Night City Integrate | Undercity | OceanZone - Day 1 (Friday), 11:54 PM PST
Weather Conditions: High City (Thunderstorms, 15mph winds from the NE.) | Midcity (Rain, 10mph winds from the NE.) | Undercity (Fog and Rain, no winds.)
Air Quality Index: High City = 25 | Midcity = 42 | Undercity = 75 (masks required)

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James doesn't miss the tone in Starlight's voice. He pulls down his mask and speaks, "Better late than never, darling. You're the one that messaged me. Was a bit too far out to make it on your timeline. Now, my name's Mathis but the handle's Fixer. I'd prefer to keep my name off the streets if that ain't gonna be a problem."

"Cheeky bakuto, aren't you," it wasn't a question. More of a statement that the fixer made as she acknowledged his comment with a slight narrowing of her eyes. Her baby blues are drawn to Casino as he leans over and engages in a brief, whispered conversation with Vegas.

"Well Miss Starlight," The blond solo says as he finishes with his partner. "This is sure a pretty big crew for an easy run."

"Saint Nick wants to make sure Jace is returned sooner rather than later. She left the how of it to me, and I figured that the more professionals working together as a team, the more likely a successful run. If you don't like the numbers, or you're feeling a little squeamish about the validity of the gig, you're welcome to skip on out."

"Well," Casino continued. "We're hoping for some type of taser in case the boy gives us a hard time and three more grenades for my launcher as I see out of the seven of us I'm the only one packing artillery. Vegas is sending you the list now."

As Casino finished, the fedora wearing solo pressed "SEND" on his agent and the fixer stopped spinning her's long enough to view the screen. "High explosive, frag, and smoke?" She looked up at the big man from underneath her groomed eyebrows. "You forgetting the whole concept of running silent, choomba?"

"Better to have them and not need them, than need the damn things and not have them," came the gruff response.

"It's your coin," Starlight slipped the agent back inside her jacket. "The grenades will likely take me a couple of hours to conjure up. They're a little black. The taser'll be a piece of cake and will cost one hundred ten Night City Dollars. I'll give you a deal on the grenades—against my better judgment. One fifty for the high explosive, seventy-five for the frag, and forty-five for the smoke. You're looking at a total of three hundred and eighty paid in advance."

(OOC: Assuming a bit of conversation/haggling)

Unless delayed, the gorgeous fixer makes her way out of the room, closing the door behind her and leaving the lot of you to figure out how you're going to locate Jace.

"Saint Nick wants to make sure Jace is returned sooner rather than later. She left the how of it to me, and I figured that the more professionals working together as a team, the more likely a successful run. If you don't like the numbers, or you're feeling a little squeamish about the validity of the gig, you're welcome to skip on out."

"Well," Casino continued. "We're hoping for some type of taser in case the boy gives us a hard time and three more grenades for my launcher as I see out of the seven of us I'm the only one packing artillery. Vegas is sending you the list now."

As Casino finished, the fedora wearing solo pressed "SEND" on his agent and the fixer stopped spinning her's long enough to view the screen. "High explosive, frag, and smoke?" She looked up at the big man from underneath her groomed eyebrows. "You forgetting the whole concept of running silent, choomba?"

"Better to have them and not need them, than need the damn things and not have them," came the gruff response.

"It's your coin," Starlight slipped the agent back inside her jacket. "The grenades will likely take me a couple of hours to conjure up. They're a little black. The taser'll be a piece of cake and will cost one hundred ten Night City Dollars. I'll give you a deal on the grenades—against my better judgment. One fifty for the high explosive, seventy-five for the frag, and forty-five for the smoke. You're looking at a total of three hundred and eighty paid in advance."

Vegas watched and listened as Starlight responded to Casino's questions about the size of the group and how the Fixer was figuring that several professionals would assure getting the job done.

Casino leaned over and whispered to Vegas, who in turn agreed with his partner, before hitting ‘SEND' on his Agent to submit the request for the purchase of some more heavy hardware, pus the Taser.

As the Fixer bantered with Casino about ‘forgetting the whole concept of running silent', Vegas silently pondered something else that Starlight had let slip in her previous answer to Casino:

'So , Saint Nick is a She , Might Complicate Things More Than Usual , Better keep this info under my fedora , I can discuss things with Casino later , When we have some privacy ,'

Vegas tipped his hat to Starlight, smiling and good naturedly haggling for a better price, or a two for one deal on the Tasers, noting that a stun approach would be better suited in some situations, rather than storming in with guns blazing.

"Gotta keep some coin for the public transit , otherwise ... I may have to go 'clubbing' and sing a few songs for the dollars to help locate Jace ... or just knock off some Booster Gang on the way."

Vegas hands Starlight some Night City Dollars to help make up the difference with the acquisition request, allowing for his buddy Casino to have 25 Night City Dollars of his own for transit costs.

((OOC: Vegas will keep the 25 Night City Dollars if Casino is unable to spend the Cash for Transit as I am not quite clear as to whether or not we are able to spend Cash for Transit or if we have to use Credit from an Agent and my buddy Casino does not have an Agent ))

"Okay Starlight. Just give me the Taser when you get back and hand the Grenades to Casino. We will wait here and prepare."

Vegas turns to the rest of the professionals to addresses their current situation.

"I realize that waiting another couple of hours for the Grenades for Casino may seem like a waste of time ... especially with the unknown fate of Jace hanging in the balance ... but I have been down this road before where Casino did not have any Grenades ... and it nearly cost us our lives ... pinned down like rats in a corner with no escape ... but we were fortunate enough to have two Booster Gangs burst upon the scene with guns blazing ... trying to scrag each other ... eliminating the Gang that got caught in their cross hairs ... that had us pinned down with no means of escape."

Vegas lets his words sink in before continuing.

"Might be best to get some rest, while we wait for the Grenades to be delivered.

"Blossom could access her gadgets from here and find out what she can about Jace.

"All of us going up to High City to that Bartholomew School might raise some red flags regarding security issues ... especially with all the fire power we are carrying.

"Snipe you got any suggestions?"

((OOC: CAPTIN has not actually stated his character's name in game, unless it is inferred that he did when introductions were made ???))

"Blossom ... Go ahead and tell us how you want to shake this out ... You said something about going to the Bartholomew School for some interviews and answers ... but it may not be wise for all of us to go there ... especially with the security issues in High City.

