Shadowrun
Shadowrun Play => Play-by-Post => Topic started by: Sentinemodo on <01-12-11/1515:17>
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"Face it you Fraggers. Denver is a sub-divided, pain-wracked, schizophrenic, self-serving, epileptic, sado-masochistic haven for the divinely warped. And I love each and every one of your bitter, thrice damned souls."
- Right Reverend Donald R. Byrne, Street Samurai
Welcome to Denver !!!
Denver, also known as the Front Range Free Zone, is a simmering cauldron of barely contained chaos.
With the city six different authorities and the great dragon on top, sector's laws and economics conflict enough to make legal trade between them virtually nonexistent it has become a smugglers dream. And yes, it is Denver's shadow economy that alone sustains the city; without the black and gray markets, no one could afford food and the other necessities of life. But beware, Denver's free-for-all, Wild West attitude that makes it a dangerous place.
This is the city where the great treaty of Denver was signed. This is the city where the shadow of Ghostwalker can be still felt. This is the city where Indian, Aztlan, American cultures clashes everyday. And we are still in early 2070, when the city is divided into six sectors. Each sector corresponds to a different nation. The six sectors are the Aztlan sector, CAS sector, Pueblo sector, Sioux Sector, UCAS Sector, and Ute Sector.
So watch your back, shoot straight, conserve ammo, and never, ever, cut a deal with a dragon.
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SPOILER WARNING: this game is played using the official Missions 02 - 01 Parliament of Thieves scenario. If you wish to ever play it do not read any further.
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Getting used to life in The City of Shadows hasn’t been an easy process to any of you. As if the interplay of factions in the Shadow community weren’t tricky enough, the
addition of four different countries and a bloody great dragon have kept you on the edge of your seat. There’s also that matter of adjusting to the thin air up here for those of you who haven't been raised here. But things are starting to settle down. You’ve secured a place, and you’ve sent out a few feelers concerning your “line of work.”
This afternoon, it looks like those feelers have started to pay off. A few minutes ago, you received a call from somebody who’s on the fast track to being your best buddy ever. He called about a job. The meeting is at 4:30 pm at Denim, a nightclub in the Pueblo Corporate Council Sector (PCC). There was an offhand mention that
the Johnson was looking for “shiny new faces” who might act as neutral parties. And that would be you.
The time now is 2:00 pm. You have the time to grab your gear and head to the club. Buddy that have called you said you come ready for the 'run.
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Cursor finished gathering his stuff from around his small apartment,then sat on his bed.
Now I need to work out where to go, Denim in the PCC... Frag, I hate new places.
Cursor summoned the resonance from his rooms wireless, it knit together above his one real hand.
(OOC: Compile rating 3 Sleuth sprite Compile(1)+Resonance(5) (6d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840553/)
Sprite's Resistance Sprite's Resistance (3) (3d6.hits(5)=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840563/)
Fading Test against 2S Willpower(5)+Resonance(5) (10d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840565/)
Sprite compiled with 2 Tasks, No Fading suffered)
Sleuth Sprite Rating 3
Sleuth sprites are excellent trackers, rumored to be able to find anyone in the Matrix by following even the tiniest traces of datatrails.
Pilot Response Firewall Matrix INIT IP EDGE RES
3 2 5 9 3 3 3
Skills: Computer, Data Search, Electronic Warfare, Hacking
Complex Forms: Analyze, Browse, Sniffer, Spoof, Stealth, Track, Optional CF: Command.
Powers: Cookies, Traceroute
Unwired, Page 155
In AR a Searchlight, animated and shining dimly, sprang to life.
"Welcome aboard soldier, your first objective is to find a good, detailed map of Denver.", the Searchlight shone into the Matrix, searching out it's goal.
(OOC: Sleuth sprite's Data Search Test to find a good, detailed map of Denver. Extended Test, Interval and Threshold at GM's discretion.
First roll: Sleuth's Data Search(3)+Browse(3) (6d6.hits(5)=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840600/)
Will wait for feedback before continuing. I'm keeping it detailed while we get used to this.)
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(OOC: success on datasearch, fetching the map took less then a second (it's located at the master Denver public node, both for sat map, road maps and locations map with a 3d visualisation along with text/picture/trid descriptions of the locations). Certain areas, especially around sector borders, and corporate/government areas are of course classified and limited to the general view. I've attached to this reply map that will be used for this scenario.)
The Searchlight flashed once and dissolved to appear again in less than a second. It announced success of the task completion by a quick double flash on and off switch. with the last switch on the light circle was showing a map. Since finding you resonance abilities, you continously wonder why would anyone bother searching for data in Matrix when the Matrix can bring you anything you search for on your beck and call. Pinpointing Denim club now was simple. You got address: 10151 W. 26th Ave, in the Edgewater neighbourhood of the Pueblo sector
You've even got some reviews from common customers claiming that the place can get pretty hopping, thanks to some great Tribal Rock bands playing there coming from
all over the NAN.
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"Well done soldier, at ease. Hm.. One border crossing..." Cursor mused over his F rated gear, before tossing the Pred IV's Silencer into a drawer. "But my precious explosive bolts... I'll spoof it if I have to"
He headed out, carrying a slice of toast, hoping to arrive early.
(OOC: All gear on my person but the silencer, Ares Pred IV in my Cyber Holster, fully loaded. Crossbow loaded with 4 Injection Bolts w/ Narcojet, 4 Injection Bolts w/ Activators. Underbarrel loaded with 6 Explosive Bolts. Commlink on active, Living persona in hidden.)
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Stryker decides to go out earlier, to ensure that he won't be late, or lost on the way. He takes a quick shower after his daily routine, and packs his equipment, keeping most essentials. He decides to put on his new coat (in case of trouble) and some classy clothes (to blend in). That, and a pair of goggles, and headphones, loaded with mods.
{OOC: He wears a Lined Coat with a Helmet (6/6 total Armor), takes his Weapon Focus, and both Sustaining Foci, along with the Manhunter, 4 clips of ammo (2 regular, 1 EX-Ex, 1 S'n'S), and some basic gear, like a Medkit with some Patches (2xStim 3, 1xStim 2, Trauma) and the Biomonitor, stuffs the Gecko Gloves and Tag Eraser along with the Medkit. He stuff those in a backpack, putting the Talislegger Kit on the bottom. Because you never know...}
Then he decides that it's better being safe than sorry, and that calling forth a local resident of the Manastreams would be best. It's the City of Spirits after all. He tries to work his way through unfamiliar Manastreams, to call upon their residents, but for the first time it appears it's not so easy for a small-time summoner like him.
Magic(4)+Summoning(2) (6d6.hits(5)=0) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840614/)
Drain: Willpower(5)+Intuition(5)=10 (10d6.hits(5)=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840708/), that's one box of Stun damage.
On the second try though it seems that he has drawn attention of a friendly Guardian spirit, who after a quick negotiation agreed to protect him. He asks the Spirit to follow him through the Manastreams, and he agrees that it's the best course of action.
Magic(4)+Summoning(2)=6 (6d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840615/)
Guardian Spirit's Force(4) (4d6.hits(5)=0) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840616/)
Afterwards he began his preparation ritual, casting the two basic spells he always uses while working. First he weaves the Mana around himself, creating a swirling net of energy that will protect him in case of any danger. His work seems too intricate and the protective net too powerful to be sustained by his bracelet, so he decides to unweave some of the threads and make the spell weaker. That seems to be enough for his Focus to handle. The task is exhausting though, and he feels a slight ringing in his ears, and blurred vision as the headache brews behind his eyes.
Armor: Magic(4)+Spellcasting(5) (9d6.hits(5)=5) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840625/), lowered to 3 to sustain by Focus.
Drain: Willpower(5)+Intuition(5)=10 (10d6.hits(5)=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840649/), he takes 3 boxes of stun damage.
His attempts at fighting the strain seem fruitless though. He sighs, and gets back to the task at hand.
The second spell would be as risky as the first in terms of effort, but he decides that he needs it anyway. After a short meditation he begins to weave the spell that would grant him uncanny reflexes in time of need. This time it doesn't work as well as he'd like, but he decides that it will have to be enough. Feeling the rush of Mana wandering down his spine and empowering his body he sighs with relief - this time he managed to contain the power, and stop it from wreaking havoc in his Aura.
Increase Reflexes: Magic(4)+Spellcasting(5)-1=8 (8d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840659/)
Drain: Willpower(5)+Intuition(5)=10 (10d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840664/)
With his confidence bolstered, he picks another Stim patch, and slides in in his coat pocket, just to be sure, closes the door, and runs down the stairs. He jumps on his Dodge Scoot, and puts on his helmet, nodding to the oldtimers enjoying the evening on a nearby bench. He tinkers with his commlink for a while, putting on the AR gloves, and finds the best route to Denim. His Scoot fortunately connects to the GridGuide, and helps him get there in a couple of minutes, so he decides to enter the club, find a comfy spot, and rest for a bit before the meeting. As the trip went smoothly, he drops the Armor spell with a slight gesture of his left hand, to avoid suspicious looks. After parking his trusty steed in a designated place, and smiling to the AR display of a girl watching the parking he slowly walks toward the entrance. He bows slightly to the bouncer, and goes in, looking for a spot to rest his Mana-strained bones. If he has an hour to spare, he'll rest for a bit, waiting for his mind and body to cleanse his aura of residual Mana from the spells he cast. Which it does perfectly on it's own.
Stun Healing: Body(3)+Willpower(5)=8 (8d6.hits(5)=4) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840677/)
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For Stryker, Mata Tabi and Eight-stone the trip into Edgewater was a fairly quiet one. The neighborhood’s mostly residential, so you drive through a few quiet streets, away from the lights and noise of the casino at Lakeside Amusement Park.
For Cursor the travel was more adventurous, on the crossing from Confederated American States (CAS) he was scanned by the sgt. John Davids by the badge on his chest, and suddenly there was a spark in the cops eyes. Sgt. John, barelly looked at the SIN, just stood for a moment watching his eyes or face, while he had thrown some offhand remark and noted his voice or tensed eyes, or whatever it was.
(OOC: Chrona, if you wish you may add him as a connection 2/1 rent-a-cop, gay)
Coming to West 26th, you spot the neon sign of Denim, and make your way into the parking lot.
This early in the day, the parking lot is fairly empty, and the tribal beats that reverberate when you open the door are turned down from eardrum shattering to merely loud. Inside you see a few wageslaves seated around the bar, trying to relax after the day’s grind. The bartender, a tired and worn looking middle aged human woman dressed in traditional Hopi garb, gives you a glare as you walk in.
(OOC: please make some presentation of yourself as you enter to the club, especially any visible weapons or chrome - Stryker has already done some, you may roleplay a little your introduction, as you must have guessed that the 'runs are rarely done solo)
The bar has synthetic dark wood paneling, and the walls are covered in Hopi artwork and memorabilia. A small stage and dance floor are set off to one side of the bar. Several trids are showing a various sportscasts and local news. One of the newscasts is showing live footage from outside a corporate building bearing a large LuCom logo.
The time now is 4:15 pm. You have several minutes to the meeting with Mr. Johnson.
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(OOC: Cursor's male ;P Contact added)
Smoothest border cross ever.
