ALEJO: Alejo pushes Manaaki back into his chair and then kicks the chair, assuming it’s on wheels, against the back wall, while watching the door behind us, in case the guard comes in. “We’re going to have a civil conversation, Director.”
STORY: “Oh, for christ’s sake.” He looks annoyed. “GUARD!” He stands and rushes you.
STORY: What do you do?
ALEJO: Alejo hits him in the forehead with the butt of the gun, to knock him out. Then he pivots to fire at the guard’s legs or torso, depending on how armed the guard is.
STORY: The guard enters, in the same body armor and with the taser the rest of them have. As you level the gun at him, a door behind you slides open, and Nikau Manaaki steps out, wiping his hands with a small towel. He surveys the scene with a furrowed brow, then sighs, shaking his head. “Complications, complications.”
STORY: “Hannigan, back into the hallway, please. You’ll be briefed later.”
MILLICENT: Millie groans. “He didn’t even kill you!”
STORY: This Other Manaaki puts his hands on his hips, looking disappointedly at the unconscious one in his office chair.
MILLICENT: “You have backups for your headaches?”
ALEJO: “I really hate your ex, Doc. Have I said that?”
ALEJO: “Hold up, ’Ejo,” he heard someone say from down the bar. The voice was low and sinuous. “I got the next couple rounds, Mate.” For a moment, Alejo couldn’t see anyone that he recognized but the voice and the way that it mocked Tueller’s was eerily familiar. Almost as if on cue, out of a shadow, up by the end of the bar, a hulking figure stepped forward. The man waived a greeting with a biometric arm and an icy chill ran down Alejo’s neck. “Been a long time,” he said, striding up with a wide, toothy smile.
ALEJO: “Not long enough,” Alejo whispered hoarsely, his hands balling into fists and his chest cinching up tight.
ALEJO: “What have you been up to?” the man asked casually, ignoring Alejo’s tone and putting a finger over the biopay dot that was hovering above the bar. The dot flashed green and then disappeared.
ALEJO: “Nothing worrying.”
ALEJO: “Do I look worried, Mate?” He laughed, as though Alejo had just told the world’s best joke.
ALEJO: “You look like you did two years ago when you laid me up in the hospital with three broken ribs and a punctured lung.”
ALEJO: For a moment, the man’s smile slipped away. “Nah,” he said, his huge mouth hanging slightly open, sucking in a raspy gulp of air. “I got way more gray now.” At that, he roared out another laugh and then slapped Alejo hard on the shoulder, his thick fingers squeezing too tightly to be just a friendly pat. “’Sides, life’s gotta be lived moving forward, right.” It wasn’t a question. Lachlan gave another squeeze, this time gentler and then let go. “Why don’t you join me. Got a friend who’d like to meet you.”
—
STORY: You left off with your respective interviews to join the staff of the Sol jump relay, which you learn from your new coworkers is colloquially referred to as Purgatory. Tueller, you complete yours expecting The Director to come give the final okay so you can make your move, but he strangely never shows and you are simply passed on to your manager, a mid-tier security specialist, who starts walking you through policies and weapons training.
STORY: You spend the rest of the day being taught to do a job you don’t particularly want, and are later shown to your quarters – a closet just as small as the one you previously crammed into with the rest of the crew, only meant to be shared between you and your new roommate.
STORY: What’s your roommate’s name?
STORY: And what are they like? What’s their job onboard?
TUELLER: My roommate is Roman Dhanwa, and he is a technician. He wasn’t a plumber in the previous life, but he’s been conscripted into being one, and also troubleshooting other hands-on jobs. This means he lives a more relaxed life than many on a normal day, except when something goes wrong, and then he’s dragooned into working on something until it’s done.
TUELLER: He’s got a decent sense of humor and has resigned himself to that way life is now for him.
TUELLER: He is, in a word, blasé about the entire thing.
STORY: Kind of strange given the stakes onboard, which you’re more aware of than others – any insubordination results in the offender being sent to the incinerator.
TUELLER: Not strange at all to accept your fate and just go along.
STORY: You lay down in your cot, which folds out of the wall and is barely large enough to hold you, and drift off to sleep wondering what plan C is.
