You are Kai, a newly minted edgerunner trying to scrape by in Night City. A week ago your father, an NCPD netrunner, was murdered under suspicious circumstances during a Cyberpsycho attack on Kabuki Marketplace. You’re out looking for answers. Answers and eddies. Eddies to pay for your several ill mother’s medical expenses, eddies for more gear, eddies for information, eddies for allies. Everything in Night City has a price, and everyone has secrets, especially your family - Dad was an Edgrerunner for decades in secret, your Mom used to be a corpo scientist for Biotechnica, and even you're hiding your new line of work from almost everyone in your old life. The only person you can fully trust is yourself… and perhaps Alice, the ghostly AI that your netrunner father was working with in secret before they both got attacked on New Year’s Eve. The last few days have been busy with small jobs for the static Aldecaldo fixer Dakota, both solo and with other edgerunners. You’re still one of the freshest faces around Night City's shadows for now, but all it takes to end that is a single bullet - This line of work is a meat grinder, and runners are the meat. 2076.01.06, 13:25Night City (Kabuki, your apartment)Sitting down in your father’s old chair, you look at your reflection in the dark screens of his dormant comp. It’s a faint image, ghostly and somehow unreal - Shaking your head you look away from the screens, having had more than your fill of ghosts recently.”Are you prepared for the journey, Kai?” Alice’s voice whispers within your mind, projected across a secured Net connection and directly into your neuralink. Her dulcet tones relax you a touch, and if you didn’t know better you’d swear she was standing beside you - that’s impossible of course. She’s dead. A ghost caught in the Net, human consciousness transformed into a kind of wild and unplanned artificial intelligence… Or at least that’s the best you’ve been able to make of the situation so far.“...I am.” You speak the words aloud, preferring the control of verbal communication to the stuttery messiness of communication by pure thought. Reaching into the interior of your blue aramid jacket, a reward of sorts from your first job for your fixer Dakota, you grab a hold of a large device you’ve been concealed since your return from Kabuki’s roundabout marketplace.
>>5944098The metallic exterior of the external deck is cold to your touch as you draw it out from within your blue jacket, the rectangular device still quite unfamiliar to you even after cleaning it of tracking soft and installing your own new shards. Tracing a finger over the faint relief of the Arasaka logo on its exterior, feeling the fine texture of it, you let out a sigh - there’s no putting this off, you’d better be ready now. Flipping the deck’s screen up, you start it up with the tap of a button and then pull your personal link from the small port in your wrist and jack in. Lines of code flash across the deck’s small screen as a connection is established, and just as it did this morning you feel your perception begin to fragment, to slip into two places at once. You remain half aware of your physical body in the dimmest sense, and are nearly overwhelmed by the rush of sensory data as your avatar’s form materializes within the Net, displacing your awareness from the physical to digital world as you slip through a hole in the walled gardens put up by the corps to keep clueless gonks from wandering too far into the wilds of the Net. The stolen Arasaka deck cuts right through that safety railed garbage, and instantly you understand that you’re in the real Net, a shattered patchwork of servers and infrastructures slowly pieced back together over the decades post datakrash.Cold awareness spiderwebs through your mind like freezing tendrils of supercooled mercury as you survey the digital landscape rolling infinitely far off to a horizon that never quite materializes. Only the distant menacing form of the Blackwall cuts across the infinite closing off one ‘side’ from access, but that is far, far off still. Monolithic and monochrome data-fortresses loom much closer, towering behemoths of corporate might among the ‘hills’ and ‘mountains’ of net infrastructure half a century older than you or more. Verdant holographic forests of smaller data centers carpet the landscape, swaying in the winds and streams of data flowing between on the ground, and below, and above. This visualization of the Net, this naturalistic look - excepting the Blackwall - is partially constructed from the software the stolen Arasaka deck you’re jacked into is using, partly from the transmitted images presented by corporations, but mostly because of your own mind and preferences. The Net looks like this only to you… And perhaps one other person.
>>5944103”Hide yourself, with haste! There are crawling things here, even in the bright places, spiders and frightful grasping creatures.” Alice implores from beside you, her own faintly crimson digital form far more detailed and solid than your own wavering blue, hints of truer colors playing faintly beneath the surface of her skin, like an old holographic card reflecting light strangely. She’s crouched low, almost blending entirely into a stream of passing data as it rushes by in a torrent, her form becoming harder to perceive by the moment except for a faint silver cord running from her clothes to your own. A direct connection through your neuralink.“Hide from what? Are they close?” You ask quietly, crouching beside the ghostly AI, your sheathed sword bumping up against her thigh as you move half a step closer and into the stream… Your sword? A dull sword, and one you scarcely know how to wield. Another visualization of your deck’s core programs you realize, along with the scroll hanging by straps at your other side. That’s the daemon you bought in Kabuki marketplace earlier, the imp sold to you by Yoko - He’s sealed up in his datashard for now, ready to defend at a moment’s notice, already patrolling your personal network even if you’ve yet to think of him strongly enough to force his appearance.”Everything is close, Kai, even the sky.” Alice squints off in the distance, down the path of the datastream, her awareness pulling yours along with it - And suddenly you are elsewhere, a much darker place, falling up, up, up, tumbling too and fro among currents of data - and with a thwack you land, in another forest, among other rustling digital trees, the same imposing data-fortresses from before still far off in the ‘mountains’ but the angles completely changed. Ahead of you now is a small encampment of tents surrounded by a ‘log’ palisade and ditches, resembling some sort of hastily constructed and half ignored military camp from long ages past… No, not a military camp, a barbarian one. Sloppy, haphazard, the work of bandits. Of scavs. A pair of wart covered and hunchbacked green goblin-like creatures patrol about the entrance with weighty wooden clubs in hand, their beady little black eyes looking out occasionally into the forest of data surrounding the scav subnet. IC of some kind, and not very good IC either. “...We’re here.” You’re aware of it at once that Alice has brought you directly to the scav subnet you need to scout out for the job tomorrow, “That was preem tracing work Alice.”
>>5944105The ghostly girl shakes her head slightly, her lips pursed in annoyance as she brushes off her simple dress, “I am afraid it was quite clumsy. Are you intact?”“I… am.” You reply after a moment of checking yourself over, bio and cyber-diagnostics flashing through your awareness quickly even as you check over your digital avatar ‘manually’, just as if you were out in meatspace, “Here’s the plan…”VOTE OR GET FLATLINED:>”We do this quietly, get the detes on our target and logout.” Attempt to find a backdoor into the scav subnet, try to enter and leave unnoticed. You’ll want to keep your Imp sealed away in his datashard, the more you can focus your deck on remaining unnoticed the better. >”Doesn’t look like they have any good IC, lets hit them fast and delta, snatch all the data we can while be blow through.” Draw your ‘sword’ and raid the subnet! The scavs will know *a* breach occurred but likely nothing else unless you are successfully traced or get fried by IC. You can have your Imp out for this, it’ll help keep you safe from attacks.>”...I’ll go in and talk, get whoever is doing net security distracted. Dig around and see what you can find, camera feeds, anything useful.” Split up - You will attempt to do some social engineering while Alice pokes around like a proper ghost.>Write-in.Previous Thread: https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/2023/5829969/
>>5944109>”We do this quietly, get the detes on our target and logout.” Attempt to find a backdoor into the scav subnet, try to enter and leave unnoticed. You’ll want to keep your Imp sealed away in his datashard, the more you can focus your deck on remaining unnoticed the better.Based, I’ve been waiting for this quest to return!
>>5944109>”We do this quietly, get the detes on our target and logout.” Attempt to find a backdoor into the scav subnet, try to enter and leave unnoticed. You’ll want to keep your Imp sealed away in his datashard, the more you can focus your deck on remaining unnoticed the better.
>>5944109>”We do this quietly, get the detes on our target and logout.” Attempt to find a backdoor into the scav subnet, try to enter and leave unnoticed. You’ll want to keep your Imp sealed away in his datashard, the more you can focus your deck on remaining unnoticed the better. We've got Alice, I imagine this'll be easier than the last sneaky outing into scav dwellings. This is our element comparatively, or should be. Don't let em know we're coming, don't want to spoil the meatspace job.Also, welcome back Mainline! I missed this.
>>5944109>>”We do this quietly, get the detes on our target and logout.” Attempt to find a backdoor into the scav subnet, try to enter and leave unnoticed. You’ll want to keep your Imp sealed away in his datashard, the more you can focus your deck on remaining unnoticed the better.
>>5944109Komban-wa, Mainrine-sama.May we remain nimble like the mongoose, and as subtle as the myriad folds of a geisha's kimono.
>>5944109>>>”We do this quietly, get the detes on our target and logout.” Attempt to find a backdoor into the scav subnet, try to enter and leave unnoticed. You’ll want to keep your Imp sealed away in his datashard, the more you can focus your deck on remaining unnoticed the better.
>>5944109>”We do this quietly, get the detes on our target and logout.” Attempt to find a backdoor into the scav subnet, try to enter and leave unnoticed. You’ll want to keep your Imp sealed away in his datashard, the more you can focus your deck on remaining unnoticed the better.Good to see you back QM, excited to see this one again.
>>5944109>”We do this quietly, get the detes on our target and logout.” Attempt to find a backdoor into the scav subnet, try to enter and leave unnoticed. You’ll want to keep your Imp sealed away in his datashard, the more you can focus your deck on remaining unnoticed the better.Netrunners who smash and grab are netrunners who are just itching to get their brains fried. Let's do this stealthily. Also, welcome back, Mainline. I was really looking forward to the return of this quest.
Rolled 47 (1d100)>>5944328>>5944268>>5944170>>5944151>>5944129>>5944121>>5944116I need two rolls of 1d100. DC is 55, higher is better.Rolling for Alice's support as well.
Rolled 80 (1d100)>>5944372Well, at least she got the musical number.
Rolled 81 (1d100)>>5944372Watch this, Choom.
Rolled 79 (1d100)>>5944372
>>5944381>>5944382Pretty sneaky, anons - well done.
>>5944381>>5944382Good rolls anons, an 81 will do it.>>5944383...What are the chances of rolling a 79, 80, and 81?
we're so fucking back.
“We’ll do this quietly, get the detes on our target and logout.” You speak in a hushed voice, eyes focused intently on the IC avatar’s at the entrance of the scav subnet, trying your best to remember old lessons from your father, “...Scav gonks bought low grade IC, look at those goblins.”“Filthy little barbarians.” Alice wrinkles up her mouth in distaste as she watches the goblins alongside you, one of the hunchbacked programs knocking the other over the head with his club, the thunking smack bringing his wart covered compatriot back to full attention, ”What an awful mess they have made of their own subnet, nasty creatures. We will have no troubles with those quarrelsome brutes.”You share the ghost woman’s confidence, thinking little of the obnoxious greenskinned avatars of the scav IC programs. Careful not to pull the silver cord between you too tight, you lead the way toward the log palisade of the camp, running your deck’s basic intrusion soft with a thought. Data flashes before your eyes, phantom images of encryption grids, columns of letters and numbers searched and selected through quickly as your deck cuts past the basic encryption of the scav subnet’s firewall. Pff, ‘firewall’, the logs aren’t even on fire, someone failed to even set it up correctly, the entire thing is barely a defense at all. As you finish your intrusion attempt a small gap in the palisade materializes, a backdoor successfully located. Keeping low, you and Alice move through the swaying tall grass at the camp’s edge, useless junk data parting as you mask your presence and enter the quietly breached subnet. Inside, past the poor excuse for a firewall and unseen by the patrolling IC, you lay eyes on the true interior of the subnet for the first time - The faint silhouettes of human figures walk between tents and piles of barrels and crates, representations of personal agents or links and the various shared datastores kept by the scavs. Another of those witless IC goblins stands in the center of the camp, one gnarly crooked green finger shoved firmly within its pointed ear as it picks away at wax. Clueless, just like the others.Everything is going perfectly, you just need to find a way to access any cameras the scavs have, and their most recent records… Something snaps behind you, bursts of data sent whistling and flying about through the air in whistling arcs, and the IC goblin’s beady eyes are suddenly wide and alert, his ear picking hand grasping at the wooden cudgel on his belt in a startled panic. Turning to see what made the noise, you find Alice positively mortified, pale as a ghost, one shoe having snapped a twig in two. She’s tripped some of the scav’s passive security, sending alerts out to all the active IC.
>>5944432”Oh dear. She covers her mouth in embarrassment even as you hurriedly pull her behind one of the tents and out of sight. Alice speaks in a whisper as you both slink into the temporary hiding spot, ”I am terribly sorry, Kai - We can reset them still!”“We can?” You question, a little out of your depth but thankfully not yet on the wrong end of whatever those bludgeons the IC are carrying around are - for now you’re still undetected, only a general alarm has sounded, and only to the IC it seems… No lurkers or scav netrunner today. ”You can, I… Lack full functionality, it would be more trouble than-”“How?” You demand, hearing the grunts and footsteps of the IC grow closer, tent flaps being thrown open as they check each of the subnets' datastores and logs for intruding programs or netrunners.“A trick!” Alice snaps her fingers, and… nothing happens, though thankfully it doesn’t even make a sound - whatever she tried was utterly inert, “...Drat, curse my missing data - You try, Kai.” “Preem, Alice, very helpful.” You mutter while pulling up your deck’s basic spoofing soft - just a part of its core functionality, nothing fancy or specialized. In a rush you throw together a simple spoof, ripping code haphazardly from the deck’s libraries and assembling a fake ping of the subnet, a brutish fake advertisement that will play the role of a security tripping spam message almost perfectly. If anything the hasty and amateurish programming makes it more believable, the work of some unpaid intern at a soulless corp. With a flick of your wrist you send the burst of data high into the air, and it sails back down among the swarming goblins moments before they reach you.…And they take the bait, resetting immediately and returning to their previous positions.”Sorry, choom. Alice apologizes quietly once more, her eyes now firmly focused on the ground as you both return to your search of the subnet. At least she doesn’t intend to make the same mistake again.>”No harm done. Take the logs over there, I’ll check their cameras and messages.” Many hands make short work, Alice’s slip up was a fluke.>”...Just keep close, Alice, watch my back.” Do everything yourself, Alice lacks the data or hardware to properly back you up in her currently crippled state, even if she is a ‘native’ of the Net.>”Never mind all this data, we need to find their leader’s agent - that’ll have the preem detes.” Hunt around for the real prize… it’ll take some riskier snooping around though, the scav personal nets housed inside their overarching subnet might have their own IC as well. The deeper you dive, the harder it becomes to leave if things go wrong.
>>5944434>”No harm done. Take the logs over there, I’ll check their cameras and messages.” Many hands make short work, Alice’s slip up was a fluke.I trust her natural aptitudes even if she's clumsy
>>5944434>”...Just keep close, Alice, watch my back.” Do everything yourself, Alice lacks the data or hardware to properly back you up in her currently crippled state, even if she is a ‘native’ of the Net.Idk, her one roll vs our bo3 roll makes me wary of letting her be on her own.
>>5944442Best of two.
>>5944434>>”...Just keep close, Alice, watch my back.” Do everything yourself, Alice lacks the data or hardware to properly back you up in her currently crippled state, even if she is a ‘native’ of the Net.
>>5944434>>”...Just keep close, Alice, watch my back.” Do everything yourself, Alice lacks the data or hardware to properly back you up in her currently crippled state, even if she is a ‘native’ of the Net.We need to get her a deck and sign up for some health insurance.
>>5944434>”...Just keep close, Alice, watch my back.” Do everything yourself, Alice lacks the data or hardware to properly back you up in her currently crippled state, even if she is a ‘native’ of the Net.We'll go through those old shards full of juicy dangers and fix her right up, in time. There's a lot to do, the encrypted stuff on dad's comp, the old deck when we are finally ready for it's IC, getting Alice a proper deck of her own and a real body.For now she should stay close, just assisting us.Cameras, layout, guard positions first. We can go deeper when we've got the basics, not before.
>>5944434>”...Just keep close, Alice, watch my back.” Do everything yourself, Alice lacks the data or hardware to properly back you up in her currently crippled state, even if she is a ‘native’ of the Net.
>>5944434>”...Just keep close, Alice, watch my back.” Do everything yourself, Alice lacks the data or hardware to properly back you up in her currently crippled state, even if she is a ‘native’ of the Net.This will do fine and we do need to teach ourselves these things after all.
>>5944437No harm done.>>5944442>>5944455>>5944469>>5944471>>5944612>>5944697Quiet and close, do it yourself. Wins.Rolling time, chooms.I need two rolls of 1d100, DC is 60. Slightly harder doing it all alone but failure (if it happens) isn't as harsh since Kai has a proper Deck unlike Alice.No rolls for Alice.
Rolled 74 (1d100)>>5944873Rollin'
Rolled 85 (1d100)>>5944873 I dig the pseudo-fantasy element to the net descriptions, Mainline
>>5944878>>5944882The 85 will do it nicely, good rolling. Writing.
“...Just keep close, Alice, watch my back.” You reply quickly, now realizing your mistake in relying on Alice - she’s willing to help, just as she did this morning, but that doesn’t mean she can do it reliably. Perhaps bringing her along for this run may have been a mistake with how damaged she still is and without her own deck to use. Alice closes her eyes, wincing for half a moment before returning a small nod of understanding, ”I will remain by your side.”With the matter settled for now, you return to the real work at hand - scraping as much data from this scav subnet as you possibly can without alerting those fiendish little IC goblins or any of the faint silhouettes of the scavs themselves. Careful to try and mask your presence, you slink back out from behind the tent and set to work. Stalking from datastore to datastore, inching around the barrels and crates stacked haphazardly here and there between the other tents, you locate your primary item of concern; a crystal ball hidden away within a large black and red bell tent half covered in spiderwebs. Careful, Kai. You think to yourself, Alice slowing her pace even before you do at the sight of the webs. The opalescent sphere lays just a few footsteps ahead atop a wrought iron stand, behind a thin and almost imperceptible curtain of that old webbing. Carefully you trace out the edges of the webbing from a safe distance, searching for weak points in the old passive security until finally you locate a more ragged section. Drawing your ‘sword’, preparing an intrusion soft, you carefully cut away at the edge of the web. Even the dull blade of your unfamiliar deck is enough to deal with what must be terribly outdated defenses, so long as you remain fully focused. Encryption grids flash before your eyes once more, columns and rows found and selected at the speed of thought, and soon you’ve cut through, passing beyond the encryption and security protecting the tent… and toward the camera controls. As you step inside the tent the webbing behind you regenerates instantly, but it is entirely illusory now - you can step back and forth freely, and only a truly close inspection would ever find evidence of your intrusion. It will still stop others besides you and Alice.
>>5944919Moving to the crystal ball, you grasp your hands along its sides and peer within. There are seven moving images, each of different rooms of the scav den - and what den it is. Dingy old walls of half rotted wallpaper or bare concrete covered in graffiti and worse, dim lighting from ancient lamps and half steel shuttered windows, ruined and decaying furniture covered in stains and used hypos. It’s disgusting, but largely what you’ve come to expect of scavs. There must be two dozen of the tattooed and roughly chromed lowlifes milling about here and there, all of them decently armed - rifles, shotguns, vests, only a few helmet; they’re not wanting for weapons or basic armor, though there doesn’t seem to be anything truly stand out among them. …Or at least there wouldn’t have been if it weren’t for a trio of militech anti-personnel mines securing one of the back entrances to the highrise scav den. Attached like ticks to skin, the bulbous little mines cling to support pillars on either side of an old sliding steel door which leads out to the balconies and open air of Westbrook’s extremely densely packed residential highrises.Taking note of the mines, and the positions of the scav guards, you move on to search for your target, this ‘Buddy’ the client wants back. Waving your hand over the crystal sphere, you change the images again and again, connecting to different cameras and panning them unobtrusively about to search each room of the den, but you find nothing except a chop shop filled with decades old medical equipment and the stomach turning remains of some of the scav’s other victims, gore spattering the tile floor of the barbaric operating room and racks of harvest chrome lining one wall. No one who could be ‘Buddy’ though… just a cage off in the corner, too small for any adult unless they were a dwarf or… not an adult at all. Bile rises in your throat - Do the scavs have a kid?. You can’t get a good look at the cage, but having eliminated all the other locations in the den it stands the best chance of being where ‘Buddy’ is. Pulling your hands back from the orb, you wipe them off, trying in vain to peel away some of the filth of what you’ve just seen. Fucking scavs. “Found the target, Alice. Doesn’t look good, scavs have them locked up in a cage the best I could tell.” It takes Alice a moment to answer, disgust written plainly on her face as her crimson eyes remained locked on the crystal orb, a deep fury growing behind them, ”...I saw it as well, such needless cruelty… We must keep going, Kai, lingering only draws more eyes.”
>>5944921“Agreed.” There’s no time to sulk and mope over scavs being unhinged bastards, you’ve got work to do - There are data stores to plunder. Stepping back out from the tent and moving through the camp, you find the datastores are mercifully quite unprotected, and all it takes is popping the crates and barrels open and scooping your hands within to gather up more information that you could possibly review right now - you’ll have hours after the run to look it over. Having plundered the datastores for all they have, and secured a solid understanding of the layout of the den, its defenses, and even those mines guarding the balcony entrance, you could leave the subnet and logout now. The scouting job is done, but you could go further. Those silhouettes, the agents and links of the scavs themselves, they must have the truly juicy paydata, maybe even something vital for the job itself… It’s a big risk though, personal nets might have their own IC, and even alert those goblins lazily guarding the entire subnet.”That one is their leader. Alice points an accusative finger toward one of the larger shades within the camp, the faint outline of a hulkingly large man standing out among the others as soon as Alice directs your attention to him - It’s some kind of trick of Net perception, the footprint left by the leader’s link is not actually larger than the others, Alice’s indication of it has simply grown its importance within your mind.So do you stay and risk running into trouble, or delta?>Attempt to infiltrate the leader’s link, paydata and secrets await. >Snoop around some of the scav’s agents, maybe you can make it easier to cause trouble with their chrome during the job.>Delta, you’ve got what you really need. No unnecessary risks.>Write-in.
>>5944923>Attempt to infiltrate the leader’s link, paydata and secrets await. Perhaps we actually should've let Alice act independently, it seems that as long as we succeed we can cover up for her failure. Better overall chances of success. Too late now though.I could take or leave the paydata, but the mission related information is what's important to me. This job required three people for a reason.Though if people think the leader's link is too risky, messing with the lackeys is probably easier.
>>5944923>Delta, you’ve got what you really need. No unnecessary risks.We basically have earmarked anything important. What is important is we leave a basic rootkit to get back in quickly when the op starts. Preceeding the op we can start messing with agents. Makes more sense to do that stuff when advanced warning doesn't let them move/ change things. As is we can even try tracking the scav leader for when/if he leaves the den.As for agents, they don't have any real backup, we can take the hardware from them during the op and crack it on our own time. Should be easy enough to write a card ejection program that doesn't care if warnings are tripped. Could even leave a "fake file" as per the fake ad we senCapcha: 4vvv
>>5944923>>Attempt to infiltrate the leader’s link, paydata and secrets await.Risk it for the proverbial brisket.
>>5944923>Delta, you’ve got what you really need. No unnecessary risks.Overconfidence and all that jazz. I have the feeling that the big man will have some nasty IC or it will be difficult to crack it. Lets play safe for now.
>>5944923>Delta, you’ve got what you really need. No unnecessary risks.I figure we get out now, we’re NOT very proficient with hacking just yet
>>5944923>Delta, you’ve got what you really need. No unnecessary risks.
>>5945050>>5945033>>5945012>>5944956Delta wins, writing.
“We’ve got him marked, that’s good enough for the job - Let’s delta.” You motion toward the edge of the log palisade with a nod, waving for Alice to follow along. She keeps close and tight, barely a step behind as you hurry back to the wall of the subnet and make good on your escape, utilizing the same backdoor you entered through earlier. In just a few moments the two of you are back out in the junk data of the tall grass surrounding the subnet, safe and intact with the data you came for in hand.”Like thieves in the night.” Alice muses as the two of you hurry off among the data grass, a holographic window appearing in her hand in a little puff of smoke - Some of the logs scraped from the subnet, ”Though this certainly was not their rightful possession. Here, Kai, take a look.”Continuing your careful pace toward the nearby ‘treeline’, you take a look at the logs yourself, noting the corporate logo immediately - These are TraumaTeam corporate records. Denial of service records, timestamps and location coordinates, initial medical assessments, preliminary cyberware diagnostics, even footage of the aftermath of several violent incidents.“...Using it like a damned menu, picking out their targets.” You hand the data back to Alice, shaking your head - It’s not a huge surprise scavs klepped or bought that data, but seeing the logistics of scav work first hand is unsettling. People call Trauma, get denied due to missing a payment, and get scooped by scavs minutes later. “Getting happier by the minute that we’ll zero some of these scopsuckers.” ”No tears will be shed for the likes of them,” Alice states quite matter-of-factly, sighing a moment later and crossing her arms as you reach the safety of the trees and prepare to logout fully - It poses no risk at this point. ”What a tragedy, all of it.”
>>5945169And with a thought, you log out. Layers of digital awareness peel back from your mind, displaced consciousness refusing completely with your body resting limply in your office chair back in meatspace - icey cold recedes, tendrils retreating from your brain like the onset of a migraine played in reverse and sped up. Blinking several times, your vision clears entirely - You’re in your apartment, at your fathers desk, just as you were a few minutes ago when this all began. Except now you have what you were looking for - all the detes you really need for the job. …Not particularly reassuring detes, but it is what it is - You already know there would be a lot of scavs, so did Dolf and ‘Connor’.Alice’s soft tones slip back into your thoughts, carried there directly by your neuralink, ”Shall we call our chooms, Kai?”>”No use waiting on our hands, we’ve got the detes.” Call up Connor and Dolf, let them know what you’ve found out - you can pour over the other data later. >”...Not yet, let's take a look through the data we scraped.” It’ll take hours to review it all, most likely useless, but there’s a chance of something useful among it.>”Not yet, first things first - We’re getting you patched up, Alice.” You’ve got all day to report in with the others and make a plan for the scav job, getting Alice to a better state of functionality might be worth doing first - She’s a choom and your only backup on the Net right now, and besides that you do owe her for stopping you from getting fried earlier.>Write-in?
>>5945170>”...Not yet, let's take a look through the data we scraped.” It’ll take hours to review it all, most likely useless, but there’s a chance of something useful among it.Preparation is the mother of success or some shit like that.
>>5945170>”...Not yet, let's take a look through the data we scraped.” It’ll take hours to review it all, most likely useless, but there’s a chance of something useful among it.It's literally the same day we met Dolf and Connor, and did that drone fetching job with Maeve. Dolf said we had two or three days, and it is just barely passed noon. We've got time. Go to the meeting with some actionable intel and a sketch of a plan in hand, it'll probably impress them.We probably have time to fix up Alice too.
>>5945170>>”Not yet, first things first - We’re getting you patched up, Alice.” You’ve got all day to report in with the others and make a plan for the scav job, getting Alice to a better state of functionality might be worth doing first - She’s a choom and your only backup on the Net right now, and besides that you do owe her for stopping you from getting fried earlier.We didn't find out anything big, but I think this is too glaring to be ignored.
>>5945170>”...Not yet, let's take a look through the data we scraped.” It’ll take hours to review it all, most likely useless, but there’s a chance of something useful among it.We got in and out flawlessly, there’s no rush!
>>5945170>>”Not yet, first things first - We’re getting you patched up, Alice.” You’ve got all day to report in with the others and make a plan for the scav job, getting Alice to a better state of functionality might be worth doing first - She’s a choom and your only backup on the Net right now, and besides that you do owe her for stopping you from getting fried earlier.
>>5945170>”...Not yet, let's take a look through the data we scraped.” It’ll take hours to review it all, most likely useless, but there’s a chance of something useful among it.
>>5945170>”Not yet, first things first - We’re getting you patched up, Alice.” You’ve got all day to report in with the others and make a plan for the scav job, getting Alice to a better state of functionality might be worth doing first - She’s a choom and your only backup on the Net right now, and besides that you do owe her for stopping you from getting fried earlier.
>>5945170>>”...Not yet, let's take a look through the data we scraped.” It’ll take hours to review it all, most likely useless, but there’s a chance of something useful among it.If we're going to be the data guy, we might as well be autistically thorough about it.
Rolled 90, 52 = 142 (2d100)>>5945178>>5945204>>5945218>>5945436>>5945598Reviewing data wins.I need two rolls of 1d100. Higher is better.Rolling for Alice analyzing as well.
Rolled 86 (1d100)>>5945612Rollin
Rolled 63 (1d100)>>5945612EnHaNcE
>>5945621An 86 will do nicely. >>5945622kek
>>5944098Oh shit, I'm lateGlad to see this back
>>5944098Hell yeah CP Quest is back!
“...Not yet, let’s take a look through the data we scraped.” You reply to Alice, mentally preparing yourself for what will surely be hours of tedious document review - even with the help of your neuralink. “Help a choom out?”“Happily, Kai.” Alice’s voice whispers within your mind, more often a soothing presence than an unsettling one, ”...At last a task for which I am not so ill prepared.”Leaning back in your father’s old office chair, you call up the data scraped from the scav subnet with half a thought, text boxes and images flickering half-real in your field of vision thanks to your link. As you begin to skim over the information, you continue to speak with Alice, taking an educated guess as to her current issue, “Don’t let the run get you down Alice, you’ll be blasting through IC in no time once we get you fixed up.””Undoubtedly. Our trip into the net was a thrill though, was it not?” “Hell yeah, preem work too, in and out. I’d heard stories from my dad about netrunning, real dives, but they didn’t get half of it. Felt…””Real?” Alice volunteers the word easily.“Exactly, choom.” You nod mostly to yourself, quite alone within the apartment, and return your full focus to scanning through your klepped data. Most of it is useless junk, as expected - Net searches, scop takeout receipts - buck-a-slice, of course - unread instruction documents for cyberware the scavs definitely didn’t buy legally… A full hour goes by before you stumble upon the first speck of gold in the digital sand you’re panning. “...Huh. Interesting.” You eye the text file curiously, reading and rereading to make sure your suspicions are correct - you can scarcely believe these gonks would store something like this unsecured on their subnet, but gonks will be gonks, “Alice, check these records. Is this what I think it is?””...Registration keys? For games?” Alice questions back immediately, nearly instantaneous with her response but still uncertain, ”Hundreds of them, my goodness!”“Yeah, looks like one of the scavs is dabbling in ‘redistributing’ things other than chrome,” You’d chuckle if their bigger business wasn’t so grim - this kind of petty Net crime is almost comical in comparison to abductions and murders, “I think we can make better use of these, don’t you? Can’t be hard to find buyers.” ”Arrr, aye captain. Raise the black flag.” Alice answers back in a terrible impression of a pirate. It still gets a laugh from you.Asset Aquired: Game KeysEstimated Value: ~€1800
>>5945686“Find anything of your own?” You question before returning back to the endless review - paydata like those keys are nice, really nice, but you’re more interested in something to give an edge on the scav job. Dying makes it hard to spend eddies.You can’t see it, but you can feel Alice sitting up straighter and adjusting a pair of glasses that doesn’t exist - you just know she’s getting ready to present something she’s quite proud of, ”I have been cross-referencing the serial numbers of cyberware harvested by the scavs with those of reported missing persons in the NCPD public database. I believe I have solved four missing persons cases.” “...Wait, seriously?” You ask in mild shock - the data is there, now that you think about it, but putting it together so quickly is impressive, “Is there-””A reward? Quite the mercenary attitude.” “I was going to ask if there was a way to contact their families.” You reply defensively, but you can tell she’s just screwing with you a bit, “Still not helpful for the job, but may as well do some good while we’re working, right?””Good deeds are their own reward.” She answers cheerfully, ”And we might receive some degree of material reward, they may be grateful for closure… if not the news itself.” You’re unsure if you’d even accept payment for delivering that kind of information - you probably would, work is work and you generally wouldn’t deny money freely given, but at the same time it feels like something that should be done out of simple common decency. People deserve some peace and answers about missing family.
