1 - Bottled Up

As mere middle men he doubts he is in much danger at this point but till the situation is resolved he will remain alert. As the others move to discuss things and get into contact with their employer Tadaoshi glances at them and before returning to focus on Falah Almarri.
While the request is relayed perhaps you could also have your men ensure that all information and details regarding the encounter would be included in the exchange. Adding in any and all information you and your organization may have would help when thing get moving to coordinate the actions. As you have clashed with this cult, that seems to be expanding into this region, you must realize that it is unlikely that you will be able to escape without paying a price of some kind. The fact that you eliminated some of their forces and exposed their presence make you a target as well.

Tasaoshi explains to Falah that while the Yakuza may be under assault the cult his own operations will likely be impacted. This is an effort to both soften the asking price as well as to try and get more information and/or assistance from Falah. Tadaoshi points out alternative settlements options, such as granting a portion of any recovered resources gained by the yakuza in the Pattaya over to him.

"You know, just saying..." Aiko chips in with a whisper. "We're kinda doing what he says, and showing our hand, without shit? Like I get it's not my area of expertise, peopling and all, but aren't you supposed to play your cards close to your chest at times like this?"

She glances at Falah, then back to the group and shrugs. "Like we don't even know if this bossgoon even knows anything we don't beyond what he's already told us and we're about to swear over... what, every bargaining chip we don't actually own?"

"Well, we don't have to know," Knockout says with a shrug to Aiko. "We just have to relay to our employer and they will have to do make the decision. Letting them know who has the information there is more than one way to extract information, I hope they choose the easy one."

He excuses himself from the table and goes over out of hearing to call up Nicole. "Hey Omae," he says once he gets contact. "Have a possible lead. A certain Mr. Almarri from the Dawood Syndicate. Knows the culprit, even says he has an adress. Has a steep askin' price and not for us to decide. They want Pattaya. The way these attacks have been going, might be a losing proposition anyway. You take the offer up the chain, and we'll see if we can lower the price on our side."

Aiko frowns. The situation seems far too convenient and the Yakuza's willingness to jump when asked doesn't sit right with her. If she were a more suspicious person she'd have all kinds of wild theories about the situation, but for the time being she doesn't say anything and waits patiently for the go word. It's not like she's in a rush to go somewhere there's likely gunfights anyway.

"So, we've got a handle and a motive. We feedback and then?" She pulls her mouth to one side. "We were only hired to find not remove."

"Right, Nicole did say she didn't expect us to handle the problem directly," Knockout agrees with Aiko. "Though we should check out the temple, at a safe distance, to make sure it's the information is correct first."

Upon hearing the others voice their concerns about the Yakuza's willingness to accept the offer, Kla says, "Good, it's not just me. I would've thought for sure there'd be some pushback on the terms."

After Knockout suggests they check out the temple, Kla nods. "Yeah, we have to follow up on that. Maybe stop by a sporting goods store and find some 'wildlife observation' equipment."

You head to the temple in Almarri’s information. It’s a pretty big one, but it’s off the beaten track and not well maintained. No golden Buddhas, no impressive architecture in the complex except for one building which seems to be the central shrine. The rest of the area is utilitarian. In fact, it seems to be a refurbished factory, which would make sense based on the other buildings in the district. You passed at least seven plants producing car parts and some sort of city utility building. You see several people coming in going from the buildings, mostly monks and artisans covered in paint, clay, and sawdust.

"Looks like they're building something to me." Aiko leaned back on the box she'd chosen as a temporary seat.

She's changed into some workman's overalls that she'd had for a con job a while back. The job hadn't worked because no one expected someone with her height and build to work in construction, but this far away no one would question it. Hopefully. Besides it was the right part of town.

"No idea what, since I'm no brickslinger, but monks don't tend to accumulate that much dust that quickly."

Kla watches from a discrete distance with his newly acquired binoculars. He agrees with Aiko's assessment about the monks. "Yep. Definitely building something."

"I think I can get at least some ways inside and have a look."

Ryosuke pulled a briefcase from their transport and produced a set of completely different clothing - jogging pants, a windbreaker and a polo shirt, along with a folding electrical scooter and a folded up courier bag. He shamelessly began to change in the back of the van as he pulled up a half dozen food delivery apps on his commlink.

"Want me to come with?" Aiko is about to ask, and then reconsiders. "Well, probably not since deliveries aren't a twofer operation, but I'm pretty good with conning people."

She remembers the incident at the first break in and shakes her head. "Usually. Despite what my track record suggests."

Tadaoshi just watches the area from the van for a while, focusing on those entering and leaving. I may be able to detect the magic I picked up on earlier when investigating the attacked facilities but the spell has a limited range of a dozen meters or so. Any chance we can get the blueprints of that place? It might help narrow down where to look closer.

Kla doesn't notice anything else out of the ordinary. It appears to be a large complex that is a mix of monastery and several buildings devoted to various facilities for making art such as painting, sculptures, and woodworking.

Ryosuke intercepts a food delivery of Indonesian nasi goreng and gudeng for a customer named Saksiri. The complex shares a single address so it's impossible to know which building is the final destination. Luckily a man in yellow coveralls spattered in paint approaches you as you arrive. "Welcome! Who are you looking for?"

As Tadaoshi watches the compound traffic he takes note of the types of individuals and vehicles entering and leaving. If we can detain someone high enough up their command chain I can try and compel them to answer questions. But that would be tipping our hand and up the risk on any other future activities here so should likely be held in reserve.

"Sure, why not." Aiko turns to head back to her van where her deck is stashed. "Blueprints coming right up."

Aiko searches the municipal building records, city hall, permit offices, and everywhere else she can think of but no luck. The building predates modern architecture bureaucracy and so doesn't lack any blueprints, at least in digital form.

"Could we like, recreate something like a blueprint via tourist pictures? Like layer a bunch of pictures and approximate a map?" Knockout wonders, not sure if that is possible or something that belongs in the realm of tired old crime scene investigative shows.