Freezing Shadows, Book 4 Prologue

Prologue: Trade Chat

(Shadowmen In-Game OOC Forum, Seattle Section)

Reminder: This forum is for Out of Character (OOC) discussion only. Please direct in-character discussions (including business dealings and the like) to the appropriate in-world forums.

GreenGirl, Yolo, Scholar, RedFox, Rerun, ThirsT, SliceNDice, GrimDarkKawaii, NoNoNo, YesYesYes, FoldingChair, Squeaker, Anonymous2, Anonymous5, Anonymous8, KittyKat, HurtMeMommy, HardReset, DaddyIssues, Inquisitor, BattleSister, Wolfgirl, Spirit, Chill, and HoldMyBeer are in the chat.

BattleSister: So, looks like things are starting to stabilize. At the very least, it has been a couple weeks since anyone got terminal stupidity in a public fashion.

Anonymous2: Same thing happened in the beta. People either learned, or they quit.

HoldMyBeer: Speaking of people from the beta, did you see that HarryManGaming did an interview with that Iceblade guy?

Rerun: Yeah, and he did one with KarmaDesu, too. Looked like they were filmed in the same space.

Chill: That’s because they were. Admins used one of the buildings that are set up for players to visit RL therapists without logging off and just set up some cameras there.

HurtMeMommy: There’s IRL therapists taking visits in game?

Scholar: Yes. It isn’t something they widely advertise, but the suits at MetaTech decided that having all the kinds of nastiness available in game, all unfiltered where you’ll feel all of it? Therapists on staff are cheaper than lawsuits.

Chill: Yeah, getting your face melted with acid makes an impression that remains, even after you reroll.

Rerun: Uh, yeah, I can see that. And I guess the Addiction stuff is another thing they loop in therapists for, as well?

Chill: Not automatically, but I’ve been told anyone with certain qualities is flagged for periodic review. However, if you’re having trouble, even about out-of-game stuff, go ahead and drop a line to the support line, and they’ll put you in touch with the IRL therapists on your server.

HoldMyBeer: Has to be more than just not getting sued, right?

Chill: Well, protecting them from lawsuits is part of it, yeah, and not just with the addictions. No one wants ‘bleedthrough’, where people start forgetting what is real life and what is the game. That could lead to some nasty problems that the company wanted to get out ahead of. Plus, being proactive about it is good PR, especially if people who would shy away from getting therapy in real life are able to get help here.

NoNoNo: How do you know so much about what MetaTech is doing?

Chill: Like I said in the interviews, I was doing more than beta testing the game. I was also a product tester for the medical pods that MetaTech is developing. Naturally, that means I had more contact with the people at the company than the average tester.

Yolo: So, the rumors that you’ve gotten special treatment?

Chill: Bullshit. If anything, I was under more of a microscope than a lot of players. Still am, honestly. I am familiar with the therapists because I’ve been seeing them for out-of-game stuff, like I said. I have some familiarity with the game, but only as much as any other beta tester, and we were all reset after the beta was over.

FoldingChair: Hey, not to cut in, but some buddies on the Vancouver server were just saying that the local Mixsanto corpos are going crazy. Something really shook things up, over there.

Anonymous2: Any details?

FoldingChair: Yeah. Seems like someone put a hit on an executive, and they went in a couple nights back. Hit his mansion hard. Went in guns blazing, took out his staff, and everything. By the time a response team got there, the only person living was the executive, who had been left for dead, after eating a lot of lead.

YesYesYes: Huh. Couple nights back? Funny thing is, I was out in Redmond on unrelated business. There was a lot of excitement at a Mixsanto facility there. Big explosions, and lots of guns.

RedFox: What kind of facility?

YesYesYes: They were going to build something, back before the Crash, but since then they’ve just used it as a storage yard for containers and equipment. No one really pays attention to it, honestly. Especially since guards come through regularly to take out any squatters.

Inquisitor: Sounds like a perfect place to set up an ambush.

BattleSister: You know, I’ve heard a lot of bad rumors about Mixsanto. They’ve got a habit of trying to take out teams that do jobs for them, so that there are no loose ends. Not all of them, but when it is something important, and you’re not important to them? Yeah.

NoNoNo: Wait, is that real? Like, sure, they probably do something like that to NPCs, but not to players, right?

Chill: Aw, they’re so cute when they’re young and innocent.

NoNoNo: Shut it!

Anonymous2: He’s right, though. Honestly, the only reason we have gone this long without seeing players talk about getting screwed by the people hiring them for something other than their stupidity is because the devs were being nice for the launch. Happened a lot more than once or twice in the beta. Not every run, or even most of them. But I don’t think anyone got out of the beta without running into a screw job at least once.

HoldMyBeer: So, Mixsanto executive gets shot in Vancouver, and then there’s explosive excitement out at a Mixsanto site in Redmond? Sounds like someone got screwed, all right.

BattleSister: Wonder why the team, whoever they were, didn’t make sure the target was dead. Doesn’t take much to double-tap and make sure, y’know?

RedFox: If they knew a response team was on the way, they probably wanted plenty of time to get out of there, so they didn’t have to fight again. But still seems sloppy.

Anonymous8: There are some targets where it is better not to be sure.

BattleSister: What do you mean?

Anonymous2: She means that there are some individuals where it is better not to take that finishing blow unless you’re prepared for the consequences, like that person’s friends coming after you.

Chill: And taking trophies from those types is bad, too.

Spirit: So, you think that whoever this executive was, they were one of these types you shouldn’t make sure with? And why not loot?

Chill: The two questions are related. There’s more than metahumans out there. And they have friends, kin, and associates that also aren’t metahuman. People who will object if you put an extra round between the eyes to be sure, or start taking a tooth or scale as a trophy.

Scholar: You’re talking about dragons, aren’t you? But no one’s seen a dragon, in game, yet.

Anonymous2: No, no one has bragged about it on the in-game forums. Which just means anyone who may have seen one either didn’t live through it, or decided to keep their trap shut and call it a win just getting out of there without becoming kibble.

GrimDarkKawaii: So, what about the Redmond bit?

Chill: If you hired a group of shadowmen to hit a dragon, would you want that leading back to you? Sounds pretty unhealthy to me.