Another Day, Another Dollar

[Kid Jake]

The Bear's Den is a squalid little dive bar in the Redmond Barrens often frequented by runners and their clients. It's a small, run down establishment with graffiti on the outside and what looks like black mold and worse inside. It reeks of stale smoke and unwashed bodies but people who come here don't come for the ambience, and they certainly don't come for the drinks (if you want to drink anti-freeze there are always cleaner ways to go about it) but for the peace of mind. The owner is a former runner who goes by the name of Big Bear and the majority of the patrons are current runners or fixers keeping their ear to the ground for paying work. Any trouble goes down here and there's no shortage of men willing to put an end to it for whatever they can find in the pockets of the dead. Runners keep their heads about them when in the Den and gangers avoid the place like the plague. In short, it's a runner's home away from home.

Over the last three days you've each received a call from a common acquaintance, the fixer Mercurio. He claims that he's been contacted by a Johnson with the run to end all runs: a simple kidnapping that pays six figures for a week's work. You could almost hear his mouth watering at the prospect of his 15% finder's fee as he told you to meet at the Bear's Den for the details.

Now the day is here and the meeting with Mr Johnson is scheduled to start in twenty minutes. at Mercurio's request the owner Big Bear has reserved a large table in the back for your use along with a complimentary pitcher of something green and sweet smelling but no glasses. It's probably better that way.

[Fobok]

Cam walks into the Bear's Den, looking around with perhaps a little too much curiosity. He's a tall elf, and young (as much as one is able to tell with an elf), his blond hair combed straight, and he's dressed in fashionable clothes that don't seem to fit entirely comfortably. Trying a little too hard, perhaps, to look professional.

He heads over to the table in question, sitting down to wait for everybody to show up.

[tonberryking]

"...so like I was saying, BB, the whole basement was full of old bathtubs and more pipes than a squatter's hash garden. S'all Chinese take out, and then out of the tubs come these stubby little gonks who don't have anything to do with the job me an Sweet Christie were doing. Fragging psychos just all piled out waving pipes and chunck'sa plaster with only one goal in mind: to beat us all senseless. Drekky chump-clubs woulda shattered my poor widdle katana, so I was stuck bootin' em in the face or shooting their chummers off for like ten whole minutes until Greaseking breaks a bathtub in half to clobber someone and for all the trees in Elf Land, these little guys just chased him right up the stairs and out the door into traffic..."

Chatting up Big Bear, only stopping long enough to take swigs of presumably clean drinking water from a canteen is a little loudmouth blond. Wearing drab grays over black fishnets and a somewhat baggy and oft-used hooded jacket with pauldrons, the only color emanating from her are her aforementioned hair (pulled up into 'cat ear buns') and the dark green eyeshadow and lipstick over her face, which is at odds with her bombastic, overbearing nature. If this is the kind of place that allows weaponry to be worn, she has a quaint clover hilted katana laced over her back with a dark blue, rubbery looking grip with finger grooves. She eyes Cam walk over to the reserved table from behind her canteen, checks her wrist phone's watch, and then proceeds to give the bartender another earful.

"Man oh man, you hit one of those short stacks with a car and they go flying! Didn't even dent the car, but these Dukes just kept going after Greaseking like he'd eaten their mother and by that time..."

[raspberrybadger]

This is the Barrens, so Steam is loaded for, well, bear. He doesn't expect any particular fight, so he's just got concussion grenades loaded, but that's still an Ares Antioch he's carrying. He's got an extra set of offensive grenades too just in case he needs some real firepower. He's wearing his classy Secure jacket, which means his grenade launcher isn't too hard to see for those with sharp eyes, but that's not exactly a downside out here. He doesn't want people to see some dwarf with frizzy hair and a weak jawline. He wants people to see a professional with a grenade launcher. People will mess with a dwarf for no reason anywhere, but that goes double, triple out here. Best to give them a reason not to.

As he steps inside the Bear's Den, he feels himself stepping out of Raccoon's natural turf - the spirit world feels more distant across the boundary. He tries to be professional about seeing if he needs to check his weapon at the door. He's sort of hoping he does. Its not really the right weapon if a fight breaks out in here, and he's got Raccoon's other gifts if it comes to it.

