investigator: Pause; is that the SCSM service truck?

adjustor: Can't be; This one not only didn't clip the gate, their only driver always seems like they are half asleep. This was practically still night time, so there's no way they'd be any more alert if they have their day job too.

investigator: ... Unless this is their 'day job' and the SCSM service job is something they started doing on the side, after hours. It would explain the jump in competence.

adjustor: No. Its a different driver, (sigh) And the tradition of day-shift vs night continues... I'm pulling up articles we have about previous SCSM actions we have on file.

investigator: What suddenly makes you so certain it's the same truck, but different drier?

adjustor: I recognize the streak on the wheel from where it grazed my car. The driver was more upset than I was, likely not realizing I had the glaze painted over. This one definitely has some experience.

investigator: Really? I thought you said you had to have it wrapped.

adjustor: Yeah, because the paint looks awful because it rubs off on everything. The "non-stick" part of the ceramic glaze is no joke - unlike the original color-fastness.

investigator: So- You think this was a retaliation strike? I thought that the SCSM company decided retaliation was too expensive, and put out tenders for for behemoths and other armored transport instead.

adjustor: Well... in the past they've 'thrifted' by tallying up offenses until the next tier of force. Rarely ever repeating the same response against a foe twice. Article:

"No proceeding is better than that which you have concealed from the enemy until the time you have executed it. To know how to recognize an opportunity in war, and take it, benefits you more than anything else."

Source: wiki/Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelli#The_Art_of_War_(1520)

investigator: How is it thrifty to let their enemies continue to harass them? I think it's been years since any SCSM unit went seeking out scavs, and they've never hired this level of protection before. Article:

"Upon this, one has to remark that men ought either to be well treated or crushed, because they can avenge themselves of lighter injuries, of more serious ones they cannot; therefore the injury that is to be done to a man ought to be of such a kind that one does not stand in fear of revenge."

Source: wiki/Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelli#The_Prince_(1513)

investigator: Okay. . . SCSM is involved, but they don't field Minotaurs, that's Arasaka.

adjustor: And Arasaka isn't known for fielding Kang Tao armor, or a Quadra .

investigator: Maybe lower management from all these groups went half-sies without their bosses involvement? Article:

"You must know there are two ways of contesting, the one by the law, the other by force; the first method is proper to men, the second to beasts; but because the first is frequently not sufficient, it is necessary to have recourse to the second."

adjustor: Yeah. That actually makes the most sense and would explain why there was no jamming if they had to work together.

investigator: Hah! As if middle management could get approval to share their jamming-decryption schemes. Article:

"Men never do good unless necessity drives them to it; but when they are free to choose and can do just as they please, confusion and disorder become rampant."

Source: wiki/Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelli#Discourses_on_Livy_(1517)

adjustor: (chuckles) And I was worried that they were sending a message by not jamming observers.

investigator: (giggle loop) If that were the case they'd have hired that upcoming edgeruner-XBD too ...(giggle loop) wi- (gasp) with The ONI in... (gasp) ... the real Oni; With the Kang Tao tossed over them -

adjustor: (chirps) I'm imagining they would be too afraid to actually put it on him too. With him crossing his arms like an uncooperative toddler.

investigator: (giggle loop) Rocking his head around pouting "No." when they try to give him the head set with the encryption-key for the comms. (giggle loop)

adjustor: (rofl) That's the real reason they couldn't jam anything. Then the Oni wouldn't be able to hear them over comms!

Earlier...

Entrati-41 said:

The more i think of it, the more it angers me. I truly hope no scav was around to hear this. As i dont recall sec9 using a jammer so information couldv'e gotten out. If there truly was no jammer, then this raid might already be known to the other scavs. ...

scav leader: There's a reason they aren't jamming us.

Netrunner: I know.

scav leader: What is it!

