2072: Game World, IC thread for 2072: Recruitment always open! Options

[JxJxA]

@Seth, Ember & Copperhead
[April 15th 2072; 22:02:00 White Van on Downtown roads, Seattle]

Before driving off, Demon snaps his commlink in two and drops the pieces down a storm drain. So much for the "new and improved firewall" that tech-head installed. I have half a mind to pay him a visit and gently ask for a refund. Resigned to shopping for a new---and hopefully more hack-resistant---phone and content that Seattle's rainy days will wash away the debris, he hops back into the van and drives off---but not before rolling down the broken window. No need to call any more unnecessary attention to themselves tonight.

As he drives, he listens to Ember and Copperhead. He nods in agreement with Ember regarding Allanby's involvement. The entire ballet de bataille reeked of circumstantial evidence---much like the dwarf's dreadfully bourgeois cigars. Knight Errant was the same security company that the dwarf had called on them back in his lair. He surrounded himself with an impressive array of surveillance tech, and had all the tell-tale syptoms of a data-junkie---he had been poring over it on his terminal when they first came in and then later pointedly boasted that he was recording everything he said to them. Finally, he was playing the part of the mastermind while residing in a hideout so well sequestered from prying eyes that it would make even the most severely, abnormally, ludicrously paranoid person feel safe.

Of course, it could be that the evidence was a little too well put together and Allanby had a perfectly good reason to take refuge from the barrage of constant death threats. If someone is indeed trying to kill the dwarf, he or she would know that laying all of this evidence in front of them would undoubtedly send the group immediately after Allanby with dreams of guillotines and bouncing dwarf heads dancing in their heads. Nevertheless, Demon shrugs at this possibility. Regardless of who is responsible for setting up this little fracas, finding and viciously questioning Allanby was the only option readily available.

Besides, he still sort of wanted to make the smug little sac de merde squirm.

When Ember mentions retiring their noms d'ombre, Demon chuckles softly.

"Mon ami, if anything, I am about to have it tattooed across my breast! You cannot buy this sort of publicity! Ah, it reminds me of my first run in Marseilles. Besides, I suspect this will be but a mere minute of fame, so long as we don't keep stumbling upon sorciers toxiques and their leche-bottes, we should soon fade back into the secure and anonymous embrace of the shadows within a week or two."

"If you do not mind, I must make a stop before we rendezvous once more. I appear to be shamefully under-dressed for whatever soiree you have invited us to, and I would prefer to wear the appropriate attire should we cross paths with another...evenement malheureux."

[galenbd]

@Jamie, Jotamon & Doza
[April 15th, 2072 10:47am; Dearborn, Downtown Seattle]
[Internal PAN=Passive. Id = <Information not available>]

Jamie slides down into the floorboards of her now disabled car. I need to shut down that drone.

She expands her AR into the completeness of her perception causing Paraku to manifest into VR. Paraku's mistform dragon spreads wisps of her icon out through Jamie's internal commlink listening for quiet signals nearby.

[Notsoevildm]

@Seth, Ember & Demon
[April 15th 2072; 22:02:00 White Van on Downtown roads, Seattle]

"Mon ami, if anything, I am about to have it tattooed across my breast! You cannot buy this sort of publicity! Ah, it reminds me of my first run in Marseilles. Besides, I suspect this will be but a mere minute of fame, so long as we don't keep stumbling upon sorceirs toxiques and their leche-bottes, we should soon fade back into the secure and anonymous embrace of the shadows within a week or two."

"If you do not mind, I must make a stop before we rendezvous once more. I appear to be shamefully under-dressed for whatever soiree you have invited us to, and I would prefer to wear the appropriate attire should we cross paths with another...evenement malheureux."

Copperhead struggles to follow the Frenchman. He seems to be talking about the toxic shaman and if anything he seems overdressed, not under-dressed. Then it hits her, his outfit is smart but not heavily armored. And he probably wants to get something with more firepower than the heavy pistol which seems to be his only weapon at the moment.

"Uh, sure" she mumbles. "Jus' avoid any gang colors that might be on bad terms wid da Crush'. I'll see if I can get any help from Snake while you change into somefing more appropriate fer da occasion."

She settles herself down next to Ember in the back of the van. She hums and sways as she opens herself to the astral. Ember's body is an empty shell, darker even than Demon's cybered form. She hears Snake's hissing voice. The Serpent is eager to find out Allenby's secrets.

I am in danger, wise one. Please send me a spirit to aid me against those who make these false claims against me.

She floats in the astral for what seems like a long time waiting for an answer but in the end all she gets is a mild headache.

Snake can be a sulky bitch she thinks as she rubs her temples to ease the pain.

