“Yes, the villainess. And a bunch of goons she had hired.” Azura confirmed, then waited to see what Melanie would do. Thankfully the woman did not change her mind about investigating the contents of the vial. “I don't remember seeing anything suspicious inside the factory, but I was focused on dealing with Toxin and her goons, plus there was a lot of smoke limiting my view. The first time I saw the vial it was already in Toxin's possession and I thought it might be some kind of weapon. But she did not try to use it, and in fact seemed worried about it breaking. That got me curious and I decided to find out what it is before I decide what to do with it. Giving it to the police was too risky – far too many corrupt cops... and as for the factory owners, I wasn't sure how they would react if I were to approach them. In light of them covering up Toxin's presence, not giving it to them seems like the correct decision...” Azura explained. “I did not see anything suspicious inside the factory, but on my way out...” She quickly explained about the small robot she had destroyed. “Of course, it is possible that the robot was there for an unrelated reason, though I have no idea what that might be... Anyway, I hope the analysis will give us some idea what is in that vial, and that in turn will help me decide what to do with it.” She finished, before deciding to ask a question of her own. “You've heard rumors about the factory owners? What sort of rumors, exactly?”
Can't take her through the club. He shuffles to the window and works it open. This is going to hurt, he thinks before jumping out into the alley.
With her mind made up, Faye decided to check on her company and the recent developments. She quickly put on her usual attire and went to her office.
Jenny paused at her sister's question, her mind wondering to which fragrance she'd chosen that night before her face paled at the realized implication. After several hours of being fucked senseless by judge Holness, Jenny undoubtedly smelled like sex and cum. She froze when it dawned on her what Chastity may have meant, and Jenny was glad that her back was to her husband and sister so they couldn't see the blood drain from her face. "Oh, uh- I think I got it downtown." she replied quickly, now desperately wanting to get out of the room. "I um- I'm can't quite remember where." she lied and made a hasty exit. Once alone, Jenny took a minute to break down and freak out quietly, her mind racing with the inconvenience of her sister's arrival, and her implications. She also berated herself for failing to pay attention to Holness and Duke's conversation earlier, then again for so quickly and eagerly fucking the judge. "I begged him to cum in me!" she thought to herself in a panic, "What the fuck was I thinking!?" She felt like screaming for not making a quick stop to pick up 'Plan B' for two nights in a row now but settled herself down before she spiraled out of control. The rush of excitement she felt at that thought plagued the back of her mind and the pit of her gut however. She'd worry about all of those things later. At the moment, she needed to get out of her whorish clothes and get cleaned up. Once she'd finished cleaning up and stashing her 'work attire', Jenny quickly moved to the guest bedroom and quickly tidied up. It didn't take long, neither her nor Harold used the room much (if at all), and soon she was back in the living room sitting down next to her husband, cuddling up to him. Harold wasn't much of a drinker though, and didn't have much tolerance for alcohol. Once again sitting, Jenny took another sip of wine as she sat with her sister and husband. "So Chastity, you said you found a new job; whereabouts is it?" Jenny asked trying to relax.
"Because you know you've been chosen by a superior male," Squidlock whispers in Sarah's ear, "Someone capable of making use of your body in ways your husband never could." Returning his attention to the husband whose name he cannot be bothered to ask or consider at all, he says aloud, "I promise I will do her no harm so long as you do what I say" He then rattles off an address. A long abandoned sewage treatment plant that is across town from the aquarium but is indirectly linked by the city's underground tunnels that carry said sewage. And a time that is very late tomorrow night. "Remember," Squidlock growls, grinding his tentacle against Sarah's crotch harder, pressing the tip against the outline of her pussy against her yoga pants, "Tell her it was some 'mafia looking goons' that grabbed your luscious wife or something like that. If she shows up prepared for something like me, I'll know and... well... if you can't keep your promises, then I see no reason to keep mine."
"Oh, just a few improvised incendiary bombs. The grass fire shan't spread, I assure you." Lawrence says impassively, though there's the slightest smirk on his face. It disappears, however, as they get to work, pouring over the files. "Hmm, most of this is rather straightforward, a diverse portfolio of various companies, some that seem like good investments, and some that we should probably sell off, now that control has transferred to you." Vanessa looks at the companies, and sees a name that came up earlier - Mentek, a research holding focusing on brain implant technology. As she examines it, she sees a large amount of activity flowing into Mentek from other companies - someone's putting money into the company, but the reason why is a proprietal secret - she won't know what's going on until she officially assumes control.
"Nothing concrete." Valerius says as she examines the machine's readout screen, which flashes a bunch of numbers and technical terms Azura sadly can't comprehend. "But there has been word that the company that owns the factory - Ace, has been conducting experiments that cross the boundaries of ethics and legality - doing some sort of work on engineered organisms. I have no way of knowing for certain, though - access to their main research lab is heavily restricted."
Spoiler: Dex Roll D100: 51 (Minor Success) Sliding up the window, Sonata drops down to the filthy alley below, landing on a dumpster. Rolling, he manages to skirt his way across the ground unharmed, but a crack signals that the same can't be said for his prisoner. Looking at her, he sees her arm jutting out the wrong way.
Faye notes some of her employees looking at her in surprise as she enters the building. Moving to her office, she spots Crystal, who approaches nervously. "Uh, ma'am! It's good to see you again! There were some...developments while you were away. Danny-, I mean, Mr Preston, wanted to see you as soon as you got back into the office. He seemed a little...mad." The secretary gulps. Danny Preston is Faye's second-in-command, a competent and loyal man, if a bit serious and aggressive.
