Yarrow Point

Bellevue, Seattle

July 1, 2059

9:35 pm

"Mommy?" Young Jacob cried.

"Yes, dear?"

"I'm tired." The young boy held his arms up. "Carry me?"

"Are you getting sleepy?" Jacob's mother lifted him into her arms. She held him tightly in her warm grasp. Jacob buried his nose into her shoulder. "It's okay. We'll be home."

Jacob's eyes blinked. He was barely able to keep them open. Jacob's mother brushed the hair away from his forehead. He was almost asleep. She cursed herself for living on the top floor. The thirtieth floor was far above the rest of the city. It provided for a spectacular view, but it took forever for the antiqued elevators to reach it.

"Here we are, Jacob."

The elevator slowed the a halt, giving a final jerk before stopping. There was a sharp ping as the door slide open. Jacob's mother took a single step forward before realizing that something was very wrong. The hallway was a mist of thin smoke. The smell of burnt carpet wafted through her lungs. People were running around in the darkness. She could not make out any figures, but she did see bursts of sporadic light.

"Everybody down!" A man yelled.

The pounding of automatic weapons filled the air. Jacob screamed as his mother tried to shield him. Bullets hammered against the elevator inches above the boy's head.

"Mommy what's happening!" Jacob cried.

"Stay down, honey, stay down." Jacob's mother hit the floor. The heel of a foot hit the ground in front of her. It belonged to a man who was wearing a tailor suit and mirror sunglasses. The sunglasses were oversized. A datacord ran from the end of them to a jack behind the man's ear. The man held a compact Uzi III in his hands. The world deafened as it was fired it. Empty casings clattered onto Jacob's mother.

"Watch the mark." Someone said from the end of the hall.

A thundering blast slammed the man against the wall. His foot prevented the elevator doors from closing. The Uzi hit the ground. The weapon was splattered with blood. The man began to cough harshly, spitting up mouthfuls of crimson red. Another blast sent sounds of ripping leather and shattering bone racing through Jacob's mother's ears. The man collapsed in a crumpled heap.

"Oh my god!" She screamed. "Jacob, keep your head down!"

The man's foot was still stick in the door. As long as it was there the elevator doors were not going to close. Jacob's mother tried to move the lifeless appendage. Her trembling hand pushed against the dead flesh. It felt shot, yet stiff against her touch. Little Jacob had no shortness of breath in his lungs. His crying filled the stillness with noise that the weapons had left in their wake.

"Drek." A voice came from the end of the hall. "I'm out of shells."

"Watch the mark!"

"He's running, Smiley, stop him."

Something crashed against the ground. "He's as good as stopped. He runs fast for a fat fellow."

"Get down!" A muffled thumping followed those words.

"I thought I shot that fragger!"

"Watch the mark!"

"That's it. Put him out, we'll carry him the rest of the way."

"Frag this guy is heavy."

Shots rang out again. Muzzle flare lite up the smokey hall. The muffled thumping resumed with intensity. A gagged scream opened up before it was quickly silenced.

"Cover the six." An order came. "Make your way to the elevator."

Jacob's mother could not see who was talking. The smoke had thickened as had the stench of burning carpet. Lower voices followed the first, but they were too low for her to understand.

"Three minutes, people." A authoritative man commanded. "Move it!"

"I'll be happy when we get out of here."

"Where the hell is that crying coming from?"

Jacob's mother shuddered at those words.

Figures came out of the smoke. Two of them appeared through the haze. One was a tall human with reddish-brown hair. There was a pistol in one hand. His other hand held the mask of a respirator over his mouth. A second man followed the first. Even through the smoke Jacob's mother could see the wide smile he sported. In one hand he held a large shotgun. The man walked hunched over. He had a short, chubby man slung over his shoulder. The man did not appear to have any trouble in carrying the extra weight.

The muffled thumping came again. Another figure burst into view. This was a smaller human, less than half the size and a foot shorter of the first two. This one sported a long coat that had what looked like a stick slung across its back. The human braced himself against the recoil of the submachine gun he was firing. The large, rounded barrel must be a sound suppressor. The sound was softened as the weapon was fired.