He figures there's no money in advertising himself, and also no money in not playing this straight. So, after a quick look around he plops himself at the reserved table. An elf. Huh. Hopefully not a total screwup. Much as he'd like to just wait quietly, he decides to push himself to speak up. He needs to know what this elf here is like. He needs to know what's up before the negotiation, plus any clue as to how this guy is likely to screw up is a precious chance to be properly prepared for it.

So, after a doubtful glance at whatever that green stuff is, he says in quick but precise English, with a quiet intensity:

"Steam here. Infiltrator, difficulty remover, non-Trix information warrior..."

He then trails off, waiting for Cam to speak, just looking at him as if that's what's about to happen.

[Fobok]

The elf nods in greeting to the dwarf, and gives a bit of a grin at the doubtful look at the drink, "Yeah, I'm not touching that either." Then to the introduction he responds, giving a charming smile, "Call me Cam. Infiltration, acquisition, and demolitions are my specialties. Nice to meet you."

He glances around the place then, taking in some of the other people around, including the talkative blond at the bar. "Wonder who else Mercurio's bringing in on this one."

Turning back to the dwarf, he asks, just as curious about the dwarf as vice-versa, "So, you work with Mercurio before?"

[Kid Jake]

((Weapons are allowed, an armed society is a polite society after all.))

"Hahaha, I actually think I've heard this one. If I remember right it's the reason Greaseking can't whistle anymore, right?" the unusually hairy troll behind the bar chuckles, wiping an amused tear from his eye with a fat, greasy finger. He's a particularly round specimen for his race with grey, balding hair and deep laugh-lines around his eyes. He wears an unbuttoned Hawaiian styled shirt (most likely unable to get the thing buttoned if he wanted to) and a necklace of bear claws hanging around his neck. He downs a pitcher of his famous green mystery drink (known far and wide to put hair on your chest, make it fall out and strip grease from a car engine; not necessarily in that order) and sighs like he's remembering an old friend.

"We get old but the streets stay the same." Big Bear says with an amused shake of his head. "People get a little Dancer in 'em and they'd skrag their own mother for lookin' at 'em sideways. I'd be lying if I said I missed it, but frag if it wasn't fun while it lasted."

The big troll waves at Steam as the dwarf enters, and leans in near Black Rose motioning towards their reserved table where Cam and Steam are sitting. "Looks like you guys have quite a night planned. You know the team Mercurio got together?"

[tonberryking]

"Yeah, although at the time it was supposed to be temporary and then we had a Run that landed us in an abandoned hospital with a fracking swamp on the fourth floor and God, lemme tell you, there were slamming skats all over that mess. Didn't really go well for Greaseking, there, either, but at least he can still shoot straight. Never met a Runner that unlucky still alive and kickin. Course, I'm kinda glad he is or else we'd all have to explain to his rimbo girlfriend how he finally got reconfigged..." Black Rose suppresses a very real shudder before a sort of calm flutters behind her eyelashes. She gets a little more serious, in a quiet, near stoic fashion.

"Well, the dwarf looks familiar, but they ain't chummers nor collars in my walk a' life. But like Sweet Christie would say, they ain't supposed to be a pack of Wilsons, either..." she leans back towards Big Bear with a coy, cat like expression, as if inviting him to enlighten her on either of them.

[Kid Jake]

"I don't know them personally, but I've seen them around enough to know that they're in the biz. Freds don't usually hang around here unless they're looking to hire and Wannabes don't last long enough to leave an impression." Big Bear says, pouring himself another drink. "Besides, if Mercurio vouched for them they've got to be pros, he'd never risk a contract on streetmeat."

[raspberrybadger]

Steam smiles at each specialty mentioned, but lets the dwarf keep talking. He listens attentively until a question demands a response:

"Not like this, no. I don't know who he's likely to bring on, though I'd hope for some Trix support on a gig like this. If not, we'll need to negotiate for the means to contract out decking as needed. Do you have insight on how we approach this J?"

[Fobok]

Cam nods and says, "I imagine he'll have found someone. Finding a skilled decker can't be that hard for someone with his contacts."

Then the elf shrugs a little and leans back in his seat. "My father always said there's three keys to dealing with Mr. Johnson. Be professional, to make sure he knows he hired the right people. Be respectful, so he's more inclined to hire you again, and be careful, in case he's trying to frag you." He grins a bit and shrugs, "In reality, it's usually we wait to see how he approaches us and go from there."