When he reaches Denim he has a good look around, checking for anything unusual. He scratches his short black hair with his cyberarm, the Urban Explorer Jumpsuit not doing much to conceal it.
(OOC: Perception roll, but I have +3 on Audio and Visual, I'm checking in general so let me know whether to add the +3)
After taking a seat, leaning forward due to the lare crossbow on his back, he pays attention to the matrix; taking a look for interesting nodes.
(OOC: Matrix Perception: Computer(3)+Analyze(2)+Technomancer(2) (7d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840789/) )
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The Mercury’s on board computer chimed out it’s dull tone, one reminiscent of any major rail system used in the modern world before a Japanese voice followed shortly by an English translation of ‘destination arrived’ alerting Mata Tabi shortly before the autopilot turned the vehicle into the parking lot. Mata Tabi looked over himself with the rearview mirror, dialing up the tint on his glasses slightly to obscure his features some. Mata then flattens the collar, needlessly, of his bright red shirt as it lies over the dark grey pinstripe suit. Mata leans over and unsnaps the quick release buckle of the ankle holster and checks to make sure the revolver is loaded before placing it back and snapping the buckle again. Next he checks the weight of his right coat pocket, the familiar weight and shape of the folding ceramic knife is comforting. Mata lights a scent masking cigarette and smokes a few puffs before passing it along his person and billowing out his scentless smoke upon himself. As prepared as he can be, Mata Tabi exits the car and locks it up before he makes his way the entrance and the pounding rhythm.
‘Drekhole’ is the first thought that enters Mata Tabi’s mind as he sees the decor of the place. Mata Tabi is no prima donna, his own life spent in many blue collar or worse establishments, but the earthy AmerInd style always lacked something in Mata Tabi’s mind. Even hillbilly Americana with the eclectic mix of the 1950’s, road signs, and knick-knacks of trivial ‘mass produced junk’ was preferable in his opinion, of course his face never showed any of this, never did. Mata had the ability to read, but be virtually unreadable to others way before he knew about the nature of his gifts. Mata Tabi scans the room behind his glasses; Mr. Johnson isn’t obvious to him, so the only obvious thing to do is ask the sole unchanging fixture in any establishment of this type….the bartender.
Sliding up to the bar and taking a seat “I’m here to have a drink with an acquaintance of mine, but I don’t see him. Has Mr. Johnson left a message for me, or stepped out perhaps?” Mata says as softly as he can yet assuring he can be heard by the bartender.
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Nice suit. Bit too nice for here.
Assuming this was more "Fresh Talent" arriving, he turned his head towards the man in the pinstripes. Keeping his rough-skinned face down, he listened intently, then interested in his team's matrix side, runs a scan.
(OOC: Audio Perception: Perception(1)+Intuition(5)+Audio Enhance(3) (9d6.hits(5)=6) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840962/) Wow, but GM Discretion, it's very loud in here.
If Mata Tabi is running in Hidden then I try to detect his node: Electronic Warfare(3)+Scan(3) (6d6.hits(5)=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840967/)
And fail (Target 4). Cursor begrudgingly accepts defeat and will try again later if his scans go unnoticed. (Living Persona is in Hidden, running Stealth 4. Commlink is in active, but doing nothing.
If in Active or Passive Cursor takes a good look, Matrix Perception: Computer(3)+Analyze(2)+Technomancer(2 (7d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2840973/) Versus Mata Tabi's Hacking + Stealth if applicable. Otherwise, I believe it defaults to Firewall+Stealth for his commlink. Correct me if I'm wrong.)
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Stryker was resting on one of the more comfy seats in a box, that would let him see everyone coming in, and the bartender. Hearing the newcomer to ask for Mr. Johnson, he waves to the bartender, motioning at the table he's sitting by. He gives Mata Tabi a good look, but obviously he's not nosy enough to take a peek at his aura. He waits till the man in the suit - obviously too stylishly independent to be anyone but a shadowrunner - approaches the table.
He reaches out, to welcome him with a simple handshake. "Stryker. Independent Magical Consultant." He gives his soon-to-be partner-in-crime a friendly smile, and sits back, reaching for the unopened can of Buzz! Cola.
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Cursor took note mentally of his access ID and System rating then turned his attention on the guy approaching him.
What? I swear thats just a kid.
(OOC: Matrix Perception on Styker:Computer(3)+Analyze(2)+Technomancer(2) (7d6.hits(5)=5) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2841382/) )
Right on target.
(OOC: I kindly ask for Styker's System, Firewall, Responce and Signal (unless he's running Stealth, then resist with hacking+stealth) Edited after discussions with Sent.)
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Cursor rose and headed over, taking a seat next to them, hunching over.
"Hey kid, what's your plan when that OS degrades?"
He grins then taps the commlink on his cyberarm. "How about we set up our comms before Mr. J arrives. You two got subvoc?"
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Stryker shrugs a little, but after a second he just smiles lightly - again - and takes a sip of cola.
"I don't really know. But i bet you'll have an answer... As I said - magical consultant." He points at his chest. Then he unzips his collar for a second, to show the microphone. "I'm not a tech-wise guy. Damn, i can barely use that thing." He pats his commlink pocket. "Not that i wouldn't like to learn, but there are other things i had to focus on." That he said with a serious look on his face. "Anyway, i don't think this thing tells the truth about me." You can see that he doesn't really care about being scrutinized that way.
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"Yeah your both set up fine for now. Patching can take a while from scratchbut you've got a month or two left in that OS."
Cursor pings across requests to subscribe everyone's Microphones and set up our communications, he uses his Battle Buddy Basic for it though, not his Bionode.
Best to look like a Hacker for now.
SUBVOC"Hows that sound guys?"
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The Pick-up.
The time now is 4:30 pm.
I was told that there should be four of you. Are you drinking? The man has arrived and is at the back room. The bartenderess doesn't really hide her disdain.
Assuming you grabbed yourselves, you may take a look at the back room which is set up like a medicine lodge. The floor is covered in what appear to be authentic skins. Several cushions surround a firepit in the center of the room, where a small brazier currently burns. The atmosphere is aromatic and smoky, but a metal chimney above the brazier seems to be pulling most of the smoke out of the room. (OOC: The warm smoke also obstructs thermographic vision (-2 dice).)
Directly across from the door, behind the brazier, a man dressed in a grey business suit, but wearing a traditional Hopi mask (emblazoned with a stylized Raven) sits. He
silently gestures you to enter and take a seat.
He wait until you take seats around the brazier.
As you might have guessed. I am Mr. Johnson. you can't shake the accent he put on the word 'might'. Thank you for coming at such short notice.
The ‘run I have for you is a short and hopefully easy courier job. My friends have a small package that needs to be delivered to my other friend. The package must
be delivered in strict confidence.
The delivery is in the FRFZ, but you will need to cross over into the UCAS, which means at least two border crossings. First crossing from Pueblo into the CAS and then
from there into the UCAS.
The package must arrive no later than 7:00 tonight. There is nothing you need to bring back.
The payment is 12k.
I have every reason to believe that some people would not like to see the package arrive safely. And because of that, suitable precautions are needed to be taken.
This precaution is to hire you and not the Denver public delivery service. My friends have agreed that it wouldn't do good to be using couriers from either of us. a neutral party was selected. You my friends haven't as of yet gained much visibility, I am not aware of any real links you are attached to, which on the adverse sides means you don't have a good success track record. You haven't been working together until now, you certainly have your differences to settle. I hope that lack of reputation doesn't mean lack of skills.
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"I'm in, Fourth man or not. I dont have a vehicle though." Cursor tries to get comfortble but cant on the cushion.
SUBVOC "Or through the Sioux area, still two borders though. See if he's got any suggestion for the borders. And more nuyen, naturally"
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Mata Tabi nods his head to the two accompanying him in what could be interpeted in thanks or merely accepting their presence. Sitting upon the cushion Mata tabi motions towards the lit brazier as he takes out a black cigarette with gold foiled filter and his lighter "Since its already smokey I can presume it's okay?"
Mata Tabi slips into his negotiation mode as the lighter focuses on the man, the mask is a nusaunce but it doesnt hide all the body language, the empathy program begins highlighting visual cues and notations. Mata Tabi allows the few inhales of the cigarette time for the program to calibrate before speaking. "My acquantences here seem reasonably well skilled in their vocations, and I.....well without boasting of my own skills am more than adequate for the assignment. However, as you pointed out yourself, we were rushed here in short order and the logistics of even a simple courier assignment across borders is well.....difficult to say the least."
Mata Tabi pauses to inhale and exhale from the cigarette "This difficulty is perhaps offset by say compensation and considerations I think, do you not also?" Mata left the question an open one, a simple tactic, but an effective one.
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The time now is 4:45 pm.
A quarter later the Mata Tabi nod his head, and shake hands with Johnson.
It's 13,6k then.
Reaching into his briefcase, he pulled up a letter sized envelope. The envelope is marked CONFIDENTIAL in large red letters. The seal, is readily recognizable as one intended to be “tamper proof".
This is the package. It is to be delivered to 4923 Billings St. in the Montbello District of the UCAS. Allow me to repeat. It must not be open.
As for the transportation. I know you have a car among yourself, but if you prefer you may use van that is parked behind the club. You could return it tommorow while collecting payment. It might be however registered as belonging to my friends. And regarding rush hours, it might have its uses. During rush hours, the SIN checks at the border are very cursory. No pun intended.
Even so if you want I have two Coyote availabe. "Stalker" can get you through Pueblo-CAS border, "Peaches" handle CAS-UCAS border. You can get notes to them that the costs will be covered by my friends.
Now are there any other questions? The time is ticking.
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Cursor saw nothing else to worry about till we hit the road.
"Wouldn't have minded if it was intended", he smiled. "As you say, times ticking, I say we go, now."
SUBVOC "Stryker, you got a driver's license? Wondering if we can use the van as a decoy if we need to."
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Mata Tabi thinks a moment before answering "We'll take the contact information, in case we need to resort to a plan 'B' " The uncertainty of the others credentials, false or otherwise tugs at Mata Tabi's thoughts, that and the prospect of the his car being implicated in nefariousness or kami forbid damaged. "We'll take the keys as well to the Van."
"With that, Gentlemen shall we?" Mata Tabi motions towards the door.
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SUBVOCHere's my plan, if you're willing. We argue as we leave, I got a hunch "They" have eyes on the bar. Mata pretends to quit the job, heads to the PCC in his own wheels with the package, borders'll be no problem for you. Me and Stryker take the Johnson's van and use the smugglers, making us the ones avoiding authority. What do you think?"
Cursor bows slightly to the Johnson before, slowly, walking to the door.
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With no subvocal mic, Mata Tabi waits till he's out of earshot of the Johnson "Problem is that I'd dont know either of you. Now, I could take all the upfront money as a garuntee I'm not being hedged out, but. To put it bluntly, I put my reputation on the line by taking the job and I'm not sure either of you have the required capabilities to see it to its conclusion."
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"Alright... we go together. Faith gaining exercise."
Cursor sped up towards the door.
"We're getting you a mic after this though. So car or van? Border or Cayote?
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"Can anyone drive? I use the pilot and a manuever autosoft in the car. Never had the need to learn before, and my vote is coyote. Best we stay off the radar and thats what they do best."