A fourth person came into view. This one was a woman. Jacob's mother could tell because of the long, blond shards of hair and the body language. The woman stood nearly equal with the man. Her slender figure and high ears suggested that she was an elf.

The elf glanced at the elevator. "Who are they?" She pointed.

The man with reddish brown hair focused onto the man and child for the first time. The man's eyes were strange. They were dark, almost pitch black. Jacob's mother made the conclusion that his eyes were cybernetic.

Jacob's mother cried, hushing her son with her hand. "Don't hurt my baby. Please don't heart my son!"

"Lenny, we've got to go." The short human said.

The man with the cybereyes sighed. He put his pistol away. Jacob's mother took that as a good sign.

"Out, Ms." The man told her. He directed his attention to his companions. "Load up."

The man took a grip of her arm, hauling her to her feat. The elfish woman took over from there. Jacob's mother was outside the elevator before she knew what happened. The other two humans trailed in as she elf sat her against the wall.

The man with the cybernetic eyes yanked a small device from his belt. "Top floor, Tart." He said. He paused only to kick the lifeless foot out of the way. The elevator gave a ping as the doors shut.

"Mommy? What's wrong? Mommy?" Jacob continued to cry.

"It's okay, honey." Jacob's mother held her son tightly. "It's all over now."

Abandoned Air Field

Puyallup, Seattle

10:24 pm

"I hate Puyallup." A vibrant human sneered. "The place stinks like there was no tomorrow. I'm going to remember this smell for as along as I live." His nose wrinkled a the humid night air. Puyallup smelled bad enough without the summer heat. "Next time Hector comes to me with a delivery job, remind me to ask where the pickup is at."

"Me, Guido, no dink air smell funny." A hulking troll grinned, giving a broken-toothed smile at the much smaller human. "Dis remind Guido of home."

"That's because you stink, Guido." The human snapped. "You stink worse than Puyallup ever could."

"Me, Guido, stinks?" Guido lifted his arm and smelled his pit. "Me, Guido, smell fine. Like fresh pines. Guido smell like dis cause me, Guido, bought pine air-freshener at Stuffer Shack."

"You two mind shutting the hell up?" Riggs scorned, sticking his head out the Bison's window.

"Riggs-"

"Shut up, Cinder!" Riggs spat at the human. "Sensors are picking up a blip. Five-hundred meters out and closing."

"Is it Eve?" Cinder wondered, making his way into position.

Guido hauled his assault rifle into his meaty hands. The induction pads on the troll's hand connected with the receptors on the assault rifle's grip. The smartlink came online with a slight flicker. Red crosshairs popped into Guido's vision. At the corner of his vision a ammunition counter kept track of how many bullets were left in the rifle's clip.

Cinder scanned the sky with thermographic binoculars. It is too dark for him to see anything with his naked eyes. Cinder cannot see a thing. The night hides any hint of a helicopter. The sensors in the Bison are the only hint that something is coming.

"I don't see a thing, Riggs." Cinder said. "Where are they?"

"Four hundred meters." Riggs updated. "And closing."

Running lights suddenly came on. The outline of a Hughs Stallion appeared like a phantom. The copter's lights scanned the pavement as the machine started hovering at the end of the airstrip.

"See? And you didn't want to believe me. Guess we know who's the smart one around here." Riggs tapped into the commlink, sending the Go codes to Eve. The helicopter responded with a set of codes all it's own. These codes were Lenny's idea. This way the helicopter would know who was waiting on the ground while the ground crew would know who was in the air. "It's a go!" Riggs said after the codes were received.

The Bison's engine roared to life. Cinder and Guido took flanking positions as the Bison backed into position. The Stallion's nose came down, starting the machine on its trip to the ground team. Thirty seconds later the Stallion hovered above the ground as Cinder and Guido came up for the recovery. A downdraft swirled beneath the Stallion as it came down, the rotating blades becoming a blur of activity. Cinder and Guido held strong against the high winds. The copter touched the ground just as the door slide open. Two people hopped out, taking covering positions on either side of the door. One was a short human with an Hk227. The other was a man with a wide smile and demonic personality. He held a Predator in one hand.

Guido, being very simple minded, waved playfully at Smiley and Nightsky. The two shadowrunners barely nodded a response.

