The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 11:02 PM August 2nd, 2075

Grease had been so generous as to buy everyone a meal. As she was finishing her soy-based snack, Amy realized that over an hour had passed and there was still no sign of her spirit. "It's probably going to take a while longer before it's done. Who's up for a game of TrollPower™ in AR?"

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 11:02 PM August 2nd, 2075

Jack polished off his burger and took a swig of beer. Grease had offered to buy dinner and drinks and Jack wasn't about to pass that up. Sure, the ork thought, he's probably just trying to score points, but who cares? With a full night's rest and a full belly, Jack was almost feeling like a metahuman again. The job so far had been pretty rough, taking a toll on not only the team, but their friends as well. The ork hoped they could put this thing to rest within the next day or two, for everyone's sake.

Pulling out his commlink, Jack accessed the Hermes Flash message app and tapped out a quick missive to Chapel. At Amy's question, the ork chuckled. "You're sure enjoying those new contacts, huh? I'm up for a game." Pulling out his own AR enabled glasses, Jack queued up TrollPower^TM and searched for Amy's icon.

Gear

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 11:02 PM August 2nd, 2075

"TrollPower, huh? It's been a while, but I could give it a shot. Speaking of.." Grease quickly downs a shot of whisky, wincing enough to your satisfaction before cracking his knuckles. "What's the weakest character? I'll take that one; I want to give y'all a chance here. I do spend most of my waking hours inside of virtual controls, after all.." He sneaks a quick glance at Overkill, probably my only competition.. adding "That is, unless any of you want to lay a wager." he grins in a predatory manner; too many teeth.

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 11:02 PM August 2nd, 2075

Amy hesitates "I.. well.. the weakest character... is Llelyn, the female elf." She grimaces. "But I would never bet against an elf woman. And pleast don't use VR, it's cheating." She winks at Grease.

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 11:02 PM August 2nd, 2075

Overkill chuckles at the thought of Grease being the master of the virtual world, and says "I'll play too my friends - I'll give you all a 1000 point handicap, its only fair."


The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:30 AM August 3rd, 2075

Even with the handicap it was difficult to catch up to the dark-haired elf, whose mastery of the game was unbelievable. The group gave up after an hour, Amy being the most competitive, her drive to win bringing her into second place. Jack was a close third, with Grease bringing up the rear. It was less lack of skill and more consumption of alcohol that kept him in the bottom of the standings.

The group waited in the Bar-rel for another hour after that, perusing through the latest edition of the Tribune, tensions mounting as they waited for Amy's spirit to return.

Finally, the familiar form of Amy's spirit contacted her. "Mistress. I have found the one you seek. He is in an apartment building on the fifth floor. The spirit mentally shows Amy an image of the location a high rise near where East 6th meets Jasper." Its task complete, the spirit breaks contact with Amy and vanishes.

Pulling it up on her map, Amy points out the spot. "Here it is, its about 5 miles from here, on the border of the Warrens."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:30 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack considered the ARO on the map and cross-referenced it with his own. "Looks to be either in Los Mags territory or a few blocks from it. We're going to need to get in and out fast and be as quiet as possible if we don't want Infierno coming down on us. His being on the 5th floor doesn't help matters. But it looks like we got a target."

Glancing at the decker, the ork said, "Overkill, can you see about digging up any information on the place? Name, who owns it, building plans?" Glancing at the rest of the group, he offers, "Plan seems pretty straightforward... Overkill does some legwork, we head over to the area and toss out a few drones for recon, get a lay of the land and head upstairs. The biggest challenges are going to be getting in quietly, taking Lynx's crew down without killing them, and getting out without getting killed once the fireworks have gone off."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:30 AM August 3rd, 2075

Grease nodded. Jack seemed to do best when there was a tactical situation to assess, an attack plan to formulate. The team hadn't been together long, but he was definitely the most difficult to figure out. He had already added numerous entries to his personnel dossiers on Amy and Overkill, but Jack's was mostly an empty file. Other than not knowing his own past, and a seemingly complete disregard for squeamishness, he was a very hard read.