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"I cant drive but give me a few seconds and I'll make somthing that can, wont be amazing, but better than us I imagine. I'll wait till we're in the van though."
Coming out out of the closet early if they recognise a sprite...
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Eight-Stone squeezed his massive bulk out of the autocab, then reached in to grab his ominious black duffel bag, bulging with barely-contained weaponry. He paused to fiddle with his messy black hair and stunted, granite-gray horns in the reflection of the autocab's windshield. Satisfied, he crossed the parking lot, opened the up the door, and stepped into Denim.
Stepping inside, Eight-Stone quickly scanned the crowd. His sheer size attracted some looks and double-takes. Some eyes lingered on his duffel bag, others on his armor jacket, almost bursting to contain his barrel-chest and the grenades pinned carefully underneath the flame-retardant exterior jacket. Most eventually returned their attention to their drinks, however.
Seeing a group gathered in the smoky back room, Eight-Stone figured that must be the Johnson Mr. Twist had told him about. He stepped into the back room, mumbling a faint "sorry I'm late" as he caught the tail end of Mr. Johnson's instructions. As the group discussed their plans, Eight-Stone nodded in agreement with those who favored going together. "I, uh, can use all the help getting through the border that I can get. I've been told that I stand out in a crowd, so to speak." He moved with the others toward the waiting van. "Name's Eight-Stone, by the way."
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"So Eight-Stone, all that liscensed?"
Cursor quickly patched him nto the comms system.
"And, please, tell me in all that gear you've got a subvoc mic"
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Stryker looked at the newcomer with a surprisingly cool stare. He looked for a moment, smiling, this time fully.
"Name's Stryker. I'm the magic guy here. Pleased to meet you." He openly offers a handshake - not something most people would trust a troll with. "You know, I have a friend in Seattle whom you remind me off. From the horns, to the bag, and it's contents."
He then waits for the group to leave the Denim, before he speaks. "I don't have a drivers license. I don't need any for that." He points at his Dodge Scoot, covered with tribal Pueblo graffiti. "But i can provide us with an edge over any tail we might get. Ever heard of Spirit Roads?" Then he waves at the AR display of the bored girl watching over Denim's parking, to get his Scoot. "Oh, and our employer? His Awakened. I'd say a bigtime guy. That mask? It's a powerful focus. One people would gladly kill for. So I'm not going to risk anything stupid here, no matter what. Especially against a guy that knows my aura, and has Coyotes on disposal that we get to use for free. I'm new here, but i know how much these guys tend to charge..."
{Status: 0 / 10P and 0 / 9S damage, no Wound penalty, no Sustaining penalty}
{Defense: 4; Initiative: 9; IP's: 2} | {Ballistic Armor: 6; Impact Armor: 4+2=6} | {Sustained spells: Increase Reflexes F2, on Focus.}
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Eight-Stone grinned amiably as he accepted Stryker's handshake, flashing the row of yellowish teeth lurking behind his pearly-white tusks. Eight-Stone didn't work with magicians often. All Eight-Stone really knew about magic he learned from Combat Mage Karl, so he tended to assume that all magicians were total badasses until they proved otherwise.
"Yeah, I got a mic," Eight-Stone answered subvocally as Cursor finished patching him in. "I'm afraid I've only got a license for the shotty, though. The rest is all bought and paid for, but my registration information is... you know. In fuckin' transmit, or something." Once out of sight of any patrons, Eight-Stone unzips the duffel bag o' death slightly, revealing its contents to the team. It isn't as full as it appears; most of the awkward bulges are from a combat axe that Eight-Stone had somehow managed to cram in there. There's also a Remington shotgun and a fair bit of ammo, including EX-Explosive slugs. "I've also got five grenades," Eight-Stone adds, bumping his fist against his chest. "Frags and flashbangs."
Eight-Stone announced this all very grmily. He wanted his new teammates to know that whatever they were delivering, it was something that Mr. Johnson saw fit to hire a heavily-armed troll mercenary to protect. "Needless to say... I expect trouble. Call it a hunch. But if you can all help me get through the borders with this junk, I'll watch your backs when the time comes. You know, scratch my back, and I'll make sure nobody scratches yours."
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It is Stalker then.
You've packed into standard GMC Bulldog Step-Van painted as Stick & Stuff Vending Machines company, filling the three front seats (Mata at the driver seat, Stryker in the middle and Cursor at the right window. Eight-stone filled the cargo along with his bag and elf's bike. Cursor replaced the original autopilot (rating 1) with his own (rating 4).
Quick call to Stalker, confirms, that he is readily available and agrees to meet you at Sloan Lake Park (15 minutes ride from Denim).
Somewhere, Across the “C”.
The time now is 4:55 pm.
Stalker stands at 1.9M. Sports cybereyes, katana and receding hairline, over lined coat. It’s pretty obvious that he’s a retired street samurai. He looks to be early middle-aged.
All right kids, whatch ya got, credstick or goods. Mata Tabi silently gives him note from Mr. Johnson. Oh crap, notch again. Stalker certainly isn't happy. I'd prob'ly birth a granade before Koshari pay a yen.
All right, whatch ya smugglin'. Gotta know - greater risk more yens. - with that he open the van cargo space.
Oh fuck! - - His cybereyes almost popped out when the Eight-stones face appeared from within. - Jesus !!!, you could've warned me. I'm not that young anymore. Back in my days, people had the politeness to tell people things like that. Fuck.
Ok. Just in case you don't understand. The boundary between the PCC and CAS is two blocks away. It is a 50 meter no-man’s-land, bordered by fences on either side, with security from the respective nations patrolling regularly just inside of their respective fences. PCC uses 6m concrete wall topped by razor-wire or mono-wire and drones on patrol. CAS uses 10 m chain-linked fence and guards with dogs. This are only to call for strike teams, which can be real pain in the ass, but that depend on luck really.
We are going under. There are old Aztlean tunnels here. Be quiet in there. No shooting, no granades. Clear? If everything goes well we'll be out in 20 minutes in Cheeseman Park in CAS.
With that he grabs the left door and signals you to drive. to the building looking like an old bunker. Rusty doors give way to the iron ramp leading down. Before you go further Stalkers closes the door, unsheathes katana and signals you drive on.
Hey, kiddo Stalker turns his attention to Stryker aren't you too young for this? Going around with nogood punks for nogood druggers? Shouldn't you be doing shoppin for your mamma like a good sonny?
Tunnels are turning often, and you never see mroe then 50 meters ahead. the walls are murky, light is dim, and the sound of engine, succesfully kills any sounds.
You see that painings. He pointed as you slowly drive your van. Back in my days, I knew a smartass babe, she said these are Aztec. And that the Aztlaners are hiding here on PCC territory.
You have already passed several crossings, Stalker without doubts point you with your katana where to go.
Usually everything goes fine, kids, nobody gets hurt, so don't worry...
(OOC: please roll Intuition + Perception - 4 dice)
[attachment deleted by admin]
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Eight-Stone nodded his agreement with the provisions against shooting and grenades. Once back inside the van, he got his axe out and kept it at ready. Yes... battle axes were about as incognito as Eight-Stone got. For the rest of the ride, he kept quiet and tried to listen for anything unusual.
(OOC: Roll... no chances of success, I know, but just to get used to the dice roller and the game system:
http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843555/)
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Stryker laughs at the oldtimer. "I was probably vat-grown, old man. I don't even care." He stretches his arms without disturbing anyone's personal space, and then starts doing magic. He moves his arms and hands in wavy patterns, murmuring and singing in tones that remind his companions of flowing water. Then he suddenly finishes his mumbling and waving, which seems to have a visible effect - a slight glow around his body. And one medkit use later he pats Cursor on the shoulder.
"Can you record all those neat paintings for me? They look interesting. I have to leave my meat for a while, and scout ahead of you. Won't be comfy, but we need that, believe me." Then he goes limp, curling into a fetal ball on the seat, to hide himself just in case. His Astral body breaks free from the bonds of flesh, and leaps ahead of them, in quick jumps covering some distance ahead and back, to scout the way. He also takes a moment to look at their guides aura, looking for any obvious signs of foul-play. He's still wary not to touch the walls of the tunnel - he's not sure if they're just normal murals, and his astral senses don't seem to work so well at the moment. He sighs, and a shimmering cloud of sparks leaves his astral mouth. His flowing, glowy form touches the ground, sending a ripple through it. The ground shakes a little, and an angry rumble attacks his form. The spirit doesn't seem happy, and he doesn't want to be disturbed...
Back in the van a trickle of blood flows from Stryker's nose, as his body shudders.
"Something is wrong. The Earth is restless here..." In a blink of an aye he appears in the van as a glowing shade of himself, and whispers in soft tones. "The Earth Spirits are angry here. Something must've disturbed them. Be wary... Oh, and slap a green patch from my backpack pockets on my neck, could you?"
{Health: 0 / 10P and 5 / 9S damage, -1 Wound penalty, no Sustaining penalty} | {Edge: 3 / 3}
{Defense: 5; Initiative: 10; IP's: 3} | {Ballistic Armor: 6+3=9; Impact Armor: 4+2+3=9} | {Sustained spells: Increase Reflexes F3, on Focus, Armor F3 on Focus.}
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Mata Tabi listens to the old man and wonders to himself if the Johnson is in the habit of not paying, seems the case from the coyote's experience. Mata drives slowly as directed, placing a marker on his commlink to remember the coordinates of the tunnel entrance.
"Usually? and what happens when its unusual?"
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Eight-Stone blinks in alarm at Stryker's glowing form. After staring slack-jawed for a moment, Eight-Stone does as he asks, applying the slap patch to Stryker's body.
-
Cursor uses his BBB to record what his image link sees on the walls, not sure what he's looking at and after jumping at the styker-spectre, "Isn't the park haunted? Could we end up magically in over our heads?"
(OOC: Straight Perception: Perception(1)+Intuition(5)-4 (2d6.hits(5)=0) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843869/)
If it's audio or visual though
Visual Enhance: Visual Enhance R.3 (3d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843874/)
Audio Enhance: Audio Enhance R.3 (3d6.hits(5)=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843875/)
If it wasnt Audio or Visual 0 hits
If it was visual 2 hits, if it was Audial 1 hit, if both 3 hits.)
Cursor was looking around a lot, in case he'd spot anything in AR that they might miss.
(OOC: Cursor threads scan: Software(3)+Resonance(5)+Analytical Mind(2) (10d6.hits(5)=5) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843898/) Discarding 3 hits to make it rating 5.
2S Fading: 10d6.hits(5)=3 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843899/) (forgot to put Resonace(5)+Willpwoer(5)) Resisted.)
"I'm gonna need to concentrate here guys, no one bug me for a bit while i look for tech in the area." He let his persona's sharp eyesight pierce through the matrix, seeking anything hidden.
(OOC: You may instead make a general search for Hidden nodes that
are within mutual Signal range. In this case, the test is an Electronic
Warfare + Scan (15+, 1 Combat Turn) Extended Test, rather than a
Complex Action.
Looking for any Hidden nodes in Mutual signal range, I am Signal 3 But my BBB is slaved to me and is signal 5, honestly dont know where to look to see if it can help.
