The first hints of sunlight are just poking over the horizon. The air has that early morning chill, and ass the temperature begins to slowly climb upwards, a slight breeze flows between buildings and over the city. Cruach has been staking out an area, the consistent oddities in what she senses and some research into the players in the city leading her to believe that there's an individual she'd very much like to meet here.

If he is indeed a tinker, he'll no doubt have security measures of some kind, security measures she'd rather not trip if she can help it. She shifts slightly, maintaining much of her stealth even as she draws an energy bar from a pocket of her costume and unhooks a small part of her mask to eat it in a quick and efficient manner. She goes back to looking for an opportunity to make herself known without being sprayed down with acid, infected with parasites, or just ignored.

There are indeed some signs of the tinkers work. Flies and roaches, their presence only slightly more noticeable than usual. Circling the area, going back and fort.

A few of the roaches disappear into a crack below a closed door, leading into a warehouse, followed by a deep buzz of something behind it.

Meanwhile one may notice that some of those creatures don't act like they're supposed to. Disoriented... confused, few dropping dead, quickly carried away or eaten by the less sickly individuals.

The door would suddenly open, revealing even more bugs inside, although in form of thightly packed clusters, almost as if they're melting into each other.

"Sorry... its a bit disorganized in here.... were you looking for me?"

A dark humanoid figure calls out, moving between the piles of compacted arthropods.

She stands from her position on the roof, and in a smooth motion drops to the ground. She's a decent ways away from the door and the figure inside, enough that she'll hopefully have time to react, but not so far they'll have to yell to talk to each other.

She focuses all the senses she can on the figure, and the environment. Something under the hood of her costume shifts in a place where there really shouldn't be anything to move. She takes in the echoes, the way air flows through the area, the scents it carries, of the city and of the tinker. The skittering of legs, the buzzing ow wings, the thrum of machinery, all of it is laid bare to her. The darkness of the doorway is no impediment to her sight, and she does her best to size up whoever or whatever is talking to her.

When she speaks, the volume is low, but it carries well. Her voice bears a faint accent, not quite identifiable. "Are you Freakshow?" Her head cocks slightly to the side, a birdlike expression only emphasized by her mask. As he moves, she keeps her eyes firmly on him, though not all of her attention. She's alert for traps, creatures, anything amiss in the immediate area.

"Yess.... that's what i'm called."

".....So... uh... you're not a hero right?... i mean that thing... accident on the nearby park really wasn't me.... i'm not responsible for any of those allegations."

".... anyways with what may i help you?"

He responds, voice fairly ordinairy and a bit young, clearly a bit nervous, causing the clusters to move closer to Freakshow as they start to slightly grow bigger. This followed by a few smaller things sneaking towards Cruach.

Them beimg a dozen of Tiny chimeras formed with multiple legs, complex eyes and sensilla.

"Good." She gives a nod and takes a small step forward. "No, not a hero." There's some mirth to her tone, but it's gone quickly, returning to professionalism and focus. "I'm a mercenary. You've been a bit sloppy, if even I can find you like this and you're worried about heroes doing the same. I can help with that, for a price of course, but that's secondary." She pauses, as though heavily considering before speaking again. "I'm mostly here as an admirer of your work."

Despite her apparent singular focus, Cruach hasn't slacked on her attention to the area. Anything close enough or downwind would be able to discern a suddenly present smell akin to bread mold, rotting wood, and damp earth. While her costume is somewhat loose and baggy, there's a subtle shift in weight. From a number of small openings fly creatures which heavily resemble dragonflies, fast, armored, and armed, they target the approaching chimeras with singular focus, doing their level best to hunt them down and rip them apart with specialized mouth parts, immobilize them with grasping legs, or disable them with caustic chemicals. Cruach doesn't comment on the results, whatever they turn out to be, besides a subtle quirk of the head.

"Well yeah.... i mean it's a minor worry... not like i did anything major beyond questioning.. yet." He shrugs and starts to relax. "The bugs are somewhat of an issue... yes.. but i figured thats the easiest source of living biomass..... just a temporary solution." This demonstratily followed by more of them dropping dead and immediately utilized by the rest.