[raspberrybadger]

The dwarf frowns a moment and replies "Professional, all that, sure, that goes without saying. Still. A bit more of a plan than 'make it up' is always to be preferred if you can get it. Perhaps the others will have something we can use. I suppose we'll see in a moment who else we've got for this job."

[Fobok]

Cam nods and asks, seemingly thoughtful, as he fidgets a little with the sleeves of his jacket, "But how can we plan? We don't know the Mr. Johnson, we don't know what he wants except a vague description by Mercurio, we don't know what he intends, we don't know whether he thinks of us as dirt best disposed of or professionals he might want to hire again. How can you plan before you actually know anything? Te'ch, we don't even know each other. If we were used to running with each other, knew the strengths of the whole team, then there might be a plan. As it is, though, I think we just need to be flexible. And professional, respectful, and careful," he adds with a bit of a grin.

[Kid Jake]

It's a few minutes before eleven when a sharply dressed human in a dark blue suit and hat enters the Den, folding a beige overcoat over his arm as he does so. The man has a well maintained beard that sports sharp, precise corners and both the beard and his hair is a dark chestnut color with minor flecks of grey. He sports stylish and somewhat cliché sunglasses despite the fact that it's the middle of the night, but the self assured manner that he carries himself with in this inhospitable establishment suggests that either he deals with runners regularly or he's got reason to believe he's untouchable.

It's still about five minutes until their scheduled meeting but Mr Johnson cheerfully strolls though the bar and takes a seat at the reserved table opposite Cam and Steam. "Gentlemen? I believe you're expecting me." he says with a cordial smile. "I know I'm early, but this is a time sensitive matter and I'm anxious to have it done with."

[Fobok]

Cam looks up to the Mr. Johnson as he arrives and gives a friendly smile, "Hello, welcome." Then he nods, grinning a little, "We're still waiting for one or two more to arrive, I believe." I hope is left unsaid. A two-man team leaves a lot of jobs on a run unfilled. He doesn't realize, of course, that the third member of the team is already in the bar.

[galenbd]

Jamie wasn't familiar with the Big Bear. She had looked for an online presence and hadn't found one. That at least made her feel more comfortable about the meet. Unenthused about taking her deck into the Barrens, she wasn't sure if the job would start immediately, so she dropped it into a backpack for the trip.

She arrived a couple minutes early only to find a pile of people already at the table. She slides back a chair and drops her pack next to it. She sits down and slides her leg through the strap.

She looks around the table and introduces herself, "I'm Jamie. Mercurio suggested you could use someone who knows computers."

[Kid Jake]

"I'm sure they'll be along directly." Mr Johnson says, crossing his legs and laying his coat across his lap. "Mercurio's runners are said to be quite dependable, which is of course why I use them."

As Jamie enters Mr Johnson gives her a polite nod. "I'd say so." he says with a broad smile, "It is always wise to have all of your ducks in a row, as they say. Especially against this one. The last team I hired failed to take her seriously and came down with a fatal case of lead poisoning."

Lighting a cigarette and smiling to himself, Mr Johnson continues "I'm assuming she's not your cup of tea, but have any of you ever heard of Cherry Star?"

[tonberryking]

"You mean the Eternal Jailbait on the airwaves that older choobs can't keep their blinkers offa?"

The loudmouth from the bar seemingly out of nowhere has found a seat among the runners, looking coy as the cat who ate a canary while propping up her feet on the table.

"I listen to pop soda all the time, but even I'd never call her stuff a true Marley experience. The furball's really how she stays in the limelight after a few years of still acting like she's a total Aerith. All purey-wurey and sugary crap."

[Fobok]

Giving a smile as Jamie and then the 'loudmouth from the bar' join the table, Cam introduces himself, "I'm Cam." Then he nods and says, "Yeah, I know her. Some catchy songs, but yeah, a bit too... yeah, sugary, for my tastes."

[Kid Jake]

Mr Johnson points at BR and makes a click-click noise. "That's the one."

"Her fans eat that drek up, and that keeps her on the charts while other; more deserving talent goes unnoticed." he says taking a deep drag from his cigarette. "Ms Star is scheduled to appear in concert here in Seattle in a week. I'd like to make sure her tour is cut short, maybe encourage some actual fragging talent to have a chance for once." he says, tapping ash onto the table.

"Any of you ever do any extraction work?" he asks with a raised eyebrow.

