She is just as nervous as you are about this stuff. Honestly keeping her in the dark as long as possible is probably the best idea.

Just make sure you protect her so that no one can use her as a hostage against you later.

Did you just die of embarrassment and awkwardness. Are you 73-7 now.

Congratulations Sev, you have successfully weaponized awkwardness!
Her offer is intriguing. Maybe we should take her up on it, after, uh, whatever thing we had to do. Did we have a thing? If not, we have yet to review the information we pulled off Sara's handler terminal. Search that for backdoors you or Dartline can use.

lol that was beautiful.

>>652115
Did, she, uh.

Invite you to her room? Well there's a possibly fun offer.

Between trying not to be brutally murdered of course.

Wire 2015/07/01(Wed)11:47 No. 652244 ID: f68a09
File 143577642266.png - (12.51KB , 960x560 , 274.png )

73-6 slips away from the Armory and tries not to think about Sara.
Instead, he takes the opportunity to use his down time going over the data he pulled from her internal Handler Terminal to see if there's something he can use.

With his master hacking, 73-6 can:
+Remotely lock any of his handlers completely out of their system at any time
+Spoof or deactivate the Control Desk's view of their cameras
+Overwrite, modify, or delete Jericho's current mission parameters or mission logs
+Overwrite, modify, or delete his or any other employee of Jericho's records or history
+Activate Emergency Security Protocols, putting out a distress signal and sending Jericho into lockdown
+Issue the outpost new high-priority orders, masquerading as a superior officer of the Bureau
+Send a maximum import message to any other Bureau outpost, including headquarters
+Change Agent permissions for Jericho's combat equipment and vehicles

Looks like the Drone system, automated turrets, and alarms are all controlled via a separate security kiosk system that he can't reach from here.
His influence is also mostly limited to Jericho itself until he finds a way into the Bureau Mainframe. Access to both of those places is strictly prohibited to all Reconstituted Assets.

It's close to midnight. The logs indicate 73-6 has an appointment with Tai Jiaying in eight hours.

Ok first order of business will be to protect family members from retaliation. If you can change the contact and address info of Monica's family it will make it much less likely that they can be quickly targeted later.

Second objective will be to get into the mainframe. If we are going to fuck things up getting you and Dartline access to the main systems will be vital. And if you don't trust Dartline that much you can always open it to your duplicate and his giant robot friend.

Oh and you need to hack yourself and turn of Dartlines backdoor in your head. You might not be able to completely remove them but if you can block the ports they use you can at least stop someone from activating them.

can we change those addresses without leaving some kind of automated log saying it was changed on x date?

We can use this to erase any dirt the Bureau has on Monica and her ties to us, so even someone knows about her they won't have the evidence to back it up.
Get some sleep so you don't look like a walking corpse for your meeting with Tai. -Oh, right.

Also, were you to be reverted to your non-DA hacking levels, what would you still be able to accomplish? (in other words, what could 73-6-2 do with this access?)

>>652244
I don't suppose we could send an import message in with a remote undetectable virus to get inside the Bureau mainframe digitally, right?
I mean, communication should actually be able to get us anywhere. The mainframe has to be connected to a computer at the main HQ, or else it's a useless mainframe.
Let's just get into there.

Shiiiiiiiit, try and get into Sosa's computer with a message. Maybe we can blow it up and kill him from his desk. He's a paranoid guy, he probably rigged with C4. But he's also stupid, so there's probably a webcam.

Could we insert fake orders from Sosa to kill 38-3, on a delay so they pop up as if newly issued about an hour before the face stealer is scheduled to arrive?

Are we not going to try to protect Monica's family by faking her murder? Altering their records can tip management off that something is wrong unless we scramble every record at once and make it look like a broad attack to screw with the information systems made by some third party.

Messing with Monica's file so her family is harder to retaliate against is something. But we need to be able to sync those records with the bureau's off-site servers (other bases and HQ will have copies). And that doesn't prevent them tracking her family down relatively quickly with real-world detective skills. There's an internet, and other governments records- without covering all the bases, this just slows a hit squad down until someone thinks to check online.

Also, we have to ensure Monica won't see her file and notice the changes in advance. (Put them on a timer?).