[Seth]

April 15th, 2072 10:50am; Dearborn; Downtown Seattle
[Pan=Hidden. Id = <Information not available>]

Arggh! its all going horribly wrong. Drones. Snipers. Vans. Men in Black with military weapons. I am not shopping in the barrens again. "Go to touristville" they said. "It's safe during the day" they said.... I'm going to kneecap "they". Jotamon paused in his flow of thoughts, and checked his head up displays. Right Jamie had lived up to his expectations and taken out the final rider. It looked like Doza was here, so the van was covered. If it wasn't for the drone everything would be OK.

Weapons assessment. Taser range 30m or a heavy pistol was unlikely to take out a sniper drone, even in his hands. OK time to be sneaky.

Jotamon rolled underneath the lorry carrying plastic pipes into Downtown, to hide from the drone.

Jotamon's icon of a suited handsome man pulled out a tricorder and began to scan. Aha there it was, luck was with Jotamon and the drone was right where he started looking. Jotamon looked at the flows of information going to the drone, then reaching into the information flow he inserted some targeting orders:

<<Engage target designated Beta 1. Coordinates at location 23,56,12>>

that should occupy the van, and maybe take out the rigger

[Alyena]

@Jamie, Jotamon & Doza
[April 15th, 2072 10:47am; Dearborn, Downtown Seattle]

Doza was just about to line a shot on the surveillance drone when her 'Mr Johnson' pings another message.

<<Get the package and go North, make your way through the buildings to avoid aerial pursuit. There’s a Global Couriers vehicle waiting for you on S Weller St – Location Marked – distance approx. 200m>>

She considers the various options and exit routes, while forwarding the message to Jotamon. With the unmistakable sound of heavy gun fire the Jackrabbit containing the boy and Jamie is turned into so much scrap.

"Drek, where the frag did that come from?!"

Ducking round the van she lines the new drone in her sights and lets loose two narrow bursts, hoping the concentrated fire will pierce its armour and do some damage.

"Time not to be here" she thinks as she breaks cover and heads, zigzagging, towards the smoking Jackrabbit, checking the drone as she does so to see if it's still a threat.

[JxJxA]

[April 15th 2072; 22:02:00 White Van on Downtown roads, Seattle]

Upon hearing Copperhead's concern over potential color choices, he flashes her a reassuring grin.

"Mon cherie, I wouldn't dream of drawing any more unwanted attention, and I assure you I will do what I can to dispatch of any of these 'Crush' villains should we cross them. As for colors, I'm thinking black or something that blends into the background would be an appropriate choice of clothes." He has done what he can to keep from slipping any French into his speech with Copperhead around, but some old habits die hard. This time, he does a bit better.

When Copperhead slips into the back, he glances up at his rear view mirror to sneak a peek at what his companions are doing. He sees what looks to be Ember sleeping and Copperhead doing a little dance. Sorciers, he thinks to himself, right before thinking how nice it would be to have a cigarette right about now...

[Xarin]

@Seth, Demon, Copperhead, Ember
[April 15th 2072; 22:00:00 Pixel's Pad in Tarislar, Seattle]

Pixel snuggles up in her favorite chair, her slim frame engulfed by the well-padded toddler's seat. Knees pulled up to cradle a fresh thimble of sweet rose tea, she flips back through the data she's gathered so far for Edgar and Hansai in the AR data sphere floating around her. From her perch on the 3rd shelf in her room she keeps the trid playing quietly in the corner of her vision, it's images floating in the middle space between the various racks and shelves that comprise the 'rooms' of her apartment.

Ok, this job is looking a bit rough. Teague's a real shark. He's been working his way up fast and seems to think this 'band' (if you can call them that, never did like that style) is his ticket up another notch. His little goonies are a motley bunch with a couple stand-outs. Not real sure on this razorgirl, but that spider's got a mean streak.

Elyssia's eyes twinge for a moment remembering the headache she just got a couple hours ago from that twirp. Gotta remember to lay off the VR around that yokel. Hit him from AR and his favorite toys'll be mostly pointless. Still, I don't think I'd like to go toe-to-toe with him if I can avoid it.

She sighs and takes a sip of her tea. The sweet liquid's warmth spreads pleasantly, soothing the last aches from her earlier encounter.

Don't know exactly what he was up to in Allanby's, but probably no good. The little dwarf does like to record everything off-line. Maybe that old hardline is still working well enough to get me into his nexus for a peek. Might give me an idea what 'emm' was up to.

Files and notes flip past in the AR display. Known accomplices, favored tactics, suspicions... and the initial probing results on Teague's home node. The place was a glacier. Pixel's face crunched up in a scowl of deep consideration. I could get in there... and if I go in AR I should be fine, personally. But some of those telltales look like IC indicators for some crap that could still fry out my 'link. If I have to replace the hardware on that, it'd knock this job ridiculously past the red. I dunno, maybe they've got the budget to cover it as an 'investigative expense'...

