Leaves From The Jason's Logbook III

[Feinan]

This is backstory - back from the events of SOS-Con. It gives another incident that led to the Jason going forward with Yggdrasil. There will be
several parts to this - this is the first one. Opinions are welcome. Also - I have an incident in mind for another encounter with various zwilnik employees.
I'd like to know if I should put that one up - would people like to see what the Jason is like in full Mad Scientist Rant mode? Let me know, please. *grin*
On with the story.

---

Fate's voice sang from the earbud I was wearing. "Kevin, it appears there's a problem. You're currently one-third a Naruto."

My eyebrows went up as I paused for a moment in my exploration of the dealers' area. "One-third a Naruto?" Clotho answered, "What she
means is, you're currently a sanbi."

I blinked, one hand going to my waist to stroke the brown, furry 'belt' there. Then my eyes glanced around the room. "I know one tail...where
are the other two?"

With the girls telling me where to look, I was able to catch glimpses of the two people who were apparently following me. One was a guy about my
age...former age, maybe late thirties or so, dark hair and fairly well built. The other was younger - not quite fenkinder but close. Early college, if that,
I'd say. The kid was also dark-haired, and from the glimpses I could get of the two, I'd say they were related somehow. Both were in jeans and
t-shirts, but while that's normal fannish dress, the older man appeared slightly...disconcerted by the goings-on around him. Probably not a fan, then...or
else very new to space. Maybe both.

"OK. Fate, any more info on the two?"

"A bit, Kevin. The older one is Henry Jackson, and the younger is James Riley. Security footage shows them dropped off from a van earlier in the day,
and they checked into one of the cheaper hotels under those names. That's all I could find topside so far. I'm checking Earthside now."

I blinked. "Um....Fate? Far be it from me to question you, but...security footage?" When she replied, I could swear I heard her blush.
"Probably best if you don't know, father. Some friends of mine are doing the Earthside checks as we speak." There was a momentary pause, then she
spoke again. "They did find the two listed with driver's licenses under those names. New Jersey issue. Nothing immediately apparent on the younger
one, but Jackson has had some arrests. A few cases of assault, one death that was ruled self-defense. He was apparently serving as a bodyguard for someone, and
they were attacked." She hrmed softly. "Probability is high that these two are related to the zwilnik that we met a while back. Or something
similar."

I nodded thoughtfully. "OK. We need to find out what they want. Easiest way to do that..." I smiled slowly. "Hmm. We need to pick up a few
things. Lachesis? Could you send a drone to that one booth we went by a while back? The one run by the Gor fen? Then...." I outlined what I thought we
should do, and the girls made a few suggestions of their own. We continued to wander the room, the girls keeping my extra tails under surveillance as we worked
out our plan. When we were ready, I started off, away from the con proper. Keeping to busier parts of the corridors, I headed, not towards the hotel room I
took to be near the con, but the suite that the Martian terraformers had arranged for me on Phobos. Part of a retainer - I got a nice place whenever I needed
to stretch my legs and get off the Lightning for a bit, they got VERY good discounts on anything they needed me to make for them.

I kept up a steady pace, the girls' voices in my earbud letting me know that the two men were still following. Then I turned down a small, empty
hallway, one that curved around and hid the main corridor from sight after a few yards. I could hear the men starting to pick up their pace, and I turned and
waited. When they came in sight, they stopped, apparently startled that I was standing there ready for them. "Did you two want something?" I'd be
more worried, but the hall had been left dimly lit....and the shadows held a few surprises.

The older man snorted. "You the Jason? Heard talk that you were, but you don't look like what we expected." I nodded. "You heard right.
This is a recent biomod. What do you want?" The guy - Henry - frowned. "Couple things. We're trying to find out what happened to a...messenger we
sent to you. He was supposed to offer you a job. And we're to maybe get you to take the job, too."

