Shadowrun Raid on Guhl Drug Den
Please write me a Shadowrun short story about a Guhl stronghold that gets raided by a Dark Crusader force using combat suits. The Guhl must have a drug selling place below a well frequented night club with a secret access and be typical for them. They know that the Dark Crusaders, being a Shadow run team of Degger, Rigger, Street Samurai and Combat Magician of different Meta Humans, were attracted by the Guhls capturing humans through their club. The perspective is from the Commander in charge that is overwatching the excorzim raid from within a vehicle where also the rigger and one degger are. Altogether about 1200 words maximum...
Okay, the user wants a Shadowrun short story with very specific elements. Let me unpack this. They want a raid on a Guhl stronghold beneath a nightclub, with Dark Crusaders using combat suits. The perspective needs to be the commander overseeing from a vehicle with rigger and decker. Key points: Guhls drug operation, human trafficking through the club, meta-human Shadowrunners.
Hmm, the user seems deeply familiar with Shadowrun lore - mentioning Guhls (ghoul variants), Deggers (deckers), and specifying meta-human team composition. Probably an experienced player or GM looking for inspiration. The 1200-word limit suggests they want something substantial but manageable, maybe for session prep or writing practice.
The emotional tone feels urgent - human trafficking as motive creates moral stakes. I should emphasize the Crusaders' righteous fury against Guhls' predation. The commander's perspective offers tactical tension; I'll balance vehicle overwatch with sensory immersion (sounds, smells, screens) to avoid static feel.
For authenticity: Ghouls would indeed nest below clubs - easy prey access. Their drug "Soy Sauce" (actual lore) should feature. Combat suits vs ghoul claws creates nice asymmetry. Team composition: Degger (cyber-combat), Rigger (drones), Street Sam (muscle), Combat Mage (magic support) - classic balanced team.
Structural plan: Start with tension in command van, establish stakes (kidnapped girl photo). Breach sequence - Rigger's drones create diversion. Degger struggles with host (add tension). Samurai and Mage enter - showcase their specialties. Climax with ghoul boss fight, rescue reveal. End on bittersweet victory - saved lives but system unchanged. Word count management: 150 words setup, 400 breach, 400 combat, 150 aftermath.
Potential pitfalls: Avoiding ghoul stereotyping (emphasize their cunning). Keeping commander active despite stationary position (radio comms, tough calls). Ensuring all team members shine - maybe Degger bypasses security last-second, Mage counters ghoul magic.
Final polish: Sprinkle Shadowrun slang ("drek", "chummer") sparingly. Tech descriptions should feel worn, not shiny. That flickering neon sign? Perfect for atmosphere. And end on that lingering moral darkness - very Shadowrun.
The stench of stale synthahol and desperation clung to the concrete outside Club Chroma, even through the filtered air of the armored van. Inside ‘The Bunker,’ Commander Vance ‘Chain’ McKenna watched the chaos unfold on a mosaic of flickering screens. Beside him, fingers flying across a holographic interface slick with condensation from his synth-caf, Degger ‘Cipher’ muttered curses at the host architecture. In the driver’s seat, Rigger ‘Jinx’ was a statue, eyes closed, jacked deep into her drones buzzing like angry hornets above the oblivious clubbers below. Rain lashed the van's reinforced windows, painting the garish neon sign in streaks of blood-red and poison-green.
Target confirmed. Nest active below Chroma, Jinx’s voice echoed tonelessly in the team’s comms. Heat sigs clustered in the sub-basement. Holding pattern established.
"Copy, Jinx," Chain rasped, his voice gravel in the tense quiet. He zoomed a camera feed – a grimy alley service entrance, currently hidden by a holographic dumpster projection. "Sam, Mage. You’re green. Breach in ten. Remember the package." The ‘package’ was why they were here. Not just another drug den takedown, though the Guhls’ signature blend of nightmare-fuel narcotics – ‘Soy Sauce’ cut with who-knew-what ghoul enzymes – was reason enough. Intel pointed to them snatching fresh meat right off the dance floor. Disappeared patrons, mostly SINless, vanished through secret doors disguised as utility closets or VIP lounges, fed down into the warren below. One missing kid’s photo, pale and wide-eyed, was taped next to Cipher’s console.