"I wish we could get some gas grenades- put their lights out without a fight. However, I don't want to cause an" he gestures exaggerated air quotes, "'Incident' in a crowded apartment complex, so we can probably stick with what we have now."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:31 AM August 3rd, 2075

"Good point," Jack nodded at Grease's point and then frowned, "we always seem to be on the wrong side of the curve when it comes to equipment. Then again, we've made it work so far. Speaking of which, we probably need more handcuffs..." Pondering their situation, the ork continued, "If we're going to go in quiet, silence is going to be golden. Unfortunately, that pretty much means the last FlashBang we have is out as an opener. If we're hitting them in an apartment, assault rifles may not be necessary given the short range. My SMG is silenced and loaded with gel rounds, so I should be covered. What about the rest of you, do you have silenced weapons?"

Turning to Amy, the ork continued, "One thing I'm not good at is working magic into a plan; I just don't know enough about it and you or one of your espíritus seem to have a trick up your sleeve at every turn. What do you think you can bring to the table that will attract little attention?"

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:30 AM August 3rd, 2075

Overkill nods, "I'll start digging now. Give me a few minutes" He slumps down into his chair his consciousness fading as his avatar enters the Matrix.

As the team is making their preliminary plans, updates keep feeding in from Overkill.

<<@Team [Overkill] The building has its own host, nothing too dangerous so far. I'll let you know once I'm in.>>

Several minutes pass in tense silence as the team waits for word, and then another message comes in, <<@Team [Overkill] Looks like the building is privately owned, and has a small security force on staff. The guards themselves seem to be just jumped up mall security, the real danger in them pushing the Panicbutton if things get out of hand. There are cameras at the entrances and in the stairwells and elevators. There may be drones, but I can't get into that area of the host.>>

A moment later and a schematic is downloaded to the team.

<<@Team [Overkill]It is a big complex, 10 floors altogether, 15 apartments per floor. As you can see the complex is roughly "U" shaped, the main entrance being in the base of the "U" facing 6th Ave. There are four other entrances, each at the front and back of the arms of the "U". Two face 6th Ave, the other two are on the opposite side facing away toward the back of the parking area.>>

Overkill manipulates the schematic while continuing his description.

<<@Team [Overkill] There are three elevator banks, one in the main lobby area and one in the midle of each arm. In addition, there are five stairwells, one off of the main lobby, and one at each of the other four entrances. >>

The schematic zooms up to the fifth floor, and a single apartment on the fifth floor on the easternmost "arm" is highlighted.

<<@Team [Overkill] This seems to be the apartment that Amy indicated. It is halfway between the elevator and the back staircase. The window faces the east into the parking lot.>>

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:30 AM August 3rd, 2075

"So, what would we do in their situation? They've got a mage and a rigger left, at least. It hasn't been long, but I wouldn't be surprised if Lynx has hired additional muscle to make up for his missing team members. At minimum, we know the rigger will probably have drones patrolling the apartment complex. If it were me, they'd be a combination of firepower and small fly-spies running silently. We'll have to get close to try and spot them. If they see us rolling up they'll be ready."

Nodding towards Amy, "I also don't know that much about magic, but we have to assume their mage has spirits of some type. Probably just a watcher spirit to keep an eye out, but maybe a full blown one too for protection."

He scratches his chin. "With all that in mind, I think the front door is out. We may need to either flush them out, or figure out a way to get inside without any of those factors coming into play."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:30 AM August 3rd, 2075

Amy nods. "I agree, we can't win if we try to fight them where they're the strongest. We need to flush them out or just wait for them to come out on their own. I'm sure they don't spend their whole day barricaded in an apartment."

"And we can't get too close to that building or I'm sure we'll be spotted."

"So I'm not sure what that leaves us with right now. If Falcon is the mage I've seen before, he's very strong, probably a better magician than me in his way, and he is a threat even by himself, no doubt. I regret to say this, but we'll need to.. geek the mage first."

"As to what I can bring to the table, well you already have some idea of what a strong spirit can accomplish, if you remember Thraha from the rally. In terms of spells, I can mostly provide support. I can give one of us an extra sense that lets you feel the presence of living beings in the vicinity, sometimes along with some extra impressions about their exact position, state of mind, and so on. I can turn someone invisible, though cameras and drones won't be affected. I can confuse people to make them less aware and less capable of performing pretty much any task. There's that spell that influences people and the other one that creates convincing illusions that you already know about. And of course I have some options for lethal combat, healing wounds, and even temporarily resisting pain. That covers it. Spirits can have many uses, but nothing you don't already know about really strikes me as that useful in this situation."

