Takashi had nearly lined up his sights on the fleeing man when he heard Mack call out his offer and, shocked, he turned to look over at Mack.

What's he doing? Takashi wondered. You never freely give such information to the enemy. If the swordsman had even a simple pair of cybereyes, their opponents would soon have detailed knowledge of at least some of the team's appearance, equipment, behavior...

Takashi sighted in on the man again, and nearly squeezed the trigger, but... no, he had offered his assistance to the team for their mission. And one of his team had made a straightforward offer. He would not discredit Mack's word like that. And maybe they would be lucky and the man wouldn't drop the pistol, Takashi thought darkly, though he feared that this assignment had become more complicated.

Of course, he responded to Mack's question of him, maintaining his outwardly-restrained demeanor, if you'd be able to collect Sweeps.

He finally moved away from the corner that had served him so well in the last few seconds, moving so as to be able to keep both the fleeing man and the gang foot soldier covered, and mentally marking the locations of the Smartgun Xs as he went. Then he crouched a few feet away from the ganger, waiting to ensure that the swordsman responded to Mack's demand before asking his questions.

Team Ice
As the Katana wielder disappears into the smoke you hear what you assume to be the clatter of his pistol hitting the ground. Silence envelops the now deserted street in front of Icelady's shop, the murmer of the city fading to a distant hum. As the adrenalin flees your system the lone survivor's cries come into sharp focus.

Takashi stalks towards him, like a predator, calmly changing the clip in his gun. The ganger looks at him in fear, trying to crab away. Takashi pushes a booted foot into his injured shoulder and he cries out.

In the mean time Mack covers the distance to Sweeps in two, maybe three massive strides. Kneeling down you begin looking for lethal wounds. You don't find anything external... There might be internal damage though. Anything was better than leaving him here though so you quickly scoop him into a fireman's carry and set off to the east. Hopefully Elfin-Face calls soon.

Takashi looked down at the ganger staring up at him. Best to make this quick, he thought. He started to talk in a calm, conversational voice, with nothing overtly threatening in his words - he let his Predator, trained at the ganger's left eye and kept just out of the ganger's reach, do that for him.

"Three questions. That's all," he said. "Then you'll be free to go, wherever you want," adding emphasis to the word 'then' with a subtle motion of his pistol.

"Where was that captive being taken? Second, Akamura has recently taken another captive, a man known as Angel. Where is he being held? And lastly, where is Akamura herself, and how would we get to her?"

Finished, he watched the ganger over the Predator's sights as he waited briefly for the man's response.

At least he wouldn't have to kill this one, too. As long as they were already letting information on the end of the encounter get back to Akamura, there would be little harm in allowing this low-level foot soldier to survive.

Team Van

You let out a grunt as the FRT Officer's armored kneepad digs into the small of your back. As he wrestles your arms into a pair of cuffs he shouts. "Keep yer fuckin face down!!" As he drags you to your feet you see one of the other officers shove one of the injured gangers over. A second officer standing over him appears to be distracted by an AR display... You can't tell for sure, your comlink isn't working. However you do hear him mutter something, at which point the assault officer, nods pushes the barrel of his shotgun onto the gangers head and executes him. The combat hacker pulls a pistol out of his belt and moves to the ganger that Padre had shot with the stick'n shock and kills him too.

The officer dragging you along shoves you against the citymaster, roughly frisking you for weapons. Other officers are doing the same to your companions. It looks like the officer with Sybercat is being just a little bit less than professional. You see other officers banging on (kicking them in if they don't open fast enough) nearby doors and gathering 'witness statements' from terrified civilians. They point towards the van, and the roof and jabber for a few seconds until the officer moves on. You are shoved into the back of the citymaster, your cuffs attached to shackles built into the bench seats. A masked FRT officer sits at the rear of the passenger cab, idly twirling a stun baton in his hand. "No fucking talking OK?" With a growl the citymaster begins moving, hopefully Sybercat managed to get a call off to her lawyer.

Team Ice

The ganger stammers, staring down the barrel of your pistol waving his hands in front of his face and squeezing his eyes shut.