"I refuse to go without Casino ... and I know that Casino refuses to go without the Grenades!"

((OOC: Vegas is waiting for some responses))

"Just because Jace disappeared from High City does not mean that he is hidden there! Chances are somebody has him in Mid City ... or here in Under City somewhere!

"We need to agree upon a plan of action! Plus we may need to pool our Night City Dollars to cover the Transit Fees for everyone ... unless Blossom can manipulate her gadgets to put some Transit Tokens into our accounts?"

((OOC: Not sure if that can even be done or if we even have any accounts to access from our Agents ... and my buddy Casino has no Agent at the present time!))

"Your Call Blossom ... Unless There Are Better Ideas?"

"I realize that waiting another couple of hours for the Grenades for Casino may seem like a waste of time ... especially with the unknown fate of Jace hanging in the balance ... but I have been down this road before where Casino did not have any Grenades ... and it nearly cost us our lives ... pinned down like rats in a corner with no escape ... but we were fortunate enough to have two Booster Gangs burst upon the scene with guns blazing ... trying to scrag each other ... eliminating the Gang that got caught in their cross hairs ... that had us pinned down with no means of escape."

"I refuse to go without Casino ... and I know that Casino refuses to go without the Grenades!"

"Well Vegas, I don't think we need to take it that far. I'm sure Miss Starlight can deliver the grenades and the taser to wherever we hold up to plan this run as long as we give her notice. I don‘t see us having everything we need, from info on where he's being held, the people holding him and to the security there, before she can get them to us."

As he bent and added his cash to Vegas's stack he nodded respectfully to Starlight. He was ready to start moving on this run and sitting here waiting for 3 grenades, though wanted, was not practical. He had faith that Starlight would get them to him before the real work began. Standing he moved to the doorway yet again and waited for the other runners to decide the next move.

While the two bickered about who would take charge, Casino took action and said how things were going to be. He did not wait for them to settle their discussions. James did not care much who took the lead, he would follow any sensible plan really.

"You two may take a page out of this un's book," James said to Glahn and Blossom while referring to Vegas. "Mr. Glahn, this aint no open road. May not get those open shot you're used to past 300m. And dunno how well that old tech going to carry you here in night city. Close quarters, this little uzi here chambered in a .45 can do a bit of damage within 50m." James said that last bit while patting his hidden smg with the suppressor poking a bit past the lower edge of his jacket.
"If we wanting to be taking public transit. I've got the credchip account that can get us on it. You pay me in your cash dollars and I will use my credchip to get you on."

James was just hear for a job, he would keep this muscleheads gear going and even get the crew past the odd lock if need be. "I will let you soldier boys figure out your plan on all this. I'm just here to make sure the gear keeps going ‘til the job is done."

(OOC: I know it is short but wanted to get something end before another update.)

Night City Integrate | Undercity | OceanZone - Day 1 (Friday), 11:56 PM PST
Weather Conditions: High City (Thunderstorms, 15mph winds from the NE.) | Midcity (Rain, 10mph winds from the NE.) | Undercity (Fog and Rain, no winds.)
Air Quality Index: High City = 25 | Midcity = 42 | Undercity = 75 (masks required)

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"Cowgirl got a name?" The suited solo casually asked.

"Well, ain't that snaaks," Starlight impulsively grinned as she used the Afrikaans word for funny. Dropping back into her chair once again she ignored the protesting squeak of the metal legs as they scooted slightly on the nu-concrete floor and shook her head slightly. "I do this all the time. You chombattas don't know each other from Adam, and here I go off expecting you all to just be chummy.

"Let's play the Get-t'-Know-You game so we can get on with business."

"My Handle is Vegas. This here's Casino."

"Handle's Bloodbank," Bloodbank said with a small smile. "I'm here to ensure that none of you die too quickly. I'd certainly appreciate it, though, if you made my job easy and just refrained from getting shot."

"Sounds good to me." Blossom says, acknowledging Bloodbank's request. She unwraps a lollipop and proceeds to suck on the candy, as she eyes the men around the room. "You go-boys look like you know how to handle your heat, though, so hopefully this will be easy cake for us."

Taking the sucker out of her mouth for a moment, she introduces herself simple, "Blossom."

"You've a couple of other edgerunners who are running a bit late, but will be joining you shortly," Starlight informed everyone when the introductions were through. "As a matter-of-fact, one of them just arrived.

"Team," Starlight intoned with a slight derisive tone. "Meet Mathis."

James doesn't miss the tone in Starlight's voice. He pulls down his mask and speaks, "Better late than never, darling. You're the one that messaged me. Was a bit too far out to make it on your timeline. Now, my name's Mathis but the handle's Fixer. I'd prefer to keep my name off the streets if that ain't gonna be a problem."

"Cheeky bakuto, aren't you," it wasn't a question. More of a statement that the fixer made as she acknowledged his comment with a slight narrowing of her eyes. Bloodbank nodded a greeting to the man, still with a small smile on his lips.

Starlight rubs her left eye with her knuckles and raises her pierced eyebrows. "Like I said, you've one other latecomer pending. Her name is Echo. Just got a message from her that says she'll be here any minute.

"Echo will round out your team."

"About time we hit the Street and Make Bank." Vegas acknowledged. "But first, what say we get acquainted with our specific talents of expertise and figure out a plan of action?" Vegas directed his question to the Fixer, adding, "Any special reason why you chose us for this package delivery? Did you message anyone else... or are we the only Edgers you got a response from to deliver the package?"

"I sent the invite to a few, but you all were the first to respond. After I filled the openings, I closed down the invitation. My agent is responding to each inquiry right now with a sweet little message letting other edgerunners who are interested know that the gig is off the market."

"If getting this kid back is so important," Casino piped up in his deep resonating voice. "Do you have any extra gear we could use to help in completing this run successfully? Med gear, extra ammo, some grenades for my launcher? After all Miss Starlight it's better to have something and don't need it then don't have it and need it."

"Well, Mr. Casino," Starlight answered back while affecting a Southern drawl. "You got the dough, I can get you what you need. But ain't nothing free sweetheart."

Vegas turns to Blossom and asks, "You got a special place where you can tap into to locate the information we need for the package delivery?" Vegas pats the pistol secured in his shoulder holster and tips his fedora to Blossom with a smile and adds, "The rest of us can set up shop where you think is best... where we can cover you... to make sure no one disturbs your research... so to speak." Turning to the others he adds, "That is... unless any of you have a better idea... or plan of action... for securing the delivery of the package?"

