NOTE: This story is set in Rifts Earth and is about a Psi-ghost that I've created to play in the Park's RP Room. If you wish more details of the character or world background, please e-mail me: phantasm_psi@yahoo.com.
~^Phantasm had studied things intently during the last few weeks. Her employer had impressed with the amount of information on the target, but one had to verify it anyway...lest a missed tidbit lead to death in very short order when something that had been missed popped up. It had happened before, and she’d gotten out of those hard places but not without loosing something. Blood, usually, and of course there was the pain that went with it.^~
”So far, so good.” ~^The words float from pale pink lips with almost no volume as the silver-grey eyes watch the building through a Multi-Optics Helmet, in this case only a light helmet laced with the built-in sensors for a targeting sight, infrared optics system, telescopic monocular lens, and a thermo-imager. Sentries moved in regular patterns on the grounds, though not all were human. I wonder how many magical or psionic watchers there are...the info said not that many, 5-10 tops, but I would've gone for more in this case if I were those guys - the last directed at the building and it's occupants. For several lights glowed in the inky darkness, showing their owners burning the midnight oil on some project or other.^~
~^Okay, maybe the company just didn’t want too much attention, so kept things minimal on the outside. A few other targets had been like that over the years, though the security inside the building tended to be upped quite a bit more to compensate. Only one way to find out, after all, she was already half-paid for this job and just needed to sneak in and retrieve the information the client wanted and, if lucky, the prototype of the resulting weapon.^~ “I just hope there’s no Dogboys. They always make things far more chancy...”
~^Before the last of those words had left the lips, she was concentrating on one of her psionic abilities - taking the helmet off and placing it into the gearbag. On her body small gobs of ectoplasm began slipping out of skin pores, quickly gathering into a coating that covered all of her and that then began changing shape and texture. Instead of a woman of rather distinct oriental/Nordic ancestry, there stood a pale Caucasian male of finely sculpted features with blond hair that skirted his shoulders. Taking out a small case from the backpack, a pair of contacts are slipped out of it and then carefully applied to the eyes - turning the silver-grey orbs into a deep sky blue. Taking a moment to breath from the effort, she/he turned to admire the handiwork through a reflection on a nearby window. The height, however, had remained the same. That was a bit more problematic, but shouldn’t really make a difference. After all, it hadn’t ever before.^~
”Now then, time to go see what’s lurking in the lion’s den.” ~^A baritone and slightly amused voice filled the air with each word - far different than her usual distantly cool, but mellow, voice. The ectoplasm had nothing to do with this, it was a natural talent honed through hours of practice and past experience during missions, and came in very handy for something like this. After all, there was nothing quicker to ruin a disguise for a man than a woman’s voice coming out, well, that is other than the disguise being torn visibly. With a small smile curving the lips Phantasm bent down and reached into the black gearbag that was always filled with the paraphernalia needed for all kinds of missions she might take on. A loose pair of snot green overalls was pulled out, along with her usual pair of Techno-Wizard TK Pistols in their waist holsters, a grappling gun, a set of electro-adhesive pads built into black gloves to go with the ones in her boots, a PC-4000 Hand-Held Computer, a rather highly illegal automatic lock pick: release gun to pick locks without damaging them, and some smoke/flash grenades. A chest harness completes the group, quickly being shrugged on and the various stuff - other than the waist holsters and their occupants - slipped onto it at various points for quick use once the coveralls were taken off inside.^~
