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!

An Other CT solo - Part 7: Hazards

079-1105
Drokkotli  C734677-9  Ni


Moments after emerging from jumpspace at Drokkotli, the Captain summons everyone to the bridge. "There's a lab ship about 200,000km from the jump point, drifting inward. We can't hail them, and our sensors are picking up highly erratic EM readings. I want to check it out in case they need help. Tandery, once you've confirmed the course, start prepping for EVA."

"I'll get the medkits out just in case," says Harrisumn. "But if there looks like any biohazard, we need to follow proper quarantine procedure."

"Oh, come on," says Korilu, "Death Station was just a holo. Stuff like that doesn't really happen."

"That's real brave talk from someone who had to watch half of it through her fingers. And not what I'm worried about."

[Ship encounter: 400t lab ship, Comms are out, radio silence

Q: Any anomalous reading when scanned? unknown d6=2: O3 C1 - yes, and...
Q: Pinnace still there? unlikely: O2 C2 - no, and... air/rafts missing too
+Event: PC positive - Pursue / Dreams]

"Need me to go, Captain?" asks Diter. "I am your security chief, after all."

"Ah, until we get you two trained up on vacc suits, I don't think that's a good idea."

"I assume you want me out there," says Korilu. "I'll go fetch a few tools and things. Are you coming, or...?"

"I need to stay here, in the cockpit."

"You know," offers Tandery. "Lin just got her pilot's qualification. Why not let her handle the approach?"

* * *

Lin settles into the captain's seat and steers the ship on the course that Tandery had set, flipping round 180 degrees at the midpoint for a gentle deceleration. Her hands move across the controls almost of their own volition, but when she pauses to think about it she finds she does actually know everything she's doing. The implant really worked!

She matches the lab ship's speed and trajectory, having overshot it by about 100m to get a good look at the thing. "Not sure about the airlock," she says into the commo, "but I think I see your way in. It doesn't look great, so be warned. It'll just be a sec whilst I use the docking thrusters to line you guys up. Is 20 metres OK?"

[pilot 5+ to bring ship within 20m of the lab ship's airlock 2D+1=10, OK. This isn't stressful enough to provoke a Crisis from the implant; honestly, if this weren't her very first go at piloting, I wouldn't have rolled for it at all.]

Manoeuvring completed, Lin follows her crew mates' progress via the external airlock camera. Both Captain Elleder and Korilu are perfectly skilled in vacc suit operations [vacc-1], but Tandery moves with the grace of a dancer as she floats out the airlock, trailing her tether like a single yellow water sleeve [vacc-2].

[Q: Airlock OK.? 50/50: O1 C2 - no, and... blown (1-2 in 3-4 out 5-6 up) out]

"Switch to my helmet cam," says Tandery.

"No, switch to mine," says the Captain. "Last time we tried to use Tandery's cam, everyone looking at the monitor got motion sick. She swishes round too much."

"That looks like it was blown outward," says Diter, staring at the monitor. "Catastrophic failure, or sabotage?"

"I want to check the hull a little more before we go inside," says Korilu. "In case of radiation."

"Lin, dear," says Tandery. "Could you do another sensor sweep? There's laser damage on the hull, and it's making me nervous."

[Sensor sweep needs 8+, DM +electronics: 2D+1=9

Q: Radiation? 50/50: O5 C8 - yes]

Lin has to eject Diter from the navigator's chair before she can start running the sweep. Fortunately he's too curious about the result to be a prick about it.

"Can you hurry it up?" says Tandery. "Korilu headed round towards the centre already. She said it was fine, but--"

"Getting the readings now... Oh, definitely more radiation than normal."

"How much more?"

"I wouldn't want to live there, but you're fine for--"

"Shit shit shit!" yelps Korilu. And then they're all talking at once, and Korilu's screams turn to inchoate panic.

[Crawling over the hull needed a normal vacc suit roll (10+) DMs +4/lvl vacc suit: K 2D=natural 2, gets into trouble. T helps her recover 7+: +2/lvl : 2D+4=10]

Flipping through helmet cams is even more confusing with the constant motion. Lin and Diter look at each other helplessly.

Then, "we're fine," says Tandery. "We're all fine. No one's spinning off into the void. And no one will ever unhook their tether again."

"We're coming back inside," says the Captain.

Once everyone is safely aboard, and Harrisumn has doled out some anti-radiation tabs from the medkit, they convene on the bridge. As the Captain and Tandery plot the course for the mainworld, Korilu fills the rest of them in.

"I crawled round far enough to see that the power plant in one of the engine pods had been holed by laser fire, and was leaking radiation. We were shielded from it by the intervening hull. Lucky I always lead with my rad-counter out in front, but I, er, panicked a bit when I ducked back."

* * *

Planetary night has fallen over the port by the time the Effi Briest is on the final approach vector. Captain Elleder wants Korilu on standby in engineering to watch the drives, since she keeps saying they feel off. He lets Lin pilot down to the landing pad whilst he is on the radio to the port authority, reporting the dead ship as a hazard to navigation.

"Thanks for the heads-up captain, but we already have it logged. It's in extra-national space, so our city-states are still arguing over who is responsible for moving it [knowing - news - power]. You wouldn't happen to have good drives and tow cables, would you...?"

* * *

The captain calls one last crew meeting once the ship is on the landing pad and the drives powered down. "It's night outside, so everyone can have the rest of it off. The delivery can wait until the morning. Harrisumn, you'll be happy to know I've had a change of heart. You can go in my place. Korilu, I assume you'll not mind staying aboard to keep an eye on things and get the freight unloaded whilst I drum up more business. And mind they fuel us up properly. I seem to recall from the last time we were here that the port truly earns it's C-class rating."

"Glad to be going," says Harrisumn. "But if you're staying in port, who in charge of the mission?"

"Tandery, I think that falls to you. You've got proper command experience, after all."

"Aye, aye, Cap'n! So, which of you three can get us there without denting up the new vehicle?"

"I can pilot an air/raft as well as a ship," says Lin. "I always used to get picked to be the getaway driver."

"Seriously?"

"Haha, no. Just a joke. But I am licenced."

* * *

[Starport Encounter: nothing out of the ordinary
World event: Local crisis; bush-fire, earthquake, hurricane, rioting.
Q: What? Dangerously / Messy]

Lin slinks into the common room to find Tandery engrossed in a data reader over the remains of her breakfast.

"Sorry sorry sorry. I slept through the alarm somehow."

"No, you didn't." says Tandery. "I cancelled it. Have you looked outside yet?"

"No."

"A sandstorm's blown in from the desert. I'm putting off the trip until tomorrow. But we have some errands to run. Fancy a shopping trip?"

"I'm skint, but sure. I'll come along."

