Nomadic:Sessions:20180616

Marcus dreams that he is being pursued by a gang of people led by a woman and a man. Finally they have him trapped... but he shoots his way out, killing the man and woman (the latter attractive, but having a severe, scowling expression). He awakens in a cold sweat, very unusual for Marcus.

Vincente dreams that he is a young teenager, playing hide-and-seek with his cousins... though something makes him wonder whether this scene is from his own youth or someone else's. He is successfully evading one particularly persistent searcher who seems to know the general area he's in but not his specific location. This searcher is a young woman about sixteen years old, attractive but with a serious expression, not the smile of a girl playing a game. With her red hair, she definitely does not look like a member of the Carbone family. There is some kind of magic overlay to the scene. Vincente resists the urge to confront her. He wakes up feeling tired, as though he had been spellcasting.

Valerie dreams that she is guarding an area connected to the capstone. Someone is out there questing for Marcus and Vincente. There is a bubble surrounding and protecting the two men, and the intruders are pushing hard into the bubble, which bulges inward and seems about to break. Valerie creates a second bubble and subtly turns it so that the intruders expend their energy fighting the second bubble. When she awakes, she is standing facing the hotel room door, arms upraised. She feels invigorated. She and Vincente describe their dreams to each other, and Vincente says "An Irish woman is looking for me."

Marcus goes into Chinatown and locates the temple. A teenage boy appears beside him, saying "Master Lu thought you might come." He leads Marcus through a maze of corridors and knocks on a certain door, which opens to admit them. Another man, this one in his mid-20s, leads him to a meeting room. Awaiting him there is Master Lu Min ['Lu' is his family name, 'Min' is his personal name], who is in very good physical condition for a man in his 60s. Marcus expresses gratitude for Master Lu's assistance, and Lu in turn says, "Thank you for making the town safer." Marcus describes the two people he is looking for. He then expresses interest in learning kung fu. Master Lu orders an exercise room prepared, then has Marcus demonstrate his own martial talent. Lu is impressed with Marcus' brawling.

Around 9:00 Vincente, Valerie, and Rick go to Martha's Boarding House. The proprietress asks if they wish to rent a room, as she is about to have a vacancy. She shows them upstairs to Michelle Dalton's suite, where Michelle is finishing up packing. The stagecoach to San Francisco will leave in a few hours, after lunch. Vincente tells her, "It's good that you're getting out now, because the mines are petering out." She might mention that to her friends as she's saying her farewells.

Although it is Saturday, the office of Standard Mining Company is open for business. Vincente prompts Rick to clear his throat to get an employee's attention. When the employee looks up, Rick immediately defers to Vincente, who says, "We'd like to buy your 'waste' ore. All of it." The employee shows them to the office of Allan Finley, director of mining operations. Rick introduces himself as "Rick Johnson" and Vincente as "Vincente Johnson." Vincente repeats his offer to buy waste ore. Finley: "We have a couple of tons of it." Vincente: "I want to buy that, as well as all future quantities. We will supply transport. What is your price?" Finley, figuring the "useless" ore must be valuable somehow, wants $80/ton. Vincente gets him to settle for half that.

Out on Main Street Vincente, Valerie, and Rick meet up with Marcus. The group is heading for the Workman's Rest Saloon, where Vincente has been told there are day laborers for hire. Along the way, Marcus notices two rough-looking men who do a double-take when they see him, then quickly look away. Marcus: "Time to make some friends!" He walks up behind R1, who is unloading a beer barrel from a wagon and doesn't see him coming. Marcus kicks the back of R1's calf, causing the latter to stumble and swear. Marcus lays a heavy hand on R1's shoulder. "Recognize me?" R1 mutters, "You do look familiar." Marcus pulls the pistol from R1's back waistband and pokes it into his back. "Clock's ticking, man. Why are you looking at me?" R1 says a man had come along earlier showing around sketches of Marcus and another male. The man was in his 30s, about six feet tall, very short black hair, blue eyes, and a 1" scar on his chin, packing pistols in cross-draw holsters. Marcus: "Tell him I'm staying at the Fairmont." He empties out the bullets and gives R1 his gun back. As he turns to leave, Marcus stares deliberately at R2, lurking in a nearby alley, then he continues north on Main.

