[X] All but the last entries describe him being standoffish and withdrawn. He suddenly became gregarious?
There's a 5-year gap between his most recent evaluation and the one prior, and he's worked for Shiawase for 15 years. Someone can change a lot in five years - the simplest explanation is just personal growth. But it's still noteworthy. Worth digging in to.
Weirdest possible explanation: that isn't Matuo in the hospital at all. Matuo was replaced by someone else a while back who wanted Matuo's identity more than Matuo did.
[X] Let Daichi wait for the CSI team while you head to the hospital
[X] All but the last entries describe him being standoffish and withdrawn. He suddenly became gregarious?
[X] Head to the hospital with Daichi to question Matuo and arrest him if necessary
[X] Theory- Masuda's identity was stolen at some point prior to the final entry. The man who was notably standoffish and not particularly notable was replaced, somehow, by the identity thief- who took advantage of Masuda's background and his own, apparently significant, degree of technical skill in order to gain a Magenta clearance. You're not sure what his precise motivations are, but he- and the other runners- wanted access to the information they took from the site. In order to access that information, they used 'Masuda' as an inside man while they planned their heist. Something went wrong, though- if nothing went wrong, you'd have never heard about the heist, because nobody would know about it. Either the guards caught 'Masuda' and his comrade talking, and had to be eliminated (with backup being called in), or the other runner was trying to take advantage of the heist to gather information of their own, and 'Masuda' took advantage of being the inside man to get the upper hand when he caught her. Either way, after things went wrong more runners showed up in order to collect the information and help cover 'Masuda's' tracks. You're still missing information you'd need to know exactly what happened and why, though- why did the Shadowrunners want an archeologist's notes?
[X] All but the last entries describe him being standoffish and withdrawn. He suddenly became gregarious?
[X] Wait for the CSI team
[X] Theories on the Case
-He is spy maybe as early as 2032.
I dont want him spoked and we need info in order too question him properly. Ether leave him to think we dont think he is important or arest him but anyway we need to be here to finish investigation.
[X] All but the last entries describe him being standoffish and withdrawn. He suddenly became gregarious?
[X] Wait for the CSI team
[X] Theories on the Case
-He is spy maybe as early as 2032.
I dont want him spoked and we need info in order too question him properly. Ether leave him to think we dont think he is important or arest him but anyway we need to be here to finish investigation.
[X] All but the last entries describe him being standoffish and withdrawn. He suddenly became gregarious?
[X] Head to the hospital with Daichi to question Matuo and arrest him if necessary
[X] Theory- Masuda's identity was stolen at some point prior to the final entry. The man who was notably standoffish and not particularly notable was replaced, somehow, by the identity thief- who took advantage of Masuda's background and his own, apparently significant, degree of technical skill in order to gain a Magenta clearance. You're not sure what his precise motivations are, but he- and the other runners- wanted access to the information they took from the site. In order to access that information, they used 'Masuda' as an inside man while they planned their heist. Something went wrong, though- if nothing went wrong, you'd have never heard about the heist, because nobody would know about it. Either the guards caught 'Masuda' and his comrade talking, and had to be eliminated (with backup being called in), or the other runner was trying to take advantage of the heist to gather information of their own, and 'Masuda' took advantage of being the inside man to get the upper hand when he caught her. Either way, after things went wrong more runners showed up in order to collect the information and help cover 'Masuda's' tracks. You're still missing information you'd need to know exactly what happened and why, though- why did the Shadowrunners want an archeologist's notes?
[X] All but the last entries describe him being standoffish and withdrawn. He suddenly became gregarious?
[X] Let Daichi wait for the CSI team while you head to the hospital
You misspelled Shiawase as Shiawise in 3 of the entries. Hire instead of Higher for the clearance. Also, are both the Taiwan assessments supposed to be from 2042? That they're the same is sus.
[X] All but the last entries describe him being standoffish and withdrawn. He suddenly became gregarious?
[X] Let Daichi wait for the CSI team while you head to the hospital
[X] All but the last entries describe him being standoffish and withdrawn. He suddenly became gregarious?
[X] Let Daichi wait for the CSI team while you head to the hospital
You misspelled Shiawase as Shiawise in 3 of the entries. Hire instead of Higher for the clearance. Also, are both the Taiwan assessments supposed to be from 2042? That they're the same is sus.
[X] All but the last entries describe him being standoffish and withdrawn. He suddenly became gregarious?
