Mission Contempt of Court [Darkwire/Denon]

[Cassus Akovin]

A common refrain on Denon is that there are no laws; there is only CorpSec.

However, in the Sunlight Lofts of the upper levels, there are no laws because there is only the Court; the only judgment is your net worth. With these features solidified after the formation of the Corporate Authorities, that naturally meant every lawsuit, litigation, or proceeding of anything vaguely pseudo-legal still left in the record halls of Denon's Old Parliament Plaza was publically televised purely for entertainment value. The Direx Board loved turning a profit, and even in spite of not having a true legal body, they were quick to transform the old ways into a farcical spectacle.

The Supreme Ministry of Judgement™ led by the Court President constantly broadcast its "productions" to the general population to simultaneously sell merchandise, push advertisements, and cement the legitimate authenticity of the Corporate Authorities of Denon (CAD). This was accomplished by selectively choosing high-profile prisoners, suspects, or otherwise "naughty" (and occasionally covertly court-knapped) individuals and making them the centerpiece for often entirely fabricated scenarios to condemn or promote particular behaviors, and push a DireX agenda.

Consider the following: Court President TM-2ED, a legal analysis droid with programming so expensive it was only produced once, made with the latest in focus-group-tested expression software on its otherwise featureless face. Before the impressive light show that is "The Honorable Tim Ted" stands several beings, named "radical dissidents" by the Corporate State. Once known to many as good people, tales of their supposed misdeeds have been told and examined for the past three days on the holoshow Tried & Truth, all for one clear purpose. Corpos would call it justice, but to the neighbors of these beings, to their compatriots in Darkwire, it is simply judgement. Bleak, harsh, and often cruel, yet an inescapable way of life on Denon.

Or is it?

Enter our subjects. At first glance, a ragtag bunch with little loyalty beyond the payday awaiting them at day's end. Yet under their callous, rough-n-tumble veneer, there is a deeper bond among them. A purpose that drives them today. Perhaps it is loyalty to those they call fellow Shadowrunners. Perhaps a marked disdain for all things Corpo, particularly holo-broadcasts of purloined justice. Or perhaps, most of all, a shared fear of the sentence waiting at the rap of the gavel. Hard labor, removed to some labor camp or an asteroid among multitudes, to vanish from society for years...and then from life itself.

Today, these most uncharismatic of heroes have a plan of action. One that might befit a holo-film of their own, and one they might just get if the cameras keep rolling.

"Welcome to Tried & Truth, with your host the honorable Tim Ted presiding! The producers would like to thank all of Denon tuning in for today's special season finale broadcast - brought to you by..."

Cassus overheard the introductory announcer start the broadcast. If he had anything to say about it, it would be their last. While he got into position, he recalled the details of the mission. There were multiple moving pieces, some of them independent of the other, but all of them in their own way critical to their primary objective: absolutely screw over this sad excuse for corporate entertainment in the name of real justice. His memory fell back to a moment when he needed to explain the situation to fellow Shadowrunner Johnny Diamonds . Or at the very least, he had the arrogance to presume Johnny Diamonds required the explanation before the operation began.

"Alright, Johnny, let's review. There are three targets of interest. One: The Judgement Chambers. That's where that nightlight-in-a-gown goes up to during commercial break to 'calculate legal parameters,' and it's also our best chance to securely hold him hostage without interruption. We can use him to leverage demands from CorpSec." Cassus held a finger to make sure his compatriot was keeping track.

"Two: The Faux Court Holding Room." He held out a second finger, "Like a real Corpo, this tin-can tyrant doesn't even want to be in the same room as anyone with a net worth less than the cumulative wealth of a small star system, so they have an entire second courtroom built directly below the 'real' one for the undesirables. Naturally, it doubles as a detainment center but also happens to have the broadcast booth where all the editing happens. A second team will have to secure it so we have the leverage to free the prisoners."

Cassus tapped his third and final finger to Johnny's forehead.

"Three: The Permissible Evidence Vault. Where all of the Corpos' stolen goods from innocent people are held in one place. Well, mostly innocent. That vault is going to be filled to the brim with high-end narcotics, and illicit black-market stuff you only get to see on levels below the Twilight Belt or the Midnight Zone. Normal currency - real currency - all happen to be stockpiled there. End of the day, big payday if anyone gets out." Cassus closed his first and hit his palm for emphasis.

"So, what's it going to be and why is it the first one?" He smiled under his helmet.

There's a new mission posted to raid the Supreme Ministry of Judgement™, but it comes with three important pieces of intel.

• Objective One - Held in Contempt: Occupy the Judgement Chambers to hold the Court President Hostage, live and televised to the whole planet - including CorpSec - to see. With only one opening, we'll be able to tightly control anyone from getting close. All eyes are on you.​
• Objective Two - The Defense Rests: Bust out the captive Defendants from the mock-courtroom beneath the real one and take control of the Broadcast room. The bulk of security resources will be here. Time to turn this case around and prosecute the Corporate Authorities!​
• Objective Three - Capital Offense: See that Permissible Evidence Vault? It's got some (probably faked) data but also illicit drugs and hard-currency cash. Cash is nice, and you could also use a little more. You are surely more deserving of a payday than all the big whigs. Security is usually tight, but with the rest of the chaos going on, it should be a cakewalk.​

Out of Character Discussion Thread: https://www.starwarsrp.net/threads/contempt-of-court-ooc-interested-parties.167328/post-2193827

Spoiler: Art References

Spoiler: Supreme Ministry of Judgement Exterior

EDIT COURTESY OF Daiya

Spoiler: Judgement Chambers

Spoiler: Court President TM-2ED

EDIT COURTESY OF Daiya

Spoiler: Tags

Peyton Steele Saija Kwann Cartri Keswoll Samnai Rouber hado The Owl Under Foot Anakin Stormrunner

This was a huge collaborative effort brought to you by myself, Daiya , Ivory Stroud , Doc Painless , and Johnny Diamonds . Please enjoy!