Her musings were cut short when the trid station burst in with a breaking news announcement. The AR sphere retracts from around her head as she focuses in on the trid projection. The talking head moves to the side as scenes of the intense shootout with two full firewatch teams flashes across the trid. Officers maimed or killed by frags, bullets, or spells flick across the news. Then a familiar face flashes onto the screen, and the thimble falls from between Pixel's hands, clattering to the floor three shelves down.

"No. Can't be. No no NO", she anxiously queries the data from the news feed. "Edgar, you better be faking this you piece of drek." A frantic AR shuffle pulls up concurrent feeds from several other news hubs about the ongoing action with one after another rehashing the same story.

Her 'link pings with a new message:

<<Hansai here. Its bad. I need your help. Edgar... (pause) Edgar is dead, and I need your help bringing in those responsible. The department is on the wrong track, and have taken me off the case, so I'm taking some leave. I need your virtual presence at the Drunken Drone. I'll bring a toy for you to control. Can you manage some security in case the people I am meeting are not on the level?

Oh and don't believe what you read in the press about who did it: I'm laying money it's Teague>>

Oh Edgar... you big dummy. Why'd you have to go and leave Holly and the kids alone like that? A wet drop splashes on her hand and she starts a bit, reaching a shaking hand up to brush the tears from her eyes. A little sniffle drifts through the room. Then the hollow weight turns to hot iron and a grim look crosses the pixie's petite face.

<<@Hansai: I know the place. I'll be there. Though I'd feel much better if you met up with Beanie a bit ahead of time to pick up Plum for this little meet. She's better equipped then some shelf-stuffer to handle any interferance. Don't worry, we'll get to the bottom of this. I'm attaching the basic infodump on our Teague friend as well. If he's in this, keep a special eye for little miss cutsie-killer arm candy.

Be careful. I don't want my friends list getting any shorter, you hear me?

...

And, have you heard from Holly yet? I'd hate for the poor dear to learn about this from the news feeds. I dunno what she's going to tell Dot and Robby.>>

[Seth]

@Ember, Copperhead, Pixel & Demon
[April 15th 2072; 22:50:00 The Drunken Drone]

Ember, Demon and Copperhard make their way to the Drunken Drone. As they approach they see the 10 foot high concrete walls with embedded glass and razor wire. Faded signs read "Trespassers will be Eaten" with crude images of a robotic dog. The main gate is open, and behind it is a truck yard with 20 lorries parked in it. A couple of people emerge from the cafe, one punches the other on the shoulder, and they laugh and head for one of the cabs. A scene of blue collar bliss.

As they enter the doors to the cafe / bar, a wall of sound greets them. Laughter. Oohs and Ahhs. The Drunken Drone is split into two halves: a cafeteria area, and a bar. In the cafe the seats are mostly benches with a vinyl backing, there is only one customer in the cafe area: a man wearing heavy working clothes, with a katana on the seat next to him, and a large 'Barney the Dinosaur' toy sitting on the table. He is picking at a huge all day breakfast. The bar area however is heaving. Several scantily clad waitresses, two or three of them just wearing lingerie are carrying large trays with pitchers of beer. A stripper and comedian are working the crowd, and are beginning to start a routine involving a bullwhip, babyoil, a lit candle and a volunteer from the audience.

Over the entrance to the bar is a sign "Molly doesn't approve of drinking and driving. She really means this!". The Cafe is self service, and there is a tough looking dwarven matron sitting at the till with a name tag that reads 'Molly'. The Matron stands "Hansai said you would be coming, and there might be trouble. If there is trouble you do as you are told: I'll tell you where to go and what to do. The boys are keeping an eye out for you" Her hard gaze softened a bit as she glanced at the solitary eater. "Go have your secret meeting. No one will hear you".

The man eating the breakfast looks up and gestures you to take a seat. As you settle down everything goes faded and quiet as sophisticated sound cancelling hardware kicks in.

"Let me introduce everyone. I am Hansai Jones. I am a Knight Errant employee, working for the Accounting department, investigating suspected Cartels in the music industry. My client is Zurich Orbital, and they are very interested in this case. I am currently on leave, as my partner has just been murdered. You" he points at Ember "are the purported ring leader of a group of runners suspected of murdering my partner, colluding with the famous Toxic Terrorist Gamma, and general ne'er do well. This " he points "is Copperhead, a Snake Shaman of dubious reputation, rumored of being involved in three Doc Wagon raids, two Homicides and numerous Assaults and Batteries. Now we have Mr Demon. A gunner for hire, with a long list of suspected homicides. This " he gestures at the toy "is Pixel. She is the finest hacker you are likely to meet". He tosses three expensive looking commlinks onto the table. "These are secured, decoyed, encrypted, ICed and slaved to her."

