Don't forget that we know of a connection between his kids and the Yakuza (and their untimely death), plus the anonymous payments to keep them afloat probably from our favorite money launderer and employer. Jinsei has a standing purchase order for a bunch of stuff from them. Maybe see if you can get a sample of those herbs? If he doesn't have any, his reaction may still be telling.

As another curiosity, the kids just happened to have their funerals at the same temple where Eklipse goes for his meditations...Coincidence or providence?

Rikik
You finish up the conversation with the group and find a quiet place to do some work, to look for what you can find out in the matrix. You feel the world drop away and the Resonance swallow you up, its warm and solid embrace soothes your nerves as you weave the flows around you and begin seeking.

The Bodhi Tree it turns out is a small and locally owned business. Originally started by a Mr Bae Yong and Mrs Eun Yong, a married couple who started the business in 2031 as it sole owners and investors. It seems they have had more than their share of tough times. It seems they reported their income faithfully over the years and the shop barely breaks even on average with a few good years. They seem to have four times avoided closure by a sudden influx of cash from an undisclosed investor. Nothing stands out about the business other than its inability to thrive. Eun Yong's share was transferred to her husband after her death 10 years ago from an armed robbery at their shop.

<Snip>

You step back and begin to cross reference the material present to see what emerges if anything. You quickly find two of the names on the memorial - Hana Long and Jung-Su Long - pop up as birth records as being born to the owners of The Bodhi Tree. You begin to access news feeds and data stores to discover that both their son and daughter were believed killed during the purge. There appears to be a body on record for Jung-Su and Hana was found in a mass grave that was discovered three years after when a new sub level was being built under an old building that was once owned by the Yakuza. Both investigations still carry a dubious "open" marker on their files. You find an announcement of the funeral for both children held at a local temple located in the International District by the name of the Naiteki Assarishita Retreat Center. Bae Yong is listed as an active member of the center. You see reports that the daughter may have started to work with the Seoulpa Rings - you find case files listed her as a potential member but after her disappearance and the discovery of her DNA amongst the others in the mass grave, she was removed from the active list.

You settle into the pull and rhythm of the matrix, feeling it flow around you and through you. Holding the data in your mind, a small bundle of code and icons, you release it into the stream and watch as it drifts apart. You feel your consciousness begin to diffuse as it stays to connected to each stream of code and flow out into the matrix. Each bit begins to fragment and make connections and you sense rather than see a vast network begin to form with each bit of code a seed germinating its own cluster of interconnecting points. You feel yourself growing more and more distant as the flow expands in every widening growths. You feel the structure reach its full size and draw your attention to the points with the most overlapping flows of resonance.

The first one brings you to a small herbalist shop - the floating symbols in Chinese cycle into English as The Bodhi Tree. The node is well kept but dated - you think it was probably current about 15-20 years ago. You access the public information and see its location in the International District here in Seattle. It boasts fresh herbal remedies and reagents along with teas and imported goods from China.

The next leads you to memorial page with list of Korean names on it. Accessing several of the links you quickly realize its a private site run to remember those killed during the purge of the Shotozumi-rengo in the early Forties. This was a graduate project of a young woman named Choon-Hee Gu who was studying the impact of Korean culture and communities in the Seattle region during this time period. You find several links that seem to be no longer supported and checking the forum discover she had to trim back the site due to costs and has moved most of the data off-line. Scanning it over something seems off to you about the idea of her being unable to afford to keep the site complete and up. Even back then data storage was cheap and free available.

The last cluster is almost ubiquitous business site for a small publishing company the name of the Brightman Group. Everything on the node is generic and put together like a seamless example of a component built interface. You see no individual style or signature anywhere in its structure. They just dropped their information into blank fields and launched the site. You can feel the subtle pulse and ebb of caution and danger flow through you as you examine it. It is almost too perfect in its caricature of a mass produced and meaningless node.

With the last nexus you feel the snap of all the data flowing back to you and the once great tree dissolves to only leave behind the three sites of intersection in your memory.

You head out into the world feeling relatively secure with your altered appearance and begin to make the rounds in the shadow community to see what fall out, if any is out there. As you begin to ask questions and listen to the conversations you hear people talking about a huge blow out the other night. You hear that a runner team was set up and blown away by yet another back stabbing Johnson or that a team bit off more than it can chew with a job last night. That Federated Boeing slagged a group that was trying to sneak their way onto their compound and were blown away before they even breached the outer defenses. You quickly disregard them as tall tales and people filling in the blanks with their own versions of events.

You finally find something more credible floating around - that a local shadow merchant is looking for a new head of security after something personal they did blew up at their place of business. The former head was given his pink slip and there was a brief but violent disagreement over the severance package being offered. It ended with the security personnel being fewer in number when they were "escorted" from the building. The merchant is claiming false pretenses on the part of security and that they were fraudulent in some way. The word on the street is the team is going to have trouble getting work locally considering the way they tried to negotiate the termination of their contract. A few interested parties - mostly info brokers and snitches claim that the NeoNET reward being collected played a part and that you should always check who you work with to make sure their troubles don't follow you home.

