Nothing's Free in the Free Zone (IC), Adventure 2: A Dish Best Served Cold Options

[Jack VII]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

With things going relatively well, Jack picked up his pace and sent a message to the team, taking deep breaths to maintain his oxygen level.

<<@Team [JustJack] I'd suggest sending over Mel, Huiquing, and Snap in that order. Mel should be able to frag with their devices without line of sight. Once we hit the wall, Sisco can go while I cover him, then I'll go over. Maybe ask one of the spirits to attack the men or at least slow them down while we're trying to get over?>>

[Lobo0705]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

As the team reached the wall, Snap concentrated for a moment, "We need to get over this wall again, carry the three of us over, and you may return to your metaplane."

The spirit, from its position several hundred yards to the west, vanished from the physical world, and then traversed the distance in a second, reappearing next to the tiny elven shaman. "As you command". It picked up Mel with little effort, carrying her over the wall and depositing her on the other side.

As Jack ran, he could clearly see Mel and the spirit as they were skylined against the night sky 10 feet up in the air. That may be a problem, knowing that if he could see her that easily, it wasn't a bad bet that his pursuers could as well. His right arm trapped his HK to his side, the sling holding most of the weight, and his left arm began to swing up and down as he lengthened his gait into a dead run. <<@Team [JustJack] They can't fail to see you guys getting over the wall, Sisco, how far behind me are they?>>

Sisco knelt down, looking through his scope as the spirit came back over the wall, its tree-like limbs grasping Huiquing. Snap was talking to him in reassuring tones, not sure if the man spoke English. "Its okay, we just need to get you to the other side of the wall."

Barking out a terse, "Tā shì hǎo de, zhǐshì ràng tā bèi nǐ!", he focused his attention on the pursuers, letting the software in his smartlink do all the calculations. <<@Team [Sisco] Jack, they are about 200 meters from here, and 150 meters behind you.">>

[Jack VII]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

Jack kept his head down and continued his dash, sending back a quick message.

<<@Team [JustJack] Keep 'em scoped, Sisco. If they start pointing or raising their weapons, fire to suppress. I'll take over when I get to your position.>>

The ork really wished he had thought to bring a smoke grenade.

[Lobo0705]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

Jack felt his heart-rate increase as he sprinted to the wall, and with a mental command turned on his internal air tank to increase the flow of oxygen to his body. He heard the sharp bark of automatic weapons fire behind him, and began zig-zagging, trying to make himself a harder target. The bullets ricocheted on the ground behind him passed him wide left. He was sweating, and it had nothing to do with the exertion of running.

Sisco saw one of Jack's pursuers slow down and let rip with a fusillade at Jack, but it seemed Jack had just managed to get out of effective range of the submachinegun the Triad member was carrying. The other two were running after him, although the ork was beginning to pull away from them.

Get closer.... checking the data from his smartlink, he knew they were still out of range of his Ingram. He was tracking one of the men, watching as the range closed quickly. Come on.... Come on....

After Sisco's quick outburst in Chinese, Snap saw Huiquing calm somewhat, allowing the spirit to lift him firmly but gently in its branch-like arms. The spirit launched itself in the air, high enough to clear the wall, and then gently descended to the other side. Mel helped steady Huiquing, the decker looking around and making sure there was no one on this side of the wall. Snap watched the spirit come back over, waiting for it to pick her up, when a fist-sized hole appeared in the center of the spirit's chest as it crested the wall. A millisecond later, the crack of a high-powered rifle hit her ears, and the spirit descended to the ground, moving to pick her up. Its face registered pain, but not comprehension, like a child who could not understand why someone had hit it.

[Lobo0705]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

Snap put her hand the spirit's cheek, its skin rough to her touch. "Shhh. It is okay. I release you, go back to your home where you will be safe, and I may call upon you another day." Backing her words with the force of her will, she dismissed the spirit back to its home. It nodded mutely, its form fading in front of her eyes as it dematerialized.

<<@Team [Snap] Guys, we need to get over that wall, and quickly. How far is the van from here?">>

Keeping her head low, she reached out the the Metaplane of Earth again, calling on another spirit. One of the less powerful ones answered quickly, appearing before her in the Astral, its hulking rock-like form obediently waiting for her. "Yes, Mistress?"


Now that she was on the other side of the wall, Mel breathed slightly easier, although she knew they weren't out of it yet. Keeping an arm on Huiquing, she focused on the Matrix for a moment.

<<Her persona launched itself up into the air, spinning and whirling as she played a song with a siren's call, its music touching all those nearby. She sorted through the icons that appeared, and quickly chose one whose code identified itself as a drone. She flew toward it, preparing to put a Mark on it in preparation for her next attack.>>

Sisco continued to aim as the Triad member gets closer. The first Triad, seeing his fire as ineffectual, lowers his weapon and begins to move quickly forward. The other two continue to move, closing the distance incrementally slower. Snap, worried about getting over the wall unseen, commands her spirit, "Conceal us, quickly now."

