After a little bit more minor quibbling, the group decides to take Constable Pal'dun up on his offer, and they follow him outside the building.
Considering the less than ideal state of the club, the grounds outside the building look quite nice, if a bit gloomy. It is pretty easy to tell that it is up in the Tuli Hills area overlooking Danstul' Park; beyond the sculpted lawns and gardens there is little to be seen but tree-covered hills and the upper stories of a couple of rather old-looking, Yangae-style towers. The building in which the club is housed is of similar style and age, and it is actually rather stately.
There are a number of vehicles parked in a haphazard fashion. Most of them are Peace Force vans, bikes, and cruisers, but there are also a few more ordinary-looking cars and a microbus. The Geishana ambulances are just now starting to get underway. Tellingly, there is a garage/hangar structure nearby, and its one open door shows only an empty space.
Dauk can be seen getting into a Peace Force cruiser that is obviously preparing to leave. Pru, on the other hand, appears to be walking toward the gate to the estate at a slow pace.
As the group makes its way toward one of the vans, Pal'dun gestures to the nearby officers, and they salute and step aside. Before anyone can board, however, Pal'dun comes to a halt and holds up his hand.
The sound of running, booted feet can be heard. It's Constable Betham. Drawing near to the group, he heaves a heavy sigh and does a little dance of irritation before he says, "You're leaving, are you? Alright then. Just be careful and stay out of trouble, would you? And stay in touch! This isn't over yet."
"You mean we haven't beaten it yet?" says Lirassa sarcastically.
Psy-gifted or not, Betham shows no sign of getting the joke. Glaring, he leans in closer and adds more quietly, "Maybe this is a temporary victory. We still have two very big problems here. One, Mas'Vallaf is still missing, and it looks like he has his top thugs with him. Two, Br'am was right about one point; Par'ai said it was all happening at the Scarlet Revival. This is the Scarlet Revival, and it's not the place we're looking for. As far as evidence is concerned, we've got til'uan droppings. You know we're gonna need a lot more than that to even make a case."
"If I may," says Pal'dun, "there's still the Second Chancer videos. They're coming out in a few days! We can try to delay them, but..."
"But we'd end up knee-deep in political kĕl'wàk," spits Betham. "We've got no case. Curse it, we don't even know who's distributing the damned things! Bottom line, we need anything we can get. Any tidbit of info. You find something, you let me know! And don't try to take any action on your own! We barely got out of this one, right? Best path!" With that, he bows stiffly, turns on his heel, and stomps off.
"Right," says Pal'dun. He gestures toward the van. "Shall we go?"
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Mon'Fargret instinctively brushes his moustache with his right thumb and forefinger, "Thank you for the assistance, Pal'dun. It is appreciated. What Betham said about the Scarlet Revival...I wonder if Par'ai's words had a double meaning? Lirassa, I bet you weren't expecting him to take your comment seriously, but his answer makes me think."
As the group starts to board the van, Lirassa says, "I know what you mean. Now that I think about it, as much as I don't want to remember that damned video, I do remember the host mentioning the Scarlet Revival. I figured that was the name of the club. Par'ai probably did, too." She glances at Mey'Luskar. "Is there anything you can tell us about this?"
Mey'Luskar purses her lips and looks at Bina, who only eyes her blankly in return. Sighing, she says, "The Scarlet Revival isn't a place. It's an organization."
Zeton helps out as best he can to the group and their belongings aboard the van. Upon hearing Mey's explanation about the Scarlet Revival, he begins to formulate a plan to learn as much as possible about it and wonders what Nekshi's reaction will be to this new piece to the puzzle.
Widjgleebe mutters to herself as she tries to squeeze through a Hergoth sized van door. She hopes they really are going back to Wirg's. She's hungry.
Once everyone is more or less settled in the van, Constable Pal'dun powers up the engine, waves at his fellows, and eases out onto the lane.
"I'll keep it on the ground," he says cheerfully. "We don't have so far to go."
No sooner does the van clear the gate then Mey'Luskar suddenly gasps and begins bouncing up and down in her seat shouting, "Wait! Wait! Stop, stop, stop!"
Pal'dun stops the van immediately. "What is it?"
"Let me guess," says Lirassa with a sigh. "Your scooter, right?"
"Well, I can't just leave it here!" retorts Mey'Luskar.
There is the faintest hint of edge in Pal'dun's voice as he says, "Well, I suppose it might fit inside the van..." He looks uncertainly at Widjgleeby, who is filling most of the rear third of the vehicle.
Mey'Luskar pops open the door and dashes out before anyone can say another word.
Mon'Fargret says, "I better lend a hand...." and heads out of the van more to make sure Mey has assistance in case of funkiness.
Mey'Luskar is heading in the direction of one of the garages at a full sprint.
Bina hops out of the van behind Mon'Fargret and takes off after Mey'Luskar, overtaking her without much difficulty.
Mon'Fargret holds up a hand to keep the van at bay. He doesn't proceed at Bina's speed, but will aim to keep both the van and the women in sight.
"Constable Pal'dun, normally I'm not overly cautious, but is it a good idea to let Mey ride her bike if there is no room for it in the van?"
Zeton attempts to scan the area for anything unusual, (however, after the last couple of experiences he's had, Zeton is currenlty not sure what constitutes 'normal'), in order to reassure himself there is no reason to worry.
Before anyone else can answer, Lirassa cuts in with, "What, with Mas'Vallaf and his thugs still out there somewhere?" She chortles.
"No, I wouldn't consider it a good idea," says Pal'dun.
After Bina catches up with Mey'Luskar, the two can be seen to slow their pace as they talk, eventually coming to a stop in front of the garage door. It's clear that they are arguing, but not heatedly.
When Mon'Fargret closes the gap, he can hear Mey'Luskar saying, "I know, but I'm just...I've already had to deal with more of that than...I mean..."
"You won't notice a thing!" retorts Bina.
"Anyone care to guess what Bina might be saying to Mey? Do you think she's trying to talk her out of taking the bike?"
Mon'Fargret addresses to two women, "Not to rush you, but people are waiting."
Bina only glances at Mon'Fargret in acknowledgment and then turns her intent gaze back to Mey'Luskar.
Mey'Luskar looks at both in turn, wriggles her hips impatiently, and then stomps her foot. "Oh!" she moans. "Alright! We'll put it in the van!" With a huff, she turns and struts into the garage.
Bina straightens her ponytails with a sigh.
After a bit of thumping around in the garage, there is the sound of a gravcushion unit powering up. Then Mey'Luskar comes dashing out of the garage on her hoverscooter, buzzing Mon'Fargret and Bina as she passes. Heading straight to the waiting police van, she gracefully pivots into a lateral bank stop and hops off next to the rear doors. Then she switches the scooter off and assumes a cocky pose.
"I think she's ready," says Bina darkly. "Shall we go?"
"Yes." Zeton helps get the bike aboard and to get them underway as best he can.
Fortunately the scooter isn't very big, and the police van is relatively spacious. Even with Widjgleeby filling a good portion of the rear compartment, there's no problem getting the scooter in. The remainder of the party board the vehicle, and soon Pal'dun is underway again. The van threads its way along the curvy roads out of the hills and back into the main part of Ekr'in District.
Widjgleeby can't resist picking up the scooter and checking it out, drawing whimpers of protest from Mey'Luskar.
(We'll continue in a new post.)
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