Amy had to pause frequently during her long explanation, to think of mundane ways to explain even simple magical effects. She had already come to realize that being part of a shadowrunning team involved a lot of explaining how magic worked to mundanes, and she was getting more and more used to it. It pained her a little that she had to resort to words that hermetics had come up with to describe spells and spirits, just because those were the words that the un-Awakened understood more readily. Magic is so much more rich and beautiful than what hermetics would make you believe. You have to feel it, to live it, to really understand what is going on in the astral, not read stupid books.

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:34 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack frowned. "I'm not sure we should give up on trying to bag them at the apartment until we look into it a little more. Maybe it's just me, but I feel like we're on a timeline here. Given the fact that his crew was already looking into us and now two of them are missing, I have to think he or his Johnson are getting close to calling the match, at least as far as Lynx and his team are concerned. If they bolt, our leads are pretty much gone, as is a lot of our payout."

Looking around the table, he continued, "Based on Overkill's research, it doesn't sound like there's much security there, aside from whatever Lynx and crew are providing for themselves. If we get in and out fast and quiet, the on-site security is going to be a non-factor. Yeah, these hombres are going to be tough, but it isn't like that's new information. Containment is to our advantage if we can get the drop on them. It is a shame we don't have any Neuro-Stun or Tear Gas. It could probably take the lot of them down in one fell swoop, but so it goes."

Holding out his hands, the ork concluded, "All I'm saying is let's not throw in the asciugamano before we step into the ring. Can we at least do some recon to get a feel for their security?"

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:34 AM August 3rd, 2075

"Spirits and drones." Amy says dryly. "And guards too. How do you propose we avoid being seen when we go snooping around there?"

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:34 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack didn't hide his annoyance very well. "Look around outside, drones aren't exactly an uncommon sight, neither are metas. Am I missing the part where these guys can automatically pick us or our drones out of a crowd? If that's the case, we might as well call Johnson back and tell him we're done."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:34 AM August 3rd, 2075

"They know what we look like." Amy replied.

"Well at least me. You're probably right that we need to move fast, but we'll need disguises. Grease did a pretty good job the last time, wanna try going for a different style maybe? Do you have your kit?"

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:34 AM August 3rd, 2075

"In the trunk. It's superficial only though- your magical and my electronic signature are fairly distinct. Still, it couldn't hurt." Looking at Jack, he adds, "I'm less concerned about them actually seeing the drones, and more with them detecting them electronically. There's not a ton of ECCM you can stuff into a drone the size of a bug, and if they're able to detect it they'll know something is up, especially if it's peeking in through their window. We need to be careful, is all. This job will be 1000 times easier if they don't know we're coming at that precise moment."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:34 AM August 3rd, 2075

Overkill waggles his finger at Grease. "Ah, mein Freund, you forget. We have the advantage as far as electronic warfare is concerned. If Stinger has indeed left the FRZ, slaving your drones to my deck will make them very difficult to spot. Conversely, without the protection of Stinger's deck, it should be fairly easy to see Gutter's drones."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:34 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack nodded, "Yeah, I wasn't really talking about flying drones up to their windows. Mostly just having them give us actual oyos on the building. The only thing we have right now are the blueprints, which are great but not everything we need. With a drone set up a little ways out, we can observe security patrols and maybe figure out their routines."

Jack squinted, "Come to think about it, I don't think they even know what Amy or Overkill actually look like. If they had, I would think Lynx would have had Falcon pull that little trick Amy just did with the spirit. They probably just have whatever descriptions they got from the people they spoke to when they were backtracking. Still, disguises would help, particularly to help us blend in when we go in. Maintenance workers? Los Mags? What would make sense at 2AM or 3AM?"

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:34 AM August 3rd, 2075

Shrugging, Grease answers, "Shift workers? Security guards? Doctors? Anyone whose got a night job or one with odd hours."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:34 AM August 3rd, 2075

"Alright, how about we split the difference here?" The ork stopped to pick at a piece of meat stuck between his tusk and tooth before continuing. "Let's stakeout the place tonight with drones to see who comes and goes this late. If Lynx and company make a break for it tomorrow, we improvise something. If they stay hunkered down, we go in tomorrow night after we've had time to grab any equipment or disguises we need."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:34 AM August 3rd, 2075

Predictably, Grease was not interested in anything that required waiting. "I say, if we get them in there tonight and they're sleeping in watches, we make our move. Our best bet is going to be one we've only got one of them to deal with initially. I don't want to wait a day if the opportunity arises tonight. They could have another job tomorrow for all we know."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:35 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack tried to hide his smile, it wasn't often that he and Grease were in agreement. "Sounds fair to me. Since I don't think we can really make a call on it until we see the place, should we head on over and start taking a look?" The ork wanted to get this drek over with sooner rather than later. If the scene at the complex looked bad, they'd take a day. Otherwise, he hoped they could tie everything up tonight.

