An Other CT solo - Part 8: Sandstorm

The drive through the port follows the same route the taxi had taken, but they pass the terminal and proceed directly to the customs area, an uninviting structure of corrugated metal and exposed beams. On the inside it has all the charm of a condemned warehouse. Two customs officers emerge from a pressurised portacabin and trudge over to the air/raft. They ask Lin to come out of the vehicle to speak with them; it's easier to be heard through the respirator masks when they're all standing on the same level.

[For the overland travel, I once again turned to Random Location Crafting in Mythic Magazine #2.

large location
wilderness descriptors: rocky, cold

Any Known encounter result is the pursuers who after the prototype. All results of Expected will be treated as None once they hit the wilderness.]


T0 : expected - expected - none
[Q: Any problems getting through customs? unlikely (5+): O5 C6 - yes]

She exchanges a few words with them, takes them round the back to show them the cargo crates, then climbs back into the cab.

"So, it looks like we don't have the correct permits to make deliveries outside the starport."

"Shit," says Tandery. "I thought Elleder had all this worked out."

"If you'll let me see the credit chip for a moment, I can take care of any fees. Wink, wink."

[T's reaction to the suggestion: 2D+2=9, OK.
Zollbeamte's reaction: 2D=12! (DM -2 on Bribery roll)
Bribery: LL7 (7-), DMs -bribery, -2 reaction: 2D-4=5, success]

Tandery sighs as she hands over the chip. Lin hops out to speak with the inspectors.

"Why, 500 credits is just enough for us to file your paperwork for you! Enjoy your stay on Drokkotli."


T1 : expected - expected - expected

Drokkotli doesn't have a startown as such. Most of the commerce is located in the terminal, and only a few disreputable establishments and smaller warehouses line the road for a 100m or so before the gates to the port.

Lin drives slowly. The lights from the businesses on either side make it easier to see the roadway, but the occasional pedestrian running across the street to move between businesses makes for sudden hazards.


T2 : expected - none - random
Object: Average, Food

Once past the 'startown', she's back to gauging her route between the widely-spaced street lights. Twenty kilometres later she spots an eerie glow hanging low in the sky. It gradually resolves into the gargantuan neon sign above the roadside services guarding a lonely crossroads. Time and the elements have not been kind to it, but enough of the letters still shine to indicate that they've reached the first landmark.

    jli Junction Din

     EAT

      FUEL

"Madame Captain, ma'am," says Diter, "mightn't we stop for a bite."

[Q: Does T humour him? unknown d6=3: O4 C6 - yes]

"Don't be a shit, Diter. But I'm kinda peckish myself, so I do so order it."

"Splendid. I do love a proper little gargotte!"


T3 : known - known - none

The diner's airlock is only big enough to accommodate one person at a time, theoretically in order to minimise the time it takes to get people in and out. But as Lin waits outside for a seeming eternity whilst it cycles her companions inside, she remains unconvinced of its efficacy.

Finally inside! She divests herself of the respirator with practised ease and gets her first good look at the place. Almost the entire front of the building is given over to windows, all dark now as the storm shields on the outside have been lowered against the gale. Good to know that the fortress-like exterior was only a concession to the weather. The inside is brightly lit by warm yellow lamps suspended from the high ceiling. It's surprisingly full inside, and the chatter at a volume where Lin won't have to worry about her crew mates discussing the job. The booths are a variety of gaudy earth tones with faux-marble tabletops They're arrayed around the perimeter and back-to-back throughout the cavernous seating area. The smell of animal protein and ammonia vie for supremacy in ones nostrils, and the re-circulated air has a distinctly greasy character.

Almost all the other patrons here are all obviously locals. Everyone wears the same sort of rough outerwear as the rest, but the offworlders are made very conspicuous by its newness.

[Known encounter = the pursuers are here too.

Q: Do they do anything suspicious? unlikely (5+): O6 C3 - yes, but...
Q: Where is their booth relative to the PCs? (d6) 1-4 only 2 PCs would be able to see them without turning round in their seats, 5-6 all 4 could reasonably look over at them; d6=6

It's noisy and full, so a roll of 1/2 INT or under needed to detect the observation: 2D 4x=fail,fail,fail,fail]]

The meal is slow to arrive but convivial. Harrisumn, as the ship's doctor, does caution that the fare here is probably going to require a round of anti-cholesterol shots next time they get to a starport with a reasonable chemists, but it doesn't stop him from ordering a plate of deep-fried rockworms.

There's a [d6=]bloke at the next table who keeps looking over at them. Diter is convinced he's being given the eye.

Before going up to the counter to pay, Tandery gently reminds them that these are the last loos for 300km. Diter salutes smartly, and Harrisumn mumbles, "yes, mummy", but they all take her advice.

Once back in the air/raft, they remove the weapons from their hiding places, and are again underway.


