Shadowrun
Shadowrun Play => Play-by-Post => Topic started by: Jayde Moon on <05-11-15/0339:52>
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Raining in Seattle, who’da thought? At least the soykaf is good, for when you invariably need a late morning pick-me-up. Watching the masses go about their day is enough by itself to bring you down, the gray skies and continuous spring drizzle just serves to to really drive the gloom home.
It’s generally nice not to have to rush through the wageslave traffic, but work’s been a bit slow lately. Hard to pay rent with empty promises. Still, maybe something will turn up.
@ Ravener
Friday night was a good time. Maybe too good of a time. A chance to open at the upstairs dance floor of Powerline in Bellevue was almost a dream come true. Flamboyant gay men really know how to have a good time and appreciate a good dance beat and they showed their appreciation the dance floor. To celebrate the gig, the afterparty took you and a few good friends to the Tacoma Style.
If your hangover is any indication, it was a damn good time. Maybe some hair of the dog will stop that buzzing sound…
Or maybe just answering your commlink. Taking a look down, you see it’s a message from Michelle Rampling. That means work, and that’s good.
>>[Can you make a meet with Ms. Johnson at Club Penumbra in downtown? Sure it’ll be worth your while. Ms. Johnson expects you at 8 in the private room.<<
Club Penumbra? If that’s not an auspicious sign for a night out on the town, then nothing is.
@ Cherie
Ugh, so boring. People are just so boring. Never up to anything amusing or fun, just rushing back and forth. Just when Cheris thinks it can’t get any worse, her Metalink beeps. Taking a look, she sees that it’s a message from Manny. As humans go, not a bad sort, and with the bonus that he always finds something interesting for Cherie to do.
>>[There’s a place in downtown Seattle called Club Penumbra. If you can be there by 8 to meet with Ms. Johnson in one of the private rooms, you could get a foot in the door of some real work, not the little half pranks and joke jobs you’ve been with so far. Tryouts are over. Don’t be late. Good luck.]<<
@ Jujin Kai
It was taking a while to get used to the odd stares. In Japan, the Oni security professionals were looked upon with respect. Here in Seattle, a single no at a cafe was a curiosity. Most folks weren’t extremely discourteous as to glare openly at him, but he was observant enough to notice the sly glances and double takes.
He sipped from the tea and pondered his next move when his commlink chirped. It was his Yakuza contact, Satoshi.
Found you some work, omae. There is a place known as Club Penumbra. It is in the heart of Downtown. Ms. Johnson is looking for real talent and wants to meet a team in the private room. A chance for you to earn some red and pay down your debts, hey? Don’t say I haven’t come through for you. And don’t forget, end of the month, you need to drop off at least 3K. More if you want to get into the principle. Happy to help, but we expect our due.
@ Whiskey
It was dark in the old church, despite the time. Whiskey sat next to the cot and examined the man lying on it. He complained of stomach pain and pressure, twisting knots in his gut. MatrixMD said it was cancer, but the diagnosis tool for the Virtual Doc was notorious for offering that single response. Whiskey figured he just ate something a few hours older than he should have.
She offered him a few chewable tablets, nothing more she could do really, the clinic had very little, working off of the donations gathered throughout the community. As she stood up, the door leading to the basement opened. Whiskey rose as Ms. Nunn, known to the vagrants who sometimes sheltered here as Our Lady of Mercy, approached. She looked tired, as if she had just woken from deep sleep. It made sense, Ms Nunn often worked late into the night, taking care of those she had drawn under her wing.
“Whiskey,” she said, “as I told you, I put out some feelers for something you might be able to do. A friend of my has returned a call and told me that you may have a place at the table of a Ms… Johnson. At Club Penumbra tonight at 8.”
@ Raiden
Raiden lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling only scant inches from his nose. Staying in the coffin hotel had been annoying, but he had few options. He had next to nothing left and no immediate means of getting anything more. Luckily, he knew a few people in Seattle and had put out some feelers. His commlink buzzed, indicating a message from one of those feelers.
>>[Hey, chummer, I know it’s been a week, don’t think I forgot about you. Looks like something’s come up and you have a foot in the door. Club Penumbra at 8pm, private room with Ms. Johnson. I called in a favor for this, so don’t be late..]<<
Well, he’d started from the bottom once. He could do so again.
@ Redline
Lucky. That’s the only word to describe the current situation. Shit was so bad that the current situation could be considered a miracle. Auburn was so different from Japan and everything seemed so dirty and dull… but she knew there were worse places. She could have found herself in the Barrens, by all accounts a place where her family would have suffered.
But here? Not so bad. She didn’t dare let her parents work yet, they still had to lay low, keep to themselves. Once her siblings grew up, there would be work for them. By then, removed in time from the events of the last months, Renraku might not be looking so hard for them. Meanwhile, Redline had to pay the rent. She’d managed for the month, but it was going to be hand to mouth for the foreseeable future. At least Willy had been true to his word, taking care of them. He said he’d be on the lookout for something Redline could do.
The light on her commlink flashed. Speak of the devil.
>>[Got a Ms. Johnson looking for your kind of talent. Head to Club Penumbra, be there at 8. Tell them you’re a friend of mine and you’re expected in the private room. They’ll let you in. Good luck.
—————
8 pm… nine hours from now. Plenty of time.
-
Raiden splashed freezing cold water on this face to snap some focus into himself. This whole place had the astral feel of lethergy and wasted lives. He wanted to take a shower or two but knew it wouldn't help. Getting back to work would help.
He looked at himself in the mirror. Cheap suit, not tailored. Hair looking a tad greasy, mild scent of sweat and sleep lingering. He put on his smile, he was a wilder version of himself, nothing to lose and everything to gain. He checked his weapons then adjusted his suit in the mirror a little more before saying quietly "I love my job." and heading to the meet.
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Cherie, yawned and stretched, pulling the hammock to its full length. The thatching job she had done covering this part of the tree held out the rain and actually made for an almost cozy feel. She had gotten Jonesey's name from one of her girls back in New Orleans. Jonesey wasthe manager of The Paladin and she had agreed to let cherie stay in the courtyard in back of the building and use the facilities on site in exchange the for an occasional set on the stage and a few new yen. Cherie had quickly set herself up in the towering oak that somehow managed to survive in this part of Sylvestria, or whatever the locals called this eleven enclave.
She popped into the showers that girls used got her ready for her first "meet" as a shadow runner. Usually she was used to being the one coming up with the plan and making the shaking happen, but has he had had to leave and come to this cold gloomy backwater of civilization. As she slipped on her armor "jacket" she stroked the faux fur collar and the plungin neck line remembering how Jimmy had Fashioned it especially to show of what he thought of as her best features.
Being the cautious type, she called upon Papa Chango, a particular favorite Loa asking that he ride her and give her the powers of speed. She set out flying for the club Penumbra with plenty of time to spare. Invisible to all she passed, she easily made it to the club where she made use of her diminutive size and Art and skill at sneaking to slip past the bouncers and into the private room where mr Johnson waited.
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Stretching to try and ease the kinks, I reach over and hit play. As the music starts to thump I feel the creep of magic along my nerves. The drip of the faucet slows and the texture of the music deepens. "Time to fly?" I ask the raven now sitting on my deck.
"Silent wings and open eyes," Raven says, before he flaps his wings and flies though the wall.
"On that note," I mutter as I head to the shower. Fifteen minutes later, clean and with hot soycaf I sit down to check NeedleNet for any news. Frowning at the latest on the missing fixer I send Michelle a reply letter her know I will make the meet. Loading a stealth suite into my deck I spin it up on silent and grab my coat. I set retro vids to playing across my coat as I settle my pistol in it's holster. My runner bag goes behind the seat of the truck and I let GridGuide drive me to the meet. "Time to pay off some loans"
-
Jujin read the message again more slowly. He was not happy about his current situation, and his contact was correct; he had debts to pay. The least of which was nuyen.
He paid his tab and headed to his apartment to collect his belongings, and prepare himself for the meeting.
-
Redline's eyes flickered open, shifting to the barred window which let a smelly, cool breeze and steely grey overcast of morning light through. Eiko worked herself up into a sit, breathing hard as she was reminded that the day after a run always hurt worse. Her mother's bed sat empty across from her, blankets tucked cleanly around the mattress. She glanced at her comm link, running a hand over her face as she calculated her rest at over nine hours.
She wandered down the hall to the kitchen in a fog, favoring her healthy side as she made for the family's tea cabinet. Sasushi sat at the kitchen table, faraway gaze remaining unmoving as he peered into the otherworld of the matrix through his deck.
They didn't speak as she made a cup of tea, rubbing at her forehead, sipping, gazing out a window; finding herself. A few minutes passed, and she spoke softly, eyes cast downward.
"Aren't you supposed to be in school?"
A few seconds later, her brother leaned back, jacking out from his deck and leaning into the fold out chair he sat in. His eyes moved to her after a pause.
"Aren't you supposed to be on a run?"
That made her stop, looking at him with a sideways glance. She thought about dismissing the question, using the old excuses. But she knew he knew, and he deserved better than to be lied to by his older sister.
"No," she offered simply, looking away as she retrieved a cigarette from her pocket, lighting it. She looked out the window, searching for the right words and sipping at her steaming mug of kabusecha. "It's my day off," she elaborated.
He replied more quickly this time. "Seiji doesn't know, but I do. I know what you do."
Her brow leaned upwards, ruby eyes staring at him from behind the trail of her cigarette.
"What do I do, brother?"
"You steal things. You kidnap people. You kill people."
Her eyes shifted to the depths of the murky green tea, the mug again meeting her lips. She was silent for a time, but his eyes hung on her. Eventually, the fiery flicker of her gaze returning to his was enough. She didn't disagree.
"Why did you take us here? Seiji misses home. Mom, too."
"This is home," she injected flatly. The boy rebounded.
"Fuck that. This place is drek. This whole city is shit." His eyes remained on hers, unrelenting. "Why did you make us come here?" he repeated.
"Because home isn't safe anymore, Sasushi."
"Why?"
She paused, returning her view to the smudge-covered kitchen window as she let clouds of smoke fill her chest before releasing it with a relenting exhale.
"Because things go wrong sometimes." She paused, eyes shifting back to her brother. He stared at her hard, waiting, wanting, angry. It wasn't a stretch to assume that he blamed her for it all; that he hated her. Some of it was the squalor around them, the meals that were too small and the arguing from behind doors that was too loud.
Some of it, she knew, was justified.
"You hate us. You think you're better than all of us and brought us here because you can. Just because you were born a big freak you think you can boss us around."
Eiko stamped the cigarette out, finished her tea and leaned against the kitchen counter. She crossed her arms taking in a deep breath before speaking with a softness belying her brother's words.
"Lets go for a drive."
Silence reigned again, punctuated by the distant scream of a Knight Errant siren. Sasushi's eyes locked with hers until he rose from the table without speaking, collapsing his deck into a flat rectangle and sliding it into a backpack. He opened the front door and stepped out into the stairs.
Eiko pulled on a thermal patterned with the colors of Renraku and grabbed her holdout, slipping it beneath her belt before stepping out after him. They piled into the Gopher in silence, and with a pair of experimental revs she sent it skidding up the ramp and into the street, west, towards the water.
Yesterday's rain had given way to broken clouds, lances of sun spearing through cracks of blue to reflect off puddles and dripping buildings. They rode in silence, Sasushi's eyes looking at the the baseball-sized bullet hole in his door once before looking on without question.
A few minutes later the pickup came to a stop at the Sound's edge, chemical-choked water lapping against the rotting ferricrete of a disused dock. The pair stepped out, Redline instinctively reviewing their surroundings for anything out of the ordinary. It was Tuesday morning; Tacoma was dead save for truck trains and wage slaves late to the day's toil.
"Why take me here?" Sasushi inquired lowly. His nose wrinkled as the wind kicked up a waft of Tacoma aroma into them, but he didn't complain. Rainbows of petrol glimmered in the fleeting sunlight, the last of the day's fog burning away in a slow-dancing vapor.
