[Mercy Merchant]

Saturday  9 June 2075  0910  Lakeshore Recreational Park  Lake Washington

The text from Barbara comes in quick enough.  >>On it, Boss.  If she is legit this should take no time.  Hmmm.  Looker, isn't she?<<

Rowena laughs.  "For what you just dropped I would do almost anything."  She looks over at you with a grin.  "Almost anything.  I will let you know if and when he shows up.  Enjoy your walk; it is a great day to be out.  At least until it starts raining."

You think you are used to the stares, but is one ever really used to small kids wondering what sort of freak you might be?  It is different for most adults.  They have lived in the sixth world long enough to know that people get maimed in lots of ways and those with money get replacements.  But still..................

The boardwalk follows the line of sand from one edge of the public area to the other.  It actually goes farther around the lake, but there are gates with various security measures in place to make sure that the local riffraff do not get access to the private lands held by the rich and famous.............and powerful.  Barbara's text comes in at 0928.  >>Boss, she checks out, at least on the surface.  Girl by that name, description, and photo has worked summers at Troy's for three years.  Maybe working to pay for courses at the U, where she is a student, according to the university roster.  No sorority.  No record.  No real life.  Just a normal girl.......but.  She does not apparently seem to exist prior to entering college.  Could just be clerical issues, but do you want me to dig further?<<

[Zen Gypsy]

>>No, we've still got 20.  Lets switch our focus back to Jacobs, figure out if he's on the clock for the courier, or if he is running biz on the side.<<

He continued to walk the boardwalk, hie Ziess eyes took in the crowd, but he didn't allow them to focus on any particulars, he viewed the Saturday morning Lake goers as a single organism, and as he walked through it, around it, he knew he wasn't a part of it.  Probably never would be, he was still troubled that a young woman smiling at a chewed up piece of meat like himself, would trigger feelings of doubt, suspicion and paranoia.  Still self reproaching, he watched the organism move and flow around him, as if he was a bacteria in an otherwise healthy bio-system.  That analogy held true as the crowd parted to allow him to pass, to complete his patrol of the boardwalk circuit, familiarizing himself with the area prior to the meet.

>>Could be a cover, could be a girl trying to hide something from her past that'd exclude her from getting a Uni education,<< he shrugged as he continued, >>For the time being I'll treat the situation as though she is a plant, but B.?<< 

He paused, considered the scowl he'd get from Raleigh, >>Put this morning down as O.T., you were supposed to be off today, yeah?<<

[Mercy Merchant]

Saturday  9 June 2075  0947  Lakeshore Recreational Park  Lake Washington


You are not quite back to Troy's when you get two messages.  The first is from Barbara and if a text message could relay anxiety this one would.  >>Boss!  Something is going wrong.  I was trying to dig into the courier company when their host went dark and ejected me.  That only happens when a host goes down for some reason, so I do some looking and the host is gone.  And so is the physical building.  Some sort of explosion.  Could be an accident, but be careful.  I am trying to find out more and have sent a note to Mr. Raleigh, too.<<

The second message was from Rowena, telling you that your friend had shown up and was standing in line at the pick up window.

[Zen Gypsy]

*Marde! Marde! Marde!*

Bryant looped through the throngs, switching back towards Troy's, as he did so he ensured that he was scanning the crowd.  He wasn't running his facial rec, not this time, he was looking for approach vectors, tagging potentials in his AR to keep a better view on possibles.

If Jacob's employer just went down, he needed to keep an eye on that situation.    >>B., patch the newsfeed through to my 'link, I need to keep an eye on the Courier situation.  Have Raleigh send me co-ordinates for the drop, the package is going to be too hot for return to our office.<<  He considered a moment, it didn't make sense that Jacob's was doing an outside job, at this point he had to assume that an interested party had just made it's hand known.  He also had to assume that an extraction team was moving on Jacob's, a successful urban extraction required multiple approach vectors, an escape vector, a spotter and damage control.

The extraction team composition would depend on if their target was Jacob, or the information, probably a two man, three if they needed him for de-brief.  Then there would be a intercept & support team to dissuade pursuit, most likely a spotter, and he assumed that he knew who that would be.  He approached Troy's cautiously, but with some haste, scanning the crowd for possible hostiles on approach vectors for either himself or Jacobs.

[spoiler]Visual Perception (On return to Troy's Pick Up WIndow): 14d6t5 7[/spoiler]

[Mercy Merchant]

Saturday  9 June 2075  0955  Lakeshore Recreational Park  Lake Washington


The news feed pops onto your 'link and you center it on the bottom of your view, next to the photo of Jacobs.  The feed shows you a burning ruin of a building and several emergency vehicles tending to the injured.  A quick shot exposes several shapes covered in white sheets on the sidewalk.  A scrolling ribbon at the bottom of the screen says that at least seven people have died in an unexplained explosion.  The site is described as a local courier service.  Police and fire responders are on the scene and more information will be available later.