[raspberrybadger]

The dwarf gives a swift nod when Jamie sits down. At her introduction, his thought is a simple good, the tech side is inhouse. simplifies the trail back to us, simplifies the negotiations. He more or less manages to keep the relief off his face by focusing on what Mr J is about to say, and then on his exact words. Besides, the prospect of lead poisoning does tend to concentrate the mind wonderfully. It's a good thing the blonde was right on topic with clear sign she knows what Mr J is talking about, because that put down both his momentary panic at seeing her on the team and much of the reason for it. Meanwhile, social convention suggests that he introduce himself with a useful comment. Except he's more likely to be jamming the airwaves than listening to this kind of... sugar. Best way to avoid offending the J is to not say anything about this Cherry Star. But he needs the J to give more info, and he needs to introduce himself somehow. A question? No, that feels like it would make him look stupid. A compliment then. A word from the blonde gives him the key he needs. Limelight. He gives the blonde a nod of acknowledgement, turns to the J, and says

"I'm called Steam. I take it you've something you could say about this... limelight... of hers."

Edit:

"This would be an... involuntary removal then. And yes, extraction is something I've done. Having the right mojo is a big help."

[Kid Jake]

Mr Johnson's grin grows wider "Quite involuntary. The last team I hired met heavy resistance once they met her security team. From what I've heard her entourage has nearly doubled since then."

Tapping his cigarette out, Mr Johnson leans closer "I won't lie, it's risky. But well worth the risk. Once you have Cherry Star we'll ransom her back to her label for a hefty sum. 800,000 nuyen to be precise. As my...partners, you're entitled to half. Not a bad payday for a week's work and some light babysitting."

[Fobok]

Cam nods a little as he listens, and his eyes widen slightly at the payday mentioned, though he tries to cover it quickly. "Sounds worth it to me. Do you know where we might be able to find her?"

[Kid Jake]

"She touched down about an hour ago, but the night's still young. She's most likely club hopping." Mr Johnson says, lighting up another cigarette. "I have no idea where she's at tonight, but I do know for a fact that she's booked a suite at the Bellevue Hilton, so you don't have to tear the city up looking for her."

[galenbd]

Jamie listens carefully to the discussion. That's a lot of money and short notice. Risky is right.

Aloud, she comments, "If she's club hopping, she might have a reduced guard presence. I might be able to find her. The problem would be all the chatter about everything else about her."

[tonberryking]

Black Rose, who has yet to introduce herself, clicks her tongue a couple times, seemingly doing some quick thoughts.

"Nah. We'd have to wait till Ass-Crack O'clock inna morning, staking out that squeaky's suite for a chance she may roll in after a party night. S'a nice backup plan, but that can't be our main one. She got any catering habits? Like, does Princess Sugar here 'dance' or ask for bowls fulla brown MnM's served with pomegranate wine coolers wherever she graces? If she behaves like a saint, she must have habits."

[Kid Jake]

Mr Johnson holds up his arms in a gesture of helplessness "Her rider is handled by her entourage, though I'm led to believe it isn't as wholesome as her image would suggest. I hear that Wiz has a lot to do with her perky nature." he says with a smug grin. "She'll probably have a guy in town with the high grade drek and I guarantee she'll only take the people she trusts to meet him. Can't let a hired gun go leaking it to the tabloids after all."

[galenbd]

Jamie squints at this revelation, "So you think she will ditch her security to go see this guy? Do we know anything about him?"

[Kid Jake]

"She'll leave some of her security behind, but there's a handful that's been with her since the beginning. They'll definitely be there and they're the ones you need to watch out for." Mr Johnson says with a slow nod. "Now I don't know who her dealer is in town, but he'll be the man with the best product. She's always been one for luxury. And he'll be some place out of the way to keep away from prying eyes. You people know the city better than me, I'm sure you can find him."

[raspberrybadger]

Running through possible implications of the new info, Steam hits some possible complications. Jamie needs to ask questions to be able to have the easiest time tracking down this dealer, but it looks like this is about as much info on that as the J is likely to give. So it's question time, and as open ended as he can make it without being unreasonable. Also, time to make sure the J knows the group has what it takes, so he opens by saying

"If it comes to it, I've got certain capabilities for finding her too. Names and pictures of the people in that inner group would be useful if you have them here, though I imagine we could get that info ourselves with only a slight delay."

"I've got a related question, in a way. Is there anyone on her staff, et cetera, that you'd like to remain ...untouched by this extraction? I'd like to be clear what our options are for finding and getting the access we'll need to her."

