Nothing's Free in the Free Zone (IC), Adventure 1: Broken Star Options

[Lobo0705]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

As Grease and Overkill finish their reading, Jack sees Grease's taxi turning the corner. As it turns, its lights sweep over the window where Jack is sitting, and their light intensifies, as if the car was high-beaming him. He tenses, wondering if it was a signal that they were being followed, but after the car pulls into the driveway, and Amy, Sam, and Kevin pile out of the car, seemingly more concerned with grabbing their bags than with being followed, he realizes it was the taxi messing with him again.

Jack cycles the lock and opens the door for the the trio, and they come inside. Kevin, fascinated with all the bits of tech lying around, reaches for a piece on one of the shelves until a cough from Nic makes him stop. Sam looks at everyone, trying to see where she would fit in, until a mock growl from Nic makes her giggle and hide behind Amy, playing hide and seek with the big troll.

Amy says, "Nic, do you have somewhere the kids can play while we talk?" The troll nods, and says, "Alright now, down that hallway to the left. Rule number 1, no running. Rule number 2, no touching Uncle Nic's stuff." As he recedes down the hallway with the pitter-patter of Sam's feet, you can hear his voice fading, "Rule number 3....."

Amy smiles at Kevin as he shuffles along after Nic, and then turns back to the others. "Ok, what did I miss?"

[DrZaius]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

"Not too much." Grease squeezes his nose between his eyes, strained from all the reading. "I didn't catch much that Jack missed in his read through. One odd thing is that the Yakuza don't come up at all; which seems odd to me. They've got their fingers in a lot of different enterprises around the city."

Standing to stretch, he addresses the group. "I've still got the bug at the Manuel place. I can have that report back what it's heard, but my guess is not much. She seemed pissed her husband was dead, but not hiding anything beyond that. I think our best lead is these Yak boys in the ground. We pull a commcode, anything, we might figure out who hired them. What do you all think?"

[Jack VII]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

Finishing his most recent circuit of the windows, Jack pushed the curtain back in place and turned back to the group.

"I'm not particularly high on the Yak linkage, but I'm not opposed to checking out the bodies. If nothing else, we probably should get pictures of them for our Johnson and the commlinks might turn something up." The ork massaged his temples as he pondered. "Grease had suggested earlier that we do this one in the dead of night and I have to agree with him there. Much less likely that we're going to be spotted, plus we should all be able to see in the dark pretty well."

Scratching his chin, the ork continued, "I think we should recall the drone from Manuel's house and see if it heard anything worthwhile. It's been a few hours, if she was going to say something or call someone, she's already done it. Let's go swing by the murder site we haven't yet visited in the Warrens. If we get there before it gets too late, we might have a chance of talking to someone. If nothing else, we might be able to insert a drone in there. Then we can head back here and grab some shut-eye before heading out tonight. I'd hate to try operating in Yak territory without being fully rested."

[DrZaius]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

"Honestly, I'd prefer to leave the drone at the Manuel house there 'til much later this evening. It'll be a lot easier to sneak out once everyone is asleep. Those things are crazy expensive. We can pull it before we go on out to Sagebrush though."

[Jack VII]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

Jack nods, "Whatever you think is best."

Looking around the group, he asks, "Anyone else?"

[Always Overkill]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075


Drave considered the team's next move and responded to Jack, "We can check out the Murder site, but we need to go in cautiously; they know this is our home turf."

Drave paused for a moment, considering the case, "I think you may have had something with this Lt. Bradshere, Jack. As it turns out, he was promoted just before Manuel began to run into problems. That was 3 months ago, which puts him right in place as the chain of events leading to all these murders began to unfold. A new wave of drugs hits the streets in that time, and all the officers who have stumbled upon the case have wound up dead, the investigations into their deaths stopped in their tracks before they could gain any momentum. Those kind of orders could only come from above, and he is our best lead."

[Jack VII]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

Responding to Overkill, Jack replied, "So how do we tackle Bradshere? Should we notify the Johnson that we suspect he may have something to do with the murders? On one hand, he'd probably be our best and safest source of information on Bradshere. On the other hand, he's the guy paying us and I'd rather not look like we're going to him without anything to corroborate it beyond some notes I stole from one of the deceased officers..."

[Chrome Head]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

Amy helped set up Sam in a room at the back. "Thanks Nic, this means a lot to me. I.. I dunno how to repay you." Amy takes some paper and pencils out of the box of Sam's things and offers them to Sam who's happy to start a new drawing. "And you'll see, she's a very good girl. I don't think she'll cause any trouble at all."

Turning to Kevin, "And this one just decided to come because he likes it here. It's more comfortable than just being out on the streets. That means you owe Nic one too, Kevin, so better behave. He can kick you out if he feels like it. Now I gotta go back to work."

She sighs. This was a lot more eventful than she was truly prepared for, but it was par for the course of being a shadowrunner. Always checking your back, and especially the backs of everyone you hold dear.