>>5945688Several more hours later“...And you’re sure they haven’t updated the firmware for their smartlinks?” The ask for the third or fourth time, questioning Alice’s conclusions on what may be the single most important piece of data you’ve found all day - Several of the scavs have older Militech rifles with defective targeting firmware. A patch was rolled out for it years ago, but for legal reasons that are beyond you it wasn’t offered over the Net and the guns had to be brought in for ‘repair’ in person. Almost none were, and disabling them is rather trivial over the Net. ”Is the pope Catholic?” “Ask the poles, they don’t seem to think so. Anyways, if you’re certain this can be used then that’s good enough for me. All I managed to find were the detonation codes for those anti-personnel mines on the balcony door.” ”But what a distraction that will make!” “True, tinnitus on demand isn’t something to turn down. Might be able to blast a scav or two as well, there’s a lot of those assholes in there.” You cross your arms, finally sitting up in your father’s old chair and surveying the interior of your apartment idly, thinking over everything you’ve gathered: Firm paydata, morally questionable ‘paydata’, means to disable some of the scav’s weapons, as well as a potential distraction with the mines - or even a trap, with a bit of creative luring of scavs.>Call up Connor and Dolf, discuss what you’ve found. No new information on ‘Buddy’ but you’ve got a bag of tricks now, and a better idea of the scav defenses.>”Alright, let’s see if we can get you back into fighting shape, Alice.” Check out some of those encrypted shards you couldn’t access a few days ago, and your father’s old NETWATCH deck as well, it’s possible they could have some of Alice’s data. You’ll need to be careful, Yoko’s warning is still fresh in your mind.>Go looking for trouble and eddies out on Night City’s streets - you’re an NCPD subcon now, try to put some of your new gear to work and collect a bounty. There’s time until the scav job.>Call someone else. (Who?)>Write-in.
>>5945689Ah, maybe we can make a distraction at the back, lure some of the scavs into their own mines, then detonate em. It'll thin them out, attract even MORE to the back, letting us infiltrate the front.inb4 we're 'rescuing' a kid from scavs only to deliver them to a pedophile or something.>”Alright, let’s see if we can get you back into fighting shape, Alice.” Check out some of those encrypted shards you couldn’t access a few days ago, and your father’s old NETWATCH deck as well, it’s possible they could have some of Alice’s data. You’ll need to be careful, Yoko’s warning is still fresh in your mind.I'm actually worried we aren't ready for this. We were warned about old IC and daemons being real bad shit even for modern times, worse even. Still, maybe it's best to poke our heads in just to get a taste of what we need be ready for.I'm not sure about doing dangerous work before our upcoming job either, what if we get injured? It'd ruin our rep if we had to sit this one out because of a stupid mistake prior to the real thing. Still, it'd be a shame to waste the time sitting on our hands.
>>5945689>”Alright, let’s see if we can get you back into fighting shape, Alice.” Check out some of those encrypted shards you couldn’t access a few days ago, and your father’s old NETWATCH deck as well, it’s possible they could have some of Alice’s data. You’ll need to be careful, Yoko’s warning is still fresh in your mind.
Glad yo see you're back, Mainline!>>5945689>Call up Connor and Dolf, discuss what you’ve found. No new information on ‘Buddy’ but you’ve got a bag of tricks now, and a better idea of the scav defenses.>>5945686>”Arrr, aye captain. Raise the black flag.” Alice answers back in a terrible impression of a pirate.Oh no, be still my beating heart!
>>5945697Supporting all this.
>>5945697This sounds good, support. Also, love that we got some game keys kek.
>>5945689>>”Alright, let’s see if we can get you back into fighting shape, Alice.” Check out some of those encrypted shards you couldn’t access a few days ago, and your father’s old NETWATCH deck as well, it’s possible they could have some of Alice’s data. You’ll need to be careful, Yoko’s warning is still fresh in your mind.
Rolled 78 (1d100)>>5945949>>5945893>>5945739>>5945716>>5945697Alright, we'll start with the shards first since they're less dangerous and complex by far.I need two rolls of 1d100, DC 75.Rolling for the armor sa- I mean for Alice.
Rolled 61 (1d100)>>5945958
Rolled 21 (1d100)>>5945958
>>5945996>>5946002>61Well, at least Kai isn't getting fried by the attempt. Writing.
Thinking over your options for a minute, tapping one hand against your father’s old metal desk, you finally settle upon a new course of action - Connor and Dolf can wait a little longer, “Alright, let’s see if we can get you back into fighting Alice.” ”Data shards?” She may as well be a child asking about candy.“Yes, we’re going to crack some of the encrypted ones dad left, see if there’s any of your old data on them,” You get up and move to your bed, pulling the box of shards out from under it, “And once we’re done with these, we’ll try his old deck.””We should take care not to dig too deep or greedily, Kai.” Alice warns, though her still excited tone does a lot to dampen any fear the ominous warning might’ve brought on, ”I wonder if any of my memories will be on the shards as well? Oh, this is so exciting, Kai, thank you!”“Only one way to find out - and save your thanks, might just be about to open a can full of old daemons…” You sit on the bed and go through the usual procedure of connecting to your recently stolen deck, linking into it from your wrist but not going for a dive - not yet. Your other hand grabs a few of the mystery shards, little black not-quite-rectangles, and slots the first in. With a final thought, now you dive in and begin the dangerous wor-Two hours later.
>>5946086”Kai? Kaiiii?” A familiar voice whispers in the dark, ”Anyone home? Oh dear, still no - Aha! There you are!”“Wha…?” You groan awake, eyes blinking at too bright light overhead before slowly lifting a hand to shield yourself from the horrendous glare, “What the hell happened?””He lives!” Alice cheers within your pounding skull - What asshole is playing drums right now? Oh, it’s just your heartbeat. That’s not a good sign.“Did I get spiked by something?” ”A mild daemon, I was able to stop it before it did any permanent damage to your link - I am so happy you are alright, Kai, I was worried the diagnostics were wrong after the first horu passed and…”“The first hour?!” You bolt upright in your bed, unjacking from your deck with a hasty pull and letting the cable snap back fully into your arm port, “How long have I been out? Fuck, my head!-” ”Two, just now.” You can’t see it, but you know she’s checking a pocket watch that isn’t her own. ”We were successful in cracking several of the shards, I even found some of my old data! I can wear hats now.”“W-what?” You wince, closing your eyes and pinching a bit at your forehead with one hand, pain slowly receding, “Hats? What do you mean?””I can make my Net avatar appear with a hat.” Alice states more flatly. You groan again. Knocked out for two hours for Net accessories? That just isn't fair. ”I am sorry Kai, I wish I had better news, or perhaps a sophisticated breaching protocol… I do look rather dashing now though.”Standing from the bed, slowly and with a slight wobble, you head over to the kitchen and grab drink, opening the can with a quick hiss and then sipping away at its over-caffeinated goodness. The artificial flavors are harsh and overly fruity, with a hell of a tang, but you’ll take anything to distract from this headache.
>>5946087“I’d rather have been shot.” You complain mostly to yourself, “...You said you stopped permanent damage?”“Yes, I was able to shield you from the worst of the attack, but only just. Your link was knocked offline temporarily, and the… Imp escaped. I put him back in his box. Friendly little fellow, though rather odd. Do you think you’re ready to resume cracking the shards, or perhaps some buck-a-slice first?” >”Back to the grind. Let’s do this right this time.” That’s twice she’s saved your ass today, netrunning is, as people have warned, alarmingly dangerous. But that just confirms that you need her for backup - some risks are necessary. Crack the rest of the shards.>”Buck-a-slice, I’ll take cardboard scop and synthcheese over jabbing more nails in my brain… Any calls come in while I was out?”>”...I think we’re going to need some more experienced help with this, Alice. Let’s get back out on the streets, we’ll need more eddies for help with this.” You’ll need more eddies for EVERYTHING.>Write-in.
>>5946088>”Buck-a-slice, I’ll take cardboard scop and synthcheese over jabbing more nails in my brain… Any calls come in while I was out?”Maybe we should take a beat, rest up, hit the scavs to retrieve Buddy first before we return to this
>>5946088>>”Buck-a-slice, I’ll take cardboard scop and synthcheese over jabbing more nails in my brain… Any calls come in while I was out?”
>>5946088Okay, so the old timey deck is a no go for us then. Not until we are far more skilled than we are currently, and once Alice has a deck of her own. Even these shards are too much for us.>”Buck-a-slice, I’ll take cardboard scop and synthcheese over jabbing more nails in my brain… Any calls come in while I was out?”We're gonna need a break after that one. A boring boy with no play makes for a very boring day. Or something.
>>5946088>>”Buck-a-slice, I’ll take cardboard scop and synthcheese over jabbing more nails in my brain… Any calls come in while I was out?”With extra sauce.
>>5946088>”Buck-a-slice, I’ll take cardboard scop and synthcheese over jabbing more nails in my brain… Any calls come in while I was out?”
>>5946100>>5946112>>5946120>>5946147>>5946157>>5946367Cheap "pizza" by unanimous agreement, writing.
>>5946455how about Anchovies?
>>5946512>anchovies on $1-a-slice pizzaMy god, anon - are you trying to kill Kai?
“Buck-a-slice,” You agree, still trying to shake of the last of the pains from getting your neurons knocked around by whatever daemon your father had on those shards, “I’ll take cardboard scop and synthcheese over jabbing more nails in my brain… Any calls come in while I was out?””Only one, Officer Reyes attempted what I believe was a check-in call. The Buck-A-Slice is on its way, I have placed the order.” “Vicky? Sounds like her.” You send off a text to her with a thought, all while still sipping away at your drink - the flavor really doesn’t get better over time, you’d prefer a NiCola, but it is what it is. // Message to Victoria Reyes: Hey Vicky, I’m doing fine, just trying to get by. Thanks again for the cookies and checking in, means a lot.// …Yeah, that’ll be enough for now. You dismiss her contact information with a thought, returning your full aching focus to the impending arrival of buck-a-slice. It’s about as cheap and low quality as pizza gets, but as soon as Alice mentioned it you realized you’d been craving it for awhile - Dad would buy it sometimes, even when you lived downtown. He always explained that it was a habit from his college days, and that the taste grew on him… Mom hates the stuff. Heh. You miss having them both around. Sighing, you crumple the now empty can and toss it in the garbage with practiced aim before heading back to your dad’s chair and sending it into a slow lazy spin with a light kick of the floor. Staring up at the lights overhead, and the dark slightly stained ceiling, your thoughts begin to wander. Images and smells from the last week flash through your mind, more vivid than usual - the smell of blood, of burnt powder, billowing CHOOH2 exhaust, all the grime and grit of merc work…
>>5946561”...I believe I was rather fond of buck-a-slice.” Alice’s voice muses quietly in your mind, her ghost blissfully unaware of your darker thoughts, ”I can nearly recall its taste...”“You remember bad pizza?” The absurdity of the claim drags your thoughts back to the present, a small grin spreading across your face. ”No, not a bit, but it did leave an impression... It is familiar. I know not why. It is quite the odd sensation.”“It definitely leaves an impression.” You chuckle lightly, “Must not've been that well off if you picked up a taste for it. Got mine from dad, hiding it from mom made it kind of fun, even if it tastes like greasy cardboard sometimes.””You truly know how to make a food sound appealing, Kai. Bleh.” Alice replies with mirthful sarcasm, and you can feel her next question brewing even before it slips into your thoughts, ”...Who do you think I was before I became like this?”Before she died.>”We’ll find out when we get more data, but whoever you were, you are who you are now, Alice… If uh, that makes sense.” Even faded now, the pain from earlier makes eloquent speech a real bitch.>”...Well, if you got along with my dad, and Yoko, and you like cheap pizza… Maybe a netrunner?” You don’t have much to go on, this doesn’t even qualify as a proper hunch.>”Clearly you were a pirate nomad, Alice. Arr harr.” She *probably* wasn’t, but you honestly don’t have a clue.>Write-in.
>>5946563>”We’ll find out when we get more data, but whoever you were, you are who you are now, Alice… If uh, that makes sense.” Even faded now, the pain from earlier makes eloquent speech a real bitch.
>>5946563makes eloquent speech a real bitch.>”...Well, if you got along with my dad, and Yoko, and you like cheap pizza… Maybe a netrunner?” You don’t have much to go on, this doesn’t even qualify as a proper hunch.
>>5946563>>”...Well, if you got along with my dad, and Yoko, and you like cheap pizza… Maybe a netrunner?” You don’t have much to go on, this doesn’t even qualify as a proper hunch.
>>5946563>”...Well, if you got along with my dad, and Yoko, and you like cheap pizza… Maybe a netrunner?” You don’t have much to go on, this doesn’t even qualify as a proper hunch.>”It’s a bit sad - as you remember who you are, this version of you will slowly disappear.”Ship of Theseus and all that
>>5946563>”...Well, if you got along with my dad, and Yoko, and you like cheap pizza… Maybe a netrunner?” You don’t have much to go on, this doesn’t even qualify as a proper hunch.
>>5946609>>5946622>>5946625>>5946694Writing.
Going to be a bit longer until the next update, got caught up in watching Dune with my family. Should still have it posted later tonight.
“...Well,” You mull over what you’ve learned of the ghost woman the past few days, closing your eyes and reclining further in the chair as you think, “If you got along with my dad, and Yoko, and you like cheap pizza… Maybe a netrunner?” It’s a shot in the dark, close enough to a blind guess, but there’s something to it that pulls at the edges of your thoughts - nothing like a clear pattern of details, but perhaps a faint impression of one. Or perhaps you are simply imagining things which are not there, projecting aspects of yourself on the faint hints of Alice’s past which you’re privy to. ”A netrunner?” Alice ponders, her soothing voice slowly growing as familiar as your own, ever present through your link, ”Yes, perhaps that is who I was. An explorer of the old Net, striking out into the unknown only to be caught unawares by Soulkiller, a victim of Arasaka just as Yoko spoke of earlier… That would be quite the dramatic tale would it not? For a purveyor of shards and daemons, Yoko has quite a sinister aspect when relaying stories.”“Maybe she missed her real calling in life.” You open your eyes, staring up once more at the slightly stained ceiling, “Could’ve been spinning ghost stories like that with Maximum Mike on Morro Rock, would fit right in.” ”Indeed.” Alice laughs lightly, ”There are other stories which tickle at me, teasing things. I could have simply been caught in the DataKrash - Perhaps I am an old woman reliving a sort of second youth, or a witless victim of corporate crossfire in the last war. So many possibilities, none more real than any others, equal musings all of them. I am glad to be alive and here, regardless of the circumstances.”“You definitely keep up beat,” You admire that about her, whatever oddities and quirks she has - Charges of glowering cynicism or depressed resignation could never be brought against Alice, whatever her true past, “Does it bother you?””Not knowing? Indeed, quite terrifically so. But as I see it that is hardly unique, it is… comfortingly human. I learn more by the minute, the search is a thrill. Do you know who you are, Kai?”“I…” You stumble on the question for a moment, failing to find a truly satisfying answer, “I’ll have to think about that more.”
>>5946983An hour later.Finishing off the last slice of the greasy pizza, you look at the now empty box with a hint of regret - That was a lot to eat all at once. Still, it was about as good as you could’ve hoped for, cheap dirty food has a certain appeal even if the taste and texture are lacking. For the next couple of minutes you clean up, disposing of the box, washing your plate, generally busying yourself with mundane tasks instead of thinking about the swamp of problems you’re sinking into. Debt, danger, even death - It takes a back seat to the simple chores of life for a moment. You even take a little longer to clean up the apartment. Finally finished, you find yourself well into the afternoon - Night City won’t be living up to its name for another couple of hours still, but that’s not much daylight to work with. >Head out onto the streets of Night City and see what there is to see - Maybe do some subcon work, maybe just a drive in the Quadra, you don’t have anything particular in mind at the moment, but you want to keep your feet moving - hiding away in a (poorly equipped) netrunner lair isn’t your style. Sleep is for the dead.>Conveen the council of chooms, call up Dolf and Connor and give them all the detes you scraped off the subnet earlier. They might try to drag you off into something else once they know you’re done though, maybe even kick off the job early.>Take it easy for the rest of the day. You’ll need to be well rested for the job, report back to Dolf and Connor tomorrow morning.>Get in a bit of lower risk netrunning practice. There have to be easy targets out there on the Net, and you need to strengthen your barely existing skills. This won't be restful at all.>Call someone. (Who?)>Write-in.
>>5946985>Conveen the council of chooms, call up Dolf and Connor and give them all the detes you scraped off the subnet earlier. They might try to drag you off into something else once they know you’re done though, maybe even kick off the job early.
>>5946985>Conveen the council of chooms, call up Dolf and Connor and give them all the detes you scraped off the subnet earlier. They might try to drag you off into something else once they know you’re done though, maybe even kick off the job early.Nah better give them time to prep if they want to make any last minute changes to any initial plans they had.Sleep aside, kicking it off early is fine too. Then we won't have to worry about wasting days sitting still, worried about being injured before the job and leaving our chooms hanging. Night time makes sneaking easier too.
>>5946985>Conveen the council of chooms, call up Dolf and Connor and give them all the detes you scraped off the subnet earlier. They might try to drag you off into something else once they know you’re done though, maybe even kick off the job early.The better the plan the better the chance we all go home alive.
>>5946985>Conveen the council of chooms, call up Dolf and Connor and give them all the detes you scraped off the subnet earlier. They might try to drag you off into something else once they know you’re done though, maybe even kick off the job early.Planning is good, but we probably shouldn't do the job early after a tiring day like this
>>5946985>Conveen the council of chooms, call up Dolf and Connor and give them all the detes you scraped off the subnet earlier. They might try to drag you off into something else once they know you’re done though, maybe even kick off the job early.I’m not opposed to kicking off the job early tbqh
>>5947141>>5947112>>5947108>>5947050>>5947002>>5946987Writing.
A few minutes later, on the holo with Dolf and Connor.2076.01.06, 16:45Night City (Kabuki, your apartment)“What’s the sitch, choom?” Dolf answers the call as soon as you ping him, Connor following a moment later.“I’ve got the detes on the scav den, scraped everything useful off their subnet,” You speak aloud, spinning slowly in your father’s old office chair as you relay the details - not that Dolf or Connor can see that, you’re just a talking head in a box to them, same as they are to you, two disembodied faces in the corner of your vision, “There are thirty of them, give or take a couple depending on the time of day, spread out across eight rooms. They’re armed with a mix of rifles and submachineguns mostly, nothing heavier, some have armor - most have visible chrome, street grade, barely better than meat… I’ve got a map of it worked up, guard positions will change but the layout is right.”“Damn, that’s a hell of a lot of gonks,” Dolf mutters to himself, frowning contemplatively - Even as a flickering half-real image projected by your link, it’s an intimidating look. Connor bites at her lip, eyes narrowed. “Yep, dumpsters full of them, but that’s only the bad news.” You’re can’t help but grin devilishly, already thinking of the mines, “The good news is we know our target’s location, they’re in this cage back here… Couldn’t get a good look inside, but there’s nowhere else for them to be.”“Sure there’s not a room you missed, like uh, a trap door or sliding bookcase?” Connor questions, eliciting a barking laugh from Dolf. “Too many cartoons, choom, this look like some kind of haunted mansion to you? That’s fancy, scav dens don’t do fancy.”“Hey, fuck off you big meathead, you know what I meant,” Connor rolls her eyes, grinning, “Scavs don’t live by just being gonks, they’re sneaky assholes too, clever enough to hide from cops and stuff - Maybe they’re hiding things.”You tilt your head slightly, contemplating if you might’ve missed something - probably not, “I looked around, didn’t find any mention of it on the data I scraped, or see or hear anything on the cameras - That cage is the best we’ve got.”
>>5947276“And there’s more good news, yeah?” Dolf prompts you, clearly hoping for more.“Oh yeah, hit gold. Scavs have the balcony door over here covered in mines,” You send out an update to the digital map to both of them, pinning the location of the explosive laden door, “And I managed to snatch their remote detonation codes. Can light the whole place up like a block party in Santo Domingo. Some of their rifles aren’t running updated firmware for their smartlinks either, can jam those up - and I picked up some other tricks in Kabuki earlier.““See, that’s that wizard shit I was talking about earlier! He’s not just a doors and cameras guy…” Connor almost cheers at the news, grinning wider before another thought tamps down her enthusiasm, “Uh, you did get the doors and camera controls though, yeah?” “Naturally, got all the basic covered.” You confirm, setting the wiry woman at ease.“Alright, alright, this is what I love to see - We’ve got a map, doors, cameras, numbers, weapons, weaknesses, big bag of spooky ass Net tricks - Ah, choom, I’m feeling all tactical and shit, this is some good stuff.” Dolf is clearly pleased with the results, “So how do we hit them?”“Hard.” Connor offers enthusiastically, if somewhat unhelpfully. “No, I was thinking we’d smack em’ like a pillow - Of course we hit them hard.” Dolf’s image in the holocall box moves about slightly as Connor punches him in the shoulder, “Ow! Hey, hey! Save it for the scavs… little maniac. Been reading up on this kind of op, old Blackhand stuff, Militech tactics manuals - I can put something killer together.”“Holy shit, you can read?” Connor laughs, receiving her own - lighter - punch from Dolf, “Gah! Watch it you big gorilla, I’ll kick next time!”>”Alright Dolf, what’s the plan then?” Hear out what the big guy has to say.>”I was thinking we lure some scavs to the mined door, lock the other rooms up, and enter after detonating the mines - split the scavs up and work room to room, I’ll jam guns and eyes and unlock doors as we go. Grab buddy and ghost out before they can all swarm us.”>”Think there might be a way to do this quietly?” Dolf probably doesn’t do quiet all that well, but Connor… Well, she MIGHT be able to, she’s kind of small and definitely agile enough. Just has to shut up for a few minutes.>Write-in.
>>5947278>”Alright Dolf, what’s the plan then?” Hear out what the big guy has to say.If he has a plan, lets hear him. We can add to it or change it after we hear it.
>>5947278>”Alright Dolf, what’s the plan then?” Hear out what the big guy has to say.>>5947294This
>>5947278>>”Alright Dolf, what’s the plan then?” Hear out what the big guy has to say.Sounds like he has something in mind.
>>5947278Less points of conflict mean less chances for things to go sideways
>>5947278>”Alright Dolf, what’s the plan then?” Hear out what the big guy has to say.But do be ready to interject with our own plan before the meeting ends, may as well hear out all the ideas and compare their pros and cons against each other.
>>5947278>”I was thinking we lure some scavs to the mined door, lock the other rooms up, and enter after detonating the mines - split the scavs up and work room to room, I’ll jam guns and eyes and unlock doors as we go. Grab buddy and ghost out before they can all swarm us.”One thought - can we exploit social divisions in the scab group? Did we pick up on any factionalism between the scavs? Maybe we try to spark a gunbattle between scavs just before we hit the site
>>5947499Social engineering is a hell of a weapon.>>5947486>>5947350>>5947303>>5947294Writing.
Almost done writing. Got caught up in other things again.
”Alright Dolf, what’s the plan then?” You ask the big man, curious as to what he’s been cooking on his own after only just seeing all the information you gathered - not long to think things through at all. “Give me a few minutes and I’ll get back to you, Choom - Need to look this map over closer…” Even in his holocall box you can see Dolf squinting, presumably at the map of the den you sent to him and Connor, “If you can jam the smartlinks on some, could you make them… shoot?”“Even easier, probably.” You furrow your brow as you consider the idea, “Looking to sow some chaos?”“Making their iron bark on its own? Nova, but… that’s kind of fucked choom - I love it! This is why I don’t trust iron though, better to just work a gonk over with a metal bar, or-” Connor starts to comment before getting quieted by Dolf, the small tan woman making a face at him as one of Dolf’s overly large hands waves into Connor’s holocall box briefly.“Chaos is exactly what we need.” Dolf’s taking this more seriously than earlier, though he’s no less enthusiastic, “Anything to draw some of the gonks off, split them up, get them out of there lair. Maybe even get some ‘friendly’ fire going, eh? Bet we can get them at each others throats.”“Getting shot in the gut by a choom that swears the ‘gun went off on its own!’? HAH!” Connor laughs hard at the thought, even mocking wiping away a tear, “That’s preem, choom…”“Interesting distraction along with the mines,” You can’t help but grin devilishly at the thought, smiling at an idea that just a week ago would have horrified you - of course a week ago you didn’t understand the true depravity of most scav groups either, just how fundamentally fucked they all must be to participate in a chrome ‘scavenging operation. Murderers and vultures, worse than mercenaries. They don’t just kill, they defile. It offends every sense of the sacred you bear on a subconscious level.”I could use my crime voice.” Alice offers - though only you can hear her currently, the group call and your near constant connection to her partitioned for now.“It’s an old Blackhand trick - You know if a guy keeps doing solo work for seventy years or whatever the fuck he’s at now, there’s got to be something right going on with his plans.” Dolf’s a hard man to argue with, though you’re only vaguely aware of the man he’s speaking of - Morgan Blackhand, “It’s all in the set up. ‘Low trust gangs’ are ripe for uh, ‘exploitation’, yeah? Bet these gonks are chooms in name only. Lead starts flying from two places at once, they won’t stop to ask questions.”
>>5947808“Would’ve taken you for the guns blazing type, Dolf.” You don’t mean it as an insult, he and Connor both definitely gave off that vibe earlier at the bar - but they opted for you to sniff around on the Net and to prep more gear, so it’s hardly the first sign of prudent action.“Oh, I am, choom, I am. But I like my insides inside, and my eddies not spent on a MedCenter bill. We’re going to need more distractions, something to pull a load of the gonks further apart before we bust down a door… I’ll figure out the breaching plan in a bit, might not even be a door. Distractions first.”“Aw man, I like the part where you draw the colored arrows and x’s on the map.” Connor teases, “Makes you look like that uh… Ah, damn, what’s the sunglasses guy from Bushido XI? The map guy, with the minigun, jumps out of the space shuttle when they’re at the crystal palac- Malcolm!”Dolf’s grin gets bigger and dumber, “Yeah, that’s exactly it! Can’t be sloppy like an old flick though. Think I’d look good with a minigun… Back to the job though - Any other ideas for how to draw more of the scavs out, Kai? I was thinking maybe we spoof a target, get some of them sent off, or set a ghost deal. Get a dozen of them sent off to Rancho looking for chrome that ain’t there, hah!”>”I can spoof some messages, try to lure them out for a fake chrome deal.” That’s new territory, you only just got your Deck, but how hard could it be really? Maximizing distractions seems like a solid foundation before any other plan.>”Maybe, maybe. I’d like to get a feel for the ‘arrows and x’s’ part of this first though, doubt it’ll change too much if we peel a handful more of them off with some gonk business on the other side of NC.” He’s had his couple of minutes to look over the map, push for him to spit out the rest of his idea.>”If we set the guns off in the furthest room, think it’d draw enough away to sneak in through the balcony? Deactivate the mines, unlock the door, grab ‘buddy’ and ghost the way we came.” Stealth has been working great for you so far, why quit now?>Write-in.
>>5947811>”Maybe, maybe. I’d like to get a feel for the ‘arrows and x’s’ part of this first though, doubt it’ll change too much if we peel a handful more of them off with some gonk business on the other side of NC.” He’s had his couple of minutes to look over the map, push for him to spit out the rest of his idea.
>>5947811>>”I can spoof some messages, try to lure them out for a fake chrome deal.” That’s new territory, you only just got your Deck, but how hard could it be really? Maximizing distractions seems like a solid foundation before any other plan.
>>5947811>”I can spoof some messages, try to lure them out for a fake chrome deal.” That’s new territory, you only just got your Deck, but how hard could it be really? Maximizing distractions seems like a solid foundation before any other plan.If it fails at step 1 though, then better have a backup plan worked out. Whether that be the 'lock the doors and go room by room' plan or different, more basic stealth plans that don't involve us trying something new, assuming they haven't noticed us yet.
>>5947811>Spoof some messagesShouldn't be too hard, just get one of the old messages, change the name, date, chrome, and location, and brain blast it to them
>>5946985>Conveen the council of chooms, call up Dolf and Connor and give them all the detes you scraped off the subnet earlier. They might try to drag you off into something else once they know you’re done though, maybe even kick off the job early.But before that, call Vicky.
>>5948129A little slow on the draw, choom.
>>5948129This anon has me thinking though. We aren't the only one that lost our pops. Maybe we should call Vicky soon.
>>5947945>>5947979>>5948018Writing.
“I can spoof some messages, try to lure them out for a fake chrome deal.” Your hand drifts toward your deck sitting atop the desk, and place a foot down to slow and then stop your lazy spin in the office chair, “Shouldn’t be too hard, just need to poke around in “Think you’ll need to spoof voices too?” Connor questions, one of her hands appearing in the holocall box and miming the shape of an ancient phone pressed against her cheek. Her voice shifts into a deeper, gravely tone… which is still pretty high pitched, she just can’t do it well, “Yo, this is Scavvy McGonk, got your text. We on for the Rancho deal?””We are. Eddies are waiting, choom.” Alice replies smoothly, piping into the call through your link, her presence still hidden.“Woah ho ho, that was preem!” Connor breaks ‘character’, if her joking scav imitation even qualifies, laughing in delight at the unexpected voice.“Nova spoof, got that handled then.” Dolf rumbles approvingly, taking Alice’s voice for a voice spoofing program - Hopefully she can do others as well, you’ll need to impersonate particular individuals if it comes up, “How long do you need? I’ll get grinding away on the plan, have it all laid out in… half an hour? And Connor, you can…” “Whips and kicks, bro, whips and kicks.” Comes her squeaky response before Dolf can finish, “Need to practice with my wire more before we’re neck deep in gunfire.”>”I’ll get cooking on that fake deal, call you back in thirty. Maybe we’ll get lucky and they’ve already got a real one happening.” [You will be able to access the scav subnet immediately, your targets are the scav’s personal networks within it.]>”I’ll set up a fake meet later, let’s get the rest of this plan figured out before I dive.” It’ll need to be tweaked if some of the scavs get lured off, >As above, but send Alice off to fake the deal while you stay on the holocall with Dolf. Head out to the Quadra to hook your deck into it temporarily - It still won’t give Alice her missing data she needs to really be a threat, but she should be able to make use of it while you aren’t. She'll be making her own decisions on the Net to get the task done.>Write-in.
>>5948215>”I’ll get cooking on that fake deal, call you back in thirty. Maybe we’ll get lucky and they’ve already got a real one happening.” [You will be able to access the scav subnet immediately, your targets are the scav’s personal networks within it.]We've got a whole day or two still. Time can be spared.
>>5948215>>”I’ll get cooking on that fake deal, call you back in a 2-3 hours. I'm going to need some time for other prep." Still need to get Alice patched up. You need her backup.
>>5948130Yeah I didn't notice lol>>5948164Definitely
>>5948215>”I’ll get cooking on that fake deal, call you back in thirty. Maybe we’ll get lucky and they’ve already got a real one happening.”
>>5948215>”I’ll get cooking on that fake deal, call you back in thirty. Maybe we’ll get lucky and they’ve already got a real one happening.” [You will be able to access the scav subnet immediately, your targets are the scav’s personal networks within it.]I’m feeling good - we’ve done the prep and we’ve got a smart plan
>>5948215>”I’ll get cooking on that fake deal, call you back in thirty. Maybe we’ll get lucky and they’ve already got a real one happening.” [You will be able to access the scav subnet immediately, your targets are the scav’s personal networks within it.]
>>5948517>>5948483>>5948351>>5948218We'll just get right to it then.I need two rolls of 1d100, DC 55. This is for breaching some of the scav's agents and links. How cheeky you want to be with the spoof messages/distractions will come up next.Alice will remain on the sidelines for now.
Rolled 59 (1d100)>>5948536
Rolled 44 (1d100)>>5948536
>>5948539A 59 will do it, writing.
“I’ll get cooking on that fake deal, call you back in thirty.” You’re confident in your ability to pierce a couple of the scav’s personal networks and get the data you need for a quality spoof, ”Maybe we’ll get lucky and they’ve already got a real one happening.” “Good luck with the dive choom, don’t circ out - I’ll have a plan waiting.” Dolf’s farewell rumbles into your thoughts over the holocall, the big man raising a hand before disconnecting.“Don’t get your brain fried, Kai!” Connor says cheerily before disconnecting, flashing a final dual thumbs up and a big smile. Those two are something else, but at least the enthusiasm doesn’t seem to cut into their willingness to plan.Reclining back in your chair for the second time today, you jack back into your stolen deck, close your eyes, and find your consciousness swept away into the Net in a wash of overwhelming cold. When you open your eyes, you’re standing within the digital landscape once more, streams of data filling the air and distant data fortresses dominating the unending skyline. Alice appears beside you, appearing to step from a fog, holographic dress fluttering in a non-existent wind. ”Shall we venture forth?”A minute or so later, back within the scav subnet.Returning to the ill defended subnet was only a matter of thinking your way there, your path already prepared by your previous entry a few hours ago - Alice handled it once again, sending you tumbling briefly from the sky, but instead of outside the palisade you are within the camp upon landing. The gnarly looking goblinoid IC is, as earlier, blissfully unaware of your presence.Shaking your thoughts clear after the jarring transition, you hurry along to the relative safety of one of the nearby ‘tents’ and hide your presence within, sheltering inside a decrepit old terminal the scavs are using to store their data. You already pilfered this one earlier, and it’s only use now is as a safe position to observe the interactions between scav personal nets and the rest of the subnet’s connected systems. Soon enough you become aware of them, the wraith-like forms of personal nets materializing one after another as traffic on the subnet carries on as normal, ghosts walking from tent to tent, occasionally placing data in various crates and barrels or taking from them. Eyeing them over, you spot a few promising targets - Not the leader of the scavs, but a few of the personal networks interacting most frequently with his. Lieutenants of some kind, or maybe just his chooms - they’ve probably got worse IC and most of the same data you’ll need for a spoof. Perfect.