Roll 1: Scan(5)+Elec. Warfare(3) (8d6.hits(5) =3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843908/)
Roll 2: Scan(5)+Elec. Warfare(3) (8d6.hits(5)=4) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843913/)
Roll 3: Scan(5)+Elec. Warfare(3) (8d6.hits(5)=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843915/)
Roll 4: Scan(5)+Elec. Warfare(3) (8d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843918/)
Roll 5: Scan(5)+Elec. Warfare(3) (8d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843921/)
Roll 6: Scan(5)+Elec. Warfare(3) (8d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2843934/)
It takes Cursor 18 seconds to set up the full scan.)
"By Shooter that seemed harder then it was."
{Health: 0 / 10P and 0 / 11S damage, no Wound penalty, -2 Sustaining Scan(5) penalty} | {Edge: 2/ 2}
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"I'm not picking up anything but generl spookiness, thats the scientific term be-tee-dubble-u"
Cursor checks the time. "We should hurry up guys, times getting on."
-
Stryker still moves in small jumps, like he's skipping on a sidewalk. It's slow. Unnervingly slow for an astral wanderer, and the Manastreams around, though strange and alien, still beckon him to follow them. He takes in a moment of unnatural bliss that sends darkened ripples through his aura that mark the stim patch drugs working their way through his body. He closes his astral eyes, unsheathes the sword at his back, and gets ready for trouble.
His eyes wander along the walls, looking for a pattern, or aura in their bleak shadowforms. He concentrates, feeling for a second the strain his weakened aura transfered to his body...
-
Stryker laughs at the oldtimer. "I was probably vat-grown, old man. I don't even care."
Yeah, in my days, I've been like you kiddo. Didn't care. But at least I knew who I work for, and where I am heading.
"Usually? and what happens when its unusual?"
Unusual? Those Aztleaners. I've never met them, but I've seen marks, when I know I wasn't here, which weren't there earlier. And I've met once a pair of bloodied kiddos. They were what left from eight of them. Had the idea to look for some cool hideout for their gang. I am not really sure, could've been some other gang. And of course there is Harry, a ghost haunting Cheeseman Park, he likes to pull people into dirt, sometimes head down.
Stalker hushed you for a moment, but a moment later resumed
But not today kids. Today is our lucky day. Harry never shows up before midnight, and the exit ramp is over there. He briefly pulled it down for you, checked if the exit is clear, and signalled you to drive. You emerged into the trees from large concrete pipe disappearing in hill side.
On your goodbyes he said Did I seen corretly on the other note? you going to visit Peaches? Give her a hug from me, will'ya? She's a mean bitch, but what can I say ;) with that he closed the ramp and disappeared leaving you in an already dark park.
“Two” Far East
After making your way into the CAS, you decided your best bet was a bee-line to the UCAS border, and decide en-route whether to call another coyote or stress your SINs and troll under another scrutiny. But, somehow, you’ve managed to hit another traffic snarl and were forced to stop the car.
Impatiently glancing at a clock, (the time now is 5:30 pm) you grab your commlink and start checking the gridmap for a less congested route to the border.
That’s when you notice a jet black Nightsky slide in behind you. The doors open and four obviously Asian men, in tres chic suits pile out of the back. The four
begin walking directly towards your van.
As they approach, you suddenly notice the door of a Mexican restaurant across the street open. Another four Asians – a human woman, an ork woman, a male troll, and a
human male sporting a long goatee – also begin walking directly towards you.
Your guess? Mine is that after another 10 second your next 10 minutes might be the most interesting traffic time you had in the last few weeks.
(OOC: please roll Intuition + Perception (2))
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Mata Tabi looks at the two groups and then casts a sideways glance towards the back of the van "If anything goes down, I'd prefer you left the honorable men from the nightsky alone...with in reason of course." Mata Tabi had a sinking feeling growing in the pit of his stomach.
-
Stryker throws his eyes from right to left nervously, then suddenly calms down. A devious grin appear on his face.
"Well, if they're honorable, they will back down. We're in a good position anyway - they are outnumbered in any combination. And we have even more support."
He slinks away from the front rows, just sticking his head out the back to see what's happening. "I've got your back, guys. Or should i say, We have."
He touches the metal below his feet, drawing upon it's form, and the human mind that made it happen. Then he follows that connection through the Manastreams of a city, sending a call to it's unseen inhabitants. He feels one of them responding by a resonating song of radio-like static along the Manastream, but it seems to have other matters to attend to. Stryker concentrates and with the sheer force of will manages to send a call many times stronger, that seems to catch the Spirit's attention. By his side something flickers for a second, and the Spirit grants his attention to the elf mage. A drip of sweat rolls down Stryker's chin... In his mind's eyes he sees an intimidating figure of a huge man with troll horns, ork tusks and elf ears, made entirely of neon lights and screen glow. The Eternal One nods his head in acceptance of his summoner's cause...
{Health: 0 / 10P and 4 / 11S damage, NO Wound penalty (patched R3), no Sustaining penalty} | {Edge: 2 / 3}
{Defense: 5; Initiative: 10; IP's: 3} | {Ballistic Armor: 6+3=9; Impact Armor: 4+2+3=9} | {Sustained spells: Increase Reflexes F3, on Focus, Armor F3 on Focus.}
{Spirits: F4 Guardian with Concealment and 1 service (Protect), F4 Man with Fear and 3 services.}
-
Sensing trouble, Eight-Stone grumbled incoherently to himself as he fished around inside his bag. After a moment he extracted a flashpak, and set it up on the floor of the van, the business-end pointing toward the rear doors. If anyone decided to open them up, Eight-Stone could quickly activate the flashpak, blinding the snoopers and giving the team time to react and make the first move.
Finished setting up the flashpak, Eight-Stone stood up as best he could in the back of the van, reached for his Remington, and began loading it up with regular slugs. "Don't worry," Eight-Stone said over his shoulder in response to Mata Tabi, "I only shoot people that shoot me first. Common courtesy."
-
"Theres too many civilians... I'm getting a pre-emptive hack in guys...", he took a deep breath. "If I need my body to move, text me."
Then his vision cut off the real world showing him full VR, he drew his digitised bow and span round, looking at the approaching nodes.
Here goes.
He turned on the Nightsky's node and fired his bow at it's firewall.
(OOC: Going for Sec Account so Firewall+ 3 target, heres 3 seconds worth of hacking attempts, so you can work out if im caught or get in:
Hacking(3)+Exploit(4) (7d6.hits(5)=2, 7d6.hits(5)=3, 7d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2845091/) )
-
Mata Tabi's eyes scan back to the two groups from behind his sunglasses "Let's play it sub-zero for now, they might be more interested in dealing with eachother than with us for now." Mata Tabi smiles "Eight Stone, you got a problem dealing with your own kind? I need to know before this gets hot...so ka?"
-
"A problem? My own kind?" Looking genuinely confused, Eight-Stone moves to set aside his shotgun for now, placing it on the bag behind him. He leaves the flashpak in place, though, just in case. "I don't got any problem."
Eight-Stone rolls his eyes as Censor slips into VR. "What's up with these two, anyway?" Eight-Stone jerks a thumb at the limp forms of Censor and Stryker as he tenses up, keeping his eyes trained on the rear van doors.
-
"They work best away from reality it seems." Mata says as he continues his scan of the situation behind his sunglass. "Good then, you got the Troll then and who ever else is dumb enough to get between you and him. I might be able to talk the honorable men behind and to our side out of rash action."
-
Stryker opens his eyes, his attention drawn away from the mental link, but his will not faltering, still matching the Spirit's demands. "Hey, I'm still here?" He waves his hands slightly, and fixes his eyes on the Triad group and points at them. "Just remember, Mr. Small Talk. These are honorable too. Don't get too one sided here. We're planning to avoid fighting two groups, not just one."
-
Smiling "Or get one side to fight the other for us. Remember Omae, the enemy of my enemy is my friend and the honorable men from the Nightsky are more similar culturally to me than those others." Mata waits patiently, but not without some nerviousness for the pending event that will unfold before too long.
-
"I'm with Stryker," Eight-Stone said, switching to subvocal speech as the tension mounted outside. "Let's see how this plays out, see who wants what, before we pick sides." After Eight-Stone said his piece, he seemed to drift off for a moment as he focused his attention elsewhere.
<<txt 2 Claw: hey claw on a job... you heard about anything weird going on between the yaks and triad? turf disputes, slights, any stuff like that? or have they been cooperating at all lately? storm's a-brewin outside, maybe, trying to figure out what's going on>>
Eight-Stone wasn't sure what Claw knew about this area's underworld politics, if anything. Still, it never hurt to ask. If they were at odds lately, then maybe Mata Tabi's plan could be a pretty effective plan B. If he thought he could get on their good side, then sure, why not? But if they were cooperating, then that might mean they were teaming up to take whatever was in that package. And, if that was the case, then Eight-Stone and Company were all kinds of screwed.
Eight-Stone looked at Mata Tabi assessively. "I missed the whole introductions thing at the meeting with Mr. Johnson. You any good in a fight? I like your plan, but let's call that our contingency. We should avoid a fight outright if we can."
-
Mata smiled slyly "As much as I like to play up both my ego and my capabilities, this isnt the time. So, no. I'm packing an Asp revolver and hoping I can talk my way out of this." Mata Tabi let the statement hang in the air like dead weight before adding. "Feeling any better about our odds,yet?"
"On the up side of things, I'm really good at talking my way out of things. By street vanacular, I'm what you'd call a Face, and the wonder-twins back there in semi-comatose states are our Hackers and Magical assets. So......" Mata Tabi says with a smile "Feeling any better about our odds yet?"
-
Cursor finished firing bolts into the gaps in the firewall, the barrier dropping for him and letting him into the node. He snapped his fingers, breaking off the trace that started.
subvoc"I'm into the car guys, it's ours. If we need to leave fast tell me and I'll make it reverse. Always wanted a Limo."
(OOC: Cursor will hang tight for now after using his last simple action to call his Sleuth sprite to the nightsky's node)
-
This isn't your turf An, want a bullet or twenty in that Trogface for showing here? I can put them one by one, maybe I'll even hit that tiny brain of yours. So ka?
The group that got off the car is led by slender man standing about 1.6 m in height appearing to be in his early twenties.
He speaks softly with a mild Japanese accent. His face wears a constant sneer, his black hair parted to the side. He walks with a constant swagger. His two Sliverguns are positioned in shoulder holsters, but he leaves his jacket open, making no attempt to conceal them.
Cut dat drek or I'll smoke that japass of yourz. I go where I want. Now pack your smoothies in da car and buzz of. I got biz wiz dem.
The other party looks like being led by the troll called An.
He stands at 2.5 m tall. His single horn juts from the right side of head, and from the way it glistens, it’s clearly been waxed recently and well maintained.
He dresses in a lined coat, which is heavily embroidered with Wuxing symbolism. It’s pretty much impossible to estimate his age.
Nobody tells me to buzz off Trog. Got biz? Buy yourself a ticket and take a place in queue. The sneer on the Yak's face angled sharply. His eyes focused on Troll, and hands danced around his guns.
