Participants:
| Scene Title | Hey, Sport |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Adam and Simon discuss the immortal's next move. |
| Date | May 27, 2009 |
A place that used to be a cafe and is making a slow progression towards being a dive bar. During the day, the balcony and a good portion of the sidewalk is taken up by outdoor chairs and tables, where people can enjoy a beer as well as a sandwich or whatever else is on their menu - a decent, if simply array of bar food. During the evening, unless it's a warm night, these are taken inside, and the kitchens are closed. A wide variety of beer is available, along with hard liquor and maybe a few wine labels, but nothing fancy. The interior decor is similar to traditional British pubs, with a hardwood bar and brick wall. There's an old pool table towards the back, along with a dart board. The building is actually two storeys high, but whatever is upstairs is inaccessible to the general public.
Simon hasn’t been to Shooter’s for about a week or so, but that doesn’t mean the bartender doesn’t recognize him. When Simon orders a beer, it’s handed over in a bottle and a tab is started. Yeah, he may be 18, but they don’t really care here on Staten. Unless he gets plastered, which he has never done in public. Yet.
The teen wends through the people and tables that are set throughout the room, eyeing an empty table against the far wall. It’s here that he plants himself in a rickety wooden chair, waiting for the man he’s come here to meet.
Adam enters with some various men that he's come to walk around with in Staten Island. One in particular, Michael, has apparently been talking with Adam quite a bit. He's holding a bag with japanese writing upon it, which he hands Adam as he steps further inside the establishment. Then, the men head to the bar and order their drinks or what have you. Adam surveys the various people in the bar and notes the boy who generally stands out in the scene and heads that way. He walks up to the table and sets the bag onto the table and sits down, "Hello, sport."
One of Simon’s youthful eyebrows is lifted at the pet name that’s given to him. “Sport? My dad used to call me that.” It’s not clear whether he’s welcoming or forbidding the use of the name, though. It’s possible that he’s simply stating a fact. “It’s good to see you.” Some of his brew is sipped at as if he’s been drinking the stuff his whole life. “I see blood on your hands, though.”
Adam mms a bit, "I told you there would be." he says, "This is dirty work, I do, but it's necessary. I could hide it from you, I could lie to you, but I think you're old enough to make your own choices about it." he pauses then slides the bag across, "So, I got you souvenoirs, as you requested." in the bag Simon will find a high end pair of stereo headphones, a high end pair of mp3 player head phones, like e-sures, a rather advanced mp3 player and finally, a t-shirt that says 'Japan' on it, with some japanese characters on them, "They mean Japanese Tourist." Adam explains.
Simon reaches out for the bag with the greedy fingers of a spoiled brat, but smiles more sincerely than one. “Are you serious?” He moves things around in the bag to better see what’s in there, but decides it’s all too precious to take out in a place like this. No need to attract muggers. “I was almost joking, too. Thank you so much.” About the murder, he doesn’t make a comment. There’s no need.
Adam nods a bit, "Well, I suppose I did leave you here on Staten Island with a monster and all." he pauses, "How's that going? Jake and Cardinal both said that they were planning on handling that with you or…on their own, I couldn't get clear answers from them. Is it still…eating people?"
Simon glances away for a moment, gripping the handles of his bag of goodies hard for a moment. “Well, I don’t really know. I haven’t heard of another body showing up, but that doesn’t really mean anything. Does it?” He shrugs and says, “Yeah, I talked to Cardinal about it. We’ll see how it goes down.” He licks his lips, the places the brim of his beer bottle against them, swigging some more. “So. What exactly did you all accomplish over in Tokyo? You all left pretty fast.”
Adam glances at Simon quietly for a few moments. He pauses in his quiet contemplation and says, "If you think you're ready to hear the answer to that, Simon, I'll tell you. But…" he's quiet again, "Make sure you're ready. Because it's one thing to have an idea of what this is all like, but it's an entirely other thing to know for sure."
Simon’s eyes narrow a bit as he looks across to Adam.”If you expect me to work with you than you better also expect to be honest with me. I can take it. I’m a big boy. Remember? You said it yourself.” There’s a naive grin that spreads across his face as he waits for Adam’s response.
Adam hmms, "Well, I killed one of the founders of the Company. Except to get to him, I had to go through his family, which involved kidnapping and a duel to the death, or near death." he pauses, "I also stole a valuable piece off a formula which.." he pauses, "Well, it's complicated, actually, but it's important."
