In for a Penny...

Cathay    

Solaris City

Solaris VII

27 April 3061 

                    Lin Ming arranged to visit the building that Red Dragon Corp used a few days later. She went in under the guise of a meeting with Teng Shen to discuss her future, but this was merely a smokescreen. Her Meeting with Shen went off uneventfully, and she now found herself alone wandering the corridors of the small corporate building.

                    She wasn't sure exactly how she was to go about getting the clone of the system. She couldn't simply walk up to a computer and plug the drive in, that would attract attention. She needed some kind of cover for the up to five minutes that the device would take. On a whim, she decided to walk into the main lab.

                    There were several computer inputs where she could insert the drive, but she needed some kind of cover. There were half a dozen techs working at various purposes, so she picked one at random and approached. 

                    "Excuse me, perhaps you could help me?"

                    The tech was a middle aged man, of average height and build. His clothing looked a bit ruffled. "Of course. You're the MechWarrior test pilot, right?"

                    She smiled. "Yes. I was kind of hoping to review some footage of the last bout, maybe check on a few things and clean up my game. Do you guys have the footage stored here?"

                    "Yes, of course. Come here, I will show you. My name is Daniel, by the way"

                    "Pleased to meet you, Daniel. I'm sorry if this is taking you away from your normal work."

                    Daniel smiled sheepishly. "No, it is no bother. We don't get to interact with you folks much, it is refreshing. I am happy to help."

                    As she spoke with Daniel about the footage, she did her best to surreptitiously insert the thumb drive into an access port. She was hoping that his focus would be on her, the MechWarrior, and he would not notice. With the drive inserted, all she had to do now was wait. There was a small indicator light that would pulse when the job had been completed.

                    "Thank you for this. I was wondering, this part here, where I disengaged the system, how long does it take for the Urbie's normal heat sinking to come into play?"

                    "It's virtually instantaneous. Of course it depends on how much waste heat you had built up, but the system comes online right away to start clearing it. Toggling the system is the key to maximizing performance. But of course you already know that, you won the fight. Congratulations, by the way! The entire team was really proud of your performance."

                    She glanced at the drive. The indicator light was still dark. She needed more time. "Thanks, but I didn't just make it up on the fly. We had a great team of coaches and techs working all the angles beforehand. We had a good game plan. I just executed it."

                    "Still, it was a great performance. We are lucky to have you."

                    "No, I'm the lucky one. This job is a dream come true. I was about to give up on my dreams of being a Solaris gladiator when this opportunity came up. Slots fighting in the games don't come easy, especially with a corporate backer. I just chanced on it. I'm really happy though."

                    She glanced down at the drive, and the indicator light was now lit. She made a point about something in the fight to Daniel, and he was immediately enraptured with her telling of the tale. She took the opportunity to remove the drive and slip it into her pocket.

                    "Well, I better be going. I've taken up enough of your time. Thank you for all your help, Daniel." She said with a disarming smile. 

                    "It was my pleasure. You can come hang around here any time you know, right?"

                    "Maybe I just will. See ya Daniel."

                    With that, her pulse racing, she made her way out of the lab, and quietly exited the facility. Now she had only to wait. Drake had set up a drop-off for the drive, that wasn't until tomorrow. Things were now in motion.

                    Later that night, she met up with Nicky, and the two exchanged stories of what had ben going on. Things were heating up.

 Black Hills  

Solaris City

Solaris VII

28 April 3061 

                    The time had come for her meeting with Drake to pass him the drive. She knew Nicky was out there somewhere watching, but she felt very much alone. Things were now getting real. She was violating her NDA with her employer. She was handing over sensitive information to a possible murderer. Things could go bad in a variety of ways. She tried not to think about them.

                    True to his word and right on time, Drake appeared at the park where the two had agreed to meet. 

                    "How did the cloning go? Were you casual about it?"

                    She nodded. "Everything is cool. I got in and out without anyone spotting me. I have the drive."

                    "And I have the cash. This is good work.  It's just the beginning, but it's good work."

                    She handed the drive off to Drake, and he handed her an envelope that felt as if it was flush with cash.

                    "So what's next?"

                    Drake wiped at his nose. "It will take a few days for my guys to go over this data. It won't be until then that we'll know what the next stage is. But it's probably going to be a lot tougher, a lot more specific, you understand? Getting what we need won't be easy. But remember, keep yourself safe. Don't do anything stupid or these people will cancel your contract in a bad way if they find out. Just play it casual. We'll be in touch."