Don't fuck with me Jonny, I kick assez like yourz everyday - and just like that a stream of fire jumped between hands of the Troll.
Jonny with his fellows, sided your car from the rear left side. An team sided from the front right. Behind you is abandoned Nightsky.
Leading Yak approached few meters from the van doors and announced loudly.
I see you omae. I know you have a package from Koshari for Mafia. Give it to me, now. I'll cover the cost of your trouble. Let's say 7 thousand nuyen for you and 7 more thousand for the gaijin I see you surround yourself. Wakarimasu-ka?
The troll roared: Just try fragger', just try to give it to him and you won't leave dis car living. Jump off the package and be fast wiz dat. I'll pay you 14 grants no problem. On Troll's signal a human woman accompanying the him waved a hand holding several credsticks.
[attachment deleted by admin]
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subvoc"Well this is basically what we hoped for. Hit them with your Social-Fu chummer."
Cursor just sat in the node waiting, his body still sitting straight in the van.
I do so hate being called a gaijinn in North America.
-
Stryker covers his mouth, so his laughter can't be heard by anyone except those who're connected to his subvocal mic. "Oh my. Those guys are a real number. They'll go at each other throats at a nudge."
-
"Eight Stone. Remember what I said earlier...now would be a good time." Mata Tabi says in a hushed tone before yelling out "Since it's a matched offer, we'll only be in a position to consider an offer from .....whoevers left standing." Mata lifts his leg up so that the holstered Asp is within grasping while he watches the 'china-town' stand off evolve.
"Oh and grab the cred-sticks from the slitch."
-
subvoc "Whoah! Hold your horses, that sounds like you're onna fight too Mata! Depending on who you want to grab the sticks at least.
I hope you know what you're doing."
-
Eight-Stone stared at Mata Tabi in disbelief. "Yeah... let's stop and think about that. Eight-Stone, go get the troll and the cred sticks! Oh, okay! Let me just grab my axe and jump out, surprising a bunch of gangsters! Hopefully they won't all turn and shoot the charging troll out of reflex! Oh, wait, they did. And now I'm dead. The end." Eight-Stone folded his arms in front of his chest, letting a pregnant pause hang in the air. And, then, explanatorily: "That... that was sarcasm. I ain't doing that. I'll happily mop up the surviving side, if necessary, but I'm not sticking my head out of this van until I get some assurances that at least one side isn't going to summarily shoot me."
Still, things were heating up, and a peaceful solution seemed less and less likely. Both groups seemed interested in package, and Eight-Stone wasn't interested in giving it up. He picked his axe up off the floor of the van just to be ready, feeling the familiar, nerve-crackling hum of his wired reflexes switching on.
-
subvoc"I'm with Eight-Stone Whole-Heartely there."
Curor was getting worried about their face now... A background check is feeling more and more in order.
-
Keeping his face and motions still "Everyone knows to geek the mage or the Troll first...pretty much in every playbook, even the ones written in crayon. So, seems we just got lucky and its a two-fer-one special on magey-trog here." Mata slows his breathing and words, he was edging close to losing his cool. "I can deal with the Yakuza, I'm not in part of this group, but I definately have the Fragging club patch. So pretty fragging please...waste the fragging mage."
-
"You geek them once combat starts, omae"
Cursor stared at the man as if blind, it was his real body talking now but he was still in VR.
"I don't know what your deal is but it's moving in a direction i dont like"
Private message to Stryker and Eight-Stone"I'm in control of both vehicles, I say we drive out of here now before Pin-Stripes gets us ghosted. You agree?"
-
"Don't do anything yet." The elf subvocalizes. "Just sit back, and relax. Enjoy the show."
Stryker grins to himself, and the Spirit he just summoned. He peeks outside to mark the Yakuza group leader within his mind. "Please, Eternal One. Make him shoot the magic-wielding troll. I know he wants to." He feels the Spirit sharing his mood, at least a little, as he weaves his superior magic into the yak's aura.
{OOC: The Spirit rolls the Influence power Magic(4)+Charisma(4) (8d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2847631/)*}
* Edited, as i stated 'Willpower' in the roll, but it doesn't matter.
-
If you had been the casual observer watching the entire situation from a little above and ahead, you'd need a cybereye recorder to watch (not to mention the astral view requirements). Split parts of second are a good way to measure what happened next.
On the back of the van on left side of the scene the figure of an elf peeked through a window to assense the Yakuza leader.
(OOC:
1. He is healthy, nervous (in a ready for action ina split second), and he is awakaned.
2. no cyberware, you've never seen his aura before
3. no cyberimplants, he is the same amount of essence as you. there is no sign of any illness or toxins or astral signatures on his aura.)
On the front of the van the silence stretched just barely long enough for the Troll's roar to die on the street. Seeing no immediate movement or responce, the An face looked like it was going to explode. I said give me the package. The flame started to condense on his hands.
A second later a Stryker appeared on the closer side to assense the Troll.
(OOC: there is no Troll, nor any of the Triad members there. That is they are physically visible, but there are no auras. There is a spell sustained on the area. With that amount of hits on Astral Perception I can tell you that there is an astral link to the caster, but to follow it would require Assensing + Intuition (5, 1 hour) Extended test. For which you certainly have no time.)
The Yaks are starting to spread, drawing guns (Ceska Black Scorpions). Triads are second late with theirs (Steyrs TMP).
Unless you do something the combat is imminent.
(OOC: Please roll the initiative, Kot I've decided to hold your declared action, but you may still use it if you wish keeping the roll)
-
OOC:
Stryker's Initiative: Reaction(6)+Intuition(5) (11d6.hits(5)=4) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2849913/) That gives him an Initiative Score of 15 I've made a mistake, it should be 10 dice, but the last ones weren't hits, so no difference here.
I'm going to keep the roll, and change the Influence from 'start shooting', to 'start shooting and focus fire on the troll'. Is that okay?
Then I'll hold my actions until they start shooting us or in any other way threaten our well-being, or until any of the sides will gain advantage.
And as for the spell, is it a spell, or just a Concealment power? If it's a spell, I can tell it's kind (Illusion probably) and if it's Force is higher/lower/equal to my Magic attribute.
IC: Stryker couldn't help but smile. So, the two of their problems want to eliminate each other. Good. "Let them." Even the magic covering Triads doesn't really bother him. They probably just use remote services - some poor illusionist, or enslaved Spirit is sustaining the magic that's hiding their auras. Well. We'll see who's left standing. He'll just come in when any side seems to be winning, to even out the scales with his Allies powers...
{Health: 0 / 10P and 4 / 11S damage, NO Wound penalty (patched R3), no Sustaining penalty} | {Edge: 2 / 3}
{Defense: 5; Initiative: 10; IP's: 3} | {Ballistic Armor: 6+3=9; Impact Armor: 4+2+3=9} | {Sustained spells: Increase Reflexes F3, on Focus, Armor F3 on Focus.}
{Spirits: F4 Guardian with Concealment and 1 service (Protect), F4 Man with Fear and 2 services.}
-
Mata Tabi slumps down into the seat as his hand draws the chromed out snub revolver from his ankle holster. "If that fraggin' trog wasnt seriously threatening us before, he sure as slottin' is now. Does it take a fireball up your ass to realize that?"
-
The casual observer watching the entire situation from a little above and ahead, would see the trid like scene all in all taking three mere seconds.
As if all hell had loosed, the moment Troll roared Yakuza springed to action.
Jonny was fastest, inhumanely fast he reached for his two guns, before anyone reacted he covered half a distance between himself and the Troll. You die here An Peng ! with a dazzling speed he fired twice straight into his face. Just an offhand move of the second hand hurled two other bullets at the front glass of the van.
Bullets had no effect on the Troll however. It looked almost like throwing glass through the trid generated holo - smudged a little and ricochetted form the walls. Even though other bullets were more satisfactory, the glass shattered, and blood erupted in the front seat of the van, the Jonny face stalled. He already know he was tricked and spun around. Too late...
The trio of yakuza hitters spread the street to get cover, and good positions against both the triad and their supposed prey. Two of them got the the back of van, the last one to the front to support Jonny. They really didn't know what hit them...
Triad group disappeared as if they never existed, what actually was true, they walked out from between the cars, and methodically using short burst from Steyrs eliminated the two of the Yakuzas. An orc female, walking side by side with Troll, targetted Jonny. He saw the bullets as they ripped his cloak and body hitting his chest one by one.
He still stood when a flame from An Peng hands hits and ignited. The snarl never left his face. Ganjins ...
A second or so later he fell burning.
This is how fell Jonny Ono Wakagashira-hosa of the Denver Yakuza.
But their supposed prey weren't given the time to watch.
I said give me the fraggin' package!
[attachment deleted by admin]
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Mata Tabi blinked the glass shards out of his eyes as he slouched dumbly in the seat, the scream of pain still stuck in his throat. It's then the pain strikes him, unbearable pain that burns deeply in agonizing throbs. He's now in between the front seats...did someone drag him back here? The only thing Mata knows is pain, pain and that two trogs are responsible in his mind. Gasping "Fraggin' Trogs!" "Fraggin' Trogs!" is all he can say hoarsely, his throat is burning fiercely.
-
"Shooter help us, MATAS HIT."
Cursor was out of VR immediately puling the medkit from his vest. "I can get us out of here but I need someone to buy me time!"
-
Eight-Stone grits his teeth at the sight of blood. Things were getting ugly, real fast. "Give me that barrier foam," Eight-Stone says subvocally as he puts down his axe and grabs his shotgun. "I'll get you all the time I can. Just get us out of here."
-
Cursor fumbles desperately to patch up the mangled torso between the seats.
"My hands are full, bottom-left smart pocket on my vest's back, spray it inside the van like you want a small wall there, it'll take- frag it is that bone or flachete?- 3 seconds to harden. Then pop the doors, at least give some cover."
The blood was everwhere now, luckily Cursor had seen worse.
"If you're awake Mata do not try to move or talk, Cursor'll fix you up."
-
Eight-Stone dropped his axe, grabbed the barrier foam from Censor, took up his shotgun, and prepared to set up a barrier at the back of a van.
-
The cars started to roll, and of course Triad members opened fire.
Stryker tried to drop the flashpak through the window, but as Human female pumped lead on rear doors and windows putting suppresive fire he reconsidered his action.
Human male tried to shot at the wheels but failed miserably bullets ricochetting harmlessly from the armored vehicle.
as orc female tried to hit the front wheels missing as well and troll prepared the fire onslaught on the front of the van, but they had to dodge the incoming limo.
and when they got up the faced materialization of the troll like creature unleashed on them by Stryker.
meantime in the van Eight-stones built up the cover wall, and ready himself to kick off the rear doors, while Stryker tries his most poweful healing spell on Mata while Cursor operates Medikit.
(OOC:
Spell Force (1) -> Magic (4) + Spellcasting (5): 9d6.hits(5)=3 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2852751/)
Drain Value: 3 - 2 = 1
Resisted in full
Time to become Permanent 2* 1 = 2 Combat Turns
Medikit use hits 2 (I had to remove 4 last dices from the roll, due to conditions (combat, patient being an adept, having stryker as assistant)
Net result heal: 5P
You've been patched pretty well Mata)
-
"He's not perfect but it'll do till he can see a doc'" Cursor continued to apply pressure to the bandages on what the mojo didn't work on.
