Return To Sender

[Silver Priest]

The agents go their separate ways, intent on untangling the mystery they now find themselves in.

Vanessa and Jose,[b]Jose [/b]tries to gather the money together. [dice]0[/dice] He manages to gather the funds, and seems to shrug off attempts to repay him at a later date. " [color=#0000FF]Don't worry about it.[/color] "[color=#0000FF] But I better be invited to the wedding after this[/color]." He smiles. The [i]Tenet-Woodson[/i] Laboratories is a very nondescript building locked behind a sturdy metal gate. the agents need to identify themselves before they enter; a short time later, the door swings open, and a lab assistant meets them at the front door. She leads them inside the building and to a laboratory that is state of the art, and explains that they have full use of the facilities, provided they clean up after they are done and don't break anything. She also warns them not to try to take anything. Then she closes the door and leaves, leaving the agents alone with their package. When they take it out, they observe that it is still thrashing about, having not lost any of its energy on the trip. "[color=#0000FF]So, what do you think of the new guy[/color]?" [b]Jose[/b] asks. "[color=#0000FF]He seems nice so far. Seemed pretty disturbed seeing the dog though[/color]." [ooc]Vanessa, please make a forensic and either medicine or biology roll. This will represent the various tests you conduct to try to learn more about the head.[/ooc]

Andre,[b]Andre[/b] heads out to interrogate [b]Fiona[/b]. Having only her office address, he starts his search there. [i]The Ecotopian[/i] offices are on the second floor above an espresso bar and bookstore (Bay Lights Books) less than four blocks from the campus of the University of California at Berkeley[b]. Andre[/b] likely stands out in the crowd, and their non subtle glances make him aware of it. They're not hostile looks, but neither are they welcoming, and it seemed clear if there was any trouble his face would be remembered. [ooc]As Andre enters the building, please make an alertness roll. On a success, Andre notices among the magazines the restaurant is selling are copies of The Ecotopian.[/ooc]

[HoneyDog]

Andre ignores the looks, knowing that he is often rightly identified as a cop, there is not much he can do about it.

Spotting the magazines, he picks one up, curious as to what kind of publication it is.

Alertness,Alertness 50: [url=https://orokos.com/roll/821361]Alertness[/url]: [u]1d100[/u] [b]31[/b]

[Mr. Handy]

"Of course you're invited to the wedding," says Vanessa. "The new guy seems okay. I was freaked out by the dog too, but of course I love dogs. Maybe he does too." She sets to work on her analysis of the dog's head, making sure it is restrained so that it cannot bite. She is curious as to where the energy comes from to animate the clearly dead severed head. The brain and nervous system are electrical in nature, so this is most likely some form of galvanism, but where is it getting the electrical power?

OOC,Forensics roll (80% skill) examining the head: [dice]0[/dice] Medicine roll (63% skill) examining the head: [dice]1[/dice]

[Silver Priest]

Andre,[b] Andre [/b]buys a beverage and finds a table, going over the latest edition of [i]The Ecotopian[/i]. The cover story is about an Inuit tribe fighting against a company whaling in their waters in Alaska. The articles themselves are readable, but clearly favoring passion over readability. The authors tend to make their view clear and there's little attempt at journalistic detachment; by the same token, the articles are somewhat dense, apparently assuming the reader is already well versed in the topics being covered. [b]Fiona Lin-Wei's[/b] articles are more well constructed; she likely had a degree in journalism or at least took courses in it. They're also angrier than most, and almost everyone seems to contain a poorly concealed hostility against the "[i]government and corporations who are murdering Mother Gaia[/i]." She mentions this specific term more than once. In Andre's brief look through the magazine neither a [b]Thomas Iron-Shirt[/b] or[b] Amalgamated Bio-Carb [/b]are mentioned. [ooc]Andre can try a HUMINT roll if he wants to try and learn more from parsing her articles.[/ooc]