"Brill. I'll have to coax a sealed taxi to come out and pick us up. The others are getting cleaned up. Eat something first. It could be a while before we're picked up. Even the locals don't want to be out in this weather."

* * *

The sealed taxi is a boxy air/raft that attaches the passenger section directly to the ship's airlock. There are already two pairs of travellers inside, so all conversations are kept at their most innocuous. Lin doesn't mind, as she is transfixed by the view out the scuffed plexiglass view ports. The sky is a dim, sombre red. Gusts of ruddy sand and dust swirl and patter against the window like sudden bursts of rain. What little she can see of the terrain through the murk is wind-smoothed rock beset with heavy durasteel structures, and yellow guide-lights flashing weakly to delineate roadways and footpaths. It's but a short trip into the starport's main terminal complex, but the swaying of the sand-blasted air/raft leaves more than one passenger feeling queasy upon arrival.

The terminal was never particularly elegant nor state-of-the-art, but compared to even the modest facilities on Uizk it seems antiquated and shabby. Lin is surprised to find it's even dingier than the Handarbeiterviertel [workman's' quarter] where she grew up (the word 'slum' is never used on Düningen, even when it is meant).

"What a dump!" says Diter.

"I thought you liked slumming," says Lin.

"Slumming yes. The threat of dysentery, somewhat less so."

"I've seen worse," says Harrisumn. "I'm sure all the dust tracked in from outside makes it look worse than it is."

"Haven't they heard of sweeper-bots?" say Diter and Lin in unison, then lapse into unnerved silence as each ponders the implications of having echoed the other's response.

There's not much to see in the port, but there is an outfitters which supplies most of survival gear one could need in the wilderness of Drokkotli, or indeed, for the walk back to the landing pad.

The most important of all are respirators to be able to breathe the meagre atmosphere; they buy six (cr100 each) to fill up the ship's locker. They'll need goggles as well. Six again (just in case) for Cr 50 a go; they're pretty high end TL9 ones. They also buy some heavy outerwear, coats and matching over-trousers of heavy canvas-like fabric [counts as jack armour]. They cost the same as the goggles, and are practical rather than fashionable. Tandery hopes she's guessed right about the Captain and Korilu's sizes. And it's all courtesy of the credit chip the Captain sent Tandery off with. As is lunch.

Also, since their new air/raft is open-topped, they splash out Cr400 for a detachable canvas top, complete with plastic passenger windows. When they get back to the ship, Diter insists on installing it himself, and curtly refuses any and all offers of assistance. But he acquits himself splendidly [mechanic-1, no roll needed]. Tandery comes in to check up on him, and is impressed by his handiwork. And they'll need it; the weather bulletin does not see the dust storms letting up for nine planetary days at least.

[Q: Storms abating? 50/50 (4+): O2 C1 - no, and...]


080-1105

"So, just how good a driver are you?"

Lin doesn't answer Tandery's question, being startled at the sight of Diter climbing into the air/raft with his hunting rifle.

"I, uh, thought those weren't allowed."

"Why Lin," laughs Tandery, "I never had you as a stickler for the niceties of planetary law."

"I'm not really. Just, maybe we should make an effort to conceal our arms or summat."

"Oh. Um. OK. What do you suggest?"

"These seats come up at all?"

"They can do," says Diter. "Just give me a few minutes with the toolbox."

[they have D's rifle, H's revolver, & 2 auto pistols from the ships locker]

The operation is shortly finished. Before heading out of the nice, climate controlled cargo bay of their ship (and having to don respirators), Tandery wants to go over the route. She intends to navigate from a hardcopy map in a guidebook she picked up in the tourist office, such as it is. Everyone crowds round in the cab of the air/raft as she traces the route with her finger.

"So, we have to take the road out of the starport to about 8 klicks past Arjijli Junction, cut through the centre of the Skizdir basin until we go either over or around the Mura'a plateau, then into the Thi Huang highlands and up Vüsidin peak."

"Are you serious?" says Harrisumn.

"I'm afraid so."

"So it's one of those sorts of planets..." offers Lin.

"Oh, come on," says Diter, "we all know that the 38th Century Expansion was the only time in history anyone ever did anything interesting."

"It gets better," says Tandery. "The first page opens with a quote from Çinar."

"Of course it does."

"So how'd the system get off with an original name?" asks Harrisumn.

"Must've been named pre-settlement. Anyway, that's our route. Now, Ms. Lin, if you would care to fire up the time machine, we can be underway."


next post: Across the dim face

An Other CT solo - Part 6: First impressions

Lín

073-1105

Lin composes herself for a moment, then, still breathless from dashing across the concourse, marches into the restaurant and tells the host that she's here with Captain Elleder's party. The host consults his terminal briefly, then with a mumbled 'right this way' leads her to a quiet booth in the back.

Lin's eyes adjust to the dim light and she finds that the booth has but a single occupant, a younger woman in a fitted sleeveless top and a long blonde braid slowly coming undone over one shoulder. She rises as the host slips wordlessly away.

"Hiya! I'm Tandery. You must be Lin. Oh, hon, did you run all the way here? Have a seat and catch your breath. When the Captain shows up, lets tell him you were here before me! Maybe I expect too much of a merchant ship, but their whole time-is-money thing seems only to apply when they think there's a credit waiting to be made. Some day I'll shame them into punctuality."

Tandery

[This scene is 99% written with hindsight gleaned from 3 adventures completed, and mostly worked out in my head on the bus. It seemed like a nicer way to introduce the crew than just portraits & character sheets (which are appended at the end -- this is an RPG blog after all!). The entirety of my notes for this section (up to the rolls for lifting off) are the two points below:

rendez-vous at starport bar, meets d6=3 of the crew (engineer powering up ship & checking engines)

starport encounter? 5+ on d6: no]

Captain Elleder

When Captain Elleder arrives a quarter of an hour later, Tandery tries her little deception, but the good Captain sees right through her beaming eyes and mischievous smile.

"I assume Tandery has apologised for our collective tardiness," says the Captain. "It's the one thing she can't adjust to, being out of the navy."

"She'd mentioned."

"And did she tell you where she fits into our little mercantile enterprise?"

"I hadn't," interjects Tandery. "I always like the way you tell it."

"And she's too modest to do it herself. Officially, she's our navigator[-1]. But she also does the accounts [admin-1], and is a damn sight better at getting a good selling price for speculative trade than I'll ever be. And there isn't much on a ship that she can't turn her hand to [JoT-1]."

Tandery is almost looking sheepish when her attention is suddenly arrested by someone approaching the booth. Lin follows her line of vision to see a man with a boxer's physique [brawl-1, STR 9], complete with broken nose, and wearing a wet-dock worker's knitted cap.

Harrisumn

"And here comes our medic[-1], Harisumn. He keeps us healthy. Keeps the computer[-1] healthy too."