"Nah, friend. We do this on the fly, man. I'm thinking paying a visit to Bartholomew might be a first stop of us. By the time we get there, I'll have sifted the Pool and we'll see what floats to the top. Make a plan along the way." Blossom gave Vegas a wide smile as she continued, "Once we get to the school, depending on how we flow, I might need you to play with your pearly piece." She gives him a wink.

The door swings open once again and the Gray Samurai steps aside long enough to allow a pale little woman to slip through the door.
"Well," Starlight quips. "It's about time. This is the last of your team—This is Echo."

Again, Bloodbank nodded his greeting. Blossom actually gets up and goes in to give Echo a hug. As Blossom rushes towards the newcomer, Echo's left hand drops to the knife on her thigh and she instinctively tenses up.

"Yay!" the bubbly wardriver squeals, ignoring the obvious unease with which the young thing received her affection. "Glad you could make it, sweetie! You had me thinking I was going to be running with these go-boys solo." Looking around the room with her arm still draped around Echo's shoulder, she made introduction. "Echo, meet the fellas. You got the high-rollers over there, Vegas and Casino. Hard to miss them. Ripdoc Bloodbank here to help keep your heart fluttering. Fixer is over there, he just made it here too, so don't you worry a bit. And then there's this guy, " Nodding at Ghlahn. "I don't know his name yet. You haven't even said your name yet." Looking back at Echo, "He hasn't been introduced yet. See, you're right on time. We're just getting started. Hi, Echo! I'm Blossom! Glad you're coming along for the ride."

"Um," Echo hunches her shoulders underneath the overly warm reception and gives a weak smile. "Sorry I'm late, everyone. I'm used to riding solo, and still getting used to hopping public routes."

"Well Miss Starlight," Casino accepts Echo's apology by continuing with the business at hand. "This is sure a pretty big crew for an easy run."

"Saint Nick wants to make sure Jace is returned sooner rather than later," the fixer responds with ease. "She left the how of it to me, and I figured that the more professionals working together as a team, the more likely a successful run. If you don't like the numbers, or you're feeling a little squeamish about the validity of the gig, you're welcome to skip on out."

"Well," Casino continued indicating his acceptance of the terms. "We're hoping for some type of taser in case the boy gives us a hard time and three more grenades for my launcher as I see out of the seven of us I'm the only one packing artillery. Vegas is sending you the list now."

As Casino finishes, the fedora wearing solo pressed "SEND" on his agent and the fixer stopped spinning her's long enough to view the screen. "High explosive, frag, and smoke?" She looked up at the big man from underneath her groomed eyebrows. "You forgetting the whole concept of running silent, choomba?"

"Better to have them and not need them, than need the damn things and not have them," came the gruff response.

"It's your coin," Starlight slipped the agent back inside her jacket. "The grenades will likely take me a couple of hours to conjure up. They're a little black. The taser'll be a piece of cake and will cost one hundred ten Night City Dollars. I'll give you a deal on the grenades—against my better judgment. One fifty for the high explosive, seventy-five for the frag, and forty-five for the smoke. You're looking at a total of three hundred and eighty paid in advance."

Vegas tipped his hat to Starlight, smiling and good-naturedly beginning the haggle for a better price, "I appreciate the solid, Starlight. I'm sure you'll agree that the benefits of having a non-lethal on hand far outweigh the noise we may end up having to make if things go south. What say you to cutting us some slack on the sticker price?"

"I've read all of your dosiers," the small pinpoints of light at the ends of her pixie cut swayed slightly—hypnotically—about Starlight's head in a demonstration of how she claimed her handle as she shook her head a tiny bit. "You all are capable of making a silent run, and Jace has been kidnapped. What makes you think he won't want to come with you when the mangy lot of you ride in on your white horses?"

"You never know in these situations," Vegas calmly shrugged his broad shoulders. "The kid might be suffering from some post traumatic stress, he might think we're the monsters under the bed. Either way, we can do more good with more dough in our pockets than otherwise."

"No doubt," a soft and friendly smile settled on the pretty woman's blue-painted lips. "But I've got a price tag that is imposed on me by my vendors, and vendor relations is an important part of my business. Sorry, Choomba, but the price is as it is."

"Gotta keep some coin for the public transit," Vegas gives it one last try. "Otherwise... I may have to go 'clubbing' and sing a few songs for the dollars to help locate Jace... or just knock off some Booster Gang on the way."

"Listen Slick," Starlight leans forward and places her hands flat on the table, a sure sign that the negotiation is over. "I'm barely making any dough as it stands—less than the lot of you as a matter-of-fact. So, things are. Savvy?"

Resigned, Vegas hands Starlight some Night City Dollars to help make up the difference with the acquisition request, allowing for his buddy Casino to have 25 Night City Dollars of his own for transit costs. "Okay Starlight. Just give me the Taser when you get back and hand the Grenades to Casino. We will wait here and prepare."

Vegas turns to the rest of the professionals to addresses their current situation.

"I realize that waiting another couple of hours for the grenades for Casino may seem like a waste of time... especially with the unknown fate of Jace hanging in the balance. But I have been down this road before where Casino did not have any grenades and it nearly cost us our lives—pinned down like rats in a corner with no escape... but we were fortunate enough to have two Booster Gangs burst upon the scene with guns blazing trying to scrag each other eliminating the Gang that got caught in their cross hairs that had us pinned down with no means of escape."

"Well Vegas," Casino drops in on the end of the explanation. "I don't think we need to take it that far. I'm sure Miss Starlight can deliver the grenades and the taser to wherever we hold up to plan this run as long as we give her notice. I don‘t see us having everything we need, from info on where he's being held, the people holding him, and to the security there before she can get them to us." the large solo bends and adds his cash to Vegas' stack then nods respectfully to Starlight.

"All right, partner," Vegas stuffs his hands in his pants pockets and rocks back on his heels. "Might be best if we all get some rest then while Blossom could access her gadgets from here and find out what she can about Jace.

"All of us going up to High City to that Bartholomew School might raise some red flags regarding security issues... especially with all the firepower we are carrying.

