[ProfGast]

Ena stared at the approaching mongrel and narrowed her eyes slightly.

Oh you do not want to try this dog...

She mimics the growl back at the dog and leans forwards into a loose fighting stance.

"Don't block my way cur.  You'll regret it."
Sadly, Ena has like, no knowledge of animals or else she WOULD have used her expanded vocal range to mess with the dog's hearing.  As is, this is an attempt to "intimidate" the thing out of the way.  Take whichever roll is applicable:
Animal Handling Attempt vs Dog: 4d6t5 3
Same only Intimidate: 8d6t5 1
Er dang, that's a better roll than I expected on the handling.  Good thing the Animal Handling roll is probably the applicable one :-P.
Initiative Roll if it fails:Init as Needed: 1d6+11 17

[Csjarrat]

@Profgast_________
Your steadfast approach seemed to stun it; it began to cower, its head held low and ears flat in a sign of submission. It slunk backwards, keeping its face towards you as you gained in confidence to move towards it.
: 6d6t5 1 wow, shit resistance roll!
It'll yield to you as you advance up the road but it'll defend against any attacks on it or on an approach within 5 metres

@Zwei_________
It was ridiculously hard to decipher much of the detailed code, but patterning in the syntax used indicated it was written by a non-native english speaker. Something about it just didn't seem quite right, it was more complex than it needed to be because of the wording and grammar choices.
Your initial suspicions proved to be right though, it was definitely harvesting data from the hardware, probably exploiting a user permission set that Ralphy had allowed but not paid attention to, or it was piggy-backing off something legit he'd allowed. You'd have to spend more time to know for certain, and you'd definitely need another day or so to crack the phone-home protocols to see where it was sending the data back to.
Your bladder rupture averted and hunger sated, sleep hit you like a freight train. 6 hours shot by before your alarm went off and another one shot by before you poked your head up onto Kings Cross concourse.
You checked the ticketing details again, Carriage F, seat 32A. Bex had said that the other team would be sitting with you to get some time together before the job began. She'd included a pre-paid meal voucher too and your stomach rumbled after missing breakfast.
The train hummed noisily up on the platform and a bustle of passengers walked up and down the platform looking for their carriage or saying goodbye to relatives.
Security was present, but not obtrusive. A patrol drone skimmed along merrily and armed police kept watch from a long way back off the platforms, more bored looking at the routine Monday morning commuters than anything.

@Lumen___________
Timmy passed you a shit looking rollup but you were in no mood to get picky about quality. anything that'd take the edge of the foul taste in your gob would do right now.
Leave the probes on mate, looks like you'd taken a kicking. Lads said the place was empty apart from two knocked out techies though. Tank asked me to keep an eye on ye cos o' that big black bastard wound on yer hand. You been fighting spooks or summat? Its Saturday, just gone half ten. Bacon sarnie and a brew sound good?

@Saithor___________
Time dragged achingly slowly as it always did when you were waiting for a job. Every second felt like an hour, but the release into the Monday morning bustle of the city was more than welcome after being cooped up in the apartment for a long stretch. AROs assaulted your incoming feed and it was almost a joy to see the endless stream of adverts for upcoming Trids, cheap tickets for the west end theatres and new lingerie lines as the taxi plodded through the slow traffic up to the station.
It was utter chaos at the unloading bay, a luxury tour bus disgorged a load of chinese tourists onto the concourse and they argued with each other and the driver about who's luggage was who's. the security at the door seemed a bit distracted by the sight of 60 arguing tourists and they probably felt at least a little bit sorry for the driver as he tried to sort through the piles of multi coloured suitcases.
You picked your way through the melee and headed into the concourse through the grand glass doors. The noise of the idling trains was barely audible over the din of the platform announcements, the crowd and the hawking of the AR adverts trying to interest you in a time-share apartment in northern France, available from only £160/month!
Bex's ticket ran through your AR feed once more, Carriage F, seat 33A. The others would be sat at your table seat too.

[Lumen]

Knives eyes the cig but shrugs and lights it up.  "Yea mate, sounds brill.  After breakfast though I'm getting a shower, Medkit be damned."  He takes a look at the black wound on his hand, his memory of the fight finally getting clearer.  "That's right...  there was some grey bloke, looked half dead at least.  A mojo slinger who walloped me but good.  I guess he took off before Tank got there."

Thumbing through his link he reread the message from Pavel and shot off another reply, <<Any other info on the job?  Am I going to need anything special?>>  He then surfs the Trix for any information on Aberdeen.

[ProfGast]

Ena kept eye contact with the creature as she stalked up the road, skirting around the animal but not letting down her guard until the creature was at a sufficiently safe distance, as she made her way back to her vehicle.

That's right dog, you go about your business and I'll go on mine.

[Csjarrat]

@Lumen_______
the reply sounded stiff when it came through.
Distracted yesterday where we? You'll be the protection for a team of techies and astral. Its an outside job, up in the wild north. Wrap up warm, ticket for the train will come through shortly. Your team mates will be sat at the same table as you and the final team member will pick you up from Darlington station on your arrival.

