FOR HOUSE AND DOMINON

>>31827538
PLASMA PISTOL
XRAY RIFLE
RECON ARMOR

FINAL DESTINATION
FOR HOUSE AND DOMINION

So have we received a demand yet? Turned up any camera footage of he kidnapping? We could try to find the plate of the aerocar if there was and high performance models probably have stricter liscensing than standard models, bur I'm concerned that it was a stolen/rental and will be a dead end considering that our kidnappers were using a double blind procedure in our case.

FOR HOUSE AND DOMINION!

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85 KB JPG

Police investigating the kidnapping at Bekka's school initially suspected it to be the work of a slaver ring. Since finding out about your involvement they've changed tactics and are expecting a ransom demand to be sent to your family some time soon.
You've been instructed not to antagonise the kidnappers in the event that they call you and to try and follow their instructions

One of your contacts with House intelligence has helped provide temporary security for your parents until such time as you can acquire some personal bodyguards. You've been on the move while waiting for your parents to return from the canceled vacation, some of your Marines are nearby at all times.

Your personal funds are currently sitting at around 90 million. You should be able to afford a good sized ransom if you decide to go that direction.
Eleven of your Knights have offered to assist in any way they can and as such a number of personnel are now available for support should they be needed.

Allied assets:
11 Knights (9 Pilots, 2 Marines)
40 Marines
1 LST
6 Shuttles
5 Starfighters
∞ Aerocars

These are in addition to your own marines who have access to power armor and power cell armor.

Before anything else happens though you're now forced to deal with the remaining kidnapper in your custody. A drug runner going by the name of "Sledge" whose real name is Danial Wyatt is currently locked up in the bunker section of your lodge. His partner Mikha'el Ruzsa Aka "Slag," is now in police custody after you used his body as the stand in for yours in the container you were to be placed inside. After the firefight with the mercs they and Slag were arrested by the police.

You are now faced with the choice of turning Sledge over to police as well to be included as part of a criminal conspiracy, or hang onto him for further interrogation yourself.

>>31828225

Have some marines question Sledge about things, see if he coughs up anything to save his own skin.

And someone pick up that Mr Tim.

>>31828225
Turn him over. Sledge was the leader and he was contracted for cash by the mercs, so they probably know less than nothing unless he can tell us about the mercs themselves.

If he doesn't, see if we can sit in on the interrogation of the merc leader and his second-in-command. Not directly in the room, but watching through the one way glass. We may be able step in on it for intimidation value if needed.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/6DKCN7V

>>31828225
This question was supposed to be on the survey I posted on the wiki last night but was missed in an attempt to finish it before the thread expired. I missed it by a minute or so.

>>31828394
>And someone pick up that Mr Tim.
The repulsor truck driver was arrested by police as well.

>Have some marines question Sledge about things, see if he coughs up anything to save his own skin.
>Sledge was the leader and he was contracted for cash by the mercs
He does provide some information. The two of them were told by their contact that the cash would be placed in a particular container when ready and they would then be informed of it. This was the secure system they had used with their contact on all previous jobs. They had no contact with any mercenaries or truck drivers, though a few of the people currently in jail for trespassing had figured out that Tim was the driver that made the actual deliveries thanks to their own covert observations.

While a compartmentalised system not everyone seemed to appreciate this setup.

Lord Chir'dan Limu'thi who owns the spaceport your firefight took place at is less than pleased and wants to bring charges against everyone involved in the "obvious criminal conspiracy targeting the operation and reputation of my spaceport."

The Dro'al landlord has made statements to the media about these plans regardless of anything he may have been told about the actual kidnapping. He's more than willing to let the minor charges of trespassing against you go provided you assist in making sure the mercs involved are put away for a long time.

Do you want to send a message of any kind to the Lord?

>>31828729
"We'll talk after I deal with their 'plan b'"

>>31828729
"Lord Limu'thi, you can be quite sure that I'm going to through every law book in existence at these cretins for threatening my safety and their possible comrades for the kidnapping of my sister. I would appreciate any help you could provide in the investigation in the form of camera/audio recordings and statements from staff that may have had contact with them.

And on a more personal note, please forward those to my self as well as the authorities. As I'm sure you're aware, they're not always the best equipped for tracing down these criminals and I plan on mounting my own investigation with outside specialists to go places they may not go, if you catch my meaning. I would count this as a great favor that would be paid in full at a time of your choosing."

If we get anything juicy, we'll be able to act on it ourselves. Nobles gotta stick together.

>>31829055
He's already pissed at us for causing a shootout on his property. Let's just send him an apology and offer our full cooperation for now. It's a bit presumptuous to ask for a favor, and honestly he doesn't need to know all that. This guy could either be a hindrance or a help in the future, so let's just play nice.

However, I agree that we should find these kidnappers asap. The police will be pissed at us circumventing them, but screw it. Sonia has done more undercover work and specops than any of them, and Bekka is at stake here.

>>31829783
Sounds good to me.

New message from Alex and Mike. Both of them should have more personnel available in a few days. There have been some raids going on helping the police hit black market areas on that side of the planet and they're been offering military personnel on their extended leave small bonuses or access to some of the spoils as payment for their help.

Doriane Andrysiak, Alazne Schwartz and Is'eut Talum have been arrested but have reportedly been offered generous terms in return for information.

>We could try to find the plate of the aerocar if there was and high performance models probably have stricter licensing than standard models, bur I'm concerned that it was a stolen/rental and will be a dead end considering that our kidnappers were using a double blind procedure in our case.
The plates are a bust, they were stolen off a regular car. Normally high performance models do have stricter licensing, but there are several shops in any given city that will boost the engine power of vehicles off the books. Not just anyone can afford the increased taxes such a vehicle would require legally.

>Turned up any camera footage of the kidnapping?
Yes. The police show you video from the school security system once they've checked it. The vehicle's windows were fully darkened the entire time but they were still able to get a clear look at the two assailants when they had to open the hatch. Both are human males with closely shaved hair and wearing uniforms meant to look like business suits.

"You see thugs and bodyguards that need to work in high class areas wearing clothing like that. The haircut is a bit less standard."

Facial matches are partial but it's enough. Based on the similarity they could be brothers.

"Can you ID them?"
"We already have." responds the tech.

The police sergeant sighs. "Not again." Before pointing to have their display lit up.
"Thomas Philbert Lagunov. Deceased as of 3986. You will note Knight Captain that they both have the same ID."
>What say?

>>31830089

"Clones."

>>31830089
If I had to take a wild guess it would be that they have had some facial reconstruction at some point. Has this happened before?

>>31830302
Clones...

....God I am having flashbacks already.

>>31830302
If they are clones would we be able to track them easier? Since that is something that is a highly controlled tech.

>>31830089
"Oh, joy. It looks like the cloning tech has fallen into even wronger hands."

>>31830302
"Clones."

The Sergeant nods. "That's right."

"...God I am having flashbacks already." You shake yourself out of it and try to focus. "Has this happened before?"

"Yes. According to his official records he was KIA on a special mission for the House. Classified, we don't have any real data on it. Three years later we started to have incidents here and on Loran II of him working jobs of one kind or another. Usually minor things then building up to bigger ones until eventually he's killed one way or another, usually when he takes on a target that has a bit more protection than he can escape from.
We've killed three of him on Dreminth in the past thirty years. Loran security forces and PDF have killed 2. We have seen multiple clones of him at the same time but its rare."

The technician brings up video from a a bank security camera.
"There is evidence that a four man squad which targeted a bank six years ago may have all been Lagunov clones." she points out.
The video shows a squad coming in through the front door and the lead man using a grenade launcher to stun the crowds similar to the attack on the students. Next he begins to shoot out the cameras using a pistol, probably with splinter ammo to crack the armored glass that protects them.

"We don't know where the clones are coming from, how many are active at any given time or why they take certain jobs. Some seem to go the extra length to avoid unnecessary casualties while others don't. There's even an unconfirmed report that one is working as a bodyguard for a noble in the capital."

You turn towards the Sergeant. "Which Noble?"

"If I give you the name will you promise you didn't hear it from me?"

>>31830968

"Only if you promise you didn't tell it to me."

>>31830968
"Sergeant if you tell me the name and happen to lose your employment I will personally hire you into a forthcoming security wing in my company."

A bit reluctantly he writes down the name on a piece of paper, folds and hands it to you. On the inside surface is written "Lyesia Veos."

A quick check of the public infonet shows that this member of the Vios family lives out of a penthouse in one of the larger towers in the capital city. The place is built like a fortress. It makes some of the installations you've infiltrated look like an aisle in the grocery store by comparison.

You promise to look into some of the other leads.

It isn't until your parents return and you're able to see them at the now much more protected apartment that a call comes in. The same distorted voice you heard when pretending to be one of the mercenaries carries over the line.

"This is a recording. You have two days to secure 32 Million Seni in cash, untraceable credit transfer cards and Casino chips. You will receive further instructions at that time. Failure to comply will have consequences."

Police manage to trace the call so a personal com left abandoned near the opening of an alleyway. It was programmed to call with the recording once a random number generator matched a preselected number.
"Better than a timer in some ways. It means we cant get an exact idea of when the person left it there. It could have been five minutes or fifty."