[Kid Jake]

Mr Johnson lifts his coat off his lap and draws out an envelope, he brings out several pictures and lays them out for the group. The first pictures he shows them are of an elven girl in baggy clothes and a dark hoody, several of them show her always off to the side of Cherry but attempting to be inconspicuous. The last photo however shows her naked and asleep on an operating table, all four limbs; the majority of her torso and the left half of her face has been replaced with heavy cyberware. "This is Francine Charleston. About six years ago she was just a second rate bodyguard for clients with a preference for eye candy. A few years back however she was hired by Cherry Star for more subtle protection. An incident with a deranged fan and a grenade nearly geeked her. Cherry paid for the surgeries to put her back together again and she's followed the little starlet around like a puppy ever since. 76% of her body is chrome and she's a nasty little ballerina. She killed half my previous team herself."

Tapping three more pictures he shows them an older, bald man in a vibrant blue, three piece suit. "This guy is Sam Born. He used to be a wagemage at Yamaki Records and since young, attractive, rich girls are fairly obvious targets for manipulation spells it makes sense they'd want some magical protection on their investment. After about six months he left Yamaki and went to work directly for Cherry, no idea why. He's a competent mage and notable security coordinator. I considered hiring him myself a few years back."

Finally Mr Johnson lays out a handful of pictures of a middle-aged man with red hair streaked with grey and the hard face of a man who's abused his body for most of his life. "This gentleman is Joseph Harlin, her personal chauffeur since day one and an accomplished rigger. I don't know what rock she dragged him out from under but he's fragging good and doesn't mind getting his hands dirty."

Sitting back in his seat Mr Johnson steeples his fingers in contemplation. "I don't give a drek about bushi, but try and keep the body count low, we don't need any more Lone Star trouble than we're already inviting. That being said, I don't care if any of these gonks make it out alive."

[Fobok]

Cam reaches out to momentarily take each of the pictures, looking at each for just a moment before passing them on.He looks back to the Mr. Johnson, and says, "One last question. Well, for me. Do you have a particular place you want us to hold her? Or just wherever we think is safe?"

While looking at the pictures, Cam snaps copies with the camera in his eyes.

[Kid Jake]

Mr Johnson shakes his head and gets a cellphone out of his pocket, tossing it onto the table. "I'll leave it up to your discretion to find a suitable place to hold Ms Star. Just call me with this phone once you have her. When I see this number I'll know to go forward with our demands to Yamaki."

[tonberryking]

Black Rose doesn't take the cell phone; she seems to have finally gone quiet to contemplate. The bodyguard and the wizard will be the biggest problems, but you don't mutter that in front of your employer.

"Alright. Apart from her entourage, are there any 'artists' or hardcore badges from her record label that may get dispatched if she goes missing? That may come after us? They've put up with her for four years; I imagine that the suits ought to have chummers to call if it hits the fan, or even after you make th' demands."

Regardless, the adept realizes she'll have to make some important phone calls shortly...

[galenbd]

Jamie reaches out and pick up the photo of the redheaded man. She looks at him for a second and comments, "I know this guy. He used to be a big time racer. He started throwing races to get better paydays and they threw him out in disgrace."

She looks up curious and continues, "Ya know, I never considered where these guys go after their careers go bust. I'm going to have to look into that."

Jamie lays the picture back down. "None of these are push overs. We'll certainly earn that money. I wonder if we can find a way to distract the driver with some of his past exploits. He might be open to hubris."

[raspberrybadger]

The dwarf picks up all the pictures when it's his turn, lingering over the picture of the bald guy, saying "These guys all sound pretty loyal to her. Sam here brings elementals to the party, and we'll have to assume he can find her once she's taken. If he's still alive. So I agree, knowing who would be coming for her and knowing about how long it would take to transfer her would be prudent."

[Kid Jake]

"These are just the core three. She also has four members of a small east-coast firm called Jefferson-Lee Security on staff; usually supplemented by a few locals for the big events, most likely independent runners." Mr Johnson explains taking a deep draw off his cigarette.

"Getting her though is the hard part. Once you bag her it shouldn't take but a few days to throw her tour into disarray and get our payday, just make sure to put the fear of God into her first." he says, tossing his cigarette butt away and seeming to debate on lighting another. "Yamaki and even her entourage knows that it'll be a death sentence for Ms Star if they barge in shooting once she's already been taken, the smartest thing for them to do is to play ball if they want her back. If they don't want her back then they wouldn't waste the manpower to begin with. So long as this remains low-key and professional, it shouldn't even make the news."