Jose and Vanessa,"[color=#0000FF]Yeah, you're probably right[/color]." [b]Jose [/b]says. He gets to work assisting [b]Vanessa[/b], who masterfully conducts the autopsy... or whatever this was. Apart from the several -38 caliber bullet holes in the head, the only other trauma to the head is where it was sawn from the neck. The saw used seem to have been a medical grade surgical saw, though the agents can't tell if the head was reanimated before or after it was removed from the dog's body. As for the brain itself, it has been severely damaged by the .38 bullets, so much so that the dog should be unable to growl or even move. The musculature is also extensively damaged but even so the muscles continue to function. The one intact eye rolls madly in its socket, the tongue quivers, the ears twitch, and the jaw limply flops open and shut from its single remaining hinge. It seems to have hostile intent and would be a great danger if it was still able to bite [b]Vanessa[/b], but as it is the creature seems more pitiful. The tissue of the dog's head seems to be in some sort of stasis, neither dead or alive. On a cellular level the head's cells are not replicating, repairing themselves, taking in nutrients, or excreting waste. But they're not dying,either. [b]Vanessa[/b] thinks to try performing a CAT scan on the head, and she and [b]Jose [/b]manage after a few moments of trying to keep the head still. They reveal that the neural synapses are still firing, which was needless to say impossible-- even if the head couldfunction on its own, the multiple gunshots to the brain should have destroyed the synapses. [ooc]Can Vanessa give me two medicine rolls?[/ooc]

[HoneyDog]

HUMINT,HUMINT 10: [url=https://orokos.com/roll/821773]HUMINT[/url]: [u]1d100[/u] [b]25[/b]

Lin Wei and the magazine are obviously fighting for environmental causes, Andre thinks. They’d probably be interested in unnatural and unethical experiments. That said, so would any news organization.

He gets up and prepares to find Lin Wei.

[Mr. Handy]

Vanessa continues with what she knows is actually called a necropsy. It would only truly be an autopsy if the remains were human, or if she were a dog. Besides, she isn't sure whether the head is dead or alive. The whole thing only leaves her more confused, and the CAT scan reveals nothing new to her.

OOC,Medicine roll (63% skill) examining the head: [dice]0[/dice] Medicine roll (63% skill) examining the head: [dice]1[/dice] Can [b]Jose[/b] roll too, since he's helping?

[Silver Priest]

Andre,Heading upstairs, [b]Andre [/b]finds [i]the Ecotopian[/i]. The office is well lit by a suit of windows and a skylight, and the work area is one large open suite, its walls lined with filing cabinets and the floor filled by a half-dozen desks piled high with computers and loose paperwork (It will surely never catch on.) The walls are covered with Greenpeace and Earth First posters. There's a receptionist manning the front desk. He's a bearded young man, wearing fashionable glasses and a Che shirt. Everything about him screams college student, and he looks up at [b]Andre[/b] with a visible lack of interest. "[color=#0000FF]Welcome to [i]The Ecotopian[/i], man. What can I do for you[/color]?"

Jose and Vanessa,[ooc]Actually he can, and I rolled for Jose and he passed both. You can assume that Jose will roll whenever he can in the future to assist, I just wanted to give you the chance first because I like my pc's to have every chance to be awesome and run the show. :)[/ooc] Seeing she's hit a road block, [b]Jose[/b] offers to try. He thinks to run some more tests and examines the head a bit before reaching a conclusion. "[color=#0000FF]The head's cell structure is permeated with some sort of chemical compound. I've never seen it before and can't have any hope of identifying what it is. I'm not sure anyone could. But let me try to break it down and see if I can't identify [i]some [/i]of it[/color]." After another hour or so, he does so. "[color=#0000FF]Okay. I think I got as good a result as I can. I can't identify everything, but it has the characteristics of adrenaline, cerebra-spinal fluid, and neural-transmitters. It's certainly some sort of artificial compound, there's nothing like this in nature. I think that's the source of the blue coloring we found leaking out of the package and all over the dog's flesh. I don't think I could replicate it, but there may be enough here for us to collect or use if we wanted to test it. But, uh, I'm not sure that's a good idea, or it would tell us more than we already know[/color]."