[X] Let Daichi wait for the CSI team while you head to the hospital
[X] Theory- Masuda's identity was stolen at some point prior to the final entry. The man who was notably standoffish and not particularly notable was replaced, somehow, by the identity thief- who took advantage of Masuda's background and his own, apparently significant, degree of technical skill in order to gain a Magenta clearance. You're not sure what his precise motivations are, but he- and the other runners- wanted access to the information they took from the site. In order to access that information, they used 'Masuda' as an inside man while they planned their heist. Something went wrong, though- if nothing went wrong, you'd have never heard about the heist, because nobody would know about it. Either the guards caught 'Masuda' and his comrade talking, and had to be eliminated (with backup being called in), or the other runner was trying to take advantage of the heist to gather information of their own, and 'Masuda' took advantage of being the inside man to get the upper hand when he caught her. Either way, after things went wrong more runners showed up in order to collect the information and help cover 'Masuda's' tracks. You're still missing information you'd need to know exactly what happened and why, though- why did the Shadowrunners want an archeologist's notes?
The man described in the first reports is much different from the one described in the later ones. You check through more of the records. A lot of things seemed to change when he got back to Japan, an increase in his use of the entertainment budget, various social media recognition from other staff. His social media feeds expand too, previously they were mostly just a fairly banal collection of pictures of home, pictures of animals and the like. Now they add new interests, fishing, beers and meals he's eaten, shots of sunsets and quite a few boring pro-LDP political tweets.
The one thing you don't see is any pictures of his coworkers.
You look over at Daichi. "Hey bro, hold the fort here. I'm going to head to the hospital and check in on Masuda Shinji."
"Okay, uh, what should I do?"
"Stay here and wait for our CSI team." You tell him, then consider. "Also maybe try to figure out the relevance of the files that were taken. They should be within your clearance level."
"Okay." He sighs a little, to let you know that he isn't entirely happy about being left with the back room assignment. Not too much though. Daichi is not, honestly, the most physically brave person in the world. "I guess I'll tell the detective she can't come in."
"Yeah, but don't open the door. She seems tough, she might push past you or something." You say. Instead of going straight out you decide you'll use the emergency exit in one wall, heading up three floors to the roof. The quickest way to the hospital would be by helicopter and you think you can defend a ride given your suspicions about Masuda. You check your gun is fully loaded and ready as you walk. It seems crazy to imagine that a guy lying in a hospital bed would be a danger to you but something whispers to you that he just might be.
You walk up to the roof and look up into at the lights of the dropping helicopter. Shiawase runs regular aerial ferry services between their sites and for executive use. You're calling in one of the former. The aircraft, a ducted fan design with mothlike wings bathes you in downwash as it lands on the roof nearby. The doors side doors hinge open for you as you approach, revealing a gleaming black leather interior, with a set of comfortable body-conforming couches.
There's no pilot of course, the whole thing is run by a combination of automation and pilot remote riggers, mostly based out of offices in corporate enclaves in cheap labor locations like the Philipines, Indonesia or the former United States. You get into the back seat and stretch out your legs, feeling all the hours today you've been working. The couch pushes into you comfortably and you suddenly feel very sleepy. "Osaka General Hospital."
"Would you like a beverage?" The aircraft asks.
"Yeah." You yawn. "Uh, an iced coffee, and I'd better have a stimtab."
The aircraft's catering unit hums for a moment then fills up a container of coffee, then drops a pair of slap patches next to it. You stick one on your neck and sip at your coffee, then jerk as wakefulness fills you. It's quite unpleasant, but you can still taste and enjoy the coffee, so you're not too much over the line.
"Approaching destination." the craft says. You look out the window and see the tall megascraper of Osaka General Hospital coming up below. "What landing pad do you request?"
"Uh, take us directly to the Shiawase floor." You say. The aircraft climbs rapidly, then its fans cycle and it drops down towards a landing pad. You grab your coffee and step out, hurrying forward clear of the downwash. The aircraft spools up again rapidly and thunders off skywards again, leaving you on the landing pad. You walk forward, wincing at the chill of the high altitude air around the cloudscraper and trying not to look down or think about how high up you are as you walk through the lighted door ahead.
Your ears pop as you step into the much warmer inside of the cloudscraper and you look around. There's a reception desk where a couple of security uniforms are sitting, one carrying a heavy carbine. You walk over and present your ID, then your hand, and finally your eye to examination by the security sensors. " Shiratori Fuji, ID number 28481827. Here to interview technician second class Masuda Shinji."
"Confirmed." The guard, a young woman of about your age says. She's human and has the pale perfection of someone born out of a vat rather than the normal way. Such bioroids are increasingly common in Japan. "I detect you are carrying one standard service pistol. Do you have any other weapons or items you wish to declare before you enter the security zone?"
"None." You take a sip of your coffee.
A badge prints out and she hands it to you. "Wear this openly at all times. If you're not wearing it you'll be subject to security response."