"Help? Freakshow asked with a keen voice in his tone, while he tilts his head in reaction to his minions getting attacked.

They would be no match against the fly creatures, though Cruach may notice something else inside the bug chimeras, something attempting to repair and keep them together... attempting to penetrate and infect those other creatures as well, only to fail to do so.

"Huh?... seems you're rather interesting as well?..." The tinker states, Noting the defeat of his scouts.

"Good. But playing with biology, especially the way you seem to be doing, is a great way to get a lot of the wrong kind of attention. You know the rules about self replicating creations, I'm sure." She resumes a more neutral posture, still keeping a decent amount of distance.

"Yes, help. Protection, materials, information, among other things. That's my job, after all, but I'll have to get something in return. I can't just go offering my services for free." She notes the defeat of the chimeras, as well as the attempted infection. Those dragonfly-creatures that were in combat remain distinctly away from her, and she devotes a small bit of attention to monitoring them to be sure they're truly uninfected.

"I've been in the game longer than you, it helps to pick up a few tricks." The smile is apparent in her voice, though there's still that hard line of professionalism. "Like I said, I'm interested in your work. I'll take explanations of what it does, how it works, demonstrations, that sort of thing, as payment." She takes another step closer, nonthreatening, body language open. "Interested?"

"I know... i know.... people have been on my case... since the first creations of mine and to be honest... the full truth on how it works... is even worse than what one would initially think...."

He sighs. " Luckily they can't breed... atleast outside of an Kontrolled environment.... i mean the bugs do... but those are just ordinary insects, used as a resource."

"Yes, i'm just getting startet and help would be appreciated... especially if i may get the opportunity to do more than simple pest control..."

With that statement Freakshow would raise his right hand, followed by all the other bugs perishing into blobs of goo, each of those things slowly starting to fuse and reorganize.

"For now i'm only at the first stage...accumulating living biomass, to repurpose... How it will be used, would be the next stage."

"That's often the case with powers, but don't go advertising it." There's a tone of mild exasperation to her voice.

She breathes a barely audible sigh of relief. "Good, than you've avoided the worst pitfall. I know tinkers progress, but please don't change that."

Perfect. Like I said, I'm interested in seeing what you can do." She pauses to pay slightly closer attention to her senses for a second, making sure she's still safe and they're still alone.* "That being the case, what do you need most? Protection, information, materials, or something else? It'll all have a price, and the matter of what you're willing to pay is also something we should discuss."

As Freakshow makes the movement, Cruach's hands clench slightly despite her lack of visible weapons, and she takes half a step back to get into a more ready combat stance. The Dragonfly-creatures that have been circling at a distance since defeating the chimeras buzz aggressively. Her tone slips back to clipped professionalism as she relplies. "And what do you have in mind, once you have enough?"

"Well..... fair point.... i mean the most advertising i did was to make battle chimeras .... heal pets... pest control or some stuff like that."

He sighs in annoyance.... "Currently its all very unstable....keeping things alive is the difficult part .. the good thing with bugs is... they breed fast and are replacable... but still.... its a pain. I mean i also did work on myself... but thats mostly just laying some groundwork for everything that comes. I do have some ideas for later... about more complex stuff... that actually survives."

Again he pauses to concentrate, causing the biomass on the ground to move and stirr. Many of those blobs now form into almost humanoid hands, albeit still covered in chitin and bug legs.

Most of those would still collapse a few seconds later. Meanwhile another blob forms insectoid legs, crawls onto Freakshow, only to then reorganize itself into functional wings.

"As for now Compound chimera has its up and downsides... but its supposed to be a blank strain... a template for other creations to come. Probably still keep with the more stable invertebrate body plan, but..... something more original than generic appendages or Imitations."

"With the simple hivemind working and communication already etablished... there is potential for something far more profound... even intelligence. I already receive more feedback than anticipated."

"Protection would be nice, but what i most need is time, lifeforms to study and enough living things as usuable subjects for other strains to test. Besides this i'm very open to offer my service and follow suggestions"

Noting her tensure, he continues. " By the way... as for now adaption is relatively slow... strains are usually species specific, until I get more infos by studying new beings.... my SYMs are really not THAT contagious."