"How you doing in there Mata?"
-
Stryker raised his bloodied hands, his face looking dead serious. He raised his eyes at the chaos outside. He closed his eyes, and sent a thought-request to his Spirit Allies. "They do not deserve mercy. But they will have their demise. Please, help them reaching their well-deserved end. On the Streams, i swear to you, i will pay my debts gladly. Just now, make them pay." He then sends an image of what he expects of them - both sides of the conflict dead, if possible. By whatever means that won't endanger the Spirits. Just a moment after that he noticed, that he said this, maybe not aloud, but in a whisper his teammates would recognize.
Then he looked out of the window, raising his fist at the troll. And the Mana flowing through it strikes swiftly at him, disrupting any spells the troll would cast.
-
Mata is exhausted despite the relief of pain by magical and chemical means, he can only give a thumbs up to the question and a feeble smile. He wonders if the blood will come out of the expensive Berwick suit before slipping into a light and uneasy sleep, the by product of the receeding adrenaline.
-
"He's stable for now... but I'm no surgeon."
Not the best bonding experience.
He sighed while all his movements were between the medkit and Mata.
-
"We can't do more for him now. But we can get away from this. Damn. Why did they shoot him in the first place?"
-
"He was.... being... bit of a dick." Cursor turned to the back of the van, waiting for Eight Stone.
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The rear van doors burst open. pumping lead and bolts. While mage continued patching up Mata, his spirits moved to intercept his enemies.
But it was short one the simple apperance of the troll-like creature was enough to make them flee. After scoring two hits at the troll, the mystic disappeared between cars.
For few more seconds you're hearing shots and cries of pain as the spirits fough Triad. Rapidly the link between Stryker and Guardian was severed and about minute later the same happened to the link with Spirit of Man. Both were banished from this plane.
You've been far away however by that time. An autopilot driven van using sidewalk, brute force, lamps and sounds sped through the jammed lanes. Limo fared much worse. Even though the autopilot tried to use the space after van before it closed, the standard autopilot wasn't able to cope with more difficult to handle Nightsky, and eventually it stuck between others cars hopelessly surrounded. Few minutes later a forced reboot, or maybe police EMP crashed the node and decompiled Cursors sprite, hopefully erasing all of your matrix traces along the way.
Well this was an interesting minute.
Another Bore-der
You drove in silence for several minutes, before going off-grid. You just have to manage this one more border crossing, then deliver your package – apparently to a Mafia higher up. But your encounter has been surely recorded by multiple grid cameras, and the pictures of the shot car without front glass will most probably be on most if not all border stations by now. Heck with that high body count you might even make it the tonight news. Still the decision time has come. The time now is 5:45 pm. Are you going to call Peaches? last crossing went so painlessly, surely this one won’t be any worse, right? or will you try your luck on the border, or maybe you'll try swapping cars?
Time is ticking and the border is closing.
-
EightStones - somebody is calling on your commlink - hidden number, no video feed.
-
Curiousity got the better of Eight-Stone, and he answered without really thinking about it. Besides, it was probably just Claw being uncharacteristically stealthy as she called him back.
-
Yep thats Claw. Asking whats kind of storm is brewing. He just got your text, but he was occupied, he still is actually that why video is off.
As far as the Yakuza-Triad, he might know something.
(OOC: roll number of dices equal to Connection Rating + Connection Rating).
-
After a moment of silence and quick discussion you've agreed to call Peaches.
She spoke with a thick southern accent, and very politely she agreed to meet you at the corner of Havana and 6th Ave.
about 20 minutes later you have find the corner occupied by a dilapidated parking garage.
Peaches waved you down, grabbed a lift with your car in and took you to the lowest level of the garage.
Peaches appeared to be orcish female. Her chameleon suit makes it a bit difficult to get a good look at her figure, but with the hood down, it really makes her flamingly bright orange hair stand out. (It’s worn in a curly jumbled ponytail.) Judging from her face, she’s just past middle-age.
Once there, she opened up a rusted chain link fence, which barricades off what appeared to be a maintenance area and asked you to drive through the opening and
around some antiquated plumbing systems. From there, a ramp leads down into a series of tunnels. Over the ramp a large sign is overached - "Denver sewer system".
As you might have expected the tunnels generally smell musty. The only lighting is your car lights. Walls are decorated with occasional patches of graffiti.
Here and there along the way you see some squatters living lives of quiet misery.
You're closing to the open doors, emanating lights and country-western music.
The route so far took you about 35 minutes including the time to meet Peaches. It is 6:20 pm.
[attachment deleted by admin]
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"It better be a very short route or we're screwed guys...* Cursor was looking at his commlink, frowning.
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Mata Tabi grogily responds as he begins to come around again "You mean we hadn't been so far?"
"I miss anything exciting, or is my face the only thing worth taking a shot at?"
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"We're all still alive and the jobs possible... currently.... we've had a few setbacks."
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"No drek." Mata says as he admires the new addition of red splotches on his once grey and white pinstriped suit.
-
With something approaching genuine concern, Eight-Stone asks Mata Tabi: "How're you feeling? Think you can walk?"
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Mata Tabi had no idea, but answered anyways "I can walk, slotting run if need be, but I dont think i'll be singing anytime soon." Mata said as he continued to find flechette slivers and glass particles in his face. "The Yakuza mouthpiece dead?...Johnny I think he was called."
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"The Triad Mage melted him." He grinned slightly. "Sorry you wont be getting any revenge personally."
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"Just saves me the trouble, still, I dont think I'll be thanking him for it though." Mata Tabi rummages through his coat jacket to find his cigarette case. Once in hand he withdraws it and takes out an elegant looking black cigarette with a gold foil filter. He lights it and breathes in heavily, obviously enjoying it. He holds out the case opened "Would you like one?" he offers it to everyone, Eight-stone last.
-
Waving his hand at the offered packet, "No thanks, quit a long time back. You be careful with that though, one wrong moved it'll be like your chest has a chimney."
-
Stryker sent a short "Thank you. I remember" every time a link severed. His heart torn in two at the Spirits devotion to his case. With tears in his eyes he started to work, trying to patch Mata as good as he could in these circumstances. "Just keep your driving steady, okay?"
Logic(4)+Medicine(1)+Medkit(6)-Conditions(2) (9d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2853330/)
After they met with Peaches, he took his time to Assense her aura, looking for telltale marks of treachery. He didn't think that to be likely, but still - better safe than sorry.
Intuition(5)+Assensing(2) (7d6.hits(5)=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2854240/)
Not satisfied with his first examination of the orc woman's aura, he decided to study it in depth.
Intuition(5)+Assensing(2)-Successive Attempt(2) (5d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2854241/) This time he was more or less satisfied with his scrutiny.
Knowing the orc woman isn't planning anything treacherous, he then resumed astral patrol, curled in a fetal position in the safest spot in the back of the van - just behind the troll.
Even knowing of the Earth's state in the tunnels before, Stryker tried to rouse one of the spirits inside. He should have know, but he still thought it would be needed. "This isn't good."
Summoning F4 Earth Spirit: Magic(4)+Summoning(2) (6d6.hits(5)=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2854242/)
Spirit's Force roll: Force(4) (4d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2854243/)
6S Drain: Willpower(5)+Intuition(5) (10d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2854244/), that's 3S damage.
This time he returned to his body immediately, gasping in pain, and bleeding from his nose, eyes and ears. "This place is... The Earth here is not angry. It's mad. Agitated... I don't think i can be of any help here." Let me rest a while...
He rummaged through his Medkit, trying to fight the Mana that was hurting him...
Logic(4)+First Aid(1)+Medkit(6)-Penalties(3) (8d6.hits(5)=4) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2854245/)
It helped. The bleeding stopped, and some color was returning to his deathly pale face.
"I hope to get an hour of rest now, guys. Or i will be utterly useless. And stop smoking, or I'll sedate you." He turned to Mata angrily.
{Health: 0 / 10P and 5 / 11S damage, NO Wound penalty (patched R3), no Sustaining penalty} | {Edge: 2 / 3}
{Defense: 5; Initiative: 10; IP's: 3} | {Ballistic Armor: 6+3=9; Impact Armor: 4+2+3=9} | {Sustained spells: Increase Reflexes F3, on Focus, Armor F3 on Focus.}
{Spirits: None}
-
Drawing in on the cigarette he smiles as he exhales "Make it a double scotch...vintage, and neaten it up with a splash of soda water please." Mata stubs the cigarette out none-the-less.
-
"Okay, deal. You take a bullet, you get a double vintage scotch. We can make it a new rule." Stryker frowns and throws Mata a stim patch. "Now, try these. Should do some good. And don't act like you're too cool for that, nobody is after taking a bullet." That he accents by coughing out a bit of blood in a rag. "And I'm officially stupid. Sorry guys. No summoning for now... Ugh."
-
Eight-Stone's nose wrinkled slightly as the van descended into the sewers. He stared at Peaches, trying to size her up. Something about her reminded him of Claw. That was either a good thing, or a really, really bad thing. Eight-Stones wasn't sure yet.
Eight-Stone rolled his eyes as Stryker spoke. Okay. Thank you for report on the Earth's feelings. Very vital.
If Eight-Stone was the introspective sort, he might've realized that he was feeling some residual guilt about the fact that the yappy little Japanese guy had taken a bullet, but the big, scary troll slugger had gotten away scot-free. But he wasn't. So instead he just sort of sat there, feeling vaguely pissed.
"So," Eight-Stone asked, trying to keep the tension out of his voice. "How long a trip this going to be, Peaches?"
-
Cursor is keeping silent, he isn't sure what to say to words about the Earth's feelings but decides he'd better go into VR and put some feelers out, setting up a full scan.
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"So," Eight-Stone asked, trying to keep the tension out of his voice. "How long a trip this going to be, Peaches?"
Well, sir, unless of course you wish to join the patrons of the establishment over there, we will be out in five minutes. She says that pointing an entrance to "Five by Five".
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Cursor is keeping silent, he isn't sure what to say to words about the Earth's feelings but decides he'd better go into VR and put some feelers out, setting up a full scan.
Matrix here is nondescriptive really. The signal is weak reaching from above. Had you asked you would have learned for sure, but this walls are pretty much XX century done and forgotten with no of the currently used automated solutions.
The only bright spot is the five-by-five node sculpted as the pirate tavern with a picture art style taken from old Monkey Island series game (you know that because of a small out-of-place graffiti painted to the right side of the door) The node seems to host a small Matrix-cafe as well as standard pub services. You're instantly advertised with soyburgers and synthethic rum, and on guest account you can see several icons offering transport services for both human and cargo.
-
Cursor takes note, rum would be good after this job. He keeps the scan up in case any hidden nodes enter signal range.
-
Since nobody was really interested in going to the "Five by five" giving instead some nervous glances over your commlinks clocks, Peaches led you out of the sewers as she promised.
She exchanged a very polite goodbye for a Koshari note, wished you luck and was gone while you sped toward Montbello district.
AR you there?