Hanging around the saloon are eight men of various races. Vincente points to an Indian, an African-American, a Mexican, and an anglo (Carl Jacobsen). "Here's 25 cents for each of you. Rent a horse and wagon and go up to the Standard Mine and load up the ore I just bought. I'll give you 25 cents to load it and take it to a particular warehouse, and 25 cents to unload it."

Vincente asks Marcus to find some storage space to rent in Chinatown. Master Lu offers him a warehouse for $1/month, including 'protection'.

The group sits down to lunch at Big Mama's Kitchen. Vincente sees a man staring at us. Vincente casts Glow on Rick, then beckons the man over. Reluctantly the man approaches (and Vincente drops the Glow spell). Vincente: "Here, sit down. You wanted to say something?" "You look like someone I know." Edward Carothers runs a hardware store off Main Street. He came to Bodie from Denver, but is originally from St Louis. Vincente: "Why are you so nervous?" EC: "He glowed. Never seen that before." Vincente: "Rick, haven't I told you not to let your little light shine? Edward, do you know how to make paint? I want you to make me some paint. You're going to be rich and famous. How did you know me?" EC: "I saw a drawing of you." Vincente: "You can tell them you saw me. I won't hurt you. I'll be coming to your shop soon, and you and I are going to make paint."

Marcus and Valerie stroll toward the Fairmont Hotel. Marcus spots two more men who obviously recognize him. They approach one of the men, who steps into a doorway. Marcus steps right up next to him and backs him against a post. "Did you see my picture?" "Yeah..." "Did he do a good job?" "Not perfect, but pretty good." "Can you tell me where they are?" "No, he moved on, said he'd be back this way. Offered 25 cents if I saw you, $2 to follow you and find out where you're staying." Marcus grabs the man's gun and holds it up. "Not bad; I'll take it. If you want to follow me, it's up to you."

The other man -- unobtrusively, he thinks -- has worked his way to within hearing distance. Marcus steps into an alley and the man moves to follow. Suddenly Valerie judo-throws the man into the alley; he lands on his stomach and Valerie kneels on his back, twisting his arm up behind him. Marcus calmly attaches his newest gun to his belt, then questions the man. The person who was showing the drawings around is 6'2", 200 pounds, short cropped sandy hair, armed with a gun and some knives. "Offered me $2 for information; said he'd come back by later. I asked if he was a US Marshall, and he laughed. He talked with a Boston accent."

Marcus: "Nice throw." Valerie: "Want me to show you?"

Vincente returns to Standard to sign some papers and pay Finley for the two tons of ore. As his men load up the wagon, Vincente can see the magical signature within the ore.

Vincente: "Has anyone else inquired about this ore?" AF: "Are you with those people who are buying up the smaller mines?" Vincente: "I would hold out on the price of your mine." AF: "I can't sell it, anyway. The board would have to approve the sale, and they're in San Francisco." Vincente: "I'd like to buy the rights to buy this ore from Standard for the next five years." AF, after some thought: "I'll agree to two years, and it can be renegotiated at the end of that period." Finley writes up the addendum to the agreement, including a clause that the ore is to be paid for upon pickup. Vincente: "I'll designate my agent before I leave town."

Rick asks Vincente if he wants Standard's office bugged. "Why, yes. Yes, I do."

Marcus, under his real name, registers for a room at the Fairmont. He asks the desk clerk, "Are there many men in town my height, 6'3"?" Yes, earlier there had been a tall man inquiring after some guests, showing a couple of drawings. "Tell them someone fitting the description has checked into your hotel." The clerk adds that the tall man had been in a group with another man who seemed to be an equal, a woman, and three other people. Clerk: "Is there something else I should tell them?" Marcus: "Whatever you feel is right. Even if I did mind, there are always ways to see the register."

Maxine Carroll tells Valerie that Klein and his associates had purchased a couple of adjacent houses in Bodie. One of Klein's associates, Moose Schultz, a man with blond hair, had come in with Klein a few nights ago. Earnestly Valerie tells her "Bodie's going bust," but the saloon girl is skeptical.

The wagon loaded up, Vincente takes out the map Marcus gave him and directs his crew to Chinatown. Approaching the warehouse, he notices a sentry on the roof who vanishes, then comes up next to the wagon. Vincente shows the back of the map, on which is written a permit signed by Master Lu. The sentry unlocks the warehouse and swings the door wide. As his crew unloads the ore, Vincente says to the sentry, "It has been explained that people may be coming. Any unusual equipment acquired from them, I request that you return to Marcus Johnson. I, too, may return at some point with a business proposition... in regard to paint."

