Guys and Dolls
| Guys and Dolls | |||||||
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| Factions Involved | |||||||
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ShadowHaven Shine Rapture Roadkill Baron |
Kenran Kai Clan Yakuza Thug x7 | ||||||
Summary
The 'runners rescue a Bunraku doll named "Valerie" from the clutches of the Kenran Kai Yakuza and deposit her in the care of a former John, "Frank," who professes his love for her.
Background
The Shadow Haven ticker flashes with a new incoming job post -
"I need help saving the love of my life from the people that are holding her captive. - Frank"
The Meet and Legwork
Shine, Rapture and Roadkill arrive for their meeting with Frank, a clueless , farm-boy"Mr Smith" rather than a professional Johnston. He professes his love for a joy-girl named Valerie, lamenting that her employers "control her life, won't let her go, and don't even let her leave the premises". Three things very quickly become apparent to the Runners:
- Frank wants them to rescue a Bunraku doll.
- Frank is completely clueless about operational security, even flashing a 40K Credstick in full view of the bar patrons at the meet.
- Frank probably doesn't know (or doesn't care) that "Valerie" is most probably not that Benraku dolls original personality.
Frank transpires to be especially jumpy, all the more so due to the delay in the arrival of Baron, the teams face, and due to Roadkill's "stinking murder hobo" ambiance. Shine and Rapture display sufficient calm and professionalism to induce the Johnson not to run out the door in a mild panic, but Shine's delaying tactics only work so well and she is soon forced to cut the deal herself. When Baron does finally arrive, entering this fine, farm-town bar in his finest "pimp-suit" Shine, Roadkill and Rapture hastily hustle him out of the building before he spooks their hire out of the deal. The team agree very quickly that "Frank" is out of his depth, cannot be trusted not to do something stupid that will give the 'run away to the target, and probably lacks the guts to go through with the run if they don't act quickly. The team self-imposes a two-day time limit on the run.
Through Frank, the groups manages to uncover the following details:
- Entry to the brothel is gained by asking for Madame Fujimori.
- The mahjong parlor is always packed full of customers of mostly Chinese, Phillipino and Japanese descent.
- Frank hires Valerie's favours for 5000 Nuyen an hour.
- There are usually at least half-a-dozen guards on the premises equipped with suits, sub-machine guns, pistols and swords.
The leg-work quickly reveals (to the surprise of none of the runner's concerned) that "Valerie" is indeed a Bunraku doll in a brothel beneath the Blossoming Orchid Mahjong parlor. Without a hacker, the team are forced to rely of contacts to learn as much as they can about the Blossoming Orchid, the staff who work within, and the layout itself. Baron's KE detective contact Rebecca Montez comes through for them with a considerable amount of useful information but expects something in return - the establishment of a datatap at the location in question.
Through Rebecca, the runners learn the following about the establishment and it's personnel:
- The establishment belongs to the Kenran Kai Yakuza.
- Machida Tatsuya acts as head of security. This gentleman disapproves of running a bunraku parlor. Removed a pinkie in protest at being assigned to the parlor.
- Itoh Tatsuo handles matrix operations for the facility including blackmail stings, acquiring persona fixes and developing/marketing BTL chips.
- Fujimori Sayuri is the madam and manager of both the mahjong and Bunraku aspects of the Blossoming Orchid. She is a full Magician of either the Chaos or Black mage traditions. She is also an Alchemist. Like Tatsuya she is disgruntled, though in her case it is because she has hit a glass ceiling within the Kenran Kai due to being female.
- Knight Errant Captain Boyd Powers is likely among the blackmail victims controlled by Itoh Tatsuo.
- A cyber-clinic also operates out of the facility.
The Plan
The group briefly consider the prospect of adopting a social engineering approach and approaching one of the disgruntled Yakuza or Captain Powers as their "in" to the facility. However, given their particular skill-mix the team reluctantly agrees that they are not at all suited to a subtle approach. Instead, the group decides to infiltrate the Blossoming Orchid, portraying themselves as a rich eccentric (Baron) and his two bodyguards (Shine and Rapture). Roadkill, meanwhile, takes advantage of his squatter life-style to stake-out the building from the outside.
They enter the mahjong parlor, where Shine and Baron immediately stand out as the only non-Asians present. Rapture, being ethnically Japanese, handles much of the etiquette himself. The team gains access to the banraku parlour through a door in the kitchen leading to a stairwell leading down after asking for Madam Fujimori Shine notes a discoloured patch in the roof of the stairwell which she recognizes as concealed anti-personnel mine. Baron speaks with a gentleman the group refer to as "The Voice" who appears to be a yakuza face. Baron makes several attempts to obtain a night with "Valerie" without specifically asking for the girl by name. Eventually, Shine speaks up and complains that her boss met some "farm-boy" loser and his "dumb-ass, big-breasted, big-assed blonde bimbo gal-next-door" and has been lusting after her ever since. The Voice immediately produces Valerie, and Baron shuggles off to enjoy a night of BDSM passion with Frank's beloved.
