Semantic Drift Ep 1
| Semantic Drift Ep 1 | |||||||||
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| Part of Semantic Drift | |||||||||
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| Factions Involved | |||||||||
| ShadowHaven | Major Corp | ||||||||
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Lingchi Docteur Vega |
Character1 Character2 | ||||||||
Summary
Hired by Yonder to investigate a missing evangelical client, the team uncovers a mystery soaked in digital corruption, toxic spirits, and orbital catastrophe. The further they dig, the more wrong the world feels, and the more attention they draw from corporate enforcement. What begins as a missing persons job turns lethal when Knight Errant intervenes, leaving one runner bleeding out beside a southern highway, and no one any closer to the truth.
Background
A rural church in the CAS vanished under mysterious circumstances. Official footage shows a beam of light descending from the heavens. Unofficial sources say something far messier happened. Yonder wants plausible deniability and missing inventory accounted for. The runners are sent to follow a cold trail and bring back answers—quietly.
The Meet
After a flight from Seattle to the CAS, Lingchi and Vega meet with Yonder’s representative. The job is accepted with minimal negotiation.
- The target: Charlie Sutherland.
The Plan
Lingchi dispatches her spirit to scout the area. Vega begins Matrix searches while the team reaches out to Father Uriel, a Catholic spy master, who confirms strange happenings: HTR vans in the woods, abnormal corporate presence. In exchange, he asks for information on anything unnatural the team uncovers.
Further digging reveals Charlie and his wife were using a legal marriage to obscure a poly relationship. His girlfriend hasn’t heard from him in about 2 weeks. The wife sends them a file, tainted with dissonance and disturbing to interact with. Decryption reveals the church wasn’t raptured. It was struck by a fireball along with a deeply unsettling message...
The Run
Geared up and dosed on iodine for radiation exposure, the team heads toward the site. A lone patrol car blocks the road. Vega hacks the officer’s commlink, dodging a rating 7 databomb, and reveals orders to intercept anyone heading into the woods.
They’re pulled over shortly after. Lingchi’s SIN doesn’t hold. Backup is called. As tensions rise, they’re cuffed and questioned by Rogue, a Knight Errant officer with zero tolerance and full support.
The social game fails after a series of 3 failed con attempts and failed 'Saving Face' checks.
In a last-ditch effort, Lingchi casts a stunball but the HTR team activates pain editors and opens fire. She hits the ground, dying. Vega acts fast, slapping on a trauma patch as Lingchi burns a point of edge to survive.
Aftermath
Yonder remains unaware of the full scope of the incident.
The investigation stalls.
The church remains a crater.
The woods continue to fester with toxic spirits and rising radiation.
The case file is closed, but the mystery, and the signal, remains.
Rewards
- 4 Karma (4 RVP)
- 2 CDP (Free)
- Lingchi (@LHOG):**
- Acquired Criminal SIN (-10 RVP)
- Lost FBA Armor (29,000¥) (-14 RVP)
- Burned SIN (-6 RVP)
- Burned 1 Point of Edge
- Docteur Vega (@Zerre):**
- Social Stress (Law Enforcement) (-8 RVP)