"Because it's as close as you're ever getting to home again, Sasushi." Her red eyes bore into him, unapologetic, uncompromising. His head turned to her, waiting expectantly for an aside, or some reason that never speaking with his old friends again the flesh was acceptable. But as they looked into one another without words, the boy gradually realized there would be no comforting lie, no redeeming detail.
This was their life now.
Sasushi sat at the edge of the dock, legs hanging lifelessly over the soup as he stared westwards, as if with enough effort his eyes could track Japan through the mists and be there. But he was stuck in the plex from what might as well have been a force of nature. Any attempt at boarding a cruiser, bullet train, jetliner, sub-orbital - whatever the method - would trip wires. Wires Renraku would follow back to her, then to her family.
Redline explained this to her brother steadily, slowly, methodically. She talked about why they'd lived so well in the past, and why they never would again; why mom was acting like the time they lost dad all over again; why things wouldn't change soon.
Things don't get easier. If anything, they get harder; nobody lends you a hand without pulling you in for a favor; no offense ever forgotten. You woke up each day ready to fight for your life, to pull all the stops and push your capabilities to the limit. On a good day, you made it back with a story to tell. On a bad day, you had one more friend who has just a phone number that'd never pick up again. On the worst day, you were gone.
That was that: life in the shadows. No glamor, no heroes, just survival.
Sasushi didn't talk for the entirety of their visit to the Sound, but Redline knew he listened to every word. By the time she'd finished, the northwest gloom had reached its whitest, like a hap-hazarded declaration of noon. It was then that her commlink pinged her, an AR window flickering into view. She stepped away from her brother, turning back towards the industrial wall of Tacoma.
"Willy-san," she intoned with as much warmth as she could muster. "Hello."
"Hoi, Redline. Got a job for you - a Ms. Johnson looking for your kind of talent."
She paused, a hand distractedly running over her bruised, bloated side. If she told anyone she was even operating at 90% efficiency, she'd be accountable for self-slander.
"Had a run last night, Willy." She looked over her shoulder to Sasushi, his head turned back at her with pallid interest. "Still doing some housekeeping."
"I know how it goes, chummer. Your guy Gravesong told me you were a fresh off a job, but he said you'd still be available." He waited, adding offhandidly, "Said you'd need the money, too."
Redline brushed an errant lock of hair behind a horn, turning away from Sasushi once more. "He's right."
"Solid. Head to Club Penumbra, be there at 8. Tell them you're a friend of mine and you're expected in the private room. They'll let you in."
"Penumbra, 20:00," she echoed, tilting her head in a faint nod. "I'll be there."
"Good luck." The voice left her senses, and with a blink of her eyes a layout downtown Seattle radiated into view, complete with routes classified by time, distance, the security ratings of neighborhoods and more. The meet was in nine hours.
Redline walked back to her brother, finding him staring out over the water again. She pet his head lightly, sharing the view for a few seconds before offering simply, "We gotta go."
He peered up at her from the corner of his eye. "You're going on a run, aren't you?"
She looked down at him, hand resting on his head. She waited, thinking for a few moments before nodding wordlessly.
"Take me with you. I've been learning a lot with skillsofts - even with my scrappy deck I hacked into -"
She nudged his head to interrupt him, shaking her own. "Is you name Sasushi?" she intoned flatly.
"...Yeah."
"Are you my brother?"
"Eiko-"
She clicked her tongue with a tssk at him, giving a mock sigh. "Sorry, panku, that invalidates your place on the team."
He began protesting, citing myriads of reasons why he was ready for his first run, how she'd underestimated him and more. She hefted him up by the arm without effort and pulled him back to the Gopher, shutting the door behind him before sitting at the wheel.
His arguing died down as they made the drive back, the deep thrum of the truck the only sound for blocks.
"You missed our exit," he observed bitterly.
"I didn't miss drek, otōto. You're going to school."
"What? No, no way! There's only three hours left anyway."
"Yeah," she replied flatly, the edge of her lips curling in the shadow of a smirk.
They pulled up in front of the school, and Sasushi asked one more time to be taken home. His request was dismissed another time with just as much emotion.
"Are you gonna be home tonight?" he asked, brow raising with a faint hope.
Her fingers flicked at the cigarette between them, a common twitch for her to relieve tension. She looked from the dash to him and shook her head lightly. "Just to get my stuff."
His eyes hung on hers, and she could feel the pool of unspoken words rattling in his skull. He'd heard a lot today, none of it spoon fed; it'd take time to digest. But he was good for it.
She ruffled his hair and gave an earnest smile, tilting her chin towards the school "Bye, Sasushi."
With an exhale, he popped open the door and stepped into the street. He shut the door and watched her through the smudged glass, and after a time, nodded at her knowingly.
---
She drove straight home, skipping the Gopher's sad excuse for a sound system in favor of the earthy tones of a dwarven dowbeat station in her cyberears. The Gopher returned to its parking spot, she walked up to the apartment. Her mother sat at the kitchen table, clicking at a commlink and looking up at her as Redline entered.
"Sasushi went to school?"
"Hai," Redline answered, walking down the hall to their bedroom and then to the closet as her mother's expression reflected sincere surprise.
"You're not going out again?" she called after her daughter. Redline slipped off the thermal and eyed her limited wardrobe, tired brain working through potential outfits, weighing their respective degrees of formality, combat capability, subtlety and nondescriptness.
"Hai, okāsan," she called back. She pulled on an armored vest, tightening the straps to grip her form without any give before slipping over black synthleather top, form-fitting, unhindering. She finalized the outfit with a loose-fitting halter top and a short "laser symphony" skirt that refracted light in dazzling neon colors.
The skirt detracted from the subtle but present armor vest; the leather shirt and armored vest were practical pieces if the meet got messy. Blend in until someone calls your bluff, then survive long enough to get out.
With some soygel, she slimed her crimson hair into flung back spikes, aiming for a popular style from the 2050s, hoping to blend in with the club's vibe. Not her look, but it'd do.
She secured her holdout into the inside of her boot. If the club had decent security they might still scope it, but she hoped Willy's name would be enough to get her in. That, and she knew Penumbra had a reputation for a meet spot. She trusted that anyone who noticed the cheap piece would rightly dismiss it as the least amount of self-defense a woman would pack.
She left her longarms and automatic weapons in the safe before striding back down the hall, preparing to depart.
Her mother eyed her outfit, looking between it and Redline for a time before guessing, "Meeting a man somewhere, Eiko?"
Redline shook her head. "Maybe. But for work."
"Again? You were just gone yesterday."
"We need the money. Sasushi is old enough to help take care of Seiji now. You're fine without me."
The look her mother gave insisted that she didn't agree, but she didn't argue either. She rose and embraced Redline tightly, taking a deep breath.
"Be careful, musume."
The two released one another after a time, and Redline turned to leave. Her hand on the knob, she turned to look back at her mother.
"I'm taking Sasushi to a Mariners game this weekend. Maybe it'll make up for me forgetting his birthday."
Her mother shook her head, scoffing once humorlessly. "We don't have the nuyen, Eiko."
Redline nodded before looking back to the door, turning its handle. "After tonight, maybe." She looked back once more.
"Sayōnara, okāsan."
Her mother resigned, smiling faintly without discarding the worry from her features. "Sayōnara, musume. Call if...call us."
Redline nodded, shutting the door behind her. She lit a cigarette and was soon once back in the shit-seat of her gopher, aiming the truck northbound on I-5. First, she'd see Dr. Gravesong to get healed up. She didn't have the cash to burn to heal herself up after runs, opting for asprine, green tea and time to heal wounds.
Not tonight. She'd spend the extra nuyen to be at the top of her game, ready to go for whatever it was Willy had lined up for her. She trusted him, not to avoid selling her out or cheating her, but to put give her a chance. She had learned quickly no price could be put on an opportunity.
Afterwards, with a few hours to spare, she'd get takeout and clean her smaller, mobile pieces in the backseat of her truck. Anytime a meet went south, the first place she'd turn was to the Toyota grab a piece one size up, just enough to quiet things down.
A cup of green tea later and she'd look for a place to park the Gopher, close enough to the club to get to in a flash, hidden enough so that passers-by wouldn't peer through the windows for valuables, obvious enough so that if they did, they'd be seen.
Night fell over Seattle, and the city exploded in LEDs, hard-partying suits, drugs and neon. She cased the spot with a casual walk around the block, making an effort to look like a girl just a little lost before finding her way to the club's entrance.
19:47, she'd get in line and work her way to the front, limiting any responses to bouncers to 'hai,' or 'Īe,' unless bothered for more. In which case, she'd mention Willy and the private room.
The rest was up to fate, for good or ill. That was how the shadows were.
-
[Saturday 201505110745L]
Everyone arrives at about the same time. Being in Downtown, without a place to safely stow their gear, the most egregious of it was left at your respective doss. The security at Penumbra is tight enough that you are fairly certain you aren't getting a sword past them, or even a hold-out without half decent palming skills. Hopefully there will be time after the meet to gather what's needed.
The club itself is already busy. It would be a stretch to call it packed, but there are a surprising amount of guests for the early hour. It must get terribly hot when it gets later. The DJ is playing a sort of neurofunk drum and bass, heady stuff for a crowd not ready to dance, but looking for a drink... or some other escape.
At the private room, you run into a very large individual, standing with his arms crossed. It's obvious that this man is heavily cybered. Hell, his skull looks like an obvious replacement. he stops you from going in, asking your business. Announcing that you are here to meet Ms. Johnson, he nods and allows passage.
Eventually, there is a small group gathered. Everyone takes a moment to take stock of one another...
-
Whiskey dipped her head at the news. "Thank you Lady. I appreciate it. I'll be back when I can to help ya out more."
Dressed in her standard "meeting suit", which was just really a set of well worn comfortable black leathers, she grumbled to herself as she made her way to the club. "Need more damned supplies. My stash just isn't going to cut it for a real job if the folks can't keep themselves patched for a few hours at a time". Nothing really meaningful, just her usual grumble and bluster. Hearing the thump of the music as she approaches the door, she stops for a moment taking a deep breath, thankful that she took care of her nerves before leaving the squat.
After getting access to the back room, she sidles in, takes up a spot along the wall, crossing her arms as she leans back a bit assessing the others with a brief nod.
Anyone on the streets looking at her would see a thin dwarf with hard eyes, dressed in worn black leathers. The few oddities that might catch their eye, a small feathered token, a few vaguely celtic looking metal bits in the leather, hair in various braids tied with various bits, an embroidered patch that looked like an old fashioned whiskey bottle, wouldn't change their original thought that she was just another drifter.
To the more observant or another runner, there would be a few other things they'd notice. Always moving eyes, taking in everything. The unruffled stance disguising a ready alert. The bits in her braids more than just random material. All of it subtle and not readily noticeable. Further observation would register the military medic pin amongst the other metal bits, a small pewter bear pin, a few other military-esque pins carefully arranged.
As they assess one another, she merely raises an eyebrow at any who catch and hold her eyes with their own assessment of her. A very definitely look of "yeah, and? got a problem?"
-
Jujin leans up against the wall, arms crossed in front of him. His muscular 6'2 frame is clad in a black and white yukata (traditional men's Japanese robes) and sandals. He nods to each person in turn. If introductions are made, he will say his name as Jujin Kai, and " it is an honor to meet you," in a thick Japanese accent. He seems calm, and seems to scowl even while being polite.
From his char description : He has vivid, bright blue skin, with 3 inch silver horns sticking straight out from his temples. His long silver hair is kept in a top-knot. His eyes are not quite so “bulgy” as other Oni, but they are the typical gold color. He has a little gold bell in each earlobe, and a silver loop at the top of each long and pointy ear. He has the look of somebody perpetually scowling.