”Oh.” Simon should have known it would have been something like this. Something dark and likely twisted. Then again, he’s become more and more used to these things, so it’s not exactly a slap across the face. “And, um, does this mean the Company is, you know, shaky now?” He doesn’t know the proper bad guy terminology here, obviously.
Adam shakes his head, "No, not really, but there's lots of other things in motion." he's quiet, "There's lots of people who want to see the Company taken down. The only problem is, some of them will have to go down too eventually…so.." he eyes Simon, "What is my best play here?"
”You’re asking me?” Simon blinks and settles back in his chair, which creaks even under the weight of his lithe form. “Well, considering I feel pretty left out of the whole thing, I’m not sure my opinions matter all that much. Still, I’d sure like to find out who is part of The Company here in New York and what they’re doing. Gotta know your enemy pretty well, right?”
Adam tilts his head, frowning a bit, "Well, don't get me wrong Simon, I'm not going to plan my moves based on what you say. But I want to see if you can suss it out. It's true; I need to get as much information about the Company as possible. But there's other groups vying for power that are at war with the Company too…but eventually, they'd be just as bad. And there's me…I've got a small organization and less power. So…what should I do?"
Simon thinks for a moment, wondering why he wasn’t given more time to study for this test. He drinks some more beer, and then shrugs. “Well, the enemy of my enemy is my friend, right? You should probably reach out to those other groups, see who can help and who can’t. If they can’t,” Simon shrugs and doesn’t really want to think about what Adam would do to them. “You don’t want any surprises from extra players on the field, right?”
Adam mms, "Sure…but all these groups have more members and power than I do. I'm the small token in the game."
Simon lets out a sigh and shrugs. “Listen, Adam. I watch TV and bad action movies. I’m a mathematician in the making. I don’t exactly know what your next move should be. Why don’t you just tell me?”
Adam nods, "I should keep these groups attacking each other. Weaken each other and pick up the casualties as they come along. Until, I'm powerful enough to take them all out." he pauses, "This is the kind of thinking that has to go on for things like that. So right now, my move should be to help any group trying to weaken the Company until the Company crushes them, will I continue to pry at frayed edges."
Simon thinks about this for a moment and nods. “OK, that makes more sense than whatever I said.” He grins and drinks some more beer, his bottle quickly emptying as time goes by. “What do you want me to do? I mean, I’m sure you’re not just buying me all these gifts because I’m so good looking.”
Adam chuckles, "I told you. I want to cultivate you." he says in response, "That means, in part, looking out for you. That also means, in part, making sure you know you're appreciated." at any rate, he pulls out some photo copied pictures, "I want you to see if you can find these people." there's a picture of an older Doyle, April, Niles, Edward and Tyler Case, he also gives each of their names in turn, "I don't want you to engage them. Each of them is dangerous. I just want you to try and find them. You find them, call me…but be careful…" he frowns, "There's younger versions of them out there. I'm looking for these."
The whole time travel debacle is something that Simon has been kept blissfully ignorant of until now. So, when he is handed over the photos of these fugitives, he doesn’t recognize a single one of them. “What do you mean younger versions? Why do you need to find these people?” He asks this without mentioning what Adam began by saying. That whole ‘looking after you’ crap isn’t fooling him.
Adam shakes his head, "It's easier if you don't ask." he says, "It's too complicated and I'm not sure I believe it myself. As for why…well, that's complicated too, but they're helping the Company…so…they are a problem."
There’s a chuckle from the kid as he shakes his head and slides the pictures into the bag gifts Adam gave him. “You’re going to have to do better than that, man. Maybe if I know what these guys are up to I can find them easier.” In other words: Spill it.
Adam shakes his head, "I truthfully don't know what they're up to, Simon. I got these photos from someone else. They tell me they're aiding the company. Also, that they're time travelers. Does that explanation make you feel any better?"
”Well, considering you just told me the same thing twice, I’m going to have to say no.” Simon says this with a grin, hoping Adam will understand that he’s not just some dumb teenager. “I’ll see what I can dig up for you.”
Adam nods, "Good work." he says, "And be careful, no engaging on your own. Just find them if you can." he stands, "Have fun with your new toys."
Simon stands as well, because he’s eager to get these shiny new things home so he can play with them. “Thanks again, Adam. I’ll give you a call tomorrow sometime. There’s something I want to show you.”
Adam nods, "Alright. Soon enough." and he heads out.