"Th-th-the bbboat! The Boat! They're all on Kat's boat! Don' shoot me man! Please?" You remember that Amakura San keeps a large pleasure yacht that she does most of her business out of. She likes staying mobile and in a position that she can easily jet out to international waters or Cascade Ork territory if she needs to leave Seattle for any reason.

It's obvious you aren't likely to get much more information out of the ganger so you begin running down the street after Mack. Glancing over your shoulder you think you notice the Katana wielder watching you from around the corner.

Upon reaching the condemned apartment complex you finally catch up with Mack who has Sweeps laying on the ground, his head resting in his jacket. After cooling your heels for a few moments a large black Mercedes with tinted windows slowly rolls around the corner. As it pulls up beside you the window rolls down and you see Elfin-Face wave you over. Eyeing Sweeps he says. "If he is bleeding, there is a tarp in back. It will save you cleaning my seats afterwards. I will take you to a Street Doc. Is there anyone you prefer?"

Team Van
The Citymaster twists its way through Seattles streets. It feels like it is taking forever, especially since you can't even check your comlink's time display. Eventually you are brought to a precinct office. Each of you is led into a different room and cuffed to a chair... The room is completely empty apart from a two way mirror, and a small drone sitting directly across from you.

Eventually the door opens. You hear a man's raised voice coming from the other side.

HONEST! citizens, are ambushed in the streets by gangs that YOU have failed to control and then treated as CRIMINALS?! You should count yourselves lucky if they elect not to pursue a civil case in this matter for your NEGLIGENCE! in providing medical care despite OBVIOUS! injury." an Elf dressed in a suit that's probably worth more than you stand to make on this job sweeps into the room behind a frazzled looking booking officer who fumbles with his keys, finally unlocking your cuffs.

Stammering slightly umm... I'm sorry Sir. It seems there was a misunderstanding... you're free to go...

The Lawyer hovers over him. "AND I expect you to allow my matrix specialist to examine your records and ensure that nothing was gathered from these individuals without a warrant!"

Yes... of course sir.

As you leave the building you find your comlink is working again. You also notice a text message sitting in your inbox from "Colefield and Sons"... It's a bill for 6000

Outside the building the Lawyer thanks you briefly for your business, gives you his office's com-number and assures you that the matter has been dealt with, before his chauffeur opens the door to his car and he leaves.

Entering Elfin-Face's Mercedes
"No, he's not bleeding, and my armor will keep the blood off your seats. But I could use a doc to patch things up a bit.'

Mack then leans back a bit, resting the White Knight in his lap.
"May I leave the weapon with you while we see the doc?"

After Takashi has gotten seated, Mack looks over at him. "Nice shooting. I hope you got something useful from the last guy. We are going to need some sort of lead."

At the doc, Mack arranges to get first aid, paying a generous tip on top of the base fee (net 1,200).

After confirming the severity, or lack thereof, of his wounds, Mack then heads for home (collecting his gun on the way.)

When Mack hears from the rest of the team, he will inquire as to how badly damaged the van turned out to be, and whether his case is recoverable, or taken by the cops as "evidence." (Grenades and ammo.)

Responding to Mack, Takashi says, "Thank you. Your accurate fire and flashbangs served well, too. The last one did indeed believe that he knew the location of both the captive who was your original responsibility, as well as where your employer was being taken - Kat Akamura's yacht. While Sweeps recovers from his injuries, I will see if I can learn anything more about it."

After they arrived at the doc's establishment, Takashi figured he might as well have this doc take care of Sweeps, at least for the moment. He didn't know anyone better, after all, and who knew when the others would get out of custody. After helping Mack to get Sweeps into the doc's place, he asks Mack if he'll split the cost of a day's care for Sweeps. He also asks the doc if there's a spot in the place where he can set up and rest in order to keep a watch on Sweeps, offering the doc an extra 50 if there is indeed such a spot.


Takashi didn't really feel like he needed a doc's care for himself. His chest still felt pretty tight after that initial blast when in the van, but he'd come through the fight at the team's employer's business relatively unscathed.

After settling in, Takashi commed a message to Anguirus, the Yak fixer who had been serving as the intermediary between him and Usaka-sama.