"Now that you're all here and getting along," Starlight injects. "I'll be taking my leave. The night is young, and there's work to be done. You've my contact info if you need to reach me, chombattas. Upload your status on the hour, every hour, and keep me informed so that I can keep Saint Nick in the loop. Au revoir, my pretties."

Bloodbank nods his farewell with another small smile, and the fixer receives various additional forms of farewell as she exits the room.

"Blossom," Casino turns his gaze to the petite netrunner who is still cuddled up to the very uncomfortable looking Echo. "Go ahead and tell us how you want to shake this out. You said something about going to the Bartholomew School for some interviews and answers, but it may not be wise for all of us to go there especially with the security issues in High City.

"Keep in mind, that just because Jace disappeared from High City does not mean that he is hidden there. Chances are somebody has him in Midcity... or here in Undercity somewhere.

"We need to agree upon a plan of action! Plus we may need to pool our Night City Dollars to cover the Transit Fees for everyone... unless Blossom can manipulate her gadgets to put some Transit Tokens into our accounts? Your Call Blossom. Unless There Are Better Ideas."

Ghlahn waits for the door to close before interrupting, "Alright, let's establish a chain of command, some combat roles, and some non-combat roles. I'll take second in command, overwatch, and 'stand by and looking ravishing' respectively, as I'm a good leader but not quite that good, a damn hot sniper, and a damn hot sniper." His smirk widens slightly and he waits for responses. While he does so, he loads his sniper rifle and chambers a round without looking at it.

Blossom rolls her eyes as Ghlahn starts loading gun and talking about establishing chains of command. "Slick." Turning back to Echo, "See, Echo?! This is why I'm glad you're here to run this with me!" This elicits a modicum of blood rushing to the otherwise very tanned face of the leather-clad young woman, but nothing more.

Addressing Ghlahn again, Blossom says lightly, "Silly joy-boy. Everyone knows girls rule the world.

"Seriously though, you want to play second-to-one, that's fine with me. I'm running the Net for this gig, feeding your brains with as much info as you can handle and looking to get us clearance when we need it. Unless you chombattas got a better plan, I say we follow Starlight's lead and make bank. Jace ain't likely to walk in the door, so I say we start with the school and see if we can pick up this little bunny's trail. That pass for you, boys?"

"You two may take a page out of this un's book," James said to Glahn and Blossom while referring to Vegas. "Mr. Glahn, this ain't no open road. May not get those open shots you're used to past three hundred meters. And dunno how well that old tech's going to carry you here in Night City. Close quarters, this little Uzi here, chambered in a .45, can do a bit of damage within fifty meters." James says that last bit while patting his hidden submachine gun with the suppressor poking a bit past the lower edge of his jacket. "If we wanting to be taking public transit. I've got the credchip account that can get us on it. You pay me in your cash dollars and I will use my credchip to get you on."

James was just here for a job, he would keep this muscleheads gear going and even get the crew past the odd lock if need be. "I will let you soldier boys figure out your plan on all this. I'm just here to make sure the gear keeps going ‘til the job is done."

"I don't much care who's leading this run," Bloodbank pipes up with a friendly tone. "Just so long as we're not hurting innocents, and the lot of you make this as easy for me as possible. That means, don't get dead, and keep the team blood flow to a minimum."

"I suppose deciding on a proper chain-of-command is a good place to start," Casino acknowledges Glahn's input with a good-natured half-smile and dulcet tones. "Anyone got a problem with our sniper friend, here, taking second seat?" Only the sound of the machinery outside of the smelly, dimly light office answers the question. "That's decided then."

"Listen Slick," Starlight leans forward and places her hands flat on the table, a sure sign that the negotiation is over. "I'm barely making any dough as it stands—less than the lot of you as a matter-of-fact. So, things are. Savvy?"

Vegas tipped his fedora to Starlight and smiled broadly, before handing over some Night City Dollars to pay for the requested weapons.

"Can't blame a High Roller for shaking the dice for better odds," the Frank Sinatra look alike bantered good naturedly. "Just let me know where we can pick up the merchandise."

((OOC: The following 'Private Conversation Between Vegas and Casino' is for their ears only and also so Brom can Private Message any info as a result of what Vegas is discussing with Casino))

In a few moments Vegas joined Casino for a 'Private Conversation' where the two partners could exchange some info and keep an eye on the other Edgerunners, while positioning themselves at a better vantage point in case any unexpected company burst into the room to make things interesting.

Vegas whispers to Casino out of ear shot to the others: "I noticed that Starlight let it slip that Saint Nick is a 'She' ... Jace might have been abducted by his father ... or maybe from some High City corporate rival ... gonna be a bit more unpredictable if the 'She Saint Nick' gets impatient and takes matters into her own hands to get her boy back ... like a She Bear robbed of her Cub ... nobody will be safe!"

Vegas rubbed his chin thoughtfully before adding, "Might also be that her boy Jace was nabbed to fill an order for fresh meat as a Joy Boy. Who do we know that we can contact to find out if any fresh faces are being trafficked for the Preds who prey on little boys?"

((OOC: Will wait on any info from Brom before proceeding to address what to do next as a group, just wanted to get this Private Conversation out of the way first))

"If we wanting to be taking public transit. I've got the credchip account that can get us on it. You pay me in your cash dollars and I will use my credchip to get you on."

Standing at the door Casino heard the last of Mathis statement and found himself a little annoyed.

"Really?" He looked straight at Mathis. "You actually want to be repaid for the cost of public transport? I know we are all strangers here" A pause to look around the room. "But we need to work as a team combining our resources to get this run done successfully. After all if we fail we could be as, Miss Starlight has said, 'flatlined' Now If it were me and I had the cash I'd consider paying for transport, public or private, as part of adding my resources, as part of being a team. If you can't look at it as part of doing business to gain a bigger payout then I'm not sure I can trust you. Example, if I gotta use my guns I'm sure as s*** not gonna ask Miss Starlight to pay for each bullet. You‘ll pay for transport, but only if we had over the cash first. Well from where I stand that sounds more like blackmail then team work."

This takes place before the private conversation with Vegas of course

James thought about Casino's concerns for a moment before responding, "Well friend, if I may call you that Mr Casino, I have been brought up that each person provides their way. I will not ask you to pay for my tools or ammo. If you are worried about me ditchin' out on the run, then I most likely wouldn't even be here. A runner with a bad name aint gonna get a next job.

