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[6E] Dome Sweet Home IC

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Jack_Spade

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« Reply #15 on: <10-22-19/1641:33> »
Omen groaned: "No violence? Are you sure you are here for a run and not a fragging UN meeting?
I'm all for finding pressure points. But you know what you do with pressure points? You fragging press them and then shoot them while they are paralyzed with pain."

He paused an shrugged: "Ah, never mind. We can try your way first. In my experience it's going to go wrong anyway and we'll have to solve it with a good old fashioned massacre."
talk think matrix

To strive, to seek, to find and not to yield
Revenant Kynos Isaint Rex

Aria

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« Reply #16 on: <10-23-19/0635:42> »
[21:00 ish, Monday November 13th, 2079; Downfall, Redmond, Seattle Metroplex]
 
 
Watcher frowned at the talk of cullings and massacres “I appreciate that life is cheap in the Barrens but if I had wanted random violence I would be talking to other gangs in the area.  I would prefer something a bit more surgical.  The tribe need to continue to live there after you are long gone and killing a bunch of kids who had the misfortune to fall in to a gang is only going to foster a new round of feuding.
 
Similarly just leaving a power vacuum is going to attract interest from further afield.  I am interested in why these gangs have suddenly taken an unhealthy interest in the tribe.  I haven’t had an opportunity to gather much intel on the two gangs yet, I will pass on anything from my contacts as I get it and I expect you will have your own avenues to explore.  The Reapers are a mixed metatype gang, twenty to thirty members I think and they were a turf gang.  The Slaughterhowzers are primarily an orc gang and a bit larger, maybe forty to fifty members.  Both were low tier gangs and wouldn’t in normal circumstances threaten the tribe who have somewhere around two hundred members as far as I can tell.
 
I am not going to tell you how to conduct this other than cautioning restraint.  I certainly don’t intend to tell you not to hurt anyone, I sadly suspect that will be necessary.”
 
***
 
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ZeroSum

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« Reply #17 on: <10-23-19/1010:31> »
Viktor smiled through gritted teeth as Watcher cut through the discussion and tightened up the parameters of the job.

"Reapers and Slaughterhowzers; charming" he thought to himself as he began a cursory Matrix search*1 of the the gang names, starting with the former; the names were familiar to him but nothing beyond what Watcher had already laid out came to mind.*2 "This Omen character certainly seems bloodthirsty enough to fit right in with the latter, maybe we can have him pose as a prospect or some such..."

"Intelligence is my specialty" he said out loud without a hint of bravado. There seemed to be no use extending this discussion any further when there was information to hunt, so he quickly went on. "As long as no extreme measures are expected on my part, I accept your initial terms. If you obtain any further information, feel free to forward it to this commcode." The burner link would serve as well as any as a temporary drop-box.

He took a closer look at Watcher through AR and sent a quick message to his employer's commcode.*3
> As a token of goodwill, any and all data points I uncover will be relayed here unless you have another preference.

"Now, let's talk compensation, shall we?"

He paused and looked around the table, silently hoping that someone else would take up the mantle of negotiator. His skill laid entirely in navigating the Matrix and finding the things other people wanted to keep hidden, and he knew the limitations of his abilities only too well.


*1Matrix Search: Reapers, Redmond, Gang: 15d6t5 4
*2Memory Test: Street Gangs: 13d6t5 3
*3Matrix Perception: Watcher: 15d6t5 4


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Beta

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« Reply #18 on: <10-23-19/1133:03> »
Tipperman smiled into his drink; they'd had exactly the discussion that had been needed before talking payment.  From the Johnson's side it was always better to agree on payment, then reel out the limitations.  It was always pleasant to side-step that trick.