[Lobo0705]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

Jack, continues to sprint full out, bullets zinging past him as another of the triads opens fire at them. Swearing, he slows up just as he reaches the wall, sliding past Sisco. The lumbering earth spirit begins to manifest, slowly coalescing in the air beside Snap.

The other Triads are getting closer, but still are outside of Sisco's weapon. On the other side of the wall, Mel continued her assault on the drone, putting Mark on it. Huiquing, babbling something to her in Chinese, was looking around and tugging at her sleeve, motioning away from the wall.

[Lobo0705]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

Snap sees Jack reach the wall, and knowing he will be unprotected by her spirit's power, acts to make sure he is safe. Despite her fatigue, she summons the energy to weave the strands of magic around him, rendering him invisible to the pursuers.

Taking his eye off of their pursuers for a moment, Sisco slaps an ARO in the street just on the other side of the wall, and sends a message to his baby to come get them. We just need a few more seconds

Jack, panting a little from the exertion, drops to a firing stance, lining up the nearest Triad in his sights. With a thought he triggered the Flash Pak on his jacket, and send a message to the team as the strobes reached out to blind their pursuers.

<<@Team [JustJack] Get over the wall. I'll cover you.>>

The three members continued to advance, getting incrementally closer, holding their arms up to shield their eyes.

<<In her element now, Mel increased the speed of her rhythm, the notes flowing to the other drone, strengthening her hold over it, and yet another Mark appeared on the drone's icon. As she smiles in triumph, alarms start going off, her AR vision flashing red as her deck recognizes foreign coding attempting to insinuate itself into her Persona. With a series of commands, she strengthens her firewall, and rebounds the code back to its source, seeing one of her Marks appear on a neon tiger. The tiger roars at her in frustration, gathering itself to leap.>>

[Lobo0705]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

While maintaining her Invisibility spell on Jack, Snap decided to become more proactive. Throwing her hand forward in a punching gesture, she sent a bolt of mana flying across the grounds to strike at the nearest Triad. The distance and the strain proved to great, however, and the bolt went over the Triad's head as he ducked.

Even though she was focused on the Matrix and the new danger she faced, her ears picked up the sound of an engine starting nearby. Hoping it was Sisco's van, she prepared to strike back.

As the Triads ran, gaining ground on the team, Jack squeezed off a burst at the nearest one, but his aim was slightly off, most of the bullets missing or flattening against the man's body armor.

As the Triad's closed in, the Earth Spirit picked Snap up surprisingly gingerly given a being of its size, and holding her close, began to fly over the wall. Snap sends out a quick message, <<@Team [Snap] Let us know if something goes wrong on your side.>>

As it crested the top, Snap felt something punch her in the stomach, the high-velocity round going through the spirit, but losing enough velocity that it failed to penetrate her body armor. The spirit howled in agony, the sound similar to a landslide coming down a mountain, but it did not fall, and gently descended to the other side, depositing its mistress on the ground on the other side.

With their pursuers just entering effective range, Sisco, almost feeling the bullets in his back, ran to the wall, slowly scaling the vertical surface.

[Lobo0705]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

Two of the Triads fire from the hip as they move, peppering Jack with a hail of bullets. The strobing effect of his flash pak makes him almost impossible to see in the dark, and they are forced to fire in the general direction of the source of the blinding light. The range and his body armor allow him to shrug off the attacks with a few minor bruises.

Seeing Sisco struggling on the wall, Jack runs over and stands beneath him, allowing the rigger to use his shoulders to plant his feet, and with a heave Sisco is over the wall. He barely manages to scrape by the monowire, clearing it by an inch or so, and he drops to the ground at the other side. Huiquing, seeing someone who understands him, starts talking again, urgency in his voice. "Zhè shì shíjiān tài zhǎng. Huì chūxiàn zài tāmen de túzhōng zēngyuán!"

Snap concentrates, opening her third eye and looking around for any threats. The streets are still deserted at this time of the morning, and she sees her teammates and their new captive, or is it Johnson? Huiquing still showed the bright purples and reds of agitation, while Mel was a cool calming blue, her meat body at rest as she focused on the Matrix. Sisco radiated a bright orange that was rapidly cooling to green, now that he was over the wall he must be feeling better.

