Rescue the Damned

Rescue the Damned
Date 2086-11-24 GM Asmodeus Location Seattle Status Threat Level: Low/Medium
Factions Involved
ShadowHaven	One of the Gangs
Skull Roadkill Rogozhin	Unremarkable Turrets ATF Drone

Summary

After a gangland massacre in Seattle, runners are called in to figure out whodunit and what happened to all the evidence.

Background

An attempted peace treaty, or at least a brief olive branch, between the Chulos and the First Nation goes awry when an unknown third party crashes the drug buy with violent results. However, in the wake of so much death in the backrooms of a Puyallup restaurant, little actual evidence is left. Aside from assorted bloodstains, neither drugs, nor money, nor bodies remain to provide clues as to what went down. In the wake of such bloodshed and staring down the barrel of a proper gang war, Summersong puts out a request for runners to get to the bottom of things. Ideally before her neighborhood gets caught in the crossfire.

The Meet

A quick AR chat with the only runners available for such a meager payday has Summersong relaying the particulars to the team. Most of the back-and-forth consists of the team confirming that nobody knows much of anything about what went down, which gangs lost their people, and how long it's been since the murders went down. Not even a token attempt at haggling over the price of their services. How polite. Or inept. All a matter of perspective.

The Plan

Plan? What plan? Aside from making a pitstop at the closed-for-the-night restaurant to see if there was anything the gangs missed, just about every step of the way was a non-stop "Fuck it, we ball!"

The Run

With a metaphorical pat on the back and a, "Go get 'em, tiger," from their Johnson, the team sets out to see if they can sort out what sort of drek hit the fan. Their first stop is the restaurant crime scene, which looks very much like the sort of place several people have been murdered.

Roadkill quickly notes that the crime scene has most certainly been sanitized, likely with Cleaner Cleaner. Rogozhin attempts to commune with the local rodent population, but without much success. Rats tend to be far less concerned with the particulars of things like "who killed these men," after all. Lacking much else to do, Skull starts poking through every openable drawer, cupboard, and closet in search of anything that might prompt a "Jinkies!" moment. Fortunately, he is availed of two. One, that the corpses all seem to have been gathered up onto a tarp before being transported elsewhere. Two, there is a very much mostly alive woman hiding out in a trash bin.

Several hurried moments of attempting to stabilize the thoroughly perforated woman later and the team finds mixed success. Notably, she will be staying alive thanks to Roadkill's (expired) medical license and Valkyrie Module, but needs to nap away her bullet induced lethargy. In the intervening time, the team tries to chase down what few leads they were able to pry from her before she collapsed. The so-called villains seem to be local organ-leggers of one variety or another who happen to have a rather conspicuous van. Putting their collective heads together, the team tries to reason out who reasonably fits the bill in Seattle, given the context from their patient and the clues at the scene.

It takes some narrowing down, but eventually the group resolves to try to track down the most zombie-apocalypse-cosplay van this side of the Rockies via a little help from Rogozhin's friends. Specifically, the very undead dog being driven by a spirit. While the Search in Puyallup and Tacoma turn up very little, a bit of driving around semi-aimlessly gives the team at least half an idea. With a change of tactic, they try Redmond instead, around one of the few places openly selling used ware is allowed. Finally, the dog-spirit gestalt finds its mark, leading the team straight to an abandoned warehouse with the van outside.

Recon swiftly ensues via Rogozhin's rodent friends, as well as Skull and Roadkill's physical efforts. For once, the team is in luck as only a series of turrets and drones are keeping the place secure. Opting for a coordinated approach, Skull busts in through one of the doors alongside Rogozhin('s dog) as Roadkill blows out the skylight to drop in from the roof. After a brief scuffle in which the dog is turned into Swiss cheese and Skull is bamboozled by a drone with a flashing light and a beeping sound, the team is victorious. Threats dealt with, they quickly discover the missing drugs and money, but no culprits for the murder in sight. Satisfied enough with their findings that they can prove neither the Chulos nor the First Nation did this, they return to Summersong with their results. And conveniently neglect to mention that the cash was recovered from the warehouse.

Runners gotta get paid and new dogs don't grow on trees, you know?

Aftermath

With proof of a third party's involvement acquired, the team returns to Summersong to report the results of their labors. A few deftly worded claims later, they fork over the drugs but not the cash, informing their Johnson that the unknown assailants had only the former left in their stash. Claiming their payment and splitting their ill-gotten gains, the runners go their separate ways, victorious for now.

Rewards

• 12,000 Nuyen (6 RVP)
• 2 Karma (2 RVP)
• 4 CDP (1 RVP)

+1 Chulos Reputation Optional Contact: Summersong, 4/1 Decker (4 RVP or 8 CDP) Optional Gear: Cyberdeck / Commlink Upgrades at Gear Rates

Game Quotes

Amusing quote from game.

Player After Action Reports (AARs)

Skull: "The blinking, beeping bomb drone did not explode. I still do not understand why. Perhaps the explosive was defective."