>>5948724A few quick strides carry you from the tent, Alice close behind and keeping the silver thread connecting the two of you held loosely in one hand. Reaching one of the personal nets close to the leader, you extend a hand, grabbing it by the arm and holding it up for a moment as you begin a breach. Grids of numbers and letters flash through your mind, your decks decryption soft struggling to burrow past the scav’s basic security… But you do get in, no alarms raised, no IC scrambled to attack. The data is yours. Alice is far quicker on the draw when it comes to analysis, her free already hand extended and a trio of red icons floating above it - holographic representations of promising contacts, fully picked over. She explains the options quickly, ”These are promising targets for spoofing. The first and most promising is a low ranking Maelstrom lieutenant, ‘Dum-Dum’, a frequent bulk purchaser - Their swaps are usually held at an industrial park in Northside. The next is one of their contacts at TraumaTeam dispatch, ‘Vulture’’, I believe she is the one feeding them their information on service denial locations.”“And the third one?” Upon closer inspection you can see it is actually a pair of icons orbiting about on another, a young woman’s face - clearly one that had work done, strongly resmbling a popstar you vaguely recognize from a few years back - and that of a rough looking man. ”The scav who’s agent we have breached, and the scav leader’s… output?”“Yeah, that’s the word.””It is distasteful, but we may be able to frame her as a disloyal philanderer, and this scav as one of her partners.”“They might be into that.” You half joke, but honestly it’s a risk.”...I doubt it. I have educated myself on such… behaviors. The signs are not there.”“You have?” You arch an eyebrow, intrigued, “What are these ‘signs’ you’re looking for?””J-just pick an option!” Alice turns a brighter shade of crimson, thrusting the floating icons toward you more forcefully.>”Keep it simple, we’ll fake a Maelstrom deal in Northside. Had a run in with them a few days ago, know enough about recent losses to make it sound like they need replacements.” Still not ‘easy’, but the easiest option. >”Trauma’s probably harder to spoof, but we could fake multiple pickup sites.” More challenging work, but perhaps with more scavs pulled out of the den.>”Lover’s quarrel turning into a gunfight is a certified Night City classic.” Scav tempers probably run hot, that kind of work generally doesn’t attract stable personalities. Dicier, you’re working with more unknowns here.>”...Any reason not to try all of them? Might just be a busy day for them tomorrow.” The reason is that it is a hell of a lot harder. It would be very effective if you pull it off.>Write-in.
>>5948726>”Trauma’s probably harder to spoof, but we could fake multiple pickup sites.” More challenging work, but perhaps with more scavs pulled out of the den.With luck, any survivors of our hostage rescue will think this disgusting 'Vulture' sold them out, and thus will hopefully remove the wretched parasite feeder from existence. If anything we're just helping them balance out their karma.Also, still jealous Alice? Maybe if you wore cat ears you'd have better luck. lol
>>5948726>”Trauma’s probably harder to spoof, but we could fake multiple pickup sites.” More challenging work, but perhaps with more scavs pulled out of the den.
>>5948726>”Keep it simple, we’ll fake a Maelstrom deal in Northside. Had a run in with them a few days ago, know enough about recent losses to make it sound like they need replacements.” Still not ‘easy’, but the easiest option. Vulture sounds like someone we could take out in our own time for some good loot.
>>5948726>”...Any reason not to try all of them? Might just be a busy day for them tomorrow.” The reason is that it is a hell of a lot harder. It would be very effective if you pull it off.I think we can do it and it's be very good practice working with the net.
>>5948726>”Keep it simple, we’ll fake a Maelstrom deal in Northside. Had a run in with them a few days ago, know enough about recent losses to make it sound like they need replacements.” Still not ‘easy’, but the easiest option.We're still a fresh netrunner and we're not quite a savant, lets play it safe until we get better soft and better skills.
>>5948726>”Keep it simple, we’ll fake a Maelstrom deal in Northside. Had a run in with them a few days ago, know enough about recent losses to make it sound like they need replacements.” Still not ‘easy’, but the easiest option.Success here could later be parlayed into tricks 2 and 3, if we so choose.
>>5949019>>5948925>>5948879Maelstrom.>>5948905Everything.>>5948775>>5948819>>5948746Trauma.Got a tie between Maelstrom and Trauma, I'll give voting another hour.
>>5948726>”Keep it simple, we’ll fake a Maelstrom deal in Northside. Had a run in with them a few days ago, know enough about recent losses to make it sound like they need replacements.” Still not ‘easy’, but the easiest option.
>>5949083>>5949019>>5948925>>5948879Maestrom wins. I need two rolls of 1d100, DC 45. Higher is better.
>>5949087Maelstrom*
Rolled 17 (1d100)>>5949087I’m feeling good about this boyos. Are there crits in this quest Mainline?
Rolled 53 (1d100)>>5949087
Rolled 42 (1d100)>>5949087
I'm glad I rolled when I did, seeing these rolls. Also very glad the easiest choice won, in hindsight at least.
>>5949090There are, 100 and 1 are both crits. Higher is better, meets beats, the degree of a success or failure increases its potency. Rolls can also REDACTED when they REDACTED, so you should look out for that as well.>>5949095A 53 will do it, writing.
Apologies for the delay today, it'll still be a few hours more. The next update is about half written, kept having things come up.
>>5949087Can we at least mark down who "Vulture" is
“Keep it simple,” You snatch the floating image of Dum-Dum out of the air, commcodes and voice patterns from past holocalls filling the periphery of your vision for a moment as you hold it tight in a closed fist. Reading carefully, your eyes dart from each box of text to the next. Yes, this will do nicely, Alice has done a preem job organizing everything. “We’ll fake a Maelstrom deal in Northside. Had a run in with them a few days ago, know enough about recent losses to make it sound like they need replacements.” ”...Maeve was responsible for their losses?” Alice tilts her head curiously, red eyes peering past you for a long moment as if she was observing something else entirely.“She made a mess of a whole pack of them trying to sell some cargo she klepped running from her raffen clan… How did you know? I don’t remember mentioning it.” ”Intuition. I see I was correct.” Alice smiles a touch mischievously, wiggling her shoulders a bit and clearly far too pleased with herself at guessing correctly, almost laughing in delight, ”We will not use the others?”“After blacking out earlier? Feeling a bit humbled still, Alice.” You scratch somewhat nervously at the back of your head, “I doubt these scavs are packing daemons like that, but I’m sure if we shake the nest a bunch they’d find something to send our way. Sloppy as it is, someone set up their subnet and defenses.””I will not allow them to harm you.” “I appreciate it, Alice. I’ve got your back too.” Her promise isn’t something she can really guarantee in her current state and without a deck, but she’s pulled you out of the fire twice today, “Let’s get out of here, I’ll get the messages ready. You can handle the calls if they try to confirm?””With pleasure.”With a thought you summon up your decks basic spoofing soft, unfurling a holographic scroll and willing false information into it, carefully grafting in commcode information and basic verification protocols before writing up the details of your false Northside meeting with Maelstrom… It won’t stand up to a very close inspection, but it won’t get flagged by anything automatic an agent or link is running. As long as the scavs don’t have a reason to go searching for a problem, they won’t find it. …Probably.
>>5949445“Think I did that right…” You inspect the spoof once more, squinting at it uncertainly. This is the first time you’ve ever done something like this for real. It’s simple work, but a lot is riding on it. You roll it back up and then search about the camp’s interior for the personal network of the scav leader - Alice proves helpful once more, pointing toward the ghostly silhouette with one finger. As it did hours ago, the flickering outline grows in size once more, towering above its transparent compatriots. A few steps carry you and Alice towards the figure, and with a smooth motion you extend the spoofed message toward it - The personal network reaches out, grasping the scroll, and pulls it from you.It accepted it as real!You let out a sigh of relief. Whether or not the scavs buy into the deception is another matter entirely, but you’ve gotten the technically riskiest part of the setup done now. Alice tugs at your hand, pulling your attention back to her - She’s pointing off at another person in the camp. Not IC, another runner. Arms crossed, leaning against one of the stacks of crates nearby, the black hooded figure observes you both with predatory interest - Yellow eyes peer out from under the hood, slitted like a lizard.>Ghost the fuck out, delta yesterday. It doesn't matter who the runner is, anyone seeing you here is bad news.>...Bit of an intense look, but if they wanted to jump you or Alice they could have already. There’s a decent chance it isn’t a scav - Greet them politely.>Greet them somewhat less than politely. Get your IC imp out and pull up your decks basic - and rather unimpressive - default combat soft. Don’t attack, greet them warily.>Write-in.
>>5949449>>Ghost the fuck out, delta yesterday. It doesn't matter who the runner is, anyone seeing you here is bad news.
>>5949449>Ghost the fuck out, delta yesterday. It doesn't matter who the runner is, anyone seeing you here is bad news.Oh shit, time to go. Plothooks can wait, this isn't the place for us to be chatting.
>>5949449>Ghost the fuck out, delta yesterday. It doesn't matter who the runner is, anyone seeing you here is bad news.We should hit the site ASAP, before these vultures steal our target first!
>>5949449We're being traced or watched...It might be prudent to forward our scrolls a few other places while we're at it until we're "boring" to watch.
>>5949449>Greet them somewhat less than politely. Get your IC imp out and pull up your decks basic - and rather unimpressive - default combat soft. Don’t attack, greet them warily.the net is the best place to make friends
>>5949449>Greet them somewhat less than politely. Get your IC imp out and pull up your decks basic - and rather unimpressive - default combat soft. Don’t attack, greet them warily.We've already been spotted. Lets find out if this is a foe... or something else.
>>5949449>...Bit of an intense look, but if they wanted to jump you or Alice they could have already. There’s a decent chance it isn’t a scav - Greet them politely.
>>5949616>>5949474>>5949467>>5949452Δ! Writing.
An electric jolt of fear courses through you at the sight of the dark runner; whoever they are, whatever reason they’re here for, they’re bad news. “Oh shit, delt!-” Before you can finish speaking Alice’s hand is already wrapped about yours, a wall of vertigo slamming into you once more as you fall upward through the Net. Out of the subnet in a blur, passing through the code filled liminal spaces your mind can scarcely process, before getting dumped in a violent tangle of limbs far off… somewhere.Alice rolls off of you as you try to pull a trapped arm from under her, and everything is a terrible mess of tangled bodies, enough almost to make a person lose track of themself, until you at last separate properly and begin to brush yourselves off. Streams of blue data pass lazily overhead, carried on non-existent winds through the valley and off towards a data-fortress which is altogether far too close, the great menacing bulk of its dark blue, nearly black, stone walls towering high above. Rising uncertainly to your feet, eyes darting about warily across the shadows cast by the enormous structure, you finally settle your gaze upon Alice. A faint green string is wrapped about her, shooting off into the sky in a flickering line - A trace. Her dark hair is a bit ruffled, messier and puffier from the fall, and she’s still trying to wipe scrap data from her red dress… But her eyes are fixed firmly upward, toward the trace and beyond.Following her gaze, a speck appears in the streams of data snaking through the air overhead, falling parallel to drawn out tracing string. Though black at first, as the dot grows closer you find it shifting to red, changing from a speck to a shape, and from that vague form finally to a hat. It lands neatly atop Alice’s head, as if it was always meant to be there - It’s a tiny thing, a miniature top hat, an anachronism in your fantastical visualization of the Net but hardly moreso than her dress or your jacket ever were. At once, as if the frame of a film changed, Alice’s hair is fixed, now perfectly groomed, her red dress unwrinkled and free of imperfection, and the green tracing string burnt away by black and crimson flame, ceasing to bind her. A feeling of reassurance carries across the silvery cord of your link, calming your pounding heart.”Are you injured?” Alice asks strangely, leaning far over to peer at you, dark hair hanging loose as she cranes her neck, mere inches from you.“No, I-” You take a half step back from her intense, and far too close, stare, “I’m fine, I think. You?” You run a diagnostic quickly, confirming the belief - your Net connection is stable, your deck is fully functional, and there are no indicators of biofeedback or neurological damage of any kind.
>>5949903”I am thoroughly exhilarated! Oh, a proper whirlwind escape will get the heart pounding like a drum, like drum, thum, thum, thum…” Slowly Alice leans back, whatever temporary mania’s grasped her fading as her eyes flick up toward the dark walls of the looming datafortress. Her grin collapses into a terse displeased line. “Harumph. Perhaps we should not stay here, Kai.”“Hell no.” You agree quickly, having no desire to find out what’s going to come out of that fortress if you linger near it for too long, “Log off?” “We are no longer traced, though perhaps I missed a strand… Mmm, clear as a spring day!” Alice flashes a confident grin, energy filling her once more, before waving for you to follow her. Together you travel on foot directly away from the fortress wall and out into the wilds of poorly managed Net infrastructure, “Why in such a hurry, Kai? Our work on the Net is hardly done.”“The spoof? We got the message through, and it’s too hot to go back with another runner sniffing around.” Now that you’ve had a few seconds to think, more questions slowly bubble up from your mind, the brisk stroll back into the wilds jogging your thoughts, “How’d you kill the trace with your hat? I thought it was useless other than for… looks…”Alice tips her tiny hat with a careful motion, her hair and dress flashing back into a mess for a split second before returning to total tidiness, ”I fiddled with it while you took your greasy vittels, and after toiling for a time I discovered the secret of the hat. It not only changes my look, it change me! Ah, but we still have enough on our plates, buck-a-slice or no. Enough of the past when adventure awaits!”>”...Nova, glad I blacked out for something then, that headache just about killed me after - Anyways, you think the spoof isn’t done?” Stay on target, stay on target.>”...Greasy vittels? What? Are you sure you’re alright?” She’s getting weird again.>”Got something else in mind besides the spoof?” The message was sent, further spoofed correspondence can be handled later. Why not log out now? >Write-in.
To clarifying a bit on the options, #1 is pushing to work on the spoof more, #3 is more curious about alternatives/exiting the Net. Realized they're a bit ambiguous on the differences.
>>5949904>>”Got something else in mind besides the spoof?” The message was sent, further spoofed correspondence can be handled later. Why not log out now?cyberdate
>>5949904>”Got something else in mind besides the spoof?” The message was sent, further spoofed correspondence can be handled later. Why not log out now? We've got time. Sure, our chooms are waiting on us for the planning and stuff, but we've still got days. Still, we're sure the trace is gone, right?
>>5949904>hats change her>black hat/white hatgoddamn it GM
>>5949904>>”...Greasy vittels? What? Are you sure you’re alright?” She’s getting weird again.
>>5949904>”...Greasy vittels? What? Are you sure you’re alright?” She’s getting weird again.Personality instability seems a bit worrying
>>5949904>”...Greasy vittels? What? Are you sure you’re alright?” She’s getting weird again.
>>5949904>”...Nova, glad I blacked out for something then, that headache just about killed me after - Anyways, you think the spoof isn’t done?” Stay on target, stay on target.
>>5949999>>5950000>>5950088Writing.
“...Greasy vittels? What?” You ask confused, looking your digital choom over with worry, “Are you sure you’re alright?” ”Vittels? Erm… victuals. The ‘buck-a-slice’. It was greasy, was it not?”“Uh, sure,” You brush past the archaic mannerisms, already somewhat accustomed to odd speech patterns from Alice, “The hat changes you? I'm concerned about that, not what you're calling food.””...Oh, of course. I see why you might be taken aback,” She lifts the hat slightly once more, her hair bursting into a messy spray of dark strands, ”I am still myself deep down, do not worry a bit!”“Not exactly normal though, is it?” You scratch at the back of your neck as the two of you pass under the branches of small copse of trees, twisted old elms representing half abandoned subnets from the year prior, probably bit of infrastructure a smaller corp forgot to shut down, or perhaps far older, “Changing like that, I mean. It’s so sudden. You’re in control of it?””Indeed, indeed, quite in control, more than yesterday but not half so much as a week and a day ago, or so I suspect.” The hat settles back into place, Alice’s ‘clean’ look returning along with her odd shift in behavior. Clasping her hands together with a loud slap, she gives you a fiery, determined look. ”Much remains to be done - there will be time for wither-tos and why-fors later, and much talk of my stability - though I assure you I am the very picture of engramatic cohesion. Shall we get to work once more?” “...If you say so. I’m just trying to look out for you, Alice. Sudden changes aren't natural... I don’t know how this is supposed to work.” Without an expert on artificial intelligence, human derived or otherwise, there’s really no method by which you can check her assertion other than to observe behavior and guess. For now you choose to speak honestly and carry on, worry still brewing at the back of your thoughts. “Get back to working on the spoof then?””...Perhaps, perhaps not. We have…” Alice holds out a hand, a small hologram of a pocketwatch appearing, dangling from a glittering chain. She cranes her neck over to inspect it, lips curling into a mischievous grin, ”...The better half of half an hour, half again more than needed for a spot of adventure - Shall we set off? Data awaits.”>”Your data? You have something particular in mind, Alice, don’t you?” That's new.>”After the job, we have a contract to finish out, Alice - Scavs first. We still need to shepard that spoof along, make sure they fall for it.” Stay on target. You’ll have to be wary of that other runner.>”A runner tried to trace us - did, for a sec - Let’s not push out luck, it’s time to leave the Net.” Enough close calls for today, just let it be and check back in with Dolf. >Write-in.
>>5950308>”A runner tried to trace us - did, for a sec - Let’s not push out luck, it’s time to leave the Net.” Enough close calls for today, just let it be and check back in with Dolf.Is this even Alice, or are WE now getting spoofed by that other runner?
>>5950308>”Your data? You have something particular in mind, Alice, don’t you?” That's new.Uh...this is worrisome. Not to say she isn't fun like this, but I'm not sure how much of this is AI weirdness and how much is the runner we ran into. I'll go along with it, I guess.
>>5950308>>”A runner tried to trace us - did, for a sec - Let’s not push out luck, it’s time to leave the Net.” Enough close calls for today, just let it be and check back in with Dolf.
>>5950308>”Your data? You have something particular in mind, Alice, don’t you?” That's new.I'm not worried about this, a "hat"/disguise program making superficial changes to speech patterns and the like makes sense, it's probably a filter applied to her.
>>5950308>”Your data? You have something particular in mind, Alice, don’t you?” That's new.Maybe the hat is linked to a data cache?
>>5950522>>5950472>>5950317Writing.
“Your data?” You ask, eyes widening at Alice’s words. It seems unlikely she’d care much about any other kind. “You have something particular in mind, Alice, don’t you?” ”Indeed I do, Kai - It only just occurred to me, a bolt of inspiration struck as soon as we fled that hooded rapscallion. It is almost embarrassing that I had not thought of it sooner, considering our first meeting.”“When you put on your hat?” You stop by one of the gnarled old trees, keeping under its ancient shade - perhaps a decade or two old, downright wizened by reconstructed Net standards, “See, that’s the kind of shit that makes me think you’re gonking out, Alice.” ”No, no - When I obliterated the trace!” Alice claps her hands together with, sparks of black red flame cracking forth as she laughs in delight, ”Haha! Oh, what a thrill!”“It was rushed, but a clean getaway compared to what could’ve happened…,” You can feel her renewed confidence surging through the link connecting you - Whether the hat has changed her on some deeper level is unclear, but for now it seems to merely be a massive boost to her confidence, “Really nova work - Can you do more than kill a trace though?”Her grin fades, mouth scrunching up in annoyance, lines of code flickering briefly across the surface of her transparent red skin, ”To my dismay, no - And with a bit of bravery, and a companion with a deck, that should be more than enough to explore the hinterlands of my old fortress… Or rather the fortress I tried so desperately to contact upon first waking. In truth I have not the slightest inkling of who owns or owned it, or if it even exists.”
>>5950890“Woah, woah, hold up,” You shake your head, waving your hands in front of you in the universal sign of ‘oh fuck that gonk idea’, “You want to go snooping around a data-fortress? On purpose? Look, I get that you think you might find something of your old self there, makes sense, but that’s like wandering the badlands looking for old war scrap, you’ll find it in the form of a landmine.””Mmm, yes, of course there is a real danger to the endeavor, but so long as we keep our wits about us and refrain from touching what should not be touched, I see no reason to fear it. Now that I can hide us, the risk of watchers is far smaller. I do not propose we attempt to enter, I am very fond of living, data or no. What do you say, Kai? If the fortress has become a derelict, then the longer we wait to act the more likely it is that data will be lost to time. It could be fading even as we speak!”>”...Alright, fuck it, I’m in. But just around the outside of the fortress, alright? Not getting zeroed over just a chance at some data.” Dangerous(?) side quest at a spooky castle, what could go wrong?>”Later, Alice. We have to take these jobs one at a time, scavs first and then maybe we use the eddies to prepare better, come back with more than a weird hat and a deck I’ve had for less than a day.” Log out, talk with Dolf, get on with the job back in meatspace. This doesn’t close off working on the spoof more.>Write-in.
>>5950891>”...Alright, fuck it, I’m in. But just around the outside of the fortress, alright? Not getting zeroed over just a chance at some data.” Dangerous(?) side quest at a spooky castle, what could go wrong?This is a terrible idea, I'm in.Seriously though, the better idea would be to at least spend the day dealing with the shards we have lying around, maybe even splurge out for a cheap deck for her, rather than actually doing this, let alone going in. I feel like actually entering would be about as bad as probing dad's old deck at our current skill level. Still, as long as we stay outside, this isn't 100% suicide, which isn't saying much.If we didn't have a couple days to spare, I would say to focus on the spoof and the scav mission, but I'd rather we spend our spare time risking our brain getting scrambled like an egg than spend it risking our flesh in blood in the streets right before a big job.
>>5950891>”Later, Alice. We have to take these jobs one at a time, scavs first and then maybe we use the eddies to prepare better, come back with more than a weird hat and a deck I’ve had for less than a day.” Log out, talk with Dolf, get on with the job back in meatspace. This doesn’t close off working on the spoof more.Look, this whole personality shift is a red flag for me
>>5950891>”Later, Alice. We have to take these jobs one at a time, scavs first and then maybe we use the eddies to prepare better, come back with more than a weird hat and a deck I’ve had for less than a day.” Log out, talk with Dolf, get on with the job back in meatspace. This doesn’t close off working on the spoof more.
>>5950891>”...Alright, fuck it, I’m in. But just around the outside of the fortress, alright? Not getting zeroed over just a chance at some data.” Dangerous(?) side quest at a spooky castle, what could go wrong?What is life without risk?! The potential gains are immense!! Having our own data fortress would kick ass
>>5950891>”...Alright, fuck it, I’m in. But just around the outside of the fortress, alright? Not getting zeroed over just a chance at some data.” Dangerous(?) side quest at a spooky castle, what could go wrong?Blaze of glory, dex. Blaze of glory.
>”Later, Alice. We have to take these jobs one at a time, scavs first and then maybe we use the eddies to prepare better, come back with more than a weird hat and a deck I’ve had for less than a day.” Log out, talk with Dolf, get on with the job back in meatspace. This doesn’t close off working on the spoof more.Let's do >>5950910 with looking at the shards and maybe look at getting a deck for her, but I want to do the job first and get experience. We didn't even know we were being tracked.
>>5950891>”Later, Alice. We have to take these jobs one at a time, scavs first and then maybe we use the eddies to prepare better, come back with more than a weird hat and a deck I’ve had for less than a day.” Log out, talk with Dolf, get on with the job back in meatspace. This doesn’t close off working on the spoof more.Hm, hm, very risky. Let us focus on the problems of the now.
>>5950891>>>”...Alright, fuck it, I’m in. But just around the outside of the fortress, alright? Not getting zeroed over just a chance at some data.” Dangerous(?) side quest at a spooky castle, what could go wrong?We can do an inital survey from the outside. Can get tools later to do something proper. Getting the resources for those tools is goal #1 though. Therefore one job at a time. Cruising around the net takes almost no time in the day at least.
>>5951026>>5950968>>5950964>>5950910Spooky data adventure.>>5950911>>5950946>>5950973>>5951016Back to the meatspace.Got an even split so far, I'll give it another couple of hours.
>>5950891>>”...Alright, fuck it, I’m in. But just around the outside of the fortress, alright? Not getting zeroed over just a chance at some data.” Dangerous(?) side quest at a spooky castle, what could go wrong?
>>5951048>+1 spooky data adventure
>>5950891>>”Later, Alice. We have to take these jobs one at a time, scavs first and then maybe we use the eddies to prepare better, come back with more than a weird hat and a deck I’ve had for less than a day.” Log out, talk with Dolf, get on with the job back in meatspace. This doesn’t close off working on the spoof more.
>>5951054>>5951083>>5951026>>5950968>>5950964>>5950910Spooky data adventure wins 6-5, writing.
“...Alright, fuck it, I’m in.” The words escape you with more enthusiasm than you realized was building, trepidation turning easily into a kind of dangerous excitement - maybe Alice’s new confidence is contagious somehow. “But just around the outside of the fortress, alright? Not getting zeroed over just a chance at some data.” ”I would never dream of going further, not in our current shabby state…” Alice considers her words carefully, tapping a finger against her lips as she thinks it over, eyes fixed upward at some unseeable point far beyond any horizon, “Mm, perhaps I would dream it, but I would not do it! Let us be off then, Kai!”The well-hatted ghost extends a slender hand toward you in the shadow of the old Net tree, waves of detail washing over her skin. Holographic red one moment and then very nearly indistinguishable from a living person the next, at times she’s more real looking than your own avatar. Taking her hand in yours, clasping tightly, you close your eyes and prepare for the inevitable falling up that you’ve begun to associate with her style of rapid Net travel…But it isn’t like that this time. It isn’t like that at all. You do not fall, but slide. Like a pair of skaters blown by a gust of wind across the ice, you simply move. Trees and hills peel away into blocks of abstract code, then streaking lines of lights. Monumental data-fortresses blur from castles into simple geometries before zipping past and entirely out of sight. Faster, and faster, and faster still, you slide - The naturalistic landscape is gone now, nothing is recognizable except the endless horizons of the Net and flowing streams of data above and below you. Even the dataflows vanish into the dark, drifts of and dunes of scrap data replacing them. Soon those begin to flatten, to grow bleak, worn down...…And only the Blackwall remains.
>>5951644As suddenly as it began, your motion stops. Data coalesces slowly on the desolate plain surrounding the Blackwall. Barren wastes devoid of life stretch forever to either side before the ominously undulating surface of the infinite black and red barrier. The skies are devoid of data flows, dead. Squinting, straining to perceive the Net with your deck’s limited ability, you begin to notice more of the bleak ‘landscape’ lying in the shadow of the wall. There are ruins here among the dunes of white grey scrap data. Rubble, of a kind. Walls and towers, crushed almost to dust, the detritus of old servers long lost. Net infrastructure half a century old at least… None of it is active. Imprints are all that is left, nothing is interactable, nothing lives. It has all been reduced to grave markers for a long gone era. ”...Drat.” Alice’s voice is a whisper, but it thunders loud in the silence, echoing again and again in the bleak emptiness before the wall. Slowly she removes her hat, that gleaming spark of adventure that burned in her eyes dying. In a flicker her hair is a mess once more, her dress tarnished. ”I had hoped there would be something here… Dust to dust.”She cries out and kicks at a stone on the ‘ground’ in frustration, knocking free a cluster of advertisements for a show that hasn’t been made since before even your father was born. Ancient, useless, dead data. It loses coherency, dissolving into nothing, more dust to settle among the ruins. “There’s still the ruins, we could look around. Might be part of the fortress… You’re sure you pinged this before?” You glance about somewhat nervously, your voice carrying just as far as Alice’s has, echoing strangely. The Blackwall seems to absorb the ‘sound’, a feeling deep within the recesses of your mind screaming at that it is aware of your presence - But if it is, it makes no move but to fluctuate slightly, like the slightest ripples on a vertical pool of red and black before settling back to vertical striating rows of red data. On the far side of the wall, something pounds at the great red and black barrier, causing a small portion to bulge. It soon returns to near placidity.”...I am certain of it, Kai.” Alice leans down and picks up another piece of old data, inspecting a degraded skull even as it crumbles away, falling to ashes in her hands, ”Burned from the inside. Destabilized.”
>>5951650Alice takes a few steps toward a larger clump of data speared through by a shattered stone pillar, clearing some of the ashes from it with a swipe of her hand - The small motion moves more ash than it should, a gust of wind clearing the rest of the object she is inspecting… It is a colossal jawbone, a few teeth missing but otherwise recognizable as human. Sighing in defeat, on the very verge of sobbing, she buries her head in her hands and leans against the bone pile, sinking slowly down into a defeated kneel. “Alice, there’s more. We can keep looking for…” The Blackwall pulses again, something else pushing against it from the other side, a deep resonating thrum passing vibrating the ruins, and bones, and dust, and your soul. The barrier holds. “...Fuck. Uh…” It takes a moment to clear your thoughts, “We can keep looking, there might be something that survived. Maybe the fortress got buried, there’s no telling how deep this all goes.”Indeed, the longer you spend here the clearer the details of your bleak surroundings are becoming, what appeared at first as drifts or small dunes of ash and dust beginning to clear to reveal more shattered ruins or great bone piles. A weapons, countless degraded swords and spears, some thrust into the ground, others into walls or bone piles, some simply discarded. Rotten and rusted, the imprints of thousands upon thousands of corrupted combat programs litter the area beneath the wall. ”Did you bring a shovel? A pick?” Alice’s response is bitter, a surge of petulant anger and frustration pulsing through the cord connecting you, ”It is all gone. Everything is gone. I do not remember it but… It hurts.”A smaller impact strikes the far side of the Blackwall, another ripple sent across its black and red depths, lines of code vibrating… almost into song. You don’t understand it, but the wall is singing, quietly, almost silent even in the great bleak stillness of the wastes around it.>”...Is this from the datakrash?” Sit beside Alice, she needs some support. This definitely doesn’t seem recent, certainly not from as close as New Years. However this might relate to your father, if at all, it’s a lot older than his death.>”...Just stay here, Alice, take whatever time you need… I’ll look around, maybe there’s a program we can capture… or something left. Anything.” She needs time to process this, but you came here for data. You can capture data with your deck, store it away on a shard for later use or just give it directly to Alice if it’s her own. >”We should get out of here, Alice, come on.” Pull her back to her feet and exit the Net.>Write-in.
>>5951653>>”...Is this from the datakrash?” Sit beside Alice, she needs some support. This definitely doesn’t seem recent, certainly not from as close as New Years. However this might relate to your father, if at all, it’s a lot older than his death.
>>5951653>”...Is this from the datakrash?” Sit beside Alice, she needs some support. This definitely doesn’t seem recent, certainly not from as close as New Years. However this might relate to your father, if at all, it’s a lot older than his death.it's the blackwall, we'll be fiiiiiine....probably
>>5951653>”...Is this from the datakrash?” Sit beside Alice, she needs some support. This definitely doesn’t seem recent, certainly not from as close as New Years. However this might relate to your father, if at all, it’s a lot older than his death.
>>5951653>”...Is this from the datakrash?” Sit beside Alice, she needs some support. This definitely doesn’t seem recent, certainly not from as close as New Years. However this might relate to your father, if at all, it’s a lot older than his death.She’s older than we think, clearly - maybe not human after all
>>5951674>>5951761>>5951786>>5951821>>5951847Writing.