"You are not looking for ‘quick’ and ‘expedient’
You want something more subtle,
a ‘re-engineering’ of the situation
That makes for a bigger, harder, job:
A background that needs investigation
Gangs needing 'attitude adjustment'
Keeping The Tribe buffered with tamed gangs.
An 'interesting' challenge with all that implies
So now is the time to incentivize.
"

He swallowed the last of his drink -- he refused to actually think of it as Bourbon -- then put his glass down just hard enough to audibly punctuate his comments.  He kept  his gaze fixed on Watcher, while quietly pulling in a deep breath to try and establish if the Orc was running tailored pheromones, or even if he was stressed enough for it to come out in his scent 1.

Notes:
1 Using Olfactory Boosters (with wireless on) for a smell based perception test.
Excerpting from the 6th CRB about Olfactory Boosters:
"You can smell
people’s emotions in their sweat (and if applicable,
the maker’s mark of their tailored pheromones),
traces of ammunition propellant, explosives, or
biological and chemical warfare compounds—the
list goes on and on.
"  and
"The
user gains a bonus Edge for all scent-based Perception
tests, but it goes away if they do not use it
on that test.
Wireless bonus: Add the booster’s rating as a dice
pool modifier to your scent-based Perception tests.
"

scent perception: 8d6t5 3
use the 1 free edge to re-roll one of the 3s edge 1 die: 1d6t5 1
Total of four successes

There are no guidelines on what is needed for a scent based perception test, but from the general threshold guidelines on page 36, four successes is "More difficult, impressive enough to accomplish.
Shooting an enemy in the window of a nearby building.
"  Whatever that means ...
« Last Edit: <10-23-19/1135:41> by Beta »

Jack_Spade

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« Reply #19 on: <10-23-19/1610:07> »
Omen also smiled. He was the first to admit that he had neither a particularly high amount of empathy or book learning - he relied primarily on his low cunning and reflexes to get ahead in the world. So now looked calculating at Watcher, trying to guess where his limits where. On an intelectual level he knew that gaining new contacts in Seattle was probably very good in the longterm, but his mercenary soul yearned for cold hard cash.
So he nodded at the poet to let him know he had his back in the negotiation, concentrating only to exude menace without disturbing his flow.
talk think matrix

To strive, to seek, to find and not to yield
Revenant Kynos Isaint Rex

gwilym

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« Reply #20 on: <10-23-19/1612:03> »
Dynamyt spoke for the first time.
"someone want them out of their home or someone in the tribe is playing games that got out of hand." she shifted nervously "well that my guess, maybe we can get the links of the gang leaders hacked and se what their messages say" she giggled "maybe get some leverage or social ammunition to cause issues in the gangs" she felt very awkward "anyway that's my two cents"
She began to wonder if she could raise a spirit in the dome to ask but she'd need some money upfront for that; she needed some reagents
You are not what you think you are. you are an imitation of what your wish you were

Aria

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« Reply #21 on: <10-24-19/1019:55> »
[21:00 ish, Monday November 13th, 2079; Downfall, Redmond, Seattle Metroplex]
 
 
Watcher nodded as talk came down to the price “I don’t believe the nuyen is shit but it might be less than you were hoping for.  I’m prepared to offer you one thousand apiece for the work.  We can negotiate how much of that you want upfront but the remainder will be conditional on success.  I appreciate that success might be a bit hard to measure when I’ve specifically asked you not to simply wipe out the two gangs.  I propose that I leave the balance with Feather or another neutral third party and get them to release it to you in weekly instalments provided the threat seems to be neutralised.  If you can offer more concrete proof that the threat is gone then I will authorise them to release it faster.
 
What I can provide that is potentially much more valuable than cash is access to my web of contacts.  I’ve been studying the fringes of the Seattle shadows for twenty odd years and I’ve amassed a reasonable network.  I am also prepared to put a word in with one of the premier infobrokers in Seattle, Silk, who has a far wider reach than me.
 
Perhaps of more immediate use I can also connect you with Doc Grace who is a street doc and cyber surgeon operating on the Redmond border.  He works with the tribe and many of the gangs in the area and might also have useful insight in to recent goings on.
 
So, does all that sound acceptable or do we need to haggle some details?”
 