-
Redline checked the holdout one last time before stepping into the line to enter Penumbra, fitting it snugly above her ankle, just high enough not to press outwards.
She did her best to approach any security with quiet confidence, but would never turn aggressive or uncooperative if they discovered the small gun. She wouldn't even attempt a bluff, just say that she was taking care of herself before mentioning Willy's name and the private room. The loss of a holdout wouldn't kill her - financially, anyway.
Moving beyond security, she'd move through the club, her eyes shifting around the lunar-retro interior with mixed wonder and discomfort. She'd been in the shadows for a few months now, but had kept runner culture at arm's length. Walking through the chaotic mix of not-so-secret runners, sceners, potential corp Johnsons made her quicken her step to the back room.
Redline approached a hulk of a man, and her eyes shifted over his form to consider the threat he could pose and appreciate what she'd consider a well-upgraded individual. She limited her words to the mention of a Ms. Johnson in the back room, and brokering no disagreement, headed in.
The oni entered the smaller room, not realizing how loud the rhythms of the main club floor had been until behind a door. She considered a dwarf woman standing alone, black leathers that seemed to have seen a long life on the streets adorning her figure. Not particularly subtly, Redline sized the woman up - no verbal interaction or chest puffing - but a sincere effort to determine what made this dwarf a danger in the shadows.
Just as the silent exchange might rise to acknowledgable levels of awkward, the oni would offer a simple nod, a stoic indication that the other woman's space would be respected.
Redline's eyes widened at seeing another oni in the room. Her hand would instinctively twitch for the holster that wasn't there and the holdout that might be before slowly relaxing. Could another Japanese at the meet - another oni no less - really just be a coincidence? Catching herself staring at the man, she'd lower her eyes and offer a simple, "Kon'nichiwa," nodding faintly at his name and replying again with only, "I'm called Redline," in Japanese.
She took a spot in the room where she could keep an eye on this other oni, struggling to focus on anything else. Part curiosity and part paranoia, she did a bad job at hiding her reaction. After a few moments, she'd nervously bring up an ARO and begin flicking through Needle Net posts, trying to appear casual.
When Ms. Johnson got talking though, the AROs would vanish and Redline would be all pointy-ears.
-
While remaining extremely well concealed and hidden, Cherie watches the club for a short while. She notices a side door used by the staff occasionally to take out loads of garbage or to leave for a short break. When a waitress comes out to smoke a cigarette, Cherie makes a break from her hiding spot directly above the door to flit in. She finds herself in the kitchen and immediately hugs the ceiling, flying to die behind the racks of pans hanging form the ceiling. Making her way to the door to the dance floor, she waits for a waiter and slides out behind him and immediately launches herself to hide behind the lighting system.
Upon casting about for the private room, she noticed a series of unusual and potentially unsavory characters who stand out. When the second Oni walks up to the heavily polluted human, she decides to sneak in behind her.
Upon entering the room, she quickly hides behind the largest of the other people, squeezing into a small space the way only someone of her extremely diminutive size could.
She fervently hopes that she had heard correctly when the larger woman had mentioned a mister Johnson.
-
Ravener moves up the line, bopping his head to the music in his headphones while sifting the local matrix for any undue attention. Noting any potential problems, he lets himself drift up the line like any other club kid out for a night of dancing. 'Glad I checked their rules,' he thought to himself as the bouncers kicked some ganger kid out of line for carrying a Colt L36 under his jacket. 'Still, would be nice to have something more than my deck for this meet.'
After getting through the line, the familiar feel of the bass hits his skull and he smiles behind his mirror mask. 'Too early for this beat with this crowd,' he muses. Stopping to bounce to the beat, he tries to scope the exits and muscle. Noting a couple ways out, he sets up silent ARO's to ensure he doesn't miss them if things go south. A loud chime echoes in his head, as his deck reminds him that he has business here and no time for dancing.
Moving to the back room, he notes the huge guard and wonders how much metal there is in the man. 'Wonder if he can swim with all that metal,' he mutters as he walks up to the man. The man starts to wave him off, but Ravener drops the vids from his jacket and quietly informs the man that he is Ms. Johnson's guest tonight. The guard's expression doesn't change, but he nods and lets me pass.
Entering the room is like having someone shoot the speakers, the music drops out and the silence is more than a bit oppressive. The presence of two Oni and a Dwarf takes a second to sink in. Glad his mask covers his face, he ponders the two Oni. Oni are rare outside of Japan, and with one of the Oni wearing Japanese clothing the other is most likely Japanese as well. Ravener forces himself to stand straight and bow properly towards the two Oni, but not more than the 15 degrees required. 'Konbanwa. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu (Good evening, I look forward to working with you). That bit of etiquette out of the way, he nods to the dwarf. 'Heya. Nice to meet you. Handle's Ravener.'
Finding the crowd a bit quiet for his taste, he puts some music on low in his headsets and turns up his sound enhancement a bit to ensure he doesn't miss anything. The fem Oni's skirt keeps drawing his eyes as he thinks back to last nights fun. 'Should be an interesting night.'
-
Raiden gets off the bus and walks a few blocks to the club, catching the music before seeing the place. Clubs like this were gold mines for a meet, so many people moving around and not a snowballs chance in hell of audio surveillance. On the flip side a lot could happen very quickly and unnoticed when the crowd got moving. He's seen an entire team knocked out in under a minute without anyone knowing until, all because of music and crowds.
He skipped the line, putting his new suit on trail as the bouncer looked him over before nodding and allowing entry. 'Still got my good looks at least' and he entered.
The bar was stocked well and he baught a drink before heading in, crossing his fingers that the Johnson was buying, cause there otherwise he'd have to skip out on the tab. Still it payed to look like he had money, so 40 nuyen for two ice cubes and just enough scotch to cover them was worth the risk. And it was damn good scotch.
He made a point to wait till almost the last minute, noting from the bar anyone who entered the back room through the wal of cyberware. When the fourth passed he followed, being sure to check his com link for the proper pronunciation of kon'nichiwa.
He entered and said a polite as much to the two Oni, smiled at the dread and the dude in the mask, then introduced himself as john Barrett, and sat down at the small table, his back to the door he'd come in through.
'Buisness time' he thought with a dose of inticipation.
-
@ Ravener
The matrix environment appears clear, the Club's own host is present and, by all accounts, not something you would want to tackle. Of course, that makes it unlikely that it's holding anything nasty that the club doesn't know about and the club is rumored to be Shadowrunner friendly. With the exits marked and hodgepodge manner of guests, you feel fairly comfortable.
@ Cherie
Before entering, Cherie notes that there is definitely magical security. While she feels confident that she can slip by, the large spirit would attract attention, so she releases it. She can always call another, after all.
Upon reaching the room, she settles into an out of the way corner, atop a shelf. No one seems to take note of her.
@ all
After several moments, the door opened and the door guard nodded as an elf woman (https://shaking-the-shadows.obsidianportal.com/characters/msjemtex) said something to him. She was smartly dressed in Zoe's latest and exuded an air of professionalism. Most striking about her was her skin and hair. An utter lack of pigmentation marked her as an albino, rare in itself, that she was an elf made it more striking. Make up was tastefully applied to give her a semblance of natural coloring. She takes a seat.
"Good evening, I thank you for coming. I am Ms. Johnson and I have a request to make of you. This is an extraction. The individual I want is a patient at a local hospital, under guard. I would like him removed and returned, alive and as healthy as possible, to our own medical personnel. For your consideration, I offer 8000¥, 3000 of it up front as well as a suitable vehicle to transport the patient."
-
Redline breathed an internal sigh of relief upon seeing the Ms. Johnson; not Japanese, might be corporate but unlikely Renraku. She actively listened to the Johnson, nodding her acknowledgment at details but otherwise remaining silent.
She wouldn't want to be the first to ask questions, but had two for Ms. Johnson that she'd pose succinctly, asking no follow-ups:
1. "Does the individual require aid while in our 'care?'"
2. "What type of vehicle are you making available?
Redline would listen to any questions made by the other runners, crossing her arms and watching the speaker from the corner of her eye. Any talking done by the other oni would receive a physical response from her though, a nervous shift of her weight or flick of the eye.
-
Jujin stretched his shoulders while the pale elf with the pretty eyes spoke. So far he was impressed by the politeness of those around him. He knew there were other Oni outside of Japan, but was it just coincidence one was here? He stared at her for a moment.
Maybe he was being paranoid.
The money was more than he expected, and he was unconcerned with the other minor details; plans changed with the situation after all.
He asks no questions and listens to the conversation.
-
Raiden listened attentively and though he held the floor he allowed for a pregnant pause before responding.
If your furnishing us with transport that must mean you have a plan of some kind? I'd like to hear it before concluding if your offer will cover the risk.
He sipped his drink And we are off and running
Two Oni, the dwarf was probably a Mage and that made the other one a decker, or was the oni a decker? Beside the point. It was a solid team, odds were good they'd all be getting a little richer. He just had to deal with the 'little' part of that.
-
'Particularly, is this a friendly or hostile extraction? Is the target stable, or will we need to provide medical care in route? And if the target does need medical care, is there one of us who has the skills necessary to provide it?'
Ravener nods to John, 'Just to ensure that we cover those issues.' Leaning back, he lets the music die off in his ears and keeps a close eye on Ms. Johnson to look out for any sign of misinformation.
-
Cherie flies as silently and sneakily as possible to hover just above the table in front of Ms J. As she floats there, she drops the invisibility and concealment and says in her silky Cajun drawl, "silly boys, of course this is a hostile extraction, someone is going to want to stop it. The real question is what level of opposition is expected? Stable, unstable it matters not, we'll be able to carry equipment in the vehicle to continue to stabilize him if need be, and surely as capable of Johnson as this lovely lady will have been sure to recruit one of you as some one who is, how you say saws bones?" Addressing Ms J more directly "But, given the nature of the skills that such a run as this requires, you have clearly assembled an extremely capable team. However, those highly specialized and exactly right for the job skills are not to be bought for a pittance. 8K is a trifle too low for these fine people. My self, I'd settle for an evening of dinner and drinks with your fine personage, oui! But I think that my associates here might say non! And want for something, shall we say, more tangible. Like, maybe, being allowed to keep said vehicle after the run. Or some equivelant in kind renumeration." Shimmying her wings she finishes with, "what say you, we could have a very fine evening together."
-
"The vehicle will be a medical vehicle, an ambulance, if you will. And I did indeed invite somebody with a level of medical expertise," Ms. Johnson's gaze turns to the dwarf in the room.
"As for obstacles, I suppose that will depend on how you plan your mission. It could be anything from a few bored guards in a hospital to breaking him out of a prison, if you wait that long. I suggest you don't."
As Cherie appears in front of her, she chuckles, dryly. "I had been told that a pixie might be among those in attendance. When I did not see you, I was disappointed. I appreciate your presence, though I ask next time you reveal yourself sooner, a... 'professional courtesy'... to both your employer and potential companions."
She pauses at that point, and an opportunity for others to aid in negotiating the terms opens up.
-
Finally showing a semblance of respect, Whiskey dips her head briefly to Ms. Johnson.
"What sort of condition does he have? If you're sending a wagon along, I'm guessing it's a bit more than a few sniffles. Need to make sure I can at least keep the man breathing. Make sure the wagon's stocked, and s'long as the others here can do their job, I'll keep him patched."
Whiskey gives a long look around the group, her expression not changing as she watches them keep their "face" on.
-
Redline startled slightly as the tiny form of a pixie appeared in the center of the room. She relaxed following Ms. Johnson's reaction to it; Redline had heard of tiny, mystical fairies straight out of western fairy tales, but never in the meat.
Redline's expertise was not convincing others through words. Her questions answered in a satisfying manner by the Johnson, she crossed her arms and watched as the others carried on more specific discussions about the terms of the job.
-
Raiden made no indication of his surprise as the pixie appeared above the table, nor did he express his annoyance at the insulting of the party. Clearly the little creature didn't know how to present a unified front, which was essentially the point of these meetings. Well, half the point.