"You probably don't know Mr Ember, but your wife has been working for my partner intermittently for years. He had the highest respect for her professionally. Her latest assignment was to provide resources to investigate Mr Jonathon Teague. The details are in the commlink. I think one of the runners she employed found something, and reported to her. Hence the accident. I think that Teague is taking out everyone that might have found that 'something'. He is very cautious about powerful individuals, so I think he tried to employee Knight Errant as patsies. I suspect that he is currently traumatized by Gamma turning up at your lynching " it is very clear that Hansai was not very impressed with the idea of 'shot while trying to escape'.

"I think you are very short on options. Knight Errant will find you if you stay anywhere in the civilized world. The reward for you alive or dead is now 500,000 nuyen for Ember, and 200,000 for the other two. Even your closest friends will be tempted by that kind of money. A task force of a thousand officers is forming, and Knight Errant are very good at what they do. As I see it you have to run to an unpleasant part of the world, or deal with Teague."

"I have two plans for dealing with Mr Teague: Pixel here found that Allanby uses a very old fashioned black fibre technique to send everything he records to a warehouse in Tacoma Heights. There may be unhacked images there. While you deal with the Warehouse, I am going to visit the Allanby crime scene. I need to get Pixel access to Allanby's personal computer which isn't wireless." He pushes the all day breakfast away, having only picked at it. "Molly here was a friend of Edgars, knows who you are and I think you can trust her. Any questions...no let me rephrase that...Any questions to which I might know the answers?"

[Notsoevildm]

@Seth, Ember, Pixel & Demon
[April 15th 2072; 22:50:00 The Drunken Drone]

Copperhead's stomach rumbles as she enters the cafe. She nods at the woman's instructions and then asks, "Firefights give me da munchies Molly. Any chance of gettin one of dem breakfasts and da biggest soykaf you can serve while we talks to Mr J. over dere. Best serve one up for each of ma buddies here too. I think it's gonna be a long night."

She then follows Demon and Ember to the table and squeezes in beside them. She nods an acknowledgement to the man sitting there. While he does the talking, she carefully gives him the once over on the astral from behind her shades.

At one point she opens her mouth to object but snaps it shut as she realises he has rather accurately described her brief shadowrunning career for Mr O. She attempts to recover her composure by blurting out an indignant, "We was set up. We didn't kill da dwarf even if da little fragger deserved it."

When Hansai mentions the bounty on her head she visibly pales. 200k! Frag, I'd almost turn myself in for that except I don't think I'd live to spend it. My Cutter wouldn't turn me in and neither would that knife-ears Slater. He still owes me for pulling his skinny ass out of that building. But for that amount of cash, half the Crush' would shoot me down and hand me over without blinking.

She scoops up one of the commlinks to cover her unease. It's an expensive model, much better than the disposable 'link Slater had set up for her. She turns the latter off and pockets it, then slips the shiny new one into place behind her ear. She is pleasantly surprised to find it automatically identifying her gear and slaving it all to itself. The hacker in the toy was pretty slick.

Whether she liked it or not, she was playing in the big leagues now. And there are secrets to be discoverd here! whispers her mentor's dry voice eagerly in her head.

She almost laughs when Mr J. explains that he wants them to break into Allenby's warehouse while a thousand cops and likely the same number, or even more, of street punks and worse were hunting for them. She takes off her shades and gives Mr. J her best shadowrunner look, one eyebrow crooked just like on the trids.

"So all we's gotta do is take 'Barney' here to visit Mr Allenby's little data haven without da cops or half da Barrens killin us on da way dere? And in return you'll help us clear our names? What's ta say we aint walking into a trap?"

[Aria]

@Jamie, Jotamon & Doza
[April 15th, 2072 10:47am; Dearborn, Downtown Seattle]

Doza

The range is long and the visibility hardly ideal as you fire after the rapidly banking drone. The rain flurry has appeared out of the overcast sky, this is Seattle, but you are sure some of your rounds impacted on the flank of the drone. Sadly the thing doesn’t plummet out of the sky so you would guess that above that cloud cover, which is playing merry hell with your thermal vision, it is coming back momentarily…

As you race towards the jackrabbit you see the last biker trying to crawl behind a car, clutching at his kidneys and loading a new clip into his chattergun. Inside the jackrabbit you can make out your package waking up in the back seat and a female in the driver’s seat with a light pistol waving in your general direction

Jamie

Time begins to crawl as your agent sifts back along the data trail from the drone. Any moment now you expect another high velocity round to power in your direction…once you have that information the bloody thing is yours to control…you hope…