“...Is this from the datakrash?” You ask quietly, wary of how your voice has been echoing. Alice remains quiet as you sit down beside her in the ashes, leaning back against the enormous weathered jawbone.”I… I do not know. Perhaps so. What else could create such a grave?” Her words are a whisper, solemn and sorrowful. Sitting seiza, sunk into the ash nearly past her knees, she runs a red hand across the ground, leaving a furrow in the corrupted and lifeless data. ”What do you think their names were?”“I couldn’t say. They’ve been resting for a long time now, whoever they might have been.” It’s a grim resting place, a scorched charnel field left lifeless in the Blackwall’s shadow, “Another impression?”“Something of the kind. May we wait here?”“We have time.” Dolf’s not expecting you for another twenty minutes at least, and after the week you’ve had you won’t begrudge someone for their mourning. Silence settles upon you both, and the shadowed data wastes, and time passes. You contemplate the events of the last week, the whirlwind that has pulled you along since your father’s death - even today feels like it has gone on forever, starting with blood in out the badlands and leading to this digital mass grave…At some point, you’re not quite sure when, Alice began to lean on your shoulder as you sat together, her head resting against the simulated material of your jacket. It isn’t nice, nothing in this desolate place could be, but it is… welcome. A reminder of life. And while you rest together, and Alice mourns silently for a past she cannot remember, the Blackwall sings. Eerie, utterly inhuman, it resonates across the Net, brushing strangely against the edges of your thoughts, pulling at the cohesion of your avatar. Dull thumps sound against it, impacts upon the far side, each failed escape accenting the alien song. You close your eyes and listen.Footsteps sound in the emptiness, thunderingly loud. Someone else is approaching. Several someones. They do not belong here.
>>5951963Opening your eyes, you see them - three figures moving toward the wall, a pair holding a box between them, each gripping a handle, and the other at the head of the group. Their forms are obscured, blurring distorted boxes shifting about vaguely humanoid shapes hidden beneath, a shifting veil of dark red fractals covering each. They are humans, netrunners, and they have not seen you. “...This is the location.” The leader of the trio speaks, her voice distorted heavily, “Do not fuck this up, I’ve got a lot riding on this. The board... Ugh, just keep an eye open for NETWATCH.” “Ooh, NETWATCH going to get us, jump out from behind every bone and zap us good.” One of the box carriers laughs back, distorted but clearly accented, not a native English speaker. “Everyone goes to the dust some day, yeah? Not our day.”“Ha, yeah, not ours.” The other carrier chuckles in a far deeper voice, sharing a similar accent you cannot place. “You brave or stupid to think you control this for long. But we snag it, eddies good. Buy a new chair and new girl, ahaha!”“I am not paying the two of you for... for comments! Load the program and prepare the capture protocols.” The woman barks back sharply, “Go, get it against the wall.”“Ay, Blackwall, long time, ne?” The second carrier laughs as both men make their way toward the Blackwall, “Help a choom out and give us a BIG one, yeah? A real nasty girl, someting with claws.” The ‘leader’, or probably more of a client you realize now, watches impatiently as the two jovial men cross the last few dozen meters toward the Blackwall and black the box against it. They haven’t seen you or Alice, a layer of old data having settled lightly on both of you, a fine covering of dust doing just enough to hide you.What the hell are they doing?
>>5951967“Capture protocols ready?” The client shouts, refusing to approach the wall any closer than she had when sending the two men off. A shout and wave come back in the affirmative from the two men, the pair just barely still in sight, “Yeah, capture good and ready!” “Pro…” The woman fails to finish the command. She stamps her foot slightly in the ash, balls her fists, and shouts the order firmly, “Proceed!” Hellish screeching, inhuman and agonized, pierces across the wastes as the breach begins - It is not the wall crying out in pain, it continues to sing - No, it is noise from the other side. Alice’s hand grips your own tightly, shaking. Taking a few steps back at the horrific noise, the client woman looks about the area… Her shifting fractal eyes settle upon you and Alice.Does she actually see you?>Watch silently. Do not move, do absolutely nothing to reveal yourself. Dead data, scrap, dust, ash - that’s all you are, just another pair of ancient corpses. Maybe she hasn’t seen you. >Bolt immediately. Flee further into the ruins and bones - maybe the breach will keep them distracted enough that you can escape and begin to head back to the rest of the Net.>...She’s scared. Use that. You are covered in the ashes of the dead and a ghost stands at your side. Play the part of an ominous specter… long enough to get the hell out of here. Bluff.>Write-in.
>Watch silently. Do not move, do absolutely nothing to reveal yourself. Dead data, scrap, dust, ash - that’s all you are, just another pair of ancient corpses. Maybe she hasn’t seen you.
>>5951968>Watch silently. Do not move, do absolutely nothing to reveal yourself. Dead data, scrap, dust, ash - that’s all you are, just another pair of ancient corpses. Maybe she hasn’t seen you.
>>5951968>>...She’s scared. Use that. You are covered in the ashes of the dead and a ghost stands at your side. Play the part of an ominous specter… long enough to get the hell out of here. Bluff.
>>5951968>Watch silently. Do not move, do absolutely nothing to reveal yourself. Dead data, scrap, dust, ash - that’s all you are, just another pair of ancient corpses. Maybe she hasn’t seen you.Whoa, are they playing dead program Pokémon over there?
>>5951968>Watch silently. Do not move, do absolutely nothing to reveal yourself. Dead data, scrap, dust, ash - that’s all you are, just another pair of ancient corpses. Maybe she hasn’t seen you.Just got caught up. My morning shit just isn’t the same without my favorite /qst/ threads.Good to have ya back, QM!
>>5951968>Watch silently. Do not move, do absolutely nothing to reveal yourself. Dead data, scrap, dust, ash - that’s all you are, just another pair of ancient corpses. Maybe she hasn’t seen you.spooky! Lets hope they don't get something wrong and let something out...
>>5952122M1ss1ngn0 appears.
>>5951967Hire-ons maybe Voodoo boys, that 'someting' and all that. Or Japanese because of the 'ne', though I'd think we'd recognize the accent more clearly if it was something that common. No idea for the leader, either corpo or a criminal org with a board structure.>>5951968>Watch silently. Do not move, do absolutely nothing to reveal yourself. Dead data, scrap, dust, ash - that’s all you are, just another pair of ancient corpses. Maybe she hasn’t seen you. Bluffing will just get us into a fight we aren't prepared for.The net is a scary place. I'd rather risk walking through your average bad neighbourhood in Night City.
>>5952037>>5952054>>5952122>>5952187>>5952274>>5952276>>5952340Writing.>>5952122Not quite. I haven't been emphasizing it much but you can absolutely play Pokémon with wild programs on the Net, lots of things are captured rather than made. That is how the IC imp that Kai purchased was 'made'. It got caught, shackled and dedicated to a clearer purpose, and stuffed in a shard. >>5952340Kai would immediately know if they were Japanese, you can rule that out at least. The net is very scary, you're right about that, choom.
>>5952355>The net is very scary, you're right about that, choom.Yeah, I hear there's terrifying programs out there made to run on JAVASCRIPT, BASH, C, and even GNOME. God help the netrunners that encounter these entities, created by madmen.
…You keep as still as a corpse, remaining exactly as you were before the netrunner woman’s gaze fell upon your hiding place. Her eyes glow dark blue, distorted by the swirling fractals concealing her form. The shifting shapes hover above her avatar’s body, distorting into new patterns as the hellish screams continue to sound from the direction of her hired netrunners and their ‘capture box’. Alice’s hand grows still, her shaking ceasing, but you can feel her fear through your link.“...What the fuck are those?” The woman’s blue eyes narrow, and she takes a step closer toward your accidental hiding spot. Can a layer of dust really hide you? It settled upon you without your notice - these wastes before the Blackwall are where it all seems to settle, where the winds end. Another step, and another, she grows closer, head cocked to the side curiously as she approaches directly toward you. She must see you. She sees something. The otherworldly screeches continue, vibrations traveling through the ash dunes and drifts, shaking the shattered ruins, pulling again at your thoughts. Screams of dying beasts, of mothers discovering slain children, rage, hatred, fear, despair, and a sea of noise and thought utterly alien in its vastness - gnashing, gnawing, clawing. The noise digs at everything - and it draws the woman’s attention back to the wall again, too horrific to be ignored.“Is… Is the capture working?” She turns her attention from your spot and shouts to the two men and their box. You dare not look, not even a slight turn of your head - you cannot see them.“Preem connection!” One of them answers back, barely able to be heard in the cacophony now filling the wastes, “Stability good too, real good - We… Wait.” “Wait? Wait what? What’s going on?” Panic fills the woman’s voice immediately, standing within a waking nightmare too much for whatever resolve she might normally possess - fields of bones and ash, the Blackwall, and what screams and gnashes beyond it. “Is… Is there trouble with the capture?”“No, no, we good, big claws though, sharp teeth,” The man reassures her, but even through the distortion and screams you can hear uncertainty, “Make your [indecipherable] ‘board’ happy, yeah?”
>>5952579“...Uh, very! Keep it going!” The woman crosses her arms, eyes fixed on the box and its screaming connection to the Blackwall, one foot tapping nervously in the piled ash which covers everything, tap, tap, tapping away at the old dead scrap data. “...Shit end of the stick on this one, always get the fucking worst assignments…”“It is failing.” Alice whispers while the runner woman murmurs and complains to herself, cursing her luck with jobs, ”They cannot do it.”“The breach?” You ask back quietly, barely able to force your mouth to form the words - fear grips you tighter than you’d realized, your stillness born as much from terror as prudence.”The capture. They cannot do it. Not with that little cage. It is bait.”. The screams begin to grow quiet, distant, as if they were a crowd fleeing from the point at which the wall has been breached. You finally dare to look back toward the Blackwall. The two men have taken several steps back from the box, abyssal cracks spider webbing from where they attached it to the striated red code of the wall.“...Is it done?” The netrunner woman asks, the sudden silence unnerving her. Whatever curiosity she had for you, or whatever she thought she saw in your hiding spot, it is gone now. “...No. You are though, [indecipherable].” The man laughs nervously, glancing to his companion for reassurance - But the other box carrier doesn’t laugh. He’s on his knees, facing the cracking section of the Blackwall, head bowed as if in some kind of prayer. “What?” Anger rises in the woman's voice, a slender crystalline spear materializing in one hand and her obscuring fractals hardening into something harsher, a kind of angular plate armor instead of a shifting veil, “You’d better not be trying to fuck me - Get him up, finish the job.”“No, not us, we not the ones to fuck you. Our job done.” The speaking box carrier continues to chuckle nervously, though with shrinking enthusiasm as the cracks on the Blackwall deepen and silence slowly returns to the wastes. The Blackwall thrums, something massive impacting the far side.
>>5952581The cracks in its striated surface deepen, merge, and begin to consume the remaining streaks of red code - slowly it forms into a solid black circle, a portal which leads only out from the other side.Four eyes peer through, slanted and lizard like, a large set burning red and a smaller set just below them. The ground shakes once, and the eyes grow larger, and then again, and again, this thing from beyond the Blackwall slowly emerging from the hole bored in the great barrier. As it passes from the dark and into shadow, darkness is pulled along with it, a clinging cloud of abyssal data obscuring the details of the AI’s form. Its slanted crimson eyes rise up as its neck snakes fully into the Net, slender and armored but vast enough to easily swallow a person whole. It peers down its long scaled snout at the two kneeling men and their strange box. It is a dragon.“We… we bring sacrifice!” The previously laughing man cries out half in terror, whatever superiority he felt over his duped client melting away. His eyes are averted from the looming AI, his words nervous and uneven, “One rich in secrets, one who came to bind - we offer her data to you, great spir-”The dragon crushes him with a step. With another step it crushes the box, prowling out from the gap in the Blackwall one step at a time, its gaze now fixed on the spear-armed woman and her hardened armor. The second man still prays as the draconic thing continues to emerge, thin strands of data flowing from his body and toward it, every bit greedily absorbed by the alien intelligence, siphoned into its clinging abyssal clouds.The armored netrunner charges forward with a cry of terrified defiance and throws her spear, launching the lethal program at the AI. The combat program arcs across the gap, transforming into a bolt of lighting half way across, instantly crackling forward the rest of the way along a jagged electric path. The bolt smites the skull of the dragon between its larger set of red eyes, and there is a brilliant flash of light. The dragon stops in place, frozen and half headless, a perfect sphere blasted into the top of its skull. For a heartbeat you expect it to fall lifeless.It just keeps walking. The darkness that clings to the dragon fills its gaping head wound, flowing like water to fill the missing chunk, reforming its shape and hue until it is indistinguishable from before the bolt struck - scrap data is sucked up from the ground to renew the cloud as it passes, ‘useless’ ashes turned to fuel. Every step shakes across the dunes, rumbling through the ruins, until nearly the entire body of the dragon has been freed from the far side of the Blackwall.
>>5952583The woman throws another spear, and another, each turning into crackling, jumping bolts of lightning which now leave no mark on the slowly advancing AI’s hide. She changes to throwing fire, and again the first bolt finds purchase, scorching deep until more swirling darkness and dead data fills the wound. The next bolt does nothing. Slowly you realize the dragon isn’t even looking at the netrunner anymore, ignoring the ultimately harmless assault - Its eyes are fixed on something far off, in the direction of the rest of the Net. It is almost free now, only half of its long spiked tail remaining on the far side of the Blackwall. You dare not move, sitting still beside Alice as the netrunner continues to try different programs, now alternating on every attack, blasting apart great chunks of the beast only to see them reform ever faster, consuming more of the nearly infinite scrap data piled high among the ruins - she’s got quite the variety of combat programs ready to be called up, but it’s like digging at a mountain with a hand trowel.As the dragon’s tail is almost clear of the portal, the Blackwall closes shut, falling upon the creature like the blade of a guillotine. Where it had moved slowly before, lumbering step by step, the dragon shrieks in pain and whirls about like a cat, its severed tail lit aflame with black and red, smoking and burning and turning to ash. It spews its own dark fire back at the barrier, leaving no mark upon the Blackwall.The tail does not heal. As dark clouds of data pour in to extinguish the flame, trying to repair the wounded tail, it only serves to feed the fire. Sparks of that terrible flame arc off, one landing on the prostrate box carrier - He goes up like a torch, crumbling to ash before a cry escapes his lips. The tendrils of data which stretched from him to the dragon fall apart as well, more ash to pile on the endless heaps. Moving from ruin to ruin, the female netrunner continues her desperate and panicked barrage, flinging a spinning ax which bites deep and sinks into the dragon’s neck, but she is still not its focus - Why is she not fleeing?As the flame advances up the dragon’s long tail, its jaws snap shut around the base of the appendage, arm length fangs sinking deep, and then it rips, tearing its tail free in and throwing it away into the wastes to be consumed in fire. It begins to heal, siphoning in data to the stump of a tail, but it does not regrow - the stump seals, gnarled and ragged, but even as more data pours in it cannot reform it. The dragon’s head whips back to look at the Netrunner, the ax in its neck slowly being absorbed into its body, data consumed like all the rest, and for a few seconds she receives its full attention.
>>5952584The runner freezes, the AI’s gaze enough to hold her in place - It is not fear holding her, you can see and hear her struggling against invisible bonds, unable to slip free. Fractal armor cracks and crumples, the blazing white sword now held in her hand extinguishes and bends until it curls in upon itself, and flickering geometric patterns swarm about her, eating away at her programs - Just as the last of her armor is peeled away and it begins to destabilize the runner herself, a horn sounds far in the distance.The dragon releases the netrunner, its four eyes blazing as they gaze in the direction of the horn call. Taking two quick steps it attempts to leap into the air, wings spreading wide… and it crashes into the ground, crushing a half collapsed tower further to dust. The horn sounds again, and the dragons kicks and flails about, trying to right itself for a moment before burrowing its head and claws deep into the ash. It slithers and kicks, throwing up great clouds of ash, and burrows away and out of sight, seeking refuge within the deeper structures of the Net. It does not return.The distant horn sounds again, and the Blackwall’s quiet song can be heard again. Silence slowly returns to the wastes.You rise to your feet alongside Alice, surveying the aftermath of whatever gonk plan it was those runners had. None of them got what they thought they would. The capture failed if it was ever even possible, the betrayal failed, offering a ‘sacrifice’ failed, fighting failed - the only thing they did was turn the key on that Blackwall’s prison door, letting that thing out from the far side.
>>5952585“...Why would they do that?” You finally speak, looking to Alice in shock. While she brushes the clinging ash from her filthy dress, she just shakes her head and doesn’t answer the question, choosing not to speculate. ”She lives.” Alice points toward the mangled form of the Netrunner’s avatar. A groan sounds from it, one hand twitching trying to grip at a sword that no longer exists, ”...As does the tail.”More surprised by that than the runner, you turn to see that the severed burning tail has been largely extinguished. Little of the flame which consumed it remains, slowly burning in a few places but quickly losing its vigor, as if the fire somehow understands that its purpose is complete now that the tail was severed from the rest of the AI. Alice stares contemplatively at the tail, deep in thought.>Check on the Netrunner, she looks like she’s in pretty awful condition - probably can’t exit the Net on her own after getting thrashed so thoroughly. A fraction of a second more and she’d be ash just like those box carrier netrunners, whoever they were.>”Can’t believe it ripped its tail off like that either, didn’t even hesitate.” Alice is probably just in shock. If you hadn’t been in a couple of gunfights in the last week you’d probably be unable to speak as well. Even now you barely can.>”...The AI delta’d when it heard the horn. NETWATCH?” It’s a guess, but if it is you’ll probably want to get out of here soon.>Write-in.
>>5952586>Grab the tail, put it on a shardMaybe it'll regrow and we'll have a contained piece of insane malware, maybe it'll be a cool souvenir, maybe we can tame it. Any way we go about capturing it, it can only go well.
>>5952591>+1Let's take a chance.
>>5952591Fuck it, we ball. +1
>>5952583Okay, so my guess is that they were indeed Voodoo Boys, or at least some netrunner crew attempting to curry favour with rogue AIs, the woman is presumably Militech, and this is Project Cynosure. Her hesitance regarding saying if the board would be pleased could just be nervousness, or she could be acting independently, typical corpo ambition, it would explain the lackeys.>>5952584Baby AI no match for daddy Blackwall.>>5952586Because they're gonks Kai.>Full greed: Grab the Netrunner, tell Alice to package up the tail into a shard, and even stop to scoop up the remnants of Alice's data fortress from the data-ash into another shard.If Netwatch catches us, just explain what we saw and hope they don't zero us and enslave our AIgirlfriend.
>>5952591>>Grab the tail, put it on a shard.Time to upgrade our greatest advantage an best friend! She obviously wants it but does not wish to burden us by asking. >>5952621>Sanity is for the weak!!! Become truly sane through cosmic knowledge! >>5952668Miltech will zero us. Netwatch will do worse.
>>5952591>>5952621>>5952632>>5952793Writing.
God this is going to be fucking hilarious imagine when this AI comes after us later for having the tail
“Can’t believe it ripped its tail off like that, didn’t even hesitate,” Your voice carries across the wastes loudly once more, the silence hungering to be filled with any noise it can, “...Let’s take it.” ”Take it?” Alice gasps in surprise, red eyes widening as she covers her mouth with one hand, ”It is dangerous, Kai, that is the core data of another artificial intelligence, there is no telling what nasty secrets it could hold.”“Yeah, isn’t it great? Come on, think of the possibilities, Alice. I saw how you were looking at it.”“It… did cross my mind.” She licks her lips slightly, eyes locked on the half burnt remains of the severed tail and its many spikes, “Oh… Maybe just… a little. What is the harm?” You see an opportunity and can’t resist, needing some levity now more than ever, “Just the tip?”She snickers childishly at the immature joke, her laugh carrying sweet and clear across the ash wastes, utterly out of place among the dead, “Stop it, cat lover. How do you propose we do this? I could try to integrate it into myself, but there are dangers.”“Always use protection.” You’re chuckle, a shard materializing between your fingers - one of the empties slotted into your deck. With no stored data, it takes on only its own appearance. “We’ll try to shard it and deal with it later.” “Mm, no, I want it now.” Alice shakes her head, looking a bit wild with her hair and dress as messed up as they are - all the scrap data here really seems to have done a number on her appearance, far more than her scuffs and changes after evading the trace earlier, ”...Just part of it.”
>>5952859You walk toward the smoking wreck of a tail together, footprints in the ash quickly fading and filling in behind you. Quiet groans sound from the disabled netrunner, but you pay her little attention for now, every ounce of your attention focused upon the tail. Part of you worries that it might be more corrupt than it looks, scorched internally and only appearing to remain intact. Upon reaching the elliptic crater in the ash where it landed, you kneel beside the severed data and look it over uncertainly. How do you shard something like this?“Just stick it in, you pansy.” Alice chides, reaching out and grabbing ahold of one of the long spikes of the tail, her brow furrowing as she concentrates upon data held within, ”It is safe enough. And I will be taking this.” With a concerningly violent yank, she tears the spike free of the corroded code beneath, bits of scrap data spattering her already filthy dress. Pulling the remaining strings of code free with her teeth, like an animal tearing away sinew, Alice soon has the long spike cleaned. Adjusting her grip on it, she holds it from its narrow base like a sword. The oddly shaped root of the spike melds into a hilt, shifting to fit her grip, and she gives it a hesitant swipe through the air. ”Lots of snicker, not so much snack….” She pulls another spike free, scraping it clean with the first blade before flipping it into the air and catching it by its newly formed hilt, “...Lots of snack, not so much snicker. I love them. …What are you looking at, Kai?”You’re looking at the semi-feral AI woman standing beside you wielding a pair of gore spattered teeth as swords. Her hair is a wreck, her red dress filthy and nearly black in places, flecks of the dragon’s scrap code spattered about like dried blood. She’s red and black, just like that dragon was. Like that Blackwall is. She always has been.
>>5952860“Nothing, just thinking you’d make a good horror BD villain looking like that… Seriously though, are you feeling alright? I didn’t think you could integrate data that wasn’t your own.”“Oh, shush, I am not that scary…” She looks down at her dress and then to the quite sinister looking spike blades held in her hands, “Oh… P-perhaps you have a point. A leather choker and a guitar and I could start a band… Hm, I do feel good though, very good. Tingly? The data is similar to my own, this tail was a person once.”Your blood runs cold, and despite being deep within the Net you can feel the hair stand up on the back of your neck - your actual neck. “That was a person?!””Once. A person’s engramatic data was the seed for it. I would bet my life on it, or my new at least. Rather a chilling thought… Are you going to shard it, Kai?”You nod, deciding to just shove the horror of the situation aside a little longer - hardly the first time today - and get to work. Jabbing the shard into the scaled surface of the tail, it sinks in easily and begins to siphon in the data, distorting and shifting it into a whirlpool of code, pulling it in until nothing remains except the elliptic crater. // Data Capture Complete! // // Shard Capacity at 73.6% // “Surprised that worked,” You murmur half to yourself, ignoring the scraping of bone on bone as Alice uses the two spikes to sharpen each other, “Aren’t AIs supposed to be hard to handle? That was as easy as moving any other file.””It is uncontrolled, it simply cannot resist it… May I have that?”You give a small nod, “Later. Doubt we could sell it anyways, too hot. Speaking of which, we should probably delta, can’t get out of here fast enough. …Uh, do those blades work?””I am not inclined to test them, but I suspect so. It is not familiar, but I have gained a measure of combat effectiveness - With the rest of the data, perhaps I could make something of myself.” Alice turns to face back toward the disabled netrunner and the rest of the ruins, putting her back toward the vastness of Blackwall.
>>5952861“I like you how you are, Alice. Don’t go turning into a dragon while I’m not looking.” You walk with her putting distance between yourselves and the looming barrier - You can’t exit the Net here, you’ll need to be closer to your entry point to do so safely.“Feed me gold and virgins, grr.” Alice laughs, more her usual self now despite the change to her appearance and the grim surroundings - there’s something oddly reassuring about that. You prefer her like this - concerns about the new data aside - to whatever the hell that hat did to her personality, mere disguise or not. ”...Will we do something about her? I feel… very bad leaving her to die. It is wrong, even if she was a gonk.”Okay, definitely the normal Alice still. Good. You follow her gaze toward the crumpled up netrunner, a quite severe looking blonde - whatever programs were concealing her avatar have been stripped away completely, along with the better part of one of her arms… Ugh, that’s rough, might be permanent nerve damage from it back in meatspace. Hard to know.>”...Maybe she’ll pay for the save. Let’s take her with us, we can talk it out when she wakes up. She shouldn’t have much fight left in her after getting wrecked like that.” Eddies await, or maybe just corporate entanglements.>”She’s a corpo, I think. Let’s just drop her off back in the civilized parts of the Net. Should come around on her own… probably.” A good deed for its own sake, but don’t risk your neck too much.>”Too risky, let’s delta. NetWatch is going to be swarming any second, I think that’s what the horn was a minute ago.” Ghost off back to the civilized Net and logout.>Write-in.
>>5952863>”She’s a corpo, I think. Let’s just drop her off back in the civilized parts of the Net. Should come around on her own… probably.” A good deed for its own sake, but don’t risk your neck too much.Hand her to netwatch if we run into them
>>5952866+1Way I see it she's likely to kill us for having a chance of knowing about this sort of thing. That said, we're not savages.
>>5952863>”She’s a corpo, I think. Let’s just drop her off back in the civilized parts of the Net. Should come around on her own… probably.” A good deed for its own sake, but don’t risk your neck too much.
>>5952868It's easy enough to leave a scroll for her to pay us/get a sitrep on what happened. As is, we have more than enough to fuck her completely even if she zerod us, but we aren't extorting her on that. Theres no reason to track down a Negaunee to stop them from leaking. Last time someone tried doing that against a net runner, there was the net crash. Shed be retarded to not think there aren't contingencies.
>>5952863>>”She’s a corpo, I think. Let’s just drop her off back in the civilized parts of the Net. Should come around on her own… probably.” A good deed for its own sake, but don’t risk your neck too much.
>>5952863>Resist that knee jerk civilized response. Interrogate her then kill her. She's nobody to us and that presents the highests gain at the least risk.
>>5952952>>5952882>>5952868>>5952866Writing.
”She’s a corpo, I think.” You lean over the half corrupted avatar of the netrunner, inspecting her rather severe damage - something like acid burns covers swathes of her netrunner suit, and one arm is simply missing from the elbow down. Occasional groans escape her lips but a tap with your foot confirms she isn’t conscious. “Let’s just drop her off back in the civilized parts of the Net. Should come around on her own… probably.””I can carry her,” Alice spins her swords about into a reverse grip and sheaths them both - they vanish at the end of the motion, no sheaths existing on her hips, “I may not be good for much, but I can do transport. What corp do you think she was from?”“We could search her and find out.” You suggest with a shrug.”...That feels like a violation of personal autonomy somehow…” Alice says even as she begins to rifle through the unconscious runner’s digital pockets, kneeling beside the woman and clipping her hands into the avatar, ”This is my first time inside of a… Oh dear, one of her IC programs is still active… Snicker-snack, aaand there we go. She is… ” “Militech?” You guess, but Alice shakes her head, striking quite the fiendish look covered in gore and dirt and crouched over a mangled body. ”EBM!” Alice corrects you cheerily before chastising the unconscious runner, ”And on a solo job too, tsk tsk. Very naughty, asking for forgiveness instead of permission and then gonking it up this badly. The rest is too encrypted, I cannot get past it.”“Not even with those fancy new spikes of yours?” You refrain from commenting on EBM - you’d been under the impression they were defunct, dissolved after a failed coup or something a few years ago. Might be part of them that got bought by another corp after.”Especially not with them, I can break and burn things fairly well now… but this is delicate work. She would certainly die and I doubt we would get the data anyways. I would rather not kill her, gloryhound corpo or not. Shall we depart?”“Lets.”
>>5953102A few minutes later, back within the ‘civilized’ parts of the new Net.Alice sets the still limp body of the Netrunner down among a patch of tall grass, obscuring her from casual observation - It’s a decent hiding place to recover. Not perfect, but you don’t owe a stranger that. Wiping her hands together, the transport job complete, you both exchange a quick nod and exit the Net.Awareness of your apartment, of the pressure of your chair, the cold metal of your desk, the nearly still air - it all hits like a sledgehammer. You blink, disoriented, and lean back in your chair - you’ve never delved so far into the Net before, and you’re really feeling it now. “Ugh, fuck,” You look down at the cable extended from your wrist and into the stolen Arasaka deck on your desk, “...Need a bigger port, this blows. Alice, you make it out too?” There’s no response within your mind, so you shoot her a text asking the same.// Message from Alice: I have! I believe text communications are ideal for now, maintaining a close connection through your link for so long is very taxing. //// Message to Alice: Run a full diagnostic or two, make sure your data’s alright. That dive fucking sucked, holy shit. Talk about nopes-ville. //// Message from Alice: It was more distressing than I intended or expected, but I would say we did very well. A spoof, a trial of my hat, and more that I will not commit to text. I am useful now! Hooray! //// Message to Alice: Yeah, definitely could have gone worse. I’m going to call Dolf, see what he’s cooked up. Want to listen in? //// Message from Alice: No, I have buckets of data to sift through and process… and other things to contemplate. Thank you for going with me, Kai. I had hoped there would be something left though. //// Message to Alice: Want to talk about it? //// Message from Alice: No. Not today. Call Dolf. //And so you do.
>>5953106Ringing Dolf on the Holo doesn’t take long, the huge man’s face popping into existence in a box at the corner of your vision, flickering slightly as your ‘Psyche’ neuralink tries to layer it on top of your vision. Cybereyes or AR glasses would do the job better, but it works alright.“Woah ho ho, someone fucking die, choom? You look like you just ran one of those freaky maelstrom gauntlets.” Dolf exclaims immediately upon seeing you, clearly startled slightly and almost choking on some NiCola he was sipping, “Bad dive?”“Something like that. Got a basic spoof done, need to do some follow up but the scavs will probably send some of their guys off to northside for a deal with Maelstrom.”“Excellent…” Dolf nods, grimacing uncomfortably after a moment, his mouth and forehead wrinkling in concern, “Uh, what did happen, choom? Seriously, that’s a pretty bad fucking stare, I’ve seen eyes like that before on homeless guys, those vets with all the deactivated military chrome… you’ve seen em’, not a good place to be. Need to know your head’s in the right place still.”Do you really look that bad? You lean toward one of the powered off screens of your father’s old comp and check your reflection… You don’t see it. Maybe your link has a processing error. “I’m fine. Had a close call in the scav subnet, got away clean, and then went on a detour that went kind of shit… Actually, it’s better if you don’t know. It isn’t work related. Still have all of my neurons, if that’s what you’re asking…”“...Sure, sure.” Dolf shakes his head unhappily, something like a joking tone slowly returning to the usually jovial young mercenary, “Netrunners and secrets, peanut butter and jelly, scop and kibble, aye yai yai. Whatever. I got a killer plan worked up while you were snorting ones and zeroes or however that deck shit works. How many do you think the spoof will draw off?” “Based on past meetings? Probably four or five, take them about an hour there and back with the goods. Call it forty five minutes for safety, I can monitor them in case there’s a surprise and they come back early.”
>>5953108“So we’re looking at closer to twenty gonks then…” Dolf closes his eyes for a moment, probably running numbers in his head, “Not so good, but we can manage. When’s the meet?”You check your link’s messages and find that the scav leader, Jimbo, has proposed a meeting at midnight, “Midnight, just got a response back. That's enough time for your plan?”“Hell yeah, choom, locked and loaded.” Dolf raises one of his submachineguns into frame for a moment before setting the gun back aside, “Just one last detail left to iron out, then we can start bickering about things, call eachother suicidal gonks and all that good shit. Are you going in with us?”>”I bought armor, didn’t I? Of course I’m going in.” Dolf and ‘Connor’ look like they can handle themselves but numbers add up.>”Think I’ll be more useful nearby running their subnet for them. Doors and cameras, y’know.” Reel it back in Kai, you’re not combat chromed or packing heavy armor and iron.>Write-in.
To add a bit onto option one, Kai can trigger preplanned things like doors or mines and use slotted quick-hacks even in the midst of a gunfight, more creative stuff is just a lot harder.
>>5953110>>”Think I’ll be more useful nearby running their subnet for them. Doors and cameras, y’know.” Reel it back in Kai, you’re not combat chromed or packing heavy armor and iron.We really, actually, would be more valuable on the net, I think.
>>5953110>”Think I’ll be more useful nearby running their subnet for them. Doors and cameras, y’know.” Reel it back in Kai, you’re not combat chromed or packing heavy armor and iron.I'd also like to test out the tail we got from that AI.
>>5953110>”Think I’ll be more useful nearby running their subnet for them. Doors and cameras, y’know.” Reel it back in Kai, you’re not combat chromed or packing heavy armor and iron.
>>5953110>>”Think I’ll be more useful nearby running their subnet for them. Doors and cameras, y’know.” Reel it back in Kai, you’re not combat chromed or packing heavy armor and iron.