Roger that, Chain, came the clipped response from their Street Samurai, ‘Revenant.’ His cybered voice held a predatory edge. Mage has point on the wards?
Affirmative, answered ‘Silas,’ the team’s Combat Mage, his voice calm, almost detached. I sense… decay. And hunger. Strong wards, but brittle. Like old bone. Ready when you are.
Chain switched feeds. Inside Chroma, blissfully unaware bodies pulsed under strobes. The music was a muffled thump through the van’s soundproofing. The Guhls operated with chilling efficiency. Lure them in, juice them up, then pluck the ripest fruit for… processing. Or worse. The Dark Crusaders weren't knights in shining armor, but this? This crossed a line even in the Sixth World’s murky morality.
"Degger, how’s that backdoor?" Chain asked, his eyes never leaving the screens showing Revenant and Silas moving like shadows towards the service entrance. They were encased in heavy-duty combat suits – matte-black, angular, festooned with sensors and hardpoints. Revenant’s was bulkier, built for kinetic impact, sporting visible heavy-caliber forearm mounts. Silas’s was sleeker, layered with thaumaturgic dampeners and foci conduits.
"Slippier than a greased ghoul, Commander," Cipher grunted, sweat beading on his brow despite the van’s chill. "Their host’s got teeth. Older tech, but nasty. Almost through the outer layer… Got it! Backdoor open. Sending lock override to Revenant’s HUD. Breach sequence initiated."
Received, Revenant acknowledged. On the screen, the holographic dumpster flickered and died. Revenant raised a reinforced boot.
KRA-KOOM!
The shaped charge on the reinforced door wasn't subtle. It buckled inward with a roar, instantly drowned by the club’s bass, but sending a visible tremor through the van’s sensors. Alarms, both digital and biological, would be screaming inside.
"Go! Go! Go!" Chain barked. "Jinx, overwatch tight. Anything moves topside that isn't ours, light it up."
Engaging, Jinx replied. Outside, two of her rotodrones peeled off from their holding pattern, miniguns whining as they scanned rooftops and windows. Another, a stealthy crawler, scuttled down the hole Revenant had just made.
The feeds inside the nest were a jumble of infrared, low-light, and sonic imaging. The sub-basement was a nightmare of damp concrete, rusted pipes, and makeshift partitions. Crates of Soy Sauce vials gleamed under the combat suits’ helmet lamps. And there were the Guhls.
Pale, emaciated figures clad in scavenged leather and synthweave, their eyes glowed with feral hunger in the darkness. Some scrambled for weapons – crude shivs, pistols, a rusty shotgun. Others, more feral, lunged on all fours, jaws distended, claws scraping concrete. The stench, even through sensor proxies, was palpable – rot, chemicals, and raw sewage.
Revenant moved like a machine. His forearm cannons barked, heavy slugs turning charging ghouls into bursts of ichor and bone. He moved with brutal efficiency, clearing corners, his suit shrugging off glancing blows from claws that shrieked against the armored plates.
Silas was a whirlwind of controlled destruction. Bolts of pure mana, crackling like violet lightning, lanced from his outstretched hands, incinerating ghouls mid-leap. He gestured, and a section of corroded pipe tore free, smashing into a cluster scrambling towards a heavy vault door at the far end – the suspected holding area. "Wards down!" Silas reported, his voice tight with concentration. "But something strong is stirring behind that door."
Cipher! Chain snapped. "That vault!"