"All clear." Nightsky reported.

More people stepped out. One, whom Cinder knew by reputation alone, was Lenny. A cigarette was stuck in his lips and an Ares Predator II in his hand. The second person did not come all the way out of the helicopter. Her shadow stood silently against the door.

Riggs stuck his plump head out the window. "Have any trouble, bossman?"

His words were barely audible over the whine of the Stallion. The only reason lenny could hear him was because of the cybernetic implants in his ears.

"Nothing that we could not handle." Lenny yelled loud enough for the dwarf to make out what he was saying. "We have a package for you chummers." Lenny motioned at Shard.

The person hidden against the door made a quiet gesture with her hands. Movement began in the cabin as if on cue. A limp form floated out of the Stallion. Cinder knew immediately who it was. His name is Henrich Valantine. He is the mark for the extraction that Lenny and his team were assigned to bring out. Henrich was overweight. It must have been a tight fit inside the helicopter. That explained why he was being levitated into the Bison instead of being dragged. Riggs opened the side door. Henrich floated harmlessly inside.

"He was reluctant to leave." Lenny said.

Those words caught Cinder off guard. "Reluctant? This was an extraction, not a snatch."

"That is what I was told. We slapped a tranq patch on his neck. He should be out for a few hours." Lenny said, turning towards the Stallion.

Cinder shrugged, watching Smiley and Nightsky climb into the copter. "I'm not paid to ask questions. I don't care what his problem is."

"Hector hired us to get the mark and you to deliver it." Lenny shrugged. "I don't care what you do with him, but we've got to get going. Our decker is on the other side of the sprawl. She'll be upset if we don't come get her."

The Stallion's doors slide shut. The blades picked up their furious howl, lifting several tons of metal into the sky. Within minutes the Stallion was nothing more than a speck against the skyline.

Cinder watched for a moment, but not for long. Business needed his attention.

Fife Neighborhood

Tacoma, Seattle

July 2, 2059

12:05 pm

Tart peered out the window. There was not much to see in the dead of night. Cars flashed blinding headlights through the open curtains. The light would bathe the motel room with an eerie glow.

"Get away from there." Rave sneered.

Tart passed a nervous glance at Rave. Rave was hired protection that Hector had arranged on the short notice. Tart was not sure where Rave had come from. She was harsh and impulsive. At the same time the razor seemed less experienced than Tart. Rave was tall for a human. She stood nearly two meters, plus a few centimeters with her stiletto boots. The boots were red to match her form-fitting leather body suit. Her bald head made a sharp contrast with her revealing attire. Tart could never bring herself to wear something like that. However, it was not Rave's clothes that made Tart unwary of her. It was the 9mm Browning that Rave constantly fingered.

Rave sat quietly playing with the action of her gun. The action make a clicking sound as she manipulated it.

"Would you please stop?" Tart was afraid the gun would accidently go off.

"This bothers you?" Something about Rave's voice made every word from her mouth seem hostile.

Tart nods quietly.

"Oh, like I'm so sorry." Rave stood, striking a pose resembling some movie stars. "I didn't mean to offend the brains that needed protecting."

Tart did not say anything. Though she made sure to pull her gym bag closer. The bag held her cyberdeck.

Rave approached Tart. Tart kept her back to the walking razor. Rave stood next to Tart's shoulder. Rave seemed to examine her for a moment, taking in body language and sniffing the air around her. Olfactory boosters in her sinuses brought Rave a multitude of information.

"You're scared of me." Rave said suddenly.

Tart looked at her with shocked eyes. Her look did more to enhance Rave's suspicions than anything else.

"I can tell." Rave gave a devilish grin. "Therm-optics in my eyes and a chemical analyzer in my nose tell me more about you than you think. There's more cyberware under my skin than you know. Much more than that little chunk of metal you have." Rave pointed at Tart's datajack.

Tart unconsciously fingered her jack while stepping away from Rave.. "It's all that I need."

Rave gave an amused smirk. "You're afraid, that's what you are. You don't like that metal inside you. It's cold to you, but I like it. I feel the metal in my skin and I like it." Her eyes rolled into her head for a moment. "You are too tense." She said bluntly. "You don't know how to have fun."