 

[Ivory Stroud]

Location: The Supreme Ministry of Judgment; Denon
Objective 2: The Defense Rests
Nearby: Hex
Status: Armed & Dangerous

Brutal.

That was one way of describing the cold, unfeeling monument to Corpo Justice.

Not that she had any room to judge. She was guilty of a similar attitude - unflinching delivery of retribution, including death, to those who’d been found “guilty”... but there was something different to the faceless avatar she’d watched dozens of times on a Holoscreen. Something inhuman. Maybe she was kidding herself… but she saw her methods as far more honest than those CorpSec used.

As Ivory stood outside the massive, cold, concrete structure and gazed upward, she couldn’t help but suppress a shiver which attempted to claw its way up her spine… She’d much rather go out in the heat of battle than be locked away again like an animal. The Supreme Ministry of Justice building, Denon’s highest Judiciary Institution, resembled some ancient monolith to a long-dead & forgotten beast; but this was no ancient evil, lost to time.

This was real.

And if Darkwire failed, this could be her future.

With a scowl, Ivory turned her attention back to the task at hand - shoving those intrusive & alien thoughts from her mind. She had a job to do.

When Cassus had brought this mission to her attention, Ivory had immediately agreed to assist - she was one of the few members of Darkwire with any real-world experience in a Court or Prison, and having escaped more than her fair share over the years, she was one of the best Shadowrunners Darkwire had for ensuring the most vital part of their plan went off without a hitch. The building was heavily fortified, especially for such a highly-publicized trial - with CorpSec numbering in the dozens & millions tuning in across the Denon System. Shadowrunners, thugs, and brutes would never get within a kilometer of the trial & hope to go unnoticed…

That was why Ivory & her companions were dressed to impress.

“Gwendolyn. Allos.” She spoke her name clearly for the computer, which beeped - having accepted the input. The screen before her turned green, indicating the name was legitimate & matched her vocal imprint.

“Turn around.” The voice behind her was synthesized, flat, robotic. She did as instructed, facing the armored CorpSec Deputy. The titan lifted a metallic wand, and “Gwendolyn” lifted her arms; the officer passed the wand over her body a few times, then lowered it when it didn’t signal a warning. Resorting to a simple gesture, he indicated she was clear to move ahead & turned to scan the next person in-line.

Ivory stepped forward into the secure lobby of the Supreme Ministry of Justice building, lacing her fingers in-front of her. Patiently, she waited for her group to join her.

With a change of hair & eye-color, and a fresh wardrobe, Ivory looked almost nothing like the rebellious Shadowrunner her companions in Darkwire would be used to seeing. Her standard locks of raven-black hair & piercing violet eyes had been altered; “Gwendolyn Allos”, instead, possessed long brunette hair and brown eyes the color of watered-down bourbon. Her identity had been selectively altered by some of Darkwire’s brightest & best - she’d simply given them a name, and some shadowy slicers whom she’d never met had crafted quite the sheet: A Corporate Assistant Director of some-such Company, a member of CAD in good standing, and a liaison to CorpSec Administration in District 12.

To complete the illusion, she’d chosen to forego her typical attire (and even the black dress & boots of her alter-ego, The Donna) and chosen an entirely unexpected look: a pantsuit in dark gray, and a third of the cost of the shuttle they’d taken to arrive here in style.

“Gwendolyn” watched as her Shadowrunner friend (known to the District 7 Cell as “Hex”) pass through security without issue. Inwardly, Ivory sighed with relief. She’d almost expected Hexy to throw caution to the wind & start the party then and there…

After Hex came the two protocol droids, ambling through the checkpoint after an exhaustive scan of their chassis & internals. The droids said very little; possessing no personality beyond their basic administrative programming.

Ivory gave Hex a reassuring “It’ll be fine” smile, hoping the young woman could maintain the facade a bit longer…

 

[Hex]

Location: The Supreme Ministry of Judgment; Denon
Objective: 2 - The Defense Rests
Tags: Ivory Stroud

Spoiler: Equipment

• Powderpunk armor on loan from Daiya
• ap-25i SIMP pistol
• 'Candles' Heavy particle blaster
• Big Bigby
• 'confetti' Rocket launcher
• Party Poppers (3 explosive, 3 gas)
• Dancer repulsor board
• Dervish Knife
• Cheap data pad and communicator

Other than the pad all gear is stashed inside the protocol droids

Spoiler: Hex dialogue colors

Poor Hex hears voices in her head

Hex speech to others
Hex speech to herself

Hexes inner voices
'...Neutral...'
'...Doubt...'
'...Anger...'
Coloured '.....' are also words that Hex can hear , but I decided not to write them to reduce clutter

Early that morning...