Joining the conversation the others were having, Amy agrees that Ramirez should be contacted. "I think it's fine to talk to Ramirez. I wouldn't give him specifics, just that we have some suspicions on Bradshere and we'd like to get more information on him. No?"

[Always Overkill]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075


Drave nodded in agreement with Amy, "Ramirez should be able to give some basic intel on him, and he should know he is a lead we will be following. But I believe our next move after getting these comm-links off the Yaks in Sagebrush should be to track Bradshere down and begin surveillance on him. He just made Lieutenant, but we should check the public record; the press and datafeeds, maybe he has a history, admirers or detractors we could inquire from. If I can track down his code, I can hack his comm-link and find any recent contact he has made with anyone connected to the investigation. As soon as we locate him, Grease should put a drone on tailing him. At this point, anyone he is in contact with is a person of interest for us."

[Jack VII]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

Frowning, Jack replied to Overkill, "I don't disagree that Bradshere is possibly involved, but that seems like a lot of resources to devote to a guy whose only crime, as far as we have evidence to suggest, was being disliked by one of our victims. We still have two murders we haven't even cracked the book on yet. I think those should be our priority until we clear them."

[Always Overkill]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

"Alright, then we work the last two on the books and see if we get any more substantial leads before we go for a push on Bradshere. He is still our best lead on who I think Ramirez is really after; someone wearing brass."

[Jack VII]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

Jack gave Overkill a thumb's up. "We have a few leads that we still haven't followed-up on, but we might be able to work those in conjunction with our digging on Bradshere. What was the name of the guy in lock-up? Threeman? I'm not sure how we can get in to talk to him, but he seems like he would be a solid lead to flesh out the Crimson Fire part of the investigation."

Jack walked over to the counter and sat down. "If Overkill can hack us a pass to visit him in lockup, maybe we could convince him we are part of the conspiracy. Weave a little truth and fiction together to make a plausible story and see what he spills."

[DrZaius]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

Leaning back, Grease wrinkles his nose. "I don't know. If he's a drug dealer he's used to lying for a living. It might be tough to come in there and convince him we're "in the know" unless we have more information to back it up. Can we find out if he's seen a lawyer yet? We could pose as "new counsel" provided to him by his "benefactor", and see if he spills anything he shouldn't." Grease wipes his hands on his suit, which is getting a bit wrinkled. "I'll need to get this thing pressed, first."

[Chrome Head]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075

"Maybe Ramirez can help with getting us inside the prison without exposing himself, I dunno. He wants us to succeed so he might help us even if he's the one paying us to do the job. For getting Twoman to talk, my abilities can loosen his lips, but I dunno how safe it is to use magic inside a prison."

[Jack VII]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:20 PM, July 30th, 2075

Jack grimaces at Amy's suggestion, his tusks poking out even more. "Not so sure about that one, Amy. I figure they probably have some way to detect spellcasting, particularly in the visiting booth area."

Jack unslung his SMG and dropped the magazine on the counter. Locking back the charging handle, he snatched the round out of the air and placed it next to the magazine. Pushing on the retaining pin, he seperated the upper and lower receivers of the weapon and pulled out the bolt. Holding the bolt in his hand, he started examining it for signs of wear.

"It sounds like getting a hold of Ramirez is going to be a critical next step for us. Let's try and set up a meet with him for tomorrow. The Thomas murder site seems like it would be a pretty easy next step. The one I am not so sure about is the Taylor murder. Granted, we have ballistics that ties it to the Newton murder, but I still would like to do a little digging. Based on Manuel's records, they used to be partners, which means that Taylor might have been transferred out of smuggling as well."

Jack paused to blow into the bolt to make sure it wasn't blocked. Satisfied with the state of his gear, the ork squinted his eyes for a moment. "Say, have we tried searching the news feeds for information on these murders? The details on the Taylor case are really vague. It might be helpful to pinpoint it further."

Reassembling his SMG, Jack concluded, "Honestly, we could also be looking at this all wrong. While his personal notes point toward a different conclusion, maybe it was Manuel and Taylor who were dirty and Bradshere picked up on it. They jump ship before he catches them and then are both killed by the conspirators to tie up loose ends. Not saying I'm going that direction, but it's a possibility. We just need more information."

[Chrome Head]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:20 PM, July 30th, 2075

In answer to Jack's last comment, Amy proposes "Can't we ask Ramirez to give us the details on that case that caused trouble between Bradshere and Manuel? I know I keep bringing him up but he's on the inside and we have no one else."

[Jack VII]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:20 PM, July 30th, 2075

Nodding his head, Jack replied, "That could work, although we asked him for additional help during the meet and he seemed concerned that his digging might attract attention. Still, this might be important enough for him to do it."