"My main concern is I've got bills to pay, and if we decide we're not able obtain the kid, then this job only pays 5 c's. Transpo, whether public or private for a group this size could cut into that a decent chunk. Now, if you don't have the cash up front, then I'm sure something can be worked out. Cause if we don't even get the info on the boy, then no pay day."

He was not trying to do anything the sort of blackmail, but James would not pay the way for everybody here. All his bills for the moment were paid, but it was just a few weeks before his agent service was due. He needed the cash probably just as bad as anybody else here.

Vegas listened to the exchange between Casino and James as he consulted his Agent, before addressing the concerns raised by his partner.

James thought about Casino's concerns for a moment before responding, "Well friend, if I may call you that Mr Casino, I have been brought up that each person provides their way. I will not ask you to pay for my tools or ammo. If you are worried about me ditchin' out on the run, then I most likely wouldn't even be here. A runner with a bad name aint gonna get a next job.

"My main concern is I've got bills to pay, and if we decide we're not able obtain the kid, then this job only pays 5 c's. Transpo, whether public or private for a group this size could cut into that a decent chunk. Now, if you don't have the cash up front, then I'm sure something can be worked out. Cause if we don't even get the info on the boy, then no pay day."

He was not trying to do anything the sort of blackmail, but James would not pay the way for everybody here. All his bills for the moment were paid, but it was just a few weeks before his agent service was due. He needed the cash probably just as bad as anybody else here.


"We all have bills or debts," interjected the Frank Sinatra lookalike, "so it is best to pool our resources to find Jace, before Saint Nick or some other group finds him before we do!"

Then looking to his partner Casino with a good natured smile and slapping the pistol secured in his shoulder holster, he added, "I gotcha covered partner!"

Vegas consulted his Agent once more before addressing the group of assembled Edgerunners:

"It is nearly midnight and the Bartholomew School is only open during daylight hours.

"I have a contact at the Rat Pack Nightclub who may be able to provide some answers to a couple of questions I just discussed with Casino.

"According to my Agent, a Groundcar will get us there in 4.5 hours.

"Using the AV/Gyro will take us 45 minutes.

"Or the Maglev + Walking will take us 1 hour 10 minutes.

"Going by Train + Walking will take us 2 hours 30 minutes.

"Final option is a Bus + Walking will take us 6 hours.

((OOC: Brom has listed all the Fees on Page 8 of the Q&A and the Train seems to be the most economical to me at the present time, but I am open to suggestions))

"Starlight said it would take a couple hours to acquire the Grenades, so I am alerting her to make the delivery to the Rat Pack Nightclub.

"Like I said before, I got a contact there that should be able to pass me some information. I prefer not to be flying blind into this caper!

"Should give Blossom some time to access her info on the fly in the comfort of the Rail, where we all can get better acquainted.

"The night is still young and the Rat Pack Nightclub should be jumping by the time we get there!"

Turning to James the Suited Solo added, "Okay Fixer, the cost of the Train to Midcity is .50 NCD/station ... so we can take up a collection to cover your costs!

"Unless any of you other Chambattas have a better plan!"

((OOC: Not a Question, just a Statement. I am giving James or any of the others the option of choosing a better mode of transportation at a higher rate. Bus just seems too slow!))

"Really?" He looked straight at Mathis. "You actually want to be repaid for the cost of public transport? I know we are all strangers here" A pause to look around the room. "But we need to work as a team combining our resources to get this run done successfully. After all if we fail we could be as, Miss Starlight has said, 'flatlined' Now If it were me and I had the cash I'd consider paying for transport, public or private, as part of adding my resources, as part of being a team. If you can't look at it as part of doing business to gain a bigger payout then I'm not sure I can trust you. Example, if I gotta use my guns I'm sure as s*** not gonna ask Miss Starlight to pay for each bullet. You‘ll pay for transport, but only if we had over the cash first. Well from where I stand that sounds more like blackmail then team work."

James thought about Casino's concerns for a moment before responding, "Well friend, if I may call you that..."

Bloodbank tuned out the brief discussion at this point. He'd do what he needed for transportation, whether it be throw what little scratch he had left into a pot for group fare, or pay back Fixer as needed. He had turned his attention to the situation pertaining to the next step they were going to take. Blossom had mentioned heading over to Bartholomew's for "Interviews and answers", and although it seemed to be the logical next step in their search for Jace, the medic had his reservations.

Trying to think of a possible alternative, Bloodbank turned his attention to the conversation again.

"It is nearly midnight and the Bartholomew School is only open during daylight hours.

"I have a contact at the Rat Pack Nightclub who may be able to provide some answers to a couple of questions I just discussed with Casino.

"According to my Agent, a Groundcar will get us there in 4.5 hours.

"Using the AV/Gyro will take us 45 minutes.

"Or the Maglev + Walking will take us 1 hour 10 minutes.

"Going by Train + Walking will take us 2 hours 30 minutes.

"Final option is a Bus + Walking will take us 6 hours.

"Starlight said it would take a couple hours to acquire the Grenades, so I am alerting her to make the delivery to the Rat Pack Nightclub.

"Like I said before, I got a contact there that should be able to pass me some information. I prefer not to be flying blind into this caper!

"Should give Blossom some time to access her info on the fly in the comfort of the Rail, where we all can get better acquainted.

"The night is still young and the Rat Pack Nightclub should be jumping by the time we get there!"

Turning to James the Suited Solo added, "Okay Fixer, the cost of the Train to Midcity is .50 NCD/station ... so we can take up a collection to cover your costs!

"Unless any of you other Chambattas have a better plan!"

Gently, Bloodbank pushed himself off of the wall he was leaning on. "Rat Pack Nightclub is fine by me," he began, addressing Vegas with a slight shrug. "Although, choomba, while I can certainly understand that there isn't a whole lot of trust to go around currently, it might be a good start to building some if you and your large friend decided to include us all in secret speculations." Bloodbank kept his tone friendly, holding his arms out a little wide in a small gesture indicating the entire group. "We're all a team, after all!

"I have to admit, though, making a stop by Bartholomew's does not sit too well with me. While I can't think of a reasonable alternative yet, I believe that any one of us approaching this school would raise all sorts of alarms that would defeat the purpose of 'running quiet'; especially if our kidnappers have someone to keep an eye on the school or someone on the inside. Besides that, I don't believe any reputable school would share any information with a complete stranger about one of their students. On top of that, tomorrow is Saturday, and I highly doubt there would be anyone there to talk to."