"urrggh!! I hate this! I hate this!" The blue haired girl cursed to herself as she emptied the last of the bottle of red dye in to her hair. The bathroom looked like a crime scene, but she was running late, Daiya was going to kill her when she saw the state of this place. And when she realised whose hair dye she had borrowed.

'...You are a pretty chitty roommate...'
"Oh can it, girls do this all the time in those girly films she makes us watch, she'll get over it."
'...maybe?...'

Hex just shook her head, sure she was nervous about Daiya's reaction, but her nerves were more focused on the job, this was dangerous. Part of her worried she was today's discardable asset but the fact Ivory Stroud was there made her feel better, and worse, and more unsure. "Oh feth's sake"

Not long later she left the apartment, suited and booted and ready to go. Her kit was crammed into a duffle bag, she had been told to pack light, so no heavy weaponry and just a few explosives... shame.

The last thing she did is grab a bottle of vodka from her room, hastily scrawl "sorry" on it and put it in the floor by her friend's bedroom door.

Later, on mission...

Hex felt naked, all her kit was tucked away inside those clankers and she was thoroughly unarmed. Even in the shower she had some kind of weapon withing easy reach, be it a knife or a rocket launcher. She looked ahead of her as her 'boss' was checked out by the security guard and waved through. She was so nervous, One of Ivory's gang had given her this little spinning metal thing that she flicked around in her fingers to settle her racing heart.

"I'm Ellie Purnei, Ellie Purnei" she whispered to herself "I'm an intern, I work for Miss Allos, she likes coffee with milk, but not past 6, then it's bourbon and ice and maybe a dash of water." She blew out as if trying to blow away her anxiety.

'...This is insane? When did you learn to be discrete? You are going to get yourself killed...' Hex wrinkled her nose, unable to let herself respond. It was her turn.

She walked up to the same scanner as Ivory Stroud had, moments before. "Ellie, Purnei. Administrative intern level 1" such simple words, so hard to say.

“Don't be so nervous kid, we've got all the criminals locked up tight” The guard said to her, she was after all a very young woman, in her first day of work, in a pretty intimidating environment. He eyed up her credentials and waved her through to join 'Miss Allos'.

She smiled back at the other woman as she walked on by. The courthouse was lavish, it clearly had the trappings of wealth. She wondered how many missions she would have to pull to afford even one of the ornate chairs the barristers sat in.

'...Bravo little one, past the first step...'
"Yeah, but how many more." she risked a quiet response to her voices.

"So, Gwen, I have the paperwork you requested here, who would you like to meet with first." She handed Ivory her list, they both had half of the information written in a way that looked entirely innocous if either of them were frisked on the way in. But when combined could be read to give more up to date information from Cassus Akovin .

 

[Marcella Fiora]

M A R C E L L AㅤF I O R A

'Aleph'​

Unnerving. She had no reason to be worried, yet the prospect of her relying on CorpSec for safety while remaining both unarmed and without personal security made her uneasy. After some degree of 'convincing' she had been permitted to bring her personal assistant, Lucius~ after all, she did represent Denon's communications provider at the behest of their CEO, a member of Denon's

DireX elite.

Once both Marcy' and Lucius were cleared for entry, they meandered towards their allotted seats while weaving through a number of affluential businesspeople, exchanging quick pleasantries as they passed familiar faces. "Ought to be an interestin' evening, where're we sat again?" questioned Marcy' as the pair slowly made their way to the judgement chamber, turning her head slightly to converse; "Mm, 2C, Ma'am" retorted Lucius, datapad in-hand with details of their arrangements laid out.

Marcy' raised an eyebrow as if to show she was impressed, "not bad," she grinned as the pair made their way into the brutalist mass of concrete~ perfect for its purpose, "glad to see they remembered us.." she trailed off, muttering to herself. Lucius offered a response in kind, "it would be prudent for them to acknowledge us, seeing as we are their 'provider after all.."

Offering only a grin, Marcella said nothing as they continued to their seats, she had a feeling it was going to be an evening of intrigue.

 

[Johnny Diamonds]

Location: Undisclosed Safehouse, Approx. 2.3km from Supreme Ministry of Judgement
Objective 1: Held in Contempt
Nearby: Cassus Akovin , Open
Status: Primed & Moving

Ol' Johnnyboy didn't blame Cassus one bit for thinking he needed to lay it all out for him again. Johnny had very carefully crafted an image within the Darkwire of himself. Laid back, a little too chill for his own good, and arrogant as anyone could think. The truth of the matter was that the expert Slicer-Dicer was something else completely, and he wanted to keep them guessing. He wanted all of them to keep on guessing. Try to figure him out, he dared em'. Guess the real face of Johnathan Dia'monde, win a karking prize. Still hated that name, that much wouldn't ever change, he figured. Still, he listened to Cassus go on about the whole mission, and then blinked rapidly a few times, brushing his forehead off after Cassus knocked a finger against it.

