07-29-2013, 09:19 PM
He had to give the Atharim credit when it came to hunting things that went bump in the night. They were experts at tracking the monsters that hid in the dark, or the forgotten places and the urban ruins of major cities. But when it came to tracking a living, breathing human? They hadn't quite kept up with the times. Luckily, they had someone on hand who knew what he was about.
Back when Hood went by a different name, he had been among the very best. Black ops; assassinations, topplnig of third-world governments, and the sewing of general discord. Anything to slow or the spread of CCD interests. He had been on the front line of installing dicators, Fascists, even communists. Anyone who could hold a country and had a suitable dislike of the CCD (or any foreign power, really). With that came a wealth of knowledge of who to talk to, who to bribe, and how to operate unnoticed.
Jaxen was no slouch though. It had taken Hood the better part of a day to pick up the thief's trail, and the Atharim's coffers for this little adventure were quite a bit lighter by the time they were ready to start their surveilance. Hood refused to take the lead on it; it was Atharim business, after all, and he had been brought in as an advisor more then anything, although it had been damn tempting to just kick in the door of the shit-hole hotel the lad had smartly held up in, even just to get his lighter back.
The operation would probably only be a week or two long, and Hood would come and go during that time to check on the lads tasked to the surveilance. Low threat, low difficulty; a good way to get their feet wet. He had done the initial recce himself, booking two rooms in the same slummy hotel, and another a block away; a safe house, of sorts, should things get too hot.
Submachine guns, small and compact and easily hidden, loaded with hollow-point rounds; good stopping power on an unarmered target, and more importantly, low penetration; less threat of civilian casualities. Maps were made, equipment was smuggled in, and eventually they were set up and ready to go. Hood stood in the room directly below Jaxen's, sipping coffee from a thermos and studying the display on the screen infront of the Atharim hunter tasked there. A thermal camera was aimed at the ceiling; it was older and shodier then what Hood was used to working with, but still compact enough for ease of movement, and he'd gotten a good deal on it from his black market contacts.
At one point in the evening, Jaxen left the room, and the Atharim tasked to a room on the same floor was notified. The fellow was sloppy and went into the hallway at the same time; Hood would rip the bastard a new one for that. He'd have to replace that guy with a new face now, and arrange a different room. A pain in the ass.
But, Jaxen returned after a time, settled back in his room, and resumed watching TV. Hood still didn't understand why they were watching him for signs of illness, but the Atharim assured him it wasn't to do with anything the idiot may have exposed himself to when breaking into their facility. Whatever the reason, they paid well, so he opted not to ask too many questions at the moment, although he'd not dropped the question entirely.
Late into the evening Hood took his leave, after the shift change, to assure they properly briefed each other. Passive of information was important, everyone needed to be in the know. He took to the streets, to check on the vehicle that was assigned them incase Jaxen suddenly decided to make a move, then once satisfied returned to his home. So long as they played their cards right, Jaxen would never know they were there, never know he was being watched. And in a week or two, they'd give up and move on.
Back when Hood went by a different name, he had been among the very best. Black ops; assassinations, topplnig of third-world governments, and the sewing of general discord. Anything to slow or the spread of CCD interests. He had been on the front line of installing dicators, Fascists, even communists. Anyone who could hold a country and had a suitable dislike of the CCD (or any foreign power, really). With that came a wealth of knowledge of who to talk to, who to bribe, and how to operate unnoticed.
Jaxen was no slouch though. It had taken Hood the better part of a day to pick up the thief's trail, and the Atharim's coffers for this little adventure were quite a bit lighter by the time they were ready to start their surveilance. Hood refused to take the lead on it; it was Atharim business, after all, and he had been brought in as an advisor more then anything, although it had been damn tempting to just kick in the door of the shit-hole hotel the lad had smartly held up in, even just to get his lighter back.
The operation would probably only be a week or two long, and Hood would come and go during that time to check on the lads tasked to the surveilance. Low threat, low difficulty; a good way to get their feet wet. He had done the initial recce himself, booking two rooms in the same slummy hotel, and another a block away; a safe house, of sorts, should things get too hot.
Submachine guns, small and compact and easily hidden, loaded with hollow-point rounds; good stopping power on an unarmered target, and more importantly, low penetration; less threat of civilian casualities. Maps were made, equipment was smuggled in, and eventually they were set up and ready to go. Hood stood in the room directly below Jaxen's, sipping coffee from a thermos and studying the display on the screen infront of the Atharim hunter tasked there. A thermal camera was aimed at the ceiling; it was older and shodier then what Hood was used to working with, but still compact enough for ease of movement, and he'd gotten a good deal on it from his black market contacts.
At one point in the evening, Jaxen left the room, and the Atharim tasked to a room on the same floor was notified. The fellow was sloppy and went into the hallway at the same time; Hood would rip the bastard a new one for that. He'd have to replace that guy with a new face now, and arrange a different room. A pain in the ass.
But, Jaxen returned after a time, settled back in his room, and resumed watching TV. Hood still didn't understand why they were watching him for signs of illness, but the Atharim assured him it wasn't to do with anything the idiot may have exposed himself to when breaking into their facility. Whatever the reason, they paid well, so he opted not to ask too many questions at the moment, although he'd not dropped the question entirely.
Late into the evening Hood took his leave, after the shift change, to assure they properly briefed each other. Passive of information was important, everyone needed to be in the know. He took to the streets, to check on the vehicle that was assigned them incase Jaxen suddenly decided to make a move, then once satisfied returned to his home. So long as they played their cards right, Jaxen would never know they were there, never know he was being watched. And in a week or two, they'd give up and move on.