This was my turn to snort. "You mean the rude bastard that threatened not only me, but my friends and family and customers? The one that wanted me to
make an enslavement drug?" James, the younger one, looked nervous, and Henry started to look grim as he realized that I had indeed met their messenger.
"I told him no. He wouldn't listen. When he started making threats, I introduced him to the concept that threatening a ship named from a battle
hymn is remarkably stupid." I gave a slow smirk. "I blew him out of space. You thought only the Professor had weapons-grade
handwavium?"

Both of the men had tensed up when they heard that particular little account of events. The older one reached into his pocket, and I went into alert mode as
well. I was pretty sure that we could disarm him if he had a gun or knife, but... When he drew out brass knuckles and slipped them on, I almost grinned in
relief. OK. That I could handle. Possibly even better than most, given what the 'wave had done to me. But with luck, I wouldn't need to. Henry spoke
up, "We're gonna have a long talk, looks like. Then you ARE gonna work for us."

I shook my head sadly as the two started towards me. "I have only one thing to say to that." They got a little closer, though the younger one
started to look curious, and asked, "What...?" I interrupted him before he could complete the question, and grinned at them. "Hey rube!" At
that, my girls went into action.

Two small toy cars zoomed forward from where they'd been hiding in shadows and slammed into the thugs' stomachs, drawing twin 'ooofs' then
gasps for air as they tried to breathe. Combined with that, two more toy drones each slammed into their shoulders a moment later. I'd already started
running forward, and as they bent around their abused stomachs, momentarily stunned by the sudden reversal of the ambushers being ambushed, I got in range. And
being conveniently bent up and off-balance, their heads were now in arms' reach for my new body. They really shouldn't have bunched together...I
managed to grab their heads and slam them together with a nice, satisfying 'thunk'...watching as their eyes actually rolled up and they dropped.

I breathed heavily, crashing from the adrenaline rush very quickly. "OK...that worked far better than we had any hope of praying for...and probably
wouldn't have at all if this new body weren't in a LOT better shape than I'm used to." I shook my head, "Helped that they didn't
expect us to be ready for them." Atropos agreed, "Got that right. So....call security, or..." I shook my head again. "No...not yet. I'd
LIKE to know who's after me. Let's do what we discussed." The door at the end of the hall opened, and Sumpter came out, the big drone we
brought to carry supplies. "Let's get these two inside and set things up." I managed to drag the two unconscious men onto the drone, and then we
headed into the suite, the door shutting behind us.

---

*grin* And here we see that the Jason uses toy drones as weapons too. And these are all improv. Wait until you see the NEW toy that he creates after this.
It'll be part of the Mad Scientist Rant story when/if I post that one.

So - I wonder what will happen to our poor thugs? People really shouldn't threaten mad scientists. Mad can be read several different ways, after all.
And when all apply, well....sucks to be you.

[Norgarth]

The older one was obviously not a fen. Going hand to hand with someone with a Dragonball based biomod is generally going to be a bad idea. 8P
___________________________
"I've always wanted to be somebody, but I should have been more specific." - George Carlin

[Feinan]

Heh. Nope, not a fan. Which is why he looked uncomfortable at the con. The younger one is a fan, at least somewhat, which is why the pair was assigned to look
for the Jason, actually. Kid is enough of a fan to be able to handle stuff in Fenspace (though not enough of one to recognize the Saiyajin biomod immediately,
unfortunately for him), and the older one got assigned because he's got a lot more seniority in the organization. As well as being the younger thug's
relative. You'll find out more as things progress. *grin*

And I'm not that dangerous, at least not at this point. While the biomod did a good number on my physical characteristics, I don't have any martial
arts. Just self-taught brawling. Mind you, self-taught brawling isn't bad when backed up by strength and a denser-than-normal bone and musculature
structure. Which is why someone who looks around 10 or so and in decent shape (for his age) weighs around 280 pounds.....

[Feinan]

Heh. Second part of the story. Wherein the Jason proves that he's insane. Opinions, as always, are welcome. Hopefully this won't read too incoherently.
I'm a bit sleepy at the moment, but it's another case of needing to get the words out while they're willing to flow. Let me know what you guys
think of this, OK? I'm really curious as to people's opinions about it.