The Police negotiators suggest you get the money ready. They would like to try and put a tracking device or otherwise mark some of the currency. While they have options to do so themselves you personally may have access to tracking systems that are less easily detectable by criminals than what the police have.

You certainly have favours you could call in with people that have plenty of high tech options.

[ ] No tracking device, they wanted untraceable cash
[ ] Give the police the OK to track some of the currency
[ ] Call in a favour (who?)
[ ] Other

>>31831909
>Call in a favour (who?)
could our AI friend do anything to help in this situation?

>>31831974
Possible but Versa would still need something to track. You've also been warned about asking for future assistance from the AI.

>If they are clones would we be able to track them easier? Since that is something that is a highly controlled tech.
Possibly.

Leads so far.
-Aerocar: It had to have been modified at some point with it's higher powered engine
-Mercs & Thugs: Those hired to go after you were operating relatively close to their home base
-Hiring prefrence: Everyone hired to take part in the kidnappings is human
-Clones: Technology to clone an entire person is heavily restricted. It has to be somewhere
-Clone 2.0: Possible lead on one of the clones acting as a bodyguard

>>31831974
[x] Call in the favour: Rovinar

We've still got a battleship worth of favor, and they probably can get us a few casino chips or 'untraceable' credit transfer cards that would beat most dominion inspection.

>>31831909
Call our hacker friend for some ideas.
>>31831974
Versatile is a good idea too. Ideas only though unless they can make untraceable transfers because our accounts and those close to us are undoubtedly being watched for just such a thing.

>>31832162
I second this idea heavily.

Don't contact Versa unless she won't get in trouble for it.

>>31831909
I almost want to see if we can pull in any Krath help, but I don't think we have much swing with them.

>>31832162
I am okay with this.

We don't need to track him down at this moment as all we need and want is our sister back. His/their time will come though as Sonia does not forget past slights.

>>31832329
I think that friendship will take quite a bit of time to build considering their nature. On the bright side we are taking a step in the right direction (I think.) Just got to hope he likes his present.

>>31832329
They're friends with the Rovinar, and we have Rovinar favors...

Hello all information that Merc leader had...

>>31832447
>>31832447
Actually....that isn't a bad idea.

It's a shame we don't know anyone in the South Reach pirates.

>>31832891
Well acutally we do know that one South Reach Wing leader that we helped train.

You know...I think we should contact him at some point as he seemed like a pretty okay guy. But I get the feeling once we start expanding our corp's reach further into South Reach we will be dealing with them a lot more.

You give your parents access to your banking so they can get started drawing most of the funds needed for the ransom. It'll take time to get everything, especially more than 30 million. You're going to need a dozen carrying cases by the time it's all collected.

>Call our hacker friend for some ideas.
Duncan? He's working away on getting your eyes reprogrammed in between his regular day job of "It's too classified to tell you about."

You head to the Rovinar Embassy ans switch into a clean uniform on the way. Walking in with your Recon suit on would not be the best way to gain admittance.

Once inside you make it clear that you'd like to request some assistance in return for past services. It still takes a few minutes before other previously scheduled appointments are out of the way. One of the ambassador's aids are finally able to see you.

"How can we help you? I'm certain my government would be more than happy to be free of their debt to you. Again. If anyone representing your House similarly wishes to do so I'm sure we would all be equally happy. The matter of your suit is being taken care of as we speak."

Actually you're here for something else. Firstly you ask if it would be possible to request the assistance of a Krath operative via the embassy.
"No, I'm sorry, you would have to visit the embassy of their government, which I don't believe they maintain in House Jerik-Dremine territory. Only with the much larger Houses generally."
"How much larger?"
"Eight times larger in terms of number of worlds."
Well that's a bust.

"I need a few casino chips or 'untraceable' credit transfer cards that would beat most Dominion inspection."

"Hmm... that may be possible. I don't believe we can truly guarantee either would avoid detection but there may be a way."

The aid calls up a monitor and begins to type away looking for a particular item.
"I can have a device here within the day that would allow you to imbed a molecule that only that device could track. Suitable?"

>>31833177
"This is excellent. Thank you for your assistance."

>>31833177
Two or three if possible. There is a good chance that they'll split the money into various amounts and spread it among several accounts/launderers.

>>31833177
That would be wonderful if they could do that.

>>31833177
"What sort of range?"

>>31833177
>i'm certain my government would be more than happy to be free of their debt to you. Again. If anyone representing your House similarly wishes to do so I'm sure we would all be equally happy. The matter of your suit is being taken care of as we speak.

I get the feeling our good friends the Rovinar are regretting ever agreeing to the favor. I imagine us never really 100% using the entire favor. Whenever it gets low "Oh look at this ship I found" or "look at these citizens of yours I helped free of charge"

maybe this is the alcohol talking but why arent we shooting anyone yet

why are we paying

do we have a plan

i just want to shoot the criminals in th head with aour plasma pistol.

cant we get someone to hack into the planteray network and sift through everyones calls for keywords and pin them down.

anything but paying.

"There are limits to the device. It will only be able to track effectively if targets are within the same system."
That should be fine for your purposes. "I'd like two or three if possible."

"Ohohoho! They warn me about you!"
You've never heard a Rovinar laugh quite like that. You think it's trying to approximate a human they picked it up from.

"We can't get more than the one, but it should be able to track six molecules so I hope that will do."

"This is excellent. Thank you for your assistance."

"Device will be here tomorrow, your suit should arrive within two weeks. You want us to be out of your debt? We can arrange secret delivery to your ship."

>>31833716
They're more used to that sort of thing when dealing with larger governments.

>>31833742
Whoops. Posted too early.

With that taken care of you head back out to the car where you can suit back up in your armor if you choose to.

"Where to now sir?"

Are you going to tell the police or anyone else about the tracking device you're planning to use? Or just keep it between you and the Marines?

Also what is your next course of action?


>shoot the criminals in th head with aour plasma pistol.
I'll keep this in mind.

>>31833723
>i just want to shoot the criminals in the head with our plasma pistol.
give them space suits, launch them into space then hit them with plasma cannons from the devourer.

>>31833742
"I'm glad to know I've finally warranted warnings."

"Can you suggest someone for me to contact about returning another one of your people's ships? I'm sure you could enjoy handing me off for that."

>>31833723
okay this is my last post but

what if we get the eyehacker guy somehow
and get him to hack everything in the area

>>31833913
I would say just keep it between us and the Marines.

>>31834687
Ditto. The police may be compromised, I doubt our marines are.

Rolled 1

>>31834030
>plasma cannons from the devourer.
Those reloads aren't cheap you know.

>>31834081
>"Can you suggest someone for me to contact about returning another one of your people's ships? I'm sure you could enjoy handing me off for that."
"...yes. I'm sending it to you now. If you would prefer we could also buy it from you?"
Hmm. You are pretty good for cash, or would be if it wasn't for the blasted ransom and everything.

>>31834687
>>31834759
"Let's not tell the rest of the family or the police about this tracking system. We have no way of knowing if the police are compromised."

>>31834274
Still thinking about people you can trust you contact Duncan and ask if there's any way he can get time off work in another day or two.
>You want a dice roll of a 1 or 2

What is your next course of action?

[ ] Investigate one of your leads seen here:
>>31832103
[ ] Look at buying or leasing a more secure residence for the family
[ ] Other

The police are almost certainly compromised to some degree or other.

The clone acting as a bodyguard might be a key lead. Someone is cloning this guy as disposable muscle and must have some kind of control over their behaviour. If they were just straight clones there wouldn't be much stopping them from going rogue or pursuing their own ends.

The clones themselves must be working together or at least have knowledge of each other to avoid interfering.

>>31835006
I'm thinking Mike or one of the people asking to help might be best suited to identifying places that could modify the aerocar. Once we get a list, we'll probably be able to visit ourselves.

I assume our father's war buddies or other veterans in the area are a bit sympathetic, maybe one of them has a more refined lead toward Mercs & Thugs or Hiring Preference?

>>31835006
[X] Aerocar
it's actually a pretty solid lead.

[X] Look at buying or leasing a more secure residence.

>>31835006
[X] -Aerocar: It had to have been modified at some point with it's higher powered engine

[X] Look at buying or leasing a more secure residence for the family

We can do this while we are looking into the aerocar. Leaning toward mansion myself, but I would settle for a gated community.

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You call up Duncan again and ask if there's any way he can spare time to help with your sister.
"If you really need it I can get some time off starting tomorrow. It's going to screw over my holidays later this year but if you really need me say so."
>Recruit Duncan Y/N?

Current votes for family residence:
>5 Move to a higher security building / still within middle class
>4 Mansion
>3 Gated community
Plenty of comments in the other field stating that the gated community is also fine if the others don't pan out.

>Or Ask them what they would like.
Sonia's parents would like to stay in the old apartment but it's clear to them that staying is no longer an option.
The higher security buildings for the middle class are normally used by government workers so there are less children around but still some. Finding one that everybody likes could take some time, especially with everything going on. A few are in slightly rougher areas of the city where residents wanted more protection.

>>31835198
>I'm thinking Mike or one of the people asking to help might be best suited to identifying places that could modify the aerocar. Once we get a list, we'll probably be able to visit ourselves.
"Mike, I want you and anyone that knows what to look for to begin searching for the sort of places vehicles might be modified for a quick getaway."
"Sure thing. My team will be there in a few hours."