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:35 AM August 3rd, 2075

"Do we want to prepare for the worst? Let's say for example it looks bad; do we want to get some masks and grenades, with the idea that we'll use them tomorrow? It wouldn't hurt to plan ahead, and those things are always handy to have around." Motioning for the check, the elf slicks his hair back. "We can do our disguises in the back- they're used to me going to "costume parties" here."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:35 AM August 3rd, 2075

Shrugging, Jack said, "Why don't we go set up the drones and figure out what we're going to need on the way there. It's almost 0200. I'm pretty sure we can find somewhere open that sells something we can use for masks, but I don't think grenades are going to be that easy to get our hands on..." Jack pondered for a second before finishing, "But if it does look bad, we can shoot Chapel a message and see what he can get his hands on at short notice."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:35 AM August 3rd, 2075

Grease smiles at the waitress as their check arrives. He pays out of hand, and nods to the group. "Ok- showtime. I'll go grab my kit, and we can get started."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:36 AM August 3rd, 2075

As Grease pulled out the tools of his trade, Jack called up the ARO file of the apartment complex floor plan and started to manipulate it. "Generally speaking, the less ground we need to cover, the better, no matter if we go in using a cover or if we sneak in... which means the northeast stairwell is probably our best bet. Elevators are probably not an option unless we're taking the cover approach and even then, only for entry. Whoever is running the Host can probably shut the thing down regardless of how much control Overkill has over it, there may even be manual controls to do so."

Jack stops abruptly, his quickly forming plan shattering into a thousand pieces. "Uh, amigos? Assuming we can take these guys down, how are we going to move the bodies? Remember the blonde-haired pendejo from the ambush?"

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:36 AM August 3rd, 2075

"If we win the fight, I could summon a physically strong spirit to do some heavy lifting, but even that might not be enough for our needs. We need.. some kind of .. cart?" Amy suggests.

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:36 AM August 3rd, 2075

"Yeah, a laundry cart or one of those big trash carts would work. How do we work that into showing up at 0300 or 0400 in the morning? Unless that happens to be when their trash service is normally scheduled, that's out. It would have to be some kind of emergency... plumbing problem or some kind of bad infestation?" Jack liked where this was going, but still had concerns. "How do we get the cart to the apartment complex? We've only got two sets of wheels and I don't think something that size is going to fit in either of them..."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:36 AM August 3rd, 2075

Lowering his voice, Grease adds, "Lynx is the only one we need to get out of there alive." Letting that sink in a moment, he scratches his cheek. "I like the exterminator idea; I wish we had a van. It's hard to convince someone you're a pro if you show up in a cab. If we fireman carry Lynx out of there unconscious down the back stairs, presumably we can make a break for it before their rent-a-cops can stop us." Jack was pretty sure Grease meant him when he said "we". "Late night exterminator works well though- especially since it would make sense for there to be several of us, and armed."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:36 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack furrowed his brow and glanced at Grease. How is it possible we hear the same words but draw completely different conclusions? "I'm pretty sure Johnson expects us to turn up with everyone other than Truck. Not that we can't probably get something out of the effort if Gutter and Falcon don't quite make it..."

Considering the embryonic plan, the ork continued, glancing at Grease and Amy in turn, "We might be able to be enough of an annoyance that they don't really check us out that well. If there's only one of them on duty, Amy might be able to pull her mind trick." Grease was pretty sure Jack meant him when he used the first-person plural. Turning to Overkill, he concluded, "A lot of this is going to depend on you owning that Host though... cameras, locks, comms. Do you think you can do that?"

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:38 AM August 3rd, 2075

Overkill thinks about his answer carefully before replying. "I believe so, yes. That being said, the less I have to do the less likely I am to be discovered. And, as in all things, there is no guarantee, nicht war?"

