[Gustovness]

//Quick Reply:

There's always the chance that they need us because we're so low profile... or because we need to make it look like we're actual sloppy corp goons as opposed to hardened professionals...

[Csjarrat]

//And what happens when goons with guns open fire in a corp building? rapid response turns up...
I'm torn, I really want to have a look at this renraku place because of what happened with my family but I know this is going to be a total gang-fuck when we get there. It's been made even harder now we've lost one of the team.
What do you think about having a chat with our liason?//
[spoiler]resist lost loved one trait (6d6.hits(5)=2) 2 hits, successfully resisted trait[/spoiler]

[AffreuxLex]

-- Csjarrat --


// Corporate Business Review - latest issue

Yama - Japanese A rated corporation, established 2023.
  Major fields include:
    - Cyberlimb R&D
    - Bioware R&D
    - Pharmaceuticals

  Minor fields include:
    - Nanotechnology

In recent years, Yama has made several attempts to gain extraterritoriality to no avail.  If successful, this would be the last piece of a large corporate puzzle which could push them into an AA rating.  Major concerns to the Corporate court include Yama's lack of diversity as well as focusing on areas already saturated with much research from other, larger corporations.  The current CEO, Walter Sun, believes that Yama has more to offer than the competition but feels that the corporation is not getting its voice heard over the noise caused by the numerous competitors... [Article continues with no further relevance]


// Daily Business Post - 1 week ago

Yamatetsu, the well known Russian AAA corporation, has announced at a private stock holder's meeting that they intend to expand current operations in the nanotechnology research sector.  Although Yamatetsu already has a minor division devoted to this, the company has decided to invest several million nuyen into expansion.  Stock prices initially dropped slightly after this news was leaked into the public domain but quickly recovered after promises were made about significant advances already in position to be released in the next quarter.  No one knows what these advances are and no one has come forward claiming to have seen them either but senior Yamatetsu assured their stock holders that they will not be disappointed.

---

// Encrypted message incoming
// Autodecrypt enabled - Protocol 1.0.2b

>> Really?!
>> Unbelievable...
>> Not looking for another dealer are you?

>> joey


-- JDA --

The bookie gladly accepts your bet.  The odds are a bit long at 1/25 but you've got a really good feeling about it this time.

Sorry ma'am, comes the voice over the intercom, I'm not permitted to engage in small talk.  Do you have any further requests?


-- Ren --

The car pulls up to its destination and comes to a stop.  As you tell the driver to not wait for you, you hear the distinct "click" of car doors locking.  You try the doors and sure enough, they don't budge.  The car then pulls away smoothly to an unknown destination.  You try several different strategies to exit the vehicle but each fails just as miserably as the last.  It soon becomes apparent that this luxury limo was designed as a gilded cage.  You feel a cold and ghostly hand rest on your shoulder and you instinctively know it to be your mentor spirit.  He speaks slowly with a somber voice that only you can hear.

This place is filled with strife and anger.  Even death is reluctant to come here, you must escape.  Trust your new compatriots and stay close to them.  Even then, do not deviate from the truth of your beliefs, your role is yet to be played and only you know how to help the sisters.

As the haunting voice reverberates in your head, you hear the engine of the car start to cough and sputter.  The limo grinds to a stop and you can hear all the electrics power down.  The windows lose their black tint and become completely clear, the doors unlock, and without the power to hold it up, the privacy divider sags slightly.  Outside, you can see that you haven't gone far from Pallyup and that you are now in a wide expanse of the barrens that you don't recognize.  You don't hear any sounds.  No birds, no traffic, not even any wind.  The sparse vegetation shows no sign of life.  You instantly feel like this is a place where you don't belong.  Not yet anyway.  You get the feeling that this was not the intended destination for the car and that in some strange way, you were protected by being brought here.