That sounds doable, though we'll have a few other expenses, some additional purchases that will run above the upfront. IDs and hospital uniforms will run us at least forty five hundred. Up the pay to cover that and we'll get right on it.
(Ten hits on negotiations)
With a decker he could do it solo but the others could probably be made useful, as long as they stayed professional. The Pixe might be a liability. Only one way to find out.
-
Jujon was surprised at the appearance of the pixie. Was this some kind of negotiation tactic? Suddenly he was not so sure about the situation. But, as long as the other runners did their job, he would do his.
Does not take part in any negotiations
-
"My most humble apologies milady. It was my understandeeng, that Johnson's such as yourself preferred to know that the team that they hired had the requisite skills to perform the job that they were hired for. Since presumably, there is no one here that you wished for us to hurt, and no one that you wished us to heal, unless perhaps there was someon you wished us to hurt and then we could heal them. And clearly hacking the host of this most excellent establishment while we are having a meeting within its confines would be a risk that someone as wise was you would wish to avoid in case you wanted to perform business here again in the future, I thought that a demonstration of our abilities to sneak into a building would be zee best way to show that we had zee skills you desired. If I am wrong, I most humbly apologize. But, allow me to make one more demonstration of why we will be able to perform zee job you request of us." And with that she turns and obviously casts a spell; the music and all hubbub from outside the room quiets to a bear silence that is strange given the noise that had ebbed into the room just a second before.
"A little added privacy for our conversation. I doubt that even zee cyber man on the other side of zee door can hear us now. My apologies if he suddenly burst in because he is worried that he can no longer hear you."
-
Ravener sighs quietly behind his mask as he watches the 'show'. 'Hmmm, better makes sure to keep an eye on her if she is going to pop in like that,' he thinks as he sifts the matrix for her commlink to keep an eye on. Mentally reviewing his ARO list, he chooses an old flatvid fairy icon on her comm.
After hearing the comment about a possibly pissed off bodyguard coming in, he calmly pulls his hands out of his pockets and leaves them loosely in sight. No reason to get shot.
'Lets see...we will need uniforms, a list of doctors at the hospital, some basic building plans, and maybe some way to cause a good distraction when we need to move out. Might as well look up what paperwork you need to move a patient for testing or between hospitals as well. Now I just need the name of the hospital...if we ever get to that point.' He starts putting his list into an ARO to share with his fellow runners, for when the planning stage begins.
-
The Johnson listens to Cherie and then shrugs, a slight movement almost imperceptible. "I rely on the Fixer's judgement of your skills, I do not need to see them for myself. Reputations suffice, either of the assets or those who suggested them."
Listening to Raiden, she finally nods. "Your terms are acceptable. 4,500¥ up front, an additional five upon delivery of the extraction target."
She watches the group and as each nods their acceptance of the terms, she continues.
"The target is a shadow runner who goes by the moniker 'Kingston'. During a run four nights ago, events spiraled out of control. While most of his team managed an egress, Kingston was held up by the Knight Errant High Threat Response. Written off as dead, it turns out that he survived the encounter, albeit in critical condition. Knight Errant took him to Health Point, between Renton and Tacoma, where they stabilized him. It is only a matter of time before they move him.
"I won't pretend some level noble intent in his retrieval. It is simply good business to attempt an extraction. An investment. I believe, then, that you have all of the information you need from me. From this point, it is up to you to earn your compensation."
With that, she rises and makes for the door.
-
Jujin looked around. Was that it? Money up front meant money up front.
Clearing his throat, and bowing slightly, he says, "excuse me, but you said up front. I mean no disrespect, but did I miss something?"
-
And we need to know where this person is, and where the vehicle is.
-
"I fear your spell has interfered with your own hearing," Ms. Johnson says, stopping at the door and turning to the pixie. "I do believe I mentioned Health Point, in Renton? As for the up front payment..."
She opens the door and leans out, sharing a few words with the door guard. He nods and hands her a large envelope. She takes it and returns to the table, setting it there. "I am sure you will find everything in order. Please be aware that, while I have not given you a concrete time frame, the clock IS ticking."
With that she turns and leaves and you note that the door guard leaves with her, before the door shuts, leaving the team alone and in the room.
-
"Yeah, she's right holding up spells does make it harder to do other things, but once, when I was traversing the Veil of Tibet, I held up seven different spells at the same time. I'll leave this one up for now so that no one outside can hear in."
"What I wanna know is how did she fit a vehicle into that tiny little envelope? That's some powerful mojo."
"Anyone wanna get a drink while we plan this out? Anyone know anything about this place or our target? "
-
I lean back against the wall as I speak up, "Well, I have heard about this guy recently on NeedleNet. Run against NeoNet went bad. Some newb decided to try and fight the HTR and Kingston got him out, but got caught himself. I can try and get ahold of Blackout and see if he has at least a recent pic of the guy to ensure ID. Hate to grab the wrong guy."
"I'll look into the hospital setup." I look over to the Dwarf, "You're the doc, you familiar with hospital rules and such? Any chance we can arrange this as a transfer, or extra testing? I can try and push stuff through their system, but it would help if I knew how that normally works so it isn't too suspicious." I nod to 'John', "I assume you can take lead on talking our way through any 'misunderstandings. I can definitely cover the Matrix, and have some infiltration experience. "
-
Jujin goes over and looks in the envelope for his advance.
-
Looking in the envelope, Jujin sees a credstick for each member of the team. Slotting one, it reads out 4500¥. Also in the envelope is a key with a plastic mage on the keychain. It has an address:
7115 132nd Place SE Newcastle
#42
-
Raiden takes the key and looks at the key-chain as if divining some impossible secret from it, then takes the crestic and pockets it without checking it's contents. No need for anyone to think he's hard up for cash.
He leans on the table to face the rest of the team around the edges of the room, directing his first comment to Redline.
We bug-free in here or should we find somewhere else to talk business?
A plan has formed and the sooner the team hears it the sooner they can be a little richer.
-
I walk over and pick up my credstick. "Any other questions I should have for Blackout before I comm him?" I ask while surveying the group.
-
Jujin will take his credstick out of the envelope and pockets it.
"I have no questions, if this meeting is over?" He lays a small card down with his contact information on it on the table. He nods to each person as he walks to the door. "I will be ready when you decide to go."
If there is nothing else, he will leave and go back to his apartment and wait for the green light.
-
Cherie floats over and pockets her cred stick, takes out her meta link and starts fidgeting with it. Holding it out from her body and scowling, she clearly has a disdain for the thing. She seems to have trouble even figuring out how to turn it on (the others might be wonder to themselves why on earth she would turn it off in the first place) and place a call. After a couple of mumbled curses and a tense moment where she looks like she's about to throw it at the wall in frustration, she settles down and the others can see her lips moving. If anyone is really interested, and have the means to pick up a subvocalization, she can be heard to be saying, "hoi, Manny, how are things........ Yeah thanks for hooking me up with her, she' really quite beautiful...... Any how, look, I need a little help, I was wondering if you happened to have a pretty common piece of equipment, those Mage goggle you mentioned you had a while back? Yeah? Thanks, I'll talk to you soon." She then turns it back off.
By now she has floated back over into the corner. And appears to be muttering and thinking to herself in pretty intense concentration as if she' trying to remember an important detail that is just out of grasp. Those with keen hearing can hear her mutter to herself, "I know I heard something about that guy on the run just yesterday, was it Johnny who was talking about it? Was it Corrine? Hmmm, and that Health Point place, I'm pretty sure I've heard about that before, but where? What? "
-
Ravener spins up his comm and contacts Blackout. "Heya. Yeah, my team just got contracted to extract Kingston for a hospital. Ms. Johnson said the extraction is 'good business'. Pretty distinctive lady, pale with long ears. I assume she was the one who hired your team. Also said Kingston is in critical condition. We are working out details, but for some info to help make sure things go smooth. Just his ID info, any medical problems, and maybe anything else you think we really need to know..."
-
Redline shook her head faintly at Raiden's question, tapping away at an AR window and comparing results of several interfaces. If she was able to detect anything, she'd cough at Raiden and jerk her head towards the exit. Otherwise, she'd offer the following.
"Nothing I can see. I would expect Ms. Johnson conducted her own review before holding the meet. Judging by the fact we're being contracted to rescue the target, not eliminate him, I doubt she'd have anything to gain by eliminating us in turn."
Redline's cybered-red gaze shifted over to the other oni as he retrieved a key from the envelope, provoking some interest in her despite her hesitation of him. "I believe those are our wheels. I don't think rigging interfaces come standard in ambulances, though."
Lastly, she'd try to catch Ravener's attention, adding an inquiry for him to relay to his contact. "Any regular deliveries made to the hospital, medical waste collection? We need an in for whoever isn't walking in wearing scrubs."
-
@ Ravener
Good of Ms. Johnson to follow up like this, spose. I ain't got no... dossers or shit on people I work with, but I got a picture and here's some shit.
A file is attached (https://shaking-the-shadows.obsidianportal.com/characters/kingston) to the message.
@ Redline
Redline finds nothing to indicate the room is bugged.
-
"Thanks. Pic helps. Just making sure he doesn't have any weird allergies. Later." Ravener shuts down the call and creates an ARO with Kingston's pic for each of his fellow runners. As the images glide across the room to settle in front of each person he comments, "That's Kingston. His fellow runner didn't know of any special medical conditions or allergies." He nods to the Whiskey.
"So, how are we going about this? Fake a transfer to a different hospital? Fake out transferring him to a different ward, then sneak him out? I would rather not shoot up a hospital, obviously." He looks to each of his fellow runners looking for input.
-
Cherie looks up from trying to remember details of what she's heard and says, "Or we could make it look like he's dead and intercept him in the morgue. Not actually kill him, just make look that way. They won't be looking for a dead body. Or I could have a spirit possess him, and run and jump out the window; one of you big guys catch him, and throw him in the back of the ambulance, and we hightail it outta there. It's quick, easy peasy." She pauses, "though I think that that plan might have some problems with execution."
-
I agree, that's pretty risky. The 'fake his death' plan is workable, getting into his room shouldn't be too hard with a few good fakes and uniforms. However we should keep in mind that he's there awaiting 'trail' so there's probably extra security on him. We'd either need to be someone who they'd let pass or have a way to make entering the room more important then keeping him secure. Say if he were to suffer some kind of seizure or emergency. Then the nearest doctor rushes past KE, spouts useful medical jargon and rushes him out of the room. Then all we have to do is intercept the security detail, put him in the ambulance and drink to succes. Thoughts?
-
Redline's brow lowered at the pixie's mention of possession - no love lost between the oni and the habits of Awakened - but nodded faintly at the mention of faking the target's death to extract him. When an open question for thoughts was posed, she responded in a soft tone. Despite her thick Japanese accent, her sentences were concise, as if she'd laid them out in her head before raising her voice.
"If we can get a list of staff from the hospital, shift hours, and the room of our target, the fake emergency has potential. Come up with a reason for why he'd need to be moved to another facility, bring him to a kill zone near the ambulance where we can clear out the security, then load him up and bail with the cargo."
The oni shifted her gaze to Raiden and Whiskey. "The charismatic one and resident doctor would be the critical actors. Can you handle this?"
The question was equal parts sincere request for assessment and an effort to instill some self-doubt. Redline had been trained to never go into combat with a half empty mag; once you committed to a plan, you needed to know all the unknowns and ensure every element was solid to handle them.
-
"Let me worry about my part, I need to know I'm going to have enough covering fire if something goes wrong. I can give you a few marks on my comm so you know where we are inside the hospital."
Also, be sure to keep that professional attitude, its that kind of thing that saves lives when the drek hits the fan.
-
"I might know someone who could help with making up something that will make it look like he's dead or dying."