We might want to set a remote-trigger virus up, for when we get the hell out. Locking down the base, deleting their files on us, cutting out the cameras, etc.

Would it be worth reviewing any of the mission parameters and/or logs, see what they've been hiding from you?

Can we see the files on off-site assets? It would be nice to say, look up exactly what weapons and upgrades 38-3 has on record.

...I suppose the HQ mainframe is still out of reach? Too bad, I'd like to look at the secret files and see if the people running the bureau are all secretly undead. (Get powerful enough and you can moldie yourself back from the dead without the optional memory wipe, and spend the effort to make them still look cosmetically human).

>Oh and you need to hack yourself and turn of Dartlines backdoor in your head
Fuck yes. (Might be something 73-6-2 could help with?).

>>652244
Okay, how much of the personal data in Jericho's data banks is decentralised? See if you can find any signs of off-site backup programs or logs before changing anything, a discrepancy in the data may be flagged when it is compared to other backups.

Wire 2015/07/02(Thu)00:57 No. 652524 ID: f68a09
File 143582382872.png - (13.16KB , 960x560 , 275.png )

>Faking Monica's death / modifying her files
Entirely doable, with no fingerprints thanks to +SILENT RUNNING+. Getting her to agree to it would be the hard part. The other issue is that the main database has a second copy of her employee records which it syncs every weekend. If it detects a discrepancy it alerts an admin. Which would be bad. The next checkup is in four days; if 73-6 changes anyone's records he then has that long to find a way into Jericho's mainframe, use it to get to the Bureau database at large, and change it there too.

>Change addresses
Also doable, with the same caveat as faking Monica's death. It wouldn't stop the Bureau from finding them, but it might slow them down.

>Fake orders from Sosa to kill 38-3
73-6 isn't sure what the goal here would be since the only person he really cares about fooling is Sosa, but he guesses he can do that too.

>Creating a secret super virus e-mail that will go to Sosa and blow up his computer and kill him
Points for creativity, but not doable.

>Hack Dartline's backdoor in your head
73-6 has tried multiple times but he just can't find the fucking thing. He guesses it stands to reason that the shell upgrade that gave him his master hacking would also have a loophole letting Dartline hide. Or maybe he's just that good.

>Remote Trigger / Help from 73-6-2
Good thinking. 73-6 can create a simple console with any or all of these options that he can give to 73-6-2, letting his cyber-clone do all of the hacking at any time with the push of a button and none of the expertise required. That'll probably also be a good way to start triggering things remotely and quickly, since he can contact 73-6-2 and give the go-ahead at any time.

>Review the mission logs / try to find offsite ones
Looks like these are all Jericho; access to other outposts' mission history is gated to the Mainframe. and there's far too much data to go through right now. When 73-6 has a few more hours to himself he can try.

He should finish up here, decide on what options to save for later or give to 73-6-2, and hit the self-sterilizing polymer sack. Tomorrow is going to be just as hard as today at the minimum. There's a slowly-growing seed of dread in 73-6's stomach, tangled all up with his anticipation.
For better or for worse, the endgame has begun.

>>652524
I don't think we need to worry about sync errors. The next sync is in four days, and by that time everyone we care about will be either safe, or confirmed to be a renegade, or dead (let's face it, it's possible too).

Get something ready to go to revoke all Jericho permissions for 38-3 for equipment and vehicles and allow access to everything to you and friends.
Set up a lockout and camera spoof in case you need them.
Grab them mission logs. You want to know how much Sara and Monica have been covering for you.

Queue up edits for the personnel files, but don't commit them now. You're gonna need mainframe access for Dartline eventually anyways, you can push them then.

Do set up the triggers / backdoor for your doppelganger. Who you owe, by the way. You may have to help him with Deneb someday, if you survive this.

Don't bother with fake orders now. If you do set conflicting orders in the future, they need to come from Tia / Sosa. That could burn any bridge you might have left with her, but both of them should be all too willing to believe the other fucking with them.

Get some sleep.

>>652545
We do need some way to change all the historical incremental backups, and their driver's licenses, registered mailing address, and the damn phone book if we're gonna try to protect Monica's folks from being whacked by the bureau in any other way than convincing our former bosses she's dead.