"Right." You slip the lanyard around your neck and walk deeper into the hospital. Your AR guides you to the right room, and you nod to the corporate policeman watching the door. You're about to go inside when you get a text from Daichi: <<the CSI team are here. I'll update you with results.>>
<<Alright. Thanks.>> You step into the room after nodding to the guard. Inside, Masuda is lying on a bed, looking sullen and annoyed. He's a big man, muscular and with a short beard, somewhere in his forties, his eyes hard and cool. They strike you as eyes that have seen quite a lot. Maybe too much. The room is small and very white and has a nice view of the city. A table sits by the window.
"Hey Doc, can I go home soon. I'm--" He stops as he realizes you're not a doctor. "Fine."
"I'm glad of that Masuda-san." You wave him to sit table. "Are you up to joining me?"
"I guess I don't have much choice." He sits opposite you. "You're security right? Investigating the incident."
"Yes."
"Alright. I'll answer then." He sits back, face becoming blank.
How will you approach the interogation?
[ ] Attempt to make him think you know nothing and be as bland as possible
[ ] Confront him with his change in personality and social media usage
[ ] Confront him with the inconsistencies in his story
- [ ] Confront him with being too close to the firefight
- [ ] Confront him with the fact the female runner never shot at him
- [ ] Confront him with the fact door was opened for the runner from the inside
[ ] Try to make friends with him
[ ] Get nasty
General Information:
The archive is electronically sealed from the outside.
Testimony of the homeless man
Female elf runner in ninja style gear made entrance through the fire escape sometime after 8 PM. She forced the homeless man to free then made an easy entry to the fire escape as if it was unlocked for her.
Police Theory:
A runner entered through the fire escape. She was attempting to steal a file from the archive. An Information security technician, Masuda Shinji, stumbled onto her while she was doing it. She tried to kill him but he called the guards. Both of the initial two guards were killed, but they managed to pin the runner down in the server room. The other four guards managed to pin her down in the server room, then the rest of the runner team smashed in through the front of the building in the van, defeated the security drones in the entrance and then killed the guard team.
Masuda's Testimony as reported by the police:
He stumbled on a runner while checking a security alert, then ran and called the guards. She killed the two guards by ambushing them, and the rest of the guard detail assembled to try to trap her in the server room before being killed by the rest of the runners. He was hiding in an office nearby and watched the firefight.
Runner team:
1 elf? Adept
2 Oni heavily armored fighters
3 Humans or elves including one mage
Possess high-level hacking skills
Possess a powerful mage
Decker Skills information:
Building could not be breached electronically from the outside.
The building was breached via a device attached to the servers. This would require detailed knowledge of the buildings computer system.
Times:
Guards Time of Death: 8:21 x2 8:35 x4
Building Fire Escape unlock 8:12
Can we get an old photo of Masuda from somewhere? If this were the real world, I'd suggest stuff like yearbook, old driver's license, maybe social media (maybe someone else took a photo of him), but I'm not sure if we'll be able to find something like that in Shadowrun. I'd want to use it to check if the Masuda in front of us is the same guy as he was years ago. Dental records, any remnants of surgeries (like a pin in a bone or something), dna or fingerprints, or someone who knew him well and would recognize him would also work.
I think being bland is a bad call - he's got a story he's given already, and my guess is he'll just give the same one. Calling him out on the identity thing also seems like a bad idea - we can hopefully verify that in other ways, and it seems like the kind of thing that would make him clam up, or possibly try to fight us. Or he just spins a personality change story and then knows we're onto him.
My guess is one of the other inconsistencies. I think we want him to talk more about something he hasn't rehearsed, get him to make excuses for something. Maybe he winds up saying something stupid that gives us a clue because he thinks we're only suspicious because of something small.
For now:
[X] Try to make friends with him
[X] Confront him with the inconsistencies in his story
- [X] Confront him with the fact the female runner never shot at him
- [X] Confront him with the fact door was opened for the runner from the inside
@FBH are we choosing just one option or is this fine? I'd like to make friends with him first and then confront him about the two, but in a friendly way so as not to spook him
For now:
[X] Try to make friends with him
[X] Confront him with the inconsistencies in his story
- [X] Confront him with the fact the female runner never shot at him
- [X] Confront him with the fact door was opened for the runner from the inside
@FBH are we choosing just one option or is this fine? I'd like to make friends with him first and then confront him about the two, but in a friendly way so as not to spook him
[X] Try to make friends with him
[X] Confront him with the inconsistencies in his story
- [X] Confront him with the fact the female runner never shot at him
- [X] Confront him with the fact door was opened for the runner from the inside
[X] Attempt to make him think you know nothing and be as bland as possible
Let us try to get him to lock in a story before we start to bring up inconsistencies. Make it look like we are just here to fill out the paperwork as it were.