You ask among your marines to see if any of them have experience with vehicle modifications, chop shops that sort of thing. One has a bit so you load up your gear and begin looking while headed to locations for the middle class buildings.

>I assume our father's war buddies or other veterans in the area are a bit sympathetic, maybe one of them has a more refined lead toward Mercs & Thugs or Hiring Preference?
You ask Dad about this over the phone.
"Yeah I think I know, or used to know, someone who could look around. I'll give them a call and make sure they have your number."

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Okay. Red is the location of the school where the kidnapping took place.
Orange is the apartment.
The very light blue are potential locations for a new apartment.

Your team will be looking for locations where cars could be modded while traveling between the various apartment locations. Police are checking very high and very low traffic areas in the city along with their own network of informants hoping to get a hit.
Mikes team has arrived and are wondering what areas you'd like them to begin searching in first.
"This isn't our city." Mike reminds you. "Things are different here, though we'll know what to look for once we're in that area."

1) Do you intended to tell the police about your own search attempts?
2) Where do you want Mike to search?


Roll 4d100 for finding locations along your own search grid.

If we dont end up paying the ransom or get our money back we really should just split all or a majority of it as a bonus to our marines and friends who are helping us.

I know its an emergency and its nice of them to help us but i do hope we show our appreciation somehow.

Also as the anon who suggested we station our men at arms at home to watch our family from kidnappers a few threads ago, i just have to ask, did you get the idea to do this than?

Rolled 69, 93, 58, 92 = 312

>>31837234
>1)
Don't.
>2)
I don't know.

Rolled 17, 27, 71, 14 = 129

>>31837234
Tell them that attempts are being made but not where.

Have mikes crew go on their own. They know what to look for not us.

>>31837283
No, I've been planning to do something like this since you were in the Smugglers Run I just didn't know how or when precisely it was going to be set up. The people who first built the lodge provided those suggested guard post locations for a reason. This was an opportunity to preempt future security incidents on your property. There was also talk among players about security for the family when you set out for the front lines for your second tour but people decided not to.

When you raided the black market in Mike's hometown and the issue of being responsible for ensuring illegal activity on your property gets cracked down on I then decided on the grow op.

If you'd left the plants there with plans to harvest them yourself the remaining gang would have recovered their strength after awhile and continued stealing from you. Destroying the plants deprived them of their revenue stream and any chance of recovering without drastic action.
When you failed to use your Recon armor or otherwise go above and beyond to ensure all gang members were captured this automatically triggered the kidnapping attempt on Sonia.

I should have stopped for the night an hour ago but was having trouble getting the map together, crude as it may seem. I'll post briefly in the morning and then I'll be resuming in the afternoon. With luck, shortly after 4PM EST.
See you then!

Last set of rolls. Also:

>Recruit Duncan Y/N?
Yes. We'll make up for his vacation time somehow.

Rolled 94, 22, 77, 59 = 252

Also that unregistered cloning machine is a pretty big deal. We should try to wrap that up at some point.

>>31838131
Sonia HATES cloning.

Bump

bump

>>31837234
2)

Sonia should know a few areas where Mike would be best to start his search, or barring that, Bekka's friends that didn't get taken probably wouldn't mind helping Mike with a few leads...
That former gang member and the gang may even consider Mike some kind of celeb after the Invasion of Gesaur movie and his plan to break into the prison

File: City3b.png (597 KB, 1165x924)

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Rolled 63

>>31837389
>>31837494
1 for telling the police something, 1 for not.

>>31837494
>Have mikes crew go on their own. They know what to look for not us.
Despite getting a later start his team finds 5 locations closer to the waterfront.

>>31843851
>Sonia should know a few areas where Mike would be best to start his search,
Not unless you know.

>or barring that, Bekka's friends that didn't get taken probably wouldn't mind helping Mike with a few leads...
>That former gang member and the gang may even consider Mike some kind of celeb after the Invasion of Gesaur movie and his plan to break into the prison
You visit Bekka's friends once you're certain they've been let out of the hospital. Neither know themselves but they'll ask their family and friends and get back to you tomorrow.

Everyone calls off the search after nightfall. Certain sections of the city, many where you would be investigating, are under curfew and would be harder to access.

Do you have any plans for Sonia while the search for the aerocar is on hold?

>>31844527
Yellow map markers are for shops that could have done the illegal mods.

>>31844527
I'm against telling police at this moment as well. The fewer people know even parts of our activities the better for the moment. I am for confirming that we did something like that if it comes up though. No need to lie about it.

>What to do
Sonia needs to rest for a while. Don't want to slip up later because of sleep deprivation. She should take a sleep-headset though, and have herself be woken up if someone calls. This is again a situation where a personal assistant would be useful. They could take calls while we sleep and only wake us up if something important comes up.

One issue with those shops would be that the car might have been modified years ago. Another is, that off-the-books stuff might actually lack records we could find / people who remember doing them.

>>31837234
>1) Let's not tell the compromised police department about our search pattern mmkay.

Giving them minor but unlikely leads to follow would be a good way of crossing those off our list and keeping them out of our way though.

Pg 9 bump.

Honestly not sure how to deal with this situation, so I'll support any non-silly plans.

Bump

Rolled 4

Sonia gets some rest, deciding not to tell the police about the locations you've discovered at this time.

>>31845202
>One issue with those shops would be that the car might have been modified years ago.
Police are confident the modification was done recently based on the video of the kidnapping. The inside of the engine exhaust indicated a lack of corrosion or scoring.

>Another is, that off-the-books stuff might actually lack records we could find / people who remember doing them.
This is true

>This is again a situation where a personal assistant would be useful.
I know there has been the requests for PR people and lawyers. I don't specifically remember (m)any for a personal assistant, but my memory isn't always the greatest for some things.
Anyone else up for hiring/recruiting one? You could look within the private sector, within the 3rd and 5th Attack Wings, the military in general, or ask one of your friends for help hiring one.

With such an individual it is likely they'll learn a great deal about you. More than you may want given your tendency for covert actions. Do you plan to test their loyalty at some point?

>>31850390
>Anyone else up for hiring/recruiting one?

It's probably a decent idea.

> You could look within the private sector, within the 3rd and 5th Attack Wings, the military in general, or ask one of your friends for help hiring one.

We could hire one of the displaced Shallans on Tourta. They would need additional training to learn the necessary things about Dominion bureaucracy, but on the other hand they would probably be loyal and as an added bonus have no existing enemies in any house.

>>31850390
If we go R&D route, we'll need a personal assistant, but as we stand now I think we'd just be better off with a PR person or lawyer that handles our non-military stuff and looks after our properties while we're deployed.

Military stuff should be strictly separate.

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You find out early in the day that Police have raided a drug lab in a district near the school. Apparently they've been interrogating some of the gang members that were initially arrested for trespassing on your land and one of them had connections to the lab before leaving the city. Police are uncertain if it's directly tied to the kidnapping.

Your father has talked to his few contacts and they've given him the addresses of 4 bars or other meet up points for mercs and other unsavory characters looking for work. He's confident there are more but doesn't know them.

One to the North East is more of an up class establishment, people that could blend in with the upper class and a strict dress code is enforced. The occasional noble is sighted here but rarely anyone important.

To the East of the school is a more normal meet up point. Several professional mercenary companies maintain offices nearby but many are known to conduct informal business arrangements at many of the nearby restaurants and establishments.

The other two are very rough and tumble places by comparison. One bar is near the water front in one of the cargo handing districts.
The other is located beneath an overpass for one of the main southern transit ways.

Mike would like to know what area you'd like to concentrate searches on through the morning. Does the new information give you any ideas on where to concentrate searches?
Will you continue looking for places the Aerocar could have been upgraded or other things? You could also ask the police for some information.

>>31851226
We should visit the professional merc companies, in power armor and ask about the merc leader we captured. Cloaked, preferably.

>>31851226
We'll check the northeast and east areas. Northeast for a possible link to our clone problem and the east for the more professional types that would have balls to try and nab a war noble.

Have Mike check the other two as he has the eye and demeanor to more effectively blend into the rough areas. Plus he could check the area for other leads on aerocar tuner garage.

>>31850390
Yes and I do enjoy this idea >>31850507

Refugees do mean a large pool of people to chose from.

>>31851694
Sounds good to me.

>>31850507
>shallans

We should probably invest some resources into making sure we have suitable police/security forces for the refugees, too. Possibly then taking some of them on as security for our holdings and/or family?

>>31851492
>>31851694
>visit the professional merc companies
>east for the more professional types that would have balls to try and nab a war noble.
You set out to investigate some of the mercenaries in the city starting with your info on the eastern group. Mike will look into the ones near the docks and you can check the more northerly one later in the morning when they're more likely to be open.

>in power armor and ask about the merc leader we captured. Cloaked, preferably.
You remain under camo while one of your Knights or marines asks the questions?
Anyone else okay with this?

In either event what specifically do you want to ask them about? Or how do you want to go about asking it?

>>31851774
That and investing in the development of that area in general sounds like a good idea. Just means we will win in the long run since we have basically just built an entire city.