[HoneyDog]

”I need to speak to Fiona Lin Wei. It’s about a story” Andre says, quietly but with authority.

[Mr. Handy]

"I'd like to run some tests on the stuff, if we can do it safely," says Vanessa. "Do you think it's dangerous for us to handle it?"

[Silver Priest]

Andre,The man leans back in his chair, looking vaguely unimpressed. "[color=#0000FF]Sorry man, but [b]Fiona's[/b] not in at present. If you want to leave your name and number I'll let her know you were interested in talking to her, and she might get back to you[/color]."

Jose and Vanessa,"[color=#0000FF]I'm not sure[/color]." [b]Jose [/b]admits. "[color=#0000FF]It's like nothing I've ever seen or handled. But I'm guessing it's reasonably safe-- someone did ship it, after all. I'd definitely suggest wearing heavy duty gloves though[/color]." Thankfully, both of them already were. He manages to extract the blue fluid into a small vial. "[color=#0000FF]I' don't know if any further tests will be able to tell us much. I've been able to determine it's artificial and have a rough idea that it somehow keeps things living when they shouldn't be, but that's about it. If we want to try further tests our best bet might be to try and find something to inject this into and observe the effects. I think this lab should have a few mice if you wanted to try it on them, though depending on how much of the compound is required to achieve a reaction we may only get one shot at this.[/color]."

[HoneyDog]

Andre frowns, disappointed.

“Do you expect her back today? Is she on assignment?”

[Mr. Handy]

"Then we'd better just save it and hold onto it until we have more information," says Vanessa. "Using it in that manner could very well be dangerous. I don't want to make a zombie mouse. We can just secure the head in the green box and gear up."

[Silver Priest]

Andre,"[color=#0000FF]No, not today, Man. She's currently in Alaska covering the protests against illegal whaling going on there.Could be a few days or weeks before she returns; depends how the story unfolds. And she's not really big on keeping us in the loop when she's busy with chasing a story. Perks of being the editor. "Your best bet is to leave your name and number and I'll give it to her whenever she next shows up[/color]." [ooc]Andre can make HUMINT and Alertness rolls.[/ooc]

Jose and Vanessa,"[color=#0000FF]I can't really argue with you there[/color]," [b]Jose [/b]says, looking down at the thrashing dog head and shuttering. "[color=#0000FF]Still, we learned a few things. I managed to remove most of the blue compound from him--it, and it did not cease functioning, which suggests it does not need the compound to continue to function." "We should consider what we want to do with it. It's an atrocity and probably should be destroyed, both because of the risk it poses and the general state of the poor creature. But maybe it could still have some use later on? Until we find the whistle blower, this is the only evidence we have of the company's wrongdoing. And if they've already gotten to him..." [/color]

[HoneyDog]

Rolls,HUMINT 10: [url=https://orokos.com/roll/822871]HUMINT[/url]: [u]1d100[/u] [b]73[/b] Alertness 50: [url=https://orokos.com/roll/822872]Alertness[/url]: [u]1d100[/u] [b]75[/b]

Andre looks at the man closely to try to get a sense of whether he is being bullshitted, but can read nothing.

"Never mind" he says. "Thanks for the help."

He leaves and on the way to the car calls Vanessa, announcing his lack of success and intention to visit Dr. Fulani at UC Berkley.

[Mr. Handy]

"Let's hold onto it for now," says Vanessa. "We can always destroy it later if we don't need it, but if we destroy it now and we need it later, we'll be sorry." When Andre calls, Vanessa fills him in on what they've learned and lets him know they're on the way to the green box. "Let me know what you want us to pick up for you."

[Silver Priest]

Vanessa and Jose head to the greenbox, which is actually set up more along the lines of an armory. All of the equipment is carefully catalogued, and agents are expected to return what they use during an op. A sign reads "Don't be a dick. Take only what you need."

OOC:   The agents can gather whatever they think they'll need,and Andre can fill you in on his needs as well. Feel free to post this ooc. It will take some time to acquire everything you need and fill out the forms, since I assume you will. I'll let you know when you can post again.