<<Anguirus, I am seeking a few pieces of information on Akamura-san. She is apparently maintaining herself on her yacht for the moment, along with some prisoners. Do you know if there's a feasible way to get onto that boat? The open and covert approaches seems unlikely to succeed, assuming adequate security precautions. Possibly there could be a way to infiltrate by means of any the vessels that might bring food/supplies to the ship or that dispatch personnel from it? Or taking the place of personnel due to make a report? Any knowledge on security measures for these, as well as for the ship itself, would be greatly appreciated.

Even if you do not know, if you could determine who might have that knowledge and is not currently aboard the yacht, it would be equally useful.

A second tack: Even if she largely confines herself to her yacht, Akamura-san may have some business which requires personal meetings. If you can find out if she has any such scheduled, or give me warning when you hear of one, that could serve as well. Alternately, if you can determine any times she came to shore recently, I might serve to duplicate the reason, and so arrange a meeting.

Thank you for your help, my friend.>>

Takashi: A few hours later you get a com-call from Anguirus. <<Takashi, good to hear from you... I think. You're serious about taking on Amakura? I've been thinking about this and I'm not sure what the best course of action against Amakura would be...

Important question though, How soon do you need to get on the yacht? If you want I could sit a couple of boys on a stakeout... see if they can pick up on a routine that you could hijack. If time's an issue though... Well just thinking out loud but there's a fair bit of traffic in and out of the sound, so a covert approach might not be as tough as you think... I know Usaka-San is expecting a shipment to be arriving tomorrow... to the best of my knowledge they don't have any cargo for the return trip. I could at least give them a call for you, see how much they would charge to get you there. I don't suppose any of your crew know how to dive do they?>>

4th January - 5th January 2070 --Somewhere in the Seattle Metroplex--

As the bulk of the team spend the next couple days restlessly bedridden the news-nets become a close friend. Sybercat refuses to take any time to recover. She and Elfin-Face bury themselves in the garage, trying to jury rig the decrepit van that took you to the Partyzone back into service. Any offers to help are given a cool response, she claims she's 'too busy' to try and teach you how to moonlight as a mechanic.

One of the first stories that catches your attention is the takeover of Xanadu studios by a large Japanese holding cooperation. The rights of Dark Angel's music are in dispute with a legal firm based out of Cal-Free claiming that they have evidence that Dark Angel is still alive.

Also splashed across the headlines is that that Seattle just suffered it's 10th murder (of a SINner naturally) of the year. The newsnets are screaming about it, apparently Seattle as hit the '10' mark sooner even that last year, right after the Crash... Of course last January sanity was just beginning to return. Seattle had had it's lowest murder rate in months. The chaos had just worn people out. At any rate, the victim was a woman named Patricia Lamont, who was found shot at close range in her Everett apartment. A domestic dispute with her estranged boyfriend is the suspected motive and Lone Star has a warrant out for her ex.

Interestingly however the article also mentions that she was known in Seattle's music community as Dynamo Blue. The owner of Xanadu studios who have gone through a whirlwind of growth since acquiring the rights to a Nova Hot street musician named Dark Angel, who also died under suspicious circumstances.

The social networks are a buzz with rumors about Dark Angel. Some are claiming this is a massive marketing stunt by Horizon, there's even a few that have claimed he's become a fucking Immortal Elf... Or is just Harlequin in disguise. The rift seems to run deep among Elf lovers... The first church of Elvis is claiming he's The King re-encarnated, a woman in Detroit claims that the UCAS govt. killed him because of the 'message' in his lyrics, and those are just the theories that are getting serious debate. It's really quite ridiculous. There's even a P2.0 feed of a batch of runners out of LA who've been hired to track him down. The Star has pretty much ignored them so far, but then again apart from blaring their identities all over the matrix, they're being pretty subtle.

The guest login (lets you lurk, no posting) you have for JackPoint Seattle is buzzing with news of these out of town runners. Apparently they're causing quite a ruckus, blundering around, trying to get into the scene. No one from Seattle's shadow community though is real keen on getting their faces plastered all over the nets so the visitors are stuck out in the cold... One particular posting though really cuts to the heart of the matter, <<Fucking LA. What the hell's wrong with that place?>>

There is some good news though. The weather-nets are reporting a massive arctic low that's stalling over the Bearing Sea. The whole northwest is a miserable ice cube and the snot is blowing right down into Seattle. Sleet, snow, and heavy fog are all forcast to nail Seattle over the next couple days... It'll be a lot easier to get to Kat if the weather sucks.