[raspberrybadger]

Steam replies

"Not making the news is usually the way to go, I agree. As for what happens after we have her, when we call I think we will need to make very clear the when and what of the pickup and payment. Whatever the likelihood of a rescue attempt, we would need to be prepared for one."

[Kid Jake]

Mr Johnson nods his head in agreement. "Of course. Better to be safe than sorry. However unless things change drastically I'll call that phone once the drop has been made; you will put her in the trunk of a stolen car, leave her in the parking lot of one of those clubs she enjoys so much, perhaps the Gilded Lily in Bellevue? Meanwhile I will leave your cut of the ransom with Mercurio on my way out of town. The less contact we have in the meantime, the fewer chances that an association can be made between us."

[tonberryking]

"One last thing, champ." Black Rose slides her feet off the table and leans forward. "Not that I'm trying to bilk you or anything, but it would be aces to have a contingency in case the record Suits call in some unknown fraggers and sic them on us. Like, Extra Hazard Pay kind of contingency; something for our troubles if things escalate. You can never tell how glitched people will get if they want something of theirs back, even if this sounds pretty cut and dry for the likes of Me. I'm sure you understand."

[galenbd]

Jamie turns to the dwarf and asks, "What do you mean, Sam can find her with an elemental?"

[raspberrybadger]

The dwarf turns and says dryly "Lets just say he's got options. Sure, he could follow us home with an elemental. If it stays astral and it's nasty enough, I'd have a real fight on my hands getting rid of it. Or he could go astral himself and follow his elemental, making it even harder and riskier to shake them. If she really trusts him, he may be able to find us even if he can't start tracking us right away. So really, it depends on which of us is willing to risk more."

[Kid Jake]

Mr Johnson nods and gets a credit stick out of his pocket, tossing it on the table next to the phone. "Ten thousand." he says pleasantly, "For unexpected expenses or what have you. Consider it a sign of good faith."

[galenbd]

Jamie raises her eyebrows at casual discussion about magical assault. She shakes her head worried, "With Yamaki's deep pockets, that one mage won't be the only forces they can bring to bear to find her. They can afford private magical investigators from anywhere in the world. If they inform KE, then we have those to content with as well. What can the others of us do to help you?"

[raspberrybadger]

The dwarf replies, a little more abruptly:

"So long as we get moving fast once we have her, let me handle the magic security. If they go all in on magic, I can't help with, say, KE - so focus on speed and evading mundane pursuit."

[Fobok]

Cam speaks up again, then, "Speaking of moving fast, I think we have all we're going to get here, we should get moving. If we want to catch Cherry while she's meeting her dealer, we need to get going on finding out where they will be. Longer we stay here talking, more likely we'll miss our chance and have to go the more difficult route of snatching her from her hotel."

[Kid Jake]

Mr Johnson nods and stands up. "If there's nothing else you need from me, then this is where we part ways." he says, pushing in his chair.

[tonberryking]

Her sleeve's cuff covering her hand as she sweeps up the extra 'expense money', Black Rose nods in full agreement.

"..before we charge out the door, let me make a few phone calls. I gots a chummer with an ear towards "catering" around this dump of a city. Might take alot of guesswork out of this...

With that being said,she retreats to a corner of the bar where she's pretty sure no one speaks Japanese and starts firing off a rapid conversation in said language, cheery, in fact, to some unknown helper.


Calling up Gin Rei from my character sheet; trying to see if she knows anything about big scores going on today. Like, rock star with alot of money kind of drug scores, or if anybody from out of town's hitting up expensive catering bills for the evening.

[Kid Jake]

He hasn't heard of any large scale order, but suggests looking into a man that calls himself Jimmy Vice if you're expecting someone with expensive tastes. Jimmy deals high quality merchandise out of his home in Downtown Seattle and often brags about catering to celebrities.

[galenbd]

The dwarf says he can handle it. I need to be off a ways when that happens.

The meet seems to be winding down. People are starting to go legwork, but no one has proposed travel arrangements. Jamie decides it's still better to wait until the Johnson leaves before discussing the why and wherefores of finding Cherry. At the moment, she waits.