---

As soon as we got the door closed, I had Sumpter bring the pair of unconscious thugs to the suite's bedroom.
"Lachesis, is the stuff here?" She answered through my earbud. "All here and ready. The sack on the bed." I saw it, and went to work.

First, I stripped the thugs of their t-shirts; I wanted to get this done quickly before they woke up. I didn't make a habit of cracking people's heads
together, so I wasn't sure how long we had to work. Once they were shirtless, I propped the pair up against the end of the bed, one on either side. It was
a nice bed, a brass one, king-size...and very sturdy and heavy. Reaching into the bag, I pulled out two pairs of handcuffs. Ah, Gor fen. They had odd habits,
but did carry nice toys. The cuffs were even lined. I cuffed the thugs to the bed, hands behind their backs with the cuffs going around the corner bedposts.

Boots were next, and socks. Then jeans. Once the pair were clad only in their underwear, I hesitated a moment, considering. For the scene I was setting up,
being stripped completely would make them feel even more vulnerable and helpless. On the other hand...they weren't exactly bad-looking. I don't think
that I'd toss either of them out of bed for eating crackers, for instance. I was going to have enough trouble staying focused to pull this off without the
added distraction. I nodded. Leave the underwear. For now, at least. Hopefully the psychological impact of just being in their briefs would be enough.

I took out two more pairs of cuffs, and cuffed their ankles. Then I pulled out a pair of ball-gags. The suite had enough surrounding rock that it was doubtful
anybody could hear anything, even if they yelled. Still...I didn't want them talking until I was ready for it, so...I gagged them, and then sat back to
wait for them to wake up. While I was waiting, I went through their wallets. Driver's licenses did match what Fate had told me, and the pictures were
indeed the pair in front of me. They held the usual wallet clutter, and Henry had a fair amount of cash in his. I didn't really find anything
incriminating, though. I paused a moment, considering...and before they woke up, tried to prepare for things in one last way. I went to each thug, and took in
a deep breath through my nose, concentrating on what they smelled like. Theoretically....I might be able to smell changes in their emotions - fear, nervousness
- in their scents. That'd be damned useful in questioning them and getting correct answers. I took several long moments, trying to memorize what they
smelled like at the moment. Then I sat back and waited. We'd see.

The older man groaned, and started to stir. I took a deep breath. Just about time to see how good of an actor I could be. I moved forward, and slapped Henry on
the cheeks - not too hard, just enough to try and wake him up and get his attention. When his eyes blinked open, I turned to the kid and did the same. Henry
jerked as he realized he was nearly naked...and cuffed. He struggled, muffled noises coming from the gag in his mouth, and then he relaxed and settled in to
glaring at me. James, the kid, eventually woke up and went through the same brief struggle, only he was looking a lot more nervous when he finally relaxed.
Definitely not as hard a case as Henry. Well....I knew who to concentrate on.

Now that they were both awake and focused on me, I gave them a bright, manic grin. "Good morning. So glad you could join me. It's a shame it
couldn't be under better circumstances." I shook my head, then grinned at them again. "I'm sure you're wondering why I haven't turned
you over to security. I considered it, but I really need to know more about who sent you. You ARE going to tell me, right?" That got glares from both of
them.

I shook my head, looking sad for a moment. "You DO realize you don't have a choice? I WILL get the information from you one way or another."
Another manic grin, and I leaned foward, my voice going soft. "It's never a smart idea to threaten a mad scientist, you know. There are so MANY things
I could do to you." I chuckled. "I could just turn you over to security...after I biomod you." The pair jerked at that, and I nodded to them,
grinning. "Uh-huh. I'm VERY good at biomodding. That's why you lot came looking for me. I figure I could change the pair of you so you look around
my age or so...and then just give you over to security. I'm sure your boss would love to get you back like that. Though I doubt you'd get your old jobs
back." They didn't look happy at the thought. "Or....I could biomod you and keep you for myself." A slow smirk. "Add in loyalty to
me...you'd answer everything I wanted then, and be happy doing it." I reached out and patted James on the cheek. "Think I should go that
route?" He shook his head quickly, eyes going a bit wide. Henry gave me a muffled growl through his gag.