***
 
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Jack_Spade

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« Reply #22 on: <10-24-19/1341:41> »
'A thousand? Frag yeah, I'd call that shit pay - especially with such a complex mission.' Omen nearly blurted out but kept his mouth shut, waiting for what his new chummer had to say about that.
talk think matrix

To strive, to seek, to find and not to yield
Revenant Kynos Isaint Rex

Beta

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« Reply #23 on: <10-24-19/1612:48> »
Tipperman went to take a slug from his drink, then stared at the empty glass for a moment as if wondering where it had gone. 

Then he re-focused on Wanderer, his manner of speaking very different, almost as if he was explaining something to a new recruit.  “You are valuing your contact network highly, and asking us to do the same.  A thousand nuyen – a grand -- sounds like a lot of money.  If you found a credstick lying on the sidewalk with a thousand nuyen on it, it would make your week, maybe your month.  A nice dinner, maybe some new clothes, maybe get your Salish-Sidhe visa and go skiing, ah it would be a grand grand – if you already had an income that covered your costs.  As payment for a job for someone squatting in a factory that was burned out ten years ago and will finish collapsing next year, it would still be the sort of payment that would make them happy to do nearly anything.  But as payment for a job for people who aspire to shower and eat regularly – even cold showers and drek food – or who want to keep any possessions they can’t clutch to their chests while sleeping?  It’s grandness, it is less impressive.

You see, even if we view it all as net profit at the end of the day, that might cover a couple of weeks of costs.  Even cold showers and drek food and a locked space where you can lie down at night begin to get expensive.  Between food, clean water, and bribes to whatever gangs, police, landlords, or corps are shaking you down.  Worse, of course, if you are supporting others or have debts to pay.”  He glances around the table to see if anyone seems to be nodding at the mention of dependents or debts.

But it isn’t all profit, now is it?  In a job like this I could have my Ingram and a couple of clips of ammo taken from me, and it would cost nearly that grand to replace that – not accounting for sentimental value.  I could wear out the insulating coating on my jacket, and it would cost more than a grand to replace.  I could burn an ID, and it would cost far more than a grand to replace it.”  Truth be told he needed more IDs, for himself and ‘Elga, and had been hoping for the sort of payday that would cover them.

When you sum that all up, accepting this job for a grand makes it far from a sure thing that any of us even come out ahead on a strict cashflow basis.  Throw in that we would not even see all of the money until some time later --none of us are strong candidates for walking into a bank for a bridge loan -- and you are setting us up to rush through this; we literally cannot afford much time on this job, on these terms, because we need to find other ways to cover our costs.  So even IF we value your contacts so highly, we would be gambling just by taking this job.

He let his words hang in the air with his tailored pheromones, then leaned forward and tapped his finger on the table as he enumerated options.

Now, if while we were waiting for that money to be paid out, there was somewhere we could stay for a month – along with maybe a couple of dependents – that might help.  In your extensive contacts list, is there anyone who might need some ‘house-sitting’ done, or even some casual guard work that we could rotate through?  Knowing that when the current groceries and bribes run out, we have a dry place to stay, that could be one way to make this investment of our time more palatable.  And if you know somebody who could be persuaded to stitch up any holes in us, and somebody else who could stitch up our armor, well that would help too.  You get the idea, maybe we eventually get all of our grand, maybe access to your network brings us more, and more lucrative, work.  But maybe we need a bit more to help us hang in until we arrive at the land of milk and honey.”

Aria

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« Reply #24 on: <10-25-19/1114:17> »
[21:00 ish, Monday November 13th, 2079; Downfall, Redmond, Seattle Metroplex]
 
 
“I appreciate that a grand is at the lower end of the pay scale but the other items are something we can do a deal on” Watcher nodded “Cash is a limited resource but assets I can work with. If you chose to I know that you will be able to stay with the tribe during all this…they have a policy of hospitality.  That won’t work for your dependants as I’m sure you don’t want them in harm’s way.  I have access to a couple of properties that are above basic living standards, if not by a huge amount, and I’m sure I can locate more.  If you prefer something a little less connected to your employer then I can ask around.  I can certainly organise you a discount rate on various hardware and even IDs if that’s what you need?”
 