Alright mate, just don't break the fucking thing. I'll be back in a bit.
Timmy grabbed his jacket and left you to wallow in your wounded and groggy state as he headed down to the shop to get breakfast

@Profgast______
It backed off as you approached further, reaching the road and making up the hill towards the van. Desperation must have sunk in as it recognised that you were its best chance of an easy meal in its wounded and bedraggled state. It began to wind up for a charge, leaning back into its rear legs ready to pounce and you knew play time was over
Roll for initiative!
: 10+2d6 12 managed to glitch hard! beasty goes last and takes a -2 to its actions this turn :-(
begin your first action phase

[saithor]

Silas checked his watch and sat down at the table. Being the first to a meeting was always annoying, since then he would have nothing to do till anybody else got there. He leaned back in his seat, lit a cig, and proceeded to wait for the newcomers to arrive.

[Lumen]

<<I was handling some family business so I was tied up a bit when I got your message.   Thanks for the info, I'll be there with bells on.>>

After the update Knives changes his browsing to some cold weather gear.  Woolies, thick gloves and socks, and a posh scarf would do nicely.  Throw in a survival kit and some extra medical supplies for good measure and he felt prepared enough.  He sent the list off to the family's equipment guy and emphasized next day delivery.   Once business was out of the way he skimmed through the sports feed.

[ProfGast]

If asked later, Ena wouldn't have been able to say what exactly she noticed first as the dog went from cowering to attack.  A change in scent perhaps, or a slight difference in the pitch of the growl.  Maybe it was the way its muscles tensed.  Regardless, almost as soon as the creature had decided to chance it, Ena was already moving.

Alright, have it your way then.

Ena counter-dashed as the dog as it bunched itself to attack, muscles in her hands flexing and unsheathing the retractable claws hidden in her hands which sliced through the fabric of her gloves as slashed down at the mutt.

Spending 1 Edge: Initiative -- Blitz: 5d6+11 28
Free Action: Run
Complex Action Melee Attack, Claws (Reach 1, DV 5, AP-3), +2 from charging, assuming +1 for Reach.
Claw Melee: 16d6t5 6 last couple rolls are not hits so if I do NOT have reach advantage, hits stay same

[Csjarrat]

@Profgast_______
It froze mid charge, realising the error of what it had just done
That poor dog. dodge roll : 6d6t5 1 1!!!
oh dear.
5dv + 5 net hits, 10 to soak
: 3d6t5 1
Your claws slashed through its pelt, finding purchase against a major artery or two and slitting them cleanly in half, gushing blood all over yourself, your attire and the the snow.
It yelped a horrificly pained yelp, loud enough that it reverberated off the harsh rockside of the pass in the peace of the afternoon. Everything nearby would have heard it, you thought to yourself as a couple of birds flew off their roosting spot in a nearby leafless-tree.
The wounded dog's lifeless body crumpled as its lifeblood poured away, its head listing at an awkward angle relative to its body.
Breathing out heavily, the adrenaline began to wear down and you looked about yourself. You still had clear line of sight to the target building, though it was some way off, if there was someone indoors, they could easily have heard and observed what had just happened.
It still looked deserted for now, but you'd need to do something about that bloodied corpse and the increasingly red snow around it lest someone find it and get suspicious.

@Lumen___________
The reply came through pretty quickly;
//Alright Knives, going skiing are we? I'll have one of the lads drop em round by lunch for ye.//
The sports feed was abuzz with good footy, the christmas break had ended a week ago and the Premier League was back in full flow. Stoke were on live, away at Portsmouth and Hull were at home to Newcastle. Spurs were on the late kickoff, so that could work for a beer and summat to eat tonight if you could stomach it on top of your nausea.
Inspecting the wound once more, it began to burn as you touched it. You shook your head as the flames began to dance around the crispening skin and the hallucination passed as quickly as it had overcome you.
Bile rose to the back of your throat and you began to heave and retch but nothing came up, having had your stomach thoroughly emptied from the last batch in the night.

@Saithor__________
The platform was slowly emptying as the passengers headed aboard and their families said their goodbyes. You found the carriage and swiped the AR door control on the exterior of the sleek blue and grey aluminium door and dragged your kit up a few steep steps.
A blast of warm air hit you and dissipated the frosty cold breath that had clouded your vision outside and you glanced left and right for the seat numbers listed on the AR display in the vestibule. Following it right, your table was empty. You were first.
There wasn't enough room overhead for all your kit, and you knew your team members were probably not travelling light either, so you stowed some of the larger kit in the luggage racks next to the vestibule.
The crew were just loading up the refreshment trolley and bringing it down from the front of the train as you sat back down heavily in the comfy seat and the pretty blonde smiled at you. Complementary refreshments sir?

[Lumen]

Falling to the floor Knives starts to heave and scuttles over to a bin.  *Fack me!  What is this shite?   If this keeps up on the job it could spell the end of me...  I gotta do something about this quick.*

After a few minutes when it's clear nothing is coming up he drags himself over to the couch and collapses on it.