I sighed. "Still...even for me, biomodding can be chancy. Perhaps I should go with cruder methods." I smiled slowly...evilly. "Copper wire is
VERY good at getting people to talk." I took a deep breath through my nose. Their scents HAD changed. Henry's...well, based on his expression, I'd
guess a mixture of anger and fear for the reason. The kid's, though...he was out-and-out scared now.

I reached out, and started to trace a fingertip slowly down James' chest. "It can fit into some really interesting places in the male anatomy, for
instance. And it conducts heat so well. There are two of you. I could do one of you, and then I'm SURE the other one would be willing to talk." I
chuckled, tracing my fingertip lower. "Roast sausage on a stick?" I snapped the waistband of the younger thug's briefs, and he actually gave a
muffled squeak and tried to shrink back from me, eyes VERY wide now as he stared at me. "Or you could just talk, and save me the effort. And yourselves a
lot of pain. You DO want to tell me what I want to know, right?" It was clearly too much of a threat for the kid, who started to nod his head frantically
in agreement, muffled noises coming from behind his gag. The scent of his fear was almost overpowering. Henry was trying to speak as well, but he was glaring
at me still. Better to leave him gagged.

Patting James on the shoulder, I smiled at him. "OK, kid. I'm going to take off the gag, and then you're going to tell me everything I want to
know. Then I'll even turn you over to security." I grinned. "I'm sure you'll feel a LOT safer with them than with me." He nodded
again, and I took off the gag, and began to ask questions. He was more than happy to answer them, too, even with Henry making muffled complaints through his
gag. I got the name of his boss, and confirmed that Henry and James really were the pair's names, though they apparently went by Hank and Jimmy. Jimmy was
the older guy's nephew, it seemed. That explained the resemblance. The kid had just joined in the last few months, after the deaths of his parents, and
Hank had taken him in. Their boss had indeed tried to recruit me because of my reputation, and didn't seem likely to take no for an answer even now.
I'd have to work on that. It seems he'd been assigned to come look for me because he was something of a fan, and could hopefully serve as a guide. Hank
had been assigned because he was the kid's uncle, and had been serving their boss for some time. As I ran out of questions to ask, and after I asked a few
that Fate wanted answers to as well, I sat back and nodded. "All right, kid. You did what I asked. Relax. I won't hurt you." I patted his
shoulder again, and he swallowed nervously.

Hank was still glaring at me, and I raised an eyebrow at him. "You have something to say?" I took off the man's gag, curious. He immediately
began cursing me...starting with my ancestry and working his way up. When he started to run out of insults, he just growled at me. "Fucking BASTARD! The
boss'll kill him now!" I frowned at him. "You going to tell your boss he told me things? Jimmy doesn't have to, and I certainly won't. If
you don't, he should be fine. Just tell them I captured you, and turned you over to security. You can even mention what I told you about your
messenger." Hank shook his head, staring at me angrily. "He'll KNOW. He's got this new guy working for him, last couple of months. Like some
of the other weirdos that are around this place. Guy's got funny ears - like a dog - and a tail. Boss has him hooked on the new drug he wanted help with.
The funny guy knows when people are lying." Jimmy had been listening, and was starting to look pale. It was clear he was getting scared again, and I sat
back and considered the situation.

Scaring the pair to get them talk was OK. They'd threatened me, so turnabout was certainly fair play. It wasn't as if I'd actually meant to carry
through with any of my threats. And for all of that, they'd only threatened me and not even about killing me. From the way Hank had started in, it was
clear he'd meant to leave me alive. In a fight...well, if I'd had to be responsible for a death in a fight, that was one thing. But even partial
responsibilty for a death when I wasn't in immediate danger...I shook my head mentally. That was different. I chewed my lip, regarding Hank. "I think
I know what the guy is doing. You ever see him take deep breaths when he's listening to people?" The guy looked uncertainly at me, clearly still
angry, but...he nodded slowly. I sighed. "Hell. He can do the same thing I was trying with the pair of you. And is apparently good at it." Both of
them were looking at me now.