<<Ignoring the roaring tiger in her face, Mel focused on the task at hand, making sure the team wasn't in any immediate danger from another combat drone. She played a quick ditty on a harp, watching the notes travel back and forth from her to the drone's icon. Similar to echo-location, the notes translated into real-world data, pinpointing the drone in the air above them. She barely had time to register this before she could feel the tiger leaping at her...>>

[Lobo0705]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

<<Mel dodged at the last second, a burst of song slamming into the enemy decker's persona as he passed. A second Mark appeared on the tiger's flank, as Mel's code began burrowing its way into the persona. Seeking to take advantage, Mel launched an attack, but a swat of the tiger's paw reflected the code back at her, and she could feel her deck send her warning signals as circuitry started to fail. Grimacing, she and the tiger began to circle again, feinting back and forth with one another amidst the backdrop of the Chinatown Matrix. She was at a disadvantage, by the way the tiger moved, seeming to blur in her vision as it shifted from one spot to another, she knew he was in VR, but that couldn't be helped.

That thought proved a near fatal distraction, as the tiger leaped again for her throat, and she barely avoided the attack, jamming her instrument, a clarinet, like a dagger into the tiger's flank as it passed. She rolled to her feet, as the tiger grabbed the clarinet in its jaws, pulling it out, the instrument disintegrating into code, but a third Mark appeared on the tiger's flank. The tiger backed off, retreating a little, and Mel could feel her Mark under attack. Oh no you don't, she pulled out a harmonica and played a quick ditty, strengthening her hold on the decker, and the tiger roared in frustration as the Mark remained.>>

Jack, meanwhile, seized the opportunity to act. Dropping his HK, the sling catching it before it hit the ground, he hurled himself at the wall, triggering his Gecko gloves and kneepads. He went up the vertical surface like a spider, hearing shouts of frustration behind him, and bullets pinging all around him. Up and over he went, but he caught his arm in the monowire as he attempted to drop to the ground. The mono-filament wrapped around his arm, and as he dropped, it felt like it almost torn his arm out of his socket before it ripped free. He dropped to the ground, his left arm hanging limply at his side, his armor all torn up, but it had saved him maybe losing that arm.

Sisco reassured Huiquing, "Zūnjìng de xiānshēng, wǒ yǐjīng jiào chē lái jiē wǒmen. Kàn, tā láile.", and as though reading his thoughts, the van skidded to a stop in front of them. Sisco triggered the doors through his control rig, and the team got ready to hustle into the van.

[Lobo0705]

Chen Huiquing's Estate, CAS Zone, 4:59 AM, September 12, 2075

<<Mel struck at the enemy decker again, but the tiger persona leaped backward, the music slashing through the space the tiger occupied a moment before. Taking advantage of the breathing space, the tiger quickly scratched at its flank, and one of Mel's Marks faded abruptly and vanished.

Running forward, playing a clarion call on a trumpet, Mel pressed her advantage, and she could see the decker's persona start to break up under her attack. Roaring in pain, the tiger began to fade, and then popped out of existence as the enemy decker jacked out.>>


Unaware of the struggle going on in the Matrix, the rest of the team barreled toward the van.

<<@Team [JustJack] Let's get the frag out of here! Everyone in the van!>> Taking shotgun, Jack awkwardly hopped into the passenger seat, his arm feeling like it was dislocated.

Running around to the other side, Snap jumps into the back.

<@Team [Snap] Huiqing can sit in the middle. Let's go.>>

Huiquing didn't need a translator to follow suit, he quickly got into the van, sliding over next to Snap. Mel joined the two of them in the back, slamming the door shut, while Sisco headed to the driver's side, wincing at he pain in his ribs. "All aboard?" Without waiting for an answer, he floors it, getting the team on the road.

[Jack VII]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:00 AM, September 12, 2075

As Mr. T tore off into the what was left of the night, Jack took a few deep breaths. Seems I've lived para luchar otro día... Checking himself out, he winced at the pain in his shoulder, having wrenched it trying to get over the monowire fencing. On top of that, the sleeve of his jacket looked pretty rough. Fortunately, he knew a seamstress who could do something with it, even if it just consisted of effectively stitching the material back together.

<<@Team [JustJack] Everybody bueno? Let's reboot everything before we figure out what the drek we're going to do.>>

After the cat-and-mouse game they had played with Lynx and his crew during the last run, the last thing the ork wanted to worry about was having people tracking them down and ambushing them. Once his devices had finished rebooting, he sent another message.

<<@Team [JustJack] Ideas? We need to come up with something because our package here is going to start asking questions. We're totally off-script here, what's the plan?>>

[Lobo0705]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:00 AM, September 12, 2075

As Sisco takes a turn at high speed, Huiquing barks out a few short sentences in Mandarin. Leaning forward in the seat, he gestures emphasizing his words.

"Wǒmen bìxū líkāi zhèlǐ kuài. Wǒ bùnéng xiāngxìn wǒ de rènhé chángyòng de ānquán zhùsuǒ. Dài wǒ dào lǎo zhuāng píng chǎng yóu nán pǔ lā tè hé."

