Body

(Sept. 20-21, 2003/2216)

[Radio] You send Kalinka a direct message: "Hey."

[Radio] Kalinka sends you a tightbeam radio transmission: "*whispering* Hey there."

[Radio] You send Kalinka a direct message: "*quiet* Catch ya at a bad time?"

[Radio] Kalinka sends you a tightbeam radio transmission: "*whispers* I am in a...yeah. Bad time. But I will call you back."

[Radio] You send Kalinka a direct message: "Okay."

(Some time later...)

[Radio] Gemini Man sends you a tightbeam radio transmission: "Your girlfriend hangs out with some very interesting company."

[Radio] You send Gemini Man a direct message: "*sigh* Now whut?"

[Radio] Gemini Man sends you a tightbeam radio transmission: "Oh. Sorry. Ex-girl-friend, we're sure." "Unless you'd still hang out with the kind of girl who'd sell her body in Tartarus."

[Radio] You send Gemini Man a direct message: "..."

[Radio] You send Gemini Man a direct message: "Tell me whare she is."

[Radio] Gemini Man sends you a tightbeam radio transmission: "The Cave bar in Tartarus. Downstairs on the dance floor right between Bass being melodramatic and our four eyes watching her."

[Radio] You send Gemini Man a direct message: "Be thare shortly."

(And so Bowie dons this disguise...

Bowie(#4856POenAC)

The man before you is neither extremely tall nor extremely short, standing at a little under six feet (180 cm), and of a medium build. His features have a Native American cast to them, with bronze-toned skin, high, flat cheekbones and a straight nose, his eyes a dark shade of brown. Tribal-pattern tattoos or paint accentuate these features: an eagle traced on his left cheek, a cougar on the right. A scarlet headband keeps his raven black hair out of his face, letting it cascade down past his shoulders.

His clothes continue in the tribal theme, wearing a black tee shirt with a mythological thunderbird emblazoned in scarlet and a pair of equally black jeans. Over this he's donned a short brown suede jacket, fringed along the arms and shoulders. His oversized feet are shod in black biker boots with silver rings riveted around the ankles. All have a frayed and faded look to them, worn past their prime.

...And then he makes a run for Tartarus.)

Tartarus - The Cave

Strobing lights, loud music, heavy drinks and thick crowds, this is typically how it is in the Cave, a bar set below street level, and the popular place to hang out when not frequenting the Pit and placing bets on the gladitorial bouts. There's three levels to the Cave, the ground floor being where most people go, having a huge dance area and a bar, all centered around the stage in the middle of the room, usually showing various professional dancers or band members putting on their shows. The second level is where much of the seating is, giving a balcony view of the dance floor below and the bands playing their music. The third and final level is for the wealthy, with private booths and more specialized service such as personal catering, where those who have the money to throw around can drink and socialize in peace...as well as talk business. At every entrance into the complex automated drones stand on guard, vigilant and ever on the lookout for troublemakers, able to call for reinforcements in a moment's notice. The atmosphere is carefree and wild, but it's quite known that excessive wildness will not be tolerated.

Zero [Red] [MH] Blues [Unarmored] [MH]

Gemini Man [Normal] [RM] Dynamo [Armored] [C]

[Stealthed] Bass [Matic] [RM] Kalinka [Nocturne] [MH]

South <S> leads to Tartarus - Residential District.

Bass collects the cards and begins shuffling them once again, sitting back in his seat. "You have no eye for art or beauty, Zero. This is why you will never grasp the full grandeur of this war."

Dynamo grins. "Don't think I didn't try to get a Buster when I was activated... but you all shall for now, and probably always will, remain unique."

[OOC] Bass says, "Bass, Blues, Dynamo and Zero are upstairs, sitting at a table and playing poker. Kalinka is assumedly downstairs, being felt up by drunks and esctasy fiends. Gemini Man is also around."

Zero chuckles, "Pops built me to be the guy he'd live his fantasies voraciously throught, not make profound statements about geopolitical issues."

Blues says, "There's a reason the pandora's box is sealed. But quite frankly, Zero, I don't ever want to hear about Wily and his fantasies involving you ever again."

At the last radio message, both of the Geminis stand up. The one with the beer abandons it, heading over for the card table, however bold the action might be. The one without, heads off down the stairs, toward where he saw Kalinka last. Two courses of action that seem more entertaining than continual eavesdropping.

"By the way. Zero. How are you doing in charge of the Maverick Hunters?" Gemini Man asks as he walks up.