Your perception pays off as you notice two men dressed appropriately for the location but acting completely out of place as they stand facing Troy's.  Something about them clicks in your mind as you observe them.......this is the security team.  Then, movement in the crowd reveals three men moving towards Troy's.  These men are not dressed appropriately for the location and are moving in coordination.  Perhaps the extraction team.  Suddenly the term extraction seems a bit off as the three men open their long coats, swinging assault shotguns into the open.  Without saying a word each man opens fire on the small crowd of beachgoers near Troy's.  Several people collapse in a hail of shot, blood and body parts flying.  The crowd disintegrates into pandemonium, stampeding away from the kill zone.  Screams of the living mix with those of the dying and the men fire again, adding to the terror.

[Zen Gypsy]

"Tabarnak!"

As he saw the three man team engage the crowd, he dropped low, moving to a ferro concrete retaining wall that ran parallel to the board walk, he dropped the briefcase, thumbing it open at the same time.  He withdrew his Ingram X, as his left hand closed around the grip, the induction pad fed information for the weapons advanced sensor systems to his Ikon-Ziess visual link. 

Distance and angle being the most important.

He calculated the odds; a five man team, minimum.  Three heavily armed, two unknown, an extraction vector and transportation already prepared and most likely en route.  He had limited time to engage, and they wouldn't want a prolonged firefight, not with this kind of exposure.  As his right shoulder slammed into the wall, he dropped his briefcase, thumbing open the clasp, while his left hand swung into his jacket and retrieved his Crusader pistol, using the smart link he squeezed the trigger firing a three round burst at the lead gunmen's head.

>>B.!  Situation, civilians down, five man elimination team.  Engaging.  Notify Knight Errant that I'm on scene, I don't want them tagging me as a hostile.<<

[spoiler]Spending 1 Edge to Blitz this round; Simple Action to move to Cover; a Free Action to perform a Called shot to the Gunman's unarmored head, and then attempting to Quick Draw my Crusader Machine Pistol (loaded with Stick'n'Shock) and fire a 3 Round Burst.

Initiative Check:  Blitz w/Edge: 5d6+12 31
Quick Draw Crusader M.P.: 13d6t5 3 Success!
Crusader MP - 3 Rnd Burst (Called Shot): 12d6t5 4

A modified Damage of 7S(e) due to Called Shot, with a -2 to his Defense Pool due to Burst Fire.[/spoiler]

[Mercy Merchant]

As you rise to take your shot, you notice several things.  A man you recognize as Jacobs is on the ground, blood gushing from a wound in his side,  He is in the arms of the pretty waitress, who is bent over him.  One of the gunmen is saying something to his companions.  You cannot make out all the words due to the screaming around you, but there is something about needing a code.  The man you shot at takes at least two rounds to the back of his head and collapses to the ground, causing the other two to swing in your direction.

[Zen Gypsy]

"ROWE!  Grab him under both arms!  Three meters to your left!  Retaining wall!"

He thumbed open the briefcase, it hit the boardwalk beside him, with his right hand he grabbed the Ingram X, there was a slight thrum through the induction pad as his Smartlink connected to the secondary weapon.  The targeting recticle for his Crusader faded as he switched the link to the Ingram, while checking the scrolling diagnostic feed indicated ammo capacity, rate of fire, barrel temperature, and rate of climb. 

He didn't have time to switch it over to his Gyro compensated left hand, he swung the Ingram over his cover and sprayed multiple short tight bursts towards the two advancing gunmen.

"Move!  Now!"  He shouted to Rowe, he knew that the surpressive fire would only delay a professional unit for moments, but he hoped it would be enough to allow Rowe to get the primary under cover.  This was going to get messy, fast.

>>Raleigh!  May need that car sooner than later if you are anywhere near Lake Rec Park.  Primary down, minimum five man team inbound.  Fast!<<

[spoiler]Hopefully I made the right assumption, if not feel free to yell at me.  >.<  My 2nd action this turn, on IP 21, will be to use a Simple Action to Open the Brief Case, and a 2nd Simple Action to ready the Ingram X.  My 3rd pass, on IP 11, would be to use a single Complex action to Suppression Fire with the Ingram X in the area of the two remaining Gunmen.  Suppression Fire with Ingram X: 20d6t5 8  Meaning the two Shotgun wielding Gunmen will take a -8 Dice Pool penalty to all actions while suppressed.  They must, if not under cover, make a Reaction+Edge test with a Threshold of 8, or take the base damage of the Ingram X, 8P.[/spoiler]

[Mercy Merchant]

Things are happening fast now, almost too fast to keep track of.  The waitress, now covered in blood tries to grab Jacobs under his arms and move him, making it over the wall.  The two remaining gunmen might be insane for opening fire on civilians, but they recognize danger when they see it, and the Ingram is danger.  They move away from each other, shooting in your general direction as they dive for cover; one leaping behind the same retaining wall that Rowena is clearing and the other seeking protection from an overturned table.  Their shots go wild, but add to the overall confusion in the area.  You feel the sudden sting of bullets striking you and your mind factors that the two men of the security team must have fired on you.