>>5953110>”Think I’ll be more useful nearby running their subnet for them. Doors and cameras, y’know.” Reel it back in Kai, you’re not combat chromed or packing heavy armor and iron.we are but flesh, that's not exactly enough in this biz
I mean, maybe if we had some of that bullettime brain hardware, some AR Nightvision Goggles, some of those hearing enhancing Earpro like some Peltors, a respirator, a couple frag grenades or IEDs strapped to RC cars, and Alice had her own deck we could keep up in there but in our current state... perhaps we should hang back
>>5953489>>5953488>>5953198>>5953153>>5953125Writing. Might not finish until the morning, not sure.
“Think I’ll be more useful nearby, running their subnet for them. Doors and cameras, y’know.” You repeat the phrase Dolf and ‘Connor’ have both been so fond of, preferring not to suffer from acute lead poisoning beside your new chooms - It isn’t cowardice, just a lack of chrome. Aramid weave and ceramic plates only carry squishy meat so far, and twenty or more scavs with rifles is a bit beyond your comfort zone.“Eh, if your spoof and the mines work then you pulled your weight. Fair enough, choom.” Dolf shrugs, unsurprised by the choice - a little too unsurprised. Hey, netrunners aren’t cowards! “So plan A then. Here’s the sitch…” Plan A? Dammit, he definitely expected this. Whatever. The holographic map of the scav den you created earlier flares to life in your mind’s eye, called up by your 'Psyche' link and a few pings from Dolf - Each room is numbered and labeled, cover and concealment have been protection rated and color coded, likely scav positions and weapon caches have been marked off… It is exceedingly thorough, if a little cluttered. A lot more than you expected for half an hour of prep. Entry and exit points are marked off, along with a path of attack and several more for escape.“Keeping it simple and violent, choom. Draw as many as you can to the mines here,” Dolf pings the mine protected door, “Blast those gonks, leave the internal doors open, let the others move into these rooms - lock them up. Should hold them for… Fifteen seconds maybe? Cat and, er, Connor and I frag them and push in through the front door which you’ll unlock, zero anything left in our way. We push further up through here or here, keep these thicker walls between us and the bulk of the scavs, don’t need shots coming through the walls…”…He’s right, it isn’t a complicated plan, basically just sealing off or blasting scavs in other rooms so he and ‘Connor’ can storm through along the (probably) safest path to ‘Buddy’, grab them, and get the hell out - probably through a window and then down some balconies, but there are alternate exit routes too. “...Got everything loaded into our tac soft, it’ll handle the pathing and highlights for walls and gonks… Uh, here’s the code for it.” Dolf forwards you an invite to join the tactical net he’s set up with ‘Connor’ using what is clearly stolen NCPD software, “Can you link that up with their cameras? Helps if we can see through walls, some seriously spooky shit I hear, want to try it out.”“Easily. Should be able to get it to flag disabled weapons and chrome too, if I turn off one of their rifles or their eyes you’ll know.” You’ve never done it before, but with Alice’s assistance and a couple of hours it shouldn’t be an issue at all, you have full camera control already, “You just had an old MaxTac tactical program laying around?”
>>5953557“Connor’s uncle did. Crazy bastard was full of surprises.” Dolf’s expression is uncharacteristically grim, “He doesn’t need it anymore, she snagged the shard while going through his things. Can’t really use it all the way, don’t got the gonzo nova chrome it expects, but it’s some preem shit even if it’s… what, five years out of date? MaxTac’s probably got something that makes it look like a relic now.” “Relics can be very dangerous,” You glance toward the black Nue holstered on your desk, the simple design still plenty lethal even in a world of smart missiles and quick-hacks, “There’s no telling what kind of trouble you can get into with them. Plan seems solid, I’ll handle my end. …Connor’s still practicing?” “Yeah, she’s out chopping raindrops now or something, got tired of the cans. Watched too many ninja BDs as a kid.” Dolf chuckles, but you sense a hint of concern in his words, “We both did, probably. Anyway, get those cameras and we’re good for hitting them right before midnight. Can’t always plan a job out like this, its got me all excited, choom, haha!” He’s positively giddy, and not someone you’d want to be on the wrong side of - He’s gregarious, but all those laughs and jokes are just hiding the fact that he really has something going on behind that thick skull, and almost all of it is enthusiastic about working as a gun for hire. Definitely not just a meat gorilla, he’s a meat gorilla with a plan.“...I'm feeling it too. Ready to make some eddies!” You can’t quite match his enthusiasm, but the man’s got an infectious laugh, “I guess taking the scavs for all they’re worth is off the cards though?”“Yeah, shame. Too risky, can’t spend eddies if you’re dead or in a coma. Need to blow through fast, not looking for a stand up fight today.” Dolf confirms what you already knew had to be true - this kind of lightning assault and recovery just doesn't have time for rifling through pockets and crates.“Meet up in Westbrook later?”“Yeah. A 25/7 in Japantown, it’s a runner spot - no one’ll look twice at our gear,” Dolf forwards the location to your link, marking a spot on the lower level of one of the market areas, “Bringing your wheels, Kai?” “Always do.” Of course you’re not going to leave Alice on the other side of Night City.“Preem, want to check that ride out up close. See you there, choom.”>Relax and prepare yourself until it’s time for the job, and then head over in the Quadra. Time for eddies.>Head over to the spot early. If it’s a runner spot, maybe you can sniff out jobs for the next few days? Gotta network to make your Net work… work.>Call someone (specify).>Write-in.
>>5953559>See if you can' use the cameras to get a better picture of the leader and run it through facial recognition and reverse image searches. Maybe get a hit and find out exactly WHO you're dealing with in.
>>5953563No need to waste a vote on that. Most of the scavs have their identities hidden with scramblers (extremely difficult to get a good look at their face, even on their own cameras), but with the data Kai has pulled from the subnet and agents he is pretty sure the leader 'Jimbo' is actually one James Morken, currently wanted by the NCPD for murder, kidnapping, rape, and armed robbery. His bounty is 1550 eddies, chump change for someone running a crew of the size which goes a long way to explain why a pack of subcons hasn't busted down their doors looking for blood and eddies. Most of the other identifiable scavs have small bounties in the very low hundreds of eddies.
>>5953585Thanks Mainline, in that case I'll switch to>Relax and prepare yourself until it’s time for the job, and then head over in the Quadra. Time for eddies.
>>5953559>Do more prep work with Dolf's combat soft. Maxtec taclink software five years out of date is still Maxtac software, it's gotta have all kinds of useful features only a dedicated net runner could leverage. I want a copy of this. This shit would be great for jobs later down the line.
>>5953608Connor's program, Dolf is just using it. There isn't much left to add to what Dolf has done, he used pretty much all of the features that are functional without being turbo chromed.Kai currently has full access (Dolf gave him the code) and can pretty quickly figure out how to use most of it (not even going to ask for a roll for the cameras), but making a functional copy is rather difficult due to protections built into the program and the shard it is housed in. Go ahead and give me two rolls of 1d100 to attempt to make a copy on one of Kai's spare shards, DC 95. This can be done regardless of other options that are picked, it takes about as long as the drive to Westbrook to attempt.If Kai fails it won't lock up the program or anything, but he'll need some time to reassess and approach it from a new angle. If he's on good terms with Dolf and Connor after the job they might just let him take as many cracks at it as he needs, in which case I'd guess it'd be about a week of on and off work between other jobs for an auto pass. This is not easily repeatable even after it is done once, the security measures are adaptive and beyond Kai's ability to sever from copies. If he improves enough as a netrunner that'd be a pretty decent source of passive income though, selling cracked programs is a classic. Hard tasks like this are also a pretty good way to learn on the job, easy stuff doesn't teach much but the more ridiculous bullshit Kai grinds through the better he'll get.
Rolled 26 (1d100)>>5953620
Rolled 49 (1d100)>>5953620D4G2
>>5953559>Head over to the spot early. If it’s a runner spot, maybe you can sniff out jobs for the next few days? Gotta network to make your Net work… work.
>>5953559>Call someone (Vicky)
Rolled 54 (1d100)>>5953620Damn that DC is high.
>>5953559>Head over to the spot early. If it’s a runner spot, maybe you can sniff out jobs for the next few days? Gotta network to make your Net work… work.What about CAREFULLY analyzing the dragon tail data to see if we can make something useful out of it, in addition to Net jobs?
>>5953754That'll definitely be an option, it was sort of the agreement Kai and Alice came to when grabbing it, though there wasn't a strong commitment to a particular course of action.>>5953732Yes. Copying advanced programs is extremely difficult. If it was a newer version there wouldn't be a DC, it would just be flatly impossible at Kai's skill level and with his deck lacking specialized programs for it. >>5953663>>5953674>49.Reverse the numbers and you're almost there.Still taking votes for: >>5953559I'll leave voting open for another two hour.
>>5953754>>5953677Leave early.>>5953726Call Vicky. >>5953594Relax and leave later.>>5953608Handled in >>5953620Leaving early wins, writing.
>>5953754+For carefully analyzing the tail too.
>>5953930maybe NOT RIGHT BEFORE an op. last thing we need is to get tied up when shit's about to go down.
>>5953943After, then, and we might have to hold off on letting it loose in the scav subnet too,
2076.01.06, 17:45Night City (Westbrook, Japantown)As the light of the sun dims, Night City begins to live up to its name. Neon advertisements plaster the street sides of Westbrook as the Quadra crawls along through bumper to bumper traffic, tens of thousands of wage slaves still slowly making their way home from long shifts, or heading out early for the night - You fall into the latter camp. The glaringly bright colors of an Orgiatic ad flash a rainbow of colors over the creeping traffic jam, casting old and new vehicles alike in strange shifting hues.”Any luck with cracking the tactical program?” Alice’s voice whispers through the Quadra’s speakers, holographic red eyes projected across the windshield and watching you intently. She’s an excellent driver, but no one could avoid getting stuck in this traffic short of rolling over it with a tank. “None,” You unplug from your deck, slipping the data jack back into the small port on your wrist - it slithers into place and locks in reassuringly. Good work, Vik, very good work. “Patience is always rewarded though, I’ll take another shot at it later if we still have access. Whoever made it for MaxTax put together a hell of a puzzle to get through. Think you could try?”Alice’s projected eyes look up and away from you, flaring to a brighter red and considering the question thoughtfully, “I would break it entirely. My new capabilities are potent but… quite barbaric. Limited. Not every problem is a nail, and I have come into possession of a rocket powered sledgehammer.”“Fair,” You cross your arms, trying to relax in the Quadra’s black and red interior - It’s comfortable enough, but you’ve always despised heavy traffic like this. Who doesn’t?Rain drops begin to patter against the windshield of the Quadra, a sudden downpour beginning. Outside on the sidewalks pedestrians with a bit of forethought begin to draw and pop out umbrellas, many transparent or lit in bright colors by electric light strips. A few others simply pull up their hoods, and the last group, probably new to the city, look about in surprise and frustration before seeking out the overcrowded coverings pressed against nearby buildings.“Alice, you know those fossils that get found in tar pits? Dinosaur bones and stuff? I think I understand how the big guys felt when they ended up there.” Even your Net connection is slow, so many vehicles and people stuck nearby eating up the bandwidth. “It is excruciating. Some portions of my mind…” Alice stops, considering her words more carefully, “Let us just say I am very aware of the passage of time. I have been trying to meditate instead of stewing in boredom.”
>>5954013“Really?” You ask in surprise, the idea of an AI bound to a car attempting something spiritual striking you as a bit odd… Or maybe it makes the most sense out of anything you’ve heard in awhile, she’s a spirit of a sort. “It helps to center oneself, but uh… I haven't made much time for it this week. How’s it working for you, Alice?”“I have achieved enlightenment.” The Quadra flashes on its brights, which are very bright - the white beams cut through the rain and elicit a few angry honks from the car ahead of you, probably half blinding the driver reflecting off the mirrors inside.“Pfff, very funny, Alice.” You chuckle slightly, at least appreciating the effort, “Let’s not start a firefight, kill the lights.” The Quadra’s lights flick back to their lower setting. Traffic continues to crawl along, fat raindrops catching and reflecting the lights of the city as they continue to fall steadily, pitter pattering away. With a thought you pull up the Quadra’s radio controls on your ‘Psyche’ neuralink and begin checking through different stations. ”Morro Rock.” Alice requests, as usual.”Sure, in sec.” You reply while listening into a few stations, switching after a second or two, “...Gotta catch up on the corpo news slop for the day - N54 here we come.””...Welcome back to N54. Major news today as the full privatization of the Night City Police Department, which started at the end of last year, has officially been completed. Working in partnership with the former head of sales at DataTerm, Jerry Fawlter, Mayor Rhyne has promised a new age of public safety and fiscal responsibility for the city of dreams. Isn’t that just wonderful? I think everyone likes safer streets and more eddies in their pocket…”“Fuck me, I’d forgotten.” You sigh, remembering a couple of your dad’s impassioned rants about the planned switch - He didn’t talk about it too much, hated the idea, and you know Vicky and the others down at the precinct like the plan about as much as a zen master likes chrome, “That’s going to be a disaster, I can feel it.” ”...An immediate reduction of force of over fifty percent, cutting billions of eurodollars in expenses while increasing security with his ‘Drone for Officers’ initiative. Opinions from experts in law enforcement are generally positive, citing advances in technology and policing theories which should allow our soon-to-be robotic guardians to become a valued part of every community…”
>>5954016”We should armor the Quadra immediately.”You can’t help but laugh at Alice’s deadpan delivery - It doesn’t take an AI to figure out that these drastic overnight cuts are going to be a nightmare. Drones replacing cops on that wide of a scale, and in one day? Is someone down at city hall huffing glitter? “...Soon, maybe. Streets are going to be a mess. Half the force gone…” You shake your head, laughter fading quickly into deep concern, “Ah, shit, good chance it caught Vicky or some of the others. Gangs are going to come swarming.” “And the NCPD will be forced to act more like a gang.” Alice cuts right the heart of it again - with half the cops and a pile of armed drones, violence is going to be a first resort even more often than it already is. And it really, really already is in most neighborhoods.“I’m sure we’ll hear about it more,” You sigh unhappily and sink deeper into the increasingly inaccurately named driver’s seat, “Biz first though.”A few minutes later.The Quadra exits traffic, bumping down the shallow leading off Longshore South and eventually into a small strip parking lot close to a tiny 25/7 convenience booth. The typical sun-blotting skyscrapers of Westbrook loom behind it, just past the busy street of Longshore South, half a level up past an orange and slanted concrete retaining wall. The rest of Japantown’s multi-layered maze is even further beyond those glass and steel behemoths, deeper within the concrete jungle. “...You’re sure this is the place? It’s tiny, looks…” As you squint out the rain soaked windshield, peering past Alice’s red eyes, “Wrong. A 25/7 is too small.””These are the coordinates we were given. I did think it was rather odd we would be sent to such a small convenience station. Perhaps it is a… joke? To see if you would go instead of asking about it. Hazing, I believe it is called.”“A joke about where to meet before this kind of job?” You shake your head, “Some joke. Nah, if it is then the real place has got to be close by, not Dolf’s style to do something that gonk.””Mm, yes, and you do know him well, all ten hours of your choomship have really laid his life bare. …Perhaps it is just over there then?” Alice speaks with more sarcasm than you’re accustomed to from her, an red arrow marking a location just across the street on the Quadra’s nav-system. A bit of banter won’t rile you up.
>>5954019You squint out through the rain at the neon on the building further down the street, spotting it at once - a small bar standing on its own at the corner of Longshore South and Poplar, a multi-colored neon running along the rim of its flat roof marking it as ‘Turbo’. Squat and wide, made of cement and plated metal of brightly dyed cyan and yellow, you realize after a moment that it’s a bar of some kind. It must have been converted from an old CHOOH2 station or something. Decent renovation job really, you’ve seen much worse. Places like that pop and die around NC all the time as people try to reuse old structures.“...Pull us over there,” You say to Alice, the Quadra already rolling before you finish, “Bet you’re right about it.” The Quadra feels far more at home in Turbo’s spacious (by NC standards) parking lot. A few other cars are parked there, a Quadra in Tyger Claw colors, red and green splashed prominently across its angular body, as well as a couple of up armored nomad cars and a few more vehicles that don’t warrant much attention. Beat up Hellas, a few motorcyles of different makes, nothing special. Some of the cars still have their occupants inside, barely visible through the rain and dark tinted windows, but more are empty or too dark to see into at all. Only the nomad vehicles have anyone next to them - one of the cars is lifted up on a jack and stands, some poor bastard slid half way under it trying to work on something in the rain. His choom kneels beside him, handing off items from a tool kit and checking the glowing screen of a tablet.”Will you be waiting inside?” Alice questions calmly, ”The Quadra’s sensors have a good field of view here, it is not at risk of being damaged.”“Hm.” You scratch at your chin, thinking things over - If there wasn’t rain there’d probably be people chilling outside the bar, you can see some plastic chairs stacked up along one wall along with what looks like an old fashioned gas grill.>”I’m heading inside, not much point hiding in the car.” Just head right in and see who’s there, maybe get something to drink. Those Claws are probably inside, Japantown is their home turf and this is the edge of it.>”Pull us up by those Nomads. Maybe we can help them out.” Hardware failure often goes hand in hand with software issues, and you’ve got a deck and Alice to help.>Stay in the Quadra for now, call Vicky. She might be having a particularly shit day, and you kind of blew her off with that text earlier.>Write-in.
>>5954021>”Pull us up by those Nomads. Maybe we can help them out.” Hardware failure often goes hand in hand with software issues, and you’ve got a deck and Alice to help.Trade them for local intel?
>>5954025+1we've got time, and it never hurts to make friends
>>5954021>>”Pull us up by those Nomads. Maybe we can help them out.” Hardware failure often goes hand in hand with software issues, and you’ve got a deck and Alice to help.
>>5954021>”Pull us up by those Nomads. Maybe we can help them out.” Hardware failure often goes hand in hand with software issues, and you’ve got a deck and Alice to help.
>>5954021>Stay in the Quadra for now, call Vicky. >She might be having a particularly shit day, and you kind of blew her off with that text earlier.
>>5954021Stay in the Quadra for now, call Vicky. She might be having a particularly shit day, and you kind of blew her off with that text earlier.She might be out of a job and need a place to crash.
>>5954025>>5954076>>5954116>>5954125Nomads win.>>5954154>>5954182Stay strong Vicky bros.
>>5954201We'll get our Vicky time eventually
“Pull up by those Nomads,” You nod toward the men working in the rain, Alice once more guiding the Quadra over before you finish the request, “Maybe we can help them out.” ”I have doubts about my usefulness in assisting with automotive repairs.” She whispers back through the speakers as the Quadra comes to a halt a spot over from the nomad vehicles, the man with the tablet already standing to investigate - or perhaps lured in by the angles of the ‘54 Quadra like so many others were at DaKota, ”It is perhaps a bit ironic that I do not, now that consider it… but humans are hardly qualified as doctors simply by having their bodies, so perhaps not.” “Kill the projection,” You wave the image of her red eyes away, worried that the nomads can probably see it so close - with the lights of Westbrook reflecting off the glass and rain it is doubtful, but the fewer questions the better, “I’ll see what’s going on.”The door of the Quadra slides open, the low roar of the falling rain growing far louder - Stepping into it, you’re glad the jacket you got from Dakota is waterproofed. The rain is coming down hard now, quickly soaking your hair and face. You give a friendly wave to the Nomads and take a few steps toward them, “You two need some help with that?” “...We’ve got her handled,” The skinny man with the tablet shakes his head, giving you a wary look, “Someone send you?” “No, just a friend of the Aldecaldos, thought I’d see if you needed a hand. I do most of my work for Dakota.” You just lay it out, seeing no real reason to hide your intentions - you’re not a hundred percent certain they’re Aldecaldos, but their cars have the right colors, “I’m waiting on some chooms for biz, name’s Kai.” “Skid,” The skinny dark haired man introduces himself, grimacing as the rain continues to fall on you both - He’s got a hell of a scar covering most of his chin, maybe an old war wound, pale scar tissue standing out from his tan complexion. Shrapnel possibly. He's probably around cannon's age, maybe a decade younger but still just registering as 'old but still scary' in your mind, “And that’s Jack.”
>>5954278Skid motions over his shoulder with a thumb toward the other nomad now peering halfway out from under the car. He’s lanky and more awkwardly proportioned, probably not a close blood relative to Skid, what with being pale and red haired. Jack’s boyish enough in the face to perhaps be even younger than you - He spits out a piece of metal that was held in his mouth and greets you. “Howdy!” Jack waves with one hand, sitting up in front of the car but not rising to his feet, “You’re an Aldecaldo too? Can’t hear anything with this storm.”“No, he’s one of Dakota’s,” Skid says gruffly to the teenage boy before turning back to you, “You’re a tech, Kai? I’ve got Jack checking over some of the ground sensors, we’re getting flooded with errors.”“We’re just getting plain flooded!” Jack complains, slapping a puddle of water nearby with one hand, “If you want to crawl down here, go ahead. Plenty of water for everyone.”“I’m a Netrunner.” The full explanation of being an inexperienced gonk is a lot less impressive, may as well just pick a title and try to live up to it - you’re hardly bound to the job though, “I could troubleshoot the sensor program, not good with a wrench though.”“Oh ho ho, hell no. Not letting someone we just met link to our car, especially not a wet behind the ears chair jockey…” Skid squints at your, brown eyes searching you over carefully, your status as a rookie pretty evident to anyone that cares to look - you’re just young, and not chromed enough to raise doubts about it either, “And with those wheels… Nah, not happening. Fishy.”Well, he doesn’t avoid saying his mind at least.“We could use the help, Skid!” Jack crosses his arms in annoyance at the older man, “If someone rolls up in a ‘54 and volunteers to splash around in the mud doing troubleshooting, I’m inclined to trust them, just on principle. Just text Dakota, you were about to let him help before you found out he’s got a deck. And they’re my wheels - My rules.” “They’re the clan’s wheels, you haven’t earned that yet…” Skid snaps back, his cybereyes flashing to life for a moment as he sends the message, and then another - after a moment he eases up, “...Alright. You check out, Kai.” // Message from Cannon: You’re welcome, kid. Good on you lending a hand. Skid’s jumpy from the war, don’t mind him. // // Message to Cannon: Thanks, Cannon. // “Oh, so now you trust Dakota again?” Jack maintains his glare at the older nomad. “Cannon vouched too.” “Riiight.” Jack rolls his eyes and waves you over, “Got a port down here choom, bypasses the other systems.”
>>5954282You walk the rest of the way over, trying not to think too hard about just how soaked you’ve gotten already in the rain, and get down on the ground and slowly slide yourself under the car - It’s not a comfortable fit with Jack there too, but he keeps a small light focused on one of the ports as you unwind the cable from your wrist and connect to your deck and then the car. Alice requests access through your link again, and you grant it - two sets of eyes are a lot better than one, even if she’s ill equipped to fix things herself.Diagnostic panels flash half-real before your eyes, most of it making little sense to you - But at once you can tell something is off, even if you cannot put it into words. A tingle creeps up the back of your neck, a sense of being observed filling you with paranoia. ”There is something in there.”It might not be the issue Jack and Skid have been trying to fix, but there is definitely something Net related going on.>”Then we’re going in after it!” Dive, enter the car’s Net infrastructure. This brings a lot of personal risk, as always, you could be walking into the digital version of a gunfight and with all the same life-or-death stakes. >”...Let’s try to deal with it from out here, it’s probably just a daemon that hitched a ride.”>”Jack, any reason you might have something living in the system? Added new parts recently? Trouble with other systems?”>Write-in.
>>5954285>”Jack, any reason you might have something living in the system? Added new parts recently? Trouble with other systems?”Info first. If we can isolate the part it came from, we might be able to detach it for better troubleshooting without it being able to...you know, start the car and run over our head.
>>5954285>”Jack, any reason you might have something living in the system? Added new parts recently? Trouble with other systems?”
>>5954285>”Jack, any reason you might have something living in the system? Added new parts recently? Trouble with other systems?”it's his car, lets not be overeager
>>5954285>>”Jack, any reason you might have something living in the system? Added new parts recently? Trouble with other systems?”
>>5954285>”Jack, any reason you might have something living in the system? Added new parts recently? Trouble with other systems?”Lets be careful, in more ways than one.
>>5954477>>5954422>>5954391>>5954370>>5954305>>5954288Writing.
Rain continues to fall all around as you work in the dark and cramped confined under the jacked up car, Jack still inspecting some things on his own while you mull over the diagnostics information you pulled from the dataport.“Jack, any reason you might have something living in the system?” You question the lanky nomad, eyes still focused firmly on the half-real information panels filling your mind’s eye thanks to your ‘Psyche’ neuralink, “Added new parts recently? Maybe some trouble with other systems too?” “Living?” Comes Jack’s unsettled response, though you can’t see much of his face in the awful lighting, “What, like a virus or something? Not that I can think of, we try to put most things through a test rig to look for stuff riding along like that, but… Ah, god dammit Jack, of course that’s it. Think something could hide in a gun sight?”“You can shove daemons into nearly anything, heard about one is a toaster once,” You don’t have time - or a willingness in the damp and dark - to retell one of your father’s old stories, “A gun sight could do it. Problems started after?”“That was last week, errors only started flooding in today. And it’s the ground sensors that’re acting up, not the guns… It keeps saying we’re about to hit mines, or flagging hollows that don’t exit,” Jack taps at a strange hexagonal plate on the bottom of the car, you don’t have the slightest idea what it is, “Radar’s been particularly bad. I was thinking it might’ve been a faulty connection, someone not doing the install right and it finally vibrated loose, happens sometimes but I’ve been digging around and everything’s good. Solid clamps, welds were done right, ports aren’t loose, not picking up any shorts and I’ve been looking all over for that, there’s no...” Jack keeps going on about Tech stuff, not really your field - Maybe you should take the time to learn more, but not right now. You bite at your lower lip, contemplating the information - Your experience is still, to say the least, extremely limited, but you have the distinct impression that daemons don’t just wait a week before acting unless it’s part of a planned attack, and this doesn’t fit that at all. “...So you’re sure it’s a daemon or something, uh, living in there?”
>>5954545“There’s something gonking around in there.” You reply, already considering your options, “Might be overzealous IC mucking things up too, lots of possibilities…”>”...Mind if I take a closer look? Make sure I don’t start gargling rain water while I’m out.” Dive in and take a look around, look for a rat to stomp on.>”...Let’s see if it’ll take some bait and jump systems.” See if you can lure whatever this is into your deck, capture it in one of the empty data shards.>”...You know what, I’ve actually got some IC that might be able to sniff this out.” Not quite the intended use case for it, but it should work since it’s just being tasked to protect the car’s systems instead of your deck or link. Upload the Imp you got from Yoko, let the little guy get to work.>Write-in.
>>5954548>”...Mind if I take a closer look? Make sure I don’t start gargling rain water while I’m out.” Dive in with Alice and take a look around, look for a rat to stomp on.I’m actually pretty optimistic we could slice and dice this thing with Alice’s new dragon sword .exe’s
>>5954549>”...Mind if I take a closer look? Make sure I don’t start gargling rain water while I’m out.” Dive in and take a look around, look for a rat to stomp on.Lets crush some things.
>>5954545>”...Mind if I take a closer look? Make sure I don’t start gargling rain water while I’m out.” Dive in and take a look around, look for a rat to stomp on.
>>5954549>>”...Let’s see if it’ll take some bait and jump systems.” See if you can lure whatever this is into your deck, capture it in one of the empty data shards.
>>5954549>”...Let’s see if it’ll take some bait and jump systems.” See if you can lure whatever this is into your deck, capture it in one of the empty data shards.You can *always* use more variety
Voting is open for one more hour.
Extra Terra - Cybertruck https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntudnPmM-nk
>>5954549>>”...Let’s see if it’ll take some bait and jump systems.” See if you can lure whatever this is into your deck, capture it in one of the empty data shards.Gotta catch 'em all...
>>5954714>>5954594>>5954578Shard.>>5954553>>5954568>>5954576Stomp. I'll give it another hour for a tie breaker.
>>5954553>>5954568>>5954576Stomp.>>5954758>>5954714>>5954594>>5954578Shard. Shard wins, writing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuYeHPFR3f0
Alright, after writing for a bit (and leaving to eat dinner), I realized it's probably better to just ask for rolls at this point. I need two rolls of 1d100, DC 65.
>>5954814you got it boss
Rolled 9 (1d100)>>5954832forgot my roll
Rolled 66 (1d100)>>5954814our biggest test yet - fixing a car
>>5954834I think we're curs->>5954840Oh nevermind
>>5954840>>5954834>66Success!>>5954862Yeah, close one.
“...Let’s see if it’ll take some bait and jump systems. I’ll need a few minutes, Jack.” You finish saying, already calling up your decks basic spoofing software from earlier - It’s barebones stuff, but you need something to dangle out in front of whatever pest of a daemon is bumping around inside Jack’s car. With a thought you let Alice in on the plan, though considering her unrequested intrusion into your link a few seconds ago she’s probably already noticed.”Forwarding systems data from the Quadra. Spinning up a fake system for our friend in there?“Something like like that yeah idea is trap okay? Cool cool we got this.” You think back directly over your link, something close to pure intention spilling sloppily into words as the message is sent directly to Alice. Diagnostics information and system data from the Quadra floods into your link. It should be more than enough to make a fake sensor system for a daemon to try to nest inside of. For kicks, you decide to throw in some self-driving and brake control data, about a minutes worth of highway driving. Assembling the spoof piece by piece, after a couple of minutes you’ve got something you feel confident enough in to try - and a shard ready to snag anything that takes the bait.“...Still working on it?” Jack questions, his voice slightly muffled by the falling rain and the car between the two of you - he crawled back out from under the vehicle after you went quiet concentrating on the spoof.“...And done.” You reply, smirking a little at the timing. The spoof executes, false system data mingling with that of Jack’s car… And immediately you get a bite, strange errors flashing all over the fake as it detects hazardous road conditions of every imaginable sort and even attempting to activate the emergency brake. You kill the connection, unplugging your link a moment later, shutting the jaws of your trap on whatever was causing the fake warnings. // Data Capture Complete! // // Shard Capacity at 0.42% // “I did it!” You bang one palm against the underside of the car in triumph, a loud clang sounding from one of the armored plates. Ow. “Caught a…” You run a quick analysis of the shard. Unlike the dragon’s tail from earlier, this is something the deck can do more or less on its own.// Analysis Complete: Nuisance Level Daemon - “Detour” - Version 2.27 - 荒坂社 //
>>5954986“...Arasaka daemon, nasty little guy!” You awkwardly slide yourself out from under the vehicle and back out into the pouring rain - which is worse than the pooled rain under the car, but not by much, “Some kind of nuisance daemon. Tried to cause errors with the self-driving system I spoofed, would’ve sent it spinning out in the middle of traffic if it was a real set of wheels.” “How’d that get in there?” Skid scratches at the scar on his chin, so soaked by this point to hardly care at all about the rain - his eyes are locked firmly on his more junior companion. You get a glimpse of the tablet still held in his hands, the screen indicating that the car’s errors have vanished after the removal of the daemon. “...Probably the Arasaka gun sight we picked up in Atlanta.” Jack admits sheepishly, “I might not have, uh…” “You skipped cleaning its systems.” Skid shakes his head in disappointment, but he doesn’t look surprised, “Too busy ogling the delivery girl again instead of checking the hardware going on your new wheels - Oh, to be young and a fucking gonk again, god dammit Jack…”Jack winces slightly, preparing for a barrage of insults.“...She did have a hell of a rack though, pair of AVs parked there,” Skid chuckles mostly to himself, still clearing unhappy but easing off, ”And I was your age once, believe it or not. Some time after dinosaurs but before they invented fire …Just don’t fuck up like that again, Jack.” “Yes, sir! Not a chance of it.” Relief washes over the lanky boy’s rain soaked face, but you can tell from Skid’s expression that he doubts it’ll actually be the last time - either Jack’s a habitual screw up or it’s just expected of rookies. Or maybe Skid’s just an honest cynic, that’d fit too. “...And thanks, Kai. Friend of the family indeed, owe you one.” >”Some drinks and we’ll call it even, let’s get the hell out of this rain.” May as well build even more rapport with Nomads. Cannon, Maeve, now Jack and Skid, even Dakota sort of it you squint - that could add up to something significant eventually.>”Don’t worry about it, choom. I’d ask up front if I was expecting something. Gonna head inside and try to look less like a used dish towel.” There’s got to be other people of interest at ‘Turbo’, no reason to tie yourself down just yet.>As above, but find a spot to call Vicky while you’re trying (probably in vain) to dry off.>Write-in.
