Looking Out For the Little Guy

Looking Out For the Little Guy
Date 2081-8-11 GM Korean_BBQ Location Tacoma Status Threat Level: Medium
Factions Involved
ShadowHaven City Watch	Some mafioso syndicate that isn't doing it anymore
Captain Boomerang Riot Boom Poom Strawberry	Godfather Ripoff Goons
Casualties and losses
	EVERYONE (But the Godfather ripoff and the doormen)

Summary

The group is hired by a group of storeowners who are being hit by a bad protection racket. They solve the problem. Violently.

Background

A minor syndicate group has decided to run a protection racket and is slowly increasing the prices to the point that the store owners cannot tolerate it. They took up a collection of their savings to make a one time "protection" payment to some runners to stop them.

The Meet

They arrive early in the morning, too early for Boom Poom, well, too late for the nocturnal runner. He pours himself a huge cup of soykaf (which he pays for) as they discuss the issue. The storeowner hands them credsticks totaling 40,000 nuyen (10k each). They agree to stop the racket as Boomerang grumbles about how badly run the protection racket on it.

The Plan

They discuss briefly, and the idea is to stand, brooding, on the rooftops and confront a group of mafia goons when they arrive, then interrogate them to find out where their boss is.

They spot the goons, jump off the roof (naturally into a superhero landing) and attack the goons. A gravity well from Boom Poom traps two of them, Riot hits one with an extremely powerful Shatter spell, Boomerang hits one in the gut with a levitate prep boomerang, lifting him in the air, Strawberry severs one with her monowhip, and the final one is finished off. Riot uses levitate to catch up to the man being levitated, but he doesn't know anything and instead uses the last moments of his life to chew them out. The levitate spell ends and they are out of information sources.

They spot another group of racketeers getting a soybucks. Riot goes in and threatens them, and they make a call to their boss and head back. Hotaru, Riot's ally spirit, follows them on the astral, which allows the runners to know where to go.

The Run

The guards outside attempt to stop them, but they aren't prepared for how bold the runners are going to be, just brushing past them. The man in the corner, who looks like a ripoff of the Godfather, compliments their audacity and invites them over, asking them to explain themselves. Riot drops poorly veiled threats to stop the protection racket. The Ripoff challenges her audacity to come on on the day of his restaurant opening, to which Riot cuts him off to congratulate him, and Boomer asks what the specials are. In response to Boomer's question, the entire restaraunt (aside from the bartenders who now start freaking out) draws a gun and points it at them. Ripoff answers "Lead." Boomer orders 2, while Riot drops a shaped Napalm which incinerates everyone but the people at their table (including the Ripoff) and the bartenders. Riot asks again if he will stop the racket, to which he responds that he really has no ability to run one now.

Aftermath

Word gets around and Captain Boomerang reports to Bold that they stopped a protection racket by convincing the boss to drop it. Bold remains somehow unaware of the associated body count.

Rewards

10,000 nuyen 3 karma 2 CDP

Game Quotes

"You want us to have a talk with them. A violence talk?"-Boom Poom

"Where are you starting out?" -- BBQ "Well, this is an anti-hero run, so I feel like we need to start on the roof." -- MadMan "Of course." -- BBQ

"Boom Poom would just be like The Thing." - Ghost "Wouldn't he just be Beast?" - BBQ "Minus the intelligence." - Ghost

"There is a chain reaction of angry italian people screaming "EEEEEEEEYYYYYYYYYY SHUT THE F* UP!" out of that building

Before combat begins, Boomerang walks over to a candy bar wrapper he had been eyeing while on the stakeout and throws it away

After combat, Boomer grabs a dead body, takes it to a public trash can and puts it in, then says to the crowd that came out to see them Remember, kids: don't litter.

Player After Action Reports (AARs)

Captain Boomerang

Well, that was a good way to start my morning. Wish there had been a bit more of a fight, though. Taking down a group this big shouldn't be this easy. Someone needs to teach these guys to run a racket properly.... wait... Yeah, nevermind. But seriously, they really fragged that up.

Riot

This was kinda sad. Whoever this guy was, he was way underprepared for the job he was taking on. But, on the plus side, Hotaru and I fought side by side like equals, finally. I feel better now. I don't need to push him to the back ranks and keep him out of danger. I don't need to push him into petty tasks like holding my spells for me. We can fight together as a team now, like we're supposed to be. Like I promised.

Hotaru

A promise is made, and a path is forged. Though one may stray from the path at times, they remain ever and always moving forwards towards their destination. A journey need not be taken alone, for strength can come from the unity of those who seek the same destination.