"Gaining access to the Host was relatively easy before, I believe I can be inside again in seconds. Disabling the varies locks and controlling the elevators should be child's play once I have MARKed the Host. I doubt something like this apartment will have a Spider, so all I will have to deal with is the IC, which should allow me to remain undetected."

Sighing, he finishes, "I am primarily a combat decker, so the one area I am not as proficient is the manipulation of data - so our greatest risk of discovery will lie in me needing to edit camera footage. I am not proud to admit that, but I want everyone to know up front the risks we face."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:38 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack considered Overkill's response. After a second, he replied, "That's reasonable. If we go in using a cover and disguises, we may not need that much in the way of camera editing."

Starting to work it out in his head, he said, "We'd need a fake emergency request work order for a team of exterminators for the apartment where Lynx is, something really nasty, like those devil rats we ran into a few days ago. Hopefully security isn't working with them, because that would throw up a red flag. When they see the work order, the guard will probably want to check. I'm not sure if you can intercept that transmission, Overkill, but maybe Amy could step in and use her mind trick to convince them that they don't need to check... something about the occupants saying they were going to stay somewhere else until the pests were handled. Then we go up like we're supposed to be there, toss CS grenades in since the occupants supposedly aren't there, and let Amy's spirit mess them up a bit. Then we go in, gather the bodies, dump them in the cart, and wheel them out like they're what's left of the devil rats."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:39 AM August 3rd, 2075

Amy liked where the conversation was going, but she wasn't too sure that the targets would go down so easily. "Very good plan so far, I feel like it's probably going to work up until we get to the room. But I've seen what Lynx can do and I fear what Falcon can do. Just throwing in gas grenades and my spirit, that might really not be enough. There might also be drones in the room, and if they fire that would raise an alarm. No, I think by the time we're at their doorstep, speed might become more important than stealth. We want to surprise Lynx and crew and hit them with all we can throw at them all at once."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:38 AM August 3rd, 2075

"Do you think we could get anything stronger? Some Neurostun would make things a lot quieter, and wouldn't necessarily wake up their neighbors. This is all contingent on us getting grenades and making a run at them tomorrow night, though. If we decide to go tonight, we'll have to go in with what we have, unless Chapel is awake and has some lying around."

Nodding at Amy, Grease adds, "That's why I figured we'd want to just worry about Lynx. If they're conscious, Gutter and Falcon are ten times more dangerous than Lynx, at least in my opinion. Lynx can be trusted to act rationally if he has a gun to his head; as far as I know he's limited what he can do in those circumstances. Falcon and Gutter both have additional abilities that means they need to be out before I stop worrying about them."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:39 AM August 3rd, 2075

"OK, if we're not going to go the gas grenade route, we're going to need to go in with guns drawn, which means Overkill's probably going to have to be on footage editing duty to change what the guards are seeing when we go in... devil rats don't shoot back. We might need to convince the security guards that we have fumigators, at least to delay their reaction to any gun shots that are reported. We just tell them that the fumigators sometimes sound like gun shots."

Glancing at Grease, Jack replied, "NS is pretty tough to get on the street, from what I've heard. CS is used in all kinds of training exercises, from police to the military, so it's pretty easy for it to fall off the back of the camión. We could always ask Chapel and see what he says."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:39 AM August 3rd, 2075

"I'll send him a message now, and see if he has any available or can scare any up in a short amount of time."

Grease leans over to tap on his commlink for a few moments.

<<@Chapel [Grease]: Hey there- I still owe you that dinner next week. In the meantime, could you get your hands on some CS grenades? We're running an angle on our current job. Masks to go along with them would be handy as well.>>

"While we wait to hear back, what else are we missing? A cart? What about a gurney? We could throw our friends in a body bag, and cart them out like that. If they're covered in CS the guards probably won't look too hard, I can tell 'em that's "Devil Rat Spray", and try not to get any on their clothes."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:39 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack itched at his chin. "Wouldn't they look a little too much like human bodies then? I was thinking we could get some garbage bags and pack them on top of the bodies if we had the cart. When we leave, if they try and stop us and check the cart, Amy can whip up an illusion of a devil rat coming out of the pile. We all freak out and bash at it and it scurries back down into the pile. I bet they wouldn't look too closely then... but that would still require a cart."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:40 AM August 3rd, 2075

Grease feels the tickle along his spine, his DNI alerting him that he has an incoming message.