Harold presses himself up against his wife, enjoying her closeness, but soon the alcohol and the warmth of her body mix, and his head falls back. "J-Just going to... Close my... zzzzz...." Chastity giggles as she sees how fast the man went to sleep, before facing her sister. "Oh, I'll be teaching at the local high school - mainly ancient history. Plus, I'll be the new cheerleading coach. I'm also looking into doing something nights, but that's a secret." She smiles conspiratorially. "So what do you and Harold do?"
"N-No...L-Love my, ooh, husband..." Sarah groans, but her body shudders, knowing instictively that there's no lie in his words. "I-I'll remember... I'll do what you say..." The husband tries to nod, but fails due to the paralysis. "I'll tell her exactly what you want."
"Hngg" He grunts in both pain and annoyance. At least it's explainable. Sonata stops to reaffix his mask, now that the disguise is no longer needed, and carries the woman to another alley a block or two away. Then, he calls the police, using the gangster's cell phone if she has one. Speaking with the slightly synthesized sounding voice from earlier in the day, he says "Took down a gang leader. She's a couple blocks from Tinnitus nightclub."
"Mentek, this company. We need to investigate this thoroughly." Vanessa presses her finger on the paper, "On the off chance Oscar did manage to transfer his consciousness, or copy it. We'll probably find the answer here." She grumbled, "You stay here and sell the useless companies. I'll go visit this Mentek myself." She stands up to change into her usual tight dress, placing the collar in her fur coat. "I'll stay in contact. If I don't respond, send in our two new employees." Vanessa giggled as she drives to the mysterious company.
Faye frowned. "I will see him in my office." She said as she made her way there. "After he leaves, come to my office with reports." She said to Crystal. The blond made her way to her office. "Hello Danny." She greeted the man professionally. "What's going on?" She asked as she sat behind her desk.
"As you say, madame." As she leaves to get in her car, Vanessa sees her phone light up - the police have apparently called several times, as well as sent texts. Mentek's headquarters is a short drive out of the city, a large edifice of steel and glass. The carpark is rather full, so Vanessa has to navigate around looking for a spot - until she finds one marked Vanessa Fitzgerald - General Director in bold letters upon the ground. Parking, she crosses into the building, finding a large lobby filled with people in business suits and lab coats walking around and going about their business, looking like a completely legitimate company. At the desk, a pretty receptionist looks up at Vanessa before nodding her head deferentially, telling the person she was on the phone with that she'll have to call them back, before standing to address the heiress. "Miss Fitzgerald, welcome! I'll just let Doctor Lewis know you've arrived." She presses a button and talks into her phone set, and offers Vanessa tea or coffee, before a man in a lab coat emerges from an elevator. "Ms Fitzgerald, Doctor Valentin Lewis, at your service." He flashes her a smile. "Apologies for not rolling out the welcome wagon - we were told you'd be coming here soon, but no one gave us an exact day or time. Would you like a tour of the facilities?"
"Y-Yes, ma'am." Crystal nods and departs in a hurry. Soon after, her CFO arrives, a dark look on his face. "What's going on, Faye, is that you've been MIA for a month. We nearly lost that military contract because you stood the generals up for your meeting - I just barely managed to salvage it, but they could still pull out. And what's more, those Arch Corp guys show up, citing some contract I've never heard of before, and start using our facilities and equipment." He sighs. "I know I owe you a lot, Faye, giving me my dad's old job after he died, when I was young and inexperienced, but this is a big deal."
While waiting for the car to heat up, Vanessa reads the texts from the police. As well as sending them a message telling her that she's doing well, and that once things have calmed down, and she's sure that there's no danger to her life, only then will she come and speak with them. After sending the text, she drives off. Surprised to see how many cars were parked, and that there's already a private parking spot just for her. Vanessa heads into the building, declining the offer of a bevarage. She gives Doctor Lewis a smile, "And who told you that exactly?" The heiress asked, as she herself was unaware that she now owns this particular lab until recently. "I'd also love to have a tour of the place, that is, if you're not busy."
"Err, I thought you did. An email came in, shortly after we were informed about the change of ownership - I'm not sure from whom, I assumed it was from your staff. I must say, I'm delighted that you've decided to take an active interest in our operations, our previous owner remained strictly anonymous. In any case, time for the tour." He leads her into the elevator, taking her through several labs where white coated scientists do their work. "Our cornerstone projects at the moment are our military contracts - brain implants and modifications intended to increase intellect, reaction time and memory - we believe that through better control of the brain, we can help control a soldier's metabolism, creating a super soldier without the need for invasive or harmful serums like our competitors. We also do research on curing various forms of mental illness and brain damage, but, well... Our previous owner specified that the lion's share of funding would go to the military contracts, so that's more of a passion project. I was, ahem, actually wondering if you might be willing to alter that policy..." The scientist says nervously, scratching his neck. "And of course, we have the, uh, classified research projects in our secure lab underground."
"How odd." Vanessa mumbles, Aside from Lawrence and I only finding out about this company recently. The only other people that know are Oscar, a dead lawyer, and the one that snooped at his files. She thinks to herself just as they begin the tour. And as she heard the details, "Interesting, and how far along has that endeavor gone? Has it bore fruit?" The heiress asked, wanting to know if Oscar, or someone else has used such a technology. "But I agree. In this day and age, everyone's focused on the arms race. So yes, effective immediately, I want you to focus on medicinal goals." She nods, however, as Doctor Lewis informs her of the secret research. "Classified?" Vanessa raises her eyebrow, "I want to see them." She said in a serious tone, making it feel as if declining wasn't in the doctor's options.