>>31851803
I was thinking we'd go in cloaked, simply announce we're here for a meeting to the receptionist, and remain cloaked during the meeting.

>>31851803
Do we have a picture of the captured Merc Captain? Have our guys see if anyone knows him.

Meanwhile we will keep an eye out for anyone taking an interest in our guy asking these questions.

>>31852520
>Do we have a picture of the captured Merc Captain?
Yes. You have pictures of everyone the police have arrested that took part in your kidnapping attempt.
>Have our guys see if anyone knows him.
No.

>>31852520
>we will keep an eye out for anyone taking an interest in our guy asking these questions.

So which is it going to be guys? Watch over your guy's shoulder or play ghost with the most?

>>31852656
>>Have our guys see if anyone knows him.
>No.
Correction: None of your people had met them any of the times they'd been working with mercs before.

Yes they can ask some questions.

>>31852656
I'll differ to looking over our guy's shoulder in the interest of moving along

but I hope a merc commander detects us so we can have a nice chat.

Also, can we remove identifying shift from our recon armor for this? If we get spotted, I'd like to look like a fairly stock Terran Recon Armor

>>31852656
Watch over his shoulder. Use whatever means is most undetectable to send him messages. Let it be obvious that hes a go-between but don't make it obvious that we're actually in the same room communicating with him.

We'll get all the answers we want with no worries about our messenger.

>>31852656
Watch over the shoulder.

I meant to imply that one of the question our men should ask the mercs is: Have you seen this man?

>>31852732
>Also, can we remove identifying shift from our recon armor for this?
Okay.

"Would you prefer I go in and ask the questions sir? You might be a bit... overdressed." Suggests Nytoria, noting your current choice of attire.

"You go ahead, I'm just here to keep an eye on things." With that you activate your camo, getting out at the same time as the other two.

Sneaking into the offices of one merc company by following the others, you wait while they talk to the receptionist.

Asking to speak to someone with the company it takes a few minutes to reach one of the people in charge of contracting. You're asked to please make an appointment in the future if your group wishes to speak with people higher up as it's not a big company.

>Let it be obvious that hes a go-between but don't make it obvious that we're actually in the same room communicating with him.
"Yes, we're just going in now."

Nytoria gets to work asking what sort of deployments the company offers, security packages, offensive missions and the like. The contractor won't admit to anything outside the law, at least not without a confidentiality contract signed before hand.

"Have you seen this man?"

"No, but do you have a picture of one of them in full uniform?"
Nytoria calls up one of the images of their gear.

"Looks like a low end company. They probably have a deal to replace missing limbs with a medical company since they can't seem to afford full protection covering for their armor. Standard House Marine armor is more expensive than some people like to admit. Cheap for a well off individual but absurdly expensive when equipping an entire force.
One of our competitors across the square should know who they are. Ask for Leandra. Now, do you have any real business or should we just call this an unscheduled consultancy fee for your boss?"

Annoyed but not deterred Nytoria pays the fee and heads across the street with you and the marine in tow.
Your group there eventually gets in to see a human woman named Leandra.

"Yes I know this man." She tells you. "Part of a merc outfit up north. They have 250 troops but usually only run basic security operations. I heard the police had them temporarily suspend all operations yesterday. Causing a bit of a manpower shortage but nothing compared to the rest of the war going on."

She hands the datapad back to the Knight. "Is that it then? You just wanted info on that one guy?"

>Anyone else you want to ask about?

>>31853554
That looks to be all.

Well that was easy I have to say. Now we just need to go to this Leandra individual.

>>31853736
>Anyone else you want to ask about?

Has anybody been looking for mercs for a suspiciously easy and well-paying job in the last 14 days, or so? The kind of offer that's just too good for anybody who's not very stupid or about to go bankrupt to take?

>>31853736
"I'd be willing to forward a generous finders fee if you know where I could find some high quality trainers for a personal security force I'm raising. No competitors of yours I assure you."

>>31853736
Ask what she knows about the clone guy. If he is a known factor to the police, local merc companies will know more. You need your ears to the ground for this sort of company.

And ask if she has any information on who may have made the aerocar. Anyone putting together a ride like that leaves a signature of some sort on it, its a matter of pride and craftsmanship. If she doesn't know, she can probably tell us who would.

>>31853915
>Has anybody been looking for mercs for a suspiciously easy and well-paying job in the last 14 days, or so?
"Easy? Not especially so no, but well paying certainly. Now the real problem is several of these are regular occurring contracts that are opened up for competition every so often. Most people don't like to be dependent on any one group of mercenaries. It's a bit bothersome having that big guild in the Pandora cluster trying to convince everyone to register with them right now."

>The kind of offer that's just too good for anybody who's not very stupid or about to go bankrupt to take?
"You're thinking of finding whoever hired the tightfisted blokes up north?"
"We think they've hired someone recently in the city as well."
She thinks for a moment "I may have seen some job offers for smaller squads but they were only out briefly and were not sent to any of the companies you'll find in this quarter of the city."

>>31854015
>Ask what she knows about the clone guy. If he is a known factor to the police, local merc companies will know more. You need your ears to the ground for this sort of company.
"Nytoria, show her a picture of Lagunov."
She does so and the mercenary has a mixed reaction. "Thomas Lagunov."
"What do you know about him?"
"Freelance. Smart but not always very bright. We've hired him before for a couple of jobs, years ago, but he's better suited to very small teams. He won't work with larger outfits if he can help it because there's too much that can go wrong, too many people who could decide to betray the unit."
"Were you aware of the cloning?"
"I wasn't going to bring that up. The government don't like to admit that sort of problem happens and prefer it be kept quiet. But yes we figured it out. It took the other companies a year longer but they did too. Since then most of the big units won't touch him."

>And ask if she has any information on who may have made the aerocar.
"Not our sort of job, sorry. We have strict guidelines for sourcing our equipment so that it cant come back and bite us all in the ass if you'll pardon me."
>Anyone putting together a ride like that leaves a signature of some sort on it, its a matter of pride and craftsmanship. If she doesn't know, she can probably tell us who would.

"On a completely unrelated note my superior would be willing to forward a generous finders fee if you know where I could find some high quality trainers for a personal security force that's being raised. These would not be intended as competitors of yours I assure you."

Leandra smirks at this. "I think that may be something I could take care of for you."

>Getting some writers block. The more specific questions you guys come up with to ask particular individuals the less time I'm spending attempting to extrapolate appropriate questions to build up both yours and the other side of a conversation.
The entire search for Bekka you guys wanted to go on is dependent upon involvement by the players. Bounce around ideas. What's your overall plan?

Getting back in the car you go over the data you've collected.

Lagunov works with small teams, the larger professional merc companies won't employ him. The job offer was only up for a short period of time.
"Not much but we know the people around here aren't involved so that's one area crossed off." concludes Nytoria.

"And we picked up contact info for some potential trainers."

You contact Mike to see how he's doing.
"Things could be better over here. Did I ever mention diplomacy was not my strong suit?"

Roll 4d20

Rolled 14

>>31855732
>Roll 4d20

1

Rolled 7

>>31855846
2

Okay, we do know Lagunov is still doing merc jobs, and he's probably not working for the same company as the guys who tried to kidnap Sonia.

So we're looking for a company that has no problem with hiring clones, had free capacities at the time the offer went up, and is willing to kidnap children. Doesn't really sound like a company with a fancy office to me, otherwise they would have too much to lose if a job like this goes sour.

Rolled 19, 11, 16, 7 = 53

>>31855732

"Well if I don't concoct over the top situations to force you to practice, you're never going to get better at diplomacy, Mike."

Rolled 14

>>31855966
3

Maybe we should check for merc companies who are currently experiencing financial trouble? If the last time Lagunov clones were involved in a crime was six years ago, it might be possible they've only run out of funds recently.

Rolled 17

>>31856038
4

We could also check if a medical company specialising in growing replacement limbs for mercs has Lagunov's DNA on file.

Rolled 3, 6, 16, 6 = 31

>>31855732
Our perps are almost certainly from the low side of town, but rich enough to afford throw away clones for the grunt work. They have access to a chop shop with a tuner as well.

Time to check out our lead on the bodyguard clone, lets say a business deal with the noble that employs him. That would be the only way to get their attention, especially if we set the meeting in an area that would require some protection, such as a park or open veranda.

Then we bust out the real business of finding out where we can acquire one of those clone guards they have in their service. No answers forwarded to the police of course, unless there is something we could do hat wouldn't fall back on us.

If that comes up dry Mike has probably turned up something that we can use.

Rolled 3, 13, 14, 8 = 38

>>31855732

>>31856147
I'm not sure if they're actually growing the clones. They might just be a group of them that decided to find alternative employment at some point in the past.

"Well if I don't concoct over the top situations to force you to practice, you're never going to get better at diplomacy, Mike."
"Gee thanks. You think you could get here before the MP's or the cops do?"
"You're on the other side of the city. I don't think a suborbital hop is going to be okay in this airspace."
"Never mind, I can hear police sirens now."

You lose the signal and Mike contacts you again a few minutes later.
"None of my people were seriously injured. The Police are throwing half the people from the bar into lockup overnight and they've warned us that we could be charged with instigating a brawl. We've got full recordings but that may have been half the problem. A lot of the people in that bar don't seem to care too much for Marines."

