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System Crash - Cal FreeRunners: Fingers, Barger, Running Wolf,
Iceface, Sister Bodycount and Mouse The team were summoned to a meeting with a Johnson at
Le Maison d’Indochine, a posh Vietnamese restaurant in City Of Angels
The group agreed and next day arranged for flights
down to Mouse managed to discover that all trace of Magestone
on the Matrix had stopped two months previously, they seemed to vanish off
the face of the earth – which seemed to be echoed by the street level
contacts the others were pumping for info – a couple of days pounding the
streets turned up the info that Magestone may have hooked up with the
Gillespies – the local mob. Barger spent some time buying himself a new
outfit consisting of a white boiler suit, bowler hat and cane – possibly
for some bizarre arcane self-initiation rite, but mostly because people do
strange things in the City of Sister Bodycount put a call into her mobster contact,
Uncle Al, back in Seattle who a day later came back with the news that the
Gillespies were working on some sort of elaborate money laundering scam
and that Magestone were probably cutting the code for them. He also
volunteered that the Gillespies had a safe-house out in Next day the Runners hired a van and headed out to
That night, around 3AM, they made their move: Iceface
and Sister Bodycount led the way down to the rear wall, swiftly followed
by Uruk-hai. Scanning the walls, Uruk-hai identified a series of
fixed-point cameras covering the back garden. After a hurried consultation
they derived a plan - Fingers took out the cameras with a lightning bolt
while Iceface launched a grenade at the patio windows - unfortunately the
grenade bounced off the armoured glass and detonated loudly on the patio.
Clambering over the back wall, Iceface and Sister
Bodycount charged the back door swiftly followed by the others. Iceface
shoulder-charged the door, which sprung open, and Sister Bodycount charged
into the hall firing at the Mafiosi who was there. The mobster took the
hit and fired a 3 round burst from his AK97 back doing a light wound,
before Iceface finished him off. At the end of the corridor was a doorway,
which Sister Bodycount charged through as the others came in through the
back door. As Sister Bodycount crashed into the front hallway the
two mobsters waiting there opened fire. The first 3 round burst took
Sister B in the chest, hurting her seriously. Fortunately for the good
Sister the second mobster missed her completely and she was able to return
fire herself. Iceface’s arrival soon ensured the two mobsters were swiftly
dealt with. In the basement, in a makeshift computer lab, they
found the members of Magestone who actually seemed relieved to see them as
they’d not been allowed out for a couple of months. Unfortunately Caliban
was not with them. CalZee, one of the other hackers, told them that Lowry
had gone up to Bay Area Blues
After turning the Magestone boys loose, the Runners
returned to their Motel, to discuss their next move . The quickest way to cover the 560km to San Francisco
would be by air, but then they'd have to lose all the hardware they'd just
purchased from Vaquero - eventually they decided to take the
interstate. Fingers called the hire car company and extended the hire
and early the next morning set out for I-5 and the 6-hour drive
north. After paying the tolls to the California Rangers, they hit the
highway! About 5 that evening they turned off the interstate
and joined the queue of cars waiting to pass the security barriers heading
into the Bay Area. As Fingers pulled up to the barrier, a bored looking
Japanese trooper came up and asked to see her Id which he scanned and
handed back, Mouse was next to pass muster. When the trooper came
to Barger, Iceface and Uruk-Hai in the back, his demeanour changed.
