4742/The Gears that Gods Build

The Gears that Gods Build
Date of Scene:	15 January 2021
Location:	Koko's Warehouse
Synopsis:	Blade arrives on four wheels with another task for Kokumo, leaves on two.
Cast of Characters:	Kokumo Adebesi, Eric Brooks

---

Kokumo Adebesi has posed:
It really isn't that hard to find Kokumo Adebesi. For someone who has been attacked -twice- since she's came back from college in Wisconsin, one would at least consider to up the security or be mindful of their situation. Not Koko, she travels as she needs to and leaves the nest when she's hungry or in need of a drink, or one of those random, city girl friends call her to come out and party.

Get laid. Go back to work.

Today wasn't that day. With the sun bright in the sky, cold air needed to be let in from the industrial park, being that her building is probably the only one inhabited in that area and taking up all the juice to fuel several city blocks, the garage door is wide open and the slightly melted snow, which was melting due to the heat of the area, somewhat leaks in.

And as appropriate, is drained.

From that drive in spot, is a myraid of construction, a few cars were already high on lifts, parts were everywhere, bikes were disassembled by other workstations and far into the back? Her console.

A console with a dozen of computers all operating on their own, if you sit a chair in the middle you could swing by each and every one of them. Computer screens line the wall, sort of Matrix'y style, and off to the sides of the warehouse were stairs that lead to a platform upstairs. Offices, to the left.. which she doesn't use, and a lounge room that takes up the middle and right of where she sleeps and eats.

Work, live, eat, work.. That was her life.

And currently on the screen? A picture of the girl that the strange vampire hunting dude was looking for. And facial recognition software that was blowing by nearly the WHOLE of New York.

Eric Brooks has posed:
Work, eat, live.  Blade gets that.  Except the living part.  And the eating part.  Speaking of...

He pulls up in his Charger and stops about a block away.  There's a few quick huffs of air; preparatory breaths.  He clenches and unclenches his fists several times and digs something from his pocket.  It's an old-fashioned injection gun, the type used for large-scale distribution of vaccinations a couple of decades ago. 

With a sort of now-or-never swiftness, he plunges the needle into his neck, pulls the trigger, and has a seizure.  That serum is no joke.

When he's stopped convulsing, Blade stuffs the gun away and starts his car back up.  For him, roaring up with the engine running is akin to ringing the doorbell.  Once he's parked in front of the garage door, he kills the lights, switches off the ignition, and steps out into view.  "Still alive, New Girl?" he calls out his greeting.

Kokumo Adebesi has posed:
Eating. Kokumo doesn't do much of that, even though she has an array of food right in front of her. Probably why she's so damn short, and looked like she had seen better days..

But there was a triple stack on the console, filled with cheese and bacon, practically oozing with ketchup and mustard, and all the fixings. Something she's tried to recreate from her Five Guys back in the cheese state. Sweet potato fries, and a soda that she was currently sipping on, with feet curled into her chair, knees up, tablet balanced on top.

She looks like something out of a cartoon, her hair now in dreadlocks that crown her head like a beehive, grease smeared along her cheeks like she was ready to play a sport, her white T messy, Jeans ripped, feet bare.

At least she had sense enough to paint her nails black.

Hearing that gravel-like voice, she looks up, brows raised.. and shrugs.

"All healed up and ready to go." Where though? Hell.. she didn't know.

"Somewhere.. I guess." She didn't move from her stage at the center of her consoles, but she does put her cup down upon the armrest of the chair. "What you want, big man?"

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade's eyes are still a little wild and his breath is coming in quick, short bursts, but he appears none the worse for wear after his injection. "Just making sure you're still breathing."

He cocks an eyebrow and looks over the vast array of computer screens, including the one with his missing person's face on it.  Then he turns back toward Koko and cocks his other eyebrow.  "Nice setup.  It's all very..."  he makes a gesture with both hands, like fireworks popping. "...impressive.  I see you're still looking for our girl.  Any luck?  'cuz now that I've seen your gear, I have another one for you."

Kokumo Adebesi has posed:
Blade should be happy that Kokumo didn't come with a biometric scanner for her nanites. She just assumes that he's rightfully on edge or at least scoping out the place with wild eyes and.. well.. he really didn't mince any words or add fluff to whatever conversation they were going to have.

She carefully removes her soda, picking up the tablet so that she could stand without dropping it, gesturing him inside further so that she could offer him the tablet.

"Well, I get a lot of work. To get quality customers, need a quality setup. At least that's how I feel." She looks around at her setup, then back to him. "Nothing about the girl. I need at least a name or something, else I can just go to age regression software and start looking through school photos." Clearly, she hasn't done that just yet, she was doing an active, real time, people on the street search.