<<Trace initiated. ETA to signal intercept 20 seconds. 10 seconds. Signal location traced. Access ID [$$76-8##-9Z$$]>>

Well that isn’t anywhere local. A triangulation reference puts that downtown still but somewhere north west of here on the banks of the Sound…

Jotamon

Wincing at the increasing heat from the westwind blaze you throw your data package at the drone and are mildly surprised when you are sucked into a data redirect – bloody thing must be slaved to a commlink. The matrix blurs before your vision and then you are looking in to some sort of virtual command centre with a multi armed figure dancing at the controls. Video banks are clearly displaying the incoming vid feeds from the drone and some sort of lower flying aerial vehicle, a chopper perhaps…your guess is confirmed by another view of an inside shot that shows a squad of dark clad figures running final checks on a variety of lethal looking ordinance.

The node location is clearly not that of the rigger a few meters away from you which means this op is being undertaken by yet another group – just how big is this thing you’ve stumbled into? You only wanted a spot of shopping…

[Seth]

@Ember, Copperhead, Pixel & Demon
[April 15th 2072; 22:51:00 The Drunken Drone]

"I understand your reticence Copperhead. Pixel just found the data on the warehouse, and I don't know whether Mr Teague is aware of it or not. I also don't know if Knight Errant will get the data either. I suspect that Pixel is significantly better than any hacker employed by Knight Errant. But, and it's a big but, Knight Errant will throw resources at this problem and it is only a matter of time before they investigate it."

"If Mr Teague is aware of the warehouse I suspect that he will seek to rob and or destroy it. He may set a trap for you, but I think dealing with such traps is part of your professions."

"You may be assured that I am not setting a trap for you. If I wished you dead, then I would deal with you now. Perhaps I have a scheme so twisted and Machiavellian that it requires you to be at this warehouse. As an example perhaps I am working with Mr Teague. In most scenarios that I can compose your employer's wife would now be dead, and a FireWatch team would be charging through that door. I am showing a great deal of trust in you, sitting at the same table with you. While I am fast with a sword, there are three of you, your employer has a powerful allied spirit, and I think it very likely that you could kill me."

You are correct that 'the cops and half the barrens' are looking for you. I will not oppose any action you take. If you want to leave Seattle, Molly here can probably help you. There are a dozen truckers " he points at the bar where the entertainment just got more raucous " that will help you leave. If you leave you will be some of the hottest criminals on the planet, and I suspect your savings won't actually get you very far. I think a far better option is to try and get Teague."

"I am not blackmailing you here. There is no 'go do this or I'll put you in jail'. Instead I am offering you a chance to get the evidence on the person that fitted you up. I would, and indeed will if you don't, go myself. I came here to satisfy myself that you were not Edgar's killers. I have done so. I think the best use of my time now is to go to the Allanby crime scene and see what I can pick up there. I need to provide Pixel with access to Allanby's computer. I cannot be in both places at once, and time is getting very tight."

[AppliedCheese]

@ Seth
April 15, 22:00, Auburn Seattle
Dealer checks his link, checks his last credstick, and checks how many days its been since the Vory came calling for last month's interest payment.

Even from the brief description, the job sounds dumb. Real dumb. And it doesn't take a genius to figure out something this urgent, this fast, and with that kind of promise on it probably has something to do with the streaming feed of a burning hotel and dead firewatch. Plus, if that true, there's mages involved. God damn mages.

In contrast, when the people who happen to make up the majority of your contacts in Seattle, who brought you here in the first place, and who you owe a good chunk of money state in no uncertain terms that they would like you to look into this one if you want to work again this month...which coincidentally is how long you have until your next payment...sometimes you just need to listen. Esepcially with whats being offered.

Dealer sighs, snaps his link shut, brings out his throw-away link, and changes into his Actioneer Business Best. If your going to a meet for a suicidal run, you might as well look professional. It helps hide that sinking desperation. It also helps hide some sensors, the passive link, a Morrisey Elan, and a Predator IV among other things...

A mile walk, and "Jake Edwards" is heading to the Drunken Drone in a cab.

[Xarin]

@Ember, Copperhead, Seth, Dealer & Demon
[April 15th 2072; 22:52:00 The Drunken Drone]

Barney's head tilts a bit awkwardly to look at Copperhead. It's mouth gapes open like it's about to sing how much it loves you, but instead a little girly voice pipes up, "You needn't worry about taking 'Barney' anywhere. Those commlinks will suffice. Nice trodes by the way, very stylish. Useful too."