He refused to take the credstick from them and made them place it in the
scanner and remove it! Running Wolf, playing doggie in the back, escaped
any scrutiny. Fortunately all the fake Ids passed examination and he
handwaved them through the barrier, curtly telling them not to leave
the main thoroughfare but to head straight to Oakland. Stopping first for a bite to eat the Runners
quickly secured motel rooms in Oakland and began to pound the
streets, splitting up to try and track down all the Lowries in the
telephone directory. Two days later Uruk-Hai hit paydirt, tracking down
Caliban's grandmother. Posing as one of her friends from LA, he managed to
find out that Caliban had vanished a couple of months earlier after
going out with her friend Ransom. The grandmother told Uruk-Hai that
Ransom was involved with the Metahuman People's Army and she feared the
Security Police had picked them up. After getting Ransom's address from
her, Uruk-Hai headed back to the motel to report in. After a brief discussion with the other he, Barger and
Iceface headed off to Ransom's place. The house was shut up with no lights
on, though Uruk-Hai was sure he had seen a curtain twitch as they'd
approached. While he and Iceface knocked on the door, Barger made his way
round the back - just in time to see a young orc clamber over the fence
and take off up the alleyway. Shouting out to the others, Barger took off
after the fugitive, his long logs quickly made up the distance and it
wasn't long before he’d caught the elusive Ransom. After
introductions were made and Ransom was convinced they weren't
from Security, he lad them back to the house and told his tale. He
and Caliban had attended an MPA meeting two months ago that had been
raided. He'd escaped but Caliban had been picked up. When asked if he
knew where she was being held he told them "where they keep all the
politicals - Alcatraz!" After exchanging contact details with Ransom, the
three headed back top the motel, where Mouse attempted to find
out what she could about the security facility on
Alcatraz. Fingers put in a call to Orion telling him of the
latest developments, who told her he was flying down next day and to
meet him at Oakland Airport midday. Uruk-Hai also decided that if they
were going to spring Caliban from Alcatraz they'd need help, put a call in
to Ransom asking him to set up a meet with the MPA - which he duly did. At
the meeting with the MPA leader - Morpheus - that night, Uruk-Hai
told them what they might be planning, and would the MPA be willing to
assist. The MPA said they'd contact them tomorrow with a decision. Picking up Orion at the airport, he told them that his
principles were determined to get Caliban back and in recognition of the
additional danger were willing to pay an additional 50,000 nuyen to
retrieve her. In addition the Runners were to get Orion into the comms
centre on the island where he could strike a blow against Saito by
inserting a virus. That night Morpheus called to say that the
MPA was in so long as an attempt was made to free as many political
prisoners as possible. Next day a council of war was held and various plans
debated and discarded on how best to assault Alcatraz. The next few days
were spent reconnoitring the island as best as possible from the shore;
planning an re-planning; and procuring various bits of kit for the
run most importantly an activesoft for rotor winged craft so they could utilise the
transport chopper stationed on the island. An astral survey by Running
Wolf identified the whole island was secured by wards. Eventually the plan was settled, The Runners would
spearhead the assault, landing at Baker Beach on the rear of the island,
scale the cliffs and get through the security perimeter and secure the
comms centre. Two cells from the MPA would follow them in and secure the
main docks area and assault the main cellblock, a third MPA cell would be
waiting offshore with a boat to take off the bulk of the prisoners. The
Runners would grab Caliban and exit using the transport chopper. Assault On Acatraz
That night the weather was perfect a storm had blown
up during the day, obscuring the bright moonlight, they set off in 4
zodiacs. As they set off they realised that no-one was familiar with
piloting the outboards and the currents around the island were notoriously
treacherous, however Uruk-Hai and Iceface did their best, even managing to
avoid a patrol boat in the Bay. They landed at Baker Beach and firing
their grapple guns and Uruk-Hai began a cautious ascent up the cliff.
While he did so, Running Wolf went astral, however she quickly curtailed
her survey as she assensed the presence of powerful astral
signatures in the area, and didn't want to raise an alarm. At
the top of the cliff, Uruk-Hai discovered the electrified perimeter fence
was very close to the edge, probably due to erosion, but could see nothing
much else in the darkness and driving rain.