Kalinka finally got out of the crowd crunch, and now she's found another wall to lean up against. A man offers her some sort of cigarette, which she turns down with a look of uppity disinterest. She eyes the exit, which now doesn't look NEARLY as far away as it was before...

Zero leans back a bit as Gemini addresses him, smiling at the notion that other people actually realize he's calling the shots now. He shrugs, "I at least have the power from keeping them from doing f'n retarded crap now, like when we invited Elec Man to stay over for dinner. I don't know what the hell was going on up there in Blueberry's head."

Yet another nondescript person climbs down the stairs leading to the bar and passes through the doors. He doesn't give the bar or balcony a second glance as he heads in the direction of the dance floor.

Blues says, "Hope, dumbass."

Bass begins dealing. "His problem, Zero, is that he believes in the fundamental goodness of sentient life. Unfortunately, this is not the case, as everyone at this table can attest." He finishes dealing and looks over his hand. "Hope. Such an interesting idea."

Zero snorts at Blues, "You're a fine one to talk about that."

Blues shrugs as he takes his cards. "Without hope, we have no point. And yes, I am, given that lately I have to claw for things to hold onto....otherwise, with the exception of Bass, nearly every single one of us goes about killing and fighting for no more point than making bigger explosions every day. We have hope that we'll do something with how we fight. We have hope that we'll make it safe for humans, or in the Mavericks, that they'll make it safe for Reploids...hope fuels the war just as much as the bodies and weapons do."

A figure shoves Kalinka from behind. ... Interesting how suddenly he got there, but, he is a hologram. And Gemini tries to pretend he just wasn't paying attention, when he brushes up against the girl. "Oh. 'Scuse us. You trying to get out this way?" He then slips around and interposes himself between her and the door. Slick-like.

The Gemini upstairs gives a little 'humph' as the conversation goes all philosophical. "You're WELCOME," he mutters toward Zero. Then he peers around and tries to get a glimpse of the estranged brother's cards.

Dynamo hrms quietly. "Hope... it's an essential human vanity." He looks at blues for a moment. "And I suppose I'm different in that I don't fight for any of your causes, but if you want to say that drawing profit is more than no point, then I suppose I have one too."

Blues says, "You have a hope you'll be richer."

"Everyone has a reason, whether it is given to them or they make it up," says Bass, putting in his ante. "I'll say this, though. Collateral Raptor's primary weapon definitely does the job."

Blues says, "Oh, did you finally get it? Does it automatically kill hospitals full of children, or is that just a switch you can turn on and off?"

Bass laughs.

Kalinka narrows her eyes at the Gemini Twin as he bumps into her, somewhat irked but not at all frightened at the moment. "Hey, what gives?" she asks. She has an American accent down almost perfectly. Almost.

Zero blinks at Gemini, "Uh... what I do?" He shrugs his shoulders and waves a hand at the pot, "I'll sit out of this hand." H e then turns to drape himself over the back of his chair as he address Gemini, "What's your deal, doublemint?"

Dynamo laughs brusquely. "I don't know... Collateral went down like a sack of potatoes after an energy pulse field. I really don't know why they bother to keep him around." He tosses in his ante, finishing off his drink.

Blues says, "Technially, he's a girl, but I have to admit it's hard to tell."

"Does it really matter?" says Bass. "It's a thing. A walking gun platform with the personality of one of those damned penguins Gemini keeps around."

Zero blinks at that, "Doubletrouble keeps penguins too?"

Blues says, "I thought that's where Pi came from."

The aforementioned nondescript individual (okay, it's Bowie. Give him a break.) descends the short flight of stairs to the dance floor, joining the mob flowing and ebbing with the pulse of the music. He weaves among them, looking for a certain young woman...or failing that, a certain Robot Master.

Gemini Man puffs smoke out of the corner of his mouth. "Basking in the glory of your presence, we guess. Just bored. And... yeah, yeah, we do." About the penguins. "So what?" He gives Bass a look. His penguins were not to be mocked. They were a lot cleaner than the stupid dog.

The Gemini downstairs gives Kalinka an up-and-down look. Then, he smiles at her, his usual wry smile. "Sorry. You're not fooling anyone."

(Kalinka

Kalinka Dmitriev is a disavowed Hunter, a disowned daughter who must overcome formidable obstacles to fulfill some great expectations. She's a thin, willowy girl in her mid-teens who stands at about 5'8". Her hair is medium-length, dyed a deep mahogany brown, and set in a wavy perm which she keeps bound in a neat ponytail. Her bright blue eyes stand out against a very pale complexion. While her features are very attractive, she has a certain world-weariness about her that can be seen in her eyes.