From her perch atop a lightpost across the street from the Drunken Drone, Pixel manipulates her AR datasphere to incorporate the new commlinks with guest-level access (ie: basically nothing she doesn't specify). Carefully she plugs them into her tacsoft, although presently limiting them to each-others datafeeds, keeping her drones seperate. Hansai seemed convinced, but Pixel wasn't quite there yet. That's why she was sitting out here in her ruthenium armor and cloaked in magical mis-direction. Sometimes it pays to be a little paranoid around people worth nearly a million nuyen in bounties.

A new icon pops up in AR for those accessing the fresh commlinks. It flits around briefly, looking like a little fairy. A wave of the wand and a glowing "Welcome to TacNet" marquee scrolls across. Then the fairy icon fades from sight.

Her tummy growls a little bit.

<<@Hansai: Want any physical backup for Allanby's? Oh, and I don't suppose you could pick me up a slice of Molly's pie while you're in there? Her pecan is delightful! ^_^ (Just drop it in Beanie if you don't mind)>>

[galenbd]

@Jamie, Jotamon & Doza
[April 15th, 2072 10:47am; Dearborn, Downtown Seattle]
[Internal PAN=Passive. Id = <Information not available>]

This must be the drone's master node. Great, time to forestall an ammo detonation. Paraku spins out wisps of her icon toward the drone control interface trying to trigger it to dump it's ammo load.

[Seth]

@Ember, Copperhead, Pixel & Demon
[April 15th 2072; 22:51:00 The Drunken Drone]

Molly comes over to the table bearing a huge tray with three large all day breakfasts. Omelette, croissants and fruit for Demon and Ember, and a huge Breakfast in a Bun for Copperhead. "There you are dears." She puts her hands on her hips. Although only 4 feet tall, Molly looked to be about 4 feet wide, and now most of it seemed to be muscle. "Hansai, you need to eat that. You're going to need it. Mary-Sue just started speaking in tongues, and there's trouble. " Molly frowned. "Let me get a look at you Dearie" she appraises Demon. "I was going to send a couple of the boys with you, but I think one will do. He'll be here in a minute. Names Dealer. He owes me, so there won't be any trouble"

The roar of laughter from the crowd was suddenly loud enough that even the sophisticated sound suppression hardware struggled. Glancing that way you see that the stripper is half way through a white knuckle ride through every obscenity law in the country.

"Pixel, little one, can you do me a favor and help Bob Tanner, his scanner's are down and he was covering the SE quadrant?" she smiles "And the pecan pie is on its way"

"I think you guy's need to tool up, trouble is a-coming and you are dressed for a night out on the town. Finish your little chat, and I'll take you out back."

<<[Hansai to Pixel] Looks like Molly has the pie covered. No I have 'done my thing' and these aren't the perpetrators I'm after. Molly got me a remote access widget so when I get to Allanby's computer I can just stick it in and you'll have access. How long do you think you will need?>>

[Seth]

April 15th, 2072 10:51am; Dearborn; Downtown Seattle
[Pan=Hidden. Id = <Information not available>. Stealth 6. Analyse 6. Armour 6. Biofeedback 6, Reality Filter 6, Encrypt 6, Firewall 6, System 6]

Jotamon tweaked the settings on his ware and reduced the sensitivity of his sim module. Hot sim was not his friend when hacking such a serious military establishment. Well the most important thing was information, and he had that. Drek this is a serious op, what is so important about this kid. Well everything I told Jamie is still true, so there are only a few ways out of this, and lollygagging isn't one of them

<<[Encrypted message to Jamie and Doza] I'm hacking the drone right now. It looks like this is a military op, and there is copter on the way with hard men and guns. We need another vehicle, and we need it fast. >>

[JxJxA]

@ Seth, Ember, Copperhead, Pixel & Dealer
[April 15th 2072; 22:51:00 The Drunken Drone]

When Demon hears about the bounty prices, his lips purse in a slight pout. Mon dieu, only 200,000 nuyen? Why, even Ember is worth 500,000. What a disappointment, next time I must surely do more... However, his mood changes once he spies---and more importantly, smells the food. He remembers that he has not eaten in hours, and his stomach begins to sing in harmony with Copperhead's---albeit at a much more hushed and humble tone.

"Vous remercie, ma belle jeune fille. This smells delightful." He gently takes Molly's hand and kisses it delicately before taking a ravenous bite out of his croissant. When he notices Molly eyeing him, he raises an eyebrow coyly before realizing that she is merely evaluating him as a guerrier. He gives a joking and over-exaggerated look of disappointment when Molly suggests that he is not "man enough" to handle the job on his own.

Turning his attention back to Hansai---and giving a wary glance at the talking toy---he gives the cop his most reassuring smile.

"Monsieur Jones, I am more than happy to go along with your plan. While I appreciate the free celebrite, I would prefer to clear up this business of me being Gamma's leche-bottes. I mean, I may walk on the darker side of life, but a gentleman must have standards!"

