Court Of Miracles [James/Crew]

[Sabine Wei]

Paquin was a picturesque world. Something more beautiful and cultural than anything the Core had to offer. In the opinions of the locals, and the woman who'd chosen the city of it's famous Opera House for her meeting anyway. There were probably more who would agree, as the tally of those that flock to the 'gypsy planet' tend to tell. This meeting was also set to take place during one of the many huge festivals happening within the planet's capital city. The outfits were flamboyant, the stilts were high and the masks were both beautiful and horrifying at the same time. Loud instrumental and exotic music twanged in the air. The perfect distraction for Sabine Wei to keep prying eyes from her affairs.

Holding stake in many places had it's advantages, and Sabine's current home-from-home base of operations was a very traditional little bar. The music outside was barely muted by it's walls, leaving an odd background thrum in the back room of that bar. The place was decorated in a very vibrant Old-Earth middle-eastern style, and was aptly named 'The Court of Miracles'. Sabine sat patiently behind a desk, two guards flanking the outside of the door. Davik and Laslow. Very loyal, large men. Davik was a former Independent involved with a heavy artillery team, and Laslow was a mercenary Sabine had taken on when the War had required some hired help.

The woman herself was flanked, as always, by her personal bodyguard, Jolie. A rather slight young woman in dark clothing. Her face always stoic, and her stance always a rigid parade rest. Dark hair was pulled back from her face in a tight bun. She was armed with various blades, a sword and a personal sidearm. This was, yet no one outside Sabine's personal circle of trusted employees, her own daughter. A girl she'd trained herself, and the only person she truly trusted her life with.

The bartender, a swarthy man in silk shirts and a smile for any customer, was called Taris, and had been left with strict instructions to direct the good Captain James Clark to her room when he arrived. Sabine waited patiently, peering over documents and the like. Clark was keen for work-- something that paid well-- and Sabine had just the thing for the fellow former Browncoat. Hopefully his crew would be up to the task.

[James Clark]

[Closed to all Trinity Crew apart from Sidney for now]

The mule travelled at such a speed that they were at the location given to James by Sabine in no time. He had left the ship in the capable hands of Art who also had the double difficult job of watching his sister, Annabelle Clark. James wasn't exactly thrilled at having his sister onboard, she was an absolute pain in the arse. James had a lot on his plate at the moment and having his sister in the mix didn't help things one bit.

Parking up outside the destination James was thrilled that the usual remarks about going to fast had gone. This was why he was so glad to have Sid on the crew. There was so much less stress involved. It hadn't been like this since he had Wolf on the crew. Now that was someone he was glad to be rid of. Wolf had managed to upset every single member of the crew to the point of them leaving him behind on Whitefall.

Exiting the mule he took a glance at the place it was quite high market compared to the regular different place "Nice place" he remarked to Sid before heading inside. He walked up to the bar and gave the codeword which was 'Polo' before the bartender said in quite a polite way "Right this way sir, follow me" the bartender lead him and Sid to a door and knocked. This was a million miles away from the normal greeting party they encountered.

James hadn't had a job from Sabine in a long time but she always came up with the goods.

[Sidney Bainbridge]

Sidney was already in a bad mood as they left the Trinity. In fact bad mood didn't even describe it at all. it more accurate to describe his mood as the gate of hell being opened up and all the fury and malice of the underworld being let out like Hades seeking retribution on Zeus for is foul position among the Gods.

When James had told him earlier that he was going with him to met the criminal lady Sidney had no issue with that. he had planned to handle it as he always did. He never trusted any of the criminal networks so he always packed in heavy. He had his revolver and pistol at his side like always, and he planned to pack a little extra punch on the mule. His trusted Tar-26 rifle. What had him a foul was he wasn't able to find it.

Someone, a certain captains younger sister, had gotten her grubby little mitts on it and stashed it somewhere. Sidney had tore through the place looking for her with a vengeance, but sadly to no avail. Time had run out and he had to head out with James without.

As the fumes burst from his rage they pulled up to the place. It was a nice looking enough place as James had said with plenty going on around to keep people off their backs. They swiftly entered and James got them passage to talk to this Sabine Wei that was to give them a job. Sidney payed close attention to the guards at the door as they went in to talk to her. Then the young lady standing next to the one they must have been looking for.

Sidney's arm had been crossed the whole time until they stood in front of her where they dropped to his sides loosely hanging there with his legs spread and his body at the ready. His hands were itching for the grip of his gun in the discomfort of the situation but he maintained just a dominating presence in the room without motion as not to agitate the situation. A soft nod went to the younger of the two women as if to signal to her he was watching her every move. His thoughts still divided on his rifle, this situation, and how he was going to give Belle hell when he found her.