"You got another? What the hell is going on here?" More importantly, with him. "You want a bite of my sandwich?" If he takes the tablet, she would walk away from him towards the sandwich, not to pick it up to offer to him, but to begin typing out a few commands. "You want your ride in here? I'm about to close the door."

Eric Brooks has posed:
"Something wicked this way comes," is Blade's response to 'what's going on?'  He waves away the offer of the sandwich, but politely.  It'll be a day or two before he consumes anything solid. 

He accepts the tablet and looks it over, replying without glancing up at first.  "I figured it'd be hard with an old picture and no details.  Her family's gone.  Vampires took her, but didn't kill her right away.  There's a part of me that hopes she's already dead.  The alternative..." 

He cuts himself off with a shake of his head.  "A priest has gone missing, too.  No vampires involved, but it stinks.  Someone performed some nasty, dark rituals in his room before he disappeared with the keys to the archives at Grandenetti Cathedral.  Probably some bullshit Catholic superstitions involved." 

A slightly rumpled piece of paper is produced from a coat pocket.  It's not a photograph; but a sketch, made with painstaking care.  "This is the best I could do.  There was only one picture of him and I didn't have the heart to take it away from an old nun.  His name is Theodore.  This one I have to find, doesn't matter if he's warm or cold."

Kokumo Adebesi has posed:
Blade didn't have to say anymore. She was new to this whole.. thing. Vampires, superhero fighters, vigilantes. There wasn't much of that back north. At least, not that she could see.

As she pulls up a blank screen on her console, she turns and reaches for the crumpled piece of paper, straightening it out as best as she can so that she could get a good 'read' on it. Her brows furrow just a little, her head shakes, mentioning nothing of rituals, magic, and superstitions..

"Ugh." Is all she manages to get out, shaking her head and offering the paper back towards him. She turns away, and as she does.. the screens around him as well as the tablets light up so much so that the picture/drawing itself is uploaded, various files generated, and search parameters created before his eyes.

And also? The doors close. Cause, that's how everything works! Automatic!

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade glances toward the door as it lowers, then at Koko.  "Nice trick." 

He hands the tablet back, being generally useless when it comes to technology.  Not completely, but mostly.  Instead, he pulls one of his ever-present knives free from a strap slung inside his coat.  Silver, of course.  He starts using it to clean and trim his fingernails as if that's a completely normal activity. 

"Do you think the sketch will do you any good?  That was the best I could manage."  He doesn't have many soft spots, but his face pulls itself into an expression that's much akin to a shrug.  "The nun.  She was nice.  She missed him. I can go back if I have to, though."

Kokumo Adebesi has posed:
"Gets the job done." Koko comments. She settles back into the chair as the computers get to work, her lips forming a slight purse before she gives them a smack. "It'll be fine. I can add some software to the computers that'll flesh him out a bit. Don't worry." She may as well start all of the background and regression checks on this one too, at least hopefully track the movements of the priest.

"Really, Blade. Tell me what's going on. If I continue to help you, would I be in danger?"

Eric Brooks has posed:
"Oh.  Shit.  Yes, you will.  I thought you knew that.  I'm big, black, and covered in knives."  Blade affects a cough into his fist.  "Just saying."

Speaking of knives, he finishes with one hand, pulls on a glove, then switches to trimming the nails on the other.  "It's...  Yeah.  You would be.  You already are now that you know what you know, but you'd be in more danger.  You'd also be helping people who really, really need it." 

He pauses, and with his ungloved hand he reaches into yet another pocket.  He hefts something in his palm before setting it down in front of Koko.  It's a Rolex.  A nice one.  "I get the impression that it's not about money for you, but if it is, that's all yours. Consider it my donation."

Kokumo Adebesi has posed:
Koko knew it as much. Her head tilts a little as she turns around, moving to the chair to settle in again. No butt on the seat, but all feet and crouch. "Aside from you, I'm tiny, black, and got a bike. I'm pretty much dead by dawn." Well, not really.

She watches as he cleans his nails, nothing to say for the moment, at least slightly wishing that the action that he performs was alone soothing. It wasn't. It just made her think even more.

As he places the watch down upon the console, Koko's face scrunches into something of a half-assed, 'wtf and smile'. "I don't need that. I got through college on scholarships and pocketed the savings plans my parents set up for me." She waves her hand idly.

"Plus, I work." She gestures around. "May as well do something calming." She gestures a hand as the garage door opens yet again. "Wheel that sucker in here and let me take a look at her. I can do a quick tune up and a spark plug change while we wait for at least the first of the results."

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade doesn't hesitate.  Never.  He considers it a sign of weakness, and he doesn't abide weakness in himself. 

This time he hesitates. 