6th January 2070, 06:20 --Somewhere in the Seattle Metroplex--

Takashi: You comlink buzzes you awake. Fumbling in the half light you see Angurias has left you a text message.
<<Hoi chummer. Called in a favor for you with one of Usaka-San's boat smugglers. Names Relic. He says he can get you on and off Kat's boat no sweat, 10,000 nuyen. Hopefully that isn't too rich for you. Anyhow he wants you to meet him at a bar called BeachCombers in Snomish at 8PM. He'll take care of you from there. Just to warn you though, he has a bit of a rep. Careful how much you trust him. There's been a few times he's skimmed a little too much off the top for Usaka's liking. Best I could do on short notice though.

Fully awake you look outside. The weather is just as miserable as forecast. The rain started freezing last night and the streets are clogged with traffic. A thick blanket of smog has enveloped the city, making the lights of the city look like pinpricks glowing sickly in a greenish gray soup.

4th January 2070, Mack's home
Sitting home, recovering, and thinking through what little he confidently knows, Mack concludes that if we are going to assault a boat, he may want better gear.

<To:Captain Jack Frasier:
Hello Captain. Any chance I could buy you dinner and maybe get some ideas from you? Mack>

Later that day, Mack gets a reply.
<A late dinner works. Let's try the New Barrel, by the river. Around 2100.>
Mack confirms the appointment, and does a little searching to find the place. It is in a reasonable neighborhood, so a heavy cab ride will work fine.
Getting there, it looks to be a relatively new (or refurbished) joint. The sign outside seems to be built around a rifle barrel? Stepping inside, the walls have pictures of barrels of almost every sort.
Gun barrels, tank barrels, beer barrels, pickle barrels, barrel nuts and barrels of nuts.
Mack does draw some attention walking in, but not too much. The place is busy, but not full. Looking around, Mack spots the Captain at a table towards the rear, and goes and joins him.

The conversation touches on a few things. Politics (Mack doesn't much care, the Captain is interested in the upcoming elections), law enforcement, wars,
etc. Mack does mention having had an argument with a sword.
"The sword part came out okay. The rest of that encounter did not go so well."

Some discussion ensures about swords, knives, guns, combat ranges, etc... Some digression into urban vs wilderness encounters. SOme discussion of the difference between wars and other encounters. All the usual stuff...

They each order a meal. The Captain comments that he has heard this joint has good whiskey, and orders one. Mack has beer.
When the drinks arrive, the Cpatin tries his and comments that it is actually good. "Glad we are trying this barrel."

After a bit, Mack comments...
"From some of what has gone down, I may end up in some heavier fighting. I tried looking up what I could about better gear, but it is hard to tell what to make of things. Any opinions?"

Captain Jack looks at him, thinks for a minute, and then says
"Well, yeah, more armor is almost always better. And you can sure carry more. But most of the stuff attracts a lot of attention. It sure wouldn't work to wear full military armor around here. I assume you want something more discrete than a full police tactical suite? (Those are actually pretty nice, by the way.)

What most folks seem to do is add Form Fitting Body armor under their city armor. The trench coat you were wearing coming in can easily handle it. Most Armor Jackets are adjustable enough to manage. Anyone taking a look can tell that even for a Troll you would be bulky. But it does not shout the the cops COME EXAMINE ME."

Mack: "that sounds like about what I am looking for. Know anyone who can get it relatively soon, in my size?"

CJ: "I can ask around. I think I know someone. After all, there are more big folks in our game than many others. You doing okay on the money side these days?

Mack: "Doing okay. Met up with some useful folks. By the way, any suggestions for taking folks off a boat? Somehow, standing at the front throwing knives at everyone I can see does not seem sufficient."

CJ: "You always did like the simple approach to a fight:-) And no, standing on the bow seeing who yo can stikc with a knife usually is not the best way. One thing, if you can, get the plans of whatever boat it is. If not that, at least get some general boat information. Generally, the pilot house and the engine room are the key to a boat. If you need someone who knows that stuff, I can probably find someone."