Kalinka's current outfit could best be described as a cross between cat burglar, and Catwoman. She wears a black PVC jumpsuit, which accentuates her slender figure, though it isn't intended to be as fashionable as it is functional. Her utility belt is about as stocked as a superhero's, chock-full of small tools and devices. Sturdy black boots protect her feet.

Carrying:

Sneak)

Zero ponders, as he looks back at Blues momentarily, "You know, I'm not sure where I picked him up, he almost seemed to find me more so than I found him. Peculiar little bastard he is." He then looks back over at Gemini, "Eh, just wondered, it's not often I meet someone else who keeps a penguin for a pet."

Bass flicks five zenny into the pot. "Penguins. I just don't get it."

Blues says, "Cleaner than a dog, I suppose. But I'd imagine the beer gets expensive..." Tossing in his five, he looks idly at his cards. "I think I'll let someone else raise first."

Kalinka weighs her options, which at this point are few. It's just too bad this is the hologram; she has plenty of lovely little surprises on her belt that could serve as a good deterrant otherwise. But that doesn't mean she's helpless. There's still a chance she can be quicker than he is, on the way to the door. She just glares back at the Twin, neither confirming nor denying his observation.

Dynamo says nothing, for the moment, anyway. Booyah.

"So be it," says Bass. "I'll raise five." Another five goes in. "Treble is quite clean."

Dynamo hrms. "See it, raise ten." He grins. "I don't suppose Blade counts as a pet, does she?"

"It's like being assigned to a barracks," Gemini Man Upstairs says, shrugging. He turns around, and grabs a chair, sitting himself down in it just because. Obviously the game is unimportant. "They're our drones. More loyal than mets." As Bass can at least attest. "Less useful than giant pandas." Marginally.

Gemini Downstairs, of course, is solid enough that SOME tricks might work on him, though it's hard to tell which ones would. "Not talking? What brings you out here?" he asks Kalinka.

Blues says, "Not if you aren't willing to offer her as collateral. Fine...ten? Damn....but why not. I'll raise another ten."

Bowie spots holo-Gemini first. He's a little hard to miss in the crowd, even in a place like this. He slips between a knot of dancers and a gaggle of giggling girls, stepping over someone spilled mixed drink, on his way to join him.

Bass flips another couple zenny into the pot. "Meet that and raise another five," he says, bringing it to 30. "I hate Mets. And trees. Dogs are cool, though. Treble is extremely useful."

Zero chuckles a bit, "I assume you're no friend of mass transit either, especially buses."

Blues says, "He does the most interesting things with buses..."

"^&**ing busses," mutters Bass, pouring another glass of brandy.

Dynamo looks at his hand, tosses in fifteen. "I'll call that," he says. "And I told you already, buy your own." He grins.

Zero snickers and then notes to Gemini, "I wish mine was loyal, mine's a pain in my ass."

Blues grunts as he tosses in his call.

"Call," says Bass, putting in his bet. "Alright, Dynamo, you seem to have all the cards, let's see 'em."

"That is none of your concern," Kalinka says to the Twin. "In fact, my whole agenda is none of your concern." Her eyes widen as she sees...a tattooed punk, heading in her direction...a punk who seems especially familiar to her.

Dynamo smirks. "The truth is hardly as impressive as the bluster." He flips over his cards. "Three sevens. Lucky number, maybe, but I doubt I'll be taking this one in."

"Dammit," says Bass, revealing a pair of eights: hearts and spades. "Proto Man, I hope you have something better."

Blues flips over a King, a Queen, a Jack, a Ten, a Nine, and one of the 8s that Bass didn't have. And hey, they all match! "I think that counts."

Dynamo laughs. "Well played. Looks like I'm going home to the poorhouse tonight."

Gemini Man, downstars, notices Bowie approaching, mostly through following Kalinka's eyes in that direction. That took long enough. "We just do all kinds of favors for people, don't we? This is the second time we've walked you home from a hole like this, even if indirectly. One of these days, we're gonna call 'em in."

The Gemini upstairs just watches the cards drop. He doesn't really find this kind of gambling exciting.

"He's a shark," says Bass, prodding the winnings towards Blues. "It's the sunglasses."

Zero stands up, dropping a ten on the table, "There to sweeten the pot, I gotta get goin' boys. Got some work to do."

Blues says, "I'll probably get closed out the rest of the night....but at least I got Zero's money."

Blues sends a radio transmission.