[Aria]

@ Seth, Demon, Copperhead, Pixel & Dealer
[April 15th 2072; 22:51:00 The Drunken Drone]

Ember frowned at the food and then ignored it, there were more pressing things on his mind.

“This is no choice at all, I know it is an outmoded concept but the demands of honour must be met. Monsieur Teague needs to understand that despite our position on the edge of society we cannot be used in this manner without expecting retribution. I have always disliked the concept of disposable humanity, and whilst I suspect he does not feel the same way, he must answer for this.

We will go to this warehouse to uncover this technological evidence. Then, provided you have no objection, we will go after Teague. We will do our best to ensure he is alive to face your own justice once he has answered to the shadows.”

Ember looked up sharply at the mention of incoming trouble…

“This batard is persistent, non?”

Rising from the table he swept his coat aside and took an engraved rod from a pocket in the lining. Giving it a peculiar flick it extended out to some two meters in length. As he gathered mana to himself flares of energy flickered through his hair and from his eyes. The staff dimly showed the glowing outline of an ornate spearhead that caused a vague heat haze...

[AppliedCheese]

@ Seth, Ember, Copperhead, Demon & Pixel
[April 15, 2072 22:50 The Drunken Drone]

Dealer steps out of the cab and scans his cred stick before grabbing a duffel from the back seat just in time to avoid getting his fingers amputated. Piece of drek - get baggage first, THEN pay. He takes a quick moment to survey his surroundings before walking through the front gate and past the loitering truckers. Loitering being defined as anything between "Getting ready to leave" and "passing out when they realize they can't get their cab door open." Molly really does take that drinking and driving thing seriously.

After pausing for a moment to appreciate just how complicated that trick with the pitcher of beer, three chairs, and a construction glove must be to actually work instead of just end up with a soaked floor, he heads towards Molly.

"Zhukaf sends his regards. I guess that means your both back to business as usual. Actually, he sends me here with a job description. I'm guessing the four people sitting alone, not watching the show, and talking to the purple dinosaur are the people I'm looking for. Which is interesting cause Zhukov said there'd be 4 others. One of those is the Mr. J, and the other three...drek it IS about that hotel isn't it? Now I really want to know where the 4th is. Good thing I brought the bag. "

After a few more words with Molly , Dealer makes a circuitous tour of the cafe, a final trouble check, before approaching the table...

[galenbd]

@Jamie, Jotamon & Doza
April 15th, 2072 10:51am; Dearborn; Downtown Seattle
[Pan=Hidden. Id = <Information not available>. Analyze 5, Stealth 5, Exploit - Mute 5, Sniffer 3, Agent 4

Hmmm, two weapons. Sniper rifle or Minigun. Both bad.

Paraku is momentarily distracted as Jotomon's call comes in. I should have forwarded the hacked signal I to him.

<<[Message to Jotomon and Doza], I'm in the drone as well. I'm trying to dump the sniper rifle's ammo load. If you could handle the mingun, that should give us the opening we need to get out of here.>>

[Seth]

@Ember, Copperhead, Pixel & Demon
[April 15th 2072; 22:52:00 The Drunken Drone]

"Dealer this is Copperhead, Ember and Demon" she gestures to each in turn. "The toys run by Pixel". There is a glare. "I want you to be real polite to Pixel...you hear?. Finally this is Mr Hansai Jones, an accountant working for Knight Errant. Mr Hansai is real folk" she stressed the words, " and you can trust him. Now I don't know the details of what's happening, and I don't wanna know, but a good friend of mine is dead, and some of these folks are being blamed for it, and I trust " she looked carefully at Hansai, who sat inscrutably toying with his breakfast, "that you are going to do something about the real killer".

"Now I'm going to leave you folks to plan. If you need tooling up, just come and ask. "

[Seth]

April 15th, 2072 10:51am; Dearborn; Downtown Seattle
[Pan=Hidden. Id = <Information not available>. Stealth 6. Analyse 6. Armour 6. Biofeedback 6, Reality Filter 6, Encrypt 6, Firewall 6, System 6]

<<[Encrypted message to Jamie and Doza] Awesome! OK I am on it>>

Saying that Jotamon issued a command to the drone to dump ammo.

[Alyena]

April 15th, 2072 10:51am; Dearborn; Downtown Seattle

Doza swears under her breath as her bullets bounce off the drone.
"Not really a surprise it's as armoured as it is armed" she thinks "but worth a shot even so" she winces mentally at the unintended pun.
Skidding to a stop by the Jackrabbit she yanks open the door, nearly taking it off its hinges in her haste, and grabs the boy. Protecting him with her body she scans the area, taking in the scene.