An ARO appears on the ork's dashboard, a particular building blinking. Leaning back, he glances around at the team.

"Wǒ de shēnjià yuǎn bùzhǐ huózhe, nǐ bǐ sǐle."

[Jack VII]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:00 AM, September 12, 2075

Hoping to put Huiquing at ease, Jack said aloud, "Dāngrán, she zhì gāi wèi shì."

He then followed up with a message to the team.

<<@Team [JustJack] Huiquing is directing us to a bottling plant by the river, apparently not one of his normal safehouses. He also seems to know we may not necessarily be his amigos, he told us he's worth more to us alive than dead. Everybody stay on your toes, we'll need to check out this plant before we go in. We also need to sweep Huiquing for bugs and devices. Who can handle that? Mel?>>

[PraetorGradivus]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:00 AM, September 12, 2075

<<@Team[Sisco] While Mel looks up the plant, why don't we stop at a 24hr Stuffer Shack and buy a cheap prepaid comlink. Make a call to your guy, see what he wants done with this package and then toss the comlink. Or does someone have a burner comlink on them already?">>

[Melpomene]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:00 AM, September 12, 2075

Mel was still coming down off the high she was feeling after successfully dealing with both a rigger and another decker, when she got Jack's request about checking Huiquing, then Sisco's question about a burner.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a burner, tossing it to Sisco. "Here you go."

She then regarded the Triad leader, looking him over in AR for any wireless signals.

[Melpomene]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:00 AM, September 12, 2075

Mel stares at Huquing, and a smile creeps across her face.

You can't hide from me...

At the speed of thought, Mel digs deeper into the target's form, digitally sniffing out a number of items running silent.

[Note: I don't know if Sisco has been added to the @Team list, but I will add him here if need be]

<<@Team [Melpomene] He's got three wireless items, all running silent. Commlink, datajack, and his clothing. At this point, he's used the first two to forward the ARO to Sisco, and the clothing activated an auto-injector.>>

[Jack VII]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:00 AM, September 12, 2075

Jack nodded at Mel's message. Craning his neck around, he said, "Zhǔxí xiānshēng, wǒmen xūyào nǐ guānbì nǐ de shèbèi. Nǐ kěyǐ gēnzōng"

Keeping his eye on Huiquing, he sent the team a message.

<<@Team [JustJack] I just told him to turn his devices off. Keep an eye on him and let me know if he agrees.>>

[Lobo0705]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:01 AM, September 12, 2075

Huiquing nods, and although makes no other outward movement, Mel notices his icons slowly fade from view.

[Melpomene]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:01 AM, September 12, 2075

After a moment, Mel nods.

"He's off."

[PraetorGradivus]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:01 AM, September 12, 2075

Sisco is amused that Mel thinks he can contact a fixer whose name he didn't even know.

Tossing the burner to Jack Sisco says, ""Here you go Jack- place the call."

[Jack VII]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:01 AM, September 12, 2075

Jack turned the commlink over in his hands. Something about contacting Chapel didn't sit well with him. The fixer had offered bonus pay for killing Huiquing and the team had just happened upon what appeared to be an assassination attempt of the man? It seemed way too coincidental. Would Chapel sell them out? He had always been closer to Grease than any of them. Was Grease even arrested? Could that have been a play to remove him from the picture while the rest of the team drove headlong into an ambush, possibly to take the fall for Huiquing's murder?

The theories whirled around his head while he punched in Chapel's commcode.

<<@Chapel [Blocked] Buenos Noches, we've run into a problem down south. Someone else decided to visit the target and they weren't looking to borrow things. Not sure if we can complete the primary objective at this point. Maybe too hot. Let us know if you hear anything, we're going to try to find somewhere safe to hunker down.>>

Keeping hold of the commlink for now, the ork rebooted the device and set it to run in Silent Mode. Following up, he sent a message to the team.

<<@Team [JustJack] OK, I messaged Chapel. Hopefully he has his ear to the ground and has an idea of what's going on. Let's take our guy to the suggested location. If it checks out, we hunker down and find out from him what he thinks is going down.>>

[Melpomene]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:01 AM, September 12, 2075

<<@Team [Melpomene] Copy that. When we get to the location, I plan on sweeping the area for devices...I'll go hot-sim, so my meat-side will be inert.>>

[PraetorGradivus]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:01 AM, September 12, 2075

<<@Team[Sisco] Sure thing. On our way.>>

[Chrome Head]

Chinatown, CAS Zone, 5:01 AM, September 12, 2075

<<@Team [Snap] When we get there, I'll ask my spirit to check it out before we go in. I wouldn't trust Huiqing, and I don't think we need to be gentle. He must have an exit strategy in his own safe house, so do we have something to tie up his arms and legs? >>