Tapping the side of my nose, I sighed. "My biomod came with an enhanced sense of smell. I wasn't sure it would work, but...I tried it out on you two.
I could smell when you were getting scared of me. I'm pretty sure your guy can do the same, and is probably a lot more practiced than I am. You're
right...he would be able to tell if the kid lied to him." I pinched the bridge of my nose, eyes closing, and sighed. If the kid went back, he was probably
going to die. And even though their boss would order it done...I'd be at least partially responsible for scaring him into talking. Some people could live
with that on their karma. Me... I opened my eyes, and looked at Jimmy. "OK. You're not going back, and I'm not turning you over to security.
You're going to stay in Fenspace. You can stay with me until we find you something, or until it's safe for you to go Earthside again."

The pair stared at me as if I had suddenly started speaking Klingon. I shook my head. "Well, it's not like I can let him go back to die." They
were still staring, but Jimmy looked at me and swallowed. "What...about my uncle? If I don't come back, I doubt..." Hank glared at him.
"Shut up. I'll be OK." I took a deep breath. Anger...and a bit of fear. Apparently, he wasn't quite so sure of that. I bit my lip. Damn
it...I did some glaring of my own, at Hank. "Fate said you were acquitted for killing a man. Was it really self-defense? Tell me...I'll know if you
lie. And what were your assault charges for?"

Hank stared at me as if I were crazy...crazier, maybe. He snorted. "It was self-defense...guy tried a hit on the boss, and I took him down. His boss
started the stuff, we didn't. Assaults...a couple bar fights, a bit of heavy work on other bosses' people. I don't do heavy work often. Mostly
I'm a guard." I nodded slowly. I...could live with that. It wasn't as if my own hands were exactly clean, even if the force I'd used had been
warranted by the threats made. And the guy clearly cared about his nephew, which was a positive. I shook my head. I KNEW I'd regret this. "All right,
kid. If he wants, he can stay as well. I've got enough space to put the pair of you up until you can find something." I glared at Hank. "You had
better not give me trouble."

I got the disbelieving looks again. Jimmy was looking grateful. Hank..."Just like that, you'll take us in? After we were gonna beat you up and force
ya to work for us?" I sighed, and gave him a half-hearted glare. "It's more for the kid's sake than yours. But even then....you were only
going to beat me up. You didn't threaten more, and you didn't threaten anyone but me. Which puts you miles ahead of the first idiot your boss sent to
speak with me. As for the rest of it...I refuse to be responsible for your deaths. Sending you back sounds as though it would ensure that. So....I don't
send you back. And since I doubt either of you are prepared for staying in Fenspace at the moment, somebody has to take responsibility for you. Since I stomped
over your karma, that leaves me." Hank still looked dubious, but his own anger seemed to be dying down. "You...if you'll take Jimmy in, you
don't have to take me....I can make it OK." I shook my head. "No...I'm pretty sure your nephew would get upset if something happened to you.
And I have the space and can afford to take both of you on for now. So..." I leaned back with a sigh. "First, got to get through the con. The two of
you can stay here until the end of it. Better that you don't go out or back to your hotel rooms. It would be best if you seemed to vanish. We can smuggle
you out to the Lightning after the con."

I stared at the two of them. "If I unlock the cuffs...are you going to give me any trouble?" The pair glanced at each other...then looked at me. Hank
shook his head. "No. We won't fight ya. You're willing to help keep Jimmy alive...I won't do anything to fuck that up." Jimmy swallowed,
but nodded in agreement. "I won't give you trouble." I took a deep breath, and nodded slowly. "All right." I got the keys to the cuffs,
and let the pair free. I was pretty tense as I did so - I COULD be wrong about them - but...they didn't do anything, just rubbed at their wrists. "OK,
then. There's a little food on hand. I'll see about getting some more in here, so you don't have to go out. Then...we'll see where things go
after the con." They nodded, and moved to grab their stuff.

Gods....I'd picked up a pair of zwilnik strays. I had to be insane. Well...I suppose they call us mad scientists
for a reason. I guess that I could always use some minions...