Wire 2015/07/02(Thu)21:56 No. 652727 ID: f68a09
File 143589938881.png - (8.71KB , 960x560 , 276.png )

73-6 preps two switches for the personnel files. One scrambles Monica's information and one fakes her murder. He'll see which, if either, he needs.

He also sets up a lockout and camera spoof switch, as well as one that will grant him, Penelope, and 88-1 access to the entire suite of mission aids and equipment. He can't do anything about 38-3's access to that stuff because he's not on Jericho's roster.

He clambers into his bunk. 88-1 is reading something opposite him.

"what's that?" 73-6 asks.
88-1 looks across the barracks. "The Art of War."
"seriously?"
"Naw. How would I get a hold of that in here?" 88-1 tosses it onto the floor. "Just the operations manual for the hovercraft in case I need to drive it."
"that's some dry stuff."
88-1 shrugs. "What the fuck else is there to do?"
"good point."
"Night, Sev."
"night, dubs."
73-6 hits the trigger on his bunk and it slides closed, sealing him into a pitch-black metal coffin.
He tries to get comfortable before the gel comes in. He makes sure to keep his mouth shut.

"Initiating hibernation and cleaning process," a pleasant computer voice says. "Hold."
"holding, barbie," 73-6 says.

The bunk floods with cleaning gel, lifting 73-6 up and suspending him before flash-aerating and locking him in place. It's still possible to move but it's a lot harder. 73-6 wiggles to try and get enough room for a modicum of comfort.
The gel acts as his bed and as his shower, clearing away the dirt and sweat and replacing it with the acridly sterile scent of industrial cleaner.

He wakes up every morning smelling like a mortuary janitor's closet.

Wire 2015/07/02(Thu)21:56 No. 652728 ID: f68a09
File 143589941543.png - (9.92KB , 960x560 , 277.png )

"I'm not going to lie, 73-6."

Tai Jiaying's image pulses onto the conference room screen. Apparently her "visit" is a virtual one.

"I'm a little disappointed." She looks at him with bemusement. She doesn't seem particularly angry. "I think I remember telling you to shoot one guy. And your mission was to shoot another. That's two. Not an entire conference room. I think I also remember telling you those people weren't expendable."

73-6 nods, nervously.

"But hey." Tai shrugs. "It's not like I was there. Mistakes happen in the field. It could have been an emergent situation in those few minutes we lost track of you, it could be you forgot, it could just be that you're not quite as good as I thought you were. I felt like I should get in touch, give you room to explain your actions."

She leans into the camera. "So?"

To be fair, everyone keeps telling Sev to act more like a moldie. No witnesses is moldie policy. Those people were rich, but still civilian witnesses. Their station wouldn't matter to a moldie.

I thought "not expendable" meant "you don't have to kill these guys", and we just got told we should maybe kill more people. Didn't seem like there was much opportunity to separate the targets from the rest, anyway... and there was a slim chance wiping the room would keep Sosa from deciding we were working against him.

>>652728
We didn't have the chance to neatly separate the targets from the collateral damage before they were compromised. Moneybag's companion made us and started squawking about the bureau and name dropping people he shouldn't. We didn't have a choice but to abort the subtle and go in hard.

The little turd actually thought the exposure would make us abort. He just got more people killed trying to save himself.

tl;dr- Blame Sosa's guy.

"Not expendable" doesn't mean "don't kill if they find out things that they shouldn't know because Sosa's man couldn't keep his mouth shut."

Unless it does, in which case, she probably should have explained things a bit more clearly.

yeah, went in, one target said some names in earshot of the civilians, if they lived they would have talked. was ether let people talk about who did the job, or kill them.

>>652728
>>652737
And not only could they talk, they were rich people with a lot of sway. With information about Bureau business. The lesser of two evils and all that.

>>652728
Yeah mention the talking stuff and getting them to shut up.
At least now, people blame the riot and won't blame the Bureau. In the end, it was just a bunch of useless rich slub's that might have been useful later. Hardly any different from the poor occasional homeless person or gangbanger's girlfriend that a moldy's been asked to clean up as a potentially loose end. We've been told repeatedly in this job that it pays to be thorough.
This was one of those situations.