She nods in understanding. "The shotgun approach only goes so far." She seems to drink in the information as he talks, paring rapt attention.

"Protection and time go hand in hand, though the balance tips as you get more resources and make bigger splashes. Do you have other contacts, friends in the cape scene, favors owed to you?" She pauses as he mentions how non-infectious his creations are, and then continues speaking. Her tone holds a note of bemusement for a few seconds. "I can cover protection, but I'm only one person. Unless you want to pay a lot more than you can probably afford, there will be other demands on my time, hence the questions about other capes you can rely on. With regards to gathering materials, that would be best handled on a case by case basis." She takes a few steps closer, still not in easy reach, but now in a more comfortable conversational range. "In terms of payment, I take money and favors, though I'll provide a sizeable discount to you compared to my normal rates if I can examine some of your creations from time to time."

"I know someone... though she is a hero... which i may feel could conflict with later plans on my end so.. not sure how helpful that would be. Otherwise there are some favors... with the smaller folks... some desperate people... and certain promises concerning my work.. Really not much."

𝐻𝑒 𝑝𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑎 𝑏𝑖𝑡, 𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑖𝑔𝑛𝑎𝑙𝑠... 𝑎𝑠 𝑖𝑓 ℎ𝑜𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑏𝑒 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑙𝑠𝑒... 𝑎 𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑛 𝑏𝑒𝑦𝑜𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑖𝑡𝑐ℎ 𝑡𝑜 𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑤 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑛 𝑤ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑤... 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑛𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔... 𝑎𝑠 𝑖𝑓 ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑎 𝑝𝑖𝑙𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑜𝑜𝑝.

"Besides some payment... favors are the most i can do right now, i would be fine if you want to examine them.. especially if i may get to do the same with you... or whatever those things.. minions of you are?"

"Better than nothing, though." She makes a slight show of glancing over the area, taking it in. "You've got yourself set up in a decent spot. If you take things slow and operate a bit more carefully, I, at least, think you'll be ok. The opposite is also true, of course."

She watches the pile of goop carefully, taking in whatever she can about it. The light radiation it puts off, if any; novel or standard waste products, airborne or deposited on surfaces; noise; heat; all of it. The endeavor is mostly caution, trying to gauge exactly what this thing is, what it might do to her, though there's no small share of pure curiosity.

"Then favors and what payment you can mange will suffice." One of her hands reaches into a small container on the belt of her costume and withdraws what looks to be a business card. It's a simple and elegant design, bearing her name, a short list of standard services and their rates, and a phone number. She moves to hand it to him. "You may not examine me." Her tone is stern and final. "And you'll have to give a very good reason to examine my minions. You'll forgive me if the idea of custom tailored parasites isn't something I'd like to deal with. I've seen what tinkers can do with even a small sample."

"I guess." He nods while waiting for her to come closer as he would then take the card.

Meanwhile the goop appears to be still... but on deeper look there is a lot going on. Rhythm of micro-pulsations, subtle changes in color, pulses of infrasound vibrations and movement from within. Some seemingly reflecting Freakshow's own pulse and breath, reacting in advance to any of his own movements and signals... But there is more to it, the mass itself less responding to his signals.. as they actually seem to convey something to him.

"And there it is that Stigma... considering parasites and my work..." He sighs.

"Though its fair... i'm not here to make enemies and after all not like i would want to destroy any trust bevore things even get started. Its a bit unfortunate but then i will have to focus my research on something else.... I'm sorry.. but as a tinker i just had to ask... studying unusual biology... especially of parahuman nature.. is just very tempting."

His response folled by even more signals of his creations, causing a hint of concern and annoyance in his voice as he suddenly seems slightly more tense. Almost immediately followed by forced calmness, only slowly extending onto the swarm.

"I hope you understand it's nothing against you personally, more a matter of principle. I'm a mercenary, that means that the more any given cape knows about my powers, the worse off I am, and the harder it is to earn my livelihood or even stay alive. My policy would be the same for any other tinker."