But crap. For no apparent reason the van's engine just died. And it won’t restart, despite Cursor's complex form tries. At least you weren’t in the middle of high-speed
traffic. Glancing to the corner, you notice there’s a wine bar, named Cava de Vin with patio seating out front. When you take a closer look, you notice that one of the
patrons, a sharply dressed young man, seems to be staring at you very intently through his sunglasses.
Suddenly you get an AR pop up with his face as the icon, and the message, “Come on over for a quick drink. We need to talk.”
the time now is 6:35 pm
Cursor since you're in VR and on constant scan, one you left the sewers you perceive the swirl of nodes passing by. You obviously notice the Cave the Vin node as soon as the forced halting occured. The node has very poor (or rather cheap) sculpture - it is obvious that the owner puts more emphasis on the meat pleasures over Matrix fireworks - this is standard sculpture of the Renraku AR shop assistant module free version. For each AR or VR interaction with the shop facilities you get advertisment attached. It is already testing how fast you decline each consecutive offer, judging by this your subconsious preferences.
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Stryker kicks the car in the rimjobs, then proceeds to the back, trying to get his scooter out. He gets another nosebleed episode, and slumps on the concrete in the proces, muttering elaborate sperethiel curses, as he glares angrily at the guy.
"Yet another made man trying to get this crap. Great. You guys interested in running late, or are you seriously considering betraying our employer? You know I live there."
He looks at the man with his second sight, trying to get an angle on him...
Intuition(5)+Assensing(2) (7d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2856365/)
Then, in a sudden flash of insight he turns his astral sight to the package, knowing the veil would not affect him anymore, since it's creator was banished.
Intuition(5)+Assensing(2) (7d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2856372/)
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(OOC:
1.
• The general state of the subject’s health (healthy, injured, ill, etc.). - He's in good health.
• The subject’s general emotional state or impression (happy, sad, angry). - Relaxed.
• Whether the subject is mundane or Awakened. - Mundane
2
• The presence and location of cyberware implants. - none.
• If you have seen the subject’s aura before, you may recognize it, regardless of physical disguises or alterations.
as for the package, well in astral it seems like just a package, I know this is unexpected ;), oh and it's opaque (learned the word few days ago)
)
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Eight-Stone says, subvocally, "Yeah... chances are this guy wants the package, too. I'm not interested in giving it up. But maybe if we listen to what he has to say, and then politely decline, it'll cause less headaches in the long run. Or maybe he actually has something useful to say. I think we should speak with him, but be real quick. Entertain no offers for the package. Hear what he has to say, then leave. What do you all thinK?"
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"As long as no one gets shot in the face, I'm okay with a little chit-chat." Mata says as he applies the stim patch. "Am I to assume we'll all be going, or are we offering up more sacrifices to misfortune?"
-
"Dreeeeek..." mental link Sprites, are you two okay?
Curor was worried whatever knocked out the engine might have gotten to them.
(OOC: Matrix Perception on the guys node, still in VR, if he's in hidden it doesnt matter cos of my full scan: Comp(3)+Analyze(2)+Techno(2) (7d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2856775/) looking at firewall then access id)
"Lets all go"
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"Yeah, we should all go. That is, if Stryker's feeling well enough. Maybe he could take this opportunity to rest some." Eight-Stone slings his shotgun over his shoulder as he prepares to leave.
Eight-Stone briefly pauses to inspect what remains of the wall of barrier-foam and the shattered, bloody windshield. "Hmm. You know, as long as we're stopping, we might want to consider getting a new vehicle."
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"It's the Johnson's, we better keep it. Besides, no more borders. We got the Limo for after delivery."(OOC: subvoc bandwagon)
Cursor hops out of the van. "How you doing Stryker?"
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"Dreeeeek..." mental link Sprites, are you two okay?
Curor was worried whatever knocked out the engine might have gotten to them.
(OOC: Matrix Perception on the guys node, still in VR, if he's in hidden it doesnt matter cos of my full scan: Comp(3)+Analyze(2)+Techno(2) (7d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2856775/) looking at firewall then access id)
"Lets all go"
(OOC: One of your sprites that has been in Limo, has been decompiled by node reboot, and the autopilot as I understand is a complex form not a sprite. As of hidden node:
Detect Hidden Node (Scan)
You attempt to locate a hidden node. You must be aware of the node,
or at least have a good guess of where the device should be (for example,
if your commlink is not detecting a node for Mr. Johnson but
you are pretty sure he has a PAN, or when you can see the security
drone but it is operating in Hidden mode). To find the node, make a
Electronic Warfare + Scan (4) Test.
You may instead make a general search for Hidden nodes that
are within mutual Signal range. In this case, the test is an Electronic
Warfare + Scan (15+, 1 Combat Turn) Extended Test, rather than a
Complex Action.
so to find hidden nodes, you'd need the extended test, and I'd put the treshold on 18 due to large number of nodes around.
in any case you see an icon of the fellow (sculpted as Conquistador on foot complete with a rapier) in cafe node, with his address_id being the one of the commlink node (passive) outside of the cafe.
-
"It's the Johnson's, we better keep it. Besides, no more borders. We got the Limo for after delivery."(OOC: subvoc bandwagon)
Cursor hops out of the van. "How you doing Stryker?"
(OOC: the Limo is probably lost to you, it has been rebooted to clear from any unwanted software, and this was forced either by police EMP, car thief or owner)
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"I'm okay. Well enough as far as patches go. Damn, I need to cut on that stuff. Decide. Do we stay and chat, risking that we miss the deadline, or do we go, and deliver it. Even on foot if we have to. I vote on finishing the damn job." He motions to Eight-Stone. "Would you be so kind and help me with that scooter? I don't think I can handle it now." He plays with his commlink for a while, trying to find the finish line, and how far it is. "How far do we have, and how much time, now?"
-
(OOC: it is 18:36 now and if there would no further troubles according to Grid, you need another 15 minutes (including time to travel on slower districtal streets, finidng and parking
In other words - you have ten minutes, give or take three)
-
"Remember; keep it real short with this guy, whatever he wants," Eight-Stone says subvocally as he helps Stryker with his scooter. "It's possible he's just trying to stall or distract us."
-
I'll try to be quick then someone subvocally interrupts.
i understand that we have little time, so I'll skip the wine offer part, although you may try - this is a very nice Chiraz here, my treat.
My name is Dean, and I am representative of the Casquilho family. You deliver package from Koshari to the Chavez family.
While neither are exactly in our sphere of influence, then as you probably expect we would like to know what is the nature of the package.
I don't want to open it, nor to delay your delivery more then necessary to scan it quickly with an electronic scanner. It won't leave any mark I promise.
And I have 50 nuyen for each of you for the trouble.
-
"Sorry Dean, you've obviously got some nice tech at your disposal but that's just outside of etiquette, of course, if you ever want a job done personally, just give us a call and you'd get the same courtesy.
(OOC: there's a rating 4 machine sprite in the van running the autosoft btw sent, also node reboots don't decompile sprites -i think-, they should be able to escape to the resonance and return to my node, but driving the limo was it's last task so if the limo's immobile it would have left this time yes.)
Cursor pats the van. "Of course if this is your doing, we'll have to comply if you wont give us mobility back. I'd be even more inclined to let you scan it if you could offer us a new vehicle. Do you agree Mata?
Cursor wasn't a skilled negotiator, but he'd negotiated with that sprite Cold-Node enough to have an idea and with Mata wounded he wanted to help out.
-
Mata gave the kid a wink "Yeah...it matches your style. I of course would never be so impolite as to turn down a drink, but there is a pressing engagement we'd like to get on to, so time is of the essence."
-
"Maybe we can have that drink when we arn't pressed for time, it really looks like a nice place."
-
Stryker bows to the guy respectfully. "I'm sorry, but we don't have time for this. I do not believe a spokesperson for the Casquilho family would be that much of a cheap, dumb bastard to insult a honest shadowrunner like that." Then he turns to the others. "You people going? Or do you want me to help ya?
He opens his hands and raises them up to the air, chanting loudly, and sending a calling. Other than his left eye bleeding there is no visible response to his actions...
OOC:
Summoning a F4 Man Spirit (Spell: Levitate): Magic(4)+Summoning(2)+Edge(3) (9d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2858049/)
Spirit: 4d6.hits(5)=2 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2858052/), but it glitches.
4S Drain: Willpower(5)+Intuition(5) (10d6.hits(5)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2858054/) +2S damage
{Health: 0 / 10P and 7 / 11S damage, -1 Wound penalty (patched R3), no Sustaining penalty} | {Edge: 1 / 3}
{Defense: 5; Initiative: 10; IP's: 3} | {Ballistic Armor: 6+3=9; Impact Armor: 4+2+3=9} | {Sustained spells: Increase Reflexes F3, on Focus, Armor F3 on Focus.}
{Spirits: None}
-
(OOC: as for the glitch, the bond was severed before you really made the strain. No stun damage for you this time ;) you're welcome)
Stryker is suddenly hearing subvocal static, the noise is unbearable. Until something is done, you're -2 dice to everything, roll Willpower + Willpower (3) if you want to avoid the instinctive try to shut your ears and falling on your knees.
An AR screen appears before you "You done? I have the time, you don't from what i heard."
-
Willpower(5)x2 (10d6.hits(5)=6) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2858107/)
Stryker turns off his commlink, and takes off both goggles and earphones. He smiles lightly, then he speaks aloud, knowing he'll hear him through his teammate's links.
"Fuck you, joker. Wanna play pranks? Okay. Here it comes." He falls down in a controlled manner, instinctively curling into a fetal ball, as his True body, made of magic itself, dives into the manastreams. He finds a spirit there, one of the Eternal Ones, who appeased with the elf's politeness decides to lend him his help.
It takes only a few heartbeats, and the Eternal One sees it's target. Stryker feels a slight pain in his chest, but decides to ignore it, looking for a fast way to their destination, to appear there and announce they're still on their way. He then returns to his body swiftly, and get up with a serious face. "We move now, or I'll go alone. Choose.
Summoning a Force 4 Man Spirit, with the Movement power.
Summoning: Magic(4)+Summoning(2)+Edge(3) (9d6.hitsopen(5,6)=2) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2858108/)
Spirit's opposed roll: Force(4) (4d6.hits(5)=0) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2858110/) Critical Glitch.
2S Drain: Willpower(5)+Intuition(5) (10d6.hits(5)=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2858111/)
The first service goes towards the Accident power on the guy who messed with him. The Spirit will use Edge, coaxed by Stryker to show his full power.
Magic(4)+Willpower(4)+Edge(4) (12d6.hitsopen(5,6)=5) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2858175/)
The second service will be spent for Movement, when the rest of the team decides to do so...
-
"Something's off guys... You might end up needing to leave me here... There's something wrong on the wireless here."
Cursor stayed in VR surveying the brewing storm.
-
Mata Tabi stops smiling as he looks back at stryker then to Dean "You know that's twice now you've been rude to not only me, but my associates. Once is forgivable, twice...well, that's just blantantly unacceptable behavior." Mata says as he slowly removes the revolver from his waist band, he never replacing it to the ankle holster after the incident "Stop your bulldrek. Release the van, now!"