The medic sits down at the table and addresses his captain. "Korilu isn't coming. She's worried about something in the engine again."

"Harisumn, this is Lin."

"Hey, Lin. Yeah, she's convinced that the j-drives are vibrating at the 'wrong frequency'. Is that even a thing? Oh, also, the new guy isn't coming."

"At all?"

"No, he'll be aboard when we leave. He just said summat about family business. I didn't push, cuz, well, you know."

Lin looks to Tandery, who just rolls her eyes at the exchange.

"I'm glad he didn't have to bail," says the Captain, then turns to Lin. "The other security operative I've engaged is, erm, he's the son of a baronet. From Nivvid. He's... well, you'll meet him. He can do the job."

. . .

[Assuming the ship broke even on it's last run--

+75,000 freight
+12,000 low passengers
-15,000 fuel
-13,200 life support
-----------------------
 58,800 new ship's fund

Normal trading & ship economics start from here.]

Harisumn insisted on discussing business with the Captain all the way to the boarding zone. Tandery pronounced them both frightful bores, so she and Lin held back.

"It's too bad you're coming aboard on a planet where we can't just walk up to the ship on the landing pad. You can get a good look when we touch down on Drokkotli. But we can have a peek out the window if you want. See what we can see that isn't hidden by the umbilicus."

The Effi Briest is named after the fondly (mis-)remembered ancient Terran classic of love, laughter, and carefree youth. It's just a standard type-A Free Trader, but to Lin it's the most beautiful thing she's ever seen.

Tandery misinterprets her wide-eyed fascination. "Amazing, right? I never seen one this new either. The Captain won't say how he got it, though. It's big secret."

"So, how long have you all been together?"

"He hired us all on Tifrä like six months back."

"Is that where captain is from?"

"Haha, no. He's Vebrulish. How's that for irony? His first ship of his very own, and he can't fly it home unless we put in bigger jump drives!"

. . .

Tandery takes Lin up to the passenger deck.

"You can have your choice of staterooms since there's no passengers this trip out -- the Captain wants to be able to discuss the 'mission' without fear of eavesdroppers. But, um, you might want to avoid the big ones aft. If we keep you on as security, he's gonna want those for high passengers."

"That's alright. These are plenty huge. I don't know what I'll do with all this space."

"Hahaha! Wait, are you serious?"

. . .

Lin is alternating between stowing her meagre possessions and pressing buttons on the interior consoles to see what they do when she feels the air pressure change subtly and a slight tug as the grav plates and inertial dampers come on. Moments later Captain Elleder announces a terse 'prepare for lift-off' over the intercom, and then nothing. But when Lin peeps out the porthole all she sees is the wispy yellow clouds of Uizk's lower atmosphere.

She watches as the atmosphere fades and the horizon becomes ever more curved and is finally replaced by a field of stars. She wants to watch until they get to jumpspace, but the combined effects of sustained excitement and prescription medication send her for a little lie down in her new bed before they're an hour out of port.

[no malfunctions.
Ship encounter: Bulk Cargo Hauler 3000t, Transport matches a ship that went missing last year

Q: Captain hail them? 50/50: O6 C3 - yes, but... feigns ignorance
Q: Gets a response? certain: O1 C4 - no, but... automated recording

jump!]

By the time they hit jumpspace, the ship's time chronometer shows 23:09, so the Captain invites everyone who wants a nightcap to convene in the upper common area. Lin splashes some water on her face and brushes out her slept-on hair before opening her door and making a left turn directly into the common area (she'd picked the stateroom closest to the galley on purpose). Tandery gets up as soon as she appears.

"Sorry," she says, "I need to crash. Uizk traffic control couldn't make up their minds which trajectory they wanted us on and I've spent almost five hours making course corrections. But I wanted to say good night, and welcome aboard."

The Captain is there, but can't stop yawning, and leaves ten minutes after Tandery. Harisumn spends the whole time in the galley, mixing some sort of colourful fizzy cocktail, then wordlessly takes it down to his stateroom.

As Harisumn is leaving, Lin hears a stateroom door down the corridor sliding open. She looks over to see her new colleague in the 'security detail' swanning towards her. Diter-Frantz von Krehl is a tall muscular blonde Adonis, and if Lin can read his expression right --and she most certainly can-- he's just the sort of arrogant prick who would describe himself as such. He makes no attempt to hide the fact that he's just checked her out, and he knows she was just looking at his well-defined pectorals, standing out in high relief beneath the skin-tight designer chemise. And when she grimaces and heaves an exasperated sigh he just smirks and sits down as if nothing had transpired. He most certainly doesn't care.

Diter

"So you're my new associate. You don't look like much."

"And how should I look?"

"It depends. Just what is it you were hired on for?"

"I hate to have to be the one to tell you this, mate, but if the Captain brought you in to be the brawn, it stands to reason that I, conversely..."

"We'll see. I take it you've done this sort of thing before."

"I've been doing this 'sort of thing' since you were in short trousers. Now it's my turn to ask impertinent questions. How come you're doing this, and not zipping about in your yacht or composing poetry in your ancestral gardens or summat?"

"Because I prefer to be slumming."

They trade barbs for a few more rounds, then lapse into silence, and return to their staterooms. Lin's got the measure of her new associate, and knows exactly how she'll handle him; he'll probably be a liability, but she's domesticated his sort before. Now if only she could meet the engineer!

. . .

[Avoid a Bad Reaction (Solo) needs 8+: 2D=7, no
d6=Stubborn. A choice has been made and the PC does not like it.
d6=Harisumn

Event: shipboard romance d6= Diter & d5=Korilu]

Lin wakes up to a flashing message light on her bedside terminal. The Captain has invited the entire crew to elevenses.

When Lin enters the lounge, Tandery is sitting at the table, re-plaiting her hair into an even more complicated style. She smiles and mumbles a hello through the hairpins she's holding in her mouth. Harisumn is in the galley again, cutting up what appears to be real fruit, though not of any variety Lin's ever seen before. Next to Tandery is a young woman whose mass of coppery red hair is the least colourful part of her ensemble. She says, "Hi. I'm Korilu, the engineer. You must be Lin." Then she goes immediately back to making eyes at Diter across the table.

Korilu

Harisumn comes out and puts the fragrant-smelling plate in the centre of the table. "That's the last of whatever these were, so enjoy."

Tandery mumbles something at him, and he replies with an annoyed, "What?"

She looks to Lin and pleads, "mmmmmmmhhh!" Lin takes the hairpins from her mouth so she can speak.

"They're called slasla fruit and they grow in like every littoral zone on Evcerei. They're our major export. Do you ever pay attention?"

Before Harisumn has a chance to retort the Captain Elleder comes in and interjects, "we'll have to stock up next time we get out that way."