She pauses to consider something, noting the activity of the goop and indexing herself to it slightly so as to react more quickly should it make a move.

"If it's unusual biology you're after, I'm more than amenable to taking a job to get you some, just not my own."

"Sounds like a good compromise." He nods "It's not really taken personally... at least as far as I'm concerned. I mean i did extend some trust by telling you about my tech... but i guess not enough to make any such demands."

The mass of bug parts now increasingly gravitating towards him, Freakshow would settle on top of it using it akin to a chair, while he starts to relax. Albeit still wary about his surroundings or rather the things scattered in his less proximate vicinity.

Meanwhile one may notice a change in frequency of the signals, fluctuating, throughout the conversation.

She doesn't seem to respond well tot he display, though it's not a terribly pronounced reaction. She simply takes half a step back and her posture shifts to be slightly more defensive.

"Well, it seems like most of the details are covered. I'll be in contact, and come around at least once a week. Do you have anything you need relatively soon?"

"Sounds good on my end, to be honest.... all kinds of living beings are always welcome. Mostly for incubation.. but also generally for feeding."

Freakshow responds casually. Soon focusing on his work, as he gets up and then settles in front of the nearest table.

"I'll avoid anything that will draw too much attention, but outside of that, is there anything I should stay away from?"

She watches with interest as he begins focusing on his work, pausing for slightly longer than would be comfortable in a normal conversation to take mental note of what he's doing.

"In the same vein, if I'm to be out gathering materials, is there anything specific you need that isn't biomass? I know some tinkers need rare elements or specific electronic components, anything like that?"

"Hmm.. as far as i know... not sure...."

He pauses, removing a sheet on the table, exposing one of the various containers beneath. Opening one, which from a distance appears to hold something vaguely similar to a mutilated and hairless rat. "Well.. some additional lab equipment would be appreciated... i mean most of the stuff i have is either scavenged or stolen. A functional bioreactor would be great, just like a microscope... better than basic one I'm currently using. ..."

He would continue with a detailed list of various materials needed for cell cultures, and the culture of aquatic organism up to containment boxes and ventilation systems.

"Most of my stuff is based on culture, selection and crossing to get varieties that are better adapted to the task at hand. It is important to create the right environment. Protected from light, dehydration and a continuous supply of living tissue. Once the conditions are right... competition will determine the direction of development... followed by a cascade of growth, elimination and cannibalization to produce visible results ready for further use... which in turn can be reused for something else."

She watches on in interest as he uncovers the table, and pulls out a small notebook as he begins talking. As he lists the equipment and materials he needs, she jots it down.

"I see. A lot of what you need is somewhat specialized, and will be noted for going missing. It won't be cheap, but I should be able to get it for you." She takes in his description of his process. "That sounds efficient, if a bit messy. How much direct influence do you have once the process is started?" There's a deeper hint of interest to her tone, as though she's already mulling over and extrapolating on the ideas presented.

"Yeah.. but it certainly would make things easier... for now.. I'm more or less working with somewhat limited and unsanitary condition.... and less than optimal containment that would be appropriate for some of the rather aggressive projects i plan.. "

"Well... that's a bit more tricky. The process i described... is how it would usually work.... to get something viable. At some point though.. there is an obvious clash in interest. Like trimming a hedge into a certain shape while still letting proliferate to a certain extent. Compound Chimera for example is almost pure outgrow... hard to keep into shape. That's where communication comes into play. Strains are selected to be efficient and independent... well to a extent at least, while also pressured to be responsive. Similar to the human immune system, the will be culled if not able to distinguish.. what to target... or if not responsive to the right signals. This in turn needs another... organism.. with higher authority and more processing power and so on. A network punishing itself if one part gets out of line.."

"That can't be good for anyone. I'll make sure to be quick about it." There's still the air of professionalism, but she does sound slightly more nervous at the idea of a Tinkertech parasite or other biological creation escaping.