Talk then turns to other topics, including the latest rumors with regard to military guns. They touch briefly on knives. Mack does mention he saw a beautiful one the other day, but does not say more. Mack does provide his measurements (commlinks are handy) so that the Captain can try to find him the armor.

Late the next day, Mack gets a message from Captain Jack saying that he has the merchandise. They meet for a late lunch on the 6th at a pseudo-aztlan pseudo-food restaurant (Its all soy, but pretends otherwise.) When he gets there, Mack realizes why the Captain picked it. The place is almost full of people with packages. It seems this is a convenient stop for some sets of shoppers.

In between eating, and trying to talk quitely over the noise, they chat about people, etc. Mack learns that some old comrades have headed off for another war, but that the Captain is sticking around the area. Mack transfers funds for the armor, and after a while leaves with it.
At home, with a little work, Mack figures out how to adjust both the body armor (it was close, but still needed a little work) and his regular stuff. Fortunately, the knowsoft (if you can call it that) with the suit had enough information to make the adjustments even for someone as ham-handed as Mack.

<<No, no I don't think we'll be moving immediately, and best to avoid haste, anyway. Just take your time, and see if you can figure out a way to get us out there that isn't too obvious.

Some things you might find out for me: what kind of yacht is it, and who manufactured it - we might be able to pull plans for the builder's yachts from promotional materials or more readily accessible locations. Such ships are certainly customized, but it provides a place to start.

Also, if you could find any information on present or former crew who are not currently on board, I might pay them a visit. If you could figure out what means might be best used to persuade them, that would be ideal, of course. I am a little light on cash right now, but there are other possible means of persuasion.

One last thing: if you could find a source for 100 rounds of explosive ammunition for an Ares Alpha for me, I would appreciate it - I have that much cash at least, and I suspect I'll need whatever edge I can find.

Sincere thanks,

T>>


After waiting until the sky lightens to a level where it would be polite to send a comm, Takashi informs the rest of the team of the meet.

<<Well, it seems that we have one possible way of approaching Akamura-san's yacht. A contact of mine has informed me that a boat smuggler - named Relic - has agreed to get us there and back. His price is 10K. I do not have sufficient funds available to cover an equal share of that at the moment, but I assure that should we resolve things successfully, I will more than recompense anyone who can assist me.

I also suggest that we try to get as much out of the 10K as possible. I do not know this smuggler's resources, but if we could get a visual inspection on the boat before we make our approach - by drone or in person - it would surely help in planning and preparation. He is reputed to be somewhat over-acquisitive, so do not feel too constrained in acting honorably with him.

He has set up a meeting for this evening at 20:00 at BeachComber's in Snohomish. Until then.>>

With the message sent, Takashi settled back into another day of doing little. After yesterday's rest, his chest felt much better. He didn't appear to have suffered a cracked rib, but his side was still bruised and it made him a little stiff. A day of relaxation and then a bit of stretching should have him back in optimal shape, which he'd definitely need to be once the team made their move.

6 January 2070, Mack's
Once he is up and moving, Mack reads the comm message.
<Takashi, I can front you your share. We clearly are going to need the boatman. I have a meeting this afternoon, but can easily make the appointment. See you there.>

--6 January 2070, Faith Catholic Church Sanctuary--

"...please, heavenly Father, be with those who suffer from the violent actions of the few, guide them and protect them. I pray that You bring an end to this senseless violence. I don't know how much longer Your flock can take these times. Please, I beseech Thee! Bring everlasting Peace to these people. I pledge to Thee, once again, my body, my life, and my soul. May the actions of my hand and the words of my mouth be righteous in Thy eyes. Please, place the Protection of the Archangel Michael upon me, and may Thy Will be supreme.

And shepherds we shall be,
For Thee, my Lord, for Thee.
Power hath descended forth from Thy hand,
That our feet may swiftly carry out Thy command.
So we shall flow a river forth to Thee
And teeming with souls shall it ever be.
In Nomine Patri, et Filii, et Spiritūs Sancti.
Amen"

With that, Padre rises smoothly to his feet and sighs, looking over the empty sanctuary. What a week it's been. So much has happened, and so much more is going to be happening. I really need a vacation from all of this. Ah well... Lord's work is never done, and neither is mine.