"Cut it out, Caz. I'm crazy, not stupid, Dig?" the twenty-something Corellian said with a grin. He was gathering up the rest of his little disguise for this whole crazy-arsed idea they had. See, the deal was that CorpSec was gonna be all over this, even moreso than usual. You had to figure, this was high profile. Like, up-in-the-clouds high profile. So, Johnny decided low profile was the way to go. He'd done a little recon already to prepare, and had 'borrowed' the dufflebag of a Ministry Maintenance employee who just found himself 'the lucky recipient of 7 day and 6 nights at Naboo's premier resort and spa'. Hell if Johnny knew, he made the chit up, and hoped the fool would fall for it. Few ever didn't. Forgery wasn't his strongest suit, but it was passable enough to these types of common folks. And don't go lecturing him on the whole 'But Johnny! These are the people we are trying to help!'. You can't make an omelette without cracking at least a couple eggs, now could you?

"So, what's it going to be and why is it the first one?" He smiled under his helmet.

"Yeah, I get it Caz. We go after the Tin Man holed up in his little private echo chamber. Don't worry so much, we'll be fine. Sometimes you seem more uptight than Daiya when Cartri's around." He said with a chuckle, putting on the smart little brimmed hat with the Ministry logo front and center to complete his look. Black work boots, navy-blue work pants, a white button-up short sleeve with the Ident Badge clipped to the breast pocket, and the black brimmed cap. Of course, he also had his messenger's bag slung over his torso. Made sure to nail one of the parcel runners. This wasn't exactly his first rodeo, though Denon was a whole new animal to him. He was used to Coronet City on Corellia, Nar Shaddaa, and some of the mid-levels of Coruscant. "So, are we good? We got transport waiting outside for us."

Cassus nodded to Johnny from under his helmet, and Johnny winked from under the brim of his hat.

Time to go to work.

 

[Samnai Rouber]

Objective 1 : Held in Contempt
Tags : Open

“All clear, ma’am.” The deferential voice drew her out of her musings. Samani nodded and stepped into the chamber.

She had to admit, the design of the court was pleasing, rare for anything made by and for the Corpos. Somewhat tacky, though. But she’s not her to fix the aesthetic mistakes of the court—she’s here to ruin it for them.

With her simple, black power suit that was clearly luxurious to the trained eye, along with make-up to hide her scars, Samnai took to the gathering of executives, heirs, heiresses, and other wealthy people like a fish to water. She greeted them and smiled at their small talk, the Corpos being none the wiser to exactly whom they were talking with.

Samnai eyed the robotic judge—she could take it on, no doubt, but it was the guards surrounding the room that were a problem. They were her first target. The other beings in the courtroom could be a problem too, and while most of them didn’t even look like they could slap, she knew better than to underestimate their builds.

Well, she wouldn’t have to take them alone. She waited for the rest of the group, interested to see who would take on this objective.

 

[Cartri Keswoll]

Location: Denon
Objective: Three, the evidence vault
Attire: Link
Tags: Das

In the back alley of the Evidence Vault building, a garbage truck slowly but surely reversed under the garbage shoot of the building. Carelessly, it pushed the bin that was already situated underneath and scraped it along until the open roof of the garbage container was there. The hover truck finally stopped and a familiar hooded ginger jumped out with a smug grin on his face. Not long before he had hot wired the truck and used the automatic driving system to drive him here. He was crazy if he ever thought of driving such a thing yet.

He'd be dressed in his now signature Knuckledusker outfit, along with a duffle bag that held other empty bags within. Cartri had come here to make the most of the opportunity, not to waste it by simply bringing one bag with him. There were a lot of things he was going to spend the spoils on, many personal reasons close to his heart. And of course, he'd have to spoil Daiya to avoid a stern questioning later on.

For the last few weeks, he had been planning nonstop for this heist. Cartri had scoped out the building every few days and even had to be close enough to hack into its power grid. The process took a few tries, but he eventually got there after almost being found a few times. With that saved into his datapad, he had free reign to shut down their electricity whenever he pleased just in case he needed to do it himself. After checking over his gear one last time, he readjusted his headphones and walked to the front entrance of the vault.

Cartri cooly strolled and leaned up against the concrete pillar of the stone stairs leading up to the building. For now, the teen waited. The folks at the courthouse would be drawing most of the corporate authorities their way. From that point on, the vault would be truly his.

 

[Das]

//: Tags: Brie Jaxx | Cartri Keswoll
//: Location: Supreme Ministry of Judgement, DENON...

Das climbed out of the garbage truck, flashing Cartri Keswoll a look of playful disdain. Hopefully the incessant beep-beep-beep of the truck moving in reverse drowned out the awful scraping sounds of the garbage bin. She adjusted her jumpsuit, confirming again that she had the proper tools in her utility belt.

Digipicks? Check. Slicing tool? Check. Blaster pistol? Check.

All that was left was to wait for the signal. Das pulled out her datapad, it’s display already tuned to the Ministry’s live feed of the courtroom. When the tin can calls for a recess, it’s game on. She looked to Cartri, who was waiting near the stairs. She tapped her ears, gesturing for him to pull down his headphones.

“Ready?” she asked, a confidant smirk on her face.

“Feed’s live. Check it out,” she said, stepping closer and holding her datapad for him to see. Judging by the people filing into their seats, it looked like the proceedings would begin shortly. And then, it’s time.

 

[Mairéad Solus]

Spoiler: Equipment:

Ladies Watch
Marzanna
Datapad

Tags: Marcella Fiora

Mairéad walked through the courthouse and with her heels tapping away as she tried to appear confident, but she had to admit she was a little nervous here on her own. What made her especially nervous is that she had forgotten to declare her wrist dazzler and somehow it had gotten overlooked by security, oh well.