The search for the impact of the data dump is ridiculously easy by comparison. It only involves turning on your trid and watching your local news broadcast. You see the main story of the day is the data sent to major news groups - the information suggests a major power struggle is underway in the Yakuza and seems to prove beyond shadow of doubt that several members of the Seattle community were indeed connected to criminal activities and were in fact, calling the shots. Several companies have launched suits against the assets of the late Kenichi Yamamoto for reparations against them. In addition, several medical centers and hospitals are faced with investigations regarding a Dr. Takayasu who is presumed dead but a search is being conducted. The largest element propelling this forward is the potential for Saeder-Krupp to be involved directly. There are replays of the SK rep speaking to a large gathering of news agencies firmly stating his company's non-involvement in this matter and promising to seek out the source of this slander and to set the records straight. Every news agency with any clout is offering rewards for any information about the other recipients of the data. You see the list of IDs scroll by over and over again, channel after channel as your world gets smaller and smaller. International feeds are carrying the story and you hear it repeated in several other languages, all presented by a too perfect earnest reporter looking to get to the truth. The car fire and attempted break in at a local warehouse is almost missed in the flood of this breaking story - it's offered as a local color piece about the improvement in security and the rapid response of law keeping forces.

The underbelly of the city is a buzz with the scent of blood in the water and sweet siren song of easy money. The Yakuza have already offered substantial rewards for transfer of custody of anyone named in the data transmission to them. You hear people talking of bounty hunters gearing up to hunt the poor unfortunate souls down - some for the fame, others to clear a debt or stain with the Yaks or as a way to break into the big league. There are clear signs of young hot blooded junior members of the Yakuza preparing to head out and make their bid for a meteoric rise in the ranks with the capture of these people. The other syndicates appear to be bracing for war by strengthening their places of power and pulling people back into their territories - turtling and gathering numbers in case the opportunity arises for them to use this to their advantage. You think in a few more days this ripple will work its way down the food chain and anyone's contacts or business associates who aren't blood brothers or ex-lovers will be dead, bought off or selling the you all out to the highest bidder. The chill settles on your spine as you are being transformed from predator to prey, hunter to hunted.

The Bodhi Tree it turns out is a small and locally owned business. Originally started by a Mr Bae Yong and Mrs Eun Yong, a married couple who started the business in 2031 as it sole owners and investors. It seems they have had more than their share of tough times. It seems they reported their income faithfully over the years and the shop barely breaks even on average with a few good years. They seem to have four times avoided closure by a sudden influx of cash from an undisclosed investor. Nothing stands out about the business other than its inability to thrive. Eun Yong's share was transferred to her husband after her death 10 years ago from an armed robbery at their shop.

Choon Hee Gu is currently teaching at a local Korean education center. It's set up to help those of Korean descent to get help to improve their lot in life. They offer night classes for Associate Degrees to transfer to more traditional schools, language and culture classes, access to legal aid and help with resources. She started with a promising academic career on a clear track to some of the top colleges in the world. She was a bold and energetic new voice in the field of sociology and brought keen insights to the field. Her ability to build connections between emerging social phenomenas and the its basis in the communities that birthed them slated her for media power houses or working in a corporation designing memes and socially engineering branded consciousness. The bubble popped shortly after her thesis was completed and she dropped off the radar for almost 5 years before returning to Seattle to take her current position. She declined scholarships and grants, interviews and job offers with no real explanation until she lost momentum and the spotlight. It seems she returned to Korea for a sabbatical to work on a book that apparently never was heard of or finished it seems.

The Brightman Group is clearly a shadow asset of some sort as you find all the warning signs of a shell corporation in play. You dig around and find a few books published by them that actually turn out to be legitimate authors and were received with mediocre reviews. Just enough to keep the illusion intact and they have cultivated a reputation of producing true crime memoirs and collections. Looking over the earnings report you see a pattern of these published criminals making significant money on their work. The reviews attribute their success to the further decay of morality and the banal appetites of the wage slave. You see a perfect way to launder money - digital copies are bought and cost nothing to produce and the money is given a legal skin to be used in the world. Digging deeper you see a persistent rumor that its run by the Komun'Go Seoilpa Ring who are known for playing in pools that people don't notice. This would fit their model of gathering resources while staying well below the radar. You find there is an actual physical office here in Seattle - a micro store front at the southern edge of the downtown core.

You step back and begin to cross reference the material present to see what emerges if anything. You quickly find two of the names on the memorial - Hana Long and Jung-Su Long - pop up as birth records as being born to the owners of The Bodhi Tree. You begin to access news feeds and data stores to discover that both their son and daughter were believed killed during the purge. There appears to be a body on record for Jung-Su and Hana was found in a mass grave that was discovered three years after when a new sub level was being built under an old building that was once owned by the Yakuza. Both investigations still carry a dubious "open" marker on their files. You find an announcement of the funeral for both children held at a local temple located in the International District by the name of the Naiteki Assarishita Retreat Center. Bae Yong is listed as an active member of the center. You see reports that the daughter may have started to work with the Seoulpa Rings - you find case files listed her as a potential member but after her disappearance and the discovery of her DNA amongst the others in the mass grave, she was removed from the active list.

