Ordoing One Ordo

Ordoing One Ordo
Date 2083-11-11 GM Archtmag Location Austin, CAS Status Threat Level: Extreme
Factions Involved
ShadowHaven Draco Foundation Ordo Maximus	Aztechnology	Tamanous	Ordo Maximus
Rabbit	Blood Panthers Combat Riggers	Assorted Tamanous Goons	Cynthia Rochette
Casualties and losses
	Blood Panthers	Assorted Tamanous Goons	None

Summary

Rabbit is called by Sybaris to capture a dangerous member of Ordo Maximus. She travels across the continent to chase down a lead. In the process of hunting her Nosferatu, she makes a strange alliance of convenience with an old enemy. Setting aside possible feuds for the moment, Rabbit fights off agents of Tamanous and Aztechnology to steal away her target, returning him for a quality payday.

Background

A nosferatu in the service of Ordo Maximus by the name of Kale had a long history of popping up in unpleasant situations and discoveries. A potent blood mage focused on researching the planes, and learning new ways to breach and connect them, he drew the attention of the Draco Foundation. Mages sending powerful beacons of mana into the aether is something they generally want to regulate. Still, the nosferatu was revealed to be cunning, avoiding capture, their skill and cowardness letting them slink out of dangerous situations. When a sighting of him appeared in Austin, Sybaris decided to send her new agent on the case. Hoping a banshee could blend in the circles Kale traveled through, potentially this would be the time they captured him.

The Meet

Calling Rabbit into a meeting, Sybaris explained the situation to the banshee. Rabbit was a new resource and agent available to them, allowing them to approach this problem from a different tact. Blending with the infected communities in the Austin area, Rabbit would hunt down clues for the hiding Ordo member. Ideally, she would capture and return the target for interrogation, though killing him was preferable to allowing him to slip the noose once again.

Investigations

Flying down to Austin, Rabbit had to land in the suburbs outside of the city. Austin, located at the division between the CAS and Aztlan has a heavy military presence, meaning flying a repurposed Aztlan military helicopter over the CAS side of Austin would be problematic. Taking a circuitous route, she managed to find a landing authorization for a gang landing pad. Unfortunately, the gang in question, in classic CAS tradition, was metaracist. Not exactly scared of random gangers, Rabbit landed anyway.

Exiting her helicopter, Rabbit was surrounded by a greeting party of the gang. Rabbit didn't exactly tell the gang she was an elf, and while she wore full armor, her build betrayed her elfiness. As tensions very quickly, the gunship and its array of weapons behind her negotiated for her. Threatening the petty gangers with a painful experience beyond their means, Rabbit secured her landing site. For the moment at least.

As she made her way towards Austin, she researched signs of Ordo Maximus in the area. Far from its traditional power bastion of Europe, there were not any public Ordo organizations in the area. Though that didn't mean they weren't lurking under the surface. Rabbit did identify one publicly affiliated member of the organization in the area though, a noble touring cities around the country. After stalking him for a bit, both physically and via the matrix, she realized he was likely just a random rich guy, the core of Ordo Maximus's public face.

Taking a different tact, Rabbit decided to push in the direction that Kale was sighted. Following the trail, Rabbit headed to an underground market outside of Austin. Primarily catering to the infected and any lacking the scruples to associate with them, the Bazaar was a hot point in underground smuggling to and from across the border. With Aztlan's rather unique acceptance of the infected, a thriving market had grown, selling wares to those stranded in CAS territory. Run by an infected gang, the Night Owls, the market provided all an infected could want, and apparently, Kale felt drawn.

Heading into the market in the early evening, it already had started to pulse with life. The market filled the shell of an old mall, with established vendors lining the old store fronts and countless stalls filling the central aisle, wares of all types hawked. Heading over to a butcher, Rabbit bought some blood, taking in the sights and asking idle questions to the worker at the register. Eventually, she managed to find out that Kale had been seen nearby a talismonger, one with an actual store. "Jerry's". Whether or not he actually entered, the man at the counter didn't know, but it was a lead to start with.