She had come to the court house a little earlier than Marcella Fiora . Using it as an opportunity to file a couple of businesss documents herself, but her comm had informed her that the Capo was now seated so Mairéad would join her to watch the proceedings. Her associate seemed very keen on her observing some of the legal dealing of the Family and Mai wouldn't pass up a single learning opportunity, particularly seeing how much she enjoyed the teacher's company. As she got to the door, she peered through and spotted Marcella.

She entered the courtroom and was guided to her seat by the security staff. She leaned over and placed a cup in front of Marcella "Good afternoon Miss Fiora, I hope you didn't mind me grabbing you a chocolate on my way in." She smiled and then looked at the personal assistant, "Sorry Lucien, I forgot to grab you one, I'll grab you a tiny pot of ice cream during the interval if you like?" she laughed and took her seat next to Marcella, leaning in so they could speak quietly. "I managed to get my errands done, so thats a relief, who knew being a business woman was so much paperwork." she laughed to herself and began reading the court briefing so she knew what she was watching. "The jabot really suits you, its pretty, maybe you should have been a barrister?"

 

[Marcella Fiora]

M A R C E L L AㅤF I O R A

'Aleph'​

"Ah! Ta' Mai', much appreciated," responded Marcy', taking the coffee as her colleague, dare she say corporate protégé, moved in to take a

seat next to her. The pair had been spending an unusual amount of time together~ more-so then she would spend with many of her other colleagues; Marcella found Mai' to be a refreshing change of pace and as a result, was invited to join Marcy' on one of her business trips.

Smirking at Mai's comment to Lucius, Marcy' scooched over slightly along the hard, bench-like seats of the chamber. "Phah!" she chuckled, "you've got it easy, enjoy it while you can.." she trailed, taking a sip from her recently acquired cup of hot chocolate; she couldn't help but pull a face of distaste at the cheap café beverage.

She turned intently to face Mai, as if to say 'really?', yet she couldn't help but crack a smile still at her comment. "Gotta look your best when you're representin'.." grinned Marcy, looking Mai' up and down, "who're you representin'? a modellin' agency?" she mused, chuckling to herself, "ever been to a trial before?"

Mairéad Solus

 

[Cartri Keswoll]

Location: Denon
Objective: Three, the evidence vault
Attire: Link
Tags: Das

“Ready?” she asked, a confidant smirk on her face.

"Ready as I'll ever be," he said, a hand reaching up to his mask to pull down the piece of cloth that covered his mouth. He gave her a brief smile and slowly leaned over to watch the live feed going down. Everything seemed calm right now, but all hell was going to break loose soon. Cartri turned his head and looked back up the steps, a grin breaking across his lips.

"The show will begin in moments, we may as well get ours rolling now," he said confidently, pulling the cloth of his mouth once more to only show his light blue eyes "The police will respond to the courtroom first, in that time we'll have ample time to fill our pockets full of credits" pulling a few empty duffle bags from his own, he hands them over for her to carry.

"You'll be needing these to store whatever you find. Afterward, we will be throwing them down the garbage shoot into the truck below." Cartri explained, a hand going to his ear to place in a single music pod "Alright, let's do this..." the teen said as he turned and began walking towards the doors of the bank.

Only a few steps away, a finger lightly pressed the button...

 

[Mairéad Solus]

Spoiler: Equipment:

Ladies Watch
Marzanna
Datapad

Tags: Marcella Fiora

Easy? Well if this is easy then Mairéad would just have to look forward to the challenge of when things really heated up for her. The woman blushed slightly at the response from at the comment from Marcella Fiora . "I thought it was appropriate for the venue, I'm representing something far more discerning than some model agency aren't I?" she grinned at Marcella, she had invited her to this hearing as her guest after all, it wouldn't be proper to dress down.

A little smirk appeared across her face though as she thought. "Fashion could be a fun industry to get in to, I think I'd want to treat the models a little better than... well, you know.." Mairéad had done a little bit of 'living clothes hangar' work in her previous life, she wasnt well treated and she wasn't paid. She would be certain not to pay that forward.

Marcella asked if she had ever been to a trial before, she shook her head in response as she read the trial paper. "Only show trials on Zygerria, but I'm fairly certain those things were rigged." she chuckled and raised her eyebrows at the ridiculousness of it, no slave was ever found innocent on Zygerria, of anything. Mairéad was only lucky that she managed to keep her own nose clean and away from them. She was fascinated to see what happened here, although a few rumours and hearsay had filtered through to her that Denon had its own issues with legal corruption.

​

 

[Cassus Akovin]

Location: Supreme Ministry of Judgement; Private Quarters of the Judgement Chambers
Objective 1: Held in Contempt
Nearby: Johnny Diamonds Samnai Rouber @Open
Status: It's complicated

After standing still for hours in the dark, Cassus welcomed the sudden light. Around him, whirring, beeping, and cooing sprung to life as droids of all kinds began to come to life in the presence of their master. Feeling absolutely ridiculous, Cassus thought about his partner in crime and what he had to say about this mission...

"Cut it out, Caz. I'm crazy, not stupid, Dig?"

Cassus wasn't sure which of the two of them was the crazy one or the stupid one. He had done many crazy things and a lot of stupid things in his short adolescent life, but this might be the craziest, in terms of absurdity, and the stupidest, for how it made him feel.

