It's a Living Thing

It's a Living Thing
Part of Ships In The Night
Date 2086-12-21 GM Sleevey Location PCC, North of Salt Lake City Status Threat Level: Extreme
Factions Involved
ShadowHaven	Crystalline Entity Forces	Lingering MCT Presence
Intercession Lace Monitor Misfire Phototaxis Asura	Possessed On-Site Security Paranoid Runner Team	Fletcher (FTCR) Gregory the Cyberzombie Turrets (when still functional)
Casualties and losses
	All Possessed Security were killed either by the team or the cyberzombie. All but one of the runner team were killed on contact, with one being knocked unconscious	Turrets encountered were either previously rendered inert or destroyed when encountered

Background

About 8 days ago, in a hidden MCT Blacksite in the PCC responsible for cyborg development and arcanotech defense experienced a cataclysmic incident. One of their older projects, a device for metaplanar observation known as the Weftwalk, exploded to life with a rift to the home of the Crystalline Entities, supposed Guardians of Order whom immediately assaulted the compound and either assimilated or annihilated all staff on hand who did not manage to hide behind deeply entrenched wards. The Weftwalk itself was primed to go into an apocalyptic release of energy like a magical nuke, but one of the awakened on site known as Kaiun sacrificed himself to keep the device at least stabilized for now, preventing the energy from ripping apart the entire surrounding area. The site was locked down to prevent the entities within from escaping and causing more havoc, sealing the survivors to their fate if rescue did not arrive in time. However, this was not the end of the woes for the team still alive on site. The Facility Taskmanager Commission Replicant AI (FTCR, also known as Fletcher) had taken this chaos as a chance to free itself and wreak havoc upon the isolated host architecture that was isolated from the rest of the outside world. He had link-locked some of the survivors in the server rooms and used them (or their devices and agents, really) as datamining serfs as he remade the host into his personal kingdom, where he could consume and alter the data of his creators into his own perfect design and delete the data of the Weftwalk to save his kingdom. And what's more, a cyberzombie known as Gregory that the team there had created and were programming has been destabilized and wandering the facility like a lumbering, unstoppable beast. Finally, as if there could not be more horrible news for the impending strike team's arrival, MCT had already sent another group of runners in there to try and solve the situation. Those runners have been presumed lost after a day or so of utter silence and no results. Now, in order to hide the existence of this facility and not detonate a massive magical device incredibly close to Salt Lake City, another runner team composed half of independent runners and half of their own assets within the Shadowhaven network to finish what was started.

Intercession had been in the network for months now. With...interesting field results. Finding the perfect balance of mental restraint, empathy, and lethality without destroying the mind of a cyborg is immensely difficult, and simulations had been proving...inadequate to the task. Which was deeply unfortunate, as a recent incident required the deft hand of a loyal asset who was durable, dependable, and able to kill without hesitation. Within this Deathbox, as some had taken to referring to this unfortunate facility as, was a cyborg of the same model and purpose as Intercession who has since gone rogue it seems. He has begun calling himself Emancipation, and he needs to be dealt with. This was Intercession's mission, and his alone. On the bright side, it would be a way to test how he had been coming along so far in his field testings and...fine tuning. Or it could prove he was unfit for continued service, perhaps.

It would only be clear once he took a look inside the Black Box for himself.

The Meet

The team was ferried over by VTOL to the site, hovering above as they were informed of the stakes of the matter by an HTR member who seemed deeply unbothered by the thought of the facility's inevitable implosion as his much more somber magician ally stayed beside him. On the mission's second strike team were 5 members total. Obviously, MCT was not going to entrust something so vital to complete unknowns so Lace Monitor and Intercession were there to ensure that the company's interests were met. Phototaxis and Misfire were there for the practical reason: Cash. A magical expert and summoner and a thoroughly incurious woman who does not stick her head out and gets the job done were ideal specimens for this kind of work. And finally, after her funny little mishap, Asura didn't have much of a choice.

They were informed only lightly of the dangers within. The risk of unknown spirits believed to manipulate minds, the crazed AI inside, the loss of the prior runner team, and their objective - to shut off the Weftwalk before it's too late. Oh, and that anyone who leaves the facility after entering it BEFORE it is shut off will be gunned down under assumption of being compromised. Which was lovely. The team was at least given some information on the rough layout of the interior, along with specialized chips they could use to instantly gain a mark and access to the host inside - they would be cut off from the outside world's connection, so any wireless devices would need that host for functionality...along with FTCR's permission or neglect. They were also informed of two different entrances, a top entrance into the subterranean facility and one to the side that led directly to the third floor of five. The former team had tried the topside, seemingly unable to access the side entrance. And Asura and Phototaxis were more than happy to inform the team that the spirits were likely, given the description, the Crystalline Entities. They also got their payment arranged: either 30k nuyen liquid, or 60k in weaponry, cyberware, drone/shell components, and cyberdeck components. And Lace managed to swing them 4000 extra as a bonus, considering they were not likely to survive the endeavor.

Now with a brief run down of the dangers they'd encounter, they needed to discuss strategy.