Jotamon: not moving, looking like he's in a hacker trance, Jamie: somewhat similar. The van beginning to move towards them, the other cars moving to allow it a clear run. The sound of the drone indicating it was setting up for a repeat run.

"Drek! Come on J no time to be asleep on the job" She re-sends the message about the escape route to his datalink, highlighting it with red flashes just to be sure.

Grabbing Jamie she begins to pull her from the car shouting "Time to run!" as she does so.

[AppliedCheese]

@Ember, Copperhead, Pixel & Demon
[April 15th 2072; 22:52:00 The Drunken Drone]

Dealer nods brusquely, it could be a sign of professional respect if he pulled it off better, to Demon, peers at the toy for a moment and shrugs. At least it explains where the 4th team mate is. At least its not a mage. Well, another mage. Frag this. The things you do...

<@Pixel: Hello. They say your a drek hot hacker. Molly says to be real polite to you to...should I be saying "hee" like with Mr. Hansai? Either way: I'm a huge fan of hackers, so I suspect we'll get along.>

The mages get a slightly restrained grimace. "Saw you all on the AR. This will be...an interesting run. At least you're on my side. So...thats a plus."

Hansai gets what could be a short bow, and a quick LinguaSoft rendered "Ohkieenasutte.". Followed by a long silence meant for listening.

Dealer sits down at the table, sliding his duffel bag over the back of his chair. After some initial conversation, its time to get to the meat and potatoes of this.

<@GRP Suicide-Kings (Pixel, Ember, Demon, Hansai, Copperhead) Files Requested: Blueprints, schematics, known security systems, known security forces, power and sewage support to facility, GPS and map data, corporate affiliations and organizational affiliations for target area.

"And while we're at it, anyone want to tell me what caused downtown to turn into a warzone? I mean, the helicopter was launching fragging missiles. On Vid...which means KE thinks the public would approve of the missile strike, and allow it to be broadcast. The implication is someone here is in the drek."

[Xarin]

@Ember, Copperhead, Seth, Dealer & Demon
[April 15th 2072; 22:52:00 The Drunken Drone]

"Pixel, little one, can you do me a favor and help Bob Tanner, his scanner's are down and he was covering the SE quadrant?" she smiles "And the pecan pie is on its way"

The purple dinosaur's eyes go wide and the mouth falls open with an excited gasp. It practically falls over reaching for Molly's elbow to pantomime hugging it. "I love you! And your pie!" The eyes track back to the rest of the group for a split second before the doll rights itself. "<ahem> I'll send Marvin to check it out. And don't give me that look casanova." she says with a pointed look at Demon.

Pixel swivels her datasphere around to highlight her eye-in-the-sky Marvin on her subscriptions list. [Oi, Marvin, get some sensors on the South-East quadrant of the Drunken Drone's property. Sneaky like please, and keep some decent altitude.]. She wires over the designated area's coordinates to the drone's pilot. The drone's reply comes across the link [Yes ma'am... brain the size of a planet and she asks me to watch a junk yard. <sigh>]

<<[Hansai to Pixel] Looks like Molly has the pie covered. No I have 'done my thing' and these aren't the perpetrators I'm after. Molly got me a remote access widget so when I get to Allanby's computer I can just stick it in and you'll have access. How long do you think you will need?>>

Pixel sits on her lightpost for a moment contemplating her answer while trying not to salivate too much at the prospect of enjoying her pie. <<@Hansai: Ok, if you say so, I'll go with you on this. As for the time I need... depends. I doubt it'll have great digital security since it's offline anyway, so it shouldn't take more then a minute. If it does have solid defenses, well, it may take hours to do it right, but I can probably still worm my way in fast if we need it.>>

I guess I'll give them a little more leeway. Hansai's usually right about these things. She ticks a few more boxes on her 'guests' permissions, giving them tacnet feeds from her combat team.

<@Pixel: Hello. They say your a drek hot hacker. Molly says to be real polite to you to...should I be saying "hee" like with Mr. Hansai? Either way: I'm a huge fan of hackers, so I suspect we'll get along.>

Ooo a fan. Well, we'll see how that pans out.

<<@Dealer: Well, you're off to a good start. If you're game for slaving your commlink to mine I can get you into the team mesh network we're growing here. TacNet included, since Molly seems to like you well enough.>>

The little purple toy pipes up again, "Might I suggest you boyos make sure you have the last components on your end to facilitate the TacNet? You'll need 4 sensory feeds at a minimum to get the most from it. Trodes and a sim module will suffice for 3. Add some low-light or thermographic from your own eyes or some specs and you're all set. I bet Molly has whatever you need on that end. Soyez toujours prêt, oui?"