"Yeah, I get it Caz. We go after the Tin Man holed up in his little private echo chamber. Don't worry so much, we'll be fine. Sometimes you seem more uptight than Daiya when Cartri's around."

Considering his present circumstances, he wasn't sure if being uptight was a feature or a bug for this deception. He also didn't care for his characterization of Daiya, because as much as he disliked Cartri, he still viewed her as his sister.

"Uptight isn't what I'd call Daiya," Cassus remembered saying as he put on more mechanical plating over his suit. "Excitable is a more accurate term," He fiddled with his voice modulator settings, getting into character in sound and vocabulary.

"So, are we good? We got transport waiting outside for us."

"Ready for this to be over with." The droid that was once Cassus responded back to Johnny Diamonds. The droid that was now lying in wait for TM-2ED to enter his private quarters before the show began...

"20 minutes until broadcast, Your Honor." An aide informed him via internal comlink.

TM-2ED began to boot up after spending soooo much time calculating all the specifics of this legal case, which he totally didn't already decide the moment the file for the proceedings was sent to him long before even the first defendant arrived. No, certainly the highest caliber legal droid in the galaxy wasn't instead, utilizing all his computational power to drift across the holonet refining his smuggling operation for peculiar droid models.

In fact, he had just received a new shipment waiting now in his private quarters.

"Wow, an entire 19 minutes and 54 seconds, whatever shall I do with so much time!" The eccentric computer exclaimed as it rose from The Bench. In its finely tailored suit, The Honorable "Tim Ted" seemed to glide across the polished marble flooring because, of course, he was. Feet unmoving micro-repulsors prevented the sharply dressed droid from ever sullying its impeccable floor or defiling even the bottoms of its feet with dirt. Like his record for providing trustworthy legal rulings from the incorruptible top to the incorrigible bottom of Denon society, the manufactured grace of His Honor would accept nothing less than a perfectly orderly courtroom.

Yet, even this was more to do with the persona he had crafted rather than his true... inclinations.

Though the action was unnecessary, Tim Ted opened the passageway into his private quarters, despite being able to do so remotely. With the door opened, lights manifested and graced the menagerie of a highly curated collection of novelty droids.

"Ah, my beauties! Come to me, Your Honor requires servicing! Make it snappy!" The sleaze of its voice was palpable as the circus of robotic entities, from tiny mouse droids to bizarrely constructed labor droids, began to pour out of the quarters and surrounded Tim Ted.

"Ahhh," Tim Ted let out an utterly unnecessary sigh as a peculiarly colored GNK droid began to provide power to its master. As the other droids provided their functions, from cleaning to amusement, one droid seemed to stand out amongst the crowd after a minute or two.

"Ah yes, the new one! Excellent, you don't have to be on standby anymore, dear. You are permitted to state your designation and tell me a bit about yourself." Tim Ted gesticulated towards his latest addition. He was no stranger to adopting former battle droids and "reforming" them into their new role in life. This latest model certainly looked like it needed a good remodeling and a touch of makeup!

It started with a few tentative steps toward Tim Ted.

"I collect bounties and assassinate rivals."

"Oooo, even as much time as we have, I don't think we have enough time for such naughty talk. Why don't we start with your designation instead? Unless you'd rather me give you one? I might have a couple in mind!" Tim Ted let out a simulated giggle.

It took a few more steps, more confidently towards His Honor.

"I correct the wrong on Denon."

Now Tim Ted was getting annoyed.

"Yes, yes, now your designation, please? This one is going to need some reconditioning. So much time is being wasted. You should be ashamed. I thought you were sexy!"

"You are going to help me." Tim Ted's bubble was about to be breached, and it was at this point he tired of this game. It was always a danger purchasing off-brand combat models, and it wasn't anything he wasn't used to. This one, though, even exceeded his expectations for derangement—a pity.

"You are ruining my pre-show party!" His Honor pointed at the offending droid and began to issue the shutdown command to the Restraining Bolt being worn on the droid like a badge of valor. Suddenly, the "droid" fired out a grappling cable that effortlessly coiled itself around the well-pressed suit and restrained him. Cooling carbonite immediately began to creep its way out the coils and harden across the trunk of Tim Ted's body.

"Party's over." Cassus finally dropped the act and pulled out a rather large pistol from a compartment attached to his chest. With a thunderous explosion, Cassus completely disintegrated the nearby GNK droid, which let out one final mournful GOOOOOONK before turning it on its master.

"... and one final thank you to our sponsors. Now it's time for Tried & Truth, with the Honorable Tiiiiim Ted!" The announcer finally finished his introduction, and the show began. The Bench began to descend from the ceiling into the courtroom by repulsor lift with all cameras focused on a shocking new development. Dramatic lighting lit up the courtroom in the auditorium seats, and the camera droids zoomed in on not one but two figures on the bench, and sent the feed to the Faux Courtroom and all across Denon.

A mysterious figure was holding the honorable judge hostage at gunpoint!

The plan was in motion, and demands would be made, but first, there would be a few minutes of chaos as disguises dropped and weapons began to fire on security...