He quickly makes his way to his office and scoops up his commlink, reading the message from Takashi and sighs, thinking deeply for a moment before sending a response to everyone.

<<Comrades, I apologize for my lack of attention recently. I have been besieged by numerous issues and dilemmas. I shall endeavor to insure that my 'personal' life does not bleed into my 'professional' life any more. I believe we should take time to put together something of a "mission fund" sometime soon. That way, instead of riffling through our pockets to come up with sufficient funds for mission necessary expenses, the person arranging things can pull the funds from that account. It would certainly save time, if nothing else. What say you?>>

6th January 2070, 13:50 --Somewhere in the Seattle Metroplex--
You get a message back from Anguras
<<Hoi, Takashi. Unfortunatly I wasn't able to uncover much on the Yacht. Registered in Seattle as the Shio Zuchi. It is a custom job, manufactured by a Renraku subsidy. Based around the hull of their SeaMaster 2064 but based on that all I can tell you is that it has an armoured hull and a high efficiency gas turbine engine with 2 screws located on the lower deck amidships. 52M long by 8 M wide.

As far as crew goes... Wasn't able to find out much on actual crew members but I did get permission from Usaka San to attach dossiers on a couple of her lieutenants that might be onboard.

QUOTE

Kat Amakura:
Born: April 25th 2035, Osaka Prefecture
Kat Amakura is an Oyuban in Seattle. Unawakened, Cybernetic capablilities are unknown, little evidence of extensive modification.

Monk:
Born: Unknown
Monk is a member of the First Church of Christ Transhumanist, a radical sect combining Christian doctrine and Nietzschian philosophy into a belief that through extensive modification of the human body they are capable of attaining enlightenment. Cyberzombification is seen as the ultimate human endeavor. Extensively modified with obvious Cyberware Monk is a capable combatant in any discipline from martial arts to heavy weapons and has extensive armour augmentation built into his body. There have been reports of him continuing to fight after being shot with an anti material rifle.

Kiddo:
Born: January 20th 2046, Seattle Metroplex
Kiddo is the public face of Kat's muscle. His augmentations are extensive, but less obvious than Monk's. Always dresses in a clean cut manner and uses a Katana as his primary weapon.

Mushi:
Born: August 15th 2022, location Unknown
Mushi is Kat's magical support. Has little direct combat capabilities, focus' his efforts on controlling the battle and supporting more physical combatants. Extensively tattooed and has long fake fingernails.

and of course I would be able to get you some explosive ammunition. 100 rounds will cost 500 >>

19:45 6th January --The BeachCombers Bar, Snomish--

Sybercat has managed to hammer her second van into something resembling transportation. It ain't pretty, with re-enforcing struts and armour plating covering the interior but it'll serve. passenger compartment has two long bench seats running down the sides and the exterior has been painted a uniform black but she warns you to keep the windows cracked since the muffler is leaking exhaust into the cab.

The bar isn't bad. Mostly humans and orks, with a strong 'irish pub' decor. An irish rock band is playing over the trid sets. The clientele mostly look like trade workers and a fair number of them sport jumpsuits worn by the large agri-corps. They seem to be keeping to themselves and there is absolutely nothing of note on the astral plane other than the fact that almost everyone is in various stages of drunkenness. A small stage is raised up at one end though the evenings entertainment seems to be a half dozen drunken human gangers with shaved heads who've climbed onto it and started singing along with the music. You're not overly familiar with their colours but judging by the glances that Loki and Sweeps get, it looks like they might be Humanists to one degree or another. An AR menu offers a standard range of soybeers and a few hard liqours, nothing fancy though. This is a blue collar bar and it shows.

Sybercat pauses at the entrance and scans the room, pausing for a moment to return the cold stares of the gangers.

"So Takashi, you got a description of this guy? I don't want to stick around here any longer than we need to. Those punks probably won't cause us any problems now, but I'd rather not stick around in case more of em show up."

"No, I did not receive one." Takashi having made the same judgment 'Cat had, he added, "However, we do not appear to be the usual clientele, so he should be able to find us with little trouble, if he so wishes," and walked towards the bar.