"What do you mean?"

Rave showed her a small simsense deck. It was black and silver with a datacord wrapped around it. Rave pushed the device into Tart's hands whom hesitated.

"Take it." Rave pushed. "Get away from reality. Life's a lot easier in there." She motioned at the small deck.

"But aren't these things addictive?" It was a half-hearted excuse. The real reason why she was unsure about the simsense was because she had seen the effect that it could produce. Smiley was a living example of what simsense could do.

"It's only dangerous if the chip is decked." The smile that Rave gave damaged her credibility. "The chip that's inside is as safe as safe can be."

Tart put the deck into her bag. She did it to satisfy Rave than for anything she wanted.

A pair of headlights passed by the window, but they did not leave. The rumbling of a cars engine soon filled the tiny room. Rave looked through the peephole on the door. A cynical look came over her features.

"Mr. Lenny is here." Rave said. "I suppose our time has come to an end."

There was a knock at the door. Rave opened it to a tall man with reddish brown hair whom possessed a serious deposition.

"You're late according to Hector." Rave sneered at the newcomer. She could see past Lenny to the shiny Eurocar he had arrived in. There were two other people in the car.

Lenny stepped inside. "Hector's timetable didn't take patrols into account." He turned his attention to Tart. "It's time to go."

Tart nodded and stepped past Lenny. She did not waste any time in getting to the car.

Lenny watched her go, but he was interrupted by Rave's snapping fingers.

"Excuse me!" Rave continued to snap her fingers. "But I haven't been paid. I've spent all night babysitting that girl's brainless meat. Where's my cut." She grinned, pulling her pistol out and playing with the barrel. "You wouldn't be trying to slight me, would you?"

Lenny sighed. "You're threatening the wrong person, Rave." He pulled a credstick from his coat and handed it to her. "Here's your money." Lenny turned to leave.

"So!" Rave called to him. "That's what it's like? Just give me the money and say bye-bye to Rave?"

"That's it." Lenny shot back, climbing into his car.

Tart's Apartment

Everett, Seattle

2:30 am

Tart shut her door quietly, securing it with a maglock and floor-brace. It had been a long night. The only thing on Tart's mind was her warm bed. She afforded her stiff muscles a nice stretch. A good night's sleep would go a long way in healing her aches. Most of the past hour had been spent in Lenny's car. The vehicle was cramped with four people inside. So long in such proximity to others had made Tart anxious.

The gym bag that carried Tart's cyberdeck found a resting place on a table. The bag hit the table in such a way that the end opened, allowing the simsense deck to roll out. Tart did not notice it at first. She went to the telecom to check for messages. There was only one from Hector. Hector did not have anything important to say other than to over his congratulations on another job well done.

Tart could not help, but to smile at the message. Hector knew that Tart lacked self-confidence. This was his way of trying to help. She read it one more time before deleting it.

As Tart passed the table, on her way to the bathroom for a shower, she noticed the simsense deck. It was poking out the open end of her bag.

Tart picked up the device. It was smaller than some she had seen. It looked shiny and new. There was a chip slotted into the drive. It was labeled Sunset Getaway. Tart looked around, like she was making sure she was alone.

"Why not?" She said to herself.

Tart brushed off a place to sit. She unwrapped the datacord from the small deck and plugged the end into her datajack. Though she did not switch the deck on. A fluttering sensation in her stomach made her nervous. The hair on her arm stood on end.

What was it that Samantha always said, Tart thought to herself. Take a chance?

The switched the simsense deck on.

This was simesense? I couldn't be. It was more like a dream. A dream magnified a thousand fold.

Tart is breathless. She can feel the gritty sand between her toes. The air is so clean without a hint of pollution. She takes it in slowly, filling her lungs. For a moment it is hard for her to believe that Rave would enjoy a simchip like this. It is so calming. It is also hard to tell that this is not real.

She could not help herself. The ocean was spread out before her like a becoming lover. This was too perfect to deny. Tart dashed into the crystal blue water. She noticed for the first time that she was wearing a bathing suit.