<<@Grease [Chapel] Looking forward to it. Yes I think I can, and the gas masks are easy enough. How many do you need?>>

As Grease takes another swig, he sends the message back with a few mental commands. <<@Chapel [Grease] One grenade ought to do it, and 3 gas masks, oh - can you get you hands on 3 metal restraints? And, as a favor, can you meet us at the Bar-rel?>>

A moment later the response comes back. <<@Grease [Chapel] I'll have them there in an hour.>>

Grease sees the bill appear and winces slightly, but then makes the payment, the nuyen disappearing from his 'link and fleeing through the Matrix to one of Chapel's many accounts.

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:40 AM August 3rd, 2075

"Alright," Jack said, examining the layout ARO, "we've got Chapel working on our gear needs. We've got disguises or should be able to pick them up pretty easily. We've got our own kit already. Seems like the last major challenge is getting a vehicle and a cart that we can transport the bodies in, assuming we're grabbing all three and there isn't some other way to get them out like a trash chute or balcony."

"How do we do that?" The question hung in the air as the ork looked at the rest of the crew.

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:40 AM August 3rd, 2075

Amy smiles. "We steal a utility vehicle, of course! We have a genius hacker on our team, and an expert of all kinds of machines. I'm sure you two can figure it out!" Amy's natural optimism had taken a step back lately, but it was still there deep down. The plan that would finally end their run was shaping up and she was getting contagiously excited.

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:41 AM August 3rd, 2075

Overkill responds to Amy's remarks. "If we find a vehicle, I can control it with relative ease. If we keep the usage time down - basically stealing it right before the job and dumping it afterward, we should be able to get away without leading anyone back to us."

He smiles, "Fortunately we are going through the Warrens, Lone Star patrols will be at a minimum there. Grease, I would recommend not driving with your usual, shall we say laissez-faire attitude toward safe speeds? The one thing that will get us caught is if Lone Star pulls us over for traveling double the speed limit.

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:42 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack listened to Overkill intently, trying to pick out any weaknesses in the suggestion. Failing that, he said, "OK, so we have all the logistics nailed down, or at least have a plan to square them all away. Overkill, can you run a quick search for a laundry or shipping company in the Warrens, preferably something with not a lot of security?"

"Bueno, assuming we get the logistics squared away, here's how I see it going down: We do a quick recon of the exterior. While we're there, Overkill jumps into their host and creates an emergency work order request for an exterminator... devil rats, occupants out of town, all that good stuff. The exterminators are set to arrive in an hour. During that time, we collect whatever Chapel could get for us, the rest of the supplies, and go boost a truck. We then head over to the apartment complex somewhere around 3AM. Walk in through the front, Grease does his best song and dance to convince them to let us in and give us a key to the apartment. If needed, Amy adds her mind magic. We go in, Overkill MARKs the host and starts looking for Gutter's drones. Once we get to the door, he hacks the lock if we didn't already get a key and Amy calls her spirit. Once the door is open, I'll toss in the grenade and Amy's spirit can start working on whatever targets we have, then we all go in and do our best to take them down."

Pausing to finish off his beer, Jack concluded, "If everything goes down clean, we load up the bodies into the cart and wheel it out the front door. If they want to inspect the cart, Amy whips up an illusion of some nasty devil rat crawling out and we beat it back down. They probably won't want to take another look. If things go to drek, Overkill takes control of what he can and we figure out another option, probably the eastern elevator. It might involve us shooting some security guards, but that's one reason why we've got non-lethal ammo. Hit the truck, bug out, meet up with Grease's cars, then jam back to Nic's or whatever safe house we want to use. Give Johnson the call and set-up a rendezvous with the ZDF. Maybe wake Lynx up and work him over a bit to see if he'll roll on his Johnson."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:42 AM August 3rd, 2075

Impressed with Jack's line of thinking, Grease lets him finish before asking a question.
Wherever they installed his brains they did a bang up job..

"One question- which room are we getting a key to- Lynx's? If it were me, I'd be paying off the security in addition to my rent. They'll know the apartment is occupied. Unless you meant their neighbors."