Drinking when on the job was not something he would have ever considered before his year of forced inactivity, but it had turned out to be useful to have a habit when one becomes cut off from his entire life, and alcohol had served. The responsibility to the mission and his desire for a drink warred for a moment, but by the time he got to the bar one side had won out. He asked for a Japanese soybeer, and upon receiving it thanked the bartender before taking up a position to the side of the bar with his back to the wall, where he could simultaneously nurse his beer and keep the entire bar's interior under view.

Mack looks at the bar and the gangers. Walking a bit behind Takashi, he concludes that yes, he should order something, and gets a beer as well. If the gangers start giving him looks, he will grin back at them. Otherwise, he will just keep looking around.
<I guess poking holes in their heads would not actually teach them anything.>

19:45 6th January --The BeachCombers Bar, Snomish--

Padre looks through the crowd and sighs. This could be trouble... and we don't even know what our contact looks like? Well, there's only one place to start, I suppose.

"I'm going to ask at the bar... hopefully someone there will know something." He says as he prepares to make his way over to the bar. Upon arrival, he flags down a bartender and orders the drink with the lowest alcohol content available, tipping well when the drink is delivered. "Listen, I'm looking for a guy named Relic. You know who he is?"

19:45 6th January --The BeachCombers Bar, Snomish--

The bartender is a heavy set human, probably in his late 40's by the look of it. As he pours everyone's drinks he nodds slightly towards Padre and says. "Yeah... Over there." he points towards a balding, unkept weaselly looking man with a few days growth of beard on his face. "He said he was expecting a crew... Also said you'd be taking care of his tab. He's up to 150 nuyen."

As you approach the table you notice that there is a half empty bottle of cheap whiskey sitting beside him. Relic seems to have decided that the niceties of a glass just get in the way of his alcohol consumption and he's taking long swigs directly from it. The smell of liqour is strong on his breath as you sit down and you brace yourself for the ramblings of a drunk only to be surprised when he speaks quite clearly, his piercing blue eyes suggesting that he's used to hard bargaining.

"So you're the crew that Anguras tol me about? Fine. Ten large and I get you on the boat. If ya need it I can do drones too. They'll cost ya an extra five. At that he drains the last of the whiskey from his bottle and slams it down on the table with a sharp exhalation of breath.

19:45 6th January --The BeachCombers Bar, Snomish--

Padre blinks in surprise for a moment before smiling cheerfully at Relic. "Come now, friend. Surely you can accomplish this task for 5 instead. I'm certain Anguras would be most appreciative..."

Padre's smile stays on his face as he settles into the seat across from Relic and prepares for a most annoying negotiation.

20:10 6th January --The BeachCombers Bar, Snomish--

After what feels like an eternity negotiating you think you've managed to get a pretty good deal. For seven thousand nuyen Relic will get you onto the boat, wait for up to twenty minutes provided he doesn't come under fire from anything heavier than an assault rifle or light machine gun, (his exact words were "If they shoot a fragging rocket at me, I'm outa there. You bastards can hang fer all I care.") and he says he has room for up to three more people on the boat if you're bringing company. He reserves the right to shoot them himself if they start rocking the boat though.

21:25 6th January --An anonymous inlet in Snomish--

After a short drive through the backroads of Snomish you arrive at a small bay surrounded by by forest. Through the trees you can see the dim glow of greenhouses and hydroponic facilities pumping out soy and krill for the masses in the plex but for some reason the sprawl hasn't extended to this patch of land yet.

It takes you a moment to even see Relics boat. All that appears above the waves, tied to an old wooden pier is a low black teardrop shaped dome only rising a couple of feet above the water. It's only about five feet long though, how the hell everyone will fit into it, particularly Mack is a mystery. Relic jumps out of the van and walks onto the pier. As he does so the dome rises up a foot or so and peels back, and you see that most of the 'boat' is actually below the waterline. That's when it hits you, it's a semi-submersible. Mack you remember hearing about these things being developed by one of the mega's... Renraku possibly as a means to deploy special forces soldiers to coastal targets. Looks like smugglers have realized that they'd be useful in their line of work too.

As you enter into the boat you see it's hardly spacious. In fact with the top of the dome only being about four feet above the 'deck' Mack almost has to lay down just to fit. Not that it really matters, there aren't even seats other than Relic's pilot chair. Upon seeing your expressions Relic grins somewhat nastily and says. "Well get in! I ain't runnin a cruise line. A crate o' BTL's don't care too much bout what the seating's like. Hopefully you folks don't mind bein' friendly."