With a small, apologetic grimace, Bloodbank turned his head to Blossom. "What exactly did you have in mind, regarding the school?"

Ghlahn smirked at the complete lack of trust going on. "Look, I'm perfectly fine not being friends, but maybe we could all be included in your little chatty catchy circles, yeah?" The sniper slung his rifle over his shoulder and leaned against the wall as smugly as humanly possible.

"Well friend, if I may call you that Mr Casino, I have been brought up that each person provides their way. I will not ask you to pay for my tools or ammo. If you are worried about me ditchin' out on the run, then I most likely wouldn't even be here. A runner with a bad name aint gonna get a next job."

At first Casino did not reply giving Mathis a long hard look taking in his weapons and clothing, then he finally spoke.

"No you may not and the names Casino, not mister, not sir, just Casino. As for "ditching" on us during the run, well I guess we'll see. I'll run with anyone if the money's good but I only trust one of the people in this room, I'm kinda paranoid like that."

Looking over the rest of the people in the room and their faces.

"I'm sure we all feel the same, this run's not about friendship, its about money. We don't need to be friends to get this boy back, but we do need to work as a team. Teammates help other team members as needed and I'll do my best to do that. As for Vegas and I's 'secret' chat it was about our finances for the taser and my grens, that's it."

A look to Ghlahn........

"As for 'non-combat' roles, choomba, there is no such thing in this bizz, everyone fights as needed."

A last look at Mathis, then the others in the room, to emphasize his point he waited for the rest to get moving...............

((OCC: Ok as far as the whispered chat between Vegas and I I'm assuming they are talking about the inquiry about funds correct?))

While the joy-boys worked out their testosterone, Blossom busied herself with some initial searches of the Data Pool. She knew she's need to get on Bartholomew's physical campus in order to get some reliable information, but this might be a start, and the boys seemed to just be getting warmed up.

"Bartholomew School for Advanced Studies, homepage, search" Blossom spoke the command to her agent.

OOC: Looking to find information (via Library Search) from Bartholomew's "official" homepage, gaining initial info on: the names of the administrators, teachers and staff; what type of safety the school offers to the students (like do they have weapon detectors, private security force on campus, etc); what corporation(s) financially fund the school; pictures of the school campus, maps of the campus, etc; who are some prominent alumni of the school.

Not sure how much time Blossom needs to scan through and commit the information to memory, but she will also be looking to complete the following searches as well:

- "Jase" "Bartholomew School for Advanced Studies" "Missing" (done on both the normal and dark web)
- "Bartholomew School for Advanced Studies" "High City" "Schematics"
- "Bartholomew School for Advanced Studies" "High City" "News"
- "Bartholomew School for Advanced Studies" "High City" "Successful Run Against" (this would be done on the equivalent of the Dark Web)
- image search on "Jase"'s picture (both normal and dark web)

If Blossom can't make all these search while the boys are busy with their squabbling, she take them to go and make the searches along the way. She'll be looking to pass on any info, especially photos of the campus, info about security to the other players here in the room.
IC: As the boys seemed to set in on a plan, Blossom looked up from her agent. "Echo, what did we land ourselves in here?" she sighed. Looking at Vegas, "Sure you can't just call your contact and save us all the trip, Blue Eyes? I like dancing as much as any girl, but this job's going to require me to get on Bartholomew campus if I hope to crack Jase's school record and maybe see if they got some video of this kid just 'disappearing'. The night's young and I'd rather hit the campus when the kiddos aren't in school."

"Maybe we can do both though? I mean, Vegas, you and your friend here could hit the club and connect with your contact, while the rest of us hit Bartholomew?"

OOC: In an effort to speed up game play, if the crew is agreeable to Blossom's idea, awesome. If not, Blossom will be agreeable to go to the Rat Pack first.

Vegas looked intently into the eyes of each of the assembled group members as he awaited their response to his 'plan of action' about taking a train to the Rat Pack Nightclub in Midcity.

Gently, Bloodbank pushed himself off of the wall he was leaning on. "Rat Pack Nightclub is fine by me," he began, addressing Vegas with a slight shrug. "Although, choomba, while I can certainly understand that there isn't a whole lot of trust to go around currently, it might be a good start to building some if you and your large friend decided to include us all in secret speculations." Bloodbank kept his tone friendly, holding his arms out a little wide in a small gesture indicating the entire group. "We're all a team, after all!

Vegas responded to Bloodbank with a courteous tip of his striped fedora, "Well now Choomba ... I will gladly fill you all in on our secret speculations ... if it is necessary ... and when it is necessary ... but now ... it is not necessary!"


Ghlahn smirked at the complete lack of trust going on. "Look, I'm perfectly fine not being friends, but maybe we could all be included in your little chatty catchy circles, yeah?" The sniper slung his rifle over his shoulder and leaned against the wall as smugly as humanly possible.

"Like I said Snipe," Vegas responded to the smug sniper, "you will be included in my chatty catchy circle with Casino ... if it is necessary ... when it is necessary ... but right now ... it is not necessary!"


"Well friend, if I may call you that Mr Casino, I have been brought up that each person provides their way. I will not ask you to pay for my tools or ammo. If you are worried about me ditchin' out on the run, then I most likely wouldn't even be here. A runner with a bad name aint gonna get a next job."

At first Casino did not reply giving Mathis a long hard look taking in his weapons and clothing, then he finally spoke.

"No you may not and the names Casino, not mister, not sir, just Casino. As for "ditching" on us during the run, well I guess we'll see. I'll run with anyone if the money's good but I only trust one of the people in this room, I'm kinda paranoid like that."

Looking over the rest of the people in the room and their faces.

"I'm sure we all feel the same, this run's not about friendship, its about money. We don't need to be friends to get this boy back, but we do need to work as a team. Teammates help other team members as needed and I'll do my best to do that. As for Vegas and I's 'secret' chat it was about our finances for the taser and my grens, that's it."

A look to Ghlahn........

"As for 'non-combat' roles, choomba, there is no such thing in this bizz, everyone fights as needed."

Vegas smiled at the reply of his partner in regards to the necessity of friendship and money.

