Frostmane
Your bike takes through the tunnel, past Kowloon, into the industrial district of Kwun Tong. It is a somewhat rough neighborhood, though not nearly as bad as Kowloon. As you approach your destination, the streets begin to empty, and you soon find yourself navigating a maze of warehouses. There's no graffiti or broken-down cars in the area, and you notice a few security drones buzzing around the streets. You find the address, an unremarkable concrete building with large frosted windows. You press the buzzer on the front door, and before long a security guard appears, gives you a cursory search, and escorts you into the building.
You pass rows of giant shelves, stacked to the ceiling with cardboard boxes. Forklifts beep and hum over the smooth concrete floor. Emerging from the labyrinth of containers, you come to a door. The guard pauses to say something over his commlink, then opens the door and invites you in.
Your in a small office, neat but obviously worked-in. Behind the desk sits your contact, "Dong Fengpai." He smiles and offers you a seat. The guard leaves, closing the door behind him.
"Thank you for coming on such short notice. A very important matter has sprung up. I'm sorry to have dragged you all the way out here. I don't like to conduct business at the corporate offices. This location is secure and discreet.
Let me get down to business. One of Xiao-Renraku's junior executives, Fong Wei-Lei, disappeared last night. As you probably know, there is zero tolerance for AWOL in our policies, and this disappearance is most uncharacteristic of Fong, who has been a loyal and predictable worker. I'm sending his personnel file to your commlink now." The file includes Fong's address, title and division, names of business associates, record, and miscellaneous information that Xiao-Renraku has gathered on him. There's also a picture: a short, balding man in a charcoal business suit, looks to be in his mid-forties.
"We have reason to believe Fong has been kidnapped. There have some unsubstantiated rumors through the back-channels that seem to fit the facts, and also suggest that organized crime may be involved. We've currently got an investigation team searching Fong's apartment and questioning his wife--in fact, you may wish to start by catching up with them there. We also plan to conduct an internal investigation. I will let you know if anything turns up. Another thing--Fong has a security tag implanted under his skin. The signal disappeared last night, in the Happy Valley area.
The reason we're not handling this with our own corporate resources is that Xiao-Renraku is wary about getting involved in the criminal underworld, especially in a case like this which could possibly have public consequences. Similarly, we do not want common criminals acting on behalf of our important interests. You possess the perfect combination of trustworthiness, discretion, and deniability for this case, which is why I feel so fortunate to have run into you last night. We are willing to pay twenty thousand nuyen for your services.
One more thing: those back-channel reports also indicate that there are others investigating this case. It may be wise to find them and discover what they know. But it is imperative that you guard your employer's privacy. For all we know, they may be working against us!
I believe you've got everything you need. Let me know if there is any assistance I can provide. I will relay any new information to you as I receive it."