Once his stomach settled a bit more he send out a message to the family's mojo expertn <Oi mate it's Knives.  I need your opinion on something.  You ever seen something like this?  It's been making me nauseous and it may have been on fire earlier.>  A few seconds after the message he send a picture of the festering wound on his hand.

[Zweiblumen]

Taylor makes his way through the crowds.  It's a bit dense with the families crowding around, so he entered the train before getting to his carriage and made his way through to the meal car.  Using his voucher he ordered some soy-bacon with what passed for the fried tomatoes and "eggs" and a cuppa tea.  It made for a passable meal which he brought with him down to carriage "F."  The AR images of the seat numbers going by, he sees 32A with 3 other seats at a table, one currently filled with a dour looking dwarf.

"'Mornin gov.  Guessing we've a mutual friend?"  Taylor says in a friendly tone.  His boyish face filled with a friendly smile as he took his seat and put down his meal.

[ProfGast]

Ena grimaces at the loud expiration of the dog and gives herself a quick shake as the death throes of the creature register on all of her senses.

Bloody hell...

She grabs the body and drags it off the road as quickly as possible before doing the best she can to deposit the body out of easy sight, but exposed enough that other natural scavengers would be able to get to it.   Then it was obscuring the signs of struggle and then back up the road.

Tracking roll to obscure tracks and hide corpse. Edge 1
Hiding the Corpse: 7d6h5 1 hit

[saithor]

"Probably," SIlas said, nodding at the new arrival, and sticking out a hand to shake. "Silas Blackwell, Mage. You're?" he asked gruffly.

[Zweiblumen]

Taking off his hat, unwrapping his long scarf and opening his insulated jacket Taylor shakes Silas' hand.
"They call me Mams, don't ask." He says with a wink.  "I'm tech support," tapping his temple, "and fancy myself something of an investigator at times."  Taylor responds to Silas' gruffness with warmth and a boyish smile to put the dwarf at ease.  "I hear we're gonna get to spend some time in the cold.  Did you get any more details, or are we gonna need to wait for our ride up north?"  He pats his rucksack with his gear. 
<<<Winston, Victoria, keep an eye on the carriage and make sure no one is snooping where they shouldn't be if you'd be so kind.>>> 
His AR form tosses them each an electronic treat as he gives the command.
His Sprites, as AR dogs, pace around the area sniffing and peering into the Matrix before curling up impossibly under the table.


In order:
1. As long as Taylor isn't expecting anything more than a cursory scan of his SIN he'll be running his Philip Baggins fake on one of his burner Meta Links.
2. Don't want to PvP even socially, but lemme know if either of you (saithor or Csjarrat) want roll or anything.  Mams has a Cha of 5 and just enough etiquette to not make a complete fool of himself most of the time.
3. He's having Winston and Victoria run Matrix Overwatch while he's paying attention to the conversation.  He'll do periodic Matrix Perceptions to keep an eye on their car and know the basic goings on in the carriage.  He would Thread Transcendent Grid before each one at Level 1 and buying hits on the Fade, as he only needs it for a second to make his check.  As the Sprites are staying on more of a constant overwatch I'm not sure how you want me to roll that.  They are on the Local grid using Taylor's Lifestyle for access.
Series of basic Matrix Perception tests (Comp 6 + Int 5 + Spec 2 + TM 2 = 15): 10#15d6t5 6 4 4 4 5 5 6 4 6 4 (limit 5 capped a few of those.)

[Csjarrat]

@profgast__________
You grab its limbs and drag it across the road and dump it into the rough drainage ditch on the far side to break line of sight to the house.
You do your best to obscure the blood splatters by kicking fresh snow over it, but you knew that anyone really looking hard would see right through it, until another blanket of snow came down anyway.
Crossing your fingers for more of the white stuff, you doubled back and headed towards the van, happy for the warmth and relief of having an escape plan
You're free to IC whatever you did on the sunday (shopping for new kit, resting up, catching a movie etc) the drive into darlington station on monday morning is uneventful if you can pass a SiN (2) test by the station carpark scanner.

@Zwei_________
Your sprites return a bevvy of information relating to the matrix activity in the carriage:
All passengers mainly carry consumer level commlinks (DR 2-3)running in public mode.
1 low rating (DR2) cyberdeck in hidden mode detected, master of a PAN.
No lethal or melee weapons found in public or hidden mode. 1 taser found in hidden mode slaved to the deck. that specific signal originates from two carriages up from yours.
No attacks or marking are detected for the first 30mins of the journey.


@Lumen___________
Hawk opens up an AR call with you and takes a look at the video you send through of the wound, pondering and humming to himself.
I've only seen things like this in a reference book and I have to tell you, its not good. You need treatment for it, and urgently. You'll need to spend a couple of days in my care so I can run a ritual on the wound.
It appears to be the work of a blood mage, or something similar. Powerful enemies you seem to be making. Tell me, what was the weapon like that inflicted the wound?