11073/The Light of a Fading Star

The Light of a Fading Star
Date of Scene:	08 May 2022
Location:	Star City Coffee
Synopsis:	Something stinks at Chemixon.
Cast of Characters:	Evan Cooper, Lonnie Machin

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Evan Cooper has posed:
It's a Sunday evening. Mother's Day. So Star City Coffee isn't as crowded as it usually is. Evan had been communicating online with another party. In his role as the broadcaster of American Libertine, it turns out he has some ideologies in common with an individual he knows through digital spaces. So they decided to meet up to see if they could put their heads together on future plans. These kind of meetups are always risky. For Evan, it's not as risky. His identity as Evan Cooper and @AmericanLibertine are publicly known. But perhaps the same is not true for his online friend.

As agreed, Evan is wearing a Mets ballcap. Humiliating, but what are you gonna do? He is sitting at a table with a black coffee, tip-tap-tip-tapping on a MacBook.

Lonnie Machin has posed:
Lonnie Machin is currently establishing himself as a Gotham City gonzo reporter. He does a lot of covert video of crooked policemen, and has a running series he calls "See Officer Donuts Go Nuts" but there's also a lot of Landlord-shaming, critiques of food deserts and other... well... it's not good stuff, but some of it is very tongue in cheek.

He walks in, in his ripped jeans and chucks and a t-shirt for a Gotham City punk band called the Sabot Cats, - which was his tell about who he was - sunglasses on and hair tied up, and he raps lightly on the table three times with his knuckles, waiting for a counter-sign before he drops into a seat.

Evan Cooper has posed:
Evan crosses one leg over the other and takes off the hat, setting it on the table, which is the countersign. But he's pretty irreverent as anyone who listens to his podcast will attest to, so he adds, "The yellow duck swims alone at midnight." There's a small quirk of one side of his mouth.

"You made it," he says. "I gave it 50/50. I mean, you have a lot to protect I imagine, so I wouldn't have thought less of you if you stood me up."

Lonnie Machin has posed:
"Well, I generally find it's best to keep one's appointments. You can't just ghost on people." Lonnie's sunglasses dip, and his stare is capital-I Intense.

"It's rude!" He has an affectedly neutral speech, obviously cultivated - and scars on his knuckles, and callused fingers. He drops into the seat, heavily, and then he raises his eyebrows. "You do good stuff. You know I've been at this since I was 12? Heck of a career choice, isn't it?" He relaxes a bit, and then he says, "So. How can I help you today?"

Evan Cooper has posed:
Taking a sip from his black coffee, Evan gives a small shrug at the question. Other than the MacBook, which probably cost a few bucks, he otherwise looks like someone who slept under a bridge last night. His hair is badly mussed and he hasn't shaved in a several days.

"I figure we could call this our get-acquainted date." A small, goofy half-grin. "Get to know each other a little. I have a friend who can...get into things that normal people can't. With the right resources and the right information guiding him, he could be really effective. So making a connection like you is really valuable to me."

Lonnie Machin has posed:
"That's always a valuable connection to have." Lonnie says, before he shifts how he's sitting. "Are you all right? You seem a little strung out." He leans forward just a bit and then drawls "I've been known to get into things other people can't a time or two myself, but more people like that is very much a force multiplier."

"That begs the question - what are you looking to do?" He clears his throat. "...Not that I'm trying to be rude about it, I'm just trying to get to the point."

Evan Cooper has posed:
An self-conscious expression cascades over Evan's face as Lonnie says he looks strung out. He looks down at himself, then back up. "I do? I mean..." He looks down again and makes a mostly futile effort to straighten his wrinkled T-shirt. "Sometimes I get a bit absorbed into my work. I'm probably overdue for a shower. Sorry." He runs his palm one last time over his chest and stomach, but the hand-iron is not going to help those wrinkles.

"For instance, I came across some information that there is a lab in Gotham called Chemixon. They have an employee churn of over 450 percent. Which is a lot for *any* company, much less one with only 17 employees. And they spend a lot of money importing *something* from China. Their shipments have a strange way of bypassing Customs. I was able to interview the only Chemixon ex-employee who was willing to talk. She described a work environment of absolute secrecy and paranoia, where employees can't bring any person belongings or bags on premises, and are routinely fired for the most minor of offenses. So I passed that along to my friend, who is in a better position to investigate than I am."

Lonnie Machin has posed:
"I've been there. It's not judgment, I promise, only concern. It's the same thing I tell kids who want to get involved in social activism. Take cae of yourself so you can take care of other people." Lonnie says, as he laces his fingers together.

"Chemixon... I remember hearing about some concerns from people about stuff going on at their lab. Weird chemical odors, was it? Strong smell of what they thought was Chlorine." He gestures, and then says "And what did your friend find out?" He doesn't want to make any assumptions yet, instead waiting to hear more.