He waits until all are seated and served, then addresses his crew. "Our mission is to deliver some prototype scientific equipment to a research team at their base in extra-national land on Drokkotli. The good news is that it's only about 350km from the port, and the cargo has come pre-loaded on an air/raft. The bad news is that the base is on a mountainside in the badlands, and it's the windy season, so the recommended flight ceiling is pretty low. The air/raft is also our payment for the delivery, so we want it back in one piece. I'll be driving; that means it'll be on me if it gets dented. It's a standard 4-seater. In addition to our two new security specialists, I'll take Tandery along to keep us from getting lost."

"I wanna go," says Harisumn. "I sat out the last one. I don't feel like getting stuck in some sad provincial port again. Why can't we leave one of the new ones to guard the ship?"

"They were hired on to do this job. This equipment is very valuable, and the patron is convinced someone will try to steal it."

"Well if I'm not going you don't need me here then."

He gets up and leaves without another word.

. . .

[Q: Any strong reactions to Lin either way? 50/50: O5 C7 - yes
Q: Who? d5=Tandery
Q: Reaction? Carelessly / Heavy

Also, the last day in Jump will be time to check for implant permanence: She needs 9+, DM +2 for INT A+ : 2D+2=12 - she's now got Pilot-1]

Most of the crew are invisible for the rest of the jump. Korilu and Diter are carrying on, and only seldom emerge from his stateroom for longer than it takes to grab some things from the galley. The Captain and Harisumn are avoiding one another, and as they have the same argument any time their paths cross, they too remain mostly sequestered.

Tandery is very friendly, though, and she gives Lin a tour of everything on the ship, enumerating its little quirks and occasional benefices. And she has a million stories to tell about her time in the navy, though most of it involves staving off boredom on deep patrols and shore leave hijinks.

Lin starts to feel more herself again as her body adjusts to the implant, and though she still has the occasional twinge, by the 5th day in jumpspace she's completely off her medication.

She and Tandery decide to have a drink to celebrate. One drink turns into two, and then into the rest of the bottle. And then into a second, liberated from the private stash in the ship's locker. Tandery gets even more talkative, and not a little maudlin. She tells Lin some of her other war stories, the ones she usually doesn't mention. The ones she wishes she could forget.

[Rolling END- to remember everything the next day: L 2D=5, yes; T 2D=7, yes
Reaction to see how Tandery feels about her lapse: 2D=7, unsure]

The next day, Lin is glad of the extra medicines she hadn't finished. She goes to see Tandery to offer her some. Tandery comes to the door of her stateroom wrapped in a blanket, trembling and frail.

"Sorry about last night. I went on too long about... stuff."

"It's OK. Really. I come bearing gifts, mostly prescription ones. These will sort you out, trust me."

"I just don't want you to think I'm a monster or something."

"I don't."

"You just, you didn't say much."

"I was being a good listener."

"But I..."

"Hey, now. I'm no stranger to the drunken, midnight confession. I promise you, I've spent plenty of time on both ends of it. You'll see. Next time, it'll be my turn."

"Yeah, OK. Maybe."


next post: space hulk

Character sheets

Lín Dàiyù

6B5D85   Age 38   Other  5 Terms

JOT-1, Streetwise-1, Air/raft-1, Electronics-1, Bribery-2, Auto pistol-1, Pilot-1

Cr435

Captain Escoran Elleder

565879   Age 42   Merchant  6 Terms

Blade-1, Electronic-2, Gunnery-1, Jack-o-T-1, Steward-1, Pilot-1, Air/raft-1, Vacc-1

cr53,425

blade, revolver +5 speed loaders

Free Trader

Lt. Cmdr. Tandery Uimoh

798CB7   Age 34   Navy  4 Terms

Gunnery-1, Navigation-1, Vacc-2, JOT-1, Ship's Boat-1, Admin-1

Travellers'

cr10,600

inertial locator

Harrisumn Jhilner

967996   Age 34   Other  4 Terms

Revolver-1, Medicine-1, Computer-1, Gambling-1, Brawl-1

cr7,835

hand computer, medical kit, revolver +3 speed loaders

Diter-Frantz von Krehl

9ABB6C   Age 22   Navy  1 Term

Rifle-1, Mechanic-1

cr7,490

cloth armour, rifle w/ electronic sight +3 clips

Korilu Mitraicx

86A685   Age 28   Scout  2.5 Terms

Pilot-1, Engineering-1, Vacc-1, JOT-1, Tracked vehicle-1

cr20,000

blade

An Other CT solo - Part 5: The recruiting office

Date: 064-1105
Uizk  0409  A624625-B  N  Ni

The steward who comes to fetch Lin to get her off the ship does not even try to feign courtesy. Lin can only imagine the trouble her little display might have caused for their further dealings with Düningen. But she hardly cares, as she does not intend to ever see this ship or her homeworld ever again.

She goes immediately to an information terminal, and discovers that the recruiting hall is located at the downport; a stroke of luck, as she's dying to stand on the surface of a new planet!

But a week on, she still hasn't done so. The atmosphere on Uizk is more poisonous than her homeworld's, and so thin that it requires compressors added to one's breath mask in order to take in enough to breathe at all. She's not bought one as she doesn't intend to stay long, and really can't afford the Cr150 it would cost. Besides, there's no compelling reason to leave the downport. It's sprawling --several kilometres from end to end-- and contains everything an offworlder could possibly need. Plus, despite the two merchant marines she overhears in the restaurant complaining about the crowds of people everywhere, all she can see are the wide open spaces; her home precinct had a higher population than this whole system.

The recruiting hall turns out to be a series of self-help kiosks with an electronic readerboard above. The scrolling job announcements go by on an endless loop, which seldom takes more than a standard minute before it repeats. There's a smaller side board with static announcements, and a single bored clerk behind plexiglass whose permanent scowl broadcasts that she'd rather read her novel in peace instead of talking to vagrant spacer trash like Lin.

Lin watches the other jobseekers as they come and go, and tries to guess which of them are actually spacers; most of the jobs advertised are for dockworkers and service staff. She doesn't need to come here every day, as she can get the same postings sent directly to her hotel room terminal, but said hotel room is smaller than most prison cells she's been in, so it's nicer to go in person and stretch her legs.

She does overhear one lead (whilst sitting in the holo-cinema waiting for the countless adverts to finish before Twilight's Peak IV: The Octagon Conspiracy finally starts) as two grizzled naval veterans are talking about the 'mysterious ship' docked in bay 49. One swears it's an impound, suspected of piracy. Her mate tells her not to be daft; it's a subsidised merchant that had to sack the whole crew and the owner aboard is quietly trying to hire on a new one before the bank gets wind. Lin is happy she waited until after the film --even that last funny bit after the end credits-- to chase up the rumour, for she arrives to find bay 49 empty, and when she asks, the security guard laughs and says she's the fifth person today to come looking.