~^Straightening and again consulting the reflection in the window, the sky blue eyes intently studied the male figure that was reflected back, as the coveralls were slipped into. No obvious bulges gave away anything other than perhaps a mechanic with a few too many tools. The look was then completed when he/she bent and pulled out a small tool carrying case filled with sockets, laser welder, eye protectors, electric drill, and a few other essentials for this and that. What wasn’t so obvious about it was a scanner-proof compartment in the bottom of the case that had been used to hold various things over the time it had been in Phantasm’s possession. Again the lips quirked in a small smile of amused anticipation as the disguised figure slipped into the building whose window had been used for a mirror. Inside quick and silent steps lead to a back room where a small black van sat with the logo - Ghost Repair Services - You’ll never even know we were there - was done in white, complete with a small smiling ghost that vanished when looked at from the right angles. Some companies did have a sense of humour, and obviously it was appreciated in this case because Ghost RS had grown quite quickly over the last few years - including becoming the main repair service of the target company. Opening the driver’s side door, the tool case is tossed gently onto the passenger seat before Phantasm settled before the steering wheel and the door closed again.^~
~^Flicking on the radio to a PA Rock station, the keys were turned and the electric engine purred to life. Moments later the van drifted down the street at the posted speed towards the Matrix Industries building - it’s first barriers of fence and gate. The gate guard stepped confidently out of the gatehouse, a laser rifle held casually in his hands as he bent to look at Phantasm through the window of the van. A moment later, that clear piece of glass was lowered, and skyblue eyes stared out of the window to meet the guard’s brown ones levelly. The radio is turned off and silence filled the air for a long moment.^~
”Reason for requesting entry?” ~^Each word was crisp, demanding...and yet with a shade of boredom - though the laser rifle didn’t waver a millimeter in his hands.^~
”We got a call this morning about a glitch in sector 4’s LAN computers.” ~^Phantasm reached over to pull out a small pile of official documents from the glove compartment and handed them to the guard with an attitude of casualness with the situation, after all this kind of thing was routine.. The laser rifle was shouldered as the papers were looked over carefully for a few minutes, then with a small grunt of satisfaction, the pile is handed back.^~
”Looks good, Mr. Nichols. You’re cleared to enter....any idea how long it’ll take?” ~^Normal words, but with a hint of both interest and command. The papers might be right, but that didn’t seem to lower this one’s level of caution any. A rather refreshing, though somewhat irritating, attitude Phantasm thought.^~
~^Thinking the question over a long moment, he/she hummed a little as the repairs were considered realistically - after all, one didn’t blow a cover this early or at all if it could be helped. Besides it was sometimes fun to give yourself a time constraint when there normally wouldn’t be one to help keep the edge up to par.^~ “Oh, I imagine a couple hours tops for this kind of thing. Probably a software glitch - I’ll be sure to notify someone if it should turn out to be a hardware one - but the former are far more common.”
~^A faint smile curved the lips of the guard as he nodded in acceptance of this assessment - after all it was about standard from what he’d seen over the last couple years since taking this job. The laser rifle stayed shouldered as the radio mike was lowered and he talked quietly with the other man still inside the gatehouse. A second later the metal screen began to move aside and with a small wave the challenger stepped back from the van. Phantasm smiled and nodded politely to him, then put the van into gear and slowly drove into the building’s compound. Several sensor rods stuck up from the ground like individual porcupine quills in the ground, ready to spot anyone foolish enough to try and cross the grounds at night without the proper identification tag being worn. However, such things were of no concern unless things truly went into a fucked up beyond all recognition style of mess. Which hadn’t happened to him/her in a long time...after all, that’s what the word “pro” was all about. The van purred quietly along the paved driveway, then parked in a visitor stall about 10 yards from the building’s main doors.^~
~^A small hidden button was pressed on the dashboard with the left forefinger, and a moment later the radio slid out to reveal a small monitor screen. Green light flowed over its surface to be met by red, yellow, and blue from other points to form a map of the complex from an eagle’s perspective. Passive sensors “felt” along the building but were rebuffed from moving inside.^~ “Hmmmm...that’s slightly odd, and not exactly something covered in the intel. Ah well, there’s always something that’s missed or left out, I’ll just have to keep a better eye out.”
For those interested in her profile an haven't found it before getting to the story, here it is: Phantasm's Profile
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