[IC] Shadowrun 3E - A Walk in the Dark

[JaceBeleren]

Mercury. The shining star of the slum districts, strictly shadowrunners only, unless you have business with one of the guests. Simultaneously a nightclub, a black-market haven and the perfect location to meet a Mr. Johnson, that's hardly surprising. Factor in the total lack of law enforcement in the area (one of Mercury's primary selling points) and you'll start wondering whether the megacorps got wiped out in the five minutes since you arrived.

A tall, blonde elf woman gets out of a sleek black car. Everything about screams "corp" from her clothes to the way she speaks. Amongst an army of the worst of Japan's criminals, she looks completely out of place.
She reaches the entrance, clearly aware of the dozen or more glares she recieves on her way. A troll waits for her at the entrance. A bouncer. "Name?" He asks impatiently.
"Oh, erm-" She stutters. Nothing the bouncer hasn't seen before. Typical of first-timers. "Mr. Johnson".
"Real name?"
Of course, she'd made another mistake, she thought. There could easily be half a dozen other Johnsons here tonight, and the bouncer couldn't be expected to let everyone who calls themself a Johnson in. Business only, after all, unless you're a shadowrunner. "Moryama. Moryama Jun. Meeting Boom."
Eyebrows are raised at that one. It's obvious who, generally speaking, she is, but no one knows or cares specifically who until now. Rumours of a big job had spread through the street fast, but who had nabbed it had followed almost immediately. A dwarf named Boom.
"You've got table 14, in one of the soundproofed rooms. Door in the left corner, by the bar. Runner's not turned up yet, but I know him. I doubt you'll be waiting long."
For the first time that night, Moryama Jun smiles.

[Duthguy]

Boom still couldn't believe that a rookie like him had managed to snag a job as big as he did. Despite suspecting it was a setup or something he still headed to Mercury in order to meet his Johnson, after all if it was genuine and he succeeded his reputation would greatly improve. Not wanting his car to get stolen he decided to walk.

Unfortunately the walk took longer than expected due to the crowds. Still he didn't run into any trouble and eventually arrived at the nightclub shortly after his client, not that he knew that last part of course. There was a line of people in front if him so it took to get in, of course revealing he had a client waiting could get him in sooner or it could get him marked as a target for a runner who also wanted the job. So he waited impatiently until it was his turn to arrive at the bouncer and talk to the troll. "She here yet?"

[JaceBeleren]

The bouncer replies to Boom's question, and slips in a piece of advice: "Your girl's arrived. Table 14, door in the left corner, by the bar. Soundproofed. Oh, and make sure to talk to Sazama once your business is concluded. He's the bartender, just ask for Soveriegn. They'll know what you mean". Before he addresses the next guest, the troll sees something, narrows his eyes. He pulls something resembling a walkie-talkie and begins to speak. "It's Shishido. Get someone to check out the abandoned building across the street. Thought I saw something, fourth floor in the window closest to the front of Mercury".

Inside, Mercury is impressive. Taking up three levels, with no less than two dozen soundproofed rooms for conducting busniness in. Some of these rooms also include higher-level security, such as white noise generators, for those who pay for it, but these have not been implemented in every room in order to maintain busniness from the less fortunate of Mercury's customers. The bar is stocked with every spirit people drink and a few they don't. There is a "Chalkboard", which is actually a huge vidscreen on the back wall that lists anything a shadowrunner or a Johnson might be interested in, updated whenever one of Mercury's guys finds something. If you need a job, a runner, a new gun or a place to hide anything new and worth having will be listed there. The bartenders are excellent at their jobs, and probably the second place you'd go if you needed something that a runner would need (the Chalkboard being the first). They know the streets well, but none more so than Sazama Toshiyuki, an ex-runner called Sovereign. Rumour has it (correctly, for once) that he's the owner of Mercury, but no one really knows. Regardless, if he isn't, they don't stand a chance of knowing who it really is. Mercury even has it's own equivalent of a hit squad - half a dozen of the sixth world's best, with military grade gear, training, and experience that only running can get you. They say it's for protection from a police raid. While it's true that they would come in handy in such a situation, having dozens of people with guns in one building tends to mean you're not scared of that sort of thing. The real reason Mercury has them is because these are very dangerous people. There are no bar fights in Mercury, because no one wants Mercury's team to get involved. Things need to be that way if you're gonna allow guns and alcohol in the same place.

[Duthguy]

Boom makes a mental note to remember asking for Sovereign. Just as he wants to thank the bouncer for the advice the troll takes out a walkie-talkie and mentions something about the opposite building. Of course he knows whoever is in is probably planning something, the runner has full confidence that Mercury's security team can handle things so he walks into the nightclub.

Not wanting to keep his client waiting any longer Boom ignores the Chalkboard and heads straight to Table 14. Without knocking he opens the door and walks in. Just in case he keeps his hands where the Johnson can see them as he grabs a chair and sits down. "Sorry I'm late, but the walk took longer than I expected."