T4 : special - expected - expected
Location: Multi-element - expected, random (Mundane, Watery)

Tandery watches the odometer as Lin drives. Once they've gone a short distance from the junction, she orders Lin to pull to the side of the road. Tandery activates her inertial locator, and Lin heads directly into the open country. But not long after they come to a chain link fence extending further than they can see in both directions (though admittedly, that isn't terribly far).

"Uh, is this supposed to be here?"

"It's not marked."

"I'm going to have a look," says Diter, and gets out before Tandery has an opportunity to countermand him. He goes up right up to the fence, then raises his rifle to his shoulder.

"What's that maniac--?" Tandery doesn't finish her oath before leaping out after him.

Lin watches them in the headlamps, arguing in the eddies of swirling, glittery dust. Then Tandery relaxes, and mimes slapping herself on the forehead, as Diter once again takes aim. They return not long after.

"What our dear Madame Captain failed to realise," says Diter, "is that the electronic sight I installed is useful for more than just hunting. It's hard to see that far through the storm, but with the image enhancement and a few uninterupted minutes, I can safely say that we're parked in front of a reservoir."

"Explains why it's not on the tourist map," says Lin. "So, what's the order, Captain? Over or around?"

"Over."

Lin flies up over the fence and then descends immediately to ground level. The reservoir is a series of basins, each twice the length and breadth of a gravball pitch. They are all currently closed up, the featureless slate-coloured coverings are dusted with glistening sand, giving the illusion that the air/raft is crossing a starry abyss.


T5 : random - expected - expected
Location: Messy, Threatening

Beyond the reservoir, the terrain abruptly worsens. Jagged rock spires shoot up from the uneven ground, which falls out into craggy cliffs and deep ravines.

"I thought we were heading for a basin?" says Lin.

"It's on the other side of all this," replies Tandery

"I'm going to stay as close to the top as I can. I'd rather not be playing canyon racer in this weather."

"I've flown a fighter through worse. No visibility at all. Had to go by LiDAR."

"OK... remind me why you're not driving, again."

"Because the controls on this civilian clunker are nowhere near as responsive. I'd probably have crashed before leaving the cargo bay!"

[Per the rulebook, this is one of those circumstances in which a skill roll (5+) is required to avoid mishaps/accidents. DMs +air/raft, -1 bad weather: 2D+0=7, OK.

The Expected encounter result means the pursuers (in a proper sealed air/raft) have caught up by now. An air/raft seats 4, so there are 4 of them.

Q: Stats for each? (d6) 1-4=thug, 5-6=book1 character: 2 thugs, 2 full characters

Marine Lieutenant    78A686   Age 30   3 Terms   Cr 10,000

Cutlass-1, Electronic-1, Autorifle-1, Revolver-1, Tactics-1

1xBlade 

Ret. Other Enlisted    499788   Age 42   6 Terms   Cr 25,000

Blade-2, Brawling-1, Forgery-1, Gambling-1, Shotgun-1

1xHiPsg

Thugs

789987 rifle-1, air/raft-1

64B877 rifle-1

Encounter range: 2D+2=very long

Surprise +2 for the pursuers (military & tactics skill), -1 DMs for vehicles cancel out
PCs 3, NPCs 7, surprise

Q: What do they do? 1-2 attack, 3-4 close range, 5-6 attempt to outflank to force them to stop: 6

Catching up requires a vehicle piloting roll (5+) to catch up: 2D+1=10, OK.]

Lin is skirting the clifftops, doing her best to avoid sudden inclines and downdraughts alike. She weaves and climbs, but tries to keep moving in the same direction as much as possible so Tandery can chart their progress. Then a light flashes just outside her window, the headlamps of a boxy, sealed air/raft. It's just about to overtake her, no, it's edging up over her bonnet.

[Skill vs skill: their 2D+1 vs L's 2D+2 (high DEX): 12 vs 7]

She has no choice but to dive into the ravine. She mumbles something pithy in her respirator, which her colleagues couldn't have heard even if they weren't all shouting cure-laden invectives as they grab onto the side handles.

Lin jolts ahead, and weaves through the ravine at an unsafe speed. The wind blows more fiercely, but at least there's less dust.

[(DM -3): 2D-1=8, OK.
Pursuers need a ML roll to follow (7+): 2D=7, OK.; piloting 2D-2=6, OK.]

The other air/raft follows as closely as they dare. Every twist of the canyon, every projecting pillar of rock makes a crash feel inevitable. There's a junction ahead, one side far too narrow to negotiate at this speed. Lin accelerates.

[Setting up the manoeuvre (5+), failure results in a crash: DM -5: 2D-3=7, OK.

Using her result as the number to beat means they need to roll 7+ to avoid disaster (DMs +air/raft, -1 weather): 2D=5, fail
but she needs to roll too... 2D+1=12, OK.]

At the last possible second, Lin cuts her speed and turns sharply to the right, banking off the canyon wall of the other fork. The pursuers realise what she was doing too late, and clip the wall with the corner of their vehicle. Lin hears the scraping even above the wind as the other air/raft smacks into the rock, then drops like a stone to the floor of the ravine.