[Kid Jake]

Seeing that the team has already began their preparations, Mr Johnson nods in satisfaction. "It looks like you people have this covered. Let me know once Ms. Star is in your custody." he says, gathering his things and exiting The Bear's Den with no further adieu.

[galenbd]

Jamie watches the man leave, then turns toward everyone else, "I can start trying to find her, but I'll need a reasonably secure place to jack in. I can find my own if I have to. Do we want to set up some base of operations? I could work from there."

[raspberrybadger]

The dwarf replies "I can work from anywhere on the streets, and I can find anyone on the streets, unless another shaman stops me. Problem is, there's a chance that mage might get suspicious. So yeah, lets find them your way. Besides, you can find stuff besides location. And you can find them in a building too. If we take them on the streets I can track in real time there if they flee, and if there's any fighting I really want to be able to use a spirit of the streets to interfere with them - stealth on us, then confusion on the mage would be a big advantage. The other big option is some plan that avoids fighting by influencing people she'll be relying on somehow."

"Besides how we grab her, there's where to jack in, how to get to where she is, how to transport her, where to put her for the meet. I'm leaning towards something neither our employers or her company would expect, like sewers or something, but that's just an idea."

[tonberryking]

Taking him politely, Black Rose hightails it over to Big Bear and discretely, covertly asks if he knows how to contact good ole Jimmy Vice.

Waving the other shadowrunners down, Black Rose bounds back to the table once Mr. Johnson's gone.

"Don't forget the almighty Black Rose is part of this," she chimes in with the superiority of someone who knows a possible secret. "I may have found a way to pin down Miss Soda Pop's local, but we totally need a place to crash for the duration. You wanna pick a safe house or should we keep something mobile going on in case the wage mage sets his sights on us and our prize? Cause otherwise, fom what I'm hearing, we're gonna have to ghost the mage and ditch her robo-doggy of a bodyguad or we won't get any peace during this."

[Kid Jake]

Big Bear says that Jimmy Vice actually does a bit of business with local runners and hands Black Rose a red and gold business card for a nonexistent catering service that Jimmy uses to set up appointments.

[Fobok]

Cam nods to Black Rose's question and looks to the dwarf, "Which would be easier for a magical defence? Personally, I'd rather stay mobile, but if it'll be easier for you to setup defences in a safehouse, that's probably the best option."

Then he adds, "As for grabbing her, I was thinking we could possibly create some kind of distraction. Something that would draw the bodyguard away. Because I think it'll take more firepower than we have to stop that machine, and doing so would probably draw a lot of attention."

[raspberrybadger]

Steam replies "I can't defend a building without hours of prep time, and I can't ward a vehicle at all. If we stay outside and moving I can keep a street spirit concealing us. Plus it would be right there if I needed it for something else. If we use a safehouse, best I could do is keep a spirit on guard outside, but I couldn't give it orders. So, without hours of prep, staying moving makes the magic side easier."

"We'd need a rather targeted distraction to keep the bodyguard from just moving her to safety. We'd need something she was interested in, something she wanted to look at, or something she wanted one of them to check out. We do this right and I can get one of them to hand her over to us. I do agree though that their technology is a major obstacle, however this goes down."

[tonberryking]

"No offense, but unless Merlin here has something that can really frack up a razorgal like her, I'd probably be the best, the only choice suited for distracting the bodyguard...You don't have to worry about me; I ain't no rackie when it comes to that...But I also figured you'd need a piece of steel and some knuckle sammiches for the wage mage, too. Hell, I really hope he's not a rainmaker; I hate those the most..."

[galenbd]

Jamie shrugs, "For keeping her caged, I can see a mobile set up working. But the sat tech needed to keep me mobile will use a lot of our advance. I think I'd be better off in a safehouse. However, I won't be much help in the physical world if I'm too far away."

[Fobok]

Cam nods to Black Rose and says, "Good. I have some explosives if you need. Beyond that, I'm really not one to deal with someone like that. Getting past security systems is my specialty."

He looks back to Jamie then and says, "Ok, good point. So, a safehouse is probably our only option. I'd rather stick together than split up."

[galenbd]

"All right. Safehouse it is. Not my wheelhouse. Anyone have contacts who can find a couple places we can use?", Jamie asks.

[Fobok]

Cam shakes his head, "Mercurio might know of a safehouse we can use. Other than that, I only know people for news and gear."