Heading over, Rabbit went to meet Jerry. Whatever her expectations of Jerry were, they were wrong. A shirtless centaur, closer inspection marked him as a Chiron, their Strain I manifestation. Jerry, friendly and easygoing, wasn't very helpful regarding Rabbit's questions. Allegedly, he had never seen the man she described, and that he certainly hadn't entered recently. While he didn't seem to be saying any obvious lies, Rabbit still wanted to investigate a bit more. Something seemed off. Declining an invitation to one of Jerry's parties later that night, Rabbit exited the shop and began to plot a way into the Talismonger's back room.

Getting past Jerry directly would likely be difficult. With gang guards lurking around and a surprisingly robust security system, it seemed better to find a more indirect method. With a bit of aggressive stealth, emphasize on the aggression, Rabbit made her way into the service corridors of the old mall, finding the back entrance to Jerry's store. In the process of breaking in though, Rabbit noticed a strangely sophisticated system of hidden cameras, barely visible to even her enhanced senses. Working to disable them and investigate, Rabbit poked around the back room. While at first glance unordinary, she found a hidden seam in the wall. Unfortunately, it sounded like security was closing in on her. Working fast, she hacked the icon of the seam, and a hidden elevator popped open. Never one to avoid the call of adventure, Rabbit hopped in and dodged her pursuers.

Complications

Cynthia Rochette

As Rabbit went down a secret, high tech elevator in the middle of an abandoned mall turned infected black market, you might assume she was afraid. Rabbit is built different. Confidently, she went down the hidden elevator, aware that whoever was on the other end certainly new she was coming. As she stepped out, she went through a mantrap and entered a room. A kill room! Potentially.

As facing her were security emplacements, security devices, and an array of people staring her down behind them. Not only were there multiple powerful awakened infected, chromed up guards armed and ready, there was even a top of the line cyberzombie!

Rabbit, for whatever reason, decided to start with diplomacy.

That was immediately complicated though by the identity of the organization in question. Rabbit had stumbled her way into a secret Ordo Maximus base. While on its own bad enough, Rabbit in the past had made an enemy of their organization. At least in Seattle. For whatever reason though, the leader of the site didn't immediately order an attack. Perhaps it was out of curiosity, about what lead a banshee to so violently fight against the Ordo, or perhaps just to understand what lead her here. Regardless, when Rabbit said hello, Cynthia Rochette answered.

To begin, things were tense to put mildly. Having intruded down here and with her history, it seemed like it wouldn't take much for violence to break out. However, unexpectedly, things soon started to calm, to a degree at least. When Cynthia learned that Rabbit only really struck against the Seattle Ordo when her sister was kidnapped by them, it was hard for her to take the transgression personally at least. While things might still go poorly here, there wasn't much reason to hold a grudge against the adept. Rabbit in turn was told rather quickly that Kale wasn't there, that he never actually showed up. Assuming this was true, she wouldn't hypothetically have to fight her way past everyone here.

While these discoveries in no way meant things were going to resolve peacefully, they at least allowed them the chance to discuss things, civilly. After all, Rabbit wasn't going anywhere. Not with the type of security doors she walked through.

Sharing her mission with Cynthia, Rabbit told the woman that she was here to track down Kale, the implication of his fate unspoken but understood on all sides. This put Cynthia in a difficult position. Kale, in actuality, was not a popular figure in her organization. To put bluntly, he was an asshole, not only to those under him, but to his peers and associates. He was also veering out of stability, becoming increasingly erratic. These things alone wouldn't be enough for Cynthia to betray him though. However distasteful or harmful he was, that didn't justify betraying him in this way. If something needed to be done, it should be done internally.

However, Kale was gone. He was supposed to have arrived several days past, a scheduled and dreaded visit. However, despite having walked into the market, he never made it into Jerry's store. Something or someone must have intercepted him. To make it worse, the market wasn't the Ordo's. Far from it. The market being a nexus of magical goods, trade, and commerce, many organizations had feelers or offices in the area. In fact, that was part of the reason for the Ordo base here in the first place. In addition to monitoring the flow of magical goods in and out of Aztlan, grabbing anything of interest or value, she got the inglorious job of acting as a liason to Aztechnology when the need arised. In fact, the casino and brothel that Rabbit passed by earlier was actually a front by Blood Panthers. Used source of blackmail and information, the Aztechnlogy spec ops division monitored everything in the area.