"On it, Commander! Their ICE is… aggressive!" Cipher’s fingers were a blur. "Trying to brute-force the lockdown protocol… Drek! Counter-intrusion spike! Bouncing it…"
A shrill alarm blared through the comms, feedback making Chain wince. On screen, a section of the ceiling near Silas collapsed, disgorging three larger, bulkier Guhls. These weren't scavengers; they wore crude armor plating bolted onto their grey flesh. One swung a heavy chain, another brandished a crackling arc welder, the third lunged with claws like chisels.
"Jinx! Support fire, NOW!"
Targeting, Jinx responded. The crawler drone skittered across the ceiling, unleashing a torrent of flechette rounds into the armored ghouls. Sparks flew as rounds ricocheted, but it forced them back, giving Silas precious seconds. He raised a hand, chanting words that vibrated through the comms link. A shimmering wall of force erupted between the armored Guhls and Revenant, who was trading point-blank shots with another group near the Soy Sauce crates.
Revenant took a solid hit from the arc welder on his shoulder plate, staggering him. His suit’s integrity warning flashed amber on Chain’s screen. "Sam! Status!"
Pissed off! Revenant growled, spinning and unleashing a full burst from his cannons into the welder-Ghoul’s chest plate. It crumpled, the ghoul shrieking as it went down. Just a scratch!
"Cipher! That vault!" Chain roared, watching Silas hold the force wall against the hammering blows of the chain-wielder. The mage was panting now, visible strain on his feed.
"Got it! Override accepted! Vault unlocking… NOW!" Cipher slammed a fist on the console.
With a groan of protesting metal, the heavy vault door slid open a foot. The smell that wafted out, even through sensors, was indescribable – fear, decay, human waste. Chain’s heart lurched. Inside, dimly lit by a single flickering bulb, were cages. Huddled shapes whimpered within.
Hostiles inside! Revenant yelled, ducking behind cover as shots rang out from within the vault. Two Guhls with SMGs were firing wildly from behind the cages, using the prisoners as shields.
Silas dropped the force wall, staggering slightly. The chain-wielder roared, charging. Before it covered half the distance, Silas thrust both hands forward. A concussive wave, visible as a ripple in the air, slammed into the armored ghouls, lifting them off their feet and smashing them into the far wall with sickening crunches.
"Jinx! Precision fire on the shooters! Minimal splash!" Chain ordered, his voice tight. "Revenant, clear a path! Silas, cover the package!"
The rotodrone hovering near the breach angled down. Two sharp, high-caliber cracks echoed through the comms. The Ghoul shooters dropped. Revenant was already moving, his suit shedding sparks as he ripped the vault door fully open. He moved methodically, checking corners, his weapons trained. "Clear! Multiple packages… alive. Terrified, but alive."
Chain sagged back in his seat, a wave of relief washing over him, cold and sharp. They’d done it. The girl… maybe she was here. He switched to a drone feed looking down into the vault. Revenant was carefully prying open a cage. A young woman, maybe sixteen, filthy and trembling, stared up at the armored giant with wide, disbelieving eyes.
"Got her, Chain," Revenant said, his voice uncharacteristically soft. "Matches the photo."
"Extract," Chain ordered, his own voice rough. "Jinx, keep the skies clear. Silas, collapse the entrance once we're out. Cipher, scrub any traces. Make it messy. Leave the Soy Sauce for Lone Star to trip over."
Copy, came the chorus.
As Revenant gently lifted the girl, shielding her with his armored bulk, and Silas began chanting to bring the ceiling down on the ghoul nest, Chain looked out the rain-streaked window at the oblivious club still thumping above the carnage. The Guhls were broken tonight, their meat market shut down. But Chroma would open tomorrow. The Sixth World’s hunger was endless. He touched the girl’s photo on the console. One small light in the endless dark. For tonight, it was enough. "Bring them home, Crusaders," he murmured, the command van already rumbling to life as Jinx piloted it towards the extraction point. "Bring them home." The neon glow of Club Chroma reflected in his tired eyes, a garish monument to the darkness they fought, one raid at a time.
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