Ivory Stroud Hex Marcella Fiora Cartri Keswoll Das Mairéad Solus Oceiros of Shor

 

[Brie Jaxx]

Location: Denon, The Evidence Vault
Objective: Three - Capital Offence
Tags: Das , Cartri Keswoll

This had to be one of the boldest missions Brie was about to partake in. A heist at the heart of CorpSec entertainment and institutions of so called justice. They would hit the smug smiling corpos straight in the face and bring an abrupt halt to tonights entertainment on holo-TV. Millions would see them live. Well, they would at least see Cassus, Johnny and the others in the team hitting the Judgement Chambers. Brie were perfectly fine with not being hit with a spotlight and camera and broadcasted across the planet. In fact, being in the limelight never really was her thing. There was others being good at that in Darkwire, and she had one with her tonight in the shape of the ever bragging and cocky Cartri Keswoll . Now, it was a pretty long time since they had any issues with each other. Cartri being the boyfriend of Daiya , and her being Brie's bestie gave them an insurance that it had to stay that way.

They were all dressed for a quick and easy hit against the vault that supposedly held a massive amount of credits among the ''evidence''. Wearing her flightsuit and hair in a ponytail, Brie jumped out of the garbage airspeeder after seeing Cartri through the side mirror going up the stairs, before their signal! She forgot how impatient her beloved besties boyfriend could be.

''Hey hey, wait for me! We haven't got the signal yet, have we?'' Brie hissed and looked around to make sure they were not being watched or heard by someone.

 

[Oceiros of Shor]

Location: Private Apartment - En Route to Crime Scene
Objective: 1 - Held in Contempt
Vibe Check: Neutral-Bad

Oceiros laced up one boot, then switched to the other. He had his head pressed up to his right shoulder in order to keep his comlink against his ear, though he really, truly, wanted to fling it across the room. "Yeah, you did said that. I hear you." Getting calls from control always killed his vibes, which were normally so good. Too uptight or too frantic. Sometimes both.​

​

"Yeah, no, I got it. Loud and clear. Proprietary droid. Totally."​

​

Like yapping all this in his ear would make it all go any better, any smoother. The future was a fixed object. All they could do was walk towards it together. So relax, will you? Either he rescues the droid brain or he doesn't. The milk is already spilled - or it isn't. Either way, it's all going to be fine. It's all going to be groovy. If not for them, then the galaxy at large, at least.​

​

That's what he'd like to tell them, but control is an AI and they just don't get these kinds of things.​

​

Oceiros stands and clicks his heels. Boots secure. He has his smartlink in his hand now. "No, they don't gotta pick me up. I'll meet them there."​

​

He meanders from his living room to his office. "Office." It's mostly an armory. There are several small firearms and their matching ammunition clips hung up on the wall. Oceiros waggles his fingers, hand floating indecisively between two handguns in particular.​

​

"What do you mean how? I'll do the thing. You know, the thing I do."​

​

Then he thinks. Hostage situation? No can-do for ol' reliable. That's for the FDS-9P, baby. Especially with those cool smart rounds. Just one clip of those, though. If he ended up having to fire more than 14 shots they were probably fucked anyway. Control is still droning in his ear. "Just check my file, man, come on. Do you not have my file?"​

​

Nobody he talked to ever had access to his file. Why even bother having the damn thing?​

 

[Ivory Stroud]

Location: The Supreme Ministry of Judgment; Denon
Objective 2: The Defense Rests
Nearby: Hex
Status: Armed & Dangerous

"So, Gwen, I have the paperwork you requested here, who would you like to meet with first."

Playing the part of the Corporate Executive, she appeared to half-ignore the red-headed young intern - avoiding looking in her direction as "Gwendolyn" reached out for the sheets Hex offered. Immediately, they began to distance themselves from the Security Checkpoint - walking further into the building through the lobby. The clip-clop of her heels rang out like pistol shots, echoing across the walls - her stride, measured & confident. Behind the two women, the protocol droids remained silent - following dutifully behind (at a slower pace).

Without saying a word, Gwendolyn began to piece together the document; stopping near the staircase which would lead them toward the second floor and pausing in a small alcove. She waited to "Ellie" to catch up, and the two would be able to review the document in its entirety.

After a brief, whispered discussion, Ellie & Gwendolyn began to make their way up the stairs nearby.

While the two had huddled in their corner, Ivory had laid out the plan:

"When we get upstairs, the room we want is 2C - at the end of the long hallway on the right. We'll be just below the actual court-room, where the trial is actually taking place. The room we're going to will house the defendants, as well as a Security Team and our primary objective: the broadcast booth. Our credentials should get us inside, beyond Security. The droid with the gear stays with us - the other one, by the door." Her eyes flashed menacingly. Hex knew exactly what that meant... if & when CorpSec came to get them, they'd have a nasty surprise waiting. "We're not gonna wait long. I'll cause a distraction to buy you time to gear up... then while you start it off and secure the room, I'll hit the broadcast booth and seize control. When they show up to smoke us out - and they will - we go loud. I've got someone on the inside, ready to give us our exit... we use the ensuing chaos to get our people out. Any questions?"

Hex bit her top lip and drummed her fingers on her bottom lip thoughtfully. "Hmm... you cause distraction, I get my gear off clanky here... you go do something complicated which makes them come running, other clanky does his thing.... sorry buddy, and I go to town on the seccers. Gotcha."

Ivory flashed a grin at her wild companion, nodding - pleased with her response. She could see why Daiya kept Hex around. Out of all her fellow Shadowrunners, Ivory had the distinct impression she could count on Hex to hold up her end of the deal.

