[Mercy Merchant]

Robyn touches the tattoo on her face.  "Yes.  The tattoo.  It was applied with magic.  I have no idea how it works, but it cannot be removed or covered.  When I was tortured, one of the things Melissa did to me was remove most of my skin.  It was pretty much like being flayed alive.  Anyway, she thought that she had removed my House tattoos, but they came in on the new skin when it grew back.  And I tried once to cover this one with makeup for a performance.  Utter failure.  Part of the blessing and curse part, I guess.  Anyway, the bottom line is that I cannot cover up the tattoo.  So it is better to just be me.  And my cello is nothing famous.  It is very well made and has a special link to me, but it is not some sort of famous instrument.  It can be replaced, although it has become a good friend.  Is this a problem?

[Jack_Spade]

"You tell me. Personally, I'd shun getting my real identity dragged into something like this as the plague. If you can't use make up, maybe you could cover half your face with long hair, while performing in the Underplex. Not optimal, but it would fit as a style for cover band cellist.

But on the whole, do as you see fit. It's your life after all."

Kynos finally found time to take a huge bite out of his shepherds pie and helped it down with a gulp of Guinness.

[Mercy Merchant]

Robyn looks at ISaint.  "I thank you very much for your concern.  That goes a long way to validating why you are a good choice for leader.  The sad truth is that I do not have a third identity to fall back on and I would think it needs to be something that is verifiable.  Both Robyn Lysander and Alyce Krait have forty years of actual incomes and expenditures.  I would be willing to take up another ID if a good one was available.  I can even pass myself off reasonably well as not being blind.  To be honest, my other senses are unusually good and the blind disability is mainly just shtick now, but it is useful shtick.  So I could easily portray someone pretending to be me, but I still think that the ID would need to hold up to a certain level of scrutiny, right?"

[BrickyardBabe]

Iris cocked her head as Robyn spoke, then opined, "What about a mask? An alternative musician, some sort of neo-gothic elven fusion artist looking for inspiration for her first hit?" She gestured at Robyn idly. "You fit the pointy-eared, underfed look so many of them have, and alt musicians are often tied into the extreme costumes and body mod scene. We could get a synthleather morion, paint some kind of Sinsearach tribal motif on it, and gum it to your face, with rivets on the outside to make it look like its a permanent fixture. Would that work?"

[Mercy Merchant]

Robyn considers the new option put forward by Iris and likes it.  Nodding her hear, she says, "That should do nicely to disguise the tattoo, Iris.  Thank you.  I would still need a new ID.  There may be time enough to purchase one before going under.  The better the fake, the more detail is built into the background.  It could certainly do.  Say, didn't the Johnson say that he was prepared to issue IDs?"

[Jack_Spade]

"He did and I just received the details:
The distraction is a scheduled extraction that is not particularly important to our employer. A bit too casual for my taste - we are after all also his employees, so we'd be well advised not to be careless while dealing with him.
The distraction is therefore fixed to tomorrow evening.
Our ID's should arrive shortly.
Robyn and Halfpint, I'd ask you to fake some background facts about a small cover band from mainland Europe, doing the underground circus of London. Use some of the usual Dark Matrix resources to get the profile as fast as possible - and don't forget to send the expense to our Johnson. This short notice stuff is really annoying.

As for a band name - my suggestion would be Dead Men Walking - just because we probably are..."

#256

[Aria]

[Saturday July 4th, 2076; The Seventh House, Earl’s Court, London Below]

The Old One dragged his consciousness free from the false reality of the matrix rubbing at his temples and sighing ruefully after Aria’s tirade.  For all her age she still had the impetuousness of youth that her master didn’t feel the need to curb…

It would seem their pawns were developing an unhelpful desire to follow their own wishes rather than the vision and that had annoyed Aria greatly…she prided herself on her ability to win people round with her winsome charms and her pique at being thwarted would be amusing if it weren’t for the implications of the fraying threads in the Pattern. 