"Let me guess, former merchant marine?" you suggest.
"Now that you mention it, a few of them probably were. We didn't get much information out of people there. Do you want me to see if I could get help from the police to talk to a few now that they've been arrested, or would that blow our cover?"

>>31856543
"I'm pretty sure it would, unfortunately."

>>31856543
"Do you think they know anything?"

>>31856249
I doubt that they are either, but the have the dosh to afford their services, which can't be all that cheap even if they're using cheap mercs for the grunt work.

>>31856543
That would likely blow said cover out of the water. Unless they gave any indication that they could know something it might be best to move on.

If they are still in custody later we can give the police a hot "tip" that they might know something.
>>31856038
That is an interesting idea since it would be companies who had such trouble and that are on the lower end that might take such contracts.

Another interesting note: They only hire humans. Limit to only human organizations?

>Captcha
Schools

Too soon.

Hey all, new to this quest. Is there anywhere where I could get an archive of the quest in chronological order? The one in suptg is all mixed up

>>31855732
>. Bounce around ideas. What's your overall plan?
I honestly have no idea. We've never had to deal with something like this before, and it sounds like these guys are professionals, so any location they stash our sister in will be nearly untraceable.

>>31856968
https://archive.foolz.us/tg/search/tripcode/!!cAsGzl185mF/type/op/page/5/

Start from the bottom and work up, when you hit the top go to the next page.

>>31857165
Thanks, I'll try to catch up in time for the next quest.

>>31857261
Good luck with that.

>>31856651
"I'm pretty sure it would, unfortunately."
"I meant that more along the lines of would it be okay to break cover in this case?"

Rather than answer that you respond with a question of your own. "Do you think they know anything?"
"Just that we picked a bad way to ask questions about other merc units that might have been through. The cops probably think we're out for revenge on someone that screwed us over at this point."

One thing Mike said earlier causes you to have a sudden revelation.
"Wait, so you went into a bar frequented by former merchant marine, mercenaries and potential criminals dressed like officers and marines? Why weren't you dressed to blend in?"

"We didn't have any local clothes that would have worked, we're from a different city. And before you say just buy some at a store, they would have looked brand new not used. Somebody would have tried to mug us before we reached the door. You might want to borrow clothes from someone you know if you're headed to that other site. Or just go invisible. We'll go back to looking for car shops."

>>31856038
>Maybe we should check for merc companies who are currently experiencing financial trouble?
>>31856078
>We could also check if a medical company specialising in growing replacement limbs for mercs has Lagunov's DNA on file.
Duncan is now available! If you want he could compile a list of medical companies that employ mercenaries.
If you talked to the land owner or the police you could probably get permission to request that information from them. Otherwise most companies are going to be less than forthcoming about the DNA they keep on file.
>>31856925
>Limit to only human organizations?
Duncan can add this to the search criteria if you want.

>>31856147
>check out our lead on the bodyguard clone, lets say a business deal with the noble that employs him

What area do you intended to have Sonia investigate next?
South Merc meetup point, try and offer that business deal, visit Rovinar embassy?

>>31857165
Thanks, I'll try to catch up in time for the next quest.>>31857165

Before I forget, can we please make sure that we start donating some money to the local security/ emergency forces in the area around our lodge/land. TSTG has mentioned several times that they are underfunded and overworked.

So a million or two thrown there way per annum would go a long way in terms of both a general improvement in service quality and gratitude. Hell, he's also said that some new knights in our social club just got land near us, so we might be able to pool our resources so the individual contribution from us is less substantial.

>>31857365
We're getting next to nowhere with our blind bumbling into this investigation. I'm starting to think that we should pay the ransom and chase down the six trackers. At the worst we lose the money and get Bekka back with a thouroughly chastened ego. If not that we stand to at least get some or all of our money back as well as the possibility that we find out the main man running this op or even the one who hired him to do it.

>>31857567
Heavily seconded. We could use some quality services around our lodge and if we pooled resources with the neighboring knights into a relatively large charitable donation for emergency services in the local area it would probably do a lot for our image in the area as well as gain the more tangible benefits that would come with it.

>>31857787
I think we'd also be able to use it as a tax deduction if we do pool resources with our knights in a legit charity to which we make regular donations.

>>31857365

First, make sure everyone helping us knows how grateful we are for their support.

Let's head to the South Mercs, cloaked, with some marines on standby.

Then we'll pick up the goods at the Rovinar embassy, cloaked. (using the non-armor one. I'm sure they'll understand if we walk in under camo and deactivate it once we're out of sight.)

Then we should probably just skip to the call, since we should have the ransom and some non-police tracking?

Oh, and we programmed our Recon Armor to have us in various uniforms using the camo, correct?

>>31857365
I say we continue the search by heading to the South Merc meetup point while Duncan conpiles that list.

>change of cloths
Yeah, that might be for the best.

We are slowly going through the list of clues that we have.

So we have:

Mike searching for the auto guys.

Duncan compiling a list of med companies that employ mercs and highlighting any that are human only that are close by.

And us continuing on the Merc front.

I think we are slowly but surly moving in "a" direction and we have the money tracer as a backup plan.

>>31857567
>>31857837
>tax deduction
Almost certainly.

>>31857654
>blind bumbling investigation
I was surprised nobody suggested hiring a private investigator.


>>31857882
>Let's head to the South Mercs, cloaked, with some marines on standby.

>>31857899
>heading to the South Merc meetup point
>change of cloths

You want to get the clothes from a friend and go in wearing those plus your camo? Or just use the recon armor?

>Oh, and we programmed our Recon Armor to have us in various uniforms using the camo, correct?
You have not yet, that requires a specialist. Grab some uniforms and other clothing you'd like to be able to switch between and head to the really expensive specialist holographic suppliers. It will probably cost 100k for say 8 since it's easier to get it in bulk and will take a couple of days to program.

This is added to the list unless there are any objections.

>>31858138
>hire a private investigator

....That actually was the smart idea. We on the other hand were kinda lost in trying to find our sister. Don't suppose we could contact those people we know?

I would say get some cloths from a friend +Camo

>>31858138
I was under the personal impression that there wouldn't be time for it to be worth the effort after all our initial success tracing them back.

Oh well hindsight is 20-20. Might as well consult one with what we have now. May be able to fill in some blanks that we're running into.

>>31858330
>Don't suppose we could contact those people we know?
You place a call to them on your way to the south part of the city after picking up more suitable clothing from some people you know.

Giving them the sort version you tell them about the kidnapping and your currently fruitless attempts to track down those responsible before the ransom has to be delivered.
They state that it's unfortunate you didn't contact them sooner but they will still try to help provided you give certain guarantees.
"The police could easily charge our people with impeding an investigation. We would like protection should that happen. Your status is more than sufficient in this particular case."

>Agree to this condition Y/N?

>>31858766
>The police could easily charge our people with impeding an investigation.
Would it be true?

>>31858766
Y

>>31858803
If they were sharing the information they found with only you and not the police, then yes.
You could also tell them to make sure the police were informed.

>>31858823
could we have them keep the police informed, but after a delay so any compromised elements in the police can't capitalize and work around us?

like a few days between finding the info for us and continuing the investigation and then telling the police a plausible amount of time later?

>>31858823
Do they think the cops dealing with such a high profile case in this district might bleak stuff to the kidnappers?

>>31858855
A few days would probably be too long, but perhaps we can get away with something like 3-6 hours?

>>31858766
>Y

If the police have a problem with it, they can complain to the faceplate of our recon armor.

>>31858874
When doing this sort of work for Nobles confidentiality is usually part of plan. They're working for you not the police.

And there is the chance of Police leaking stuff to the media. The families of the other kidnapped kids are certainly demanding information of them.

>>31858855
>>31858893
>inform police after a delay
Anyone else for this or keep it confidential?

>>31858986
>The families of the other kidnapped kids are certainly demanding information of them.

Have they heard anything from the kidnappers? Or is Sonia's family the only one that has been contacted?

>>31858766
Y

Thanks for running a double threas, TSTG.

You tell the PI's that you agree and to go ahead but that you'll continue to investigate the current lead you're chasing down.

>>31859081
None of the other families have been contacted at this time.

Your armored jumpsuit doesn't show excessive signs of wear and tear from the other day. You'll need the added protection while wearing normal clothes in a merc bar. The plasma pistol will stand out if it's seen so for the time being it's hidden in a makeshift holster within your jacket. The pulse pistol is going to be your default standard at the moment.

Turning on your camo you get out a few blocks from the location. The others remain behind getting your newly hired backup caught up on the developments.
"Second extraction team will be in position in five minutes if you need it."

Following the directions you eventually find the place. The traffic outside isnt as busy as you suspected it would be until you realise there's access to a mass transit station not half a block from here.
Following some people headed for the bar you pull the old trick of holding the door just enough to get through behind them. The establishment is in some ways both bigger and smaller than you imagined. Careful to avoid bumping into anyone you make your way closer to restrooms, stairs and private rooms.

It seems that there are a dozen different merc bands here operating out of the private rooms on the main floor. People from other groups, possibly gangs occupy most of the tables scattered around the main room.

>Your orders?

>>31859631
You're welcome.