***
 
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ZeroSum

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« Reply #25 on: <10-28-19/0829:54> »
In between fine tuning the parameters of his Matrix research, Viktor perked up at the mention of discounts for hardware and IDs; both were hard to come by in this day and age with the corporations constantly squeezing their grip on the market ever tighter.

"Mmm. Discounts could be highly beneficial, but I agree with my friend here that 1k nuyen is rather low" he said, nodding his head at Tipperman. "I for one could use some of that up front to cover incidentals while we work on the problem at hand."

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« Reply #26 on: <10-28-19/1556:06> »
Omen nodded too: "Yeah, having a base of operations for the duration of the job is a good start. Get us some expendable wheels too if we have to tangle with gang turf. Some old clunker will do. Add a fitting throwaway ID or two and we might be getting somewhere."

He nodded at the other runners: "But we haven't really introduced to each other: I'm Omen, weapon specialist and second story man. What are you and what can you do?"
talk think matrix

To strive, to seek, to find and not to yield
Revenant Kynos Isaint Rex

Beta

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« Reply #27 on: <10-28-19/1749:26> »
Nodding to Omen, Tipperman spoke, returning to short clusters of words.
"People call me Tipperman now;
They used to call me Sir or Sergeant.
(Corps don't play with broken toys;
All the Villiers horses can't put me together again.)
For now I have a cause and so some focus;
I'll wait for my batteries to run down later.
When I say 'jump' people still say 'how high?'
And my fists haven't forgotten what to do.
And if I don't shoot like I used to
Inga and I can still hit a target or ... three.
"
At that last he brushes back his coast to show a vintage Ingram Smartgun.

Turning back to Watcher and changing to a more pedantic voice cadence he gets back to agreeing on terms.
"Two-hundred and fifty up front each, which is ridiculously low but obviously cash is an issue.  Hopefully you have a grand on you.  Two-fifty more when we tell you the job is done.  The third payment a week later if things are good.  The last after a month.  Gangs change so fast that we can't guarantee things for longer than that no matter how well we work.  Plus holding onto chump change longer than that is more embarrassing than you could live with, I'm sure.  And in the meantime, access to those networking opportunities starts tomorrow in a very big way  -- that is part of the upfront payment, you could say."
« Last Edit: <10-28-19/1755:19> by Beta »

Aria

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« Reply #28 on: <10-29-19/0908:34> »
[21:00 ish, Monday November 13th, 2079; Downfall, Redmond, Seattle Metroplex]


“As a gesture of good faith I will pay you each three hundred now, two more on completion and then the remaining lots as suggested.  I can get a set of wheels here, do you have a preference for an SUV, a Stepvan or just an Americar?  It won’t be pretty but then pretty stands out like a sore thumb here in Redmond.  The road network outside Touristville isn’t the best but it is still passable between here and the Tribe’s location.”

***

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ZeroSum

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« Reply #29 on: <10-29-19/1036:54> »
Viktor kept his silence after Omen and Tipperman began introducing themselves while negotiating with the Johnson.

"Time for intros later" he thought to himself. "Let's at least agree to terms before getting all chummy."

Fortunately, Watcher countered Tipperman's offer. While rent wasn't due for another month, the nuyen wouldn't even cover half after incidentals for the job was accounted for. Still, some work was better than no work, and the dwarf quickly interjected his agreement.

"You've got my deck, Mr Johnson." The statement was delivered matter-of-factly, but the dwarf couldn't help but smile at the reference to an old literary work from before the turn of the century. Something about a fellowship he mused as he looked around the table. "Not too far off the mark in this case, with this motley crew."

***

Once the others voiced their agreement to the terms offered by Watcher, he added a brief, monotone statement about his capabilities. "Call me zero-day; matrix support and information gathering is my specialty. I'm also handy with a wrench; you bend it, I'll mend it."

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