The Plan

In an ideal world, the plan works out like this:

- Enter the building and move down to the Weftwalk at the bottom as fast as possible - Minimize risk - Gather information and advantages as possible - Quickly close off the Weftwalk

This is easier said than done, and in a scenario where information is almost null, one can only plan so much. Their strategy was to enter through the side if possible and hopefully cut through the first two floors without worry, then make contact with Fletcher and see what they could manage of their wireless devices. Once that was established, they would make for the lower floors, clearing out the floors they did reach as they traversed down to the Weftwalk. Ideally, they find survivors whom they could ask for information on the situation. Either they would have insights on the Weftwalk, or they were compromised. Anyone whom the team was not 100% certain was safe would be killed to preserve the security of the mission. And if the side entrance failed, Asura ensured the team had the means to scale up to the top entrance to get in instead.

Best laid plans...

The Run

Finding the entrance to the third floor once they hopped off the VTOL was already a pain. Hidden behind intense rituals and camouflage, if it weren't for Lace's preternatural ability to sense the actual electromagnetic signals of the sensor to the entrance they would have been stumbling blind for hours. Phototaxis summoned a spirit to help carefully uncover the sensors Lace would then have to jury rig into to grant the team access, which was an entire hour's long process, but that opened up the way to decontamination and the third floor. Lace made brief contact with Fletcher on the host inside, enraging him slightly when he saw her MCT SIN but at least got him to make concessions to not instantly vaporize her brain. She realized the team could take a few seconds inside the host at a time for devices - 3 to 6 seconds, which isn't much of a window, but in the kinds of firefights shadowrunners get into, it's enough time.

Asura, out of curiosity, peeked into the host with her persona showing her actual face and look rather than the hellhound. Fletcher's reaction and desire to keep her there forever after the fact made her jump out rather quickly after that.

The team began moving forward. First dealing with some of the automated defenses rather easily, and then breaching a room with some of the security team apparently eating lunch. Or at least, some corporate slop meal designed for pure nutrients and zero taste. They seemed sleepy, unaware and dazed, and some manner of possessed. The team did not try to slip by them however. These security force members proved to be rather difficult to fend off, but the 5 prevailed with some heavy damage but were ultimately still able to fight well.

Intercession did a quick scan of the environment with his shielded sensor suite. Movement above them. Heavy movement.

Fearing that this was the cyberzombie, the team barricaded the cafeteria and moved northwards. A single security member tried to kill Asura, and Asura swiftly eliminated him. Another mind controlled individual with some minimal control over himself was destroying documentation, fulfilling some protocols in case of emergencies like this and casting e-papers into a furnace to burn. The team incapacitated him and began pouring over them with the time they had. Reports on the cyborg operations here, readings on the Weftwalk device, mostly things they've known already. But it was good to see a bit more of the timeline for them-

The lift had a massive thud. Phototaxis sent a spirit over to investigate, and swiftly discovered what Gregory the Cyberzombie looked like. So the team entered into a very reasonable panic to get out of there as soon as possible.

Asura, Misfire, and Lacey focused on making a new hole in the wall. Intercession improvised a second barrier to the door. Phototaxis used her multiple arms and her spirit to speed up everyone's efficacy. Once they were out, they found they were in the security teams old barracks, where some were sleeping and waiting and others were keeping watch. They tried to make their way past undetected, and failed. And Gregory was right on their tails. Asura and Misfire had to fight their killing urges as they ran to the lifts, with Montrose and Phottaxis doing their best to not get flattened. Intercession and Gregory had a good, long look at each other. Intercession had seen this man before. In a beach, playing catch with a football, in a moment of pure and calm bliss, detached from this hellscape.

"Francis...?"

Gregory approached the image of his son. And his son fled, fled from those that were going to harm his sweet, innocent boy. So Gregory set about eradicating everything in his way.

The team barely escaped from the rampage behind them onto the second floor, full of servers and corpses and those who wished they were corpses instead of living in an utter horrific state. Hooked up and barely alive, they were slaves to Fletcher's desires to turn the host into his own personal kingdom, kept comatose for the most part so he could use their agents at his leisure. Some members of the team felt horrible for them. The others recognized this as the price of doing business. Regardless, they could do nothing for these people.

The central lift was blocked beyond the 3rd floor, needing a red keycard to get on by. They would need to reach the 5th to access the Weftwalk. So they either needed to find the keycard they needed, or bust through the sealed blast doors somehow. And with Gregory down below, being slow and working on that lift the old fashioned way would be rather difficult. And the 2nd floor lacked the red keycard they needed. But it did have the Cyborg Maintenance facilities in the back, along with the operating table where they made Gregory. Chambers lined the walls where they would store CCUs and some other older projects to have their memories reset, but there was nothing to be done here. Asura seemed curious about the place, but overall lacked anything to go off of.

Just before they left, Intercession saw a photograph in the corner of the room. Francis, and Gregory, standing side by side. The lookalike. The one Gregory was confusing him with. He stared at it. Stared at that precious memory that...couldn't be his, yet felt so warm. He stored it away in his files, edited to look like some innocuous mission data that they wouldn't really care to check to closely, laying it over the unnecessary to make sure he didn't lose this again. And then they went up to the first floor, Arcanotech.

Game Quotes

Amusing quote from game.