Zero receives a radio transmission from Blues.

"And I guess that's the important thing," says Bass, collecting the cards. "Good evening, Zero. Thanks for playing."

Zero sends a radio transmission to Blues.

Blues receives a radio transmission.

Blues sends a radio transmission.

Zero receives a radio transmission from Blues.

Zero sends a radio transmission.

Blues receives a radio transmission.

And once again the cavalry saves the day. Sort of. Bowie nods to Gemini as he joins them, brow furrowed, and then turns to regard his conversation partner. Questions will wait until later. He does, however, offer a barely audible "Thanks."

Zero has disconnected.

Kalinka is relieved to see Bowie, though she doesn't seem to be in any distress, other than supreme annoyance toward the Gemini Twin. "You really think you do favors for me? Is that what you call them? You really have no idea what I have been through or am going through, and frankly, it is none of your business either."

"She's real stupid, you see. And clearly loose. Dump her." The hologram Gemini turns his hand around, and gives Kalinka a good whack on the rear, as a method by which to push her in Bowie's direction. Some favor.

Dynamo hrms. "I need a darker pair of shades, then."

Blues says, "The red shades are pretty well associated with Ron Perlman and other poseurs."

"Red, hell. Start with not pink," says Bass, shuffling the cards, then starting to deal. "I mean, I know you like the warm colors, but come on."

Dynamo shrugs. "It's a style. I can't really help it... I was built this way, after all. I've grown rather partial of them... and they do keep stuff out of my eyes in a fight." He antes up, but doesn't look at his cards yet.

Blues sighs as he examines these cards. "So does a turban. Nobody except Flame Man tries that in a fight."

Bass antes in after examining his cards. "Flame Man, now that's someone I haven't seen in a while."

Gemini Man ,upstairs glances at Dynamo for a second. Weird. He had no urge to try and kill him today. A feeling that left him vaugely disappointed in himself. "Lame," he pipes in, at the mention of Flame Man. "Honestly."

Dynamo casts a quick gaze at Gemini Man, smiling down at the guy. Of course he knew he was here... he's not blind. "Well, a visor's one thing, but keeping a big cloth wrapper on your head? No thank you." He studies his cards neutrally. "Ten."

Blues shrugs. "I assume he caught himself on fire or something..." Then, he shakes his head as he calmly folds out. "Best to let them cool off a hand."

"Alright, I'll just take Dynamo's money," says Bass. "No, I honestly haven't seen him. I'll see your ten."

Dynamo grins. "Now, the question arises. Do I go with what's already here, or do I go for the big bucks and hope I don't hit a Whammy?" He toys with his money for a second. "Fine. Call."

"We'd tell you, but I guess it was rhetorical," Gemini mentions, toward Protoman's direction. "Guess you don't keep track of Masters who aren't Plant Man."

Blues says, "I keep track of threats, Gemini. Or who try to get my attention. Flame Man is neither."

Bass smoothly lowers his hand. "Three aces," says Bass, and there they are.

Dynamo winces, but it seems somewhat disingenuous. "Nice, nice." He reveals. "Full house, fours and... queens."

Bass groans. "Of course. Queens." He pushes the money towards Dynamo without looking at him. "Just take it. Take it all."

Bowie catches Kalinka in his arms, before she falls flat on her face. He glares daggers at Gemini for a moment, but no verbal retort follows.

Kalinka whispers: I will show you why I was here, when we get outside. I actually do have method for my madness, sometimes.

Blues says, "...I'm not going to laugh at it. I would. I should. But I'm not. Yet."

Dynamo shakes his head. "Again with the queens. But I suppose I should be used to it." He collects his pot. "But I warrant I'll not win again. I've never had the skill for gambling, except maybe for a good poker face."

Bass gathers up the cards and shuffles a little longer this time. "I'm surrounded by sharks," says Bass. "the cards just aren't with me today." He idly glances down at the dance floor.

Kalinka shoots the Gemini Twin a withering look, murmuring something into Bowie's ear softly.

Gemini Man watches the shuffle upstairs with some curiosity. He decides, after some thought, that he is honestly baffled as to why the animosity is drained out of the scene. He doesn't even feel the urge to mock Protoman a second time. "Is this a regular thing you people do?"

Bowie puts an arm around Kalinka and turns, moving to head back through the crowd. Unless, of course, someone intends to stop him.

Dynamo hrms. "I gotta wet my whistle... I'm out this hand."

Blues shrugs a bit. "Mmm...sometimes. Sometimes not..." Looking at Bass, he raises an eyebrow. "Do you really want to lose more money?"