Iceface joined, Uruk-Hai at the top of the cliff
face while the orc carefully bypassed the current-carrying wire in the
fence. While toe two street samurai hung precariously swaying in the wind
and driving rain, Running Wolf on the astral looked about warily for the
powerful presence she had detected earlier. She didn't have to a wait long
as an oni spirit sped in from the direction of the prison block,
however before the sprit could do anything Running Wolf was upon it
unleashing her lupine fury - the spirit didn't stand a chance!
having successfully bypassed the electric fence,
Uruk-Hai called on Sister Bodycount and Fingers to come on up, which
they did, Sister Bodycount hauling the unconscious physical body of
Running Wolf after her. Once on the top of the cliff, the grim shape
of the wall surrounding the exercise yard could be seen some distance away
through the driving rain. Uruk- Hai and Iceface moved out, scouting ahead
while Fingers called Running Wolf back to her body.
Uruk-Hai and Iceface made their way stealthily round
the pathway, trusting to the dark and the driving rain to shield them from
any cameras. Ahead of them they could see the lighthouse, its powerful
beam providing some illumination on the courtyard in front of the entrance
to the cellblocks - beyond the lighthouse was a low blockhouse with a
satellite dish on the roof.
Sneaking up to the blockhouse, Uruk-Hai found the
maglock on the door beyond his ability to bypass. He then climbed up on
the roof, and he headed for the dish. Removing an access panel, he called
Orion up to join him. Orion was able to hack the comms system and plant
his virus, before Uruk Hai used his bolt-cutters to disable the dish. The
comms blackout now in place Iceface broke radio silence and passed the
word to the MPA teams to begin the assault on the docks.
In short order the distant sound of explosions
and gunfire coming from across the island could dimly be heard. As the
Runners made their way to the main entrance to the cellblock a loud
klaxon started sounding. Through the window they could see a
single guard sitting in a booth - seeming unconcerned as the klaxons
rang out. \he became even less concerned as Fingers cast a stunball on him
knocking him unconscious! Summoning his adept powers, Uruk-Hai
punched through the armoured glass, and he and Running Wolf led
the way into the building, a guard in a nearby office tried to call for
help, but a series of stunning blows from Uruk-Hai put a stop to that.
Waking the guard with a stim-patch Iceface and Running
Wolf set about interrogating him and quickly acquired the
passcodes for the maglocks. Equipped with the passcode, Sister Body
count went to the armoury and opened it up, ready to arm the prisoners.
While this went on Orion hacked the Alcatraz computer system and
managed to discover that Caliban was in cellblock B, cell 22 before
the security protocols shut the system down.
Moving deeper into the prison, Iceface swiftly ran
into trouble as a hail of bullets hit his as a guard fired from a nearby
stairwell, however Uruk-Hai and Sister Bodycount soon dealt with him.
Moving up to the barred entrance to the cellblocks, the guard on the other
side was swiftly dealt with by a burst of machine gun fire; Uruk-Hai
then used explosives to blow the lock. Fingers and Sister Bodycount dealt
with the remaining guards, on walkways above the cellblock. Locating
Caliban, she was swiftly freed and then the remaining prisoners. Directing
the prisoners to the armoury and then telling them to head for the docks
where transport was waiting, the Runners gathered up Caliban and Orion and
headed for the choppers in the field below the lighthouse.
Running Wolf loping ahead of the others smelled
creatures ahead! A pack of barghests was guarding the choppers.
Stopping carefully at the edge of the landing field, she informed Fingers.
Fingers mage passed the info to her friends, who readied their
weapons. Standing just outside the area of the landing field, the
barghests were gunned down before they could even get a single howl off!
That threat dealt with, the Runners piled into one of the choppers,
Iceface taking the pilot seat. Uruk-Hai disabled the other chopped by
emptying a clip from his SMG into the engine as the chopper took to
the air. Returning to Oakland the chopper was pushed into the
sea and the Runners disappeared into the Sprawl. On their return to
Seattle Orion paid each the extra 50,000 nuyen he'd promised and also
an additional 10,000 nuyen bonus for freeing so many of the
other political prisoners from Alcatraz.
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Friends:
Magestone; MPA Foes:
Gillespie Mob; Col
Saito World
events: Rumours of
Novatech going public start to circulate. |