Cherie glances at the Oni, "but I generally think that minimizing the body count is the professional way to go. It makes it less likely to attract the attention of the corps, or friends and family of the security guards who might be caught in the 'kill zone'. I can definitely help with covering fire, but marks aren't going to help me at all."
"Should I call my friend about whipping up something to make our target look dead?"
-
Whiskey comes off the wall with a bit of a grunt after seeing the AROs. She pockets the credstick without a though, giving her thoughts on the subject at hand.
"Well, my face is nominally known at a few of the hospitals. Mostly Downtown though. I got my med-gear still, so looking the part ain't a thing. What might be a bigger issue is if they want to check my tag close. Could go either way. They'll either wanna know what my interest is, or they'll just give me a nod through. So, depending on how ya want to do this, it's easy enough to tell 'em I was just here checking on a rumor of a previous fix. If we can make it look like he's dying of something contagious, some foaming of the mouth or whatnot, security grunt isn't going to want to get to close. I'll have already been "exposed", so taking him to the morgue can fall to me. Just give us some distraction that will keep the goons from looking at us to close"
-
Raiden rises slightly from his casually confident lean, excitement starting to appear.
Contagios, that's good. Might backfire if it looks bad enough that they lock the place down, so we'll want to keep it fairly minor. As to getting in, are they going to stop us if we already have a body? just tell them we applied the cortical electrodes but where unable to get a response from either patient, they'll let us right in.
-
Oui, foaming mouth is good. Bleeding eye balls, though, everyone is afraid of bleeding eyeballs.
So how do we get in? Who goes in? And who waits in the car? I can sneak in, but I don't know if you actually want me in there or out in the car as back up. Can the how you say, deckerz help you sneak in, maybe change some I don't know files or some such things?
-
Ravener nods to the Cherie and speaks up, "I can do digital recon and see about adding access if we need it. Get a list of Docs, Interns, Nurses and such. I should be able to get at least basic floorplans and try to get his room location. Depending on how tight their security is I can try adding an intern doctor to their list. I don't have the gear to make you a badge, but if you can act it and back it up with an ID that is in their system it might not be too much of an issue. I can go in, or run overwatch from outside. My infiltration skills are ok, and I can do a bit of disguise. We should definitely look at uniforms first though."
He looks to Whiskey and remarks, "I can try and hack the medical equipment to have it display a heart attack or some such drek, although I would need you to tell me what that looks like on the screen. Might be easier to do that if I go in though. We might also want to consider any Knight Errant security on him specifically, and what they will do when he 'dies' or gets taken off as contagious."
-
Redline blinked with muted irritation at the pixie's mention of a body count before her form relaxed. She offered a simple nod, reiterating, "Naturally. Preference is to incapacitate instead of kill. Maybe you prefer 'point of ambush to cause temporary incapacitation to 'killzone.'"
The oni listened to each of the other runners' commentary and proposals in turn, listening with attentive but quiet vigor. After a few minutes she'd push an ARO to the center of the room. As she spoke, a series of bullet points blipped into view.
"Here's what we have - stop me if I'm wrong," a giant number 1 appeared.
"First, we prep. Ravener looks into the facility's layout, staff, ins and outs. Cherie sees her contact about a substance which causes death-like symptoms. Whiskey thinks through a plausible medical condition reflected by the substance's symptoms and familiarizes herself with all the data our decker gets."
She glanced at the keys provided by Ms. Johnson, apparently for their red and white ride. "I'll ensure our vehicle is at 100% to extract the cargo, in a hurry most likely." She gave the other oni a sidelong glance, not trusting, not overtly hostile.
"Kai-san will do anything necessary to prepare for the possibility of the run going loud." She gave him a slight nod, her silence differing anything further to him.
A number two appeared before the oni, shortened lists of activities trailing below it.
"Once we're set to go, we'll check in one last time. Confirm that the plan is still good, adjust it if it isn't, and report any new info. That's when we commit a time to the op."
A three followed. "Then we do it. Raiden and Whiskey enter the facility, get to our target and administer the substance Cherie will get us. Convince any security detail the target needs to be moved, and get him out."
"Ravener will manipulate systems as necessary remotely. Kai-san and myself will cover the extraction spot and be ready to assist the face team if things go bad."
The oni nodded at the pixie. "Cherie can be a mobile element; if the team inside needs help or something stumbles into the overwatch team, she's there."
A final, bold four floated into view. "The face team brings our cargo to the extraction point, overwatch takes out any troublesome security quietly - and preferably not mortally - face team loads the cargo into our ride and I drive you out remotely."
The four shifted to a smaller font to make space for each of the other phases of the run to show next to it, summarizing the entire run with a few bullet points.
"Suggestions, criticisms?" She took a shallow breath, cybereyes flickering around the room.
-
Neither responded Raiden approvingly. Having Cherie in a mobile support role is especially useful, just make sure your backing our plays and not making your own, don't want to get caught flat footed while I'm trying to play it cool. Otherwise let's close our tabs and hit the road
Raiden quickly did so, slotting the cred into his link and paying for his drink remotely before standing and straightening his suit in a 'ready to go' kind of way.
-
"Wiz. Before I make my run on the Host I need ID pictures and fake names for the two of you. I will see if I can get the system to generate 'replacement' IDs too. I assume you can handle scrubs or uniforms." Ravener says, nodding to Raiden and Whiskey.
"Here is a basic map and list of resident docs I pulled off the public host. Interns are stored on the private host, so I will add you to that when I run it. Looks like they have a lot of them, so it shouldn't be too hard to sell being new interns. Knight Errant runs their security." He flicks a number of AROs with floorplans and lists of resident doctors to each person.
Stepping towards the door he asks, "Anyone need a ride to the ambulance? I have my truck nearby. I figure to make my initial run somewhere on the way, just in case their security is better than it looks." While waiting for a reply, Ravener's jacket and mask light up with a number of retro music vids that flash to the sound of unified beat.
-
Redline gave a slight tilt of her head at Raiden's comment, opting to not respond verbally. She checked with Ravener to copy the facility's floor plan, mind already considering entrances to cover, windows to line up, distances and varying light gradients. The first thing she'd do once she got back home would be to pour over images and ARO models of the facility and its surrounding buildings, familiarizing herself with the area until she could confidently select several different overwatch spots.
That would come later though. Redline perked up at Ravener's mention of the ambulance. "I'll come with. I'll give the ambulance a top-to-bottom and make sure it's rigger-compatible."
When Ravener was ready to leave and the other runners had said their respective pieces, Redline would grab her tool kit from her Gopher's cab before riding along with him to the ambulance.
-
Cherie pulls out her meta link, starting to turn it back on,and as she is taking a lot longer to get it up and running than most of the group, she mentions, "I'm guessing that all those gestures you were making have something to do with putting up, what're they called? "spears?" Of course I don't really know what all you were showing, and unless someone can show me how to make those"spears" show up on this tiny little screen, I won't be able to review any of the plans. These things literally make me want to vomit."
When it's obvious that her call has gone through, she plugs in the ear plug and subvocal mic and says "Hank you adorable sweetheart, I need a favor. I need something that I can give to a patient to make it look a if they have died and pass at least a cursory inspection, but won't do any lasting harm. Maybe something that will make me bleed from their eyeballs. Also, what can you tell me about the doctors at this hospital, particularly, do you know someone who is" looking over at the face and medic, "about so and so tall, and such and such complexion? And what about a dwarve who is about so and so tall, and such and such complexion?"
-
@ Cherie
Hank replies to the request, Uh... drugs that do what? I don't have anything like that. Mostly just painkillers and antibiotics. Stuff to heal folks up, not do weird stuff with them.
-
Whiskey gives a brief shrug, pulling up a few less gruesome looking conditions and the wanted heart attack pics, shooting them over to Ravener and then out for the rest to pick up. "Any of these will do fine. A few oozing spots, looking a bit blue ... generally keeps people at bay. If it comes to it, I can disappear him quick enough to get us out of the line of sight."
She gives a nod towards Raiden. "A body on a stretcher would give us good enough reason to be parked close. Easy enough to find one and slap some dead electrodes on 'em and it'll pass."
She clears her throat a moment, then continues. "Medoc will work for a name. Here's a pic of me in my scrubs." She shoots an ID ready photo to Ravener. "It's not the first time I've used it, it's a fairly generic name."
She gives a look around. "Anything else? No. Let me know when we're ready to roll." With another nod she saunters towards the door, hands shoved into her pockets to hide the very slightest of trembles that was starting
-
After he left the club, Jujin immediately transfers 3k toward his monthly payment. He then takes a cab home.
-
"Cherie, if you need a ride you can come with me. I should be able to help you set up your comlink too if you want." Ravener comments as he heads out to his truck. After verifying that everyone who wanted to ride with him is there, he heads towards the ambulance location. About three miles away from it, he pulls off the road near the closest Stuffer Shack.
After the truck is parked he nods his head along to the music before telling the others in the truck, "Going in to get the IDs settled out and the data we need. If my ears start smoking or I pass out, set the GridGuide to auto. I already put in the meet location." Setting his head back against the headrest he seems to zone out.
-
I ride along to keep meat watch. "So which button is that? Oh that one? Ok." She then looks around at the strip of barely alive grass between the stores, casting a spell on it repeatedly and stopping to scrub her signature. When the decker is done with his thing, there will be a little bit of Seattle that isn't quite as polluted as before.
-
Redline took stock of the gear she'd managed to transfer from her Gopher to Ravener's truck. The ride was forgetful, though she occasionally caught herself peering at the sprite fluttering alongside her. As they came to a stop, she nodded her head at Ravener's comment and offered a simple, "Hai. Cherie, I'm going to check the ambulance. Contact me if drek impacts HVAC."
Redline collected the key from Ravener if he was willing, then palmed her holdout, cocking back the slide before returning it to its holster. Hopefully she'd managed to bring along her Remington Suppressor. If not, the holdout would have to do. She would keep a brisk pace to get to the ambulance, ensuring that any of her firearms were tucked under her coat and hidden and carrying the bulky tool kit she'd transferred from her Gopher.
Upon arriving at the ambulance, she'd do a quick visual check of the surroundings to look for anyone idling in the area or anything else out of place. If it seemed chill, she'd open the ambulance and do a quick check of the ambulance focusing on:
1. What shape the engine was in.
2. Whether the vehicle could interface with a rigging console.
3. What the ambulance held: medical supplies, any signs of previous use, etc.
Once she'd taken the time to give the ambulance a good inspection, she'd make any necessary repairs before pinging Cherie to check in on her and Ravener's status. "Redline here. Things are good with the wheels, everything Ms. Johnson promised. How's your end?"
-
Confident that all is in proper working order with the Ambulance, Redline and Cherie wait for Ravener to come out of his 'virtual haze'.
The rest of the team await the next phase.
-
Raiden is in the ambulance getting a picture in his new scrubs for use as an ID.
@Whiskey
So, medical professional, shamanic talismans and an edgy 'see all, ready for anything' approach. I'm going to guess ex-UCAS army.
On his link Raiden starts going over the hospital plans and planning routes of motion. The best plans might go awry but that never discouraged him from making the plan in the first place.
-
Ravener leans back into his seat as his consciousness leaves his meat body behind. 'You got that pic for me to set up your ID,' he messages Raiden. He seems to wake after a few minutes, only to mutter to himself and drift off again. After about ten minutes he jumps slightly and leans forward. "Well, the IDs are done at least," he says as he hits the GridGuide button and the truck starts off to meet the others.
Arriving at the ambulance, Ravener pulls up nearby and turns to Cherie and asks, "You want some help setting up your comlink? I can set it up so you can see the AROs I sent, as well as provide some overwatch for you. Should keep someone from sliding in and stealing your info, or bricking it." Seeing some confusion, he explains "Bricking means breaking it. I can fix it if it happens, but it will take me an hour or two at least."