"Casino summed up our chatty chat secret speculations," stated the Suited Solo matter of factly, "It was necessary for the two of us to privately discuss the matter of pooling our finances and why ... which was necessary for the two of us ... seeing as we have worked together for a number of years ... but not necessary for the rest of you to listen in on the necessity of our private financial speculations!"

Vegas slowly pulled his hand gun from the restraints of his shoulder holster, checked each chamber slowly and methodically, before returning it back to the shoulder holster.

Then the Frank Sinatra look alike nodded to his partner Casino, while he waited for any further responses from the gathered group of Edgerunners.

Bloodbank broke the silence, "I have to admit, though, making a stop by Bartholomew's does not sit too well with me. While I can't think of a reasonable alternative yet, I believe that any one of us approaching this school would raise all sorts of alarms that would defeat the purpose of 'running quiet'; especially if our kidnappers have someone to keep an eye on the school or someone on the inside. Besides that, I don't believe any reputable school would share any information with a complete stranger about one of their students. On top of that, tomorrow is Saturday, and I highly doubt there would be anyone there to talk to."

With a small, apologetic grimace, Bloodbank turned his head to Blossom. "What exactly did you have in mind, regarding the school?"

Vegas leaned forward ever so slightly, intently listening with keen interest to how the young lady would respond to Bloodbank's question:


As the boys seemed to set in on a plan, Blossom looked up from her agent. "Echo, what did we land ourselves in here?" she sighed. Looking at Vegas, "Sure you can't just call your contact and save us all the trip, Blue Eyes? I like dancing as much as any girl, but this job's going to require me to get on Bartholomew campus if I hope to crack Jase's school record and maybe see if they got some video of this kid just 'disappearing'. The night's young and I'd rather hit the campus when the kiddos aren't in school."

"Maybe we can do both though? I mean, Vegas, you and your friend here could hit the club and connect with your contact, while the rest of us hit Bartholomew?"

"Well now Blossom," the Suited Solo smiled and tipped his fedora to her, "all dancing aside ... calling my Contact is entirely out of the question ... it is necessary to speak in person ... plus there is the matter of collecting the Taser and Grenades from Starlight ... so it is necessary for Casino and myself to go to the Rat Pack Nightclub right away.

"What you propose is reasonable enough ... me and Casino hitting the club ... while the rest of you hit Bartholomew ... but I am 'Playing a Hunch' ... so it is necessary for the two of us to go to the Rat Pack Nightclub as soon as possible ... I would rather the rest of you join us ... but as long as our rail fare is paid in advance to get Casino and me to the Rat Pack ... plus to a suitable rendezvous point ... then you are all free to do what you think is necessary ... because what is necessary ... is to find Jace as soon as possible!"

Vegas waits a few moments for any further response, then gathers his gear and heads for the door.

Night City Integrate | Undercity | OceanZone - Day 1 (Friday), 11:59 PM PST
Weather Conditions: High City (Thunderstorms, 15mph winds from the NE.) | Midcity (Rain, 10mph winds from the NE.) | Undercity (Fog and Rain, no winds.)
Air Quality Index: High City = 25 | Midcity = 42 | Undercity = 75 (masks required)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The ripdoc pushed himself off of the wall he was leaning on. "Rat Pack Nightclub is fine by me," he began, addressing Vegas with a slight shrug. "Although, choomba, while I can certainly understand that there isn't a whole lot of trust to go around currently, it might be a good start to building some if you and your large friend decided to include us all in secret speculations." Bloodbank kept his tone friendly, holding his arms out a little wide in a small gesture indicating the entire group. "We're all a team, after all!"

Vegas responded to Bloodbank with a courteous tip of his striped fedora, "Well now Choomba... I will gladly fill you all in on our secret speculations, if it is necessary, and when it is necessary. But now; it is not necessary!"

Ghlahn smirked at the complete lack of trust going on. "Look, I'm perfectly fine not being friends, but maybe we could all be included in your little Chatty Cathy circles, yeah?" The sniper slung his rifle over his shoulder and leaned against the wall as smugly as humanly possible.

"Like I said Snipe," Vegas responded to the self-satisfied sniper, "You will be included in my Chatty Cathy circle with Casino if it is necessary, when it is necessary. But right now, it is not necessary!"

"Well friend," Fixer inserted himself into the conversation to continue the bantering he and the clean-cut blonde solo had started. "If I may call you that, Mr. Casino, I have been brought up that each person provides for their own way. I will not ask you to pay for my tools or ammo. If you are worried about me ditchin' out on the run, then I most likely wouldn't even be here. A runner with a bad name ain't gonna get a next job."

At first Casino did not reply giving Mathis a long, hard look and taking in his weapons and clothing, then he finally spoke. "No, you may not. And the name's Casino, not mister, not sir, just Casino. As for ‘ditching' on us during the run, well I guess we'll see. I'll run with anyone if the money's good but I only trust one of the people in this room, I'm kinda paranoid like that."

Looking over the rest of the people in the room and their faces, Casino added, "I'm sure we all feel the same. This run's not about friendship, it's about money. We don't need to be friends to get this boy back, but we do need to work as a team. Teammates help other team members as needed and I'll do my best to do that. As for mine and Vegas' 'secret' chat... it was about our finances for the taser and my grens. That's it." He threw a hard look Ghlahn's way and finished with, "As for 'non-combat' roles, choomba, there is no such thing in this bizz, everyone fights as needed."

Vegas smiled at the reply of his partner in regards to the necessity of friendship and money before adding his two cents worth. "Casino summed up our Chatty Cathy secret speculations," stated the suited solo matter-of-factly, "It was necessary for the two of us to privately discuss the matter of pooling our finances and why. Which was necessary for the two of us—seeing as we have worked together for a number of years—but not necessary for the rest of you to listen in on our private financial speculations!"

Vegas slowly pulled his handgun from the restraints of his shoulder holster and methodically checked each chamber before returning it back to the shoulder holster. Then the Frank Sinatra look-alike nodded to his partner Casino, while he waited for any further responses from the gathered group of Edgerunners indicating he was ready to go.

Apparently still uneasy with the plan, Bloodbank piped up, "I have to admit, though, making a stop by Bartholomew's does not sit too well with me. While I can't think of a reasonable alternative yet, I believe that any one of us approaching this school would raise all sorts of alarms that would defeat the purpose of 'running quiet'; especially if our kidnappers have someone to keep an eye on the school or someone on the inside. Besides that, I don't believe any reputable school would share any information with a complete stranger about one of their students. On top of that, tomorrow is Saturday, and I highly doubt there would be anyone there to talk to."