She's been spending the bulk of her days wandering through the port and trying to behave like a normal person, instead of a Düningener. She's found that she can be far too direct when addressing others, and her ideas of personal space coming from a far too overpopulated world don't help matters much. Her previous line of work involved dealing with everyone from lowly warehouse workers to high officials, so she'd learnt to be somewhat of a chameleon, but even so it takes three days of adjusting her manner before people stop reacting to her like a madwoman.

Her first instinct was to make a circuit of the local pubs and see who she could prise some information out of, but the pain meds she's on aren't the kind that are fun to wash down with a few shots. And she's been mostly off her food, and the thought of sitting somewhere she could smell the kitchen... She instead pays a visit to a chemist, who sends her off with a local stomach remedy which seems to help a bit, though the admonition to avoid operating heavy machinery whilst taking it makes her laugh -- perhaps the technological superiority of her homeworld wasn't just propaganda.

[Narrating her week in the order it was played out would have been very clunky. So...

Ship encounter: 1200t battle cruiser, warn of unidentified ship (this was noted, but it never came up)

Starport encounter: Mysterious ship landed at the port, no-one allowed to see it or go near it, though there are plenty of rumours around. (I combined this with the rumour below)

Whenever I get a PC/party in this sort of semi-aimless situation, I always use Travelling Alone (link). The original sequence in my notes was:

>Upkeep
SOCxSOCx10= cr250, cr690 remaining

>buy
no

>healing
-cr5 for different anti-nausea meds

>options
look for a job, need 10+ : 2D=7, no

>Hear rumour
misc, potential patron
major, aid +1 DM on job search

>options
look again for job, 2D=9, not quite
(truth of rumour? mostly false, no DM)

>buy/sell
no

>end

The next week (starting on 071-1105) is more eventful and less background-y, so I'll take it in order.]

Lin is starting to worry about her credit balance. Maybe she oughtn't to spend so much time at the cinema, but the lure of films that haven't been chopped up or banned outright by Düningen's Censor Bureau has just been to great. [>Upkeep, -CR250] And she still can't drink, so killing time down the pub hasn't been an option. And there's not really much else to do than window shopping [>buy], and that doesn't keep her mind off the slight tremor in her hands she's been noticing the past few days.

[last END roll for side effects fails, -1 DEX]

So to save on funds, she begins to explore sections of the port that she'd previously avoided. The commerce centre is loud and annoying, so she quickly flees. The wing with hotels she can't afford is not much better, but she does happen to pass the Travellers' Aid Society office & hostel, and notices the glowing banner in the window: 'Three days only! Accepting New Applications for Membership. Standard Fees. No Invitation Required!' 

"Drat," thinks Lin, "only Cr999,565 short!" [>Event, Opportunity to make TAS application (open entry)]

Not much else to do this side of the port but window shop [>buy, >healing]. The boutiques here remind Lin of nothing so much as the sorts of over-priced shops that make Düningen's long-distance maglev stations such a misery to visit. Actually, some of the chain stores are exactly the same ones.

Maybe it's time to go back and check the recruiting hall again. At least there she's among her kind of people.

[> seek patron; d6=y

I made the usual die rolls to set up the patron meeting, and rolled a mission on the tables in Solo--

d66=smuggler
reaction=10!
mission: Provide Protection on a Journey
target: prototype.

Ship? free trader

Destination:
Q: Where? (1d6): 1-4 within jump-1, 5-6 jump-2: d6=j-1
Q: Which system? (1d6): 1 Düningen, 2-3 Uizk, 4-5 Drokkotli, 6 Invetsch: Drokkotli]

Nothing again! As she walks away, her ruminations about how long she can hold out before she has to apply for a cargo handling job are cut short as she notices someone walking on a course to intersect with hers. His salt-and-pepper hair and beard say he's older than she is, but not by much (and she's looked in the mirror every day since getting off Düningen to see if the strain of it all has finally summoned the grey hairs she know are lying in wait for her). His brown leather flight jacket is well worn, and maybe a little tight to zip up easily any more. But his gait is confident and his smile seems genuine; she's at least curious to see what he has to say.

"I saw you looking at the job boards." [inquisitive - curiosity - retainers]

"Trying to find a new berth..."

"You seem like you can probably handle yourself. The way you keep watching other people--"

"Force of habit."

"Ex-military?"

"Hahaha! Nothing like that."

"Too bad. I'm putting together a small security detail."

"Now that I have experience in."

"Seriously?"

"Not as muscle, obviously, but I've run a fair few protection gigs in my day."

"Well, friend, you may just have saved me having to post a recruiting ad. Not that the expense is an issue, but I have the feeling the clerk hates me! I'm Captain Elleder, by the way."

"Lín."

"Alright, Lin, why don't we discuss the job somewhere a little less out in the open. You hungry? There's a great Nivatrian place that I always hit up whenever I get out this way."

Lin has an immediate twisting in her guts at the mention of it, but decides she can't let bad memories rule her future. Besides, she never did get that promised bread and tails...

"Lead on!"

[I always like to have a few extra characters ready on the sidelines in case for when a ship's crew is needed. Captain Elleder and the other 3 on his crew were rolled up at the same time I made Lin(g). Introductions (and character sheets) are coming in the next instalment.

I also needed a few more rolls to fill out the job:

Q: Others in the security detail? 1d3=3*
Q: How big is prototype? d6-1=3t
Q: Mainworld delivery? likely (3+): O4 C4 - yes, but...
+Event: Introduce a new NPC - Betray / Advice (=will not listen to anyone else and will make things more difficult)

type: d66=noble

*oops, I was so excited by the prospects afforded by the New NPC introduced in the Event that I forgot to roll up the other two. He was generated totally at random, other than swapping his highest-rolled characteristic into SOC to make him a noble. I'd have raised it to 11 I'd had to, but there was no need; his rolled UPP was an amazing 9ABB6C.

They'll ship out at either the end of the Travelling Alone sequence or Options.]

Lunch is pleasant, the job seems legit, the pay offered is decent, and the Captain does not show himself to be an idiot, so Lin happily accepts Elleder's offer. It's not the pilot's chair she wanted, but if she acquits herself on the mission (he keeps calling it a mission, but she'll let that slide), maybe she can angle herself for the position later. If not... she'll see where things stand when it comes to that point.

After lunch, the captain excuses himself, saying he's got some business to attend to in the commerce centre. He reminds her that they ship out in [1d6-1=] two days. Lin goes back to the hotel, intending to use the public library data entries available on the vidscreen to brush up on some pertinent facts about her 'homeworld', and maybe some about Vinstreg for good measure. The good captain had noticed her hands shaking at dinner, and she had to repeat her story about needing hospitalisation after picking up a parasite there.