Vincente and Rick walk back down Main Street. He overhears townsfolk gossiping about "the mines drying up." Aloud he says to Rick, "You know what, I think you should cash out your claim."

Around 3:15 the four meet up. Marcus: "You might have a couple of tails. I'm going to ask them about it." Vincente: "Don't ask them yet, I have an idea." Vincente turns and walks casually toward the nearer man TM; as he passes, he casts Illusion Disguise and TM now looks exactly like Marcus. He continues on, and as he passes the second man he casts Illusion Disguise again and TV looks just like Vincente. Vincente returns to the others and chuckles, "Now let the fun begin."

The group goes to the Fairmont Hotel lounge for drinks. TV follows them as far as the front door, then peels off to set up where he can watch the entrance.

After about an hour, Marcus and Rick head upstairs. As they cross the lobby, a seated man wearing a visible earbud raises a newspaper in front of his face. Marcus knocks at the room next to his; when there is no answer, he picks the lock and swings open the door. "Why don't you try this room, Rick?" Rick will be listening to recordings from his bugs at the Standard office.

The man with the newspaper is still in the lobby. Marcus sits down right next to him and asks, "Anything good today?" "Oh... standard stuff... a shooting..." "It can be really unsafe here, if you're not careful. Anybody could die at any time." A bead of sweat appears on the man's brow, but he gamely replies, "I'm meeting some friends here, checking out this town... thinking of opening a business." Marcus points out, "Not many people have those earpieces." The man edges away from Marcus, in his nervousness dropping his newspaper; Marcus sees he has a holstered gun. "Is your name Johnson? I'm Fleming." The man admits that "they" paid him $100 for surveillance. Marcus: "I'll warn you, you probably want to take that earpiece out. Last time I had one, 'they' tried to blow it up... Who exactly are 'they'?" "If you don't know the answer, it won't do you any good. They already know about you. I reported." "All I need to know is where and how many." "The leader's Marco Reed. He's got two or three other 'bigwigs' and 'specialists' and at least five other guys protecting them. They don't like you or that other man very much. They say Bodie's the next Comstock Lode." "I heard just the opposite." "They're going to try to kill or capture you. Reed will have hired at least a couple dozen thugs." "You might want to practice your surveillance skills. It sounds like you don't want to die today."

The man describes Reed as being in his 30s, 6'1", with short black hair, blue eyes, and a scar. "And another odd thing, a couple of those on his team are women." Marcus: "Not so odd. Eventually, things change.... You fear me more than you do him. As a sign of good will, hand me over half of what they gave you." The man offers $20. Marcus: "This isn't negotiable." The man gives him $25. Marcus takes his earpiece and steps on it.

Over the headsets, Rick reports that nearly an hour ago a Midwest-accented man named Leonard McKinney had been in Standard's offices and shown a picture around. He plays a clip from his recording; Marcus recognizes the voice as the one he'd heard just before his earbud exploded. McKinney offered to pay double the money for the ore, letting on how valuable it was to him; Finley, adhering to his contract with Vincente, replied "Come back in two years." Rick has pulled the bugs out of our hotel rooms.

Vincente sends Carmella, who has been unusually quiet all day, to hunt for Marco Reed and Moose Schultz.

Vincente wants to visit Syndicate, the second-largest mine in Bodie, but wonders how they can leave the Fairmont without being seen. Valerie says confidently, "This place is bound to have a cellar for storage. We go downstairs and out through the cellar doors." We slip out through the kitchen (Marcus has to bribe a cook $1.00 to let us pass).

Marcus splits off and checks the back entrance. There are six thugs loitering around; their leader is 6'5" with a rawboned build. All are armed with guns and Bowie knives, but none have earpieces. Marcus very successfully sneaks around to the front, and sees in an alley across the way eight men talking to TV, who is the only one wearing an earpiece. TV beckons, one man slugs him, and the 'Vincente' illusion vanishes. Marcus murmurs, "So far I've counted 20 total. This looks like fun." He hangs out in the shadows, wishing he had his AR15 in his hands.