[Sabine Wei]

All according to time. James Clark's arrival was well within the limit she'd set and didn't encroach on any other business she had planned. Sabine was pleased, but remained as unreadable as ever. While she wasn't too cold in the company of clients, neither was the Boss a friendly face. Too long in this job had caused her to learn that true friends were few and far between. And even then it was hard to fully trust those that seemed to be allies. As Taris left the two gentlemen with the guards, Davik and Laslow nodded to one another, and opened the doors.

"Mr Clark is here, ma'am." Laslow announced, Davik aiming a nod at them to gesture they were allowed to enter.

As Clark and Bainbridge entered, Sabine let the documents in her hands fall back against the table, hands locking together on it's surface a moment before she pushed up. Most would stay behind their desks, and say their peace with no ounce of respect or politeness. There would be demands, and then arrangements. Sabine didn't cower behind her thugs, though. She didn't hide behind her desk. The woman, dressed in a worn, but tidy beige suit, stepped around the desk, holding out a hand to the Captain.

"Glad you could join me, Captain Clark." A slight nod was given, and after the handshake, her hand was even shifted over in Sidney's direction.

There was no mistaking he was the 'heavy' in this situation. Clark's new gunhand by the looks of it. Though, Sabine had as much respect for the 'warriors' of the trade as she did for anyone else. Maybe even more-so from her military background. There was no secret that she had been a Browncoat. A firm and proud Independent. Jolie had not moved from her station in this entire exchange, her stance unwavering. As Sidney gave her a glance, there was a twitch to her cheek, a slight narrow of her eyes. Maybe even the shadow of a smirk lingering there somewhere. She was watching him too.

"Please, take a seat. We have the makings of a fine job to discuss. I'm sure you'll be pleased to sink your teeth into it."

Sabine moved passed the two chairs left opposite her desk, patting them lightly on her way back around to her own. The Boss settled back down in her seat, gathered up the papers scattered about, and waited for them both to settle.

"Would either of you care for a drink? No charge, of course. Taris understands." A hand waved towards Laslow, the big man being the one chosen to get those orders if either of them accepted. If not, he'd remain on the inside of the door, while Davik was posted outside.

"Now, gentlemen. About that job... It's merely a small retrieval operation. I require information-- a file. It contains some sensitive material I wouldn't mind having in my possession."

A piece of paper was brushed off, the top corner holding a logo for something Alliance-affiliated. A hand clasped a remote, and as one the lights were dimmed a touch, and the far wall revealed a screen. Moderate in size. Large enough to see the blueprints displayed on it.

"You'll be getting a copy of these schematics and layouts-- the job is a heist. I won't dance around that. And it's in a secure facility-- Alliance. I trust you and your crew won't mind dealing with the Alliance, yes? If you've qualms about such a task--" The screen winked off. "-- you should air them now. Otherwise we'll continue."

Sabine fixed Clark with a glance, awaiting his word on the matter.

[James Clark]

As always Sabine was a great host no sooner had they sat down she had offered them both a drink, James appreciated that she showed respect to Sidney as well. "Two bottles of Whitefall-Jameson beer if you don't mind" James requested the beer for Sidney as well. James watched as Taris disappeared out of sight. Whitefall-Jameson was a fairly cheap beer he didn't want to be too greedy, Sabine had been more than nice to offer them a drink. Glancing at the blueprints James could tell straight away that this was going to be a difficult job "Were good with Alliance, adds a little spice to it" James told Sabine, all he wanted was to get a job and get paid.

[Sidney Bainbridge]

Sidney, not to eager to have a seat seemed reluctant when she offered up the chairs to him and James, but in an effort to be polite he took a seat beside James. It was a tactical disadvantage in a room of friendly but foreign faces. He would have ordered a drink but James had done so already. It wasn’t that he wanted a drink but it evened the odds for a few minutes while the man ran the errand.

Sidney looked on as she showed them the blueprints of the building. It was a heist on the Alliance, something Sidney could sink his teeth in to, but it could prove its fair share of hazards. These kinds of jobs where the type of thing that could get people killed. He didn’t much mind that for himself but Belle and Kalli would need to take up safer positions for this one. That would leave Art, James and himself taking the lead on this run and possible Dani as well if they didn’t need her to be at the cockpit of the ship.

”What are we looking at for Resistance on this.” Sidney chimed in, it was important that they knew what their odds were. This would decide how many they would need to use for this type of mission. If the forces were low they might be able to just walk right in and do what needed to be done. Otherwise there was a good chance James would be asking Sidney to help him formulate a plan to sneak on to the facility.

Sidney almost preferred the idea of him and James being the only ones going in. He didn’t much know the crew yet and didn’t know what they were able to do, but that was wishful thinking and he was going to have to deal with the fact that James was going to have his own way of doing things with his crew. ”Do you know of any critical weaknesses of the facility?” Sidney inquired as he mulled over the options.

