, trying to find out more about the Dragon’s return. Which was surprisingly difficult. The Baron’s press team seemed to seek out and destroy any personal facts. Going back to read the article again, Daniel decided to take an alternate route. Who the hell was the woman standing beside him in all the photos? What was her relationship with the Dragon?


And why was she sitting at the Blue Notes bar?!

Daniel’s Mask was up as soon as he saw the COO. For someone who was in the Dragon’s circle, she might very well be ensorcelled. Could be here staking out the location. Did she know this was the Winter stronghold?

He did a quick glance around the jazz bar and was saddened to see that neither Greene nor L’aire were around. Which left him to try to figure out what to do about the fact that there was a potential enemy of the Freehold in their midst. Should he run? Had she seen his mein?

No, he didn’t think so. And luckily he saw Ava, Morgan and Mhairi were present. He relaxed knowing he wasn't alone. Though without their Masks, they could already be compromised. The Darkling moved slowly toward one of the tables by the dance floor, watching the COO from the corner of his eye to see if she tracked his movements. Sitting down a table away from the women so he was close enough to listen to their conversation, he started to think. Maybe this could be an opportunity. He was a spy after all. This could be the perfect time to gain information. Stake her out.

Not looking at his fellow Freeholders, Daniel pulled out his phone and started playing the antisocial millennial. Slouching in his chair he started texting.

“There’s a fair weather friend at the bar tonight. Looks tired.”

After sending he continued to fiddle with his phone. He didn’t want it obvious that he was the source when Ava’s phone chirped with an incoming message.

  The internet knows all! 3 successes

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2016-08-13 04:47:11		Daniel Leto rolls 5 to Int+computers (10 Again)		4, 10, 6, 9, 5, 9		3 successes

[Morgan Bellanar]

Morgan relaxed as so many courtiers, erm, club members arrived. She smiled at her Queen's presence, "Hey Ava. I hath waited enough for mine drink to be watered by its glacier," she raised her glass to Ava, both as greeting and to illustrate her point. The Scrivener slowly nodded her head, "interesting tis the right word."

Mhairi's arrival was quickly followed by Daniel. Morgan made sure to push her backpack further in and out of folks way. "A girls' night eh? Heh tis never a bad thing," she checked her phone when the text came. She knew the sender but still winced at the confirmation. More quietly she said, "nay sure the dragon's slave would agree. And we hath the good Sir Daniel as a guardian knight nearby for us ladies, heh." She leaned in to her "party buddies" as if gossiping with them, "So...uh, heh, either of ye think of aught to do for our circumstances?"

She also took the time to text back the following to Daniel: Plan?

[Cayce]

The music issuing from the bandstand had slowly evolved into a sweeter serenade, the melody weaving languorously through the air, though the lyrics spoke only of beguiling dreams and the intoxicating delirium of sentiments seeped in poison; a beautifully discomfiting offering to the evening as the hands of the clock continued to tick by. Ava's voice seeped through those sounds as she came to speak at Monique's side, and a curtain of dark chocolate hair swirled as the woman turned to regard who had just addressed her. A small, soft smile formed, and Monique gestured to the seat beside her.

"Please, have a seat," she said, her left hand idly touching the stem of her drink. "I don't mind. I've been trying to find some relaxation after a long day, as well. This world isn't a place for the restive, is it?"

Meanwhile, Daniel, sitting disconnected behind the barrier of his phone, that device that both extended and ended connection to the world, began to recall what he'd discovered in his electronic search. It seemed that Monique Barsani was a graduate of Dartmouth with a business degree, and oddly enough, a Masters of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown. Then, apparently, she was hired by several different corporations, the most notable being Sratfor before being hired on by Fairweather. A unique resume, to say the least.

[Mhairi Ankaa]

"True-ah-true enough Morgan. Never a-a bad thing." she replies, leaning in to illustrate their 'gossiping' illusion. Morgan's comment about Daniel had fell-flames catching sight of the winter darkling, mask up, as he sat like a sulking millennial. Reinforcing the fact that he was a Winter, he took a seat away from the table of Autumns and moments later she heard Ava's phone chirp, a quick look at the cracked screen, grounded suspicions.

"Friends are-ah friends and always good." Mhairi said with a smile, though her eyes were focused on the brunette at the bar. Seeing the Dread Queen walk up to the bar, her scales disappearing along with the obvious sign of her golden voice, had Mhairi wondering what she should be doing, but the predatory smile and inviting cast to Ava's eyes had the elemental following her Queen up to the bar. Mhairi shoots Morgan a quick smile, as she uses stolen motes of emotion solidify, and her moon-glow skin, and fell-flames eyes disappear behind the mask.

"Oh-ah-oh hey! I-ah-I didn't know you'd be here." Mhairi greets when she draws close enough, pulling a hand up to pat back a yawn, she makes a move to join her friend, but then she 'spots' Monique and adds "Oh! Am I interrupting? Sorry. I-ah-I can go somewhere else if-ah-if you want...?" she asks, because making the RL Pepper Potts feel like it was chance, and not an ambush was probably a good thing.

[Cayce]

A light chuckle greeted Mhairi's words, and Monique shook her head in mild bewilderment. "I doubt the proprietors would appreciate it if I scared away their customers," she noted with mild amusement.

"Do I seem particularly unfriendly, or are the seats at the bar usually exclusive here? Either way, I can promise that I won't bite any harder than anyone else would. And I'm Monique, by the way," she finished, extending a hand to the other women. "If sharing names would make you feel more comfortable."