Wanted (100,000 bounty from the Yakuza)

Enemy (Seattle based Yakuza)
Membership: +6 (1000+ members)
Area of Influence: +2 (sprawl-wide)
Magical Resources: +1 (a minority have limited magical assets)
Matrix Resources: +1 (active matrix presence)
Incidence Rating: 4

The first packet covers a company called Jinsei. It seems to be a small pharmaceutical firm that specializes in drugs based on "natural remedies". They claim to combine the best of Eastern medicine with Western technology to create a perfect fusion of holistic products that work as well as other mainstream drug therapies and treatments. They have a no physical store front except for a storage facility by the docks here in Seattle. Looking over the extensive information provided you see they have a standing purchasing agreement with The Bodhi Tree for uncommon herbs. You also see a few news clippings claiming that Jinsei is involved in produced the next party drug for the young and spiritually inclined. That they are trying to create the next Awakened party drug for the 6th world. You see the responses from their PR department saying how people have long decried the benefits of traditional medicines and treatments from indigenous cultures and that they are committed to working past this blatant prejudice to bring the cessation of suffering to the people they serve. They defend their use of smaller independent businesses as a way to build stronger communities and to preserve the knowledge of previous generations that typically is lost in the rush of science and progress. The company reports a modest income and appears to be holding their own in the market or at least making enough to continue their R & D projects.

The Kitai Foundation has an office in the International District . It's a non-profit organization that provides education grants to local schools, scholarships to colleges to bright but low income applicants and intern programs to members of the community trying to find work in the area. They promise hope to the next generation by providing opportunities and connections to promote the youth of the region. They boast connections to corporations and their recruitment divisions, to local schools as well as to several prominent individuals already working in education, business and science. Listed at one time as a member in good standing was Choon-Hee Gu and was touted as a shining example of the potential waiting to be unlocked within each young member of the community. You find recent articles calling for audits of their records and see replies that they will be suspending all operations pending their full investigation. You see back lash pieces from the current beneficiaries of the Kitai Foundation picked up by news groups, showing them as the truly innocent victims in this recent tragedy. There is mixed reactions from the people they service ranging from outright shock and disbelief to people urging others to see the good works the organization has done and could continue to do in the future.

The last packet is a profile of two potential targets for mid level management in the Yakuza. The first is a small gang called the Swords of Wind and Water, a motorcycle gang run by Tony "The Sword Master" Sato that handles all the important transportation and courier needs for the syndicate in the Seattle region. They can be seen driving all around the city moving between businesses and clubs believed to have strong affiliations or to be outright owned by them. They are skilled drivers and excel at passing packages back and forth during transit thwarting attempts to expose their illegal activities. He owns a small ranch in Snohomish where most of the gang lives and makes use of the space to train new members and keep their driving skills sharp. Tony is rumored to be an expert swordsman and trained in several styles of martial arts while the gang seems to be at ease with both small firearms and blades of various sizes. The second is a group of enforcers going by the name of the Mountains of Kabato led by a woman who goes by Kamuishiri. They collect debts and "settle" financial issues for the syndicate all over the city when the normal routes of persuasion have failed to yield results. They are known for using massive polearms or axes and heavy weapons like machine guns along with grenade launchers to get their point across. They are rumored to have a clubhouse of sorts in Tacoma region. You see a list of three likely spots - Belly Up a sports bar catering to mercenaries and contract workers, Inside Seam a strip club with a history of "extra" services being readily available with proof of funds and lastly a place called Skin Deep known for its nano tattoos and cosmetic modifications for the trendy street artists and posers alike.

Fenris Artisan would work or feeding it into a tactical program of some sort. You all could give me a Logic + Intuition to just do by the seat of your pants.

The first has skin so black that it reflects blue highlights in the light of the sun. He is armed with two cruel looking axes strapped to his back and is wearing a breastplate of hammered red metal of some sort. His shins and feet are covered in the same metal as well.

The second and middle figure is a lean woman covered with tattoos and scars decorating her skin. Her hair is shorn off and she has braces of heavy looking daggers running down her arms and legs over a light and flexible looking leather. Her bare feet show thick callouses and her skin is sun beaten.

The last warrior is a bear of a man with massive arms and legs. He wears a simple loincloth and on the ground before him lies a massive wooden maul with metal spikes jutting from it. His hair is braided with beads and metal along with his beard.

Quick check -- do you want me to make a specific test to determine what my access level in the node lets me do without triggering an alert? I'm looking at backing up the datastore and maybe disabling the IC. The IC makes me a little more wary, but I'm curious. Likewise can I get a file list, generically, eg text files, simrecordings, music, etc. Trying to get a feel for if this is the gang's server or a single user.