Six hours later she finds she's been sucked into the science network and has just watched back-to-back programmes about Vinstreg's long tradition of undersea viticulture.

[>hear rumour: Fact about Environment

>Options]

Fortunately the medicine means she has no trouble sleeping for 10 hours at a time, but her waking hours in the final two days on Uizk seem endless, up until the last. When she checks out of the hotel, she goes to the nearby self-service laundry so she doesn't show up to meet her new shipmates with a bag full of dirty pants. But the dryers are old and poorly maintained, and the robot attendant is worse than unhelpful, so she has to wait anxiously for it to finish a second cycle.

She practically sprints across the starport to the restaurant where the captain has set the rendez-vous. She gets there three minutes late and gasping for breath; not exactly the first impression she'd hoped to make!


next post: the crew

An Other CT solo - Part 4: Travelling at last

Date : 056-1105

Düningen   0310   A799A9D-E   N   Hi In    Amber

Lin is shouldering her bag and walking down the Gate 436 umbilicus to board the Type-M passenger liner Schneewittchen. She looks out the portholes and marvels at the other ships attached to the station in rows above and below. She can recognise a subsidised merchant vessel or two, and what she assumes is a  scout ship, and a variety of huge bulk freighters, and if she closes her eyes she can picture how they flew here, how they docked with the station, and how they'll leave, and she can imagine herself at the helm. She's been playing this game in her head for the better part of two days. However the skill chip they put in her brain is supposed to work -- it's definitely working.

She had hoped she might find a job as a star pilot at the highport. Such naïveté! No one recruits crew here; there's too much paperwork. So she'd looked at the star charts and settled on Uizk as the most likely place to find a berth. She'd been lucky to find a ship going there, and luckier still that it hadn't filled up with high passengers, as her new life of modest means meant she only had a single voucher for a middle passage. And in the post-implant consultation, the doctors had advised her not to travel low passage for at least two months, as she'd almost certainly not wake up from it.

When she wasn't staring out the porthole of her (terribly cheap) hotel room, she was mostly asleep. The meds were just barely keeping the headaches and vertigo at bay. 

[week 1 of side effects from the implant: She needed to roll END or lower (5-): 9, fail. She took d6=6 hits to DEX (down to 5).

I rolled for ship availability this week using Zoser's Solo; 2 rolls were permitted as Düningen has a Class A starport; 2D=liner (21 passenger staterooms)

I also rolled for High (3D-2=8) and Middle (4D-2=11) passengers, so there was no chance of getting bumped.

-cr60 for minimal food & lodging

Q: Any significant encounters until departure? unlikely: O2 c1 - no, and...]

She's greeted by an open hatch at the end of the umbilicus. She steps into the ship's airlock and peeks in through the inner hatch to find a short passageway whose bare walls and whorling crimson carpeted floor look surprisingly like a hotel that boasts hourly rates. She calls a tentative 'hello?' and moments later a uniformed steward runs up to meet her.

"So sorry," says the youthful [d6=] woman glancing at chronometer, "boarding doesn't start until --oh!-- right now, I suppose."

Lin hands over her passage voucher and is escorted to her stateroom, given a brief explanation of where things are, and left promptly alone. She isn't sure what she'd really expected her stateroom to be like. Her entire understanding of passenger ships comes from those naff holo-series like "Love Aboard: Passion on the King Richard" and "Romance on the Singing Star" -- and those must be 200 standard years old at least. Come to think of it, this ship might be of a similar antiquity. And it could be cleaner. Still, the room is bigger than her first flat when she finally moved out on her own, so it should do for the next week.

[Q: Does she notice anyone/anything immediately interesting whilst boarding? unlikely: O2 C2 - no, and... 

+Event: Ambiguous event - Punish / Expectations]

When the ship finally puts off towards the jump point, the captain addresses the passengers -- the high passengers attend in person, the middle passengers watch on the viewscreens in their staterooms. [d6=] He might also be 200 standard years old, and is certainly not as dashing as the ones on the holos. And he hasn't time to finish his prepared speech before one of the bridge crew pulls him away to answer an emergency distress call.

The passengers are confined to their staterooms, but are soon informed that there is no cause for alarm; there is merely a bulk freighter requiring assistance with emergency repairs. Lin just goes back to sleep. She hopes the other passengers aren't going to kick off, but herself, she doesn't particularly mind.

Twenty hours later the ship continues towards the jump point. The announcement wakes Lin from her sleep, and quite literally leaps from the bed in exultation. This more than anything marks the break with her past life, and, more than that, she's wanted to go into space since she first learnt about the rabbit that lives on the moon of Terra. Even after her disappointment when she was old enough to understand that it was just a story. She glues her face to the tiny porthole in nervous anticipation. The captain begins the countdown over the intercom. The lights begin to dim. And then--

Lin comes to on the floor, bathed in sweat. She checks the digital wall clock. She'd only passed out for a minute or so. She looks up at the porthole, but it's already gone opaque. She cleans herself up and goes back to sleep.

[Ship encounter: bulk freighter 3000t, requires help with repair

To Avoid a Bad Reaction on the trip (Solo): 9+ due to the delay: 2D=9, ok

No malfunctions or misjump

Lin was released from hospital 1d6-1=5 days before she arrived at the highport, so the start of this journey sees the beginning of the 2nd week of RNA side effects: 2D=3, no damage this week, and can heal the earlier hits to DEX.

Onboard event (d66): Passenger is an inspector for the government who is authorized a tour of the ship.

Q: How big is the inspection team? (d6+1)x10=60%; 8 x .6 = 4.8 : 5 of the high passengers]

When Lin wakes up, she feels significantly less ropey, but still lines up all the pills she's got to take with her breakfast. The menu options on her screen are all unfamiliar, so in the spirit of adventure she makes her selections at random. Fifteen minutes later a panel opens to reveal a tray with compartments full of steaming hot... substances. There's blue and liquid-y, white and mostly viscous, and a yellowy lump of doughy solidity. None of it tastes bad, but also none of it tastes any different. At least there's a strong plastic cup of sweet tea to wash it down, and with a minimally metallic aftertaste. Oh dear, is this what homesickness tastes like?

Her culinary adventure is interrupted by another announcement form the captain. "As you may know," he lies, "Inspector Chagra from Düningen's Bureau of Standards is travelling with us on this voyage for a routine compliance check. She and her team will touring the vessel whist we're in jump, and she is anxious to meet all the passengers and crew. I'm sure you'll all want to welcome her as she..."

Lin pushes her half-finished tray back into the dispenser. What the texture couldn't do to rob her of her appetite, that announcement certainly has.

She hopes that leaving the 'do not disturb' indicator on at all times will pre-empt the inspector's visit, but the steward contacts her the next day (ship's time) to inform her that a meeting must be arranged. "It shouldn't take but five minutes. But you know what sticklers for compliance those Düningeners are!"

