A Beautiful Song
| A Beautiful Song | |||||||||
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| Factions Involved | |||||||||
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ShadowHaven Johan Liebert | Finnigan Family | ||||||||
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Trauma Ephemera Panda Black Sabbath | |||||||||
Summary
Four runners walk into a Finnigan bar, searching for vengeance for the lives of two vtubers on behalf of a necromancer. They succeed in finding it, and two others end up dead for their efforts.
Background
The events of Effin' and Blindin' left two dead, and now those that caused these problems must be held responsible. Johan Liebert contracts out runners for this purpose.
The Meet
Johan Liebert informs the runners that the deaths of two particular individuals have left their families bereft and in need of vengeance, and have left the scales unbalanced. He requests that the families be given comfort by the death of a responsible individual, or at least that the scales be re-balanced. To provide a lead to the runners, he gives them a commlink that belonged to one of the deceased individuals, in the hopes that it will provide a lead. Minimal negotiation is had.
The Plan
Trauma calls Karen 'Sketch' O'Malley to get help unlocking the provided commlink, from which a location is retrieved - a bar that is a front for the Finnigan Family. She is also given a list of people that shouldn't die within the bar, in order to prevent some bridges from being burned. The runners do a bit more legwork, calling contacts and performing searches.
The runners then head to the Finnigan bar to case the joint. With the help of the Resonance, Ephemera gains access to the establishment's cameras. Additionally, the runners notice an elevator, which should lead down into a storage area. Trauma's previous knowledge of the bar proves invaluable. A plan comes together - Ephemera and Panda will sneak in the back while Trauma and Black Sabbath will head in the front, and both pairs will search for their target from either end.
The Run
Ephemera and Panda head into the elevator while Trauma and Black Sabbath stroll into the front, smooth-talking their way past anyone who raises an eyebrow at their very visible assault rifles. The latter two take up a position near the entrance to the back of the bar and wait. A few persons of interest are sighted in the bar - Cecily Vist and Dr. Nina Farraday - but none of the runners recognize them.
Meanwhile, the first two find themselves sneaking through a storage area, and eventually find a small room containing both a decker and an unknown individual. A complication is immediately encountered: the decker is both their target and on their list of no-kill subjects. Panda attempts to sneak into the room, with the intention of assassinating the unknown individual - but is spotted out, and his shot fails to penetrate armor. Surprisingly, the individual doesn't react with hostility, but the well-equipped in the back area does, and combat ensues.
Ephemera takes a solid hit during the fight, while out front, Trauma urges the room to stay calm. One individual, a mage, absolutely does not - and promptly takes a microgrenade to the chest. His pieces are scattered variously across the walls and floor, and while there's some general concern from the Finnigans and remainder of bar patrons, nobody else tries to shoot or cast at Trauma any further.
In the back, the runners, reinforced by their unknown acquaintance, come out on top. Ephemera converses briefly with her, rather confused, before telling her to leave, and she complies. After discussion, the team decides to knock the decker out and bring him to Johan, to make absolutely sure that he's needed dead - they don't want to burn bridges where unnecessary.
Aftermath
As they leave the bar, the runners are confronted by the Finnigan who runs the bar, who inquires about what they intend to do with the decker. The party responds ambiguously, which the Finnigan is distinctly unhappy about. Afterwards, they bring the still-live decker to Johan, who is apparently disgusted by the presence of another live person. However, with two dead by the hands of the runners, he concedes the scales have been balanced, and thus that he does not need the decker dead. As such, he is returned to his employers with a matter-of-fact note, and the runners are paid.
Rewards
10 K Nuyen - 5 RVP
8 Karma - 8 RVP
4 CDP - 2 RVP
2 CDP base
-5 Finnigan Rep
The Scales are currently Balanced
Optional Contacts
Johan Liebert at C6 L1 - 6 RVP
Karen 'Sketch' O'Malley C3 L1 - 3 RVP
Optional for Trauma
Karen 'Sketch' O'Malley C3 L2 - 4 RVP