[Always Overkill]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:15 PM, July 30th, 2075


Drave scanned some basic info on Twoman's jail in his AR while he listened to the teams thoughts. When Amy brought up Ramirez, he mentioned; "We should ask him to see if he can help get Twoman's SIN. We are going to need it to get onto the visitor's list at Twoman's holding facility. Whoever we send in will also need a verifiable SIN in order to even get on the list. Perhaps going the legal route and finding info from his lawyer would be our best option. I am a bit skeptical about hacking a prison host, I would need to go in and access it direct; and I don't think we want to stop and plan to break into a Lone Star Holding Facility."

[DrZaius]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:20 PM, July 30th, 2075

Grease nods in agreement with Overkill. "Yeah- that seems almost suicidal. It's hard enough to smuggle commlinks into those places, much less trying to sneak an entire person in. We'd either need to go the legitimate route, or think up something else entirely."

Swiping his AR display to review the information on the murder, Grease turns towards Overkill. "If we can't get in, why not get him out? He's in holding, what for? Is there a bail set? We could jump him after he gets out. Ramirez could probably get him cut loose, if we wanted."

[Chrome Head]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:20 PM, July 30th, 2075

"Yeah if he gets out we have more options. We might not be the only ones waiting to ambush him though."

"So at this point someone should just call up Ramirez, right? We can check what he knows and what he can or is willing to provide."

[Jack VII]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:20 PM, July 30th, 2075

Jack looked at the German elf and said, "Overkill, you've still go that burner commlink that Ramirez gave us, right? If you want to keep watch in the Matrix, one of us can give him a call."

Looking to everyone else, he continued, ""Before we do that, how do we want to meet up with him? We could just talk to him on the phone, but do we have a way to make sure the lines aren't being monitored? We're about to ask him for help with our sole Lone Star lead. We'd be fragged if anyone was listening in on either end of the line."

Pondering, Jack's eyes lit up with a spark as they searched out Grease. "You know... you pretty much have the perfect method of holding a discrete meeting with someone. Just pick Ramirez up as a taxi fare, drive him around a bit, and then drop him off. I've ridden with you, so I know anyone following is probably going to have a Hell of a time keeping up. As long as we scan the taxi for bugs before you leave and scan it again when Ramirez gets in, we should have a pretty good chance for a clean meet. You up for it?"

[DrZaius]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:20 PM, July 30th, 2075

Nodding to Jack, Grease says, "That works fine for me. I know that Overkill can use his deck as a jammer. It'll be a bit crowded in the cab if all four of us go; who do you think should attend? We may want Overkill and Amy to stick around here and lay low for a while, if we're concerned about them being followed."

Grease raises his hands in a defensive manner. "I'm not trying to exclude anyone, mind you. We all can go, if that's what we want."

[Jack VII]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:25 PM, July 30th, 2075

"No, I think you're right, Grease. As far as inside the cab, there should only be one person in the driver's seat, probably either you or me. The whole point is for it to look like a typical fare pick-up rather than a meeting in a taxi. With Amy and Overkill having a bit of heat on them, I think the last thing we want to do is risk burning the Johnson."

Raising a hand to forestall objections, he continued, "But that's not to say we shouldn't have a trail vehicle. While the BMW sticks out a bit, any eyes should be on the Americar if Ramirez is under watch. If bad drek goes down, the trail car could come to the rescue with the rest of the team."

"We might be putting the cart in front of the horse though, let's give Ramirez a call and see if he's agreeable to a meet."

[DrZaius]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:25 PM, July 30th, 2075

"Well, it's my cab, and I've got the papers for it, so I should drive it. That said, I'm not too comfortable trying to juggle two vehicles at once. And, no offense," This he addresses to Overkill, "I don't like anyone driving the BMW but me. I'm sure you can understand." He rubs his chin in thought. "Well, we've got some time to hash out the details. I'll message Ramirez and see if he can meet."

Grease taps out a message on a burner commlink to the commcode that Ramirez provided at the beginning of the run.
<<@Ramirez [Blocked] Hello. I have some new information on the case related to the Motel 6 on Smoky Hill Road in Aurora. I can arrange a safe locale to discuss it. Message back with your availability over the next 24 hours.>>

"Really, the four of us could all ride in the cab pretty easily along with Ramirez. We just have you three wait at a taxi stand where we're going to meet Ramirez, and then decide to share the ride with him; just say you're all going to the same place. That seems less suspicious to me than a cab picking someone up with three passengers already inside."

[Jack VII]

Nic's Knacks, Aurora Warrens, 6:25 PM, July 30th, 2075

Frowning, Jack said, "I don't think we should all be in the car. If any of us or Ramirez are being followed and we don't pick it up, we're all going to at least be considered possible contacts. Grease can get away with being in the same vicinity for professional reasons. Like Overkill said, we could park the Falke nearby. If the route stays close to the Falke's location, we should be able to act as backup if needed. That should probably be a last resort, I would guess the Falke has as much heat as Amy and Overkill do right now."

The ork was more than a little worried about putting Grease and Ramirez alone in a car together, but if the elf wanted to drive his own taxi there wasn't much to be done about it. It made sense, if the car were pulled over by the Star for some reason, at least Grease had a fake SIN to cover it.