[reaction when meeting L 2D=12! very personable. maybe too personable!

Q: Does she suspect anything? unknown d6=1; O6 C5 - yes]

At the appointed hour, the door chimes. Lin mutes the sound on the vid-programme she'd been watching and fumbles for the door-open switch. The Inspector is there, in her crisply-pressed suit, followed by a ship's crewman and an aide of some sort, whose concealed pistol beneath a loose-fitting jacket Lin clocks at first glance. [Streetwise 9+: 2D+1=11]

"This is Lin Daiyu," says the aide, reading off a datapad, "Glunish citizenship."

"I'm very pleased to meet you, Traveller Lin," says Inspector Chagra. "I trust you're enjoying your voyage."

"Yes, it's a very comfortable room."

"Such a long way from your home system. Do you travel often?"

"As often as I can."

"How wonderful! You must have seen so many ships."

"A fair few."

"Tell me, how do you think this one compares? I myself find the accommodations most comfortable."

"Not a bad size for business travel."

The aide is nosing round the stateroom and making notes on his datapad as the Inspector and Lin engage in even more absurd small-talk. But inwardly Lin's alarm sirens are screaming. No Düningen official is this chatty unless they're trying to trip you up. And she isn't going away! She's definitely suspicious of something. Maybe the way Lin carriers herself is too much of a giveaway. There's no way they could trace her old identity, but she's still got the old fear of their authority and its omnipresent reach. Extreme measures are required. Lin focusses on the nausea that hasn't truly abated since leaving hospital. She totters for a moment and catches herself on the vanity table. [needs to roll over END (6+) to pull this off: 2D=10] 

"Sorry, not feeling too well all of a sudd-- ITALbleeuuurgh..."

"My shoes!" shrieks the Inspector, and leaps back out into the corridor. She shouts at the steward, "have your medic check her out at once. At once! If this results in quarantine..."

The medic arrives, out of breath. Lin explains she had emergency surgery on Vinstreg for some sort of water-bourne parasite in her ear, and she's still in recovery, and shows her bag full of anti-nausea medication. The medic insists on a full examination, just to be safe. 

[10+ to diagnose actual cause of her 'illness' DM +medicine 2D+1=6, no

She needs an 8+ to sound convincing (medicine-0 from JoT): 2D=8, ok

Q: Any fallout? 50/50: O2 C3 - no, but...]

Despite the clean bill of health, Lin is confined to quarters for the rest of the journey. 

[After 3 days bed rest, she heals the 5 hits to DEX. The 3rd END roll for implant side effects comes due on the final day in jump: 2D=2, no damage.]

When the Schneewittchen is about to emerge from jumpspace, Lin is once again glued to the porthole. The external shutters slide back as the lights dim and the captain begins his countdown. She's just starting to understand why they say you shouldn't stare too long at the grey void of jumpspace when there's a flash of light and the sensation of being flung through a hole in spacetime seems to force the air from her lungs. But she's still upright when her vision clears and she can see the field of stars outside the ship. A successful end to her first jump.

next post: looking for a ship

An Other CT solo - Part 3: The last days of prisoner Gx-1067-6B5D85-H5c82-θ

Justice does not tarry on Düningen. The trials are over within six weeks. Garvin's and Iuroaa's are deemed to be in the public interest and broadcast live. Ling and Khamine are deemed to be minor players, so their proceedings are closed.

Khamine is a first-time offender, and is given clemency: 8 years hard labour in a deep-sea mine. The other three, plus a handful of Iuroaa's other underlings who survived the restaurant assault, are sentenced to death, as are most of the ones rounded up in the affair's wake.

Iuroaa, as a crime boss, needs to be an example. His execution is carried out with an excess of pomp, a key spectacle at a public holiday event. He is made to apologise for his crimes, warn other citizens of following in his wicked footsteps, and praise the wisdom of the ruling council in cleansing his insidious influence from the planet before facing the firing squad.

The rest of the executions are also broadcast live (on all networks, interrupting the scheduled programmes), but are to take place en masse in the prison. These are generally ignored by the populace at large save for certain colleagues, friends, and family of the accused who are required to attend.

. . .

The door opens to reveal two guards in full armour. "It's time." says one in a voice distorted into low, barely-human tones by the helmet speaker.

Ling rises wordlessly. They lead her through a series of security doors, and usher her into narrow room with a round conference table and a holographic view screen taking up most of the far wall. The screen displays the prison interior. Ling watches the firing squad assembling and taking position. Then, one by one, the first sextet of the condemned are led in. Each is shown in close-up. Their crimes scroll along the bottom of the image as they are read out in voice-over by the warden. At the end of each litany, the sentence of death is almost ritually confirmed.

The first two she only knows by reputation, the next three not at all, and watches only distractedly. The last one, however, arrests her total interest. Engrossed, she jumps when she hears the door slide open once more. Bureau Chief Amson walks in with his suit jacket over one shoulder. Only his ID badge shows he's a high-ranking agent in internal security. He dismisses the guards. Ling turns back towards the screen.

"I'm surprised you wanted to watch."

"It's not every day a girl gets to witness her own execution."

"I suppose not."

"Who is she?"

"Just another enemy of the state. Do you really want to know her name?"

"Probably not. I'm surprised how much she looks like me, is all."

"Honestly, with the shaved head, bruising, and six weeks of max-sec prison life, people all start to look the same."

"So, you're saying I'm not the first to get off this way."

"I've not made this offer to anyone before, but I'd be surprised if this is the first time it's happened."

"Shh, it's starting."

Ling isn't sure what she thought she'd feel, but the stark emptiness surprises her. And she'd forgotten how much she hated watching these things. But she looks straight on until the end. She owes her nameless substitute that much. When it's over, she turns back towards Amson, whom she's surprised to see engrossed in his datapad.

She clears her throat and he looks up, briefly startled.

"You don't watch them?"

"Not unless I have to attend. I find the whole experience distasteful. Necessary for planetary security, but distasteful nonetheless."

"Hm."

"How are you feeling?" Ling blanches at the question, and Amson hastily adds, "I mean, after the surgery. I wouldn't presume to ask about the other."

"Oh, um, fine, I guess. I can't wear my hair up for a while until the shaved patch grows back in a little, but other than the nausea, the side effects aren't so bad. Yet."

"I hear they can get pretty rough. We don't use implants any more in the service; the risks are too great. And the expense! I'm not surprised the Bureau authorised it, given what you had to offer us in return, but I have to admit to some consternation at your insistence on this particular reward."

"They offered money, a stack of high passages, even gold for some reason. But that stuff's all transitory. This is something in my head, that no one can take from me. This is mine."

"Provided it doesn't kill you."

"The doctors told me the risks. I've faced worse odds."