[spoiler]One man gets 4 successes and the other only 1.  If any get through the DV is 8 + net hits with -4 for APDS.

[Zen Gypsy]

Bryant Champagne, aka, Echo
Initiative: 10(12) +1d6 Initiative Result: 13 (2 IP's)
Status: 0/15P | 3/11S Condition Penalty: -1
Defense: 12 Armor: 20
Edge: 5 Current: 4

The return fire impacted heavily against his lined coat, thankfully it  hit him high right side, and his augmented arm took the majority of the impact.  A quick glance at his scrolling biometrics confirmed no tissue damage, though force of impact seemed to indicate military grade weaponry and or ammunition.  This day just got better and better.  He watched the team's movement, quick, economical and practiced.  He needed to end this quick, he was outgunned, and while the team moved with tactical precision, the fact that they took down civvies alongside their target conflicted with his own training, and marked them as both amateur and unprofessional.  He needed to lead them away from further civilian casualties, while keeping them engaged on the biggest threat to their operation; him.

As the one gunmen moved towards the low retaining wall he had directed Rowe to, he cursed softly, and hoped his cover, as he ran his left hand smoothly ducked under his long coat, returning his Crusader to it's holster, and transferring the Ingram to his gyro'd left arm.  In a smooth run, he rolled over the retaining wall, on his left shoulder, charging his right fist as he did.  He came up low on the gunman's right side, he shifted his weight, driving forward and launching a vicious right cross towards his target's kidneys.  Blue arcs of electricity flared across the matte black ballistic finish of his Shiawase Ronin arms, his eyes scanning for Rowe and the downed target over the gunman's shoulder.

[spoiler]Rea+Int vs 4 net Hits: 12d6t5 3, his shot is on target.  Modified Armor value of 16 vs 9P, so resulting damage will be stun.  Body+Armor (-4) vs 9P Dmg: 22d6t5 6  Ekkkk!  I forgot to add 2 Dice for my Bone Lacing.  Lesson learned!  So 3 Stun damage, now to resolve the next attack.  Rea+Int (-1 CM) vs 1 net Hit: 11d6t5 4.  Result equals a miss!  Thankfully.  Now for my Final IP, at 1, I will use a Simple Action to Holster my Crusader, and Swap the Ingram to my Left hand, I will then use my Movement, Run & Parkour if need be, to move into Melee range on the assailant closest to Rowe & Jacobs.

Annnd ... Initiative Check:  2nd Round: 1d6+12 13 for the next Round.  Giving me 2 IP's.  A Complex Action to engage in Melee Combat sporting the Shock Hand built into my Right Cyberarm.  Unarmed Attack with Shock Hand Implant: 15d6t5 4  Base damage of 9S(e) and -5 AP.[/spoiler]

[Mercy Merchant]

Saturday  9 June 2075  1008  Lakeshore Recreational Park  Lake Washington


As you leap over the low wall you hear the impact of more bullets against the cement and at least one round passes close over your head.  Rowena and Jacobs are in a pile and the gunman on this side of the wall has dropped his shotgun and drawn a large pistol. pointing it at you.  You stare at death, but his grin turns to a look of frustration as the gun fails to fire.  Your shock hand strikes him hard and the man shudders as the voltage runs through his body.  Not out, the man brings his pistol back to bear on you but is interrupted as Rowena throws herself on his gun arm, crying out in anger. 

The security team has made it to the wall and both men open fire.  You feel the bite of a bullet and see another hit Rowena in the arm.

[spoiler]The gunman hits you with 2 successes.  DV is 8 + net hits and -4 for APDS.

[Zen Gypsy]

Bryant Champagne, aka, Echo
Initiative: 10(12) +1d6 Initiative Result: 13 (2 IP's)
Status: 0/15P | 3/11S Condition Penalty: -1
Defense: 12 Armor: 20
Edge: 5 Current: 4

He watched, with a degree of respect, as Rowena tackled the gunman's arm entangling it, and preventing him from getting his shot off.  The security team, approaching from the rear clipped both him and the waitress.  There was a soft, pffft!, as the round embedded itself in the wall behind him, Rowena was not so lucky, her arm now trailing blood. 

