Gifts From The Heart

Gifts From The Heart
Part of By Royal Decree
Date 2082-10-8 GM Archtmag Location Seattle, Downtown Status Threat Level: High
Factions Involved
ShadowHaven Treasa ke'Vedryn	Shaun Devon and Allies	Black Lodge
Ibis (Retired) Babylon Triple Trouble Gremlin	Shaun Devon Wared Up Ork Fire Spirits Security Spiders
Casualties and losses
None	Wared Up Ork

Summary

The runners collect a series of gift for their absolutely-not-fae Johnson. After finding the first few gifts easily enough, they hit a very serious snag that almost costs them their lives

The Meet

The runners are summoned to a public park where an elvish woman sits at a park table. A covered easel and a security man in an outdoor chair, chugging back a beer. On the astral, a guardian spirit patrolled. Higher force than Gomorrah.

The runners approached the J and exchanged pleasantries, though the J quickly made it clear through veiled verbal jabs that her nature was a dubious one. A sinking, familiar feeling ran up Babylon’s spine. Dealings with the Fae always come back, don't they?

The J outlined their objective. Their lovely friend was throwing a party and needed a few things. The first was their VERY actively active painting. In blood because why not. The J wanted the painting put up in an official art gallery. It would be entertaining.

The second was a violinist. Nicola Rossi. The J wanted them brought in. They were not specific.

The third gift was something from the heart. Something that would show how much the runners cared. Something from the heart.

As the runners bartered, the J sprung a fourth request. Murder a wizard. A mage by the name of Shaun Devon summoned and bound their friend. Unacceptable. As such, the runners would bring their head to the J.

With some smooth haggling from Babylon and Ibis, they managed to negotiate 30k flat with 60k in bioware. As they finished up their bartering and bargaining, an extravagant car pulled up with an even more extravagant person inside. Triple Trouble had arrived.

With the team assembled and the job lined up, the team set off.

The Safehouse

The runners began to meet up at one of the safe houses before finding that it was a funny prank by the J and was just someone’s house. Upon breaking in and discovering that, Triple Trouble called up their fixer to find an actual safehouse. Ace Power’s recommended Triple Trouble’s co-star, the Horizon Vampire’s house. Because of course he did. Meanwhile, Gremlin snuck into the random dude’s house.

After some worrying stealth rolls, Gremlin was not discovered, finding only an elf with a gun watching rom comms. They exited as Triple Trouble set up a NEUTRAL safehouse meeting with a vampire.

They went to the condo and found the vampire, one Evelyn Perez lounging about. After a very awkward conversation between TT and the vamp (which Ibis and Gremlin locked themselves in the bathroom to avoid the whole situation with the unknown person, hotboxing on zen the whole time)

After a quick matrix search on the violinist (a world renowned soloist at a hotel downtime, known drunk and womanizer), Babylon arrived and fished out Ibis and Gremlin to go to an actual safehouse not filled with vamps and corpo’s.

As the car exited, Babylon called Brodie J for an idea on the painting. Brodie, who assumed the painting was a work of erotic art, recommended a “gallery”. After settling that misconception, he gave the name of a “boring” gallery downtown.

Next, they called up Sanev Beixdor to find a nice, rose-themed cloak brooch. With some dealing back and forth, they secured the brooch and decided to return to the original safehouse so Ibis could run a T6 on Shaun Devon.

They found that the man was a corp contractor, known to like Mexican food often with a favorite place. He also has a dog. He lives in Bellevue and is Hermetic.

The Gallery

The runners decided to hit the gallery first. The plan would be go in, pay the curator 10k to display the painting for about 3 days. The runners found TT a fake sin and info for a disguise but upon closer inspection, they discovered some scanners. After some spectacularly bad hacking rolls, Ibis was bounced. The metal detector’s scanner for illegal ware would instantly ping Babylon so only Ibis and TT would go in.

As Ibis turned away to run a matrix search, TT walked in and INSTANTLY set off the metal detector. After failing to diffuse the situation, they just fucking bolted. The runners escaped scot-free after a clutch combat sense but they would need a new gallery.

After a stern talking to from Babs, TT called Ace Powers to find a nice new gallery for the painting. After a short discussion of vampire art galleries and blood paintings, TT sent off the painting to “a gallery.”

The gallery turned out to be related to TT’s new movie “Underworld Romance”. A twisted art gallery from the minds of the cast, this will be sure to mess up your brain! The centerpiece was the fucked up blood painting with the message “from a friend” written on the wall.