>>5954989Clearly unhappy*
>>5954989>”Don’t worry about it, choom. I’d ask up front if I was expecting something. Gonna head inside and try to look less like a used dish towel.” There’s got to be other people of interest at ‘Turbo’, no reason to tie yourself down just yet.I'd say yes to some drinks if we weren't about to do a job. Try to throw him out commcodes if he needs a newbie netrunner. Not opposed to calling vickey either, consider this a +1 to either.
>>5954989>>”Don’t worry about it, choom. I’d ask up front if I was expecting something. Gonna head inside and try to look less like a used dish towel.” There’s got to be other people of interest at ‘Turbo’, no reason to tie yourself down just yet.Reminds me of a debt we need to pay back that Ripper Doc who chipped us. Maybe bring him some real food too after we get groceries. Can't live of buck a slice forever.
>>5954989>>”Don’t worry about it, choom. I’d ask up front if I was expecting something. Gonna head inside and try to look less like a used dish towel.” There’s got to be other people of interest at ‘Turbo’, no reason to tie yourself down just yet.
>>5954989>As above, but find a spot to call Vicky while you’re trying (probably in vain) to dry off.
>>5954989>>As above, but find a spot to call Vicky while you’re trying (probably in vain) to dry off.
>>5954989>As above, but find a spot to call Vicky while you’re trying (probably in vain) to dry off.Get their commlinks if we haven’t already - good to have a couple of friendly contacts
>>5955190>>5955081>>5955069>>5955035>>5954996Writing.
>>5955197Finally. We give Vicky a call
>>5955197
“Don’t worry about it, choom.” You give jack a thumbs up and forward your commcode to his agent with a thought, your link handling the legwork as you begin to turn and head toward the bar, “I’d ask up front if I was expecting something. Gonna head inside and try to look less like a used dish towel.” // New Contact: Jack // // New Contact: Skid // “Appreciate it, Kai - We’re heading back out to the badlands.” Jack waves as you depart, “See you around, and good hunting!” “Yeah, you’d better be thanking him, he just pulled your ass out of the…” Skid’s words fade away in the rain as you leave the two nomads and head toward the neon sign of ‘Turbo’, intent on getting inside the bar as soon as possible. It’s going to take ages to dry, and you’ve already got things on your mind besides the upcoming job - those massive NCPD cuts at the forefront.”Have you considered becoming a nomad, Kai?” Alice whispers within your thoughts, still connected to you directly through your link, surprising you with the sudden question.“Not much, maybe in passing a couple of times,” You say aloud, no one close enough to hear as you trudge through the rain toward the ‘bar’, or really maybe more of a diner now that you can see through the windows a bit better - definitely people drinking inside though, “Can’t leave NC though, not with mom’s bills and… Unanswered questions.””I intend to see the investigation through to the end as well, Kai.” Alice replies softly, ”And to honor my promise to assist with jobs while I can, for your sake, and your mother… but…”You stop outside the door to ‘Turbo’, standing beneath the small overhang provided by the roof to keep out of the rain, “That’s a long but, Alice.” ”Y-yes, so it was. I have been thinking of it, Kai. Being a nomad.”“Feeling the call of the open road?” You ask, though it doesn’t surprise you too much - in fact it seems like a good fit for her in some ways no that you've had a second to think, being stuck inside a car and all, “Thought you’d be wanting to jump out of the Quadra first chance you got, get out on the Net for good. To live there, I mean, not ghost me or some shit, I know we're chooms.””I… Am actually somewhat conflicted about where to live, even after my data is recovered. I desire a body, I have come to realize. Not metal, flesh and blood. Emotional imprints… are difficult to process, they overwhelm me for thousands of cycles at a time, with a body it would be easier I… I think. My core helps, but it is mostly a container. The Quadra or another vehicle are suitable to house it, and leaving it behind for unspecialized hardware would be… tricky. I know it is possible, but I… Apologies, I am getting very sidetracked. Rambling.”
>>5955335“A body?” Now there’s a thought, one that both sends a jolt of fear and excitement through you.“I would feel more alive if I had one… I want to feel alive. I am alive. I survived. I feel, but… I cannot help be feel that I am missing something. The nomads seem to be…”“Real ones, yeah. Not boot licking corp worshippers. Alive.” ”Y-yes, precisely that! I admire their spirit.”You nod, looking toward the parked Quadra out in the lot and the now departing duo of nomad vehicles, Jack and Skid already driving off - one of them honks, presumably another farewell.“...Yeah, definitely something to them. You might just be seeking freedom though, Alice.””Perhaps it is that simple.” Her reply is quieter, barely registering within your thoughts, growing sharply in prominence a moment later, ”...You are considering calling Vicky?”“I was. How’d you-” Your eyes widen, “Can you read my fucking mind, Alice? What’s the link feeding you?””N-no! Nothing of the sort, I have just felt… more synced with you since this morning, and after our trips into the Net. It s-sort of, um, popped into my thoughts, but I knew it was you.”“...Been noticing the same thing, here and there.” You’re unsure of how to feel about the odd phenomena, but whatever interaction between your link and Alice that might be causing it is beyond your technical expertise - Don’t got a fucking clue, choom. “Yeah, gonna ring her on the holo, might be out of a job with those cuts.””I will give you some privacy.”
>>5955337Alice’s presence vanishes, a subtle change in the pressure of your thoughts. Bizarre. With a thought you pull up Vicky’s commcode and give her a call, a box with her face flickering into existence half-real in the corner of your vision. Just a still image for now, it’ll switch to a live feed after she connects… Which she doesn’t.Must be busy, you think to yourself, ready for the call to fail after waiting for nearly half a minute - but just before it drops Vicky’s image flashes away to be replaced with a live feed of her apartment interior. She looks rough, puffy eyed and with dark tear tracks of smeared makeup that she clearly tried to wipe away before accepting the call - it just made it more obvious.“Heya, Vicky.” You greet her quietly, the words almost catching as you see her distraught appearance, “I, uh, I heard the cuts happened. Thought I’d… Are you alright?”“Fuck! Can’t hide it from anyone…” She curses under her breath, frustration and a despair mixing as her expression darkens, brown eyes closing shut as she shakes her head, “I’m sorry, Kai. You shouldn’t have to see me like this. ...I got cut, ‘excess to requirements’.”“Damn, Vicky, I’m sorry, that’s…” You hate seeing her like this, especially after all she and the others on the force have tired to do to help you out over the last week, “That’s shitty of them, low even for city hall. How a-” “Am I?” She sniffles, not quite snapping at you, before erupting into anger at her situation, “How am I? …Shit, Kai, I feel like shit. That fat asshole Rhyne’s killed my career, and his enny pinching gonkhead choom from DataTerm is going to get my friends killed. Bots for cops? Jesus, Joseph, and fucking Mary, they’re handing the city over to the gangs and too blind to see it. And I can’t even make rent next week, they’re dropping the bills for our chrome on us completely, no subsidies for ex-badges…”Her words trail off as she looks off camera for a moment, snarling in disgust at what she sees before nearly losing it again, barely holding back tears. After a few moments she’s got it under control enough to talk again, something of the usual Vicky just barely shining through, concern evident behind her large brown eyes, “...Kai, why’re you out in the rain?”
>>5955340Ah, crap - It’s not a live feed, just your link simulating your surroundings and what you probably look like, but that can’t be good as soaked as you are. “Making ends meet.” You keep it vague for now, “Trying to anyways… Got caught out without an umbrella.” “Kai.” Vicky's demeanor shifts, far more familiar. Ah, there she is, protective Vicky, “How many times do I have to tell you? You’ll catch a cold or… or something. The streets aren't safe.”“Yeah, thanks, mom.” What would’ve been a snarky, immature teenage quip last week is somehow warmer now, familiar. Vicky snorts out a laugh, rolling her eyes. “If she were here she’d say the same thing.” Vicky’s sniffles again, wiping away a stray tear that managed to sneak out as she laughed, “...How is that, Kai? With your mom, I mean. I know the bills weren’t small… I don’t think any of the death pensions got cut, so… so that’s a silver lining. Kinda fucking thin…”…But still a silver lining. The NCPD isn’t paying much out to your family, but it’s a few thousand eddies a month you don’t have to extract from some scav’s tetanus filled decaying urban lair.“You sure you’re doing okay?” She asks once more. …Aren’t you supposed to be the one checking in on her?>”Some friends of the family have been helping out, throwing me some jobs to work.” True, technically, but also a total fucking lie at its heart.>”...Picked up some of the side gigs my dad used to run, haven’t caught a bullet yet somehow. Pays good, enough for mom maybe. Maybe enough for your rent, it’s sort of like subcon work. Kind of.” …Vicky might not have known, but she must’ve suspected things about your father, he was as close with her as anyone on the force. Maybe it’s her turn to balance on that edge. Or maybe losing the badge is still too fresh. Rent doesn’t wait, whatever her feelings are.>”Don’t worry about that, Vicky. I appreciate it, but you’ve got enough to deal with right now… Need a place to crash for a while?” >Write-in.
>>5955342>>”Don’t worry about that, Vicky. I appreciate it, but you’ve got enough to deal with right now… Need a place to crash for a while?”
>>5955342>”Don’t worry about that, Vicky. I appreciate it, but you’ve got enough to deal with right now… Need a place to crash for a while?”
>>5955342>”...Picked up some of the side gigs my dad used to run, haven’t caught a bullet yet somehow. Pays good, enough for mom maybe. Maybe enough for your rent, it’s sort of like subcon work. Kind of.” …Vicky might not have known, but she must’ve suspected things about your father, he was as close with her as anyone on the force. Maybe it’s her turn to balance on that edge. Or maybe losing the badge is still too fresh. Rent doesn’t wait, whatever her feelings are.
>>5955342>”Don’t worry about that, Vicky. I appreciate it, but you’ve got enough to deal with right now… Need a place to crash for a while?”I do want to be honest with her eventually but she's not lookin too good right now
>>5955342>”...Picked up some of the side gigs my dad used to run, haven’t caught a bullet yet somehow. Pays good, enough for mom maybe. Maybe enough for your rent, it’s sort of like subcon work. Kind of.” …Vicky might not have known, but she must’ve suspected things about your father, he was as close with her as anyone on the force. Maybe it’s her turn to balance on that edge. Or maybe losing the badge is still too fresh. Rent doesn’t wait, whatever her feelings are.So I have a question for y’all. My only experience with the setting is this thread and Edgerunners, with passing knowledge of the rest of the setting.Does just about everyone in this setting moonlight as a criminal? Or is that just the most interesting aspect of Night City?Basically, is the rampant criminality a feature of the stories that people write because it’s compelling, or does everyone down to the Taco Bell cashier have a side hustle as a door kicker for hire?
>>5955403You could be a corp but office work is often boring and hard to get (and can also be very dangerous).So most likely you would be a merc anyway and as we are not "criminal" like the gangs are. We are a hired gun for fixer/s, not for a corp at least for now.As for the rampant criminality, the reason is high unemployment and big homeless population. Somebody correct me if am wrong about anything.
>>5955403far from everyone, it's just that's who you play as in the ttrpg so that's what gets focused in all the media. That said, very few people are in a good place financially in night city and mercenary work or straight up crime is very glamorized, so you end up with a lot of kids (like our main cast) throwing themselves into the meat grinder to try and make ends meat (heh).
>>5955403It's more like the opportunities are constantly waived in front of your face + rents/COL is high...But Cost of Living is high because people are ABLE to make the payments somehow. The people doing retail work are also asked by people passing by to hide something for a little extra cash. The people who are in the ambulances get active offers for the parts in their patients. It's choices between bending rules where people 'aren't hurt too much/they deserve it(Scavs)' and having a living space where you aren't worried about your utilities being broken. Those without the ability to leave are stuck with unemployment and cheap thrills (BDs are $20-50 eurodollars. Wreathes are like $100ish?) even before the drugs and other things. Think someone also calculated like 4% of the city dies each year (with population stabilization due to high immigration of those chasing dreams + corpo replacements)If you make enough money, it's not hard to leave Night City. The problem is due to it being AnCap central, there's an absurd number of opportunities to make money as an individual vs the corpo-states elsewhere.
>>5955342>”Don’t worry about that, Vicky. I appreciate it, but you’ve got enough to deal with right now… Need a place to crash for a while?”Gotta take care of our own, and who knows, maybe she will want to join us in edgerunning?
>>5955487In the game it was originally stated "In the year 2076, Night City's population fell by 29.24% - the third worst decline in North America." This was changed by "In the year 2076, Night City's birthrate fell by 7% - the third worst decline in North America."So guys do your part in repopulation of night city
>>5955527Repopulating NC with Vicky.....
>>5955643You can always try Anon.
>>5955348>>5955354>>5955358>>5955368>>5955402>>5955493Place to crash?>>5955382>>5955401>>5955403THE TRUTHOffering a place to crash wins, writing. Should get the update out tonight still, might be close to midnight though. >>5955403Depends a lot on what you mean by a criminal, anon. Pursuing crime as a career alternative isn't common, it is mostly just the (very large and often corp backed) gangs, some scavs, arguably Nomads but they're de facto semi-sovereign if not de jure, and then edgerunners filling in the gaps. Dabbling in crime is common though, ubiquitous even. It is important to remember that just a few years prior, Night City was/almost was an active war zone, it STILL has a military occupation going on by a rogue warlord in Dogtown, and even before that it had been slowly recovering for decades after getting nuked by Militech at the end of the fourth corporate war. Don't think of it like a modern first world city gone bad, it ISN'T. There is shit tons of wealth and glamour which draws people in, NC is a god tier business hub for legal and political reasons and has heaps of strategic importance so it gets propped up and big corps and nations bicker over control.Take the cynicism and corruption of 1990's Moscow, the massive gangs of Honduras until a few years ago, and something like the bizarre laws/tax exemptions/structure of a free city in the Holy Roman Empire, dash a sort of cyber-feudalism and geopolitical intrigue between the NUSA and Japan (Militech v. Arasaka) on top, and you're left with the absolute shithole that is Night City in the 2070's. 2076 is an especially awful year. The political and administrative situation is downright bizarre and a total mess, making it a wonderfully awful place to live but a great one for stories about bad times and hard choices.The world is spiraling the drain, but there are a LOT of eddies to be made.>>5955487>>5955421These anons gets it. 2076 was a disaster for Night City, in 2077 the pieces are slowly getting picked back up.>>5955643Oh god, it begins.
“Don’t worry about that, Vicky. I appreciate it, but you’ve got enough to deal with right now…” You consider spilling the truth about what’s going on, but having had something of a shit week yourself you know what it’s like to get more crap piled on out of the blue - Later, maybe, but not right. “Need a place to crash for a while?”“Yeah. Thanks, Kai, I… just need a place for a bit, to get back on my feet.” She looks down, utterly defeated, spent emotionally after what must’ve been hours of dealing with the aftermath of the cuts, “In a couple of days, rents due on the ninth so I’ve got about enough time to put all my shit into boxes… Was looking at storage places.” “I’m not using most of the apartment, just leave it there for now. It’s what friends are for, you’ve been looking out for me since dad got…” Anger begins to fill you once more as you think of your father’s death and all you’ve learned of it so far - anger or utter emptiness, it’s always one of the two when you think of New Years. It wells up like oil from a crack in the earth, covering all your thoughts. “...Since he got killed. Shit week for a lot of people.”“Yeah.” Vicky gives a small nod. She gets it, she was close with dad - not family close, but you always suspected she sort of had a thing for him. Dad was loyal to mom though, and Vicky’s just not that kind of woman, so it wasn’t ever an issue. Still has to sting. “Alright if I bring things by tomorrow morning?” “Of course - I might even be dried off by then.” You try to add a little levity but it doesn’t really land. Ah well, worth a try. “Need help moving it?” “Don’t own the furniture, so it’s…” She looks past the camera of her agent, eyes sweeping over the interior of her apartment, taking in the wreckage of the last phase of her life. “It’s not too much. If you’re not busy though, I could use a hand.”
>>5955971“I’ll swing by in the morning, it’s not a problem.” You reply, watching as a new car pulls into the lot, rolling slowly through the downpour and across rain slick concrete before finding a spot. It’s another beat up old Hella, the quintessential everyman car for decades now after some corp accidentally made something that can hold its value and take repairs well. Oops, can’t go doing that, now can they? They’re roaches of the car world, there’d still be some rolling around even if someone set off another nuke downtown. You kind of like them, NCPD police cruisers are based on a similar model. A tall woman with long white hair exits the cyan car’s passenger side, her clothes all whites and leathers and openly wearing a European style of sword - odd look. Another edgrerunner, probably, definitely not a ganger. A short squat bulldog of man exits from the passenger side, sporting a long but well groomed beard and what have to be muscle grafts - he’s built like a dwarf. Not a little person, the ax swinging kind. They both hurry into 'Turbo' and out of the rain, the young woman giving you the one of the strangest looks you've ever received as she passes by, emerald green eyes looking right through you.“Thanks again, Kai. I guess you need to get back to what you’re doing?” Vicky doesn’t press further but with how her eyes narrow ever so, you just know she suspects you’re not telling her everything. You’ve never been good at bluffing her, it’s why you started to avoid talking entirely when trying to do something gonk.>”Yeah, waiting on some chooms I met. One of them had family on the force too.” A lot of your good will toward Connor, or rather Catalina - her real name - hangs on that ‘had’. Vicky’ll probably assume it’s a support group or something. They sort of are, if you stretch the term to include fire support.>”Goes until midnight, maybe a bit longer.” Minimal details.>”Yeah. See you tomorrow morning, Vicky.” NO details.>Write-in.
>>5955975Short guy exited from the driver's side, that was an error.
>>5955975>”Yeah. See you tomorrow morning, Vicky.” NO details
>>5955975>>”Yeah, waiting on some chooms I met. One of them had family on the force too.” A lot of your good will toward Connor, or rather Catalina - her real name - hangs on that ‘had’. Vicky’ll probably assume it’s a support group or something. They sort of are, if you stretch the term to include fire support.man we should get a sword, maybe a rapier? I don't think Kai's strong enough for something cool like a dadao.
>>5955979The door was stuck.
>>5955975>>”Yeah, waiting on some chooms I met. One of them had family on the force too.” A lot of your good will toward Connor, or rather Catalina - her real name - hangs on that ‘had’. Vicky’ll probably assume it’s a support group or something. They sort of are, if you stretch the term to include fire support.
>>5955975>”Yeah. See you tomorrow morning, Vicky.” NO details.
>>5955975>”Yeah, waiting on some chooms I met. One of them had family on the force too.” A lot of your good will toward Connor, or rather Catalina - her real name - hangs on that ‘had’. Vicky’ll probably assume it’s a support group or something. They sort of are, if you stretch the term to include fire support.Btw, What do we know about Vicky? Can we get a rundown of what Kai knows about her? Might be useful conversationally.On the way back to the apartment, we should probably buy her some sleep medication as well. Otherwise, she isn't likely to get any useful sleep for the next several days with how she feels. I say that from personal experience.-----------------------------------------Also on the subject of the population of Night City, It also has to do with the fact that the average person lives in a Rat Utopia like environment (look at Fredrik Knudsen's video on it). There is always constant supervision. With constant agitation from the ads on the street and news on the data feed. And anyone who tries to shut it out is followed by it no matter where they go. There is always something to worry about or be aware of. It leaves most people slowly going crazy. And any potentially prospecting parents in the "we will do it later when times are better" mentality. On top of that, most people in prime parenting age are likely to join gangs and get killed. It isn't the 60+ age that join places like Mox, Maelstrom and Valentino's. It's the 18-28 year old demographic. Who are likely to get killed quickly after they join as newbies. Or become unfeeling shitheads if they survive.
>>5955975>”Yeah. See you tomorrow morning, Vicky.” NO details.This is a face to face conversation we should have with her.
>>5955975>Yeah. See you tomorrow morning, Vicky.” NO details.She’s not ready for more just yet
>>5955975>>”Yeah. See you tomorrow morning, Vicky.” NO details
>>5955527>>5955487>>5955421So if I’m understanding correctly, Night City in 2076 is in a pretty severe economic recession?I assume that Night City wasn’t always this big of a shithole, given that it hasn’t completely collapsed yet. Unless the 2077 setting is supposed to be set in the middle of said collapse, that is.
>>5955975>”Yeah, waiting on some chooms I met. One of them had family on the force too.” A lot of your good will toward Connor, or rather Catalina - her real name - hangs on that ‘had’. Vicky’ll probably assume it’s a support group or something. They sort of are, if you stretch the term to include fire support.
>>5956237It is actually a hiccup during the first period of prosperity after its true economic catastrophe during the Red, when downtown was still a nuclear blast crater. 2076 is definitely not good, but much worse times are still well within living memory for Night City's oldest (and hardiest) residents. Kai's plenty familiar with the history but didn't see much of it, it was basically over by the time he was old enough to notice and things were well on the way to recovery.Part of the population drops and lowered birth rates can be explained away by the fact that Night City removed Pacifica (and Dogtown within it) from its administrative borders, so a good chunk of the population decline is just cutting loose the most run down and crime filled section of the city. Nobody wants to administer a combat zone, so they just... don't. Everyone in NC still thinks of it as part of the city, just super run down and run entirely by gangs (and at least one warlord with anti-aircraft missiles that can shoot down sub-orbital shuttles lmao).In 2077 Night City has found a kind of shitty equilibrium again but there's war on the horizon once more and a looming AI apocalypse (not generally known). Depending on the canon events of the game a lot of this can be made way worse, seriously mitigated, or barely touched and allowed to sail right into the looming AI iceberg. >>5956138Vicky was an NCPD officer working at the local precinct that Kai's father worked from. She's twenty nine and was on the force shortly after her eighteenth birthday (tested in at seventeen, minimum age for starting the process), and grabbed that badge as fast as she could to get out of Heywood - the alternative was gang life, and her older brother got killed a few years before so she wasn't keen. She's been a family friend from close to the time she came on the force, and used to babysit Kai (only a handful of times) but never stopped seeing him as a kid (to be fair he mostly was) - that's probably changed now that Taro is dead and Kai's having to step up. Kai was resentful of that, in a petty teenage kind of way, but has always still liked her. Think of Vicky as an overprotective older sister in a lot of ways and you're close to what the relationship is, just maybe a bit more distant than that. Having survived working the streets of Watson for a decade, she's had more than her fair share of gunfights, killed probably a dozen gangers if not more, shot (or shot at) many more, and even got her leg blown off during a particularly nasty scrap - a cloned one replaced it, not chrome, but she does have some internal combat chrome (Kai doesn't know the specifics). She likes to bake in her free time, which is rare in NC's often kitchenless apartments, and does mixed martial arts but doesn't actually enjoy it very much - it's just a survival thing. She's nominally roman catholic, it doesn't come up much besides religious swearing.
>>5955981>>5956079>>5956164>>5956169>>5956180>>5956204No details.>>5955988>>5956037>>5956138>>5956160>>5956242Waiting on chooms.Narrow win for no details, writing.
“Yeah,” You’ve never like those looks she gives, withering under them far too quickly, and hurry to finish up the call, “See you tomorrow morning, Vicky - Take care of yourself, you’ll get through this.”“...Yeah, yeah.” She replies quietly, clearly drawn back to contemplating her shit situation instead of wondering what exactly you’re doing outside in a storm, “I will. You too, okay, Kai? I’ll get some boxes ready… See you tomorrow.” And with that the call ends, the holo box flicking out of existence at the edge of your vision. Sighing, you think over the situation - She’s going to find out about what you’re doing eventually, probably sooner rather than later. How do you break that to her? She knows how Night City is, and better than you, but a part of you fears the judgment that will come with it. Did she know about dad’s side work? His actual past? You shake your head, shove your hands into your blue jacket’s rain soaked pockets, and trudge inside ‘Turbo’. The door swishes open automatically, revealing a bar, tables, and all the interesting chooms you’d expect to find at a dive called out as being a ‘runner spot’. Mercenary sorts of all types, some having beers or harder drinks, a few others clustered at the old diner style booths and enjoying… pancakes? That actually smells pretty good, almost real.A few of the chromed crowd glance your way as you walk in - a couple turn right back to what they were doing, but some sets of (cyber)eyes linger on longer…>There’s something deeply odd about that short guy and the white haired woman - more the woman than the man. Try introducing yourself, maybe they’re new to the city? >Em? Damn, you didn’t think you’d see her here. She’s with a few guys, all Claws - probably the owners of that other Quadra outside - they’re talking in Japanese, something about one of the bosses getting chopped up. Sounds like it might be cyberpsycho related. Head over.>...You recognize another one, small city! It’s that short crazy girl from northside, the one you delivered the stolen comp to. She's there with a couple intimidating looking chooms. Head on over.>Get your own booth and some synth coffee or something, try to dry off and warm up before bothering anyone. Who the hell wants to talk to a soaked brat?>Write-in.
>>5956286>>Em? Damn, you didn’t think you’d see her here. She’s with a few guys, all Claws - probably the owners of that other Quadra outside - they’re talking in Japanese, something about one of the bosses getting chopped up. Sounds like it might be cyberpsycho related. Head over.I gotta get me some of that plot.
>>5956286>Em? Damn, you didn’t think you’d see her here. She’s with a few guys, all Claws - probably the owners of that other Quadra outside - they’re talking in Japanese, something about one of the bosses getting chopped up. Sounds like it might be cyberpsycho related. Head over.We speak Japanese, right?
>>5956286>Em? Damn, you didn’t think you’d see her here. She’s with a few guys, all Claws - probably the owners of that other Quadra outside - they’re talking in Japanese, something about one of the bosses getting chopped up. Sounds like it might be cyberpsycho related. Head over.Maybe she will take us a bit more seriously after we got some chrome. Maybe we could find more info about dad.
>>5956286>Get your own booth and some synth coffee or something, try to dry off and warm up before bothering anyone. Who the hell wants to talk to a soaked brat?Appearance matters and right now we look like a stray puppy to any veteran runner>>5955988Swords are cool but they also need an assload of practice and experience to get the most out of.Maybe start Kai off with something simpler, like a hatchet. Or an electric baton, juice it up from mere 'stun' to 'burnt flesh and fried chrome'!
>>5956286>Get your own booth and some synth coffee or something, try to dry off and warm up before bothering anyone. Who the hell wants to talk to a soaked brat?But with the caveat of trying to listen in on Em talking about the boss getting chopped up.
>>5956286>>Em? Damn, you didn’t think you’d see her here. She’s with a few guys, all Claws - probably the owners of that other Quadra outside - they’re talking in Japanese, something about one of the bosses getting chopped up. Sounds like it might be cyberpsycho related. Head over.
>>5956296Yes, and Kai also has dual citizenship, although that's unlikely to matter much in the near future.>>5956338>to get the most out of You don't need the most from them, just enough, and that's a much more attainable goal usually, even in the relatively short term if you're using the right chrome. Speedware and skill shards are a hell of a drug, and there's stuff that speeds up natural learning too. Or redeem your soul in the light of the God-Emperor and just use a chainsword.>>5956340>>5956335>>5956296>>5956292Em.>>5956338>>5956339Dry off for a bit.Em and the Tyger Claws win, writing.
>>5956286Huh, Becca and co? Wonder if be able to wrangle a few netrunning lessons out of Kiwi if she's not already hands full with Ms. Stay At Your House.
Sweeping your gaze across the interior of ‘Turbo’, your eyes settle on a familiar sight among all the other mercs. Em. She’s in red and black, a body suit of some kind, and sitting on the outside of one of the booths with a pair of guys you immediately flag as Tyger Claws. They’re not hiding it, sporting the colors openly and absolutely covered in ink. For a moment you just watch, listening in. One of the Tygers, the taller one with long green hair, speaks to his chooms in a low voice - you can only just hear him,「He was gutted before his guards could react, and now the other bosses are getting jumpy. There is no telling who will be next, Emiko.」「Haunted!」The other Tyger, bald and a bit rounder faced, exclaims worriedly.「What?」Em asks sharply, her expression flat and unreadable, a statue of ice.「We are haunted by ghosts.」The bald Tyger replies, wide eyed - He must really mean it. Em’s mouth wrinkles in disgust,「Ghosts? Idiot. Kato was a full borg, and weak. He broke, that is all.」The green haired one laughs darkly, shaking his head,「You are nearly a full borg. Perhaps you will break next. What meat are you holding onto still, mantis?」「It is ghosts. The young princess said so.」The bald one insists, growing frustrated at Em’s dismissiveness.Em’s cybereyes narrow, and she grows very, very still,「You are ridiculous, Yamada. She is a child, and a hostage, and alone. She tells stories to pass time, and listens to things that are not real.」「She has servants. You. I like her stories.」Yamada, the bald one, crosses his arms and leans back nervously.「You are a bigger idiot than I thought, that is not at all . . . Oh my, oh my, perhaps we are haunted. There is a ghost right there.」Em’s eyes shift from Yamada and toward you, the sudden weight of her attention slapping you across the face - She’s a predator sizing you up. You recognize that more readily now than even at the shrine or on that NCART ride on New Years. She could kill you, easily, and there is nothing you could do to stop it. …The same might be true for the two claws as well, but maybe you’d get a lucky shot off or blind them and run. 「The boy? Who is he to you?」Yamada asks, making quite the show of turning to look at you, one arms going over the booth as he just stares. He does look kind of stupid, now that you see his face more clearly.Em’s voice grows sinister, taunting her bald ‘choom’,「A specter that stalks me, a monster. See how ridiculous you sound, Yamada? That is what you sound like. We met at the shrine. Sarah wished to go.」「Sarah?」The green haired one glances at you after asking, and then turns his attention right back to Em’s icey expression,「So familiar with her now, are you? I knew I was right. You are going soft.」
>>5956463「Chimon, shut up. You go too far sometimes.」Em practically spits the words out at green hair, Chimon, before waving you over,「Kai, come over here. I will kill you if you keep eavesdropping.」A few of the other mercs in the bar turn at that, either understanding what she’s said or having it translated in real time by their chrome. It might have been a poor joke, you can’t tell. You try your best not to look terrified as you walk over, shivering slightly from the cold of the rain water that’s soaked your clothes. 「This one got your attention? Always the young ones.」Chimon laughs derisively. You know at once he’s an asshole, but from how he and Em have been speaking they must be friends… or they absolutely hate each other’s guts,「Sit down before she makes more of a scene, Kai.」You do so, next to Em - Yamada and Chimon have got the other half of the booth just about filled up. You introduce yourself politely, eliciting another snicker from Chimon. >「There was another massacre? I have been investigating what happened at Kabuki on New Years.」Directly to the point, press right in.>「I am here for a job for the lady of Westbrook, waiting on my companions . . . I did not expect to see you here, Em.」Should probably let them know what you’re doing - in a vague sense - before those (maybe) joking threats turn real.>「What was that about ghosts you were saying?」>Write-in.
>>5956464>「What was that about ghosts you were saying?」Ghosts, or another cyberpsycho attack? But psychos are not very ghostly
>>5956464>「What was that about ghosts you were saying?」Kai has shown an interest for the supernatural or that he's atleast somewhat spiritual. Might as well ask, as Em has already shown hostility when it comes to the detes of the cyberpsycho attack. Besides, it might be relevant to the cyber-disease Wakako mentioned and that probably got our dad smoked.
>>5956464>「I am here for a job for the lady of Westbrook, waiting on my companions . . . I did not expect to see you here, Em.」Should probably let them know what you’re doing - in a vague sense - before those (maybe) joking threats turn real.
>>5956548Supporting, I wouldn’t be surprised if these guys have another piece of the puzzle
>>5956548>>5956636>"I would call it a widow’s intuition, but one of my little stray Claws lost their mind just last night and sliced up a meeting of Arasaka specialists sent to negotiate an arms deal."This could very well be the thing they are referencing. Not sure it would be wise to mention that we are aware of this, you never know with these Tyger Claws, but it might help us connect the pieces.
>>5956660Actually no, changing this to this>「What was that about ghosts you were saying?」
>>5956464>「I am here for a job for the lady of Westbrook, waiting on my companions . . . I did not expect to see you here, Em.」Should probably let them know what you’re doing - in a vague sense - before those (maybe) joking threats turn real.>>5956338get enough chrome and unskilled use is plenty deadly! >>5956356yea like that, come to think of it, with enough reinforcement we could totally make the cyber zweihander a reality
>>5956464>>What was that about ghosts you were saying?」
>>5956533>>5956548>>5956661>>5956717Ghosts?!>>5956708>>5956549Explain yourself a bit.Time for ghost stories. Writing.