Once everyone has arrived he speaks up, "I got the new IDs in, no problem. But the patient data was better protected than expected. I had to jack out and let the IC cool down and the Spider get bored. Before we head out I will jump in and try and get Kingston's med file and room number." He then sends AROs with their 'new hire' into to Raiden and Whiskey.
-
"Mon ami, that would be most appreciated. But you'll have to do it so that I can look at the little screen thingy, having it in my eyes makes me sick to my stomach. And I don't like trying to sneak around with it on, it can give away my location."
"We go now?"
-
"Sure." Ravener manipulate's Cherie's comlink to set up an icon for incoming AROs from comlinks on her 'friends list'. He then shows her how to add or remove people from the 'friends list' so she can have the team on it. "I am sending an invite to my deck so I can run overwatch on it and add it to my PAN. Let's see if everything else is ready."
-
After ensuring that the ambulance was up to scratch and touching base with Ravener and Cherie, Redline would get back to her Gopher and then home. She'd set about doing a final check of all her gear; replacing withered firing pins, loading magazines with various ammunition, and tirelessly looking at maps, images and vids of the operation area.
Assuming it was late at night or early in the morning when she'd return, she didn't expect to get a response when she sent a message over the team's channel. "Think best time is at night; lower traffic, maybe fewer eyes watching our face team. Thoughts? 22:00 tomorrow?"
She felt no differently about this run than any other. She'd do her job, make no friends, get paid, and get home. Whether she was extracting some failed runner or an Ares exec, smuggling weapons into the Tir or delivering candy to an orphans' shelter, that was all that mattered.
Once the group agreed upon a time, Redline would try and get a good night's (day's?) sleep before the op. A few hours prior, she'd bring the ambulance to as nondescript a location as she could within 2-3 blocks of the hospital.
She'd then spend the remaining time before the run finding a perch to get a good overwatch spot on one of the hospital's main entrances the ambulance could be parked in front of for a quick extraction. Her priority would be finding a quiet spot nobody would need to access during the time of the run: an empty office roof, the run-down fire escape of an abandoned apartment building maybe. If any conflict arose while she sought a spot, she'd default to trying to remain hidden, but would avoid calling the team if trouble arose. This was something she had to handle herself.
-
Cherie curls up on the gurney in the back of the ambulance to sleep, and wait for the run to go down. It feels like a king sized bed to her petite frame, but she doesn't want to get left behind. She'll peruse the maps on the flat screen of her commlink, and do her best to memorize the lay out. If there is a significant amount of down time, she'll start tossing and cleaning, tossing and cleaning.
"That sounds like an excellent time to begin."
-
Raiden passes over his comm picture and info for the ce or, making a few notes on what will look best and most convincing (3 hits on assist to forgery test) as well as someone to call if he gets nabbed. Better safe then sorry. With that done he lays back against the ambulance and closes his eyes. Better then his last room at least.
-
Raiden gets everyone together via confrence call and lays out the plan:
Step one: Whickey and I, posing as roughed up EMTs, role Kai in as a corpse. The story is that we grabbed him out of a gun battle because their is a bounty on Oni corpses. Desk gives us real badges with our fake ID's, since we will have lost our own in the scramble for our prize. We may also want to have a few injuries to sell that we've had a rough night.
Stpe two: we take Kai down to the morgue and head to the objective. Once we see it Kai and Cherie start making noise downstairs and the room guards go help put him down, if not on their own then with decked orders and an impassioned appeal from me.
Step three: We get our guy, make him look contagious and roll him out into the ambulance. Cherie throws invisibility on herself and Kai and they join us outside for extraction.
Step four: drop off the cargo and get paid.
If more troops show up or Kai and Cherie can't make it out then Redline employs a well-armed plan B. Any questions?
-
Yes, I have a question, we go now?
-
Redline listened intently as Raiden reviewed the plan they'd discussed roughly the night before, her head tilting in a faint nod at each point. As the Amerindian drew the plan to a conclusion, Redline voiced a simple assent: "Hai, I think it's the best plan. I'll get settled in before things begin to cover the entrance near where the ambulance will be parked. If things stay quiet, you bring our guy to the ambulance, load him up, and we're done. If not, I can cover your escape or move to you."
The oni's tone remained even over the team's comms; they had a solid approach to this. If she could find a decent overlook to keep a watch on the outside as her team did their thing within the hospital, hopefully she'd identify and intercept any problem that developed.
She'd remain at home to clean her weapons and gather her kit before the team set out. She'd leave towards the site about an hour and a half before the scheduled start, moving the ambulance into place across the street from the hospital, as near to a gate or other available exit as possible.
Next, she'd do a quick scan of the surrounding blocks to look for somewhere high and dark; a perch that would over her a good view of the area without overly exposing herself. She'd then assess any difficulty she might have in making her way there before gathering her gear: her Springfield M1A, Remington Suppressor and the equipment she'd need to scale any obstacles in the way of her chosen spot.
-
Wearing his armor, Jujin places his sword and helmet in a duffle bag, and goes to meet up with the team.
-
Ravener leaves Cherie to explore the ambulance and sets up his comm for a group call out to his fellow runners. 'So, plan sounds good. I will hop in and get Kingston's room number and medical file. When I have it I will send it out to everyone. We waiting til tomorrow night? We meeting up around 8 or 9 then? There is an old hardware store south of the clinic we could meet up at. I figure I will set up near Redline's perch to provide matrix support and cover fire when things go down.' After getting a meeting time and place figured out I will let Cherie know that I am going to go crash at home for a few hours.
Around 1 am, he heads out to a nearby Golden Archers for a late night meal. After a warm soyburger and shake, he sits his head back and lets the Matrix overlay his mind. After a ten minute 'nap' he sits up with a smile. "Not as tough this late at night," he muses before starting up his truck and heading home. While GridGuide gets him home he copies out Kingston's medical file and sends it off to the team. Once home, he pulls out the file and starts reviewing it.
-
The medical file is about what one would expect for a multiple gunshot victim in a coma. He managed to scrape through without head trauma, so it's mostly damage to the torso and limbs. The prognosis appears favorable, Kingston should ultimately pull through. Which is good and bad. He'll be alive, but only as long as Knight Errant needs him to be, probably. At best, he'll be hauled off to a Supermax for sure.
-
Redline listened to Ravener's call to the team. "Hai, I think tomorrow at 21:00 sounds solid. Shortly before we're green, I'll move the ambulance into position, near the..." she paused for a moment, hands manipulating the map of the neighborhood, "southeast of the facility, same side of the road. Looks like there's a small parking lot. Any idea if that's public access?"
She reviewed the area further. The circular, open park to the compound's south didn't offer many firing positions, but if anyone moved through it she'd see them coming long enough in advance.
"I'll either set up on the building across the street to the southwest, or the smaller one directly east of the hospital. Hopefully nobody's checking roofs as standard procedure."
Redline will make a 10-15 minute cruise through around the blocks surrounding the hospital the night before their job. She'll look to assess the general feel of this part of Bellevue; how oppressive are Knight Errant patrols at the time of the planned run? Is there heavy foot traffic, lots of patients moving in and out of the hospital?
Lastly, she'd give her favorite street doc, Dr. Gravesong a buzz and ask him if he had any special insight into the place.
Following that, she'd head home and work on readying her gear for tomorrow's run.
-
Jujin makes sure he has all his gear checked. "That time is fine." When it's time, he'll the a cab a couple of blocks away from the meet point, and walk the rest of the way to hook up with the team.
-
21:00 sound fine. In the mean time everyone keep a low profile, espicially those of us going in. I shouldn't have to say this, but nobody talks about this to anyone. Don't tell your friends you have some work, don't insinuate your about to have money, don't imply that your up to a single god damn thing. Now I'm headed for a drink and then home, anyone need a place to crash?
Most of this team seemed to know not to talk, but if nobody said it then it went unsaid, and one could never be too prepared for the stupidity of amateurs.
He switched his commlink over from the group, so all their chatter would appear as text in a saidebar and called a friend from the old days, Dana Oaks
Dana, how are you? Have a minute for an old boyfriend?
-
@ Redline
The return message from Dr. Graveling is short and to the point. Health Point is a learning Hospital and not one that he's had a lot to do with.
As far as the activity in the region, it isn't particularly notable. It's a low-middle class neighborhood with plenty of low rent chains in the shopping center south of the Hospital. Roof access there would be easy but won't get you very high. There is a school to the East across the main parking lot as well as a performing arts center. The Center is about the same height as the Hospital, the two share the trait of being the tallest buildings at approximately 3 stories.
West of the Hospital are some buildings of no import, more shops, maybe a few homes and north are a few fields and apartment buildings.
If there is a heightened KE presence on the hospital grounds, it has something to do with its use as an official hospital for recovering suspects apprehended by KE and there are a handful of KE patrol cars in the parking lot at any given time.
@ Raiden
"Well, well, well," the Assistant DA's face appears. "To what do I owe the honor of this call?"
-
Raiden grins and takes up her playful tone I just thought I'd grace your drab existence with a little conversation. Do you have any plans for the evening? Maybe the kind that include drinks some place nice with yours truly?
He sent a map point ahead to the rigger, silently requesting he be dropped half way between Dana's office and house, which fortunately weren't too far from each other. Plus it's a nice enough area that having this team think he lives there should lend him credibility going forward.
-
@ Raiden
"Unfortunately, I am rather busy. If there is something you need, let me know."
-
Ravener feels the car pull into the garage and power down. Getting out he plugs in the car and pulls out his gear bag. After turning on the sound system, he puts the bag on the living room table and grabs a beer. After reviewing the Kingston file, he turns to the resident list to find someone of similar size and build. "Worst case I might need to back up the infiltration team. Hmm, that looks about as close as can be." he muses before making an ARO with the doctor's information for later use. Laying out his gear he sorts through what he might need and makes some final checks on it. By 3am he knows he is as ready as he is going to get. He fires up his DJPro VR software and spends the next 9 hours trying to capture the feel of anticipation thrumming through his veins. By noon he is hungry and finally ready to sleep. Laying down he sets his alarm for 4pm and lets his regulator slip into sleep mode.
The wind slips through his feathers as he soars towards the horizon. Faint lights dance in the sky above him before blooming into brief petals of raining fire and death. In the shadows below he hears the tip of gunfire and echoing cries of a child. Before him the horizon glows with the promise of dawn. Ravener wakes gasping. A glance at the clock shows it is only 3:15, but sleep is the last thing he wants now. "Great," he sighs looking at the large raven drawn on his bedroom ceiling.
After breakfast he meditates for an hour to try and grasp his connection to Raven and gain his balance. Having achieved at least some of the later, he cleans up and starts final prep for the run. He checks the newsfeeds for any activity near the target, before loading up the gear he needs for the run and checking his mail for anything relevant or interesting. Getting to the area early, Ravener stops by at the Naan-N-Curry for some Soy Biryani and a quick look around for any extraordinary KE presence. Noting nothing particularly concerning he drives to the meet.
-
[Sunday, 207505122100L]
It's a cool spring night in Renton. Few clouds in the sky, but the light pollution blots out any but the brightest stars. The crescent moon favors you as you all gather at Soybucks in the Renton shopping center (https://www.google.com/maps/@47.4782857,-122.2131821,16z/data=!4m2!6m1!1szRPLphfhHz8M.kpITN-EsAaCo), a couple of blocks south from Health Point. Redline reports that she's placed the Ambulance where it's needed, in the southeast portion of the parking lot. Both of the oni sit quietly, distance between them subtle, but their tension notable. The pixie mindlessly slurps a soykachino, savoring the sugary drink. Whiskey sits quietly, with the demeanor of someone expecting orders and ready to follow them.
It's time to go over the plan one last time and then pray to the Shadows that everything goes right.
-
Raiden is early, on his third cup of coffee when the team arrives.