[JaceBeleren]

"Oh, er, no problem." This has to stop. Moryama's mess at the front door had only been rescued by the infamy of the job she's about to hire Boom for. The same thing is not going to happen here, so she needs to step up her game. She swallows. "Let's get down to business, we both have more important things to do than to sit around chatting." That wasn't too bad, she thinks. Maybe a little cliché, but it had authority in its tone. "I doubt you'll find this particularly surprising, but I represent one megacorporation, and we want you to strike at another. I'm Shiawase and they're Renraku, if you're at all interested. I suppose now you're wondering what makes this mis- run" Moryama corrects herself. "any different from any other run of this kind, primarily why so much is being payed for it. In short, you want to know what the catch is. The catch is that it's meant to go wrong. A seperate heist team is going after the real target, we want you to break in and cause as much damage as possible to Renraku's databanks as possible. The databanks are Renraku's most important asset; the only reason it's not dead already is because everyone's scared there'll be something incriminating or otherwise dangerous stored there. This means that they'll do anything they can to protect them, and as a side effect it will diminish Renraku's reputation severely. This could make Renraku's defence seem a bluff, potentially encouraging other megacorporations to deliver the coup de grace on one of their weaker rivals. Regardless, the primary objective is to cause as big a distraction as possible, so the heist team can perform their run with less resistance. You will be provided with a communications device to linked to them in order to effectively coordinate your movements. So, any questions?"

[Duthguy]

When he first heard the run was supposed to fail, Boom almost though he was indeed being set up. He discarded that though rather quickly as it made no sense to tell him in that case and that turned out to be smart. "I see. I'm certainly willing to do it, but wouldn't a Decker be a better choice? After all if Renraku does dirt on other Megacorps they might be able to obtain that info for you."

If he was entirely honest he was sure that Shiawase had already considered the idea and discarded it for some reason, but the real point of his question was to make him seem smart enough to be able to pull the mission off and stupid enough to fall for any potential doublecrosses Moryama had planned for him.

[JaceBeleren]

"It's a possibility that's been considered, but utlimately discarded. The real intention of this mission is to ensure the heist is successful. While a decker may be able to aquire valuable information, Renraku's defences would not react in the same way, particularly if the hacking was performed remotely. While Shiawase respects your judgement, we reccomend high-explosives, and that you are prepared for an extended firefight. Nothing hits home like a good explosion, and the distraction needs to last as long as possible. Your target is the 77th floor of the Renraku headquarters, in Chiba. You will have one week to make preparations, then you will arrive at the Shiawase headquarter at 10pm. You will be taken by helicopter to the roof of the building, then abseil down to the appropriate floor, using a glass cutter to enter. Once either the heist is complete or you are unable to hold your position any longer, you will be able to use the same mechanism to return to the roof, where the helicopter will be waiting. You will be payed 100,000 nuyen for your service. Do not expect partial payment immediately, if this is unsatisfactory, you may find another Johnson."

[Duthguy]

Their reason for choosing him made a lot more sense with that info, and Boom promptly stored it away in case it would prove useful. He pretends to think Moryama's offer over, even though he has already made up his mind. "I have a few questions. 1. will you provide the glass cutter and abseiling equipment and glass cutter?" All in all the offer is pretty good already, but some extra bonus like a free glass cutter is always welcome. "2 How many floor in total does their headquarters have? After all if there are too many floors between the roof and the 77th my Gm-Doberman won't be much help." While Boom was okay with abseiling, scaling a building while having to carry a combat rig was a whole different story and he liked to avoid that if possible.

[JaceBeleren]

Moryama couldn't keep this up much longer - her act, already fragile, was beginning to fall apart. This wasn't her, and soon that would be clear if it wasn't already. She decided to get a bottle of something strong once business was concluded. She could use a chance to relax. She replied "We will be providing the equipment mentioned, but we expect it returned before you will be paid. I am sure you can understand our reasoning for this. As for your drone, its size could be an issue. Upon my return to Shiawase, I will make note of this, and have the helicopter team bring what is necessary to have it brought down with you. The cost for a single use of this kind of gear is trivial compared to the wealth of Shiawase and even just what you are being paid. However, since the deal is already extremely lucrative, the equipment we are providing will remain ours once the mission is complete. It is being provided for your safety and the success of the mission, not for your wealth or future business endeavors."

[Duthguy]

"That is less good than what I hoped for, but understandable. Miss Moryama, you have yourself a runner." Boom is a bit disappointed he won't be able to keep any of the provided equipment but he gets where she is coming from, plus at the very least he gets a chance to learn what he needs to bring his drones with him on future missions. "I assume there is nothing else for us to discus then?" As he waits for Moryama's answer he makes a quick mental stockpile of any materiel he still needs to acquire, though he figures he should save that for a discussion with Sovereign.

[JaceBeleren]

"Very well. We are finished. Please remember that Shiawase has a lot riding on this, and that failure could be... inconvenient for you, should you still manage to get out alive. As I have described, the potential reaction from Renraku could be bad for Shiawase, unless the heist is a success. And for now, what is bad for Shiawase is bad for you." With that, Moryama Jun stood up, and walked to the door. "I expect we will meet again soon. Please try not to die before then." And she left.

[Duthguy]

The implied threat in Moryama's words came over clear, fail and Shiawase would deal with him. A few seconds after had left, Boom got up himself and exited the room. He made his way to the bar and waited for the bartender to have time for him. As soon as they did he cut to the case. "I have just accepted a Run and would like talk to Soveriegn." Honestly he had no clue how a bartender would be of any help, but it at the very least wouldn't hurt to listen to the bouncer's advice.