[Avoiding a bad reaction (Solo) 8+: 2D=8, just; 1d3=H

Q: Anyone want to check for survivors? unknown d6=3: O6 C2 - yes, and...]

Lin brings the air/raft to a gentle halt. Hrarisumn is muttering something about suicidal ideation, Diter and Tandery are silent. Lin looks back at her handiwork, then starts to rise back to their pervious cruising altitude.

"What are you doing?!" shouts Tandery.

"We have a delivery to make."

"But there could be survivors. We should try to help. Harrisumn, back me up."

"Are you serious?" continues Lin. "They tried to kill us."

"Still, we... it's not right...."

Lin puts the air/raft down about 20m from the crash.

[Q: How bad is it on a scale of 1D+2? : 6d6 dmg each]

It'll never fly again. The entire right front section is caved in. At least one body has been thrown clear, but it's obvious that person is dead.

Tandery looks aghast, so Lin stays with her whilst Harrisumn and Diter reconnoitre. Harrisumn kneels to open his medkit as Diter throws open the cab's side door and raises his rifle to his shoulder. Two shots ring out. He calmly walks back, past Harrisumn still kneeling helplessly in the dirt. He clambers inside and sits back down calmly in his seat."I'm afraid no one made it... Captain."

Tandery turns sharply away.

[This looks like another 8+ to avoid a bad reaction 2D=9, OK.]


T6 : expected - random - none
Encounter: Peaceful, Lonely

Lin drives on in silence. She hopes Tandery doesn't think her as bad as Diter for not having wanted to stop.

Thirty excruciating minutes later, the bulk of a plateau rises above the landscape. Lin heads up and over it, skirting the little farmstead with row upon row of greenhouses in its centre.

T7 : expected - expected - random
Object: Dangerous, Natural

A road leads out the other end of the farm. Lin pauses by a road sign where the road forks. The vortices of sand and dust in the air are getting so opaque that she has to pull right up alongside it and float the air/raft upwards so the sign is right outside her side window.

"Brill!" says Tandery. We can just follow that road all the way up! We should be there in forty minutes at most."

The road leads off the plateau and straight up into the highlands. A recent landslide has nearly hidden some of the road, and kicked up even more dust into the air. The air/raft floats harmlessly above the jagged stones littering the path, but with all the extra grit swirling about Lin feels like she's driving through a monsoon. It certainly sounds like it against the canvas top.

[5+ roll to pass through without incident, DMs +skill, -1 weather: 2D=9, OK.]


T8 : complete - expected - none

The road winds up a mountain. It's as much in the lee of the storm as it is out of it, making the journey a series of short bursts of speed followed by interminable crawls. But at last they reach their destination.

[Q: What's it like? Miserably / Lean]

The scientist's base camp is a single main building clad in sheet metal siding and a collection of canvas tents, one of which has blown over. Two of the base personnel emerge from an airlock, holding respirators to their faces and hastily wrapped in weather ponchos. One knocks on Lin's side window. "Turn off the grav generator," he shouts, "and park on the ground until morning. We've already lost one air/raft to the storm." Lin does as requested, and then the scientists usher everyone inside.

"We're all sleeping on cots and sofas in here until it blows over. We'll find your crew somewhere to bed down for the night. It's madness to drive in this storm after dark."

[Q: Events? Quietly / Smooth]

The two dozen base personnel are mostly in the recreation room and the cafeteria. The executive in charge has broken into her private stash and is liberally passing round a few bottles of the good stuff. Tandery's crew are offered their fill of disappointing victuals and top shelf whisky. They join the scientists and technicians in the rec room and swap stories all night until dropping off one by one.

[Q: Any incidents? 50/50: O5 C3 - yes, but... minor
Q: What? Interestingly / Masculine - 1d4=D]

Waking up in the morning is a slow and groggy affair, but one of the scientists is evidently a morning person, and has coffee ready for all takers. Tandery looks round and takes stock of her crew. Lin is still yawning on the floor beside her and Harrisumn is still passed out in an armchair.

"Hey, Lin. Did you see where Diter got to?"

"Uh, he was deep in conversation with one of the computer guys. They disappeared together down the corridor towards the storerooms."

"Of course he did."

"What do we do about it? I mean, should we tell Korilu?"

"I don't know..."

"They aren't, like, serious, are they?"

"No, it's pretty new. He's only been with us for d6=5 days more than you have."

"So...?"

"I'm not sure. I mean, I'd love to see that poncy shit get in trouble, but I don't know how she'll take it."

"Or what that psychopath will do if we grass him up..."

The scientists are very particular about unloading the prototype themselves, so Tandery, Lin and Harrisumn sit in the canteen nursing their hangovers. Diter arrives much later, insufferably cheerful. By mid-afternoon the cargo has all been removed and safely tucked away. They bid farewell to their hosts and are soon underway.

They never do find out just what the prototype is supposed to do or even what sort of research is being undertaken.


next post: red alert!