"Get out!  Get Jacobs clear, ping my 'link!"  He spun, keeping the gunmen between himself and the advancing security, hoping that his body and his attacker's would shield the now injured Rowe. "GO!"

His Ingram, aimed over the initial gunman's shoulder, chattered steadily, it's suppressor muting the sound of his exchange with the advancing Corp-Sec.

[spoiler]Defense (Ranged) vs 2 Net Hits: 11d6t5 4  Success!  Simple Action to Fire a Short Burst at Security Team #1 Short Burst vs Security #1: 19d6t5 10.  Capped at 7 due to Accuracy.  2nd Simple Action to Fire a Short Burst at Security Team #2.  Short Burst vs Security #2: 19d6t5 7.  8P on both, loaded with Std Ammo, no AP reduction.  Short Bursts will reduce their Defense pool by 2 though.[/spoiler]

[Mercy Merchant]

"He's fragging dead!  What the hell is happen...................frag, I've been shot.  I.....I...."  Rowena has been struggling to keep the gunman's arm down, but she seems to slide off it when she realizes that she has been shot.  Your maneuver puts you slightly behind the gunman and you manage to squeeze off one burst before he slides away from the line of fire of his companions.  Sadly for him, he is not quite fast enough and he takes a bullet to his chest, jerking as it penetrates his armor and burrows into flesh.  One man of the security team returns your fire, sending bullets your way that come close enough to cause you to flinch.  The other man pounces on the case that had been left behind when Rowena had followed your instructions to get Jacobs over the retaining wall and rolls behind some decorative planters with it.  The other gunman calls out from behind the overturned table.  "Whoever you are, this is not your fight.  All we want now is the girl.  How about you just walk away for 10K?"

[Zen Gypsy]

Staying behind cover, he sent a mental command through his AR, and the Ingram ejected the clip, with a swift motion he caught the almost empty clip, pocketed it, and retrieved a fresh one from somewhere inside his lined coat.  He turned, looked at Rowena, whispered, "You are stronger than I thought, stronger than those guys thought, I need you to stay strong for the next ten minutes.  This will all be over then,"  He blanched a moment, as the similarities of this situation and the assault on T³ hit him, a team coming for a woman, nominally under his protection, "I'm not going to give you up Rowe, just keep your head down."

He raised his voice to make himself heard, it was unnecessary given the sudden silence as the gunfire died down, but it did cover the sound of him reloading his Ingram X.  "I'd consider your offer, but your team operates like street meat who got a break, got Corp backing.  You opened on that crowd like a bunch of 'bangers, undisciplined, unprofessional, sloppy.  You and I both know your team is moving into flanking positions as we talk, and if I took the 10K, you'd open up on me soon as I came out of cover."

He scanned the scene to ensure that he could track the movement of the remaining extraction team, "Counter offer, you could probably take me, but not before Knight Errant got here.  You have the case, take your men, and execute your extraction plan.  I keep the girl, and I keep Jacob's body, his family deserves an open casket at the very least."  As he spoke, he inserted a fresh clip into the Ingram X, and fished an object out of his pocket.

He lifted the inhaler to his nose, fired a torpedo of Novacoke up his nostril, and tossed the device to Rowena behind him.  Almost immediately he felt the a cold twinge race down his neural path, "It'll help deal with the pain."

[spoiler]A Visual perception check, trying to keep track of the opposing team's various positions and cover.  Visual Perception (Scanning Corp-Sec Team Position): 11d6t5 2.  Uggh!  Not the greatest, but it will have to do.  I didn't include my combat header, as this seemed like a logical break in the flow of combat.  I will assume, if hostilities resume, that we'll just re-roll Initiative for the next phase.  Also, by my count, the five man team is as follows; Rifleman #1, down from the Stick&Shock, Rifleman #2, injured but not down, hit by my Shock Hand and friendly fire, Rifleman #3, unaccounted for.  Company man #1, injured by Ingram X, and Company Man #2, injured by Ingram X and in possession of Jacob's briefcase.

Situation is NOT looking good, I love it!  Also, I hope you don't mind my use of the Novacoke, combat drugs and enhancers are very thematic for the genre, and something I've always wanted to do as a character.[/spoiler]

[Mercy Merchant]

Saturday  9 June 2075  1015  Lakeshore Recreational Park  Lake Washington


There is no response from the gunman but you hear a low moan from Rowena behind you.  Your body is on fire from the drug and the remembered feelings of superiority flow through your system.  A man runs up to you and your heightened senses see the movement almost is slow motion.  There is a surprised look on the man's face as your Ingram raises instinctively and you realize that he appears to be unarmed.  Your finger tightens unperceptively on the trigger, ready to fire on the man.