Netrunner: I don't know that. I've told you I don't know that! Is't because they've already trapped the nodes around us and want to poison any messages we send out!? Or do they intend to trace where it goes!? Or are they hoping to locate the equipment we can't move!? Or -

scav leader: Stop; Stop. - Stop! I'm sorry. The frustration's getting to me. Between the minotaur controlling the surface, and the strike teams running amok- I desperately need more information than we have.

scav lt.: Do you want to go back and try to jam them?

netrunner: I would feel better if they couldn't call in more guns. But it wouldn't stop them now. The minotaur has to have line of sight to back to their controller. I didn't see enough traffic-bandwidth to be the supposed monstrous sensor feed the real minotaur's supposed to have, and the bursts are too inconsistent to be anything but ordinary coms they probably stuck on it to fool us into exposing our hiding place. But -

scav leader: No. They've already brought enough to overrun our defenses, and riding the elevator back is too risky. Even if they don't notice it moving, we would be trapping ourselves while they secure the exits. We'll slip out through the equipment hall when their strike team are stuck clearing out the workshops and unable to secure the other side of the building, as planned.

scav lt.: Makes sense, nobody would be crazy enough to risk losing an unobtainable minotaur by driving it underground into a shielded structure where even a dumb jammer could sever their control with the ample power we have; Let alone where a Netrunner would hijack it from their "throne".

netrunner: Quit calling it a 'throne'. Only I'm allowed to poop in it.

scav lt.: Did you pay for that throne.

netrunner: Fine. Only I am allowed to poop in it, while I'm in it.

scav lt.: (looks at leader, smiles) Okay, from now on I'll wait; Netrunner: Hey! We'll wait for (scav leader nods)their team to get stuck fighting, then we open the doors to run.

scav leader: Walk. Less motion will make us less visible in their peripheral motion. And with their inconsistent appearances, anyone inexperienced enough for them to keep out of the fight will probably need a moment to decide to ping to be certain they aren't looking at one of their strike team. Time enough to hit them with a couple shots into them.

netrunner: ping means run. (begins to get breathing under control)

Seras said:

He watched the elevator doors open, and five scavs stepped out. These were the leaders. The netrunner among them told Ichi that. The fact they were escaping was rather telling as well.

... The targeting software easily pinging all five.

"FUCK!" The Netrunner managed to scream as the group realized what it was that was standing in the shadows in front of them.

... he raised a Metel the clunky Techtronika revolver fired twice before he had so many holes in him that the pistol fell from his grip.

One xBD drop later...

Seras said:

I felt a round wing me, and then another got me in the chest, but I was wearing armor.

They weren't.

A second later the hallway was clear. None of them had escaped.

"[Onryo]!"
*[Oni]. Comms you gonk!* I yelled at him over the call and he slowed to a stop and seemed to regain some of his humanity as he saw me perfectly fine and glaring at him… Oh wait I was wearing the tech gogs with my helmet. He couldn't see me glaring.

investigator: ...They actually did it. ...And the Oni wasn't wearing the armor properly... or on the same comms... Wait.
investigator: "Onyro!" ?

Seras said:

The stairs had not been easy to maneuver down, but he had done it. The Minotaur was staring into the doors of the elevator just waiting for someone to be stupid enough to come up.

adjustor: Yeah. that was hella-balsy; even if they didn't lose control, getting them back out is still risky.

investigator: The Oni?

adjustor: What? No, I meat the underground minotaur at the end. That's the sort of impractical that's only supposed to happen in big-budget schlok-action features. The Oni shows up in allot of this series of edgerunner-xBDs. I think the producer realised he's the "Logan" of their series, and keeps shoehorning him in'to cameos.

investigator: I should buy more.

adjustor: Yeah. I'll ask some questions while I'm at it.

One delivery later...

Seras said:

"I set up a rental plan as part of an agreement with a SCSM stocking service. Apparently having something armored like the Behemoth heavily decreases injuries. I called it back in before we left. I had a feeling we would need all the space we could fit." Hiromi said looking pleased with herself as Ichi came out of the cab with a proud look as well.

adjuster: Hi!

Ichi: Hello; sorry again about your car.

adjuster: It's okay, it was time for a new paint.

Ichi: Paint? That's good? It took a while for me to get used to driving this Behemoth, it gets especially lively when unloaded.

adjuster: Like trying to steer the Oni around ?

Ichi: Ha. "Out of the way traffic; There's a load of XXL burritos waiting with my name on it!"

adjuster: The Oni eat allot of burritos ?

Ichi: XXL burritos, and you have no idea how many. My boss hangs around his sister who complains about it whenever he greets her with one in hand.

adjuster: So not often?

Ichi: Almost every time I've seen him greet her, he's put one in her hands.

adjuster: Huh? Looks like your colleagues are done. So I'll let you get on with your day.

Ichi: Yay. Take care. (waves)

adjust[o]r (scribbles note):

The Oni: What would did they do for a a klondike bar steady-supply of XXL Burritos?

Ichi (scribbles note):

Paint on ceramic: Easy undo-temporary colour change. Prank or fashion?