The painting cast a strange allure, drawing in the crowd as the painting warped and twisted, the figure within staring up at a bloody sky. It whirled and twisted and the crowd stared on in a daze. It would do.

The Violinist

With the violinist’s hotel discovered, Ibis found the hotel’s main bar. After hacking the scanners to allow Babylon in, Babylon talked the man into giving her a private violin recital in his room. Easy enough. With the painting in a gallery, the violinist ‘handed over’ and a private gift secured (an illusion foci brooch), the only thing left was to secure the mage.

The Mage

Our intrepid runners pulled up a few blocks away from the mage’s condo set up, a 3 story apartment condo kind of deal. Ibis did some matrix scouting but got spotted, only being able to pull up the locations of the camera feeds instead of quietly looping them. With that info up, Gremlin moved in.

As they picked locks and crept along, they came to a door. Pushing it open, they encountered a hallway stretching into the condo’s true entrance. On the other side, a cybered ork turned and leveled a weapon.

Ibis registered threats and TT chilled the ork while the ork fired full auto at TT, who managed a close dodge. Gremlin drew their side-arm and fired back, pinging off the ork’s armor.

After another chill spell, the ork dropped. 3 Fire spirits roared into existence, 2 inside and one out while Gremlin chipped away at the lock. Triple Trouble slung spells as Gremlin, armed with only a pistol, turned and ran to get a bigger gun.

On the matrix, a bolt of dark energy hurtled towards Ibis, followed by a second one. As they weaved resonance into the first dodge, the second one hit them dead on, almost dropping them and leaving them link-locked. The fire spirits kept up their barrage against the under-prepared runners and the now THREE spiders flung dataspikes at the link-locked Ibis. TT fired off spells as Gremlin jumped into the car and yanked Ibis’s chord. Babylon banished a spirit and summoned them them right back to buy them time as the runners lept into Ibis’s car and sped away.

Aftermath

After re-grouping and licking their wounds, the runners received a call from the mysterious J informing them that the job would be considered complete. After arriving at the same park, the fae-j informed of the situation. The target was better prepared and connected, as well as actively aware that someone was out to get them. They had set a trap. Further information would have implicated the runners into the schemes and plots happening behind the scenes and endangered their safety. Though fire spirits are also a danger to one's safety. Funny how that works.

The runners deposited their gifts (A hand-crafted foci brooch from Babylon, a brick of c4 with a detonator from Ibis, a forgery kit from Gremlin and an autograph from TT) and the job was complete. The nuyen was transferred and everyone went their separate ways.

Rewards

30k Nuyen (15 RVP)

Up to 40k in gear rewards, taken from the nuyen rewards (Available for Bioware, Foci, or Lifestyles, A18 or lower no delta, Radical Gold Reagents)

Note Foci as made by "Sarah"

2 CDP

+2 Rep for the Seelie Court

Optional Quality for Ibis, Will to Live, Up to 2 ranks (6 RVP)

Optional Quality for TT, Daredevil (6 RVP)

Game Quotes

Amusing quote from game.

Player After Action Reports (AARs)

Ibis

I don't particularly care for magic nonsense. Magicians and spirits and all of that, it's not my thing. I can't really bring myself to care. I can respect its threat and its usefulness but I just don't care.

Unfortunately, when the magician's plot brings me face to face with three security spiders while I am link-locked and bleeding out of my brain, I begin to care. I don't like it when traps are set for me. I don't like being set up. One can spin all of the nonsense they can with their "this information will endanger you" nonsense, there are elements of professional courtesy that must be maintained.

My brain still hurts. I need a drink.

Gremlin

This J was frustrain' at best, and their vagueness did us no favors, and almost got myself and my fellows killed. How on *earth* am I supposed to deal with a fragging FLR'd monster without a rifle? If anything, the idea I could is criminally stupid. At least we all lived, and Ibis, while probably (rightfully) irritated with us all, doesn't seem to have any long lasting damage.

Babylon

Fucking actors. Fucking vampires. Turning what should have been a simple job and a chance to repay the favor I owe to that fae into a goddamn mess. I'm just glad everyone got out of there alive. I don't know what the hell to make of all this, I'll just be satisfied with having gotten one over on the elvar by giving her the private performance she asked for from that violinist - ghost knows what she'd have done to him if she got her hands on him. I don't think she appreciated it though, least not enough to clear our debt even after I gave her such a nice hand-crafted focus as a gift. Still, it was the thought that counts, and I'm rather proud of my handiwork; perhaps I'll be able to clear the slate with Treasa in the future and work with her on more even terms.