38-3's coming, probably to scold me, tell me I'm a defective weapon, and/or kill me, despite the fact that killing is what a weapon does. He's a hypocrite if he does that after what he told me. He's right after all, I AM a weapon as far as the bureau's concerned. And the bullet's they shoot don't always stop at the intended target, sometimes a stray bullet goes through a wall and hit's a poor 9 year old honor student across the street, it's part of the job.

Doesn't make the weapon defective, it makes the wielder responsible for that stray bullet. If the current head of the Bureau can't aim right and deal with the potential consequences, they shouldn't throw the weapon away, it's too damn good at killing to do that. I'm criticizing Sosa here, by the way. I would have shot up that entire room anyway if you never even told me about the contact, because, well, that contact's an idiot that thinks a moldy can be bargained with and just SAY he has contacts with the Bureau. He was a problem child the minute he opened his mouth. I wouldn't have done anything different. I don't even recall Monica or any of the mission briefing suggesting to not kill the others, so yeah, that room would be shot up regardless. Maybe she would have said something like that if the interference never happened, but that's a long shot.

We had secured what looked like the only exit from the meeting room. We were prepared to separate Moneybags from the rest after the meeting was over, bring her back to the outpost for a mindrip, and arrange a riot-related 'accident' for the other target. Then it became clear that they was going to leave through the window, using a hardlight emergency ladder which wasn't listed on the building's blueprints. Classic intel failure.

It was an emerging situation, as you said, and when the going gets tough the reconstituted assets stick to SOP. You said all those rich folks weren't expendable, so I went in with a plan which would have allowed us to avoid killing them. If you wanted to let them walk away even after witnessing me on-mission, you should have made that more explicit. With all due respect, ma'am.

>>652524
>73-6 isn't sure what the goal here would be since the only person he really cares about fooling is Sosa, but he guesses he can do that too.

Short-term, the goal would be to throw all of Jericho's assets at killing 38-3 without having to risk bringing them all in on the conspiracy. Potential useful side effects would be a 'just following orders' excuse for Tai, and isolating and discrediting Sosa. If he's seen ordering his most favored into blue-on-blue ambushes, everybody else will start second-guessing him, and that loss of cohesion will make it easier for a) you to breach his security and b) Tai to seize control.

When the fact comes to light that Sosa never actually issued such an order and the Bureau's most secure comm channels must therefore have been compromised, you can crack a joke about Dartline Alchemist retaliating for the death of his co-conspirator, Sekhmet. Ancient Egypt and alchemy both tend to feature that 'eye for an eye' or 'equivalent exchange' sorts of justice, and the bureau already knows DA has some pretty scary computer science up his sleeve.

That theory validates their existing suspicions about Keesh, and makes it seem like she already planted some tap in Jericho's mainframe, which they will then (hopefully) rip open in a frenzy of paranoia; as Jericho's computer expert, you could plausibly volunteer to help and thereby get the hardware access you need.

Wire 2015/07/05(Sun)14:05 No. 653225 ID: f68a09
File 143613034979.png - (9.00KB , 960x560 , 278.png )

"they were compromised," 73-6 says. "sosa's guy started talking and dropping some unfortunate names to try to save his own life. i used my judgment and decided to follow procedure."
"If you'd used your judgment better," Tai says, "he wouldn't have had a chance to talk. The fact that he did disturbs me."
"very sorry, ma'am."
"So that's the reason? Am I missing anything?"
"ma'am, with all due respect, if you had made it clearer--"
"I'm going to pause you right there, 73-6," Tai says. Her voice is dangerously quiet. 73-6 strains to hear her. "Because you sound very close to trying to tell me what I should have done. Which would be the latest in a string of deeply unfortunate mistakes. 'With all due respect' are four words a reconstituted asset should think very, very carefully about before saying them to a Senior Executive. Now think about how you planned to finish that sentence, and if you decide it's better not to, just don't say anything. And we'll rewind."

73-6 keeps his mouth shut.