Stopping here. Will post briefly in the morning again but wont be able to resume until 7 pm EST.

bump

>>31859834
>Your orders?

Can we forward a livestream to Mike? He probably knows who to approach in this situation and how to get some answers out of them without having to arrest the entire bar afterwards.

Early morning bump

>>31863510
Might be a good idea to head to the restrooms to have said conversation.

A bar always has bartenders and they always know whats going on in their establishment (For the most part)

We are here looking for some people. Specifically anyone who knows (insert picture of Merc leader) or of his people, where we could find them, etc.

Might also want to get a drink and pay for it as that always makes them like to talk to paying customers.

>>31857365
>If you talked to the land owner or the police you could probably get permission to request that information from them. Otherwise most companies are going to be less than forthcoming about the DNA they keep on file.

Contacting the land owner should work.

>>31863510
>Can we forward a livestream to Mike?
If you turn your HUD implants back on. Or use your arm sensor to send him non-visible spectrum info.
>>31864270
>Might be a good idea to head to the restrooms to have said conversation.
You'll go there to activate one of the sensors. He can also talk to you via ear piece when in the main room.

>A bar always has bartenders and they always know whats going on in their establishment (For the most part)
>Might also want to get a drink and pay for it as that always makes them like to talk to paying customers.
You'll be deactivating your camo for this. Proceed?

>>31864779
>You'll be deactivating your camo for this. Proceed?

Let one of our marines do it then.

>>31864814
Your Marines are outside, prepared to storm the establishment should anything go wrong. One of them does have the appropriate clothing through.

>>31864779
I think we can turn it on for the time being.

>>31864814
I think we left our men to get the private investigators up to speed.

Once we establish contact with mike I wouldn't mind turning off our Camo while in said restroom.

That or we can sit down at the bar and turn it off but I don't think that would be a good idea.

Current equipment:

Armored jumpsuit
Disguise/ civilian clothing (boots, pants, shirt, jacket with or without hood)
Holographic Camouflage
Pulse pistol + 6 mags
Plasma pistol + 3 fuel cells (inner pocket)
Boot knife
Communicator
2x stun pulse grenade
mask/filter
wallet
arm sensor

>>31864893
In that case I don't mind having them come in.

Maybe we could ping the main floor with our sensor to see if there is anything interesting that we should know about.

>>31864950
>In that case I don't mind having them come in.
The disguised one presumably?


>ping the main floor with our sensor to see if there is anything interesting that we should know about.
Majority of those present are armed, be it with guns or smaller weapons. Three have cybernetic limbs or implants.
Most of the private rooms have low level sensor shielding and enough armor to prevent stray bullets and energy weapon blasts from going through them.
There is a trap door underneath a rug near the bar.


>We are here looking for some people. Specifically anyone who knows (insert picture of Merc leader) or of his people, where we could find them, etc.
Did you wish to ask about Lagunov as well?

With that I'm off. See you after 7 PM EST

>>31865008
Yes, meant to specify the one with the clothing.

>Did you wish to ask about Lagunov as well?
Yeah, that seems to be a good idea also.

Guys, we should consider what we're going to say when the ransom comes in.
I'm thinking something along the lines of:

"Two things before we talk about anything else. One, proof of life for everyone you abducted. Two, is this personal or business."

We need a feel for who this person is. If this is personal for them, Bekka is likely dead either way and we'll need to consider a military solution. If this is business, we should demand at least 3 of the kids he took be released unharmed and to a hospital or something, as proof that this is business. If he's harmed or sold any of them into slavery, that should be 5 million a head off what he'll be paid. When he took multiple people, he made them all commodities in this transaction and we expect all of them to be returned in good condition. We should also consider subtracting damages caused by his choice of idiot kidnappers are on him, as well.

Oh, and if Bekka isn't returned or is returned harmed, he has made it personal.

>>31865081
if he has made this personal, we're making personal, which means he ain't getting out of this alive

and fuck, I'm inclined to brutally murder him even if its business

>>31865081
I hope we can keep this as a simple business transaction.

I'm sure we will know more once they contact us again and I hope the other children are alright.

>>31865237
I'm more inclined to do the transaction just as a means of finding the fuckers so we can space them for fucking with us and kidnapping our goddamn sister

>>31865281
Oh don't get me wrong.

It's both a business transaction to get our sister back and a trap to actually catch them when they think they are safe.

>>31865192
>>31865281
I was actually thinking about how personal it is, but while we talk to the guy, we need to be willing to just walk away from it, especially if he lowers his price as part of recognizing that it is business and he's fucked up.

growers on our land doing illegal shit: eh, time to eat a little loss.

idiot kidnappers: a little annoyed
idiot kidnappers burning our lodge: annoyed
taking out mercs: satisfied, content to let it end there if the trail went cold
sister kidnapped: Ignore Neeran, this guy fucked up.
clones kidnapped sister: iampreparedtowatchvikings.jpg

Of course, I'm happy to settle for just clone blood if the big guy is prepared to acknowledge he fucked up and isn't getting the amount he demands after what those idiots did.

>>31865532
I'd say we do nothing overt until after all hostages are back. Put those molecules in the cash, have the give back the children, then wait a couple days (while following the money trail from afar). Once we are relatively sure we have can identify at least a larger part of the organization, crack down hard and with as many people as we can. If we can follow the trail to the big guy, that's cool, if not we will still have hopefully gotten back most of our money and severely harmed their operation.

badump

Bump.

Bump

You call your disguised Marine and tell him you've checked the bar out and want him to get in here and start asking questions.
"I'll be nearby in holo camo if you need help."
He's wondering why you bothered to take your own disguise if that was your plan but walks in the door and gets a drink at the bar.
A few minutes later he asks about the Merc commander and then Lagunov, careful not to mention he knows his name.

"No, not seen the first lad round these parts afore, second one seems familiar enough tho."
Your man puts a 100 S piece under his mug when he slides it back, asking if he might know who could help find out more.

Making sure that none of the other bar patrons notice when he palms the coin the bartender pretends to think about it for a moment.

"Y'know some of the fellas that rent here might be able ta tell ya' where ta look." He points down the hall to one of the private rooms one of the mercenary bands occupy.

Thanking the other man he waits a few minutes to be sure he hasn't attracted the wrong sort of attention from the others nearby.

Roll 1d100 to see if you can spot anyone that could mean to do harm to your marine.

Rolled 14

>>31873346
>Roll 1d100 to see if you can spot anyone that could mean to do harm to your marine.

Rolling.

Rolled 24

>>31873303
>He's wondering why you bothered to take your own disguise if that was your plan

We can blend in when we want to be seen. Otherwise revealing that someone is there in Power armor can escalate things very quickly.

Rolled 62

>>31873346

A number of people look suspicious but you don't cant tell for sure if any of them have paid extra attention to the questions asked.
"I think you're clear but watch your back."

With that your marine leaves a tip and heads for the private rooms, knocking on the door the bartender indicated.

Examining the door more closely you see that the name "Death Spinners" has been engraved into the upper portions. Below it someone has carved an elaborate image of a soldier in an unlikely suit of power armor leaping out of a purple-pink rift.

You detect a sensor scan of the area just outside the door then a voice from within states, "You may enter."

Stepping through you're only just able to get through the before the door closes once more. The room has been partioned off with temporary walls, forming a small office with a desk closer to the door. Two chairs sit in front of for clients. A twin barreled sentry gun hangs from the ceiling above the desk.

"How can we help you?" asks the man behind the desk. He's sporting an eye patch that conceals a targeting system for the sentry gun built into a replacement eye. You're able to pick it up with your sensor.

>How would you like to phrase your questions?

>>31874103
What does the office area look like? Respectable? Rundown? Untidy?

How is the guy behind the desk dressed? Can we run a quick ID on him?

>>31874772
Not especially respectable, but the area near the door and in front of the desk is clear of any detritus. There are boxes of files behind the desk which look less tidy and the flooring looks well worn.
>How is the guy behind the desk dressed?
A clean white buttoned shirt lacking any tie or coat. Presumably wearing pants but he's behind a desk.
>Can we run a quick ID on him?
Your com has difficulty connecting to the infonet due to the shielding built into the room. You cannot obtain an ID at this time.

>>31874103
"We're looking for a man. A clone, rather."

>>31874956
Hm, okay. Thank you.

>>31874103
"Good day, you seem like a man who doesn't appreciate it when people waste his time, so I'll cut to the chase. I've been told you might help me find out something about a certain man whose most distinguishing feature is that he's often seen in the company of his identical twin. Sometimes people get so confused when these guys are around, they start thinking they're seeing triplets..."

>>31875024
Basically this.

I was told that you might have information on this man.

As the marine sits down and tries to act natural you tell him to go ahead and ask about the clone.
"Ignore the sentry gun. If it makes a wrong move I'll blast it with my plasma pistol."

With that reassurance he gets to the business at hand, trying to get information.

"We're looking for a man. A clone, rather."
"Sir, we sell our services as a mercenary company, not as information brokers."

"I can pay. Money isn't a problem."

The Merc makes a noise of annoyance and looks away. You pick up some wireless traffic within the shielded room then he turns back.
"You have a picture of the person you're looking for I take it?"

