Brainwyrm
| Brainwyrm | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Factions Involved | |||||||||
| ShadowHaven | |||||||||
|
Backseat Breeze RC-45 Sea Shepherd | {{}} | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| 0 | |||||||||
Summary
The runners are hired to investigate a series of disappearences in Northfield, Minnesota which are rumoured to be caused by magical/paranormal forces. Using one of the runners as bait, they draw out the entity, following it back to the source and defeating the summoner. The missing persons were not found alive.
Background
The team was contracted by Mister Krime, who represented an acquaintance named Hutchinson, an independent investigator of paranormal phenomena operating in rural Minnesota. Over the previous month, six people had disappeared under nearly identical circumstances. Police have failed or been unwilling to act.
The Meet
The meet is held in an AR conference call. Mister Krime provides the details of the 6 missing people who are all male and under the age of 30 and have disappeared on the same stretch of road in similar circumstances. 25,0000 Nuyen was offered to the entire group for the job, however Backseat managed to negotiate for a little extra.
The Plan
Backseat, Breeze and Sea Shepherd arrange commercial flights to Minnesota whilst RC-45 contacts his smuggler to get him there(on account of all his highly illegal ware). The runners plan upon arrival is to book accomodation and transport before conducting legwork to identify and track down the cause of the disappearances.
The Run
The runner's investigation of the disappearnces lead them to Odin's Stalwart, a biker bar situated near Route 35 where the disappearances ocurred. Backseat rides in on a bike, disguised as a biker whilst the rest of the team follow in a car. Backseat does a line of Novacoke mixed with Psyche to get himself focussed, developing a moderate addiction to the latter. Inside the bar, he blends in, learning of myths and urban legends of a lone woman who wanders the road. With nothing more concrete, the runners leave the bar to search along the road for signs of magical or suspicious activity. With Breeze and Sea Shepherd assensing and RC-45 launching his drone, the team arrive at a shed in the woods.
Further searches inside the shed uncovered a concealed narrow tunnel running beneath the forest.The team elected not to enter, instead focusing on identifying the force responsible for the disappearances.
The runners devised a bait operation. Backseat, disguised as an ordinary local male matching the victims' profile, drove alone along Route 35 in a car while the remainder of the team shadowed him through the treeline. Not long into the drive, electronic and comms systems began to fail, and the vehicle's headlights flickered out. A pale woman dressed in white appeared on the roadside, asking to be taken home.
The apparition established a telepathic connection with Backseat, convincing him that she was a harmless spirit seeking assistance while subtly encouraging him to separate from the rest of the team. Persuaded by the entity, Backseat drives off into the forest, as if possessed. Unable to communicate with Backseat, Sea Shepherd summoned a Beast Spirit to track the car, eventually arriving at an abandoned building.
Backseat gets a strong urge to enter the building alone, instead choosing to stay outside. As if angered by his refusal to enter, the car roars to life, self-driving straight towards the other runners in an apparent attempt to run them down. RC successfully immobilized it by remotely locking the vehicle's drivetrain.
Moments later, a cloud of black smoke descended and attempted to possess Sea Shepherd, who successfully resisted the attack. The entity subsequently revealed itself as a hostile astral thoughtform that had been using the Woman in White as bait to lure victims into vulnerable positions.
The runners engaged the entity in a combined physical and astral confrontation. Sustained magical attacks from Sea Shepherd and Breeze gradually overwhelmed the thoughtform before it could successfully possess any of the runners while concentrated fire from RC-45 freed the vehicle from possession. Backseat provided encouraging words to rally the team. During combat, RC-45 also scouted the building, finding figures within. He throws in a neurostun gas grenade and the team moves in to find 3 unconcious bodies fitting the description of some of the missing persons. A fourth person is discovered, who they suspect of being the summoner of the astral thoughtform. The team move the three kidnapped persons into the trunk of the car whilst restraining the suspect and keeping him in the back of the car. The Runners deliver the suspect to Hutchinson, where they then find that the trunk containing the victims are empty, as if the bodies were never there at all.
Aftermath
Psionicist kidnapper is captured alive. The Woman in White mystery is left unresolved. The bodies of the dead, kidnapped travellers are found in a nearby river along with their cars. Sea Shepherd can scavenge up to 30 reagents from the Psi Amp foci the psionicist had, but can't attune to psionic foci herself.
Rewards
Run Rewards for Brainwyrm (Low, 7 RVP)
5,000 Nuyen (2 RVP + Negotiation Bonus) 4 Karma (4 RVP) 4 CDP (1 RVP)
Game Quotes
Player After Action Reports (AARs)
Backseat - "Frag Northfield, frag spirits and frag the woods. I'm headed back to the plex."