The water rushed over her. It made her skin tingle. Tart had never been a good swimmer, but this time it was like she belonged in the water. Once, when she was little, Tart had nearly drowned in a public pool. The event had left her with a small fear of water ever since. That fear was gone now. A phobia that had been erased by the warmth of the sun and the crashing waves.

"This is great!" The cried out in joy.

She swam deeper into the lagoon. The water helped her along. It provided a gentle push as she made her way. The water should be getting colder as the water got deeper, but it stayed the same. The wind over her shoulders should have given her a chill, but it only warmed her.

A dolphin zipped by her. It teased Tart by swimming lazy circles and squeaking its greeting.

Tart giggled. "You must be flipper?" She reached out to touch it. Her head rubbed across the animal's bottled-nose. The dolphin was eager to play. Tart splashed water in the dolphin's direction. The dolphin responded by leaping out of the water and splashing down. The wave the dolphin caused washed over Tart's head.

Tart laughed, finding such enjoyment in this. The dolphin teased her again. The jittering animal swam close enough to rub it's rubbery skin against Tart's.

Tart held onto the dolphin's dorsal fin. The dolphin carried her on a ride through the lagoon. Just like she had seen those people in nature films do. The experience was nothing less than pure joy. The water whipped by in even streams. The dolphin cackled playfully. Those sounds brought laughter from Tart.

The water got very deep. It disappeared beneath her in endless black. The water also felt a little colder, but Tart hardly noticed.

"Where is the dolphin?" Tart looked around. The dolphin was jsut with her. Now it was no where to be seen.

She took a breath and dove underneath the water. The opened her eyes to see the underwater world. The water hid most of its secrets. Blackness covered everything beyond ten meters.

Tart's head broke the surface of the water. She gasped for breath.

"Where did he go?" Tart wanted the dolphin back. She glanced around the horizon. The beach was no where to be seen. A sinking feeling filled her. "Where's the beach?" Tart could feel the panic creeping up on her. The water was suddenly very cold. For the first time she felt afraid. This was not how it was suppose to be. Everything should be perfect. Now it was all going wrong.

"Hello!" Tart called at the top of her lungs.

There was not a soul around for hundreds of miles. Only an endless sea.

"Where's the beach!"

Again there was silence. The only sound present was the waves lapping together.

Fear found its old home in Tart's mind. It settled in and started to grow. Doubts rose higher than the waves. A multitude of worries fluttered into her mind.

"What's going to happen to me!"

Something swam past Tart's legs. Cold, rubbery skin moved against her own.

Tart broke into a grin. "The dolphin."

Small wakes in the water hinted at the dolphin's presence. Tart took a breathe and dove under. She opened her eyes, hoping that the dolphin was close enough for her to see. The salt in the water burned her eyes. It hurt to keep them open for long.

Something moved int he shadows. There was a glimpse of a tail moving off in the darkness. Hope glimmered in Tart as she swam towards the tail. Her smile widen as images of the dolphin appeared in her mind.

"Slow down." She giggled to herself.

The shadows broke. A sleek form darted around Tart. A stiff dorsal fin rubbed across her stomach. Tart managed to turn around in time to see a mouthful of teeth coming at her head.

Tart let out a gasp, sending bubbles of water to the surface. The shark broke off its attack at the bubbles. It slide silently away, but started to turn in on her.

Tart burst into a panic. She swam for the surface, but found it labor-intensive. It was like the water was pulling her down. Her body felt like it weighed a hundred kilograms. The shark came up. Its serrated teeth were like dozens of steak knives. Each of them were more than enough to rip a body to pieces. Tart pushed herself to swim faster. Her body ached with swore muscles that had been starved of oxygen.

Tart's head burst through the surface. The made a greedy gasp for air as she looked around frantically for land.

Something bore into her. Pain exploded from her leg. Tart let out a ear-piercing scream as the water turned to a dull red. She was hit again, but this time the teeth did not let go. They dug into her flesh.

Tart managed a gargled scream before she was yanked underwater.

"This is simsense?" She blurted. She held the deck in her hand. Her mind recalled the pain that she had felt. It was so real. So real that it was scary.

Out of hate she smashed the deck against the floor. The deck bounced when it hit, but it did not look damaged.

Tart crossed her arms and put her head between her knees.

"I wish simsense had never been invented."