-
Eight-Stone's jaw dropped as he watched Stryker flippantly insult and threaten Dean... and then curl up on the ground. Eight-Stone briefly glanced around for cameras. Was this a joke? Was he on some sort of "World's Worst Bodyguard Challenges" reality trideo? Eight-Stone rolled his eyes and sighed in relief when Stryker popped back up. "Yes," Eight-Stone said, quick to agree with Stryker despite his annoyance. "If you can make it happen, get us out of here."
And then, out loud: "Sorry, Dean, but I've got a job to do, a reputation to protect, and no way of knowing if your little "scanner" isn't some sort of sabotage or magical curse or something. No deal."
-
Cursor was a little worried the others hadn't heard him. "Guys... Do as you want I'll try handling the tech side..."
(OOC: Sent pmed me, something majors going to go down in VR, but he's afk ill tommorow so Cursors stuck for now.)
-
He falls down in a controlled manner, instinctively curling into a fetal ball, as his True body, made of magic itself, dives into the manastreams. He finds a spirit there, one of the Eternal Ones
Morrigan the Eternal One came. There is no advice, no scolding, no praises but she seems not pleased. She leaves.
-
Stryker talks to himself, struggling with his Scooter. "I was insulted twice. In a most arrogant manner. I will not leave that without a response. He will either hate me, or fear me, but I will have my respect. I am a warrior, and one does not leave his enemies unattended, and he doesn't let their insults go without answer. This is not the way, and I'm not going to let them stain my honor." He opens his mind, and sends a mental request to his Eternal ally, to use his powers over the laws of physics, to help them reach their destination in time. "We roll, people."
-
Mata Tabi stops smiling as he looks back at stryker then to Dean "You know that's twice now you've been rude to not only me, but my associates. Once is forgivable, twice...well, that's just blantantly unacceptable behavior." Mata says as he slowly removes the revolver from his waist band, he never replacing it to the ankle holster after the incident "Stop your bulldrek. Release the van, now!"
Another AR appears
After that (screen splits in two, right side replaying the cafe entrance camera view of Stryker telling repeatedly "I do not believe a spokesperson for the Casquilho family would be that much of a cheap, dumb bastard."
Things would have been so much easier had you put a leash on that filthmouthed elfkid. He needed spanking and got one, had I wanted to hurt him, I would..
Your commlink signalled alert, your smartlink targetted Stryker, and on the AR screen is filled with a large "BAM !!!" text...
Obvoiusly your command had no effect.
-
Matrix - cafe node. the time now is 18:36:01.2
Among the dazzling lights of Matrix, an icon of Conquistador arrived and stopped the image looked like it lost some bits due to the speed of movement, and they were quickly falling in place.
Greetings Otaku-sama - a flourish bow complete with an extensive hat flopping followed the invitation.
It is a honor and priviledge to meet one who could feel the Matrix the way you do.
I mean no harm, and I do not wish to fight you.
I was sent to verify the nature of the package, but in no way we would like to hamper interest of the Chaves family, whatever they are.
I am sincere in my words, and if the couple of hundred nuyen was an offense allow me to withdraw that with apologies. Please allow me to run the scanner over the package and if you can't stay for a drink allow me to offer you a couple of bottles.
He seems both sincere, and ready for action. In case of combat an initiative roll would be in place. The rapier at his side is most certainly an Attack program.
Matrix - van node, same time, another subscriptions
I'll just have my sprite override its autopilot again with it's own. but first ill slip into vr and go for admin on the van: Exploit(4)+Hacking(3 ) (7d6.hits(5)=1, 7d6.hits(5)=2, 7d6.hits(5)=6) if it's firewall is 2 i'm in otherwise ill add another roll Exploit(4)+Hacking(3 ) (7d6.hits(5)=4) definitely in now, i kill all active subscriptions to the van's but mine and my machine sprites, this ll takes just under 6 seconds
Regardless of the discussion in cafe node, in the van node where you try hacking into the admin account you see the icon of Conquistador, purposefully setting off firewall on red alert. As the icons turns around you see he looks like you, which means that he spoofed the firewall trip with your access id.
The node immediately goes into alert and automatically tries to sever your connection:
(OOC: Rating(2) + Rating(2) (4, Combat Turn) Extended Test -> 4d6.hits(5)=1 hit after first round
the firewall also gained +4 against your exploits which means you'll need 2 + 4 + 6 => 12 hits to hack into admin account.)
-
"We call ourselves Technomancers, Deus created our forebearers the Otaku. After seeing your prowess on-line I personally would allow you to scan the package, I believe you are sincere. Unfortunately it's 3 versus 1 when it comes to my team. I wont be able to convince them."
-
Maybe they'll listen. If you speak to them. I'll not try to stop you any further either way.
He bows, and logs of.
-
Dean took off his sunglasses and put them on table.
The van engine started and you've able to continue.
The Drop Off
Well it’s certainly been an interesting couple of hours. But, you’re here, the package is here, you're on time and the drop off is just past that wrought iron gate and up that driveway. The mountain air smells clean and fresh. You’re feeling a little out of place in this posh of a neighborhood, but you haven’t encountered a single Lone Star drone or patrol. Clearly fate is on your side. What else could possibly go wrong?
The time now is 6:52 pm. There is a buzzer on the gate
-
Stryker exits the van, looking pretty grim. He's convinced that he did what he should've done. His Mentor's reaction though makes him feel like a kid that dissapointed his parent. Or something like that - he never had any parents, only instructors in the facility. And that was a cold, cold relationship. He sighs, and moves to the front, to lean against the wall just by the gate, and starts poking the buzzer.
-
An AR flick on with the image of a young Hispanic man, dressed in a poorly tailored suit. "What do you want?"
-
Mata Tabi straightens up his blood stained shirt unconciously as he interjects himself into the conversation. "We're expected, a matter of great importance has been delegated to our care, and we'd very much like to conclude our end of the bargain."
-
Eight-Stone kept his mouth shut and let Mata Tabi do the talking, eager to get this all over with. He kept his shotgun strapped to his back, however, and studied the man in the AR window carefully. Despite the chaos with the Triads, everyone the Johnson knew personally had upheld their end of the deal. Peaches and the guy in the tunnel hadn't tried to stab them in the back; hopefully whoever was receiving this stupid package would play fair, too.
-
Cursor reloaded his crossbow up to max and left it ready, sick of the previous road bumps and feeling like he'd actually been a little useless.
"Let's get this done with...
-
All right, come in. The gate open.
Once your are through the gate, You follow long and winding driveway through several stands of densely packed pines.
(OOC: perception rolls.. rolled... results counted...) Cursor first spotted reflections, then the pattern, there are cameras mounted on the trees that are monitoring you as you travel. (All are online, from Cursor's perspective)
At the house, you are silently greeted by four “businessmen.” All are dressed in ill-fitting off the rack suits, and all are Hispanic men. The leader of the group, the same as the one form the gate AR introduces himself - Good evening, I am Michael. Sottocapo is expecting you, but he’s currently involved with a meeting downstairs in the shooting range. He’d appreciate it if you’d join him there.
If there is nothing that you do the group of four escorts you into the mansion. The brief look you get, reveals that the mansion is luxuriously appointed. You're
passing through a formal sitting room, and around a grand staircase, before descending to the basement. Mata recognize some items - that the knickknacks in the sitting room alone were worth several hundred thousand nuyen. A moment later once you descent to the basement, you're escorted down a short hallway and then through a soundproofed door into an indoor shooting range.
Just before you pass through the door your Michael - Speak only when spoken to, and wait for the sottocapo to address you.
Omar Chavez is standing at the range counter with a pistol, examining a target, and leaning heavily on his cane.
Sottocappo is an elderly man. He is skinny to the point of near frailty, and stands with a slight stoop. His frailty and his cane only serve to make the Ruger Super
Warhawk he carries look even more enormous in his hands and in its shoulder holster.
A skinny, cringing elf, stands hunched over next to him sweating heavily wearing a badly ripped white shirt.
As you enter, Chavez hands a target to the elf. Hang it. As he walks down the range, he draws a gun and targets back of the elf’s head.
-
Mata Tabi stands there stoicly and quietly expressionless as he watches the events, he is slightly amused by it, but he'd prefer a trog of some type was the target. Not that he cared much for any meta, Elves and Dwarves were.........less filthy, more Human, not grotesque disfigurements of the Human form like trogs.
-
Sonnova'. Cursor went into VR and worked as quickly as he could.
-
Eight-Stone tensed up slightly as Chavez took aim at the elf, but he did nothing to stop it. As far as Eight-Stone was concerned, the job was almost finished, and he didn't want to make waves. Maybe this elf did something to warrant execution. Maybe Chavez was just the insecure sort, and wanting to spook the new shadowrunners by wasting one of his minions like some cheesy trideo villain. Either way, Eight-Stone didn't have much incentive to stop it, as much as he didn't really want to watch it.
-
((OOC: I'd like to say now, sorry if this balls everything up)
-
As seemingly all but Mata tensed, you noticed the Cursor face change turning grim, and his eyes becoming distant, which you began to recognize as a sign of his deep Matrix ventures.
Mata is used to reading faces, so was the only one to see Michael's very subtle eye movement.
Eight-stones on the other hand was the only one in position to see that two out of three took stances allowing them to open fire without drawing guns through their belt holsters. The third is aiming troll. Seems like taking off Mata was the Michael's job. So far nothing ill has happened.
in another reality
Cursor found herself in a node sculpted to the smallest details as trid simulation of the house. You can see the digital emulations of your escorts standing behind you. They're not logged in, their icons are sculpted around the positions of their commlinks. Your team is also emulated, same as the battered elf.
There is distinctive lack of Sottocapo icon.
There is also distinctive presence of an icon of persona sculpted as Mafia Gangster (styled to be wearing suit and hat from 1920, his suit however is not in vertical stripes, but they seem to concentrate weblike in one spot on his back probably. He is belting a revolver with a very long pipe and he is watching you closely.
Since looking for node isn't something aggressive he isn't doing anything else.
back to mundane reality
The elf took his steps slower and slower ... reached end of the shooting range ... started to hang the target
BAM !!!
Bulls-eye !!! the target was hit in the center and torn from the elf's hand leaving him crying and covering the head.
Hang it !!
(OOC: Cursor, entire movement of the elf took about ten seconds had he shoot at the elf, you had no chance to find his node and hack it)
with a still smoking gun he turns toward your team, assessing you. For a brief moment he watches Michael who very slightly nods toward Cursor.
Feeling lucky punk ?!? he smells the smoke from the monster gun and waver briefly on his frail legs.
The question obviously needed no aneswer.
This was supposed to be a quiet delivery, and the news are trumpeting about your little cruises like there had been a bank robbery or something. (this made you wonder, who make bank robberies this days?). But, he takes a look on the old fashion chrono at the wall, you made in time, and you somehow haven't been identified.
Give me the package. and once you hand it to him, Michael pay them.
One more thing, he turns to Mata you took a bullet for that package. I like that kind of loyalty. There is a small bonus for you. I also might have a work for you. (OOC: transfer for Mata is 500 nuyen more plus an info to send him check for new suit).
Now if you excuse me. He motion Micheal to walk you out.
As you move out you hear Ruger's roaring again, and shrieks of the elven man.
After one of the shots the shrieks have suddenly ended in mid-cry - this might have been closing the soundproof doors. This must have been ...
The End