"Very good." Tai sits back and steeples her fingertips. "I believe I've heard enough, 73-6. Thank you. William Sosa's agent is arriving at Jericho tomorrow, 73-6. I wish I could tell you what he intends to do.
"What do you suppose you'll do when he gets there?"

>"What do you suppose you'll do when he gets there?"
I'll do my duty, ma'am.

"I'll do as I'm told, ma'm."
This sounds like an executive decision.

Well, we fucked up by her, so she's cutting us free. From here on out, I think we'd best consider her as much of an enemy as the rest of the Bureau. Give her some nice lie. "Whatever is ordered of me. I serve the Bureau." Meanwhile, we need to kick our shit into an even higher gear. It's all coming down.

She's canceled her personal visit to make it a digital one instead? She's grilling you for any wrongdoing you may have done? She's straight up asking you what you're going to do when 38-3 gets here tomorrow? She's a known enemy of Sosa who wants to see her dead but instead she's enjoyed a rise to power?

Hello, 38-3. Long time no see.

>>653545
This is just a guess, of course, but at this point what do we have to lose?
Question whether there was ever a Tai at all, whether she's just a front by Sosa to ferret out his opposition.

>>653272
"I will do as my superiors order me, ma'am."

Wire 2015/07/06(Mon)19:01 No. 653581 ID: f68a09
File 143623450784.png - (6.31KB , 960x560 , 279.png )

"i'll serve the bureau, ma'am."
"Bullshit," Tai says. "You have a plan, 73-6. Don't you? You're a protege of 14-1. Margolis helped him get out and that's why she got the chance to open her mouth, isn't it? If you want out and you want my help this is your last chance to admit it or the door closes."
73-6's eyes narrow.
"I need your honesty, 73-6," Tai says. "No more tricks. We both know what's really happening here."
"i think we do," 73-6 says. "hello, 38-3."

Wire 2015/07/06(Mon)19:01 No. 653582 ID: f68a09
File 143623451994.png - (6.88KB , 960x560 , 280.png )

Tai's constant bemused smirk drops off her face.

"There it goes, 73-6," she says. "We won't see each other again."

Wire 2015/07/06(Mon)19:02 No. 653583 ID: f68a09
File 143623453431.png - (2.95KB , 960x560 , 281.png )

The screen goes blank.

Static on the Wire Thread 7 End Wire 2015/07/06(Mon)19:03 No. 653586 ID: f68a09
File 143623463232.png - (8.54KB , 960x560 , 284.png )

"Couldn't get it out of him. He knows.

"Understood.

"Tomorrow."

lock down, kill everyone that tries to come in.

Nah, too obvious. Stealth those base defenses but don't turn them on just yet. Then get a wooden table to the middle of the room, with two chairs. Maybe get a hardlight hologram just in case - and then get it to sit down. Then when 38-3 arrives, offer to talk.
Battle of nerves, see who Shadowruns first! Really helps that you're not actually there, and you have the whole base on your fingertips.
We'll be at the Black Stalls when shit hits the fan, and if Sosa wants to tango in the Stalls - Bureau is going to take a hit in rep.

Slight tweak to the plan: fake orders from Tai to kill 38-3 for impersonating her, misappropriating Bureau resources, &c.

>>653820
But anon, there never was a Tai Jiaying. She's 38-3 from the get-go. Sosa is playing puppetmaster.

>>653835
There was, though. The rest of the Bureau thinks she's alive. For instance, Monica does.

>>653844
Precisely. Monica could reasonably believe that, just after a private discussion with 73-6 about how his massacre screwed up intra-Bureau politics, Tai Jiyang's timetable for bringing down Sosa has been adjusted, and orders issued accordingly.

So "Tai" is a corpse stuffed with vile tech and lethal secrets, who would kill us given half a chance. So what? Tribranch told Pen to kill us. The Fantomas would've told Lockjaw to kill us if they weren't so utterly incompetent, and actually did hire DA to kill us. All three are now our friends. Turning the hollow shell of Tai Jiyang into our friend is the next logical step. Yes, 38-3 probably needs to be murdered first for that to really work; he's the one who insisted that Lockjaw's conversion be at swordpoint, so he's got no basis to complain when we reuse the technique.