Kalinka heads back out with Bowie, looking for all intents like a sleaze stepping out with a gutterpunk.

Kalinka enters the Tartarus - Residential District.

Kalinka has left.

(We go outside.)

Tartarus - Residential District

This section of the city is where the majority of the permanent populace claims residence. Despite the reputaton that Tartarus may have as a magnet for the lower dregs of society, this place is kept suprisingly orderly and efficient. While it still wouldn't be advised for a lone person to wander the streets at night without some method of being able to defend themselves, the peace is kept by regular droid patrols to enforce the laws of Tartarus. Most dwellings are kept in simple apartment blocks, though there is an upraised, special platform area where the decidedly more wealthy keep their own homes, emphasized by the much larger and more elaborate dwellings...as well as the healthy collection of personal security droids and mercenaries, making this 'upper echelon' area virtually crime free.

It's not the safest of places to call home at times, but it's a perfectly viable option to those who might have legal or otherwise personal reasons that they can't live amongst the populations of the rest of the world.

Kalinka [Nocturne] [MH]

North <N> leads to Tartarus - The Cave.

West <W> leads to Tartarus - Arena Square.

"Okay, come here," Kalinka says excitedly. "I will show you why I was here -- you will not think I am crazy anymore, I swear it!" She begins leading Bowie down a nearby alleyway rather urgently.

Bowie continues to hold Kalinka close as they exit the bar. Any observers on the street will no doubt draw the wrong conclusions (or perhaps the conclusions he's hoping to create) as they enter the alleyway. Once out of sight, he scowls angrily at her but holds his temper in check. "This better be good."

Undaunted, Kalinka leads Bowie down to the end of an alleyway, where there is...a man, tied up and gagged with a cloth around his mouth. He begins wriggling desperately as Kalinka rounds the corner with Bowie. "Shut up and sit still," Kalinka orders him, and he complies meekly. Kalinka then explains... "Do you remember when you saved me from the drug dealers in Mexico? That is something I will never forget. And lately, I did get to thinking about that. I know I have screwed up in so many ways, but...I want to make a difference, a POSITIVE difference, like you made the positive difference for me. So I came here, to the most hopeless place on Earth, to bring a little bit of hope to someone. And I found my chance." She 'gestures' to the tied-up man by kicking him in the side -- not hard, but enough for him to feel it. "This piece of human garbage was pimping girls on the street. Girls younger than me, Bowie. I rescued them and put this guy out of business. And you know what? It came from my heart, and...it felt really, really good. I did bring hope to someone else. A positive difference was made."

Bowie is, for a moment, taken completely by surprise. He glares down at the tied up man for a long moment, then looks up at her once more. His anger is still apparent, but it's been tempered somewhat by her explanation. "Mmmhmmm."

"I am sorry that Gemini caught me. Maybe my disguise was not as good as I had hoped," Kalinka admits. "I just...felt the need to do some mending. Mending of hurting lives. So much is up in the air right now...and...sitting at home waiting for the trial is maddening." She looks around, then murmurs..."Maybe we should get out of here..."

Bowie gestures to the man still lying at their feet. "Whut about him?"

Kalinka hrms. "There will be no justice for him here, if I let him go he will just pick up some more girls and do this all over again...maybe I will leave him at a police station," she muses.

Bowie stoops down, hoists the trussed-up pimp over one shoulder, and starts walking towards the mouth of the alley. Good an answer as any, he supposes. This being Tartarus, it's doubtful anyone will interfere with them.

(This was RP'd out the following day, but we'll pretend it took place immediately after, mmmkay? They return to Kali's lab in Moscow.)

Small Laboratory <SL>

The interior of this laboratory is somewhat claustrophobic, not only in square feet, but the windows are also shuttered much of the time. Whatever goes on in this place, the owner does not want it to be anyone's business. The front portion of the building is a small waiting room, complete with a receptionist's booth. Perhaps at one time, this place was a clinic of some sort. Threadbare but clean burnt-orange carpeting and beige walls flesh out the bland decor of this front room.

The back portion of the office, however, is entirely different. It is part laboratory, part classroom, and part dorm room. There's a computer station that's always on, an old-fashioned chalkboard on one wall (with equations written all over it), several lab tables with machines and various chemical experiments in progress, an old wooden study desk with what appears to be Russian textbooks spread across it, and a few bookshelves of scientific reference manuals in both Russian and English. In the corner of the room, a twin bed is set up and neatly made. There's a few posters on the walls, closet and bathroom doors...mostly of young Russian hockey and soccer stars, though there's a few beefcake pictures taped up of some egotistical-looking Mexican fellow as well.