[Sabine Wei]

Well, that was easier than Sabine had anticipated. No sooner had she begun her proposal-- and after her man had left with the drink orders-- Clark had taken the bait, lure and all. This job meant a lot to him money-wise. She could tell. It was easy to assume that. She'd dealt with many a Captain in her time. Many an employee or contractor. Those years of experience taught her how to read people relatively well. Of course, it was all guess-work, but common sense aided in her usually being right. Sometimes wrong. This was all music to Sabine Wei's ears, and she was glad to have him on-board so quickly. Less time spent convincing and more time getting the details down and then sending them on their way.

Sabine was a fair woman. However she was still a Crime Lord-- to use that blanket title-- and she obviously handled things ruthlessly if necessary. Her jobs always ranged from supplies to even kill orders. She liked to see Slavers die. Or brought to her. It was a... personal hobby. This job was a little different. It came from the part of her that will always strive to take a shot at the Alliance. No matter how big or small, if there was something out there that could further ruin their reputation, then Sabine wanted it. She wanted to hold it in her hands and watch as more of their government crumbled from it.

Of course, it wasn't too common knowledge how vigilant she was with this. How zealous her endeavours. So it was carefully explained to them both-- avoiding all mention or inkling of this-- as those drinks arrived and were handed over to the respective gentlemen.

"I like your willingness, Captain Clark." The screen was flicked back on, and various outlines of certain areas-- the "walls" of this bird's eye view-- glowed.

"The facility is protected enough for the Alliance. Enough men to keep things safe without going over their budget. The building's main security station is in in the basement area. Down here. There are also three small, quick-response stations on these three floors. Don't worry about the lower two. You'll need to head to this floor for the file."

The map swapped between floors until it was at the right one, showing the layout. A white, glowing dot appeared in one of the rooms.

"This is where the file is kept. They're all classed as 'sensitive material' and will all be sealed in their own folders. Metallic strips on the inside prevent anyone from tampering with them without the archivists knowing. I already have my own means to disable it, and you won't need to worry about it."

Of course, Sidney's questions were important concerns. The resistance they'd face. She'd already mentioned the number of security stations, but the men within them was a different matter.

"The main, basement station holds about fifteen men when at full staff, with a back-up response time of ninety seconds-- provided the lifts are operational. Something to think about."

Sabine cleared her throat and continued.

"The two lower stations below our target floor have four men each, with a response time of thirty seconds-- again, with the elevators working. The team on our floor is made up of five men. Their response time is ten seconds."

A few discs and electronic blueprints were lifted up and shown, before Sabine placed them on the table before the good Captain and his gunhand.

"In here is all the information you'll need. It also has the guard change-over times, and a contact of mine should you want to try the uniformed approach. He will get you everything you could need to look like one of the security staff. Or an employee-- Archivist especially."

Sabine stopped there, going silent, her fingers steepled as she watched and waited for any more questions or just the confirmation that he had everything he needed. She'd pass her gaze between the two men. Hopefully, the task didn't seem too daunting.

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_{o o c ; Lemme know if all this is okay by you two, I was sorta wingin' it and wasn't sure if you wanted great detail on the job. xD Also lemme know if it's all do-able.}

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[Sidney Bainbridge]

Sidney and James had both already begun plotting and planning in their own heads as she spoke of the place they were to brake in to with their own route of going about it. James had focused on a covert entry plan and Sidney an overt path. It would come down to the discussion back on the Trinity to decide what path they would take to get in there.

"We'll need a way to get Uniforms, and I need information on who aside from security can get access to the area we need." James stated as he thought about how they could come up with ways to walk right in and take it from under their nose.

For a moment Sidney paused and thought over James words and the implication it meant. If they were to go in covert it would mean only a few would be able to gain access and leave them in hot water if they did get found out. "I'll also need to know more about the structural capacity of the building. where are the weak points and where would one be able to hit the place and draw the most attention." Sidney requested.

He figured if they were able to breach the place and enter as a full team they might be able to pull it off, or use that as a distraction for a different approach point. It also crossed his mind if they could get a few in as a new security team they might be able to use a breach to cause a distraction for those inside to get to the file.

The brief moment while Sidney was focused on planning he had stopped paying attention to The young woman guarding the room, the thought of that crossed his mind and his eyes darted back up toward her only for a quick check to make sure she hadn't repositioned and taken a better tactical position. It seemed though at this point business was moving along and she wouldn't be posing a threat.

THey had covered most of what they would need and any further information could be gathered at a latter time if needed. James seemed set to move forward with this job and Sidney was ready to provide whatever back-up he would need for it.