The runners depart an hour later, with Baron promising to return again soon to sample Valerie's delights.
Aside from the mine in the roof, the scouting mission discovers:
- The Bunraku parlour consists of a single "waiting room" with a bar manned by the Voice, half-a-dozen guards and several naked dolls.
- One corridor leads away from the waiting area with a set of double doors at the far end (the Cyber-clinic) and eight other doors, four on either side of the corridor.
- There are six camera's inside and four outside. Maglocks and key cards are required to access the kitchen, and to access the stairwell from the kitchen.
Roadkill continues to observe for the remainder of the night and notes that:
- Local parking remains sketchy at any hour.
- Multiple guard and domestic staff shifts arrive and leave during the night.
- Madam Fujimori and the other "officers" attend the location for meetings in the early afternoon then depart.
The Run
The next evening, Baron returns with -three- bodyguards in two, the group having purchased some decent clothing for Roadkill and persuaded him to clean up somewhat. The presence of an additional bodyguard and extra weaponry on the group makes the guards suspicious, but Baron convinces the guards that they have completed some "business" of their own and have come to celebrate. However, the Voice claims that Valerie is not on the premises, and is not pleased when Rapture calls him out on his bullshit giving that bunraku dolls are never allowed to leave Yakuza facilities. Yet the Voice digs his heels in and insists the girl is not available.
Realising that returning three nights in a row would arouse even more suspicion (and not willing to trust Frank's nerves for another evening) Rapture signals the others to go loud by popping combat drugs which he claims are merely "uppers". Unwilling to risk the ire of the Yakuza, the team restrict themselves to stick-and-shock rounds and non-lethal magic. The Yakuza, however, are disinclined to return the courtesy. Yet even so the group manages to down the Yaks and zip-tie them, planning to use them as hostages to ascent the stairs without being turned into chunky salsa by the concealed mine. Baron's magics prove to be a key factor in keeping the Yaks disorientated enough to prevent the close-range firefight from becoming a blood-bath. While Baron nurses his wounds, Rapture watches over the downed guards. Shine and Roadkill however, find to their horror that the reason "Valerie" in unavailable is that Yak surgeons are presently installing additional cyber-ware. Shine uses her medical expertise to stand over them and ensure the Yaks put her bits back "correctly" while the far more medically and surgically skilled Roadkill hurriedly scrubs in to assist.
Alas, the second wave of Yak guards arrive. Rapture tosses a grenade up the stairwell but tragically critically glitches not once, but twice, blowing himself up in the process. Baron holds the Yak reinforcements off long enough for Shine to arrive and engage while Roadkill pushes "Valerie" towards the stairwell on a gurney. Shine and Baron are able to chase off one of the guards and put the beat-down another, but Shine knocked unconscious herself in the process. Rapture, thanks to one of Roadkill's slap-patches, is able to drag himself up the stairs and take down the last of the second wave at the very moment the third wave arrives. The four runners make their escape via the back door and Rapture's sedan, albeit the vehicle is considerably more ventilated than previously. Roadkill plants the datatap behind the bar on the way out.
The team make the meet and arrange the trade with "Frank" who seems entirely unconcerned with the knowledge that "Valerie" might not be the dolls original, actual personality. But the runners remain professional and accept their pay despite various degrees of disquiet and disgust, reasoning that life with Frank is likely going to be far, far more pleasant that the doll's previous existence as a Yakuza puppet.
Aftermath
- Despite taking pains not to kill any of the Yaks, the Kenran Kai are humiliated by the hit on their facility. They are unlikely to forget the faces of the runners any time soon.
- Frank gets the girl of his dreams.
Rewards
10.000 Nuyen
6 Karma
2 CDP
Game Quotes
Player After Action Reports (AARs)
SHINE: I'm unsure as to whether rescuing a Benraku doll in her chipped persona for a lover-boy is truly a "rescue". Have we simply exchanged one set of masters for another, even if that new "master" truly loves the woman he -thinks- the extraction was? For sure the physical body of that poor woman, Valerie, will be far better treated by "Frank" than ever she would have been by the Yakuza. But what of "Valerie's" soul? Her mana spirit. Stoicism teaches that I remain unmoved by horror and strive ever that I be true to myself. And yet have I been? But for the grace of fate, Valerie's tale could very well have been my own.