"Fascinating, that must make for quite robust creations." Again, there's the sense that she's more interested than she should be. "Thank you for explaining what you can. I know most Tinkers have a difficult time explaining their creations to others, especially since I'm not a Tinker myself." She takes a couple steps back from the work area, posture shifting slightly as she changes the subject, glancing around the area. "Speaking of robust creations, I won't pry, but I'd hope you have significant protections on this area. If we're to be working together, I'd prefer to be whitelisted, if at all possible."

"I guess." He shrugs. "Robust is not really the first thing in my mind concerning it... but sure it fits. To be fair i mostly just told the basics... there is quite a bit more going on which is not that easy to explain. If you were to fight me... some stuff would be so much easier to show than tell.. not like i expect to win... because its probably still too early... but that's the interesting part..."

"Anyways good question, as you sees i am extending my influence trough out this building, currently its more or less passive but not for long especially against trespassers... which is somewhat more difficult to manage if i'm not in the area. If you would have agreed to my request with the sample, this would be much easier.. i could just let them imprint to it so they wouldn't see you as something foreign. Otherwise i will have to figure out something else more akin to a rudimentary form of visual and olfactory detection.. less sophisticated than what it could have been.

"If it's sparring or stress testing you're after, I'd be willing to help for a price and a few assurances that things won't go too far." There's a hint of excitement, well hidden but certainly there, at the idea of fighting. "The Tinker cycle should be fast moving, and with what you have set up here already I don't doubt you'll be a force to be reckoned with in no time."

There's a slight pause as she mulls something over. "I doubt visual of olfactory would work properly, at least if it's generalized. A key of some sort could work." Again, a slight pause before her tone shifts to something more commanding. "Imprint a response to a given concentration and ratio of aromatic or otherwise readily detectable chemicals. Make it as complex as you'd like. That should be consistent and recognizable enough without being easily spoofed."

"Stress testing... yes... that would be what i would like to try.. perhaps after my next creation?" At first confused... there actually is a growing sensation of excitement going through his mind. Realizing the inevitable potential of still requiring a sample... in a more indirect way.

"Well the original idea was to imprint them on a genetic level... which again only works with a sample... That's how it works with me and among each of the other ones.. Each genotype is responsible for a specific phenotype and in turn most of the passive information given off from that specific individual. BUT... of course that other ways works too... just less intuitively."

Freakshow responds with a sigh, while he continuous with his work. Demonstratively pulling something from the side of his arm, which looks vaguely similar to tick until dropped into one of the larger containers. Soon to be ripped apart by the liquid inside of it.. turning it red.

"Most ideas seem good until they're tested against reality. One of the best ways to identify flaws in a design is to put it through its paces in a real world dynamic situation. The same goes for strategies." There's a wistful sort of tone to her voice, as thoughs he's recalling better times. "There are problems with genetic imprinting. Biotinkers or changers might be able to spoof it, and that doesn't even account for whatever detection parameters or methods you use."

Despite what would normally be a rather disturbing display, Cruach seems unfazed, or perhaps even more interested than before. "What are you working on now?"

"fair" He nods. "The genetic imprint was more like a multipurpose feature... so i'm just comfortable using it. Its more or less the basis of 'consume or cooperate' The later only performed once markers are detected after attempt of the first. Each iteration becomes more sensitive able to distinguish at a faster rate. Albeit this will be somewhat be obsolete once the neural network matures, enabling better processing and recognition."

Meanwhile Freakshow proceeds with his work, some of the liquid now pulled into a syringe. Almost immediately to be injected into a big hissing cockroach.

"Well... its just a new recombinant strain, which had to be imprinted on me first via a blood sample, folled by incubation into a compatible host organism. Hopefully to amplify some existing traits..., in a much more stable manner.

"I see. i look forward to seeing what you can do with a fully mature neural network, if you can accomplish all this without one."

She takes a couple steps back, looking over the table in its entirety as opposed to focusing in so intently on his immediate work. "Quite interesting. I'd love to look at the end results. But for now, I should probably be going. I'll be in contact, and should have that bioreactor for you sooner rather than later. I look forwards to working with you."

She begins making her way back outside, steps measured and quick, such that while she doesn't look hurried, her exit is nonetheless rather quick.