"I see. Well, Ms. Gong, if you're done here, your shuttle awaits."

"Good, let's go. But I suppose you shouldn't call me that. Ms. Gōng is dead, after all."

"Indeed."

"So who am I now?"

"Ms. Lin Daiyu."

"Wait-- seriously?"

"I checked your borrowing records from the precinct library. I thought you'd appreciate the literary nod. Now, this is where we part ways, Ms. Lin. I know you acted out of selfish reasons, but you've done our world a great service. Should you ever desire repatriation, look me up. We can use a woman of your talents."

. . .

She's the only passenger on the shuttle to highport. She spends most of the trip looking distractedly at her new identity dossier. Lin Daiyu, Homeworld: Glun. She's not heard of it. Checking the shuttle's rudimentary Library programme reveals it to be a miserable little backwater at least 10 parsecs Coreward of Düningen, right on the edge of the cluster. She'd probably best learn about it, though doubts it will come up that often in conversation.

She puts the datapad aside and looks through her new travel bag. There's a toiletry kit, basic working jumpsuits in neutral colours including one with a name tag sewn on (nice touch, that), and one extra set of bland civilian clothes, vaguely similar to the ones she's already wearing. A billfold contains Cr1000 in cash and a single Middle Passage voucher. Finally, there's an Imperial hardcopy passport, in a pocket of which is her newly minted Pilot's certification card, courtesy of the RNA skill implant she demanded of the Security Bureau as her guerdon. And filling the rest of the carry-all, also courtesy of the RNA implant, are bottle after bottle of prescription painkillers & anti-nausea meds. She chokes down one of each and studies her Pilot's licence again. The name staring up at her is just a character in a book, but the face is definitely her. Ansom found a flattering picture and everything. She decides that she'll just tell people she goes by her family name. It's close enough to Ling that she won't get confused by it, and anyways, lots of spacers just get called by their family names, don't they? She's sure they must. Well, she's a spacer now, and that's what she's going to do, so it must be right. Damn, those pain meds are strong.

The shuttle docks at the highport. She is met by a uniformed station worker, who escorts her through the surface departures concourse to the queue for the interstellar terminal. As she waits her turn, her eyes cannot help but drift over to the dour, armoured security troops watching the proceeding from behind their dark, featureless visors. A brief panic seizes her: what if they didn't erase her identity as promised? But if they'd wanted to kill her, they could have left her in prison. And not wasted the RNA implant. Still, she doesn't fully believe it until she presents her wrist to the scanner and the screen flashes up her new identity with the legend 'Registered Foreigner : Medical Visa expiring in 00:53:21'.

They scan her bag, search it manually, then finally stamp her Imperial passport (both physically and electronically). At last they wave her through into the interstellar concourse. As she walks forward the last few steps she stumbles. The security agent catches her by the arm to steady her, and notices her cheeks are wet with tears.

"Are you alright? Should I call for a medic?"

"No. No, I'm fine. Really. Just relieved, and a little overwhelmed. I'd been so afraid I was going to die here."

–~ Ende ~–

Notes

Thus concludes Ling/Lin's first adventure. As I mentioned briefly at the start, she was an entirely random PC with a random homeworld. I was initially disappointed when the dice put her on Düningen, having wanted to save it for a later adventure location, and I would have re-rolled it had I not been committed to another random start.

It was very obvious to me that her major goal would be getting offworld (admittedly one of my usual starters), but since the odds of ever returning once she left were minimal, I needed to have some sort of actual adventure on the world; it's definitely one of the most interesting worlds in the sandbox, just not if you're from there. So I decided to give her one last job to do for her boss (this was the first Thread in Mythic terms on the unpublished list. Her secondary goal (and the second Thread) was getting offworld.

As I had done with Ortance, I rolled up 3 life events:

• Fell in love, but your lover (1-2) died
• Profited from a dirty secret and owe any promotion or money to that secret.
• Made a deal with a crime-lord you couldn’t decline

I was going to keep them aside as merely sources of colour to use later. But then the last two gave me an idea, which tied in to wanting to get offworld, but needed a separate Thread of its own. I already knew she worked for organised crime just based on her rolled skills, but making a deal she couldn't decline made it sound like a life of crime was not, in fact, her own choice. Profiting from dirty secrets was also obvious just from her skills (streetwise & bribery). But the biggest dirty secret of all would be knowing who the crime boss was and how to find him (at Law Level 13, the police don't need to wait for 'solid evidence' to arrest a known criminal; they only delay when setting up the trap). So I added 'made a deal with planetary security' as the third thread and let that define when/how they decided to close the dragnet.

Originally, her reward was just going to be a new identity (and effective exile), but when I was absently looking at the Experience chapter in the rulebook I saw the suggestion of RNA Implants under the Alternatives heading at the end, which set my mind spinning. She was on one of the highest TL planets in the sandbox, so something crazy like this was certainly within reach, but there needed to be a reason that they weren't in common use.

RNA Skill Implant (TL14, Mcr1)

Confers a single skill at level-1, subject to the referee's approval. The implant cannot be used to raise a current skill level (except in cases of skill-0, though these skills are generally not offered), nor can it be used to acquire Jack of All Trades. The implant must be installed in a TL14+ hospital facility by a qualified surgeon (Medical-3, DEX 8+).

Recovery from the surgery involves a week's bed rest in hospital. A further 4 weeks are required for the implant to complete its work. During this time the skill is effectively level-0. The side effects during this period are severe headaches, dizziness, and nausea. Without the proper medications (costing Cr100), the subject will have their physical characteristics reduced to half their normal levels (round down). In addition, each week a throw of current END- is required or the subject will suffer 1D hits to a random characteristic (applied after the halving of characteristics for lack of medication). These hits are treated exactly as damage received in physical combat for purposes of incapacitation, but cannot be healed in any week the END throw was failed. Use of slow drug, fast drug, or freezing (low passage) during this period will cause the implant to fail (no skill levels retained) and provoke an immediate Crisis (see below).

Should the subject survive the first five weeks, the character check to see if the implanted information has been successfully integrated. A throw of 9+ is required (DM +2 for INT 10+) for the skill to increase to level-1 permanently. Failing this throw freezes the skill at level-0.

The first time the skill is used in a stressful situation may provoke a Crisis afterwards. If the character fails to throw lower than their END, they will begin to convulse. All uninjured physical characteristics fall to 1 immediately. Any at less than full are reduced to 0. Characters who remain conscious are still functionally incapacitated for 1Dx10 hours, after which time damage may be healed as normal.

I thought she'd want a spacer skill so she could become a proper Traveller, but I didn't necessarily think she'd get her first choice, so I rolled 1d6 on the Crew Salary Table to see what was on offer. I would have re-rolled Steward, as I can't see anyone producing an implant for that.


next post: a spacer's life