On seeing the image of Lagunov he responds. "Yes I know him. Solo merc most of the time. He does all kinds of jobs. Rarely legal but if you're looking for that sort of support this might not be the best establishment for you to hang around."

[ ] "Ask about recent job offers for smaller squads"
[ ] "Where can we find him?"
[ ] Other

>>31875265
>[X] "Ask about recent job offers for smaller squads"

>>31875265
>[X] "Ask about recent job offers for smaller squads"

[X]Any idea where I can find this individual

>>31875265
>[X] Other
"How loyal is he once hired?"

"Any idea where I can find this individual?"
"That's the Million Seni question isnt it? We don't know for sure. If you want to hire him there are ways. Often he'll approach a potential employer himself. We've hired him for a couple of jobs over the years and never had much cause to regret it. If you want to hire him just pick up a burner and leave a message on one of the job boards. He'll find it eventually, though you may have a few other people send you offers.
A word of warning if you plan to screw with him. Guy has seemingly unlimited lives, he could come after you later, a long time later. That doesnt mean he'll chase down every cop that was there the time they killed him in a standoff, that was their day job."

"How loyal is he once hired?"
"Mostly okay. If he thinks theres a good chance an employer will pull a fast one on him he may try to prempt it. Other than that only as long as he's working a contract."

"Have you seen any job offers from people looking for smaller squads?"
"Actually we have, but it's not good policy to sell out potential employers."

"There's nothing you can say about it?"
"I will say they were professional. Offered a good level of payout for completion, and even some incentive if the job went bad provided certain conditions were met. Conditions would be divulged after accepting the contract. It would not have been easy to back trace whoever put up of the offer."

"How much was it for?"
"I heard a rumor that is started at two million, which is a lot for a three to four man job. You can buy your own ship for that. There's nothing else I can tell you, we didn't get the contract. How much you're willing to pay for what I've just told you remains open to discussion."

[ ] "The satisfaction of knowing a competitor will be out of business for a few months."
[ ] 20k
[ ] 50k
[ ] Higher (Specify)

>>31876367
"30k now, 30k in two weeks if he hasn't heard somebody asked questions about him here by that time."

>>31876367
>I heard a rumor that is started at two million,

>>31876475 samefag
Oh god, now we know what Linda did with those 2 million we paid her, and why she didn't want to talk about it.

>>31876367
I would say go with 60k.

>>31876367
30k and the supreme knowledge that your competition is going to get curbstomped with a power armored boot. If the info is especially good, I'll send another 20 your way.

>>31876536
>Oh god, now we know what Linda did with those 2 million we paid her, and why she didn't want to talk about it.
It would be a good investment if she was capable of it.
She's not.

"How does 60 sound? 30k now, 30k in two weeks if he hasn't heard somebody asked questions about him here by that time."

"Sounds fine, just remember what I warned you about. It could be a long time later if he finds out."

"Let's get the hell out of here." You suggest.

Excusing himself your support leaves as quickly as possible while trying to avoid looking suspicious. A few of the people at the tables look up as the door opens but none move to bar your path. Once outside you notice that a vehicle from the second extraction team has parked a bit closer.

"Sorry sir, we were having trouble getting your signal from farther out for some time."
"It's fine. Let's get out of here."

A few of the bikers that had been in the bar race past you on the way to the car giving you a minor scare but they pass without incident. Soon you're both back safely and heading for the Rovinar Embassy to get your special package.

Remaining paranoid you enter the building under camo and soon have the tracking device and detailed instructions on its operation. You've also been warned that the system is new and thus it should not be talked about to people outside the military if possible.

Once that's done you send your information to the PI's office and stop by in the high end shopping district to get some holo imaging done for your Recon armor.

>Select 8 disguises you would like to be able to switch to when using your Recon armor.

>>31877777
>Select 8 disguises you would like to be able to switch to when using your Recon armor.

Outfits, or entire apperances?

>>31877777
Business suit
Nondescript coat and pants
Dress uniform
Standard marine uniform (worn if possible)
Evening dress
Maintenance uniform
Security guard
Swimsuit

>>31878030
Apologies, mean't to add that the standard marine uniform shouldn't necessarily be a house marine but something a little descript. Maybe more mercenary than actual marine? Just don't want it to be obvious that its a dominion marine at first glance.

>>31877777
Jogging clothes.
Business dress.
Dress uniform.
Blazer/trouser combination.
Civilian ball gown.
Beachwear.
Pyjamas.
Street clothing.

>>31877777
>Naked

>>31878030
>>31878122

I would comprimise and say
Business suit
Nondescript coat and pants
Standard marine uniform (worn if possible) (Merc)
Evening dress
Maintenance uniform
Security guard
Swimsuit
Jogging clothes.

>>31877938
Either, though outfits would be easier. If you wanted to disguise yourself as someone else entirely there are a few patterns available.

"We could also provide you with this imager device and associated program to do your own work in developing holo patterns. Handy if you saw someone you'd like to appear at a party as. People say all sorts of useful gossip if they think you're somebody else. The licenses for these programs are very exclusive but I'm sure I could get you one for a mere 100k on top of your other purchase."

[ ] Those rates are robbery, I have warships to arm!
[ ] Just add it to my bill
[ ] Other

The imager is actually cheap, it's the license that is not. It's like buying photoshop. You could also get it illegally, say in Tourta for a few thousand.

>>31878458
[X] Just add it to my bill

Well I kinda want it "now" so it will pay off in the end I think.

>>31878458
That actually sounds really useful. And if we get the license we can use it on anyone in our circle, not just us. We have a lot of people who use holo camo.

>>31878458
>[x] Just add it to my bill
Buying it legally means we can at least call up customer support when it goes wrong.

File: City3d.png (599 KB, 1165x924)

599 KB PNG

By the end of the day your people have uncovered a few more car shops and the PI's have located another likely merc hangout. Someone there may have sighted Lagunov less than a week ago. With it getting dark out once again parts of the city are less safe to operate in. The search is called off for the night.

There will be a few hours in the morning before the kidnapper is scheduled to call. Some of the casino chips and currency has been tagged with the tracking device. The police don't know this but they may have suspicions. Your parents have more than suspicions.
They're less than pleased you've been off gallivanting across the city since the ransom demand came in. In the process potentially endangering your sister and her friends if you were seen looking for them.

>What say?

>>31879100
If they have looked even a little into who we are they would have been suspicious had we done nothing. This way, we have bumbled around, asking questions rather bluntly and easy for them to avoid if they are even somewhat competent. They just need to not have used their true ID when having the car modified and have the clone lay low for a while. Our true attempts are hidden or will only happen once everyone is back safely.

I'd also be ok with not saying the last part out of paranoia that someone might be listening in on us.

>>31879100
Did you really expect me of all people to idly sit on my hands while some piece of mongoloid trash thinks he even has a remote chance of getting away with this? Dad, you of all people should understand this: Know Thy Enemy.

>>31879100
"They're not stupid enough to hurt Bekka. They want this to be over with, not to have some psychotic noble with power armor carving a bloody swathe through the city and anything remotely related to them."

>>31879403
>>31879542
>>31879695
"We're going to have a conversation about this, all of us, AFTER your sister is back safe and sound." States your father.

Oh boy.

This is usually the point at which Bekka would say "Somebody's in trouble!" ...but she's not here.

Is there anything you want to get ready before the call comes in from the kidnapper? People, vehicles, equipment or other resources?
Stopping here for the night since I need to be up in 5 hours.
Again, sorry this is rolling along so slow. I'll be resuming after 4pm tomorrow provided the thread is still here.

Pace is going aling fine. If anything take the weekend off and resume again monday/tuesday

>>31880156
-A squad of our marines in powercell armor in case SHTF 2-3 minutes away
-Armored aerocar
-Concealed body armor and weapon because they'll get twitchy if we show up looking ready for a fight
-Stun grenades in the vehicle
-An experienced negotiator for advice so we don't crazy it op too much
-Second Armored aerocar with 2 docs to check the kids after we get them back

See if there are any last minute upgrades we could get for our arm to upgrade its passive scan abilities. Once again, don't want to spook them, but the extra info could make the difference.

Find a way to check that the hostages are not clones

bump

>>31882445
I'm pretty sure that even in this day and age, flash cloning requires more than a couple days to effectively pull off.

bedtime bump, would another fellow anon keep this alive in my stead?

>>31886143
Yes.

Page9 bump.

>>31880156
>Is there anything you want to get ready before the call comes in from the kidnapper? People, vehicles, equipment or other resources?

We should inform our allies about the time when we will receive the instructions how to deliver the money, but otherwiseI think we shouldn't do anything before we have Bekka and her friends back.

No worries, TSTG. It's an interesting change from what we're usually doing, so it's not a surprise it takes a bit longer for both sides, QM and players, to respond to the situation.

>>31887457
I haven't been posting much because most of the plans I think of have been easily circumvented and it feels just like we're bumbling around for clues. We haven't met up with Duncan and tried to find the recluse-hacker yet, either.

Bump.

bump

>A squad of our marines in powercell armor in case SHTF 2-3 minutes away
They can be in one of the shuttles or the LST. One of your Knights requests permission from the city and the PDF for permission to conduct limited military exercises at altitude above the city.
>2x Armored aerocar
Done. Medics are standing by in one of the cars and in the LST.
>Concealed body armor and weapon because they'll get twitchy if we show up looking ready for a fight
Your usual duty uniform then? Or civilian clothing.