He had agents in place of course but somehow this felt like something he would have to intervene in himself and these days he disliked coming out of the shadows more and more…all in all it was irritating, and those around him drew back as the wisps of power escaped in his own venting of those frustrations…

***
_#05

[Mercy Merchant]

Robyn nods.  "That I can do.  I think it would be more real if I have the names of band members and instruments played.  Do we pick up the bodyguards here or have they been with the band a while?  The more information I have the better I can make this.  Let me get started on the broad strokes and I can add the details in as we get the IDs and then go enter the data into the various hosts we might have played.  I would think small, relatively unknown clubs around Europe rather than any major venues?"

[Jack_Spade]

"You are the expert. Unknown clubs sounds good to me. Illegal underground ones are even better - less paper trails. But I don't think you'll have to mention the bodyguards. If you need, you can give me the profile of a random drummer that is unlikely to make an appearance elsewhere. Just give me a photo and I'll see that I'll take his face." Replied Isaint

[adamu]

Al was done with his pie, and he could think of three or four more interesting things than sitting here making plans, and at least a dozen things that would simply be more fun. But he held his piece. Man worked for a living.

It appeared they were definitely going with the musician charade. "Sooo, anyone needs secret compartments an' such in they instrument cases or whatever, that's somethin' can be done overnight while yer sortin' the IDs. Jist gimme whatcha got an' tell me whatcha need." He started imagining all sorts of ignorant requests for hiding places that would require extra-dimensional spaces, everyone having to bring every damned gun and toy they owned, and that got him to thinking about how long the work might take, and he asked, "We got a target jump-off time to work to with all this duly diligent plannin' an' prep'ration?"

[Mercy Merchant]

Robyn smiles.  "I can do that and I...ahem...know a few illegal underground clubs in Greater Europe.  I can fit us in almost anywhere."  She looks around at the others.  "OK.  So far I have me, Iris, and ISaint in the band, Al as roadie, and Jackhammer as muscle.  That leaves Deckard and Halfpint.  What do you guys want to be?  I can see Halfpint as lighting, perhaps?  Give me an idea and I will get started."

[obidancer]

Deckard  was too busy shoving the shepard pie in his mouth and make it pass with the Guiness to yet partake in the music planning. Truth be told, he enjoyed listening to music, but playing an instrument was not really up his alley. It was as sound a plan as he could think of right now, so he had no issue agreeing to it.

With food still in between his cheeks, he weighed in: More like the Fabulous Troubadours...
In any case, I think the band should be focused on Iris as the centerpiece. Magic enhanced Dryad singer. We can't hide much of who we are on the Astral. Issue number one, 5 out of 7 of us are awaken. Iris, your initiate magic looks as powerful as it probably is, with those looping spells around you. Such power could do marvels if put to enhance your singer or playing. That would make you and by default the rest of the band a hot commodity. I could act as the Magic oriented bodyguard, spell protection and such, and Jack, well, it's pretty explicit. Halfpint can be the logistic manager and Al... manager? another player? you tell me.

[adamu]

"Man, like I done said, I'm the damned roadie fer fuck's sake. Coolest cat inna crew. Hookin' up amps an' shit, helpin' myself to whatever groupies don't make it into the band's suite. Doin' what I want an' gittin' paid for it." He smiled at Deckard, half human, half hound dog. "Don't go tryin' ta rob ol' Al of his dream, baby."

[Mercy Merchant]

Robyn laughs.  "OK, I think we are set.  I like the idea of Iris being the face of our little group.  I will start working on the documents and should be almost done by the time we get the names and IDs from the Johnson.  This will at least give us a reason to be there and a good cover.  Nice idea, Iris."  Robyn goes quiet as she sits back and begins weaving her own kind of nagic on the matrix creating the identities and personas for the band and crew.

[pistolgrip]

Jackhammer chuckles, but it's not entirely clear which part of this he finds so amusing. He tosses the paperboard "bone" at a nearby trashcan, but fails to make the shot. With a grumble he stands up and walks over to the bin, picking up the trash and dropping it in. He shuffles back to his chair and sits down again with a *thud*. "So, I guess I'll go with Al and help him pack up." He said simply to nobody in particular. With a few flicks of his commlink he ordered another leg to go and looked around to see if it was time to leave yet. "Do we need to rent some rolling crates or something?" He wondered out loud, not really used to organizing such things.