"You're going to work on my car?"  He pauses and glances around at the pile of qualifications sitting in front of him.  Then, after a deep breath, he scoops the Rolex back up and pockets it.  "You know, okay.  Widening the circle of trust.  That's supposed to be a good thing, and it's not like I'm a mechanic." 

Absently, he stabs his knife into a tabletop and heads out to the Charger.  Born in 68, it was a beast before Blade got his hands on it.  Now it carries nitrous tanks, along with a few other surprises. 

When he pulls it in, it becomes apparent that the reinforced body panels have seen some recent gunfire.  A few small dents, but telltale in shape, some with fragments of lead still clinging to them.  The engine sounds healthy, though.  More than. 

Kokumo Adebesi has posed:
"You got someone else in mind?" Koko asks with a smile, hopping down from her chair to so that she could put her boots on. Koko -hated- wearing socks. Especially while she was in her own warehouse. Socks were reserved for outdoors, in which she was not. As he wheels his car in, she snaps her fingers twice so that the door could close, her hands upon her hips as she surveys the damage.

And.. it was a dream!

Bullet holes. Dents. The car sounded well but.. oh god, imagine what all that damage to the body did to the engine?! There were probably knicks, dings, frayed wires...

She ducks her head to peer through the window, and that's probably when Blade will see it, that unnatural blue glow in her eyes as she looks around the dash board, the seats, the carpetting, the back.. Phew.. aside from the other cars on the lifts? They will be done when they get done, the customers were paying a pretty penny for her to take her time. This though?

She was a mad scientist who enjoyed reverting back to training wheels.

"Ooh.." She says quietly. "Can you ride a bike?" She wasn't going to give him her PERSONAL bike, but he'd get a pick of one..

Eric Brooks has posed:
Once he has the Challenger shut off, Blade climbs out and slaps an affectionate hand against an armored fender like a hunter thumping a hound's ribs.  Which isn't that far off. 

"I can ride," he confirms.  "I have a Ducati.  Went old on four wheels, new on two."  He almost smiles when he thinks about the bike.  Almost.  "Been a while, though.  This tends to stand up better when I'm on the prowl."

Believable.  The Charger appears to be stock, at least to the untrained eye, but there are extra layers of steel and carbon fiber behind each body panel.  A close inspection would reveal the outline of the firing ports in all four doors that can be opened from within, so occupants can shoot without having to lower windows or expose themselves. 

Kokumo Adebesi has posed:
"Yeah yeah.." Koko mutters outloud. It was almost the equivalent of her shrugging him off as soon as he tapped her shoulder. Shut up, mama is looking. She rounds the entire charger, her hands upon her hips, a little bit of hair falling from her bun as she stands up straight.

"Great. Keys are on the wall. One with the red see-through veve' of Oshun." She blindly points behind her towards where most of the bikes were parked. It would be clear the one that he would get.

Not hers!

But the one parked next to it; a BMW R nine T. Even though BMW bikes aren't really favorable to some, it was clear that it was pretty souped up. Panel pockets for holding items that open at the push of a button, high beams that were meant to blind, tires with tiny spokes that grip the concrete like sin and better grip/width of the handles.

"The bike doesn't do like mine, so don't try to stand or do tricks." She says idly. "Gonna need your keys, my dude."

Eric Brooks has posed:
"One sec."  Blade cracks the passenger door and opens the glovebox.  There's only two things inside.  A grenade and a printed card that says, "IN CASE OF EMERGENCY".  He retrieves the grenade, then closes everything up and tosses the keys to Koko over the hood.  "I might need that.  Now you can do your worst." 

The BMW catches a quick glance.  "Rode one of those years ago.  They're comfy."  Not the kind of consideration one would expect him to take into account.  "I'll try to bring it back in one piece."

Kokumo Adebesi has posed:
The keys were caught with a little snap, which were soon pocketed. Questions about the grenade? She wasn't going to voice them, but.. what?

"Yeah yeah. If you can't? There's a black box in the seat. Rip it and bring it back." She does do experimenting after all. "Oh, the bike talks. Bluetooth compatible. Has a few cameras in the headlights and rear light. Windscreen is touch compatible even through gloves. Blah blah blah.."

He'll figure it out.

"Oh, phone number is programmed into the bike so if you need something just give me a call." She is -totally- going to be busy. "Special requests? If not, free to go."

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade lets out a low, quiet chuckle.  Surprise, a human expression.  "My nitrous tanks are half-empty.  If you can take care of that, I'll be your biggest fan." 

Aware that he's being thrown out so someone can work (he does it to people all the time) he snags the indicated set of keys and starts up the loaner bike.  "Oh, yeah," he mutters as he bounces up and down on the seat.  The pegs allow him to stretch out his long legs like he never could on a Ducati.  "This is nice.  I'll swing by soon, see how things are going."