[Csjarrat]

//What? no, I've been working for you for ages, even starting to think of you as friend rather than my boss. It just seems very odd that you don't want my business today? and how the hell did you get that, it was a thought, not a message?! I'm at Dick's sporting and hunting shop now as I'm pushed for time. Are you ok? Lv k x//

Flea rides up and secures her bike, dashing into the shop.
She walks over to a holo-terminal and begins to peruse through the goods, selecting one full SMG clip's (50 rounds for praetor) worth of Stick n Shock (405NY with clip), Laser sight (100NY), imaging scope with lowlight and vision mag (500) and a top up of 20 regular rounds for her machine pistol (20NY)

Flea stashes her purchases in the storage compartment under the seat, hops on and guns it to get home, swinging by the local stuffer shack en route to pick up a baseball cap and two bottles of wash-in-wash-out hair colour (auburn + blonde)
The limo had easily beaten her and was waiting in the visitor's parking bay next to the access lift in the underground car park. Flea parks her bike up in her spot, flashes the driver a wave and a gesture to let him know she'd be 2 minutes, and heads up to her room to grab her kit.
She dons her FFBA, grabs her 'work' 'link, sets wireless to "off" and enables skinlink, stuffing it into an inside pocket of her FFBA.
Flea pops up the loose floorboard in the bedroom and digs out the rest of her kit, sorting through what she will need for this run.
She clips the laser sight under the crusader's barrel and attaches her new scope along it's top rail. She tops up the magazine with her newly procured loose rounds and tests the loading mechanism a few times to check it's all a good fit before stuffing it into the concealable holster in her FFBA, and puts her gecko kit into the other pockets. Her knife is stored in her right leg compartment.
Realising she left the suits in the limo, she puts on her clothing over the top of her suit, setting the color to be different from this morning's attire.
Flea sets the soycaf machine running while she dies her hair auburn, sipping the steaming brew as her hair dries.

Flea grabs her backpack and attaches the praetor to the inside harness, puts both her grenades, a survival kit, her helmet, both jammers, tool kit, sequencer and autopicker into the main section.
Her microdrone and spare clips go into one side pocket along with her 'work' glasses. Into the other pocket goes the tag eraser, glass cutter and wire clippers. In the zip pocket inside go her loose rubber rounds.

As a precaution, flea runs the tag eraser over the faberge egg several times and stashes it back into the hidy-hole, making sure to cover it well.

[spoiler]Basically, taking everything but the grapple gun, rope and climbing harnesses.[/spoiler]
Locking the door, Flea puts on the baseball cap, heads to the lift and with a deep breath and sense of nervousness climbs in and says to the driver,"I'm ready".
I can't believe I'm stupid enough to have taken this job..
"driver, how is my request for the mapsoft and linguasoft coming on? also, this large bag I have will need to be smuggled. The datachip informed me that you would be able to arrange that?

Resting back in the comfy seats, Flea helped herself to a sandwich from the minibar and another orange juice. Seeing the results from the Agent lifted her spirits slightly, at least she might figure out who they were working for..
Flea took the time to read each of the reports, word for word, feeling a little better for some proper food and drink inside her.

[Ren]

Puppeteer knew this wasn’t the time to ponder. It was the time to act, as the Ruler of the Great Unknown just told him. Later, he would give his thanks in the proper form but now he moved with a purpose. Before the driver, who probably couldn’t decide what just happened, could react, he got out of the car, while opening his consciousness to realms afar.

“O, Hunter of the steel wilderness, Spirit of a Stray, hear my plea. Come to my side and lead me where I must, and protect us from whatever might threaten on the way.”
[spoiler=summoning]Force 5 Spirit of Beast (stray dog), optional power: Concealment
summoning: MAG(5) + Summoning(4) + Focus(2) (11d6.hits(5)=3)
spirit resistance: Force(5) (5d6.hits(5)=2), 1 service
drain vs. 4S: CHA(7) + WIL(5) + Drain focus(?) (12d6.hits(5)=8), no damage taken (overkill)
note: i don't know how strong the drain focus is, so i didn't roll any dice for that
service asked: protect me until i reach home[/spoiler]