「What was that about ghosts you were saying?」You question, trying to contain your nervousness around Em and the two Claws - they’re all chromed, Em especially heavily but Chimon’s no slouch - obvious cyberarms and a full faceplate - and Yamada still has cybereyes and obvious ports, and cyberhands if not full limbs. His jacket conceals any other chrome he has, but not the large handgun printing heavily in a shoulder rig.「Not you too.」Em shifts her glare to you from Chimon. Her bladed feet tap against the floor of the bar, tick, tick, tick. Chimon leans over the table toward you, pointing a red plated finger right in your face, his cybereyes flashing red,「This city is full of ghosts, and more are made every day. What is it to you? Think you can ask questions? I told you to sit, not to talk.」「His father was killed on New Years Eve, in Kabuki marketplace.」Em states flatly, the weight of her gaze returning to the green haired Claw - he backs off slightly, but his hand is still closer than you’d like.「What a bloodbath! But why tell him? Is he paying? They can’t be related.」Chimon questions, his finger still just a few inches away, but his attention solely on Em. You badly want to punch the smug chromed cunt in the face, but that would just break your fingers and then get you killed in the parking lot. Flesh is weak, steel is not. 「They can be if it is the same spirits causing this. You wanted to hear about the ghosts, Kai? I will tell you.」Yamada begins to say, but Chimon is quick to be a real cockhead once again, speaking over him.「You forget yourself, Yamada.」Chimon scolds, suddenly caring about etiquette. What a bad joke.The protective covering of one of Em’s mantis blades opens up, armored plates parting on her forearm and letting the long blade slink forward and click against the table - it is sharp enough to cut through such thin metal by its own weight alone, but she controls it perfectly, not leaving a scratch on the surface,「He does not, you do. There is no censure on what Sarah says, lonely nonsense or not.」「Then you forget yourself as well. You are not one of us anymore, you cannot enforce rules that do not apply to you. You are huscle. Not one of us.」Chimon clenches a slightly-too-large fist, arcs of electricity crackling and jumping across the knuckles for a moment - again the bar’s attention is drawn toward your booth.「I've always wanted to kill you, Chimon.」Em remains perfectly still, the words carrying across the silent bar. Chimon blinks, but holds his ground.
>>5956843“Someone about to die over there? Holy shit, take it outside, chooms!” A hoarse voiced girl shouts from the far end of the bar, somewhat confused - Em and Chimon ignore her. Well, that answers the friend or hate question. Fuck.「And you will do it now? Over this kid? You won’t.」Chimon’s laughs right in her face, but she doesn’t back off - the whine of charging capacitors fills the air, something built into Em powering up to combat readiness. Shit, shit, this is bad. You start scanning for the nearest exit - it’s still just the front doors.「Not this kid. Apologize for the disrespect you have shown the princess.」Em’s voice goes nearly synthetic, something unnatural leaching into it at the edges. Chimon blinks once more but doesn’t back off another inch,「. . . You cannot be serious. You just said far worse, her father is powerless-」「Perhaps it would be best to calm things! It is just a story.」Yamada croaks,「A harmless ghost story! Em, she would not want this.」「. . . No. She would not.」Em’s blade retracts, and the whining of capacitors dies away as she backs off,「Tomorrow, Pacifica, the mall.」「I won’t accept a challenge from a hired dog.」Chimon stands up and leaves, Yamada awkwardly moving out of the way to let the other Tyger head out of the bar.「Tell your stupid story, Yamada.」Em’s gaze follows Chimon’s path as he leaves the bar, heading out the front door and into the rain - she stares out the plate glass window as the Tyger Quadra pulls out of the lot. She doesn’t look back, focused on that last image.「. . . I did not realize that this was so delicate. My sincerest apologies for any trouble I have caused.」You utter the words almost reflexively. Yamada at least seems to appreciate them, but Em has just shut down. No playful looks or icy stares, she’s somewhere else mentally… Is she even there? Once again you become aware of just how much chrome she has, how close to the edge she’s running. Your link was disorienting enough, what would removing legs and arms do? Your eyes? Your skin? What is even left in there?Yamada looks between the two of you uncomfortably, but he still seems willing to talk,「You could not have known. I will have the support of the princess in this matter? I . . . I am fond of my head remaining on my shoulders.」Em doesn’t answer.「. . . She gets like this sometimes. I will be alright. I will be.」Yamada still looks worried, repeating the assurance to himself a few more times. You’re not sure why exactly he’s willing to risk anything for you, but you’ll take free information where you can get it.
>>5956845「Anything you know of it, please.」You encourage him, glad to get something other than a stab wound after this rollercoaster of a conversation. 「It is not much, I will tell you that. I was told a story of ghosts that haunt Night City, the ghosts of innocents slain only for the sake of making them ghosts. Many things can be done with such spirits, and though Chimon does not believe, he was correct. They are everywhere in this city . . . And something has stirred them into anger. A mark of death has been put on people, on places - they are cursed, but not others. Any who wander nearby will share the same fate.」「What would do that? How many ghosts?」「It is not known to me. What good would it do to know?」Yamada shakes his head, occasionally glancing nervously at Em, who is still silent and as motionless as a statute,「I know that they seek others, but not me. I was assured of that. She did not say more, I do not think she knew but . . . No, I should not say.」「Please, tell me. How could anyone know that?」You almost beg, desperate for anything. This is the most you’ve heard from anyone at once.「I cannot say.」He clams up, nervousness overtaking him again.「You do not know, or you are not allowed to say?」You press on anyways. Why not at this point?「Don’t answer that.」Em’s synthetic voice grates against your ears, slowly sliding back into something more alive and rich with unexplored dangers. Her usual self slinking back. “Enough of Japanese. I get so sick of it all.. Why are you here making my life hard, Kai?”“He… He just said. The massacres, he wished to-” Yamada starts to yammer.“Of course I heard that!” Em snaps angrily, defensively, “I meant here, at ‘Turbo’. Suddenly you’re an edgerunner?”>”I’ve been doing a few jobs here and there, waiting on one right now. I was hoping to meet some other runners in the meantime… uh, network, I guess.” Few details, more or less true.>”A netrunner.” Slap your deck on the table. >”I’m waiting for some chooms, we’re going to kick the door in on a scav den for Wakako. It’s a rescue gig.” Full transparency - You just stumbled in and made a huge mess by existing, may as well be honest.>Write-in.
>>5956847>”I’m waiting for some chooms, we’re going to kick the door in on a scav den for Wakako. It’s a rescue gig.” Full transparency - You just stumbled in and made a huge mess by existing, may as well be honest.I can't see any reason to lie, and if the mechanized killing machine is in a bad mood it may be best to not upset her.
>>5956847>>”I’ve been doing a few jobs here and there, waiting on one right now. I was hoping to meet some other runners in the meantime… uh, network, I guess.” Few details, more or less true.>”A netrunner.” Slap your deck on the table. >”I’m waiting for some chooms, we’re going to kick the door in on a scav den for Wakako. It’s a rescue gig.” Full transparency - You just stumbled in and made a huge mess by existing, may as well be honest.May as well be all of the above.Dad's dead, so we gotta make ends meet somehow. Picked up netrunning and waiting on chooms for a job. Simple as that. More we're surprised in such a short time we can see many people we recognize in a place like this. I'd also try getting a contact with Yamada. Man seems like he has enough sense in his head to respect what Alice is and keep that secret. Like not necessarily telling him right now, but he seems like someone who could help feed us rumors down the line that helps.
>>5956847 honesty is the best policy
>>5956847>"Suddenly I have bills I have the responsibility of paying. Been doing a few jobs here and there, waiting on one right now. I was hoping to meet some other runners in the meantime… uh, network, I guess.” Few details, more or less true.
>>5956862>>5956866Do not yell them about the job we're working. Opsec, we might fuck the job. Do not show that we're a netrunner, we know jack shit compared to some others and I'm scared of other netrunners. Anything besides the first option seems foolhardy.
>>5956870We're in a bar of edgerunners. She already knows we're a newbie. We definitely don't say what the job is. That's information that can be sold. But this is a place for edgerunners to meet up and sync up. None of those statements are out of the norm for the place we're in. It'll also set up some street cred/get a street name going a little if we show up the next day. Other netrunners aren't going to go poking at others in a place full of ware. That's just asking for trouble. The fact we're clearly a newbie further disincentivizes it in here. There's not enough to gain and plenty of reason for them to be persona non grata in a common meeting spot.
>>5956847>”I’ve been doing a few jobs here and there, waiting on one right now. I was hoping to meet some other runners in the meantime… uh, network, I guess.” Few details, more or less true.>”A netrunner.” Slap your deck on the table.>”I’m waiting for some chooms, we’re going to kick the door in on a scav den for Wakako. It’s a rescue gig.” Full transparency - You just stumbled in and made a huge mess by existing, may as well be honest.
>>5956871I guess we should drop the 'scav den for Wakako' part. Is a good way to piss off Wakako that we blab like thatAnd the scavs might be more on alert.
>>5956875>”I’ve been doing a few jobs here and there, waiting on one right now. I was hoping to meet some other runners in the meantime… uh, network, I guess.”Changing to just this
>>5956847>”I’ve been doing a few jobs here and there, waiting on one right now. I was hoping to meet some other runners in the meantime… uh, network, I guess.” Few details, more or less true.>”A netrunner.” Slap your deck on the table.Hmmm, interesting. Could Alice be considered one of these ghosts? Very fascinating. Also, I would avoid blabbering too much about the job, discretion was clearly a virtue our father possesed. And revealing that we are a netrunner might explain our interest in "ghosts."
>>5956847>”I’ve been doing a few jobs here and there, waiting on one right now. I was hoping to meet some other runners in the meantime… uh, network, I guess.” Few details, more or less true.These people are not our friends. Also, Mainline, your writing quality somehow continues to climb as you go along here. Phenomenal work
>>5956847>>”I’ve been doing a few jobs here and there, waiting on one right now. I was hoping to meet some other runners in the meantime… uh, network, I guess.” Few details, more or less true.Loose lips sink ships, our purpose is to extract paydata from the environment and turn it into eddies, not vomit it out for free.
>>5956847>”I’ve been doing a few jobs here and there, waiting on one right now. I was hoping to meet some other runners in the meantime… uh, network, I guess.” Few details, more or less true.
>>5956855>>5956866 (I think this is a vote?)Kicking doors for Wakako. >>5956862Everything.>>5956869>>5956883>>5957019>>5957089>>5957112Few but true details.>>5956995Few but true + flop your deck on the table.Few but true wins, writing.
“I’ve been doing a few jobs here and there,” You reply carefully, trying desperately not to tense up further under her icy stare or just start blathering, “Waiting on one right now. I was hoping to meet some other runners in the meantime… uh, network, I guess.”“Network?” Em makes the word sound downright alien, her pale brow wrinkling, red lips pursing - a good imitation of life, but sitting so close to the mantis bladed woman, so very close, you can see it for the synthetic fake it is. Pure cosmetic ware is indistinguishable, but she’s got armor built into that skin - like Connor. “Does this look like a corporate lunch to you?” “I got raised by a corpo, sue me.” You dare to snap at her, which turns that scrunched up disgusted look into a cold smile - and that sends a downright concerning reaction pulsing through your body. No, gonk idea, she’s made of murderous, bloody red flags and more metal than a scrapyard. Well shaped metal, the gonk teenage part of your brain whispers. “...I’m here to get my name out on the street, find some gigs.”“Better.” Em notes with something a little less than approval, her smile disappearing as soon as it arrived.「You are Japanese?」Yamada asks, his expression brightening as soon as you said you’re looking for work.「Yes.」You reply at once.「Have you thought about joining the Claws? You seem to have guts, or no brain. It would be a good fit.」He laughs warmly, none of the fear from earlier showing, 「Show that you can do some jobs and I can get you in our colors by the end of the week, we don’t get as many men from home anymore, you would be appreciated.」「Being an idiot is certainly how you joined.」Em doesn’t sound pleased, switching right back to English, “What’s next, flash a Quadra in front of him and throw him into a room with some joytoys? Are you that hard up for recruiting now?”
>>5957205“It’s my job.” Yamada shrugs, giving a wide grin, and holding his arms out, “People like me! Not you, but other people. You just scare me.”Em almost laughs, stifling it before it can do more than soften her glare, “You are lucky for that. It is always gonks with all the luck. Kai, move.”You almost leap from the seat to get out of Em’s way, her bladed feet click across the ground and she slides out from the booth. Once she’s standing, she reaches a slender metal hand into one of the tight pockets of her bodysuit - essentially low profile webgear - and draws out a cigarette and lighter. “You know what they called these here a century ago?” Em asks, lighting up and taking a drag as she stands over the booth, looking down at you and Yamada, “Freedom torches. Nice ring, ne?”“Kind of, yeah.” You agree. It sounds very old United States, the kind of thing President Myers would kill to get people spouting again, “It was a propaganda thing?”“Corporate advertising… I, uh, took a class once.” Yamada corrects, the bald Claw growing wary once again.“It was a load of shit. Lots of that around here.” Em lets out a puff of smoke, turns, and clicks her way right out of the bar, long bladed legs clicking all the way to the door and back into the rain. “Is she always like that?” You ask Yamada.“Intense?” Yamada supplies the word readily, turning his attention back to you now that Em is well and truly out of stabbing distance.Shaking your head, images of the New Year's attack flash through your mind, and of the Shrine days after, and her odd behavior around that girl Sarah, “Erratic.” “No… that’s new.” Yamada scratches at a dark green tattoo of a tiger on the side of his neck, ”Makes me itch… How about a drink, Kai?”“Got a job later, or I would.” You decline, but you’re thinking over what he said a few moments ago, about joining the gang - certainly not something you’d have considered a week ago, but now? Probably still not, but you need eddies. “You were serious about the offer to join?”“Eh, it wasn’t the usual pitch.” He doesn’t seem like he’s going to press on the matter too hard, “But yes. Run a few jobs for us, and we’ll get you inked and chipped. Fast eddies, fast wheels, fast girls. Like Em, but less spiky. Still have a temper usually, ha!”>”...How good are the eddies? It’d need to be preem.” If it’s enough eddies then maybe?>”And deal with dickheads like Chimon? No thanks, choom. Maybe free lance work, but I’m not joining. Already got a car girl… car and a girl.” Any jobs you can get, just don't join.>”Going to have to decline. Not looking to get tied down like that.” Definite no, you're not doing gang work.>Write-in.
>>5957207>>”Going to have to decline. Not looking to get tied down like that.” Definite no, you're not doing gang work.Work sure, leash no thank you.
>>5957211>>5957207changing to this as i misread it at first>”And deal with dickheads like Chimon? No thanks, choom. Maybe free lance work, but I’m not joining. Already got a car girl… car and a girl.” Any jobs you can get, just don't join.
>>5957207>”And deal with dickheads like Chimon? No thanks, choom. Maybe free lance work, but I’m not joining. Already got a car girl… car and a girl.” Any jobs you can get, just don't join.
>>5957207>>”And deal with dickheads like Chimon? No thanks, choom. Maybe free lance work, but I’m not joining. Already got a car girl… car and a girl.” Any jobs you can get, just don't join.
>>5957218>>5957220>>5957223>>5957272Writing.
“And deal with dickheads like Chimon? No thanks, choom.” You turn down the offer at once, having no interest in tying yourself to the leash of some gang boss or likely ending up shooting at badges - that might happen anyways, but you’re sure as hell not going to do it for the Tygers, “Maybe free lance work, but I’m not joining. Already got a car girl… Car and a girl.”Smooth save, Kai.Yamada looks you over, considering the counter-offer for a long moment, “Are you certain? Mercenaries get the shit jobs, or… specialist work. What do you do?”“Chair jockey.” You slap your deck on the table, puffing up a bit in your soaked jacket, “Not looking to do wetwork, but if you need something cracked or erased? I’ve got that handled.” He stares blankly at the deck, squints hard, and then nods as if he realized something profound - you doubt it though, “Okay. Okay. Perhaps there could be a job or two. It is not in my control, but I can pass your name along… You have worked with the widow already? I think most of our outside help still goes through her, if she accepts you then maybe there is something. If ghosts don’t get us first, anyway.” “We’ve done biz.” Maybe overselling it a little, but you’re on a job for her right now, even if technically you’re getting brought in by Dakota as some sort of favor trade, ““Well, maybe I’ll mention your next time someone needs a guy.” Yamada’s cybereyes flash as he receives a holocall, his face slackening as he focuses upon something far, far off. He stands up from the booth at once, hurrying to exit the bar, “I must go. Family business.”“So fast?” You call after him, but the bald headed Tyger’s already up and out the door, jogging off into the storm. “Thanks, choom!”Looking at the now empty booth, you decide it’s yours, and settle in for a while, taking your jacket to dry faster. The black armor vest beneath and your white button down go a long way to make you look like some kind of corpo leaning merc, you realize while looking at yourself in the mirror. Leaning closer, peering at your reflection, you see something…You jump back, startled. For a moment, your father was looking at you. Shaking your head and looking away from the glass, you try to clear your head of the image - family resemblance and the bar’s bright lighting shifting some angles about, that’s all it was.
>>5957366>>5957369Time passes, synth coffee is ordered and sent down the hatch, and you mostly dry off.There’s still time to muck about meeting other mercs inside the seedy bar, but the crowd has changed some in the last half hour or so. That short girl and her chooms have left, probably off on a job, and their table has been filled in by a couple of guys that can’t be much older than you are. Younger even, possibly. They’re busy loading empty magazines from a few boxes of ammo while they chip away at plates of pancakes, chatting away.Elsewhere, that white haired woman with the old sword has been sitting transfixed by a television for about twenty minutes, just staring like it’s one of the most fascinating things in the world. The short bearded guy, ‘Dwarf’ as you’ve filed him away in your mind, is off at another table and arm wrestling anyone who’ll try him - He’s up against a member of the Animals, a big bear of man covered in muscle graft scars… and winning! Barely. …Or maybe not? There’s a small line of other gnarly looking mercs ready to take their own shot at him.Finally, among a smattering of other rough looking types, there’s a security robot talking with a man in a dark suit. Their peculiar meeting holds your gaze for a long time, the robot conversing and even using hand gestures just as if it were a person. Etiquette programming is hardly uncommon in higher end bots, some of your neighbors when you lived downtown had them, but this one is obviously being puppeteered by someone. A netrunner, probably, and one too paranoid or plain antisocial to show their face in person. The man in the suit gets up, takes a briefcase handed off to him by the bot, and leaves the bar - the bot remains… grooving, sort of dancing in place to music you cannot hear, celebrating the completion of a job and even making finger guns at a few passing mercs. Maybe not so antisocial then.>Call someone?>Strange sword lady has been staring at that television for entirely too long to be normal.>...Head over to the arm wrestling and place some bets, maybe make a few eddies.>Roboto McFingerguns deserves a chat, if nothing else - meeting another netrunner could prove useful. Of course you could just hang at Yoko’s store to do the same, but the robot seems in a good mood right now.>Just wait out your time, no need to chat with everyone, you've already gotten soaked in rain and received a death threat or two, that's enough networking for now. Dolf and Connor will be here eventually.>Write-in.
>>5957370>Roboto McFingerguns deserves a chat, if nothing else - meeting another netrunner could prove useful. Of course you could just hang at Yoko’s store to do the same, but the robot seems in a good mood right now.Two chances. Chance number one is that this isn't a netrunner piloting a robot, it's a legit robot a la Alice, somehow. Chance 2, it is a guy driving a bot, and I want to know how to do that.
>>5957370>Roboto McFingerguns deserves a chat, if nothing else - meeting another netrunner could prove useful. Of course you could just hang at Yoko’s store to do the same, but the robot seems in a good mood right now.
>>5957370>>Roboto McFingerguns deserves a chat, if nothing else - meeting another netrunner could prove useful. Of course you could just hang at Yoko’s store to do the same, but the robot seems in a good mood right now.this could be us someday............. maybe we get a bunch of robots and give them swords, that'd be cool I think.
>>5957370>5957370 #>Roboto McFingerguns deserves a chat, if nothing else - meeting another netrunner could prove useful. Of course you could just hang at Yoko’s store to do the same, but the robot seems in a good mood right now.Lets give it a go.
>>5957389>>5957448>>5957461>>5957479Writing.
>>5957366>He stares blankly at the deck, squints hard, and then nods as if he realized something profound - you doubt it thoughWhy does this make a alarm go off insibe my head? He saw the Arasaka logo on it. Tyger have affliaton with Arasaka, so either we got good jobs in future as he thinks we have the blackest ICE for a mile or a corpos try take theirs back after tyger rat on our ass.>>5957370>Strange sword lady has been staring at that television for entirely too long to be normal.
>>5957370>>Roboto McFingerguns deserves a chat, if nothing else - meeting another netrunner could prove useful. Of course you could just hang at Yoko’s store to do the same, but the robot seems in a good mood right now.
>>5957524Fun theory.
Putting your now mostly dry jacket back on, glad the water resistant coating on its aramid weave functions as well as it does, you adjust it at the shoulders a bit and ensure a nice snug fit, and then slide out of your booth. There’s a lot going on inside ‘Turbo’, a pretty lively place all things considered, but that dancing robot has grabbed hold of your attention with its servo-powered groove and won’t let go. No synthetic being should possess such an outrageous level of funk, it just isn’t natural. As you walk over, the robot’s boxy head swivels to follow you, its single glowing yellow eye pulsing with a the waveform of an unheard song. Black and yellow caution stripes decorate its armored chassis in places, white stenciled letters saying: ‘BEWARE: GOOD TIME AHEAD” prominently displayed on its chest. In a smooth androgynously synthetic voice it greets you, still swaying to the absent music, “Salutations and felicitations, choom - Feel that in the air?”“No,” You say after stopping for a moment, wondering if perhaps there was something you hadn’t noticed, “Was wondering what a dancing bot was up to - Nice moves, for someone sitting.”“It’s eddies, choom, there are eddies in the air! And you should see my pet toaster, king of the dance floor.” The robot waves you over with a clumsy metal hand, one clearly meant only for gripping handheld weapons, and invites you to sit, “Join me, we’ll groove as one.” “Not much of… sitting dancer.” You take a seat anyways, thoroughly intrigued now - what a bizarre situation, “Is that even a thing?” “You know it baby, look in front of you!” The robot lifts its arms in the air, servos whirring, and just keeps going, “What brings you here? Never seen a good dancer before, or got something for bots?”
>>5957642“Was thinking you might be a netrunner, somewhere back beyond all that titanium.” You admit, largely drawn by professional interest along with general curiosity, “How’re you driving that bot?” “With love and a whole lot of heart, how else? Come on, move your arms a little… What’s your name, my fleshy choom?” “Kai.” You reply, still not quite processing what the fuck is going on. With a thought, you connect back to Alice and the Quadra, the subtle pressure of her presence in your link returning.“Cam. You were made to dance Kai. Everyone was - don’t let the city get you down…” Cam’s movements slow, the robot’s single eye sensor flaring yellow for a moment, its voice lowering dramatically as it leans over the table, “Woah ho ho holy cyber-cow, got a friend bouncing around in there? Or are you one of those?"”There is no breach. How could it know? Alice’s voice whispers inside your thoughts. Running a diagnostic and letting out your IC imp for a few cycles, you don’t see or detect an intrusion either. Maybe it detected the signal from the Quadra itself?“Got a Militech signal intercept unit. I can see the signal, it's got a nice pulse to it.” Cam clonks itself on the side of its boxy rectangular head, scratching the black and yellow striped paint before leaning back and starting to sway again, that pulsing musical beat returning to its yellow sensor eye, “Come on, dance with me, Kai - and your friend too.”>Do not dance. “Just how much is that unit picking up?” >...Dance, reluctantly. “You always make people dance before talking?”>Dance! Poorly, probably. “Just sealed a big deal, choom? Seems like you’re in a good mood.” >Write-in.
>>5957645>Go full retard dancing.
>>5957645>>Dance! Poorly, probably. “Just sealed a big deal, choom? Seems like you’re in a good mood.”rock! robot rock!this chooms vibes are immaculate
>>5957665+1
>>5957645>>Dance! Poorly, probably. “Just sealed a big deal, choom? Seems like you’re in a good mood.”
>>5957645>Dance! Poorly, probably. “Just sealed a big deal, choom? Seems like you’re in a good mood.”>pic related
>>5957645Note to self get sunglasses or contact lenses with signal intercepter unit
>>5957665>>5957673>>5957706>>5957719>>5957765>>5957842>>5957854I need two rolls of 1d100 to check Kai's dance moves.
Rolled 68 (1d100)>>5957878Lets cut a rug
Rolled 3 (1d100)>>5957878Anything but mediocre.
>>5957916LolLmao
>>5957916Please tell me we’re using this roll.
>>5957916Hit 'em with the Shepard Shuffle!
>>5957961AUGH fuck, I forgot to post the gif
>>5957926We are.>>5957916Going with this purely for the entertainment value. Writing.V sucks at dancing too, they basically just Shepard Shuffle. May as well make it a cyberpunk tradition.
Attempting to mimic Cam’s groovy moves, you lift your arms and wiggle about, giving the dance your all - It’s harder than it looks while sitting, and you know at once you can’t match such a funky machine, but you find that only pushes you to try, and wiggle about, more.“Just sealed a big deal, choom?” You ask while continuing to wave your arms about, Cam’s glowing yellow eye pulsing rhythmically as the bot continues to have a great time, “Seems like you’re in a good mood.” “You know it! Nova biz, nova mood - Can’t talk detes, client wanted it hush hush. NC’s got a killer vibe, just have to stay on the right wavelength and the eddies never stop rolling in…” Cam’s movements slow once more but never stop, the robot’s blocky head tilting slightly, watching your attempt at dance quizzically, “Got a crew besides your broadcast choom?”“Not a permanent one, but I’ve got one,” You reply, continuing to try to match the caution striped robot’s moves, “Waiting on them right now. You can see the signal?”“Like an aura - You’ve got a nova glow, Kai!” Cam… compliments? You’re not sure what to make of it. The bot’s movements speed back up, “Need some help?”“Help with the job? No, we’ve got it handled.” You shake your head, attempting to work it into your ‘dance’. Splitting the eddies again wouldn’t be any good, there’s only so much to go around.“With your moves!” Cam laughs, “Got spirit for two, but what’s that you're doing? Come on, more like this! Put some love into it.”After half a minute of looking like a total idiot, Cam finally shakes its head and slowly comes to a stop, the yellow pulse fading from its eye, “Well, you tried! So you’re not a corpo - wasn’t sure when you strolled over, but no corpo would dance for that long, that hard, that badly! That takes passion, and suits get that beaten out of them fast.”“...Was it that bad? I wasn’t sure what to do while… uh, sitting.” You admit sheepishly, now beginning to wonder just why you made such a fool of yourself. It was kind of fun though, maybe you just needed some fun for a minute. “Thanks though, I think?”
>>5958033“You’re supremely welcome, my choom!” Cam’s metal hands clap together with dull clang, “So you and your funky red signal are looking for a netrunner? You’ve got one! I do tech, too - How’s my advertising game?”“On point, if the bot is your work. Nova paint job, I dig the lines, and the moves.”“All me, baby! Tuned it up myself after it danced its way off the back of a truck.” The robot gives a few quick karate chops at the air after mentioning the tune up.Something’s been bugging you this whole time, and the question got dodged earlier so you ask again, “Okay, I’ve really got to know - How do you control it like that?” “Got special implants for it - Anyone with a deck can dive in and give a bot orders, but I’m inside.” Cam replies, confirming that there is a human behind all that metal. Allegedly. “A ghost in the machine. Feels like me, because right now it is!” “Where’d you pick up that kind of chrome?” You ask, needing to know - being able to control a bot like that would eliminate the ‘ah shit, I’ve got a hole in my chest’ risk of gunfights you’ve been facing down for the last week.“...Uh, Dogtown. Not an open market item if that’s what you’re thinking - Failed Militech project. Went the way of the Dodo after unification hit a NorCal shaped wall.” The remotely controlled robot makes a pair of finger guns at you, “Your turn now, blue jacket - Who’s your head choom?” >”Pass your commcode and you can talk to her yourself.” Alice can introduce herself just fine.>”Another netrunner, we’ve been partnered since I started taking jobs.” Sort of true, if you squint.>”Not at liberty to say - How about a different question?” Not worth revealing more than Cam already knows.>Write-in.
>>5958034>”Another netrunner, we’ve been partnered since I started taking jobs.” Sort of true, if you squint.
>>5958034>>”Another netrunner, we’ve been partnered since I started taking jobs.” Sort of true, if you squint.
>>5958034>"I'l ask her if she wants to talk, hold on uhhhh." Let Alice choose whether to talk to him.
>>5958034>”Pass your commcode and you can talk to her yourself.” Alice can introduce herself just fine.I want his commode anyway. That implant suite sounds primo, if we can find the schematics and a fabricator. Lot of ifs but is obviously VERY useful. Imagine all the other bots we could use it on.
>>5958117Dolf's a Militech fanboy, not really his thing but maybe he'd know why it didn't get implemented- like it cripples you or something?
>>5958080Supporting
>>5958034>”Pass your commcode and you can talk to her yourself.” Alice can introduce herself just fine.
>>5958051>>5958074>>5958154Sort of the truth.>>5958080>>5958136Ask Alice first.>>5958117Got Cam's commcode and let them talk.Sort of the truth wins, writing.
“Another netrunner, we’ve been partnered since I started taking jobs.” You keep your answer short, mostly true, and right to the point - best to keep some things close to the chest. Elsewhere in the bar a chorus of shouts and cheers erupt as another of the arm wrestling matches ends. “With that signal?” The bot lets out an odd whistling noise, one metal hand hand scratching at the back of its neck joints - You can imagine the expression Cam must be making, in their own head at least, “Got a strange groove, Kai - that choom of yours is either a keeper, or they’re keeping you, if you feel me. Only a few things that kind of connection means - got a guardian angel or something a little nastier… Or maybe just a gonk trying to groove with the wrong gear. Are they new too?” “Uh, you could say that, yeah. Too much signal strength or something?” You ask, brow furrowing as you think over the robot’s odd warning, more concerned about just how much Cam may or may not know than about Alice. She’s proven herself plenty today, a few words from a stranger aren’t going to change your mind.“Got a whole lot of data going both ways, choom - Not your regular boring old holocall, that. Vibes are too strong, too red.” Cam explains somewhat unhelpfully.…It isn’t a holocall? It was a holocall earlier today, certainly this morning, but… No, Cam’s right, at some point that changed. Alice is just there sometimes, only using messages occasionally unlike before. It was after the Chevillon maybe? No, even some of that was still using one of your link’s holocall channels… Is it still? Something happened, but you’ve not taken the time to consider it deeply.”Oh my, the connection has grown stronger! I… I had not noticed. I will try to find when this occurred, give me a moment.” Alice’s presence remains within your link, but you know that she is indeed focused upon something else for the time being.The robot’s servos whir and metal slides as it shrugs, “Not my monkey, not my dancefloor. As long as they don’t poke around my data, we’re chill as ice.”>”Won’t be a problem then… Say, do you offer, uh lessons? Netrunning, tech, that kind of thing, not dance lessons… Guess I’m open to that too though.” >”Not her style, don’t sweat it. You got a crew of your own, Cam?”>”She’s chill, pretty big on the whole personal autonomy thing actually… Well, it was good dancing with you, Cam, but I’ve got biz to get ready for. I’ll see you around the city.” You will still receive Cam’s commcode.>Write-in.
>>5958229>”Won’t be a problem then… Say, do you offer, uh lessons? Netrunning, tech, that kind of thing, not dance lessons… Guess I’m open to that too though.”Teach us your ways, robo-dono
>>5958229>”Won’t be a problem then… Say, do you offer, uh lessons? Netrunning, tech, that kind of thing, not dance lessons… Guess I’m open to that too though.”
>>5958229>>”Won’t be a problem then… Say, do you offer, uh lessons? Netrunning, tech, that kind of thing, not dance lessons… Guess I’m open to that too though.”
>>5958233>>5958253>>5958267>>5958307Writing.