He looks his part to a T, though he's not wearing the scrubs his disheveled upper-class demeanor is almost palpable. He's running on his third hit of Cram since he left the team last night, having pulled the all-nighter to study medicine and medical procedure while also not sleeping to present the most honest version of a well-trained and overworked EMT. He has a professional certainty about is, even though he's clearly haggered. He's also secured an off-brand bulletproof vest which he's taken the liberty of shooting a couple times to sell the fast that he's been on the job and hasn't had time to change it. Add the beard growth and coffee stains, the fresh haircut already going rogue and Radien his character is, as much as he can make it, complete.
He greets the others with a nod, his body language totally different then the day before. Casual swagger replaced by the professional confidence of a man who knows his trade completely. A man who saves lives.
Any reservations before we begin?
-
Whiskey pipes up, an unusual occurrence for the reserved dwarf.
"Can we go over, step by step, what the plan is, here, one last time?"
-
The group looks at one another, waiting for someone to speak.
-
Ravener looks to Raiden as Whisky speaks up. "You want to go over the plan for everyone? I figured I will post up with Redline to provide some extra covering fire if things go badly. "
Waiting for the review Ravener glances through everyone's wireless signals looking for particularly weak links. He then links Cherie's comlink to his deck to protect it.
-
Raiden takes another swig of his coffee, his hands surprising steady considering his otherwise jittery appearance.
The idea is this: As per my new look I'm an EMT who's just seen some action near the end of a very long shift. Whiskey and I are returning from grabbing this corpse of an Oni, which I intend to sell, though the thought of selling cyberware (he looks pointedly at Redline) might be a slightly easier sell. Anyway, if theirs a guy manning the front desk I play him or pay him to let us through to the Morgue and replace the ID badge I lost in the fighting, since our ID's are already in the system it shouldn't be a big deal. Just another day trying to survive in the bullshit bureaucracy.
Once we have badges we have movement around the facility. We figure out where our guy is and our 'corpse' starts making a mess out of security,distracting the guys on his room so Whiskey and I can sneak in, I'll give them a push if needed. We grab our man and get clear in the chaos.
Plan B is everyone hit the place while I fast-talk someone important for the guys room and we take him out under fire. Not ideal, but if you hear me mention 'That one time in Chicago' then hit the place for maximum chaos. Questions?
-
With that, everybody moves to their places. Ravener sets himself up for Matrix overwatch, Whiskey, Jujin, and Raiden prepare for their ruse. Cherie casts invisibility and posts herself atop the Ambulance and Redline takes her chosen position as well.
The team pauses, an intake of breath...
And then it's go time.
-
Ravener nods to Redline as they take position and lays out his Crocett EBR sniper rifle with silencer beside him as he blends into the rooftop. After verifying his position secure and as hidden as possible, he then swaps his wrapper program out for Sneak and lets the beat of the Matrix wash over him. 'In position and ready,' he sends out to the team's comlinks as he sets himself up to enter the host...
-
Raiden Changes into scrubs and off-brand armored vest. He'd already put a few rounds in the vest, adding to the idea that he'd been shot at.
Whiskey, give him the shot then hold still while I work on your costume.
Whiskey did so, doling out the 'deep sleep' to the Oni and securing him to the gurney under a plastic cover.
She turned towards Raiden with a somewhat confused expression What about my costu-
Raiden hit her across the face, leaving a hefty bruise and a cut lip.
Without a word she swung back, giving him a bloody nose.
Raiden grinned Now that's more like it. Let's rock and roll!
And he threw open the back doors and pushed the gurney out toward the hospital doors.
-
Ravener entered the Host and noted business as usual. Several Personas moved back and forth, along with Agents, all involved in the day to day administration of the Hospital.
In the land of Meat, Raiden and Whiskey shove through the doors with Jujin on the gurney. They blast past several surprised nurses and stop just in front of the Emergency area reception desk.
-
One corpse and two replacement badges, they should be waiting. Raiden said quickly to the clerk receptionist. At this point the ruse was only needed if the receptionist asked questions, and why would he if they were in the system?
-
Jujin tries to be as still as possible, listening for trouble.
-
The clerk looks up at the two Shadowrunners and their gurney.
"Uh, right. What's your names and ID numbers?"
-
John Osborn, 6794723, and Brandy Carlyle, 67945... 12? That Right? (Whiskey nods) 12.
Raiden gave the man a polity patient smile, being sure to insinuate with his body language that he wasn't actually very patient, but was being nice because bureaucracy demanded that they get this done.
-
The clerk nods. Alright, just push through. You know where the badging office is, one of you should just stop and get the badges and catch up, I guess.
He waves them by.
-
Thank you Raiden gave whiskey a 'lets go nod and walked away from the desk.
Let's get these badges and take our new friend downstairs.
-
Redline blinked rapidly as she caught herself. A few moments of held breath and a studious 360 degree search confirmed that her lapse in concentration hadn't let someone get the drop on them; lucky. Lucky and dumb, the oni thought.
The decker was clicking away at his tech, the barrel of his own rifle next to hers passively directed towards the hospital. She'd never worked closely with a decker before and wondered in the back of her head what the protocol was if drek hit the fan in the meat world while he was in-system.
Jack him out? She'd been lucky enough to never feel it before. Still, she'd seen squadmates suffer from dumpshock; "like a hangover if the booze was a truck in your skull," she'd been told. Tap him on the shoulder and politely mention, "We're dead?" Likely defeated the point.
No, if the drek hit the fan - hit the fan hard - she'd do what she did best while safeguarding herself and the closest asset to her: Mr. Decker.
So far, no panicked mentions of that 'one time in Chicago,' over the comms, so good. Redline took a quiet, deep breath before bringing her focus back to the hospital proper, her artificial eyes aiding in watching for anything out of the ordinary in the compound.
Just do your job, she chided herself soundlessly.
-
Pushing through the hospital is easy. At the badging office, they make a quick stop and retrieve the badges before pushing through. With the badges, they are able to make it past a bored KE security guard before turning down the hall that they know Kingston is in.
They get to his room, which is flanked by two Knight Errant Officers. As they pull to a stop, one of the officers looks at them.
"Keep moving. This room is occupied."
-
Raiden thinks quickly and flashes a smile. "Sorry, Chummer, docs said this is the room. Right?" He looks over to Whiskey.
Whiskey peers up at the room number and then nods, "Yeah, room 112B, jus' like it says there."
The guard frowns. "Well, this room is private, so there must be some mistake, I'm gonna call it in--"
Raiden interrupts, his smile fading into a businesslike demeanor, "I get it, Omae, this is your job, but this is our job too. Far as I'm concerned, we wheel this guy in and get out and on to our next client. You and your bosses can figure out whether you keep this slab in there or move him again after, null sheen here."
The guard nods, "Right, push him through for now, and I'll get the boss on the line and we'll sort it."
"Whiz," Raiden beams. "Thanks, Chummer."
Whiskey and Raiden push the gurney with Jujin into the room. They immediately note Kingston in his bed, tubed up and connected.
Raider calls it in to the team. "Heads up, we're in with the target, but we've got approximately 10 seconds before this place is an anthill that's just been jackbooted, so prep up."
-
Hearing the guard's comment over the comms, Ravener searches out the guard's comlink and crashes the dialer program. 'I am on slowing the guard's call down. Hope he likes spam,' Ravener whispers over the comms. After doing his best to delay the guard, Ravener searches out and connects to Kingston's heart monitor and prepares to upload the 'heart attack'.
-
Outside the door, Raiden, Jujin, and Whiskey can hear the Knight Errant Officer begin cursing at his commlink.
Whiskey moves over to Kingston. "Vitals are steady... we can probably move him without too much trouble. But if it gets rough, then things could get hairy for him. What's the play here?"
-
Stay by the stiff like that's all we're here for.
Raiden straitens his tie and turns back to the security guards with a tiny flourish.
He steps outside to Is there a problem here guys?
Seeing their less then happy expressions Raiden adopts a look of concern bordering on fear, but carefully tailors his performance to the fear of a man who might get in trouble at work, not even considering fear of bodily harm.
Adding a touch of the mojo he let the forces of personality and magic blend to direct the mans thoughts towards a peaceful and mutually beneficial solution.
Look guys, I dont want any trouble, sure whatever is going on here, his voice lowers into a more conspiratorial tone we can work something out.
-
"It's fine, Sir, just trying to get a hold of my superiors about this and my commlink is a piece of drek."
-
Raiden nods and steps back in. "Looks like we've bought a bit of time, how are we looking on that slab, Whiskey?"
The dwarf medic looks back at Raiden. "He's prepped to move, just waiting on Ravener to send the signal."
"Signal sent, chummer!"
Suddenly, the machines attached to Kingston begin their alarm. According to the machines, Kingston is going into cardiac arrest. The KE Officer outside stops working his commlink and pokes his head inside. "What the frag is going on in here?!"
Raider puts as much power into his voice as he can. "He's crashing, grab a doc!" Th Officer nods and rushes out. Inside, Jujin hops up and between them, they move Kingston's comatose body onto their gurney. Then Jujin lays down on Kingston's bed.
"You just gotta keep em busy for a few seconds. Good luck!" Raiden says.
The Oni nods and covers himself up. Raiden and Whiskey push the gurney through the doors, leaving the wailing machines behind them.
-
Outside, Cherie stands up atop the ambulance and shakes a grisly looking stick with a small skull atop it. From where Redline is watching, it looks as if she is arguing with something. There isn't time to continue watching, as the oni continues to sweep the parking, readying herself for what is to come.
-
Ravener takes several moments to place a couple of MARKs on one of the KE Officer's commlinks, not a difficult job, but one that allows him greater access, to include snooping in on comms..
-
Raiden and Whiskey push the gurney through the hospital towards the exit, nearly 50 meters away. The gurney slows them down some, and it looks like a good 10 second rush to get out. They count down the seconds.
Whiskey notes a Knight Errant Officer talking to the nurse at the reception desk and reaches a hand under the sheet covering Kingston and her AK-97. She focuses her internal energy and cracks her neck to the side.
-
Redline's breathing evened out as she took the time to place her aim at one of the Knight Errant officers.
Inside the Hospital, the officer outside of Kingston's room was banging his commlink in frustration before yelling down the hall, "Hey, get somebody down here... and somebody call in the Sergeant!"
-
Jujin slips his hand up and takes a dose of his little inhaler. He could feel it begin to move through his system. Closing his eyes, he slowly moves his hand down to his sword. All the alarms and machines faded into a low background buzz. He could feel every contour of his sword handle, feel every inch of his body preparing for combat. This job was just a means to and end, and ultimately his goal to clear his name. He took no pleasure in this confrontation, but he would do what he must.
-
Cherie dances on top of the ambulance, pulling her hair in frustration as she continues to argue with the air in front of her. After a moment, she calms down, nods, and then settles back to her cross legged seat atop the vehicle.
-
Things had gone well initially - as well as the team could've hoped - but that didn't stop Redline from flipping off her mental safety once comms got busy with reports of the team approaching and retrieving the objective. The duo inside sounded like they were hauling for extraction, soon to be colliding with a pair of Knight Errant officers complete with complimentary, steamy soykaf.
"Lining up on the one facing us. Do what you can to the other one," she muttered to Ravener and the rest of the team through her subvocal mic. She'd spent precious seconds judging the distance to her target, carefully tapping at her rifle's optics to get the arc just right.
The team would be bursting through the doors with their package any moment; the time was now. Redline took in one last breath, held it for a second before she gently released it and followed through with a pull of the trigger. She'd aim for the officer's center of mass, counting on the velocity of her weapon to affect them despite any protective equipment. At the least, it might daze the target and provide a few precious seconds for the gurney to move through in the confusion.
-
The CRACK of a gunshot echoes through the night air and the tragedy of soycaf spilled is emblazoned into the consciousness of everyone in the parking lot as one of the Knight Errant Officers flies off his feet and onto the ground. His partner barely has a moment to register, standing there with his mouth agape.
From atop the Ambulance, Cherie points towards the stunned Knight Errant officer and suddenly, his head rolls back and his demeanor changes. He glances right, then left with jerky movements. Looking at what must be a steaming cup of soycaf in his hand, he gulps it down without hesitation.