Once everyone is crammed in, the dome slides back over the hull and after a second of total darkness the inside of the dome is suddenly lit up by a 360 degree view of outside. The display is in the sickly green of IR enhanced nightvision and you see Relic strapping himself into his chair in the faint light. You hear a whispering hiss of an electric motor coming from underneath your feet as the boat begins pulling away from the pier. For all his faults Relic at least seem to be very good at what he does.

After what feels like an eternity you see the sleek outline of what you can only assume to be Kat's yacht in the distance. Relic slows the boat to a crawl, and the hiss of the electric motor becomes almost impossible to hear. A few more tense minutes and Relic pilots the boat to the yachts hull. The canopy hisses back silently again and Relic turns to you and whispers. "Ok, it's your show now. You have twenty minutes."

21:26 6th January --An anonymous inlet in Snomish--

Mack stands up and stretches for a minute. After checking that the White Knight is strapped to his back and covered, and there a plenty of knives easily accessible (plus a few flash-bangs in the pockets), Mack puts on the Gecko gloves and checks the rope wrapped around his waist.

<Okay, I'll go up here. Assuming it it is quiet, I'll tie the rope off and drop it back for anyone coming up my way.
I'll hold that section so when you folks get teh captives we can get away again. I won't be much help in the narrow boat corridors.>

With that, Mack starts climbing up the side of the boat. He is in no rush, just trying to work his way up without falling off or thumping excessively.

If anyone looks, Mack is wearing Full form fitting body armor under his Armored Jacket.

21:26 6th January --Alongside the Shio-zuchi--

Finally able to stretch out a little, Takashi quickly slips into an armored jacket with a grey digital camouflage pattern. Anyone watching closely sees him swiftly detach a patch with the Mitsuhama "M" from the front and tuck it into a pocket.

He makes a final check on his Alpha, Predator, and grapple gun, makes sure the ammunition for each is firmly settled and weighted evenly across his body, and then pulls a pair of goggles down over his face and covers Mack's ascent before beginning his own.

Mack: Pulling yourself onto the deck as quietly as possible you quickly scan the rear deck for any potential threats. You've gotten onboard near a small helicopter landing pad, but the first thing that grabs your attention is a human sized figure in a dark suit leaning against the railing opposite you. He is gazing out over the water, and you see the decklights glinting off of a compact submachine gun carried on a sling at his side. Suddenly he straightens up, and you see a tiny red coal flick from his hand and into the water and he begins to turn around. It looks like he really picked a terrible time to take a smoke break.

Mack sees the guard, looks at the distance, and tries to draw and throw a knife, hoping to put the guy out quickly and quietly.

Got the knife out easily, flying towards the opponent:


The knife slides nicely into the guard before he can see Mack:


So the Guard is soaking 14P damage.
Mack didn't need to step to do this, so I have some hope that at least he hasn't attracted attention. My best hope is that the guy is sufficiently damaged that he can not cry. No point in worrying about whether he will fall over the rail.

The knife strikes the guard in the side of the neck, severing arteries and nerve endings. He looks at you wide eyed for a moment, his mouth moving silently, one hand grasping automatically for his weapon before he collapses to the ground. The sound of metal hitting the deck probably sounds a lot louder in your ears than it actually was.



Moving over you check to make sure he's dead and as the others pull themselves up on deck you take a moment to get your bearings.

The landing pad that you're standing on is vacant, and given the exposed nature of it, probably not the best place to be sitting around. Ahead of you you see a small staircase leading up onto the bridge, and a door that according to the plans, leads to the kitchen and crew quarters. There is a small deck wrapped around the bridge leading to the bow. The Blueprint on your ARO says that, there is probably a hot tub up there, and the entrance to the owners suite.

Sybercat slides up beside you and says quietly "If we can take the bridge quietly, I should be able to get into their security system. We'd have to keep it quiet though. If the system goes on alert I'd be locked out."

Padre clambers over the side of the boat and makes his way over to them. He bows his head over the dead guard for a moment, then nods to Sybercat. "That sounds like a plan, Miss Sybercat. How quickly can you be in?"