>Stun grenades in the vehicle(s)
You show your parents and a couple of the police officers that will be nearby how to use them and to mitigate their effects if one lands nearby.
"Sonia."
"They're for defensive purposes!"

>An experienced negotiator for advice so we don't crazy it op too much
A police negotiator will be pesent when the call comes in.
>See if there are any last minute upgrades we could get for our arm to upgrade its passive scan abilities.
When you got it you sprung for the best. There's no way to upgrade it beyond picking up prototypes which may be less reliable.

Posting will be intermittent for a bit. Spelling may also suffer for a couple of hours.

Page 9 bump.

Things not going quite as planned.


The call comes in and your parents answer. The same distorted voice as before speaks in real time while the police attempt to trace.

"Do you have the ransom money?"
"Yes, 32 million." answers your father tersely. "Are the children unharmed?"

"When the police finish their first trace of this call they'll find one of them alive. Expect minor hearing damage. If any of them have been harmed further it would be the result of their own actions.
You will take 5 million in credit transfer cards to the central plaza where you will find an envelope. Follow the instructions contained within."

>Do you plan to say anything to the kidnapper yourself before the call ends?

>>31894913
>>Do you plan to say anything to the kidnapper yourself before the call ends?

Nope. They'll either hang up regardless, or we'll just piss them off.

>>31895048
sounds about right.

Taking the pre-planned escort you and your father head out to the location with mom staying behind in case there is another call. Once at the plaza it doesn't take long to locate the envelope.

"I can't believe nobody walked away with it."

Your father looks around at the long sight lines. There's enough room here to land a dozen corvettes if need be, though it would be tight.
"If somebody wanted us dead this would be a good place."

Opening the envelope there are instructions to take the case walk 100 meters east until finding an air intake grate for a subway tunnel. A low wall keeps most people off it. You're to drop the case as soon as possible. One of the cars passing beneath the area on their scheduled runs will probably grab the case, though you're not sure how they'd time it correctly. Propping the grate open with a little effort the two of you get ready for the drop.

[ ] Inform the Police
[ ] Inform your teams

One of your trackers is included among the cards. What is your standing orders regarding the tagged packages?

>>31895892
>[X] Inform the Police
>[X] Inform your teams

The kidnappers didn't order us to keep the police out of this, so I guess they're okay with us telling them... anyway inform our guys about what's happening, but until we have everybody back tell them not to do anything other than figuring out how the capture these guys afterwards.

I guess we'll get one kid per drop the kidnappers manage to pick up securely after this one.

>One of your trackers is included among the cards. What is your standing orders regarding the tagged packages?

Keep tracing them, try to get footage from security cameras able to track the packages.

>>31896127
Basically what I was thinking of so it gathers my support!

You let the police, and by extension the rest of your people who are listening in, know about the drop.
The Police immediately attempt to position units down the line from the drop point and call in spotter drones so they can try and follow the case.

By the time you make it back to the apartment they've located the case itself. Faster subway cars are often equipped with repulsor based debris catchers which have on occasion saved people's lives from impact. One of the car's picked up the case at which point a tech removed it from the bin and handed it off. The next person to get their hands on it obscured themselves with a mask long enough to dump the cards into another carrying bag and get off at a station with a sensor blind spot.

Apparently the sensors were down for routine maintenance.
"Can you track where they went after they left the blind spot?" Dad asks the officers.

There's a problem. A shop located nearby is selling the same bags at discount. An officer who questions them finds out they got an extra shipment of that particular brand yesterday. The sender was unwilling to take them back but in return didn't charge them. People started requesting them as soon as the store opened having been alerted to their overstocking via the infonet.

Police are attempting to figure out where everyone is going. Only you can be certain.
Back in 40 minutes!

>>31896127
>Keep tracing them, try to get footage from security cameras able to track the packages.
Your people do their best to download feeds for the relevant sensors through the city, tracking the package as it goes through another change of hands then finally to a bank. It's one used by a number of companies and nobles for handling large transfers of funds off world.

"We're picking up a transfer of five million S from one of the banks we're monitoring." States the police operations tech.
"It looks like they're wiring it to an account in the Pandora cluster. We won't be able to track it from there."

One of the missing kids were found by officers tracing the last call. As expected there are some minor injuries as a result of the stun grenades in the initial kidnapping. The Dro'all youth confirms that everyone was still alive when she was taken to the drop off point.

The next call comes in soon after everyone returns to the apartment.

"Since you've proven you won't go to excessive steps save for the usual police response the next will be much simpler. You will take two million in hard currency to the end of water yacht pier 10. Hand over the money and one of the children will be released. Hostility would be ill advised."

"Will we seriously have to do this five times?!" you ask once the call finishes.

Reaching the pier you make sure the escort is close by but not too close. A few minutes after your arrival a closed top boat approaches the end of the pier from the direction of the merchant district. Drawing up close the roof folds open revealing first one, then both of Lagunov clones who conducted the kidnapping.
The second hoists one very alive kid over his shoulder.

"Toss the case so we can be done with this." States the slightly older looking of the two.

>Presumably you're going to hand over the case. Was there anything you wanted to say?

>>31898818
>It looks like they're wiring it to an account in the Pandora cluster.
Do we know anybody who can? That information broker on Tourta, maybe? Maybe Duncan could, or that knight who supplied the hacker who helped us with the Triad job has some contacts?

>Presumably you're going to hand over the case. Was there anything you wanted to say?
"Well, at least you aren't treating the kids any worse than necessary."

Nobody else?

>Do we know anybody who can?
DHI is developing assets in the region but slowly.
>That information broker on Tourta
Too far away from their effective network. The Info brokers on Tourta are really best used for things within South Reach.
Duncan is currently stationed on the House homeworlds. He'd be better for anything in that area.

>that knight who supplied the hacker who helped us with the Triad job has some contacts?
Within Dominion space which had been expanded into the Smugglers Run, former Lat'tham territories and parts of South Reach. They would have options for anywhere in Dominion space, which is better than many of the others but still not quite what you need here.

"Well, at least you aren't treating the kids any worse than necessary."

With that you swing back and hurl the case full of cash over to them. Once they have the case secured and have swept a scanner over it the second clone hands over the kid.
"Perhaps we shall do business in the future?"

Maybe but you won't count on it.

With that the hatch closes and the boat speeds off towards an outlet that leads into the undercity.

Dan has similar minor injuries and a slight concussion.

>>31899825
>Nobody else?
I don't mind waiting with this until tomorrow, if it means more players can have input on this.

>Pandora cluster
With the heavy faction alliance presence in that area, would it be possible to request the use some of their assets for this?

>>31898818
Fuck this.

just fucking shoot them.
right in the head with the plasma pistol whilst cloaked.

>>31900198
I do not think that's an especially prudent course of action in this situationl.

>>31899825
I just haven't disagreed with any thing the other anons have suggested and I have some stuff going on so I've been quite

>>31900198
While a headshot would be exceedingly difficult since you cant see them through the canopy you could probably blow up their boat with the plasma pistol.
This action would require confirmation from other anons.

>>31900198
yeah nah, lets not do anything stupid like that until we get our sister back

>>31899825
>Maybe but you won't count on it.
we kind of have to to get Bekka back...

lets get tracking this latest case, see if we can't find a pattern where the money is going

>>31900344
>>31900266
for real just fucking kill them already.

we're gonna have goons like this coming after us and our family every other year when people hear these chumps made 32 million off us.

>>31900503
dude for fucks sake we haven't got our sister back yet, I'm all for murdering each and every one of them, but not when its going to get our sister killed

shut the fuck up, calm down, put your murderboner away for a second and actually think

>>31900019
>With the heavy faction alliance presence in that area, would it be possible to request the use some of their assets for this?
"I'm sorry Commander, Factions Alliance assets are allocated for defense against external threats. Unless this were proven to be the work of Neeran Infiltrators I'm afraid we wouldn't be able to intervene. I'm terribly sorry."

>>31900344
>lets get tracking this latest case, see if we can't find a pattern where the money is going
Your team is able to use the tracking device to follow the movements of the duo long after they've left the area water should be in currently. They don't stay in one place for long and soon you've built up a map of the network of tunnels beneath the city before the contact stops moving for good.

"Get construction plans for the city so we can find a better way in there when the time comes."

And with that I'll have to stop for the night since I need to be up in 5 hours again. It would probably be best if we resumed on tuesday. On that note,

Next game will be on Tuesday at 1PM EST hopefully.

>>31900830
we might finally have some fucking idea where they are holding our sister, bout fucking time

you want us to keep the thread alive TSTG? its at 233 posts so not much more life in it before hitting bump limit

>>31900830
>Unless this were proven to be the work of Neeran Infiltrators I'm afraid we wouldn't be able to intervene.

Could they be so kind and point us in the direction of somebody who can?

>Next game will be on Tuesday at 1PM EST hopefully.

Thanks for the encore, TSTG.

just-in-case bump

>>31900873
>you want us to keep the thread alive TSTG?
No. There are enough threads on the board as it is, thanks.

Just a reminder that we should cover all medical expenses for treating the kidnapped children and personally apologize to the parents.