Contents:

Kalinka

A short time after they leave Tartarus and the trussed-up pimp dropped off at a police station somewhere in England, the two finally make it back to the lab in Moscow. Bowie is still scowling, but he's held his tongue thus far.

Once inside, Kalinka heads into the back lab area, changes out of her outfit into something more comfortable, then re-emerges into the front room. "Will you stay for a while?" she asks.

Bowie waits in the front room as she changes. While waiting, he shrugs out of his synth-leather jacket and drapes it over a convenient box. "We need to talk."

Kalinka nods. "Okay," she agrees, offering a chair as she has a seat.

Bowie takes the chair, turning it around backwards so that he can rest his arms on the back as he sits down. Judging by his expression, he is still quite upset. "Are ya deliberately tryin t'get yerself killed?"

Kalinka shakes her head, answering softly. "No...that was not at all my intention...I did not mean to upset you at all, you must believe that..."

"Then why didn't ya tell me whare you were goin or whut ya were doin?" Bowie asks, voice angry but not raised. "Or did ya act without thankin again?"

"I...did not know you still wanted to know that," Kalinka admits. "I thought that was only when I was in the Hunters...and before I had messed up things and was still in the 'protection' of the 'family'...Since Daddy no longer cares if I am protected or not, I did not think it would...be a big thing, to try to do this. But...I can do that, I can tell you next time if I plan to do something like this. Please, I do not want to mess up and be a loser, again and again!"

Kalinka says, "I just want to do something right for a change. I want to make a positive difference, like I did for those girls and I like I want for...for you and me."

Bowie says "Ah'm not sayin whut ya did wus wrong, Kali. But how ya went about it...ya went thare alone. No backup. No much as a word about whut ya were doin. Ya coulda been raped, or killed. And no one woulda known." Pause. "Gemini Man told me whare ya were. Gemini Man. Ya thank Ah wanted t'learn about whare ya were frum him?"

Kalinka looks down, somewhat ashamed at this point. "...No..."

Bowie says nothing more for a moment, letting the silence build. "Ah love ya, Kalinka. That's why Ah can't stand by an watch ya take risk after risk like this. It's like ya act first than thank later. An that's adang good way a endin up dead."

Kalinka nods. "So...you will help if I want to do something like that again?" she asks, looking over at him. "And you would not tell the Hunters? Maybe I did underestimate the problems I would have there."

"Mah duty's still to the Hunters, so anythang we do together is gonna have t'be on mah off time," Bowie states. "Ya get any more ideas like this, ya tell me first. Ah like it, we do it. Ah don't like it, ya have t'thank a somethang else."

Kalinka smiles slightly. "Deal," she says. "Oh, and since I have nothing but off-time these days, if you could use a little bit of unsolicited help on a mission...I would still love to help, you know that."

Bowie admits, "Ah don't thank that'll go over well with the Hunters right now."

Kalinka sighs, slumping in the chair and looking across the room at the wall.

Bowie is not terribly sympathetic right now. "Ya gotta live with whut ya did, Kalinka. Neither Ah nor anyone can change that. An whut ya did tonight isn't buildin any trust between us."

Kalinka nods, just looking like she's going to cry at any moment.

Bowie is still scowling. At this rate, it may become a permenant fixture. Again, the silence looms.

Kalinka says, "I...I am sorry...I will try harder...it is all I can do, is try harder...what can I say to make things right? I already did go right to Abernathy and tell him I was sorry. I meant it. He did not care. I just do not know what I should do. I -am- sorry...I want to make amends...""

"Ah know ya do," Bowie says quietly. His anger has lessened, and with it the tension in his voice. "If ya want mah advice, ye need t'learn to thank thangs through first."

Kalinka nods, wiping some tears off her face with her fingers. "I will, I will talk more with you from now on...I just did not think this would upset you, because I was doing something you are good at doing..saving the day. Not screwing up yet again."

"Ah've also got more experience than ya," Bowie points out. "An Ah'm a reploid. Ah can take more punishment than you."

Kalinka nods. "Very true," she admits. "Though I have training with fighting, and some martial arts too...this is why I thought I could succeed."

Bowie shakes his head. "Sometimes that's not enough. Especially when yer goin up against somebody much bigger an stronger than ya....some pimps spend money on protection, ya know. Yer very lucky that guy didn't have a bodyguard."