Evan Cooper has posed:
Evan shrugs a bit. "You know as much as I do, maybe more. I'm telling you this practically in real time. I spoke with my ex-Chemixon contact about four hours ago, then passed along the information to my friend. So it's too early to tell." He tries to be subtle about running both hand-irons over his pant legs.

"So you know, maybe we might end up comfortable trusting each other as much as anyone trusts anyone in this business. Any information that looks promising, I can turn over to someone who can potentially get some stuff done under the radar.

Lonnie Machin has posed:
"I know a few people, too. That's the thing about what I do, you run into all sorts of oddballs in this town, and all of them know things, or know people who know things." He taps his chin. "So, let's cooperate. Let's think about this. Chemixon compartmentalizes what its employees know so nobody knows too much. But there has to be a distribution point where that information gets handed out, and that person knows everything."

"So... we figure out who that person is, step one."

Evan Cooper has posed:
Tapping some keys on his laptop to pull up some data. "Well the CEO of Chemex is Elaina Chang. She started the company in 2007 with money she won from a small lottery pool. The company was an importer of industrial chemicals and was in the black until 2018 when they started hemorrhaging cash. Then all of a sudden in Q4 2021 they started reporting profits."

He glances over at Lonnie. "If I was a guessing man, I'd guess someone or some other company stepped in. But they're private and small enough to avoid certain regulatory filings, so that's as much as I know."

Lonnie Machin has posed:
"Best not to speculate." Lonnie says, "There's lots of filthy Corporate scum that could be behind this, but we don't point the finger until we have more info. We start with Elaina Cheng, then." He takes out a phone, and says "I'll set up a Data Spider to see what information I can collect on her. Everybody leaves a digital trace these days, and even something as innocuous as a lunch date can be a clue."

Evan Cooper has posed:
A smirk. Evan picks up his coffee and takes a sip. "Or meeting a friend for coffee." He can't help but grin. He seems so...out of his element, like someone who drifted into the deep end without realizing that it happened.

Tap-tap-tap on the keyboard. "Okay, well her name is Elaina Julia Chang, date of birth September 3, 1980. That's about all I have for personal demographics. Lives in Gotham."

Lonnie Machin has posed:
"Now with corporate types, I like to look at their LinkedIn." Lonnie says, "You don't necessarily look for people SHE knows directly but you look for people in common with the people she knows, patterns... it gives you an idea of where else you might look." He gestures. "This is all shallow searching, of course. How do you feel about breaking into people's Wi-Fi?"

Evan Cooper has posed:
Of course, Evan can *literally* do it in his head. But that's a level of trust Lonnie hasn't reached yet. Instead he gives a noncommittal shrug of one shoulder. "I mean, a middle school student can break into wi-fi. But if you mean how do I feel about it morally, well if the cause is right then I'm in. What did you have in mind?"

Lonnie Machin has posed:
"Simple. We crack into her WiFi and get into her computer from there. I'm sure she's got some sort of anti-intrusion software, but I'm pretty sure either of us can get around it. Corporate slavedrivers *always* demand that people take their work home with them, and that's a vulnerability. We don't even have to set foot in her apartment. Depending on what floor she lives on and if she's got a good Wi-Fi signal, we could do it from the roof of her apartment building or the curb outside her house."

Evan Cooper has posed:
Evan takes a few moments to consider this. He makes a popping sound with his lips and says, "Okay, I'm in. But if we get caught I'm going to say you kidnapped me." Playful glitter of his eyes. "If she's smart, she's using a VPN. So we might be limited in what we can find out. I doubt we can break a 256-bit encryption algorithm out on the curb of her apartment building. But we can burn that bridge when we get to it."

The control computer of Evan's futuristic biological cybernetics actually *might* be able to crack it, but that's not a conversation for now. Lonnie seems like a trustworthy guy but in Evan's dark world there is a huge different between trust and Trust.

Lonnie Machin has posed:
"You'd be surprised what you're capable of when there's a need." Lonnie says, before he huffs out a breath. "Anyway. Is there anything more you need from me? I detest this corporate coffee BUT... my boyfriend really likes the Pacific Dark Roast they sell here, so I'm going to grab a bag of it for him before I bounce."

"...That, and check in to see how their unionization efforts are going."

Evan Cooper has posed:
Evan tugs the laptop cover down, snapping it shut. "Nope, I'm good. This coffee is no better or worse to me than any other. I don't have one of those fancy coffee palates. It's all just bitter, brown, stay-awake juice to me." He smirks. "Anyway, get in touch when you wanna do operation wi-fi."

Lonnie Machin has posed:
"I can taste the union-busting, anti-worker stench on it." Lonnie says, "Just ruins the whole thing for me." He smirks, and then raps on the table smartly with his knuckles. "Right. Go get a shave and some sleep. Remember, take care of yourself so you can help others." He pushes his sunglasses up, and makes a beeline for the counter. "And remember what Emma Goldman said. Love is its own protection. Without love - of yourself, and of other people... what's the point of being an Anarchist?"