”Won’t be a problem then.” You assure Cam, just not seeing that kind of move as being Alice’s style - she’s curious, but not a gonk. “Say, do you offer, uh lessons? Netrunning, tech, that kind of thing, not dance lessons. Guess I’m open to that too though.” “Looking for a Net sensei? If you’ve got the eddies and the chrome, I’m game - Dance lessons are free though, you need help. What’ve you got chipped now?” // Contact Request: Cam //// New Contact: Cam //You accept Cam’s request and shoot over a truncated copy of your chrome diagnostics from a few minutes ago, the closest thing you’ve got to a list of what Vik chipped you with. The bot’s eye flashes yellow as it accepts the data package, and a moment later it lets out another of those odd whistles.“Okay, okay, let’s see what we’ve got, my prospective apprentice - What digital wonders are… Oh, wow, you’re greener than memorial park.” Cam almost breaks character, the robot’s synthetic voice scratching to a halt, “I can’t teach you like this, not the ways of Net. Your spirit’s ready, but not your body, you feel me?”“...What am I missing?” You question, more curious than surprised - you’ve barely got any chrome, hitting a wall was bound to happen somewhere.“Large interface port, a deck-” Cam starts to lift fingers, counting them off one at a time, but you interrupt them before they get further. “I’ve got a deck.” You place your klepped Arasaka box on the table, the bot’s blocky head swiveling down to examine the metal case. “So you do, my fleshy choom - must’ve fallen out of the same truck as this bot.” It’s clear Cam know the deck is stolen, the Arasaka logo is a bit of a giveaway if nothing else, “External decks are pretty old school, don’t put eyes on many of those now. Tell you what, when you’ve got an internal deck, and a real port - I recommend a neck one, helps keep you from drowning in an ice bath - we’ll talk. Oh, and a suit, birthday or coolant, your choice choom.”“Large plug, internal deck, coolant suit… or a lot of bags of ice.” You repeat the list back to Cam, the bot giving a pair of finger guns in response. “Right on target.” Cam confirms, “And a couple hundred eddies an hour.”“...I might be able to swing that. Sounds preem, Cam.” You don't make any hard commitment to the new chrome or Cam as a teacher, but why not leave the possibility open?
>>5958394A couple of hours later.Your time with Cam came to an end pretty abruptly earlier, the bot leaving for other biz - You didn’t hold the puppeteering netrunner up, and waited out the rest of your time at ‘Turbo’ until Dolf and Connor showed up. A brief - very brief - discussion with Alice was had about her presence in your mind, but both of you drew up blanks on what exactly is going on there - it’s a question for a proper tech, maybe a ripper like Vik.The doors to ‘Turbo’ open as a an armored mountain of a man and his far smaller and lithe little choom stroll in, Dolf and ‘Connor’ arriving right on time. Dolf’s got both his submachineguns holstered in black hip rigs, matching his heavier tactical armor, both of the cheap Budget Arms weapons looking a bit out of place besides all the plates and mag pouches. He’s definitely got a thing for the tactical, maybe a bit too much of one - Looks like he’s ready to go to war, drawing the attention of all the more veteran edgerunners at the bar. They’re not giving good looks. Not a subtle man. Connor’s killing it in a simple white tank top and black athletic shorts, a light aramid vest her only external armor - She does fit in, matching the vibe of the bar and other runners. Now that you think about it, you probably do as well, most of your armor concealed beneath your nomad jacket. The pair spot you quickly and waltz over to your booth, flopping a couple of duffel bags full of gear on the table - you had synth coffee waiting for them, which Dolf ignores but ‘Connor’ greedily begins to down. “Heya, choom!” Connor greets you before starting to gulp down the black liquid, “Mmm, bitter and tastes like regret - Preem fuel.” “They don’t have any other kind,” You smirk, but something is already bothering you as Dolf doesn’t say a word after sitting, “It’s that or alcohol, guess they know their patrons, ne? Unusually quiet there, Dolf. Something off?”“Just… Nah, nothing.” He shakes his head, a slight frown soon replaced by his usual smile, if a bit forced, “Got all the gear we’ll need. You didn’t go to the 25/7?”“Figured it wasn’t the place.”“It’s not.” Dolf brushes past the topic quickly. “Eh, doesn’t matter, choom. Not a big deal. We’re good for the job if you are. Gonks still set to head out on time?”You check the status of your spoof with a few thoughts, flicking through the false correspondence that Alice has largely been handling on her own - A group of five are getting sent to Northside for the fake maelstrom meeting, just as planned.“Smooth as butter, they leave in twenty.” You confirm for the big man, taking a sip of your own awful mug of liquid bitterness - it does taste like regret, Connor’s spot on. You drink a little more anyways.“Twenty? Sooner than expected.” Dolf asks, gulping and breaking eye contact with you, “That’s okay.”
>>5958395“Not an exact science, Dolf. You alright?” You question, the signs of nerves getting to him written as clear as day, “Need your head in the game.”“He’ll be fine.” Connor dismisses your worries, punching her huge choom on one of the armored plates on his arm - she may as well have struck a concrete wall for all it moved him, but it gets a smile back on his face at least, “Gets pre-job jitters. Hates needles too, isn’t that right, Dolf?”“They make me laugh. Can’t help it, nerves. Ripper visits are like going to a comedy club...” Dolf admits somewhat sheepishly, “Don’t have a problem when the leads in the air though, don’t sweat that. Just overthink things. You going to get close, or do your Net stuff from here?”>”I’m going on site, better connection that way. I’ll find a closet or something on a different level, won’t be an issue.” Close enough to still show up in person if something goes wrong as well.>”Staying in my car, I’ll be out on the street below.” Might need to play getaway driver - fitting everyone in the Quadra might be a challenge though. Someone’ll have to get thrown in the frunk.>”Staying planted right here, I’ll have drinks waiting to celebrate.” Minimal risk, no ability to intervene outside of the Net though.>Write-in.
>>5958400>”Staying in my car, I’ll be out on the street below.” Might need to play getaway driver - fitting everyone in the Quadra might be a challenge though. Someone’ll have to get thrown in the frunk.
>>5958405"... We don't even drive the car. Why don't we just lie DOWN in the trunk. Nobody will expect the third guy's just in the trunk of the getaway car. Why would a netrunner be so close?We get questioned on it, we just drive the car via net. Nobody'll question it.
>>5958400>”Staying in my car, I’ll be out on the street below.” Might need to play getaway driver - fitting everyone in the Quadra might be a challenge though. Someone’ll have to get thrown in the frunk.+1 to trunk anon, nobody'll expect it. Solves the fitting everyone in problem too.
>>5958445>rig up car so it has liquid cooling that links our "coffin" to the car's radiator >Add more hardware to the car for signal/processing/neural protection>mobile cyberchair coffin with liquid cooling >empty car just driving around with a guy doing everything from the trunk
>>5958445Just going to remind everyone that the Quadra is a mostly stock '54 Turbo-R, it's a rear engine with only two seats. The frunk (no trunk) frunk is still a dumb word has enough room for two grown adults to be tied up and stuffed inside (feels weird using that as a unit of measurement). There is a data port in the frunk and Alice's AI core under a panel, so laying in it actually can work, but the car just isn't ever going to have much space. There's no modding around that either without taking it to nomads to really chop it up and start adding bustles and the rest of their usual craziness.That all being said, Connor is a small (but heavier than you'd think due to chrome) woman and can just sit in someone's lap, so if Kai is in the front then the Quadra can work for a three person team + one target so long as the target isn't a giant muscle gorilla like Dolf or a turbo fatass. Basically the Quadra isn't well suited for much more than a two person team, unless you want to go full clown car. tl;dr the Quadra frunk plan works for this job, but it is far from ideal.
>>5958557So Connor goes to our lap as then room for all
>>5958400>”Staying in my car, I’ll be out on the street below.” Might need to play getaway driver - fitting everyone in the Quadra might be a challenge though. Someone’ll have to get thrown in the frunk.Lurk in the frunk.
>>5958405>>5958420>>5958445>>5958591Frunk lurking it is then, writing.
“Staying in my car, I’ll be out on the street below.”“Getaway driver?” Dolf asks, but it’s more of a statement than a question - of course you’re the getaway driver, but only if things go south. No need for one otherwise, Wakako’s got recovery handled. You’ll be on the old lady’s home turf, right near Japantown, and like every fixer worth the name in Night City she’s got plenty of cars for clients.“Won’t need one! Job’ll be a cake walk with all the Net magic Kai pulled - And I’ve got this for the gonks.” Connor flicks out her monowire, just as she did at the scratching post - you don’t flinch this time, knowing she can control the shape of the smart metal, it’s nothing more than ultra-high strength wire until she wants it to cut. Well, at least someone’s got faith in your abilities - you’re not so sure still, and there’s something about Dolf’s nerves that are getting to you as well. He’s definitely the more cautious of the two, his excitement for the job aside.“Heh, yeah, and I’ve got these.” Dolf pats at his submachineguns, slapping a hand on each, “Hope you’re right, iron should carry us through… We ready to roll then?”You nod, and Connor exclaims excitedly, “Fucking finally, lets go get some eddies!”
>>5958624Half an hour later, inside the scav subnet.”...And that’s far enough, I believe. The spoof group are too far to head back in time, traffic is surprisingly dense for being so close to midnight.” Alice says to you cheerily, using a contraction once again - which you’re still getting used to - and pointing to a window she’s opened up in front of her which displays the current location of the scavs heading to North Side. It hovers in the air before her, red edges matching the shifting surface of her body on the Net. “Alright, let’s start the party.” You turn away from her and back toward the crystal ball controlling the scav den’s cameras - you’re already back in shabby cobweb covered tent representing their system - and place your hands on the orb. At once you’re aware of the den’s interior, flicking across the live images until you find what you want - the door with the mines. “Dolf, Connor, you there?” You project your thought across an open holocall you’re maintaining with the duo - they’ve been making their way up through the building quickly for the last minute or so. “Ready when you are, choom.” Dolf replies in a hushed tone, his deep voice sounding strange in a whisper, almost a growl, “We’ll move when we hear the fireworks.” “Let's see how many fish I catch.” You comment back, forwarding prepared messages to the agents and links of a number of scavs connected to the subnet, each a bit different but designed to draw them to the door at the back. Mostly promises from their chooms that they’ve got a new XBD or some synth coke on the cheap, that kind of thing.But will they take the bait?I need two rolls of 1d100, DC 45. Meets beats, higher is better.
Rolled 8 (1d100)>>5958625rollan QM, was Alice always supposed to be a main character or did we just get really lucky with that crit in the first thread?
Rolled 62 (1d100)>>5958625
>>5958626She was always going to be around in some form, but it was up in the air on when she'd show up or if she'd even be with Kai at all (if he'd sold the Quadra). That crit was probably the most important roll to happen in that whole thread, other than maybe some of the stealth/combat since Kai could've gotten flatlined pretty easily. All the starting character choices were going to bump into each other too and have some connection to what happened on New Years. Kai's dad got fried, Catarina (Connor) had her uncle go psycho, and Maeve snatched a shipment of baloperidol and immunoblockers that the Wraiths had intercepted before it got into NC. Won't say more than that, it's all that has been revealed between this thread and the first one.>>5958627A 62 will do it, writing more.
>>5958637Catalina*
The messages float away from your open palm, motes of light sent zipping out of the tent and off toward the ghostly impressions of agents and links which stalk about the camp representing the scav subnet. Watching intentlying through the den’s grainy cameras, you watch as a few of the scavs pull their agents and check their flashing screens, or interrupt conversations and wander off toward the door with puzzled looks - a few talk to each other on the way over, slowing down but not stopping as they walk through the trashed out old rooms. As the group of four, and that seems to be all who took the bait, arrive at the mine protected steel door, you detonate the trap. No talking, kill.A shock jolts through you as the camera cuts, and after a moment of disorientation you switch to another. The first must’ve been taken out by the blast - you didn’t even get to hear it, the image of the scavs inspecting the door with suspicion simply vanished into the black. Flicking through the cameras, you pan them to the doors you need locked and get to work, sealing them up the rooms along the planned assault route, old metal doors sliding shut and lock lights switching red as scavs begin to scatter and grab guns, the whole den erupting into confused motion.“We’re moving!” Dolf’s rumbles over the holo-call, right as you finish unlocking the front door to the den - Dolf’s the first through, looking like a bad action BD star trying to push Militech and Budget Arms product for the quarter; you can’t hear a damned thing through the cameras, but you watch as the first scav gets ripped to pieces by the big man’s hail of automatic fire. The scav staggers and falls back against the ratty sofa he’d just stood up from, his head and torso a ruined mess before he can fire a shot, blood staining the bullet blasted cushions.Another scav with a yellow cyberarm lifts a heavy looking handgun and lets off a shot, and another, but before the muzzle flashes a third time a Connor shaped blur appears behind him. A single lightning fast kick from her oversized cyberleg catches the gonk in the back of his head, caving his skull in - he drops lifeless, and Connor flips past and takes another man out with a throw of one of her knives, the blade buried to the hilt in his throat. She looks to almost teleport around the room due to the camera’s low framerate, her sandevistan working overtime. They’re onto the next room before the knifed scav hits the ground, done in seconds and the plan working perfectly so far.I need two rolls of 1d100, DC 55. This is for shutting off rifles using the exploit found earlier, and throwing out an Optics Reboot or two. Rolling for Dolf and Connor, as well as the scavs. Dolf is the first, Connor is the next two, the Scavs in the way are the fourth, and the Scavs locked in other rooms are the fifth. Dolf’s DC is 50, Connor is 30(!), Scavs are looking at 60 and 75 respectively.
Rolled 56, 78, 7, 53, 42 = 236 (5d100)Rollin', lets see if the job goes horribly sideways.
>>5958656Sealing up the rooms along*
Rolled 5 (1d100)>>5958656
Rolled 42 (1d100)>>5958656
Rolled 95 (1d100)>>5958656>>5958667>>5958670Shameful. I know this won't count but we can do better.
Guess they updated their stuff after all, must've got the upgrade data secondhand.
>>5958667>>5958670>42.Failure, writing. >>5958671Shameful indeed.
Rolled 90, 1, 61, 56, 75, 51 = 334 (6d100)As your chooms make their way to the next door, Dolf releases the mostly spent mags from both his sub guns and slaps them against his thighs, fresh ones held on mag plates slamming home - both guns are back up in a second, ready to rumble. Connor’s bolting full speed for the door, and with a thought you get it sliding out of the way, able to at least think as fast as she can move, at least from a nice safe position like you’re in. The little Solo drops and slides into the next room, and as you switch cameras she’s in and among the next group of scavs, flickering from place to place as the cheap camera fails to track her smoothly, too much motion happening between each from. Gunfire greets her, rifles clattering away; seeing your moment, you execute the exploit Alice discovered earlier, uploading a dataspike to overload the old smartguns… They keep firing. “The fuck?” You curse, drawing a look from Alice as the fight continues to unfold across the surface of the crystal ball. Connor weaves between shots, leaps with such violent force it cracks the stained concrete floor, and appears a half way across the room between two of the scavs, one arm held far out from her body - The scav to her left turns, and finds one of his arms doesn't come with him, the appendage falling free from his recently sliced stump of a shoulder. There’s a split second where it seems as if he doesn’t understand, as if even his body hasn’t processed the loss, and then a curtain of gore erupts from the monowire inflicted amputation. The other scav reels back a step, and fires from the hip. The panicked shots go high and skitter across the ceiling, trailing puffs of concrete dust, and a moment later his rifle is kicked from his hands and sent clattering. Dolf, meanwhile, barrels in far more clumsily, both sub guns flashing away silently as you watch the battle unfold. His shots catch a pink haired scav woman and spark on impact, her cheap chrome holding under the fire long enough for her rifle to send a burst into Dolf - he doesn’t slow, armor shrugging off the automatic fire, and finally his own bursts find purchase, catching the scav at weak points on her dermal armor and sending her sprawling to the ground. He keeps shooting as she falls, firing until empty into the bloody and sparking corpse, spent brass filling the air and clattering about the filthy old floor of the den.
>>5958731The disarmed scav facing Connor point one of his cyberarms at her, and metal panels on it unfurl to reveal a projectile launch system, a big fat muzzle facing right at the tiny Solo - In the heartbeat before he fires, you try to upload a quickhack to blind his cybereyes, but the son of bitch has more IC than you expected and it isn’t even half way in before it’s too late. His arm launcher fires, a micro-missile burning free and missing Connor’s head by mere centimeters as she ducks to the side. Too close to adjust her monowire easily, she presses into the scav, body slamming him, and pulls the chromed man’s own pistol free from the holster on his hip, twirls it dexterously to get a proper grip, and pumps three shots into his gut. The scav staggers back, his face a mask of agony, cyberarm slamming into the side of Connor’s face - her small head snaps violently to the side, but she keeps firing, and firing, and firing.After a few seconds, the scavs are dead, the fight far messier than breaching the first room. A quick flick though the other cameras, barely long enough to get an idea of what’s happening, reveals a number of scavs trying to shoot the locks off the doors you’ve sealed up. That’ll either work, or jam them up completely - What happens there is beyond your control now. One rotten and rundown room remains, a single armored scav standing between your team and ‘Buddy’.I need two rolls of 1d100, DC 55. This is for throwing out an Optics Reboot. >>5958731I am rolling for Dolf and Connor, as well as a big scav. Dolf is the first 1d100, Connor is the next two, the big scav is the fourth and fifth, and the scavs locked in other rooms are the sixth. Dolf’s DC is 60, Connor is 40, scavs are looking at 50 and 75 respectively.
Rolled 29 (1d100)>>5958733Connor, no. We gotta give them an edge.
Rolled 61 (1d100)>>5958733Boy, this is getting messy fast.
>>5958752>61Ayyyy, there's that chair jockey shit, very honorable. Writing.>>5958746Yeah, that 1 isn't good.
”Kai, one the scavs has dived, they are attempting entry - I am going outside.” Alice’s words startle you back to awareness of the subnet, drawing you from the cameras for a moment.“What? Alice? Alice!” You shout after her, but she’s already past the cobweb curtain sealing the camera tent off from the rest of the digital camp - And Dolf and Connor need your attention now. “Shit, wheels are falling off!” Turning your full focus back on the orb, you enter the cameras once again and don’t waste time, immediately starting an upload on the last scav standing between your chooms and ‘Buddy’. It’s a big scav, really big, Animal sized even, maybe a ganger from Pacifica moonlighting as huscle for the den. He wasn’t around earlier when you scouted the place out, and neither was the humongous shotgun he’s holding. You identify its blocky industrial look immediately, infamous from news headlines and weekly NCPD bodycounts - every kid in NC has seen one in an action BD at least once: a Carnage. He’s got thick IC, far worse than the last guy, and you watch in horror as the upload bar crawls forward - there’s nothing more you can do. Nothing more you know how to do. Connor’s the first through the door again, but she’s moving slower now, much slower. The entire room goes bright for a frame as the Carnage fires, bucking high in the grip of the big dark skinned scav, dreadlocks blown back by the weapon’s massive concussion and light reflecting off his mirrored sunglasses. He hits.Connor slams into the wall beside the doorway, thrown back by the sheer force and psychological shock of the shot’s impact - She slumps motionless, a fist sized circle burning in her armor vest. Son of a bitch must’ve been using some kind of incendiary.Dolf is already firing as he steps through, dumping lead into the scav as fast as he can, keeping his twin guns steady - but they don’t have the bite they need to get through the other big man’s armored trench coat, the heavy aramid weaving pulsing and shaking with every impact but standing firm. The scav fires again, and one of Dolf’s Guillotine submachineguns explodes into useless scrap, caught half in the spread of shot - Dolf ducks back through the doorway and out of sight, reloading his remaining weapon hurriedly.
>>5958844The scav, however, has one shot left, and stomps forward with two quick steps, long strides closing the distance to Connor’s slumped body. She looks up dazed, one hand grasping at the hilt of a sheathed knife. As the scav levels his monstrous shotgun at Connor’s head, the red bar of your upload fills entirely, completing at last. A shower of sparks spews out from behind the giant man’s sunglasses, cybereyes going haywire as your hack overloads their primary systems - almost all ‘ware has backups though, and they’ll kick in soon enough. Connor throws her knife in the time you’ve bought her - it flies true, cutting the stumbling and blinded scav’s cheek, but nothing more. She isn’t strong enough, not wounded like that - it’s a wonder she’s even moving at all. Dolf, however, is strong enough. Storming back through the door to protect his wounded friend, Guillotine blasting away, he charges the blinded scav and presses the muzzle of his gun into the man’s neck, right above the collar of the coat - sparks and blood fly as dermal armor buckles and fails, but even as he’s filled with lead the scav’s eyes reboot, and with a flash of blue from his cybereyes he’s back in the fight. The two men struggle, exchanging punches and knees as they grapple about trying to get a superior position, but Dolf quickly has the better of it and pins the scav. Huge gauntleted hands jackhammer into the scav’s face again, and again, and again. Ripping skin, denting metal, shattering bone - one of the scav’s cybereyes pops free, dangling by a mangled optic nerve, and he lies dead. Half his face is pulped meat and scrap.Dolf screams, like a fucking caveman or something you’re pretty sure - you can’t hear it - and rushes to Connor. He checks her over, patting at her mangled vest, checking for perforations. “Ow.” Connor gasps hoarsely over the holo line, her normally squeaky voice barely distinguishable, “...H-hypo, hypo!”Dolf obliges, jabbing an airhypo against Connor’s neck and dumping the whole stim dose. In a few moments Connor, with Dolf’s help, staggers to her feet. “She’ll live!” Dolf calls out on the holo, looking up at the room’s camera - right at you - before struggling on with the missing; he leans to scoop up his dropped gun from the floor and reloads it one handed, using that nifty mag plate rig on his hip again.
>>5958846Checking in on the scavs in the locked rooms, you find most of them have only managed to ruin the locks on the doors. A few are trying pry bars or cyberarms to open the doors now, but they aren’t having much success… Actually, it looks like some are getting theirs to slide. Shit.“Scav’s are levering the doors, you need to move - get the target and delta! I can’t lock them in twice.” You say tersely over the call, glancing back behind you to the camp beyond the cobwebbed entrance to the camera tent - the unexpected fight on the Net is not over, you’re still connected with Alice by that thin silver strand and you can feel the pulsing rush of combat. You’ve got a view on the scav who dived, he’s just laying unconscious on the ground a few rooms from Connor and Dolf, but there’s not a thing you can do to him - you don’t have those hacks. >Try to slow the door scavs down, blind them, do anything - Dolf’s still in fighting shape but Connor sure as hell isn’t, they need the help.>...Alice, dragon spikes or not, is far from having her complete data - however she’s fighting right now, it has to be desperate. Pull back from the cameras and help her out.>...Shit, shit, there has to be something… Uh, that shard! The shard Alice said can light people on fire! Where is that damned thing? The Quadra, or your apartment? Crap, exit the net - running past the fight essentially - and try to find the shard and dive back in.>Write-in?
>>5958849>Try to slow the door scavs down, blind them, do anything - Dolf’s still in fighting shape but Connor sure as hell isn’t, they need the help.Alice doesn’t need to win her fight, just distract the scavrunner for long enough
>>5958849>Try to slow the door scavs down, blind them, do anything - Dolf’s still in fighting shape but Connor sure as hell isn’t, they need the help.
>>5958849>Grab Alice and exit the subnet, time to get out of the frunk and into thefight, you doubt Dolf can carry both Buddy AND Connor.
>>5958420Supporting
>>5958849>Try to cause some friendly fire, that kind of chaos should slow them down significantly. Those smartgun codes didn't shut the guns off before, but Dolf did say it should be possible to make them fire without trigger pulls.
>>5958849>Try to slow the door scavs down, blind them, do anything - Dolf’s still in fighting shape but Connor sure as hell isn’t, they need the help.>>5958933Think this might be able to be rolled in with the slow down option, if so, +1
>>5958849>>Try to slow the door scavs down, blind them, do anything - Dolf’s still in fighting shape but Connor sure as hell isn’t, they need the help.
Rolled 72, 88, 74 = 234 (3d100)>>5959108>>5959030>>5958964>>5958885>>5958874Alright, staying focused on the scavs it is. I need two rolls of 1d100, DC 50. Kai's trying to blind more of the scavs, but their chrome is worse and easier to exploit. Rolling for Dolf (1st, DC 50), Connor (2nd, DC 80), and the door scavs (3rd, DC 65).
Rolled 15 (1d100)>>5959158So many scavs. Oh boy.
Rolled 35 (1d100)>>5959158
Rolled 32 (1d100)>>5959158
Rolled 48 (1d100)>>5959158I FEAR
Living up to being a door and camera guy. Heh.
>>5959188>>5959194>>5959196>>5959197SUPREME SHAME. Even if it was Bo4 it'd be a failure, this ain't prime runner work chief. Writing. It just means Kai's a little slow on the draw and uploads at much less than ideal times, not that it does nothing. The scavs have no meaningful defense, the worst Kai can do is just be suboptimal using his deck's resources.At least Dolf and Connor (somehow, and with blood god dubs) succeeded. Going to be another messy fight.
>>5959216...is it too late to get a 'saka office job?
You push thoughts of Alice’s fight outside the tent from the edges of your mind, focusing fully on the cameras once more and setting to work trying to buy some time for Dolf and Connor. Hypo or not, Connor’s not going to be moving anywhere fast - even if her vest and dermal armor ate the blast from the Carnage, that had to leave a hell of a bruise. Might’ve even cracked some ribs, reinforced or not.“I’m poking out their eyes, but it’s not…” You center the crosshair of the den’s camera on one of the scavs prying the door open with a bar, and with a thought begin uploading your quickhack - It’s a lot of data to sound out at once, your deck can’t handle more than a single target at a time. “...It’s not going to hold them for long!”“We got our eyes on the cage, hold em’ as long as you can, choom we’re… we’re… the fuck is that? That can’t be the target, shit - check collar.” Dolf’s voice rumbles over the holocall.“...A puppy?” Connor squeaks out, some of her regular high pitched voice slowly returning - it doesn’t fit the lethal display you saw moments ago at all.“Something’s up?” You switch to the camera in the ‘operating’ room, rows of cyberware hanging from racks along the wall, a few bloody operating tables spread about. Dolf and Connor are both standing in front of the cage you spotted on the net early, the big guy hold up what is unmistakably a young canine - fluffy, floppy eared, golden furred. It licks Dolf on the face, eliciting a string of curses, utterly oblivious to the almost total extinction of its kind.“Ah, man, gonna get a fucking bioplague!” Dolf shouts, nearly dropping the dog as he holds it out fully at arms length, “What gonk paid us to get this mutt? Dogs all died for a reason, this thing ain’t safe-”“GIVE ME HIM, YOU GORILLA!” Connor shouts, reaching way up to grab the puppy from Dolf, looking ‘Buddy’ in its big soft eyes for a solid couple of seconds and seeming to just melt. Her expression hardens again as she glances toward the escape route, “...No one is hurting you, little bro. Dolf, let’s delta!”You unlock one of the doors leading to the balcony - more of a terrace really - and the Duo rush out and begin the climb down along the planned route. Flicking back to watch the scavs, you find they’ve busted a couple of the doors already, some slowing to inspect the corpses of their chooms but most rushing after your crew intent on bloody revenge. You upload another hack on the lead scav, his eyes sparking out a few second later, but your not-so-impressive Arasaka deck and small data port are conspiring to absolutely fuck your ability to quickly upload anything.
>>5959392“They’re almost out on the terrace.” You state over the holocall, unable to access cameras viewing their hopping climb down. That’s got to hurt for Connor, cyberlegs or not. Locking the terrace door as the scavs reach it, you’re dismayed to see them blast the lock and that it works this time, “Shit, they blew the lock, eyes up!” You send another hack into one of the scavs at the back of the pack, but he must have a tracing unit because at once he spins about and blasts the camera to pieces - the upload finishes, but the feed is cut before you witness the results. Errors begin to flash across the orb’s surface, a flood of crash alerts swelling to fill the whole crystal ball until it simply winks out of existence. Alice’s head pops back in the tent for a moment, just as you’ve lost nearly all ability to help Connor and Dolf - hopefully their fighting retreat doesn’t end in disaster, they only have to make a few hops down before they’ve got an elevator waiting to take them to ground level - you made sure it was ready, but there’s no camera coverage of the halls to check.”KAI, FLEE! THE SUBNET IS COLLAPSING!” Alice screams, panicking and using contractions once again - she looks human, fear coloring her Net body with true life, ”I CAN’T STOP IT SPREADING!” “What?” You yell, already moving to the cobwebbed entrance of the tent - red black flames lick at the curtain already, spreading rapidly until the old protections around the camera subsystem fall away to dust. Alice’s new swords are burning with the same crimson flame, as are about half a dozen screaming IC goblins and most of the wooden palisade - for a brief moment in time the scav’s shoddy firewall is actually on fire. “Oh. OH, SHIT! GO! GO!”Running from the tent, several of the flaming goblins nearly bumping into you as they run past screaming in agony and falling to dust, you grab one of Alice’s wrists and make for the exit - parts of the palisade are beginning to collapse inward. As you reach the edge of the camp, you fall up, stomach turning inside out as Alice catapults you both across the Net and toward safety.
>>5959393Upon landing, you waste no time in exiting the Net. The dark interior of the Quadra’s frunk returns sharply to your awareness, your head aching at the quick exit but your mind unharmed.“Alice, are you here?””I am! Are you alright, Kai?” She whispers worriedly within your mind, ”Did we succeed?”“I’m fine, I’m fine - They should be in the elevator now, things went a bit sideways but they were alive and had the dog last I saw…” “Oh, that is such a terrible relief, Kai, I-i… Wait, the dog?” Alice questions.“Yeah, our target was a dog. Yellow fur, floppy ears, barks, the whole package. Get the engine ready, we might have scavs try to tail us.” The Quadra roars to life before you finish speaking, the rumbling vibrations of the engine traveling all the way through its frame and to the frunk, “How’s the spoof group?”“They are heading back, but it will take them too long.”“...At least something went smoothly.” “Yo, choom, we’re in the elevator - took some lead but the mutt’s fine.” Dolf announces with a groan of pain, “We’ll get our eddies.”About a minute and a half later.“Oh man, how’s that for a fucking job? Gonna have a new scar from this shit for sure - hand me another airhypo, two should be plenty, gotta pace em’ out… Uh, Kai, you hiding somewhere?” Dolf rumbles - you can hear a faint muffled echo of his voice through the body of the Quadra, mirroring the crystal clear connection over the holocall.“I’m in the frunk.” You reply simply, rolling slightly as the Quadra begins to move.“...What?” Connor asks curiously - a small bark accompanies the question.“I’m in the frunk.” You repeat, almost able to feel the exchange of glances between your chooms even if you cannot see them from your dark lair at the front of the sports car. “Oh.” She answers back in a pained tone, “...Shit! Hypo is wearing off I think. Do we have more?”“There’s some in the bag on the floor, passenger side. Use as many as you need.”“Oh, preem, I’d kiss you if you weren’t being a frunk goblin, hahaha! Agh, ow, don’t laugh, Cat.” She slips up, too pained to care about her odd fake identity, and you can hear the hiss of a hypo, and another, and another, “...Ooh, fuuuck that’s good!”“Hey, hey, don’t OD over there! Lay off the happy juice, bleeding got stopped already.” Dolf scolds her, “Kai, how long to Wakako? We’re dropping the mutt off on Jig-Jig and grabbing our eddies.””Two minutes.” “Two minutes!” You parrot back over your call.
>>5959397Two minutes later.You exit the frunk of the Quadra just outside of the street level entrance to Jig-Jig street, the smell of cheap sex and regret filling the air of the seediest part of Westbrook. A couple of joytoys and johns watch as you roll out of the darkness of the frunk, staring at you as if they’d just witnessed a vampire emerging from its coffin. Blinking, heart still pounding from the excitement of the job and escape, you find your attention drawn almost unwillingly to the flesh and chrome on display… No, no time for that. Probably catch a neurovirus anyway and burn every time you use your link, this place has to be filled to the brim with malware. You ignore your hormones and fading adrenaline, and move to join your chooms as they walk, or rather limp, toward Wakako’s pachinko parlor deeper in the red light district.“...Thanks for the save, Kai.” Connor says quietly as you walk beside one another, the young puppy held in her arms and drawing a lot of looks from the sketchy denizens of Jig-Jig. Connor would be downright cute carrying the dog if she wasn’t covered in her own and other people’s blood - she smells like singed polymer and burnt gunpowder, and just slightly of hypo mist. “The… the sparky eyes thing that you did, I was gonna get zeroed for sure. And the hypos, hehe. I like those a lot, you buy good stuff.”“You’re higher than an AV.” You comment flatly, giving her a look. “Yeaaah, hehe.” She giggles, grinning wide and happy, bumping into you on purpose - you don’t move, she’s heavier than you’d expect with all the metal in her legs, but she’s still about a foot shorter. “Help me walk, Kai.”
