Hunting For An iLac

Job Details:

Job Sign-Up: Page 37, Post Number 901

-Neutral Grounds, the iLac Factory, mid-afternoon-

Wearing a purple long-sleeved t-shirt, black skirt, black thigh-high stockings, and black tennis shoes, Diana strolled up to the iLac Factory, the home of the vaunted iLac communications device. She had worked with them several times courtesy of Mister Burke, who had given her a special model for use during several jobs for him. She knew that they could link to her SHG-IV Smart Glasses for video and audio recording as well as other multimedia tasks. For the longest time Diana had resisted getting an iLac because friends and enemies alike could track her using the device, as she had learned during her latest job with Mister Burke. During the rescue mission to Forgotten Deserts her iLac being tracked had led to rescue because of Mister Burke tracking the tracking chip that had been installed within the device.

While that time being tracked had a benign outcome, the next time it happened the outcome might not be so positive. The next time her iLac was tracked Diana might have to fend off the Rune Knights, members of Dies Irae, bounty hunters out for a payday, The Shadow Collective, or that black-clad paramilitary squad that had almost made her a permanent resident of Silent Cemetery the night she met Selene. However, Diana had made friends with Catherine Corvinus, a computer specialist and tech wiz who knew her way around electronics. Perhaps Catherine could help Diana elude detection by making a few modifications to her iLac.

Diana was more than a little perturbed by her magic being shut down in the Neutral Grounds, but she did not plan on being here for very long anyway. She doubted that any magic-using opponents would come after her here because their magic would be shut down too, putting her and her opponents on equal footing as far as that was concerned. If they used weapons to get around that lack of magic the Neutral Grounds police would arrest them for being aggressors since Diana was completely unarmed. With that in mind Diana walked through the automated glass double doors of the factory and began her quest for an iLac.

-Inside the iLac Factory-

Diana found herself walking through a lobby that had gray marble tile flooring, dark and polished wooden counters, and other upscale decor features that indicated this place was here to stay. Diana walked through the lobby towards a line labeled "New Customers" by a sign hanging from the ceiling and looked around. No one else was here except for iLac Factory staff. Diana felt like she was walking into a sting operation run by the Rune Knights, Dies Irae, or other law enforcement organizations. Part of her wanted to leave now, but the other part was confident that they would not make a move against her without overwhelming numbers and magic on their side.

Diana approached a wooden counter with a computer monitor on top of it and saw a young woman with waist-length black hair and a company uniform consisting of a blue polo shirt with the iLac logo on the left and a white name tag on the right and black dress pants with black shoes greeted her.

"Hello there! I'm Natalie! How can I help you today?" The young woman asked Diana.

"I am here to get an iLac." Diana replied calmly. Natalie smiled.

"You're in luck because we have plenty of iLacs! You can get them in any color you want and you can even add a pattern if you'd like!" Natalie told Diana. The moment she had walked through the door Diana already had a color in mind. She wanted a purple iLac.

Why purple?

Purple had been her favorite color since she was a child. Lucia had once told her that many centuries ago purple was the color of royalty. No one else in her family liked purple, so it was a color that Diana could call her own.

Even though purple was an odd choice for someone who had survived this far by blending in with their surroundings, Diana wanted a purple iLac. She had thought of compromising by getting one that was lavender since lavender was not as attention-grabbing, but then she realized that there would be other lavender iLacs out there. She would go with purple so that it would be easier to pick out.

"I would like a purple iLac." Diana requested.

"We can make that happen! Is there any special pattern that you'd like to add?" Natalie asked Diana. Diana shook her head.

"No thanks." Diana replied.

"Well, if you change your mind later, there are logo stickers and other decorations sold in stores that you can buy to customize your iLac!" Natalie informed her. The employee then began typing rapidly on a keyboard like Catherine Corvinus could do and forty-five seconds later spun the monitor around to show Diana a preview of her new iLac. The huntress approved of it.

"I like the look of that." Diana replied and gave a thumbs-up like her android companion Ami was prone to doing. Natalie smiled, turned the computer monitor around, and began typing again. Roughly a minute later Natalie stopped typing and left the counter, but not before informing Diana of what she was doing.

"I'm going to get your new iLac! It'll take a few minutes, so please be patient!" Natalie requested before walking to the left and through a set of wooden double doors. Meanwhile Diana listened to the overhead music and recognized the piano playing a piece of music that was Chopin's Nocturne Op. 2 No. 2, one of Diana's favorite piano pieces. She could not recall if Lucia had taught her that or not, but Diana still liked it.

-Fifteen minutes later-

The music had changed to Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, a piece that Diana thought was decent but not quite as good as Chopin's Nocturne, partially because Moonlight Sonata was lengthy and ran the risk of outstaying its welcome, but that was just Diana's opinion. Of greater importance was the return of Natalie, who was holding both a purple iLac and an instruction manual that was thick enough to be used as a blunt weapon.

"Sorry for the wait! Here's your new iLac and the instruction manual!" Natalie apologized and gave Diana her new iLac. Diana felt it in her hands and looked at the purple color. She was pleased with her choice of color.

"I can either give you a tutorial of how it works or you can read the manual. What would you like to do?" Natalie asked Diana. Diana looked behind her and around her for anyone waiting in line who seemed anxious or just a bit too interested in what Diana was doing, but to Diana's surprise and relief no one was around except for them. Diana decided that she would have Natalie show her how the iLac worked.

"I would like a tutorial, please." Diana requested. Natalie nodded. Diana handed the iLac back to Natalie, who proceeded to teach Diana how to use it.

"The iLac has a lot of features right out of the box. It's a multimedia platform, but before we dive into that I'll start with showing you how to power it on." Natalie started the tutorial with a smile. Diana paid close attention to the tutorial, noting every button and app that Natalie showed her. Soon Diana would be able to contact Mister Burke and the few other people in her social circle, a number that could be counted on one hand, perhaps two if one was feeling generous.

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