Pulling up the ARO of the map, Grease indicates on the floorplan the elevator and stairway closest to Lynx's apartment. "We should try to cover both exits. Probably have two of us go up in the elevator with the cart, then the other two take the stairs "to check where the vermin got in". If Gutter is smart he'll be watching the elevators, which means that's a priority to hack; either the elevator itself, or maybe a drone he's got parked in there to watch out."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:42 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack grunted in assent,"Probably safest to go with what you're suggesting. On one hand, if Lynx is going to ground right now, I doubt he would want many people knowing that there was anything particularly interesante about his apartment, including some low-rent security guards. On the other, if this is a well-established safe house, the guards may be more loyal and better than we think. So, one more task for you, Overkill. Hack the door and we'll hope they won't notice that we're at the wrong door on the camera. That would probably take pretty good eyes though."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:45 AM August 3rd, 2075

"Wunderbar. Let me check." Overkill seems lost in thought for a few minutes and says, "I think I have found something suitable. There is a small shipping company, Free Zone Couriers, located near E. 2nd and N Airport Blvd. It is only a few kilometers from the apartment complex."

He pulls up an ARO showing the location of the shipping company. "Satellite imagery shows they've got about twenty trucks in their lot. One missing shouldn't draw too much attention."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:45 AM August 3rd, 2075

"Excelente!" Jack exclaims after Overkill gave his report. "It sounds like everything is coming together. Last thing we need is a bug-out plan. If everything goes south, what's the plan? Who's going to make the call on aborting? Overkill or Grease will probably have the most situational awareness of what's going on between hacking security cameras and drones."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:45 AM August 3rd, 2075

"I will have the cab here-" Grease indicates on an ARO map, 2 blocks from Lynx's apartment. "We can have my BMW nearby as well, here," he points at a different point the other direction on the map- "if need be. The cab is the primary vehicle here; once we have our guests we'll pile into the cab and bug out." He scratches his chin. "The van we just leave at the location. No need to be more complicated than that. If all goes to drek, we meet at the first safe-house; the one where we slept the other night. Say we get there by 6 AM. If we don't hear from you, we assume the worst and discuss together what to do."
He grins. "Let's hope it doesn't come to that. I can use Bumb.. The rotodrone as fire support for any quick getaways we need to make. Overkill, I'm giving you MARKs on all my stuff; if I go down, please save my sorry hide and get us out of there. I am comfortable running things. Jack, you're number 2; Overkill will be busy with his brain in the Matrix most of the run and will lack situation awareness. Any questions? If not, let's get you changed into your new personas while we wait for Chapel with his delivery."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:45 AM August 3rd, 2075

Jack hesitated for a moment before replying, "Sounds good to me. One suggestion... when we're getting away, Overkill should take control of the truck remotely and drive it in the opposite direction. It may cause enough confusion for us to get away. If we're not being followed, he can just park it somewhere out of the way."

Turning to Amy, Jack asked, "How are you feeling about the plan?"

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:45 AM August 3rd, 2075

Amy noticed that Grease didn't even mention her name when explaining who should be in charge. Even though she knew she had the least experience, her ego was still a bit hurt given that she had shown her resourcefulness so far, but she decided to just let that go.

"Worried," the shaman replied to Jack. "I'm always worried about everyone's safety, and this operation will be the most dangerous we've attempted so far. If we can get the drop on then, that's all very good, but it's very possible that they see us coming, and we need to be ready for that too. What do we do if say, the security sees through our disguise and realize that we're not who we say we are?"

"Also, we haven't talked about magic much, but I suspect that there will be a spirit keeping watch, and it's likely that one or more backup spirits might be ready to intervene rapidly. I can't stress enough how our highest priority target has to be Falcon, because I think he surpasses me in magical abilities, and I'm not weak myself."

The Rusty Bar-rel: Gateway Ave between Enid Ct and Fontana Ct, Montbello, Denver, CO, 1:45 AM August 3rd, 2075

"Those are valid concerns," Jack replied. "For the first part, if security doesn't buy Grease's story, it might be a good idea for you to try your mind magic on whoever is in charge. If that doesn't work, we take them down fast. At that point, we decide if we go through with it or abort."

"I think you're right about Falcon being the most dangerous, but it depends on who is awake. If most of them are asleep, like we hope they are, then I think our primary target is whoever is awake... unless there's a spirit involved, in which case we take Falcon out immediately. If there is a choice between who's awake, I would suggest Falcon, Lynx, then Gutter, just based on what we know of them so far. If we can take the first two out, Gutter might surrender."