If they got their hands on Kale, there'd be no telling what they'd do with his information. She couldn't act directly against them on a suspicion either. Not without breaking tenuous diplomatic ties. Finally, Kale really was an asshole. Thus, Cynthia considered something she'd generally never do. Helping hand over a fellow initiate to a random runner. If, as she suspected, Rabbit was working for a more 'benign' employer, it'd still be better than the alternative.

So, with a brief negotiation that Rabbit and her employer avoid torturing with Kale, she'd help her in her hunt. Additionally, spying the mark of Dragonslayer on Rabbit, Cynthia forced Rabbit to swear an oath to hide the details of the Ordo operation she encountered here. Eventually agreeing, Rabbit was told of Kale's disappearance, and of the possibility of him being blackbagged by the Azzies. With information given, and oath sworn, Rabbit was allowed to leave the bunker. As she left though, Cynthia gave Rabbit a commlink number. In case she wanted to change relations going forward. Not sure how to take that, Rabbit took the contact information and decided to think about it later.

The Final Hunt

Heading out of Jerrys with a nod to the confused Chiron, Rabbit re-entered the market, changing her course to the "entertainment" center. A building in two parts, it catered to both infected and non-infected clienteles, carefully separated. While good business sense, it also allowed for a greater reach in intelligence gathering. Heading into the casino floor, Rabbit tried to act natural while peeking inside the host for clues to where Kale was being held. After dodging IC and spiders for a bit, Rabbit realized he wasn't here. There was however, a note from offering a trade. Apparently Kale saw Blood Panthers closing in on him and was unable to make it all the way to the Ordo Base. Acting fast, he tried to cut a deal with some Tamanous reps for a quick escape out of the market. They certainly accomplished that. What they didn't mention was that he wasn't going to be free after.

Taken out of the market and imprisoned, Tamanous contacted the Blood Panthers to sell him right back. It seemed that they hadn't acquired him yet, so if Rabbit hurried, she could potentially grab him first. Investigating a bit, she found that Tamanous operated a cattle ranch in the countryside outside of the metroplex. Heading out, she found that there were in fact actual cows in this "cattle ranch". It remained to be seen what... else, might be inside.

As she crept past electrified fences and ghoul cowboys, a complication struck. An unmarked APC rolled in the gate, highly armed soldiers exiting. Tamanous agents meanwhile started dragging an bound and covered prisoner out of a building. Putting two and two together, Rabbit realized that the swap was happening. As part of her original plan though, she had called her in helicopter to make a fast exit from the Tamanous compound. Now, it would just be a bit harder.

And harder it was. Running fast, she managed to grab Kale, but in the process she had to fight off the Blood Panthers, Tamanous goons, the rigger of the APC, and a rather nasty blood spirit. She did survive though! Pulling Kale in her helicopter, she managed to fly off feeling successful.

If you ignore that the metaracists drew very rude things on her helicopter.

Aftermath

Eventually making her way back to Seattle, she handed over Kale to a likely unpleasant time. Keeping her oath, she kept her collaboration with Ordo Maximus out of her report.

Rewards

Extreme 30 RVP, 1.5 x mult. 45 RVP total.

100k in gear rewards (Vehicle mod upgrades, vehicle weapon systems, etc. Also Lifestyles) A20 or lower, 25 RVP (can convert unused rvp to nuyen)

15 Karma - 15 RVP

10 Bonus CDP - 5 RVP

2 Base CDP

+4 Draco Foundation Rep

+4 Ordo Maximus Rep

IG ordeal

Optional Qualities, taken from RVP:

Subtle Vehicle Pilot - 4 RVP

Optional Contacts that I can make if you want them:

Cynthia Rochette, as a 7/1 - 7 RVP

Jerry, as a 4/2 - 5 RVP

Game Quotes

Amusing quote from game.