With a small, apologetic grimace, Bloodbank turned his head to Blossom. "What exactly did you have in mind regarding the school?"

Blossom looked up from her agent with an expression that was cute in its fake dismay. "Echo, what did we land ourselves in here?" she sighed. Looking at Vegas she purrs, "Sure you can't just call your contact and save us all the trip, Blue Eyes? I like dancing as much as any girl, but this job's going to require me to get on Bartholomew campus if I hope to crack Jase's school record and maybe see if they got some video of this kid just 'disappearing'. The night's young and I'd rather hit the campus when the kiddos aren't in school.

"Maybe we can do both though? I mean, Vegas, you and your friend here could hit the club and connect with your contact, while the rest of us hit Bartholomew?"

"Well now Blossom," the suited solo smiled and tipped his fedora to her, "All dancing aside, calling my contact is entirely out of the question. It's necessary to speak in person. Plus, there is the matter of collecting the taser and grenades from Starlight. So, it is necessary for Casino and myself to go to the Rat Pack Nightclub right away.

"What you propose is reasonable enough. Me and Casino hitting the club while the rest of you hit Bartholomew, but I am 'playing a hunch'. So, it is necessary for the two of us to go to the Rat Pack Nightclub as soon as possible. I would rather the rest of you join us, but as long as our rail fare is paid in advance to get Casino and me to the Rat Pack—plus to a suitable rendezvous point—then you are all free to do what you think is necessary. Because what is necessary, is to find Jase as soon as possible!"

Having offered up her suggestion and shared with the boys her need to be on site, Blossom busied herself with some initial searches of the Data Pool. She knew she'd need to get on Bartholomew's physical campus in order to get some reliable information by wardriving, but this might be a start, and the boys seemed to just be getting warmed up.

"Bartholomew School for Advanced Studies, homepage, search" Blossom softly spoke the command to her agent. The screen flared to life with a three dimensional Anime girl wearing a school girl's outfit and long, pink hair done up in two pigtails offering the netrunner a salute and a wink before spinning around and vanishing in a series of twinkling cartoon stars. The agent was off to the races, and almost immediately returned a list of prospective links.

Echo feels as though her stomach was about to give up the Kibble dinner she'd eaten a few hours before. The feeling has been prominent since she decided to accept the gig Starlight had offered. New people have never been her forte, and here she is surrounded by a whole bunch of new people and they are getting along about as well as Bronson and Pele back at the Roller City. Those two set her on edge—made her want to vomit, and then shoot them. But she isn't about to insert herself into the fray. She'd heard a RIP merchant once say, When the sharks are frenzied, you don't go swimming. This group looks pretty much like frenzied sharks to her, though in all honesty she has yet to witness a real shark. Just those from the vid lessons. Looking surreptitiously down at the very friendly woman's agent next to her, Echo wonders briefly about her.

Very friendly—too friendly?—What does she want? Could she be as congenial as she came across? Is this just two women banding together in the face of so much testosterone, or could there really be something to her immediate camaraderie? Even thinking about the potential of making a new friend both immensely worried the nomad and excited her. She can't allow herself to be distracted by that possibility though. There is too much at stake.

What would Luke be doing right now? she thought while chewing slightly on her bottom lip. He'd be trying to figure these people out. Know which ones are stable, and which ones are likely to get us killed. That satisfied her, and she immediately set about her assessment.

The medtech's a decent-looking guy—no! That's not the right way to go about this. She sighs and tries to calm the anxiety growing inside of her. He's been calm and non-combative. Even level-headed. That's better. She felt the worry starting to subside as she refocused on the points that mattered. Probably a capable ripdoc who's seen some gushers. And he doesn't seem to be playing favorites, which is good when it comes to a combat medic.
Turning her dulcet eyes on the pair seemingly leading the band she continued her analysis. Casino is itching for a fight. Kinda reminds me of Brutus only a little more refined. He might be a little trigger happy, and if he is that means that we could be in trouble. Frak! We're going in to rescue a kid from being kidnapped and he wants grenades? Echo shudders a little at the thought of the mayhem that could potentially be left when this fellow's trail dust settles. Vegas, I don't like how close to the vest he's playing. Why not be open with everyone? We all know we're strapped. There's no way they were just talking about private finances. He reminds me of the guys my dad would have over when I wasn't allowed out of my room. She resolves that he is untrustworthy, and that means she can't trust Casino either. The two of them being as thick as thieves.

Snipe, Vegas calls him. her icy blue eyes narrow a bit as she looks him in the face and then shyly drops her gaze to the battered and mold-spotted wood wall next to him. He's not a team player. No way. Not with that attitude. I hope we find a way to keep him at a distance like he wants.
Then there was the guy that wants to be called Fixer. He's kinda like Bloodbank in a way, she surmised. Collected if a bit withdrawn. Perhaps that's a good thing. He mentioned tools, so he's likely a techie. Luke was always friendly with the techies. Said they'd make great allies. Techies and medtechs—he called them Fountains of Youth. I'll try and at least keep those two friendly.

Blossom mentally activated the first link and the Bartholomew School's public data site is dragged onto the screen by the Anime schoolgirl with bouncy, pink pigtails.


The Bartholomew School, est. 1996

Publicly Held Corporation, majority shareholder C.F. White.

The Bartholomew School prides itself on the proper education of the youthful mind, preparing our students for a prosperous and socially-minded future. As a private school we have long held the honor of hosting brilliant minds such as Payton Ramsey, Michael Knighton Esq., Sherry Abbey, and Deveraux Pontiff to name a few. Every one of our students are assured a contributing position within prominent corporations that range from technology giants to financial megaliths. Whether your child boards with us at one of our safe dormitories, or you enroll them as a day student, your child receives the solid education provided by small classroom sizes, state-of-the-art instruction methods, and actual education within all of the core subjects, not chipware. Your child's safety and education are in good hands at the Bartholomew School.

Security Provided By: IntCOP
There's more to the site including a very basic map of the campus, teachers bios, subjects that are taught, an application form, and contact information for the administration. The principal is listed as one Ms. Casey White, PhD.

"Frak!" Blossom whispers and looks up sharply from her agent's screen. "We may have a problem, my little go-boys. Looks like students reside on campus."