"Alright." She said, then the two switched back into their characters and began making their way up the staircase toward the second floor.

(Hex Dialogue used with permission)

Brie Jaxx Cartri Keswoll Cassus Akovin Samnai Rouber Mairéad Solus Hex Marcella Fiora Oceiros of Shor Das

 

[Hex]

Location: The Supreme Ministry of Judgment; Denon
Objective: 2 - The Defense Rests
Tags: Ivory Stroud

Spoiler: Equipment

• Powderpunk armor on loan from Daiya
• ap-25i SIMP pistol
• 'Candles' Heavy particle blaster
• Big Bigby
• 'confetti' Rocket launcher
• Party Poppers (3 explosive, 3 gas)
• Dancer repulsor board
• Dervish Knife
• Cheap data pad and communicator

Other than the pad all gear is stashed inside the protocol droids

Spoiler: Hex dialogue colors

Poor Hex hears voices in her head

Hex speech to others
Hex speech to herself

Hexes inner voices
'...Neutral...'
'...Doubt...'
'...Anger...'
Coloured '.....' are also words that Hex can hear , but I decided not to write them to reduce clutter

Hex, or Ellie, was grinning as they walked through the court and as Ivory laid out the plan she actually felt more comfortable, violence was in her wheelhouse, subterfuge was not, once things went hot she could relax a little. Dropping back in to character, they made their way up the stairs.

She saw a young man, not much older than her and also in tow of someone who looked as boss like as Gwen, but he kept looking at her. Hex shot him a curious glance, she had been told to look out for anything out of the ordinary. The young man made this strange gesture towards her, she didnt understand so raised an eyebrow. He shook his head and walked over, Hex's heart started to quicken and she looked at Ivory Stroud .

'...hold it together girl...'

"Ellie, right? You're new? Please can you take these documents for processing when you get a moment." he grinned handed her a ream of paper before walking off. She looked down at the document he had given her. It simply had a few hand written words on it.

Lee Fenix - page 4442209135
Love the hair
Dinner?

Hex smirked and quickly filed it into her other papers, she wasnt interested, but she couldn't exactly blurt it out in case she blew her cover. She turned round and looked at him.

'...He likes you...'
"But I like..."
'...we know!...'

She giggled lightly to herself and picked up the pace as she had dropped behind Ivory. Finally coming to their target location and beginning with the plan. She would be much more comfortable when she had her blaster back in her hand. One of the droids had all her toys, and she couldn't help but keep glancing at him as they progressed.

2C

"This is us then?" Ellie reached out and got the door for her Boss and held it open to allow her to flash her credentials. The room was quite bare and it had various methods of detaining more unruly defendents on the walls, she wondered who was the most dangerous people that had ever passed through this hall then giggled silently to herself. If rumours were to be believed it might be her boss.

 

[Cartri Keswoll]

Location: Denon
Objective: Three, the evidence vault
Attire: Link
Tags: Das / Brie Jaxx / OPEN FOR OPPOSITION

"Post theme: Payday 2 - Donactdum"

''Hey hey, wait for me! We haven't got the signal yet, have we?''

"We do now..."

Moving to the doors he suddenly kicked them open and took out a blaster from his pocket to shoot up into the air without any hesitation "Everyone shut up, get on the ground, and don't move!" he shouted into the lobby as a dozen people fell to the covering their heads. There was a little known fact about Cartri, and that was the fact he was very good at changing his voice when needed. Twisting and making the voice mature, it almost seemed quite different than his normal voice.

"Emily, activate the emergency shutdown protocols for the front and back entrances. No one is commoning in or out of this place without our notice. Brie, start gathering all the people out here and lock them in a room somewhere" he said to them both quietly before running up to a desk and jumping on top of it to look over the crowd.

"Okay ladies and gents we are only here for what is inside that vault. As long as you behave and try not to be a hero none of you will be hurt, soon enough you'll be out of here in no time!" he said with an authoritative voice, his blue eyes looking over to Emily who had hopefully shut everything needed by now

"You have our key to the vault right? now is a good time to get that baby open"

 

[Marcella Fiora]

M A R C E L L AㅤF I O R A

'Aleph'​

"True true.. you are dressed for this.." Marcy' pointed out, grinning slightly as she took another sip from her cup, "and yes you are!" she added, now smirking. Moments passed as she eyed a number of her fellow Denon corpos as they passed by their bench, she

was acquainted with one or two of them but not all of them.. yet.

"I know you would.. the fashion industry would suit you actually, 'could actually see you doing it," shared Marcy, pondering the feasibility of entering the fashion industry. As a whole, they had their fingers in many pies, operating throughout a wide variety of businesses and such in pursuit of profit and various other resources~ the possibility of expanding further was not an impossible idea.

Awkwardly chuckling at Mai's comment, "fair enou-" the blast of the speakers distracted her, the announcer announcing the arrival of the illustrious judge, Tim Ted. The swoosh of the repulsorlift platform emanated throughout the courtroom, applause soon following~ but something was off.

As the platform descended, there were two figured on the platform with one seemingly holding the other hostage, "Oh crick.." she muttered to herself, turning to her assistant, Lucius, and handing him a nod as if to signal for something to happen...

Mairéad Solus , Cassus Akovin