Inside, Knight Errant Officers are scrambling towards Kingston's room.
-
As things heat up, Ravener triggers a fire alarm on the other side of the building from the team. 'Locating possible pursuit, Will switch to rifle after I look.' he sends through his comlink.
-
In the parking lot, the Knight Errant officer drops his soykaf cup and begins doing a jerky, odd dance.
-
Raiden and Whiskey continue running down the hall, the exit not quite ten seconds away. Behind them several nurses and Knight Errant Officers rush to the room they extracted Kingston from.
Redline notes the odd motion of the Knight Errant Officer and determines that the Pixie must have done something to him and so she changes target.
Suddenly, the fire alarm begins to sound in the Hospital and everyone looks up, startled, before beginning to react.
Inside Kingston's room, Jujin hears the door open. Suddenly, the sheet is pulled from atop him by a nurse on his right. At his left is a Knight Errant Officer with a look of utter surprise on his face, a second KE patrolman at the foot of the bed and another nurse with her back turned at the medicine cabinet, who has yet to notice the surprise the Oni had set for them.
-
The world started to fade away. Jujin could feel energy pooling, and pouring through him into his sword. He knew that there were other people in the room, but they were insignificant; movements in the light. An alarm sounds. Somebody is pulling the sheet down. Jujin's eyes open.
Deftly rolling out of bed to his left, Jujin plants his right foot on the floor, turning sharply around toward the foot of the bed, while bringing his sword up with his right arm, in a powerful sweeping motion.
The sparking and popping blade trails radiant energy, as it meets the surprised guard's unprotected chin, and elicits an explosion of bone and crimson.
Having taken care of one threat, he focuses on the rest of the room.
-
The nurse at the bed screamed as the Knight Errant Officer fell to the ground with only half his face. The other officer tugged at the gun in his holster, but he was fumbling with it and unable to draw it. The nurse at the medicine cabinet turned as well and screamed, dropping the drugs that she was prepping for Kingston.
"What's going on in there?" demanded a voice from just out of the room, projecting an air of authority.
Whiskey looked back at the screams and noted three Knight Errant Officers now outside of the room they had pulled Kingston from, Jujin was going to have to fight his way out, but she figured she might be able to at least help. Pulling her AK-97, she pulled the trigger long, spraying a hail of gel rounds towards them. People screamed all around, diving for cover and one of the Knight Errant Officers fell to the floor, knocked out by the hard bullets as his companions cursed and drew their own guns.
Outside, the first individuals were beginning to exit the building.
-
Ravener scans the parking lot for KE vehicles, noting them for future reference. Letting the digital world slide into the background, he readies his rifle. 'Switching to rifle,' he mutters into his comlink.
-
Redline released her breath as she watched her shot impact the Knight Errant officer. Steaming soykaf splashed across the pavement and the second officer soon began jerking and swaying almost drunkenly. They'd managed to clear an exit for the team inside, but the oni knew not to count on it lasting.
"Exit's clear - everyone inside needs to move to the ambulance ASAP. Advise if you're bringing company." Redline pulled back the bolt to her rifle and slotted another round in its chamber. It was a matter of when - not if - some nurse or janitor spotted the splattered KE officer or the ruckus inside and hit a PANIC button.
Still, Redline had to be impressed at Ravener's quick thinking with the alarm. Hopefully the confusion would last until they could get their package loaded and clear of what would soon be a hive of LEO's. She nodded faintly at Ravener's comment as she re-sighted her own scope.
"Don't engage anything that isn't making a beeline for us or the inside team. Hopefully they don't have company..."
-
Jujin lunges forward. The guard is fumbling with his weapon as Jujin lands a series of quick strikes with his electrified blade. Jujin can feel the sword bite home, but he tried to regulate some of his damage. The one guard had to die, he was right next to him and Jujin was taking no chances, he would not kill just to kill however, unless it came to that. Sadly, it probably would.
To the nurses: "Leave now!"
-
Ravener tucks the butt of his rifle into his shoulder as he scans the parking lot for threats. 'Ready on overwatch,' he mutters over the comms as he readies his rifle.
-
Jujin realizes he can't waste anymore time. He runs for the doorway with his blade ready.
-
Through the door, Jujin pivots around a guard, blade streaming behind him. The next guard in front of him is bringing up his rifle. Jujin rushes the guard, and puts all the strength he can manage behind his thrust, riding the momentum, as the guard falls back, already dying as the electrified blade burrows through his armor and into his chest.
The guard collapses and Jujin pulls his blade out.
He felt the hammer blows of the bullets hitting his armor, knocking him forward. Staggering against the wall, he puts a hand out to steady himself,
Jujin can see the guards seem panicked and he hope he has brought himself enough time, as he begins to sprint towards the exit.
-
Jujin moves quickly down the hall, nearly catching up with Whiskey and Raiden in seconds. Whiskey fires another burst at the remaining Lone Star officer inside, catching him in the chest and knocking him to the ground.
He doesn't get back up.
The nurses run out of the room and then screaming down the opposite end, deducing that there isn't a 'fire' and choosing an exit besides the nearest.
The possessed guard stops dancing and looks down at his hip, before taking out his commlink and staring at it intently and with great curiosity.
-
Redline's ear twitched at the muted sound of gunfire from within the hospital. She began lining up her sights on the second previously soykaf-possessing guard, his dance interrupted as he peered down at his commlink.
"Pixie, guard number two still handled by you?" she questioned quickly through the team's comms. Her direct experience with magic was null, and she didn't exactly make it a habit to pursue making friends of awakened operatives in Renraku. Was this guy waking up out of whatever haze the fairy had put him in?
She continued looking down her sights at the remaining guard, knowing that any moment runners would be bursting through the door adjacent to him. Stating the obvious, she muttered to Ravener, "Once they're out, we need to cover them for a solid twelve seconds before bailing. Then we need to clear out fast."
-
@ Redline
The comms return a lot of static and what sounds like the pixie's voice garbled coming through. The KE Officer holding his commlink is looking at it like it's something completely foreign to him. After a moment, the officer cants his head and brings the commonly close to his ear, then starts and hurls it away from him. It smacks onto the street and breaks scatters into a few pieces.
-
Several more tense seconds pass and then Jujin, Raiden, and Whiskey burst out of the front doors, pushing Kingston's gurney towards the ambulance. Cherie hops about impatiently atop it.
The parking lot is full of nearly a hundred people, all of whom have evacuated from the hospital. In the rush of the crowd, there doesn't seem to be any other dangers when there is a muted -CRACK- and suddenly, Whiskey flies forward, face planting into the asphalt. The gurney lurches to the side, pushed only by Raiden who stumbles a bit.
Everyone else looks to the roof of the hospital and makes out the outline of a sniper, aiming down at the asphalt and likely preparing to take another shot...
-
Suddenly from just above the ambulance a bold of magical power flies at the first sniper, hitting him squarely. Another bullet rings out trying to find the invisible target, and ricochets off the concrete
-
As another shot flies, Jujin looks up and scans the roofline, noting a second sniper almost too late. He darts to the side and a powerful rifle round etches a line onto his sleeve. Useless against long ranged threats, he trusts in his fire support to take care of the problem.
-
Jujin picks up Whiskey and continues to run towards the rest of the team. With every step, he expects to feel the punch of a bullet, but he thinks they'll make it.
-
"Drek-" Redline cursed, eyes darting to the hospital's roof to reveal the subtle outlines of shoulders and a rifle. The oni chided herself for focusing so intently on the hospital's exit, forgetting to cover other positions entirely.
Responding to her subconscious, her cybereyes shifted to a low orange hue, and the chaos of the scene below her and Ravener shifted to a cacophony of red and orange heat signatures. Adjusting her Remington's barrel towards the second enemy sniper with the aid of her enhanced vision, she reminded herself that her team needed the shot to land.
-
Just as she's about to fire, Ravener's rifle goes off. She flinches inwardly as she fires as well, noting that the round seemed to ping off of... something? No, no... that should have hit!
She curses, ready to fire again when she notices the snipers turn their barrels towards her and Ravener.
Three more High Threat Response Officers come around the side of the building, armed with assault rifles. Looks like there was a team on-site. That would have been good to know. Cherie looks over and waves a hand, her brow furrowed, and all three of the men fall to the ground. Cherie smiles grimly before ducking suddenly and turning her attention elsewhere.
Meanwhile, the two snipers on the roof have lined up their shots and they pull the trigger.
-
Redline winced as the crack of heavy rifle fire thundered beside her. Making herself as low to the roof as she could, she attempted to focus on the sniper she'd shot at. She didn't doubt her marksmanship, but somehow the HTR shooter still had all their gray matter in place.
"Low confidence for us taking out these snipers. Get in the ambulance ASAP!" she suggested over the team's comms, a tinge of panic creeping into her voice.
She pressed herself into the roof as she awaited the next barrage of gunfire directed at her and Ravener.
-
All that others see is a bolt of magical energy suddenly appear and seem to hit something invisible as Cherie rings the invisible mages bell. She mutters, "he eez down but not out."
-
Ravener grunts as the bullet impacts his armor and hot blood begins to seep down his back. 'A full HTR just waiting for us, this feels like a setup...' he mutters into the coms. 'No way we are going to get those snipers. Get in the Ambulance and moving.' Steeling himself he prepares to make a dash to the fire escape.
-
Ravener dashes across the empty space from his cover to the roof, holding his gunshot wound. One of the Knight Errant snipers trains his rifle on the fleeing Decker, smiling inwardly at his pending kill-shot. One less fucking 'Shadowrunner'... Suddenly, he is punched hard in the face by a sledgehammer of magic force and his shot goes wide. Grimacing, he turns his attention to where he knows the enemy mage to be, even if he can't see her.
Ravener hits the top of the fire escape and quickly slides down.
The second sniper takes aim at the man pushing the gurney and pulls the trigger. Raiden is barely able to duck out of the shot, the bullet winging off the front end of the gurney. Jujin rushes up behind him and nearly tackles him into a rush to push all of them towards the ambulance.
-
Redline curses under her breath as she hears the crack and wet thud of a bullet hitting home. She hesitates at Ravener's call to extract initially, but follows suit as he bolts towards the fire escape. "Okay - moving!" she replies to the other runner. With her rifle slung across her back, she attempts to simultaneously stay low and move quickly down the fire escape and towards the ambulance.
-
Anyone still looking will se a blast of magical energy fly at the remaining sniper. Then if they are really really super super observant (or able to perceive on the astral) will maybe notice that she moves to a point so that the ambulance is between her and the remaining sniper.
-
As Cherie moves own, Jujin slams the gurney into the back of the ambulance and tosses Whiskey in. Raider clambers up to the front and starts the engine. Jujin closes the back door and yells at Raiden to hit the gas. The Amerindian does so as Cherie barely manages to open the passenger side door and get in, the momentum of the vehicle slamming the door shut.
The pixie drops her invisibility and winces as she looks bad. "Dat dwarf eez bleeding bad!"
Raiden pulls the ambulance up and notices Ravener and Redline making their way to intersect. He pulls to a stop and jumps back as Redline gets in the driver seat. She takes a few seconds to look around before jacking in to the vehicle to run it through her control rig. The van lurches forward even as Ravener barely gets inside.
Hitting the gas, the team is pretty sure they might have made it away and Redline slows it down to attract less attention.
"I know a street doc for zee girl," the pixie announces.
The others nod as Raiden suggests they drop off Kingston. "It's on the way and he might not last long."
As they arrive, they meet with Ms. Johnson, who assesses the situation. After some discussion, the team is convinced not only to leave the comatose ork with her, but also the dwarf. After all, the run was to retrieve the street runner and not leave him to die or rot. An irony if someone on the rescue team were left in the cold.
Leaving the ambulance, the members of the team go their separate ways, taking their hard earned cash with them.