Andre,"[color=#0000FF]See you later, man[/color]." He gives a nonchalant wave. It's only a short walk to get onto the UC Berkley campus, and then to the anthropology building. Dr. Fulani's office is on the 5th floor. As luck would have it she's in at the moment, and when [b]Andre[/b] enters he finds himself face to face with a strikingly beautiful older woman. She bears a resemblance to Nefertiti, and smiles warmly at him. "[color=#0000FF]One of our mutual friends? [b]Drake[/b] said you might show up here. Forgive me, but your type do stick out like a sore thumb[/color]." Her eyes shine playfully. "[color=#0000FF]Dr. [b]Nadja Fulani[/b]. I'm a professor in Anthropology, specializing in secret societies. [b]Drake[/b] kept details hush hush, but he often does. What can I help you with, Mr[/color]...""

[HoneyDog]

OOC,Andre realizes that they may have to covertly surveil and enter Amalgamated BioCarb, so he requests equipment for that; binoculars, night vision equipment, a camera with telephoto lens, tools for forcing entry etc. He also requests flashbang grenades, body armour, respirators, a suppressed SMG, and a scoped rifle for long-range shooting, if any of this stuff is available.

“I’m Sam” says Andre, trying not to blush, which he usually does when confronted by a beautiful woman. “Secret societies, huh? I’d like to know more, but I’m pushed for time. I need help with a computer search actually.”

[Silver Priest]

Andre,"[color=#0000FF]Good to meet you, [b]Sam[/b][/color]." Dr. [b]Fulani's[/b] says warmly. [color=#0000FF]"I'm afraid my work is not quite as glamorous as you may think. People have these misconceptions that secret societies are all satanic cults that control the world, when in reality most of them are entirely mundane, little more than an excuse for some folks to get together and drink and use silly titles for one another. Even the more impactful ones are more like the kkk or, more favorably, Sons of Liberty than anything you may see in the movies. But those few that truly are hiding some dark and terrible secret[/color]..." her smile fades. [color=#0000FF]"I do my best to research that as well, for your particular group." "Now computer searches are not my expertise. I more prefer field work. But I'll certainly do what I can for you and do my best to point you in the right direction[/color]."

[HoneyDog]

Being a member of a close-knit group, Andre has some idea of what Dr. Fulani is talking about. But he concentrates on the matter in hand.

“To be honest, I don’t know what we’re dealing with yet. I just need a computer to find out some information about a company. I want to search online and see what comes up. Is that okay?”

OOC,It also occurs to Andre to run a VICAP search on Thomas Iron Shirt,to see if he is in the system. He’ll do so by calling the FBI office in Oakland at the first opportunity.

[Silver Priest]

Andre,"[color=#0000FF]Well there are many computers in the world. But I see no trouble with you using mine,"[b] Dr. Fulani's[/b] mouth arches up into a smirk. "I'm of course willing to help if I can-- I do love a good research project. The only exception would be if you are looking up something illegal, for obvious reasons. I hope you understand[/color]." That said, she offers him her full cooperation otherwise. [ooc]Andre can make a Search roll at a +20% bonus to represent Dr. Fulani's assistance. Depending on what you are researching, you may be able to find more about a subject than one roll could get you. We'll say each roll represents an hour of searching, and you are free to make as many as you want.[/ooc] Before [b]Andre[/b] begins searching, he calls one of his contacts at the FBI and gets them to run a search on [b]Thomas Iron Shirt[/b]. His friend agrees, and promises to let you know what he finds by the end of the day. [ooc]Andre can go ahead and begin his search. For reference it's about 1:00 in the afternoon, and Vanessa and Jose will have finished up with their own tasks by 3:00. Also, whenever you get a chance take a look at the recent posts in the ooc thread. I posted a list of the items you wanted to requisition. If you could go ahead and copy that list and bold the category of each item you wanted I would appreciate it. But again, no rush intended, I know you've been busy. :)[/ooc]