STORY: Alejo! You return to your quarters once the others proceed to their interviews and have the rest of the day to sleep – as it’s the main shift, the janitorial staff is off duty. You don’t hear from Tueller, Calixta, or Millie, but there also aren’t any assemblies so you can assume they’re okay. What are you doing with yourself?
ALEJO: Shower. Sleep, or try.
ALEJO: Be as prepared as possible for what comes next.
STORY: Tux is newly nervous and traumatized over these people’s arrival, he absolutely wants to escape if possible but, as he tells you, it feels impossible and like you’ve all just accelerated your and his trips to the incinerator.
ALEJO: Alejo will try to inspire some measure of faith in him.
ALEJO: Can I use my “inspiration” skill?
STORY: Sure!
ALEJO: “These people are my family, Tux. Millie is the smartest woman in the galaxy. Tueller has more heart and skill than anyone I’ve ever known. Cali . . . she’s me, only better. These people aren’t going to let us down.” He smiles gently. “And, look, if they do . . . you don’t want to be a slave aboard whatever the hell this place is for the rest of your life, scratching out a mediocre existence.”
ALEJO: /roll 2d6+2
STORY: ablair01 rolled 5 + 2 = 7
STORY: You think you’ve had an effect on him. He gets to sleep, at least.
ALEJO: Alejo watches over him for a little bit. Then he sort of half drifts off on his own bunk.
STORY: Millie!
MILLICENT: Spacemarster!
STORY: You wake up in a comfortable room, clearly still part of this station but a little more nicely apportioned than the closet Alejo sleeps in, and with some comforts you don’t see elsewhere. Music plays at a low volume, and you’re alone. Tell me about this room!
MILLICENT: It’s the kind of simple design that is ergonomically efficient and beautiful. The walls are a pleasant white with two gently diagonal stripes of color, a rich blue matching nicely with a golden orange. The furniture all folds into the walls and pulls out with almost invisible handles.
MILLICENT: There’s a bed, a desk, a chair, a sink, a dresser and a standing wardrobe all tucked away.
MILLICENT: The chair is that kind of weird European design that looks incredibly uncomfortable until you sit in it.
STORY: You lower yourself into it to test it when the door chime chirps.
MILLICENT: Did I faint when I saw Nikau?
STORY: You said you did!
STORY: Oh, I guess you just said you fall down. Well, you’ve got a bandage on your forehead, and it’s very sore.
MILLICENT: Okay!
MILLICENT: Millie makes sure she’s comfortable in the chair and straightens the desk before, “enter”
STORY: The chair is very comfortable! The door slides open silently and Nikau enters, a bit sheepishly. He crosses to you and puts a mug of tea on the desk in front of you, then takes a seat on the chair opposite you.
STORY: He holds a hand up to his forehead, thinking through something.
STORY: “Millie, you–” He stops himself, resetting. You remember this habit of his, to rehearse a sentence before getting it out.
MILLICENT: Millie sniffs the tea and waits. Like old times
STORY: “This is impossible.”
STORY: He’s waiting for your response.
MILLICENT: “You’ve had time enough to get this right, Nikau. You’ve only yourself to blame for not preparing something. “
STORY: “To get– Millie, I never expected to see you again. What would I be preparing?”
MILLICENT: “You didn’t think eventually I’d look at the relay schematics?”
MILLICENT: “ I mean, you put toilets on them!”
STORY: He smiles. “We have to pee, don’t we?”
MILLICENT: “It’s overdue is what I’m saying. “
MILLICENT: Millie sips the tea
STORY: He takes a long breath. “Well, this is interesting. Something must have happened that gave me second thoughts. How did you get onto my deck to review the schematics? Surely I wasn’t dim enough to leave it out near you.”
MILLICENT: “Ah.”
MILLICENT: “Why don’t you go first? Tell me what you’re doing here. And I’ll tell you how I came to be here.”
MILLICENT: She smiles sadly at him.
STORY: He rubs the bridge of his nose, looking down at his pant leg and brushing something off it. “Millie, I don’t think you grasp the gravity of this conversation.”
STORY: “This isn’t a casual chat. You cannot be on this station. There were measures in place to keep you from being selected.”
STORY: “So explain to me what you are doing here, quickly please.”
MILLICENT: Millie frowns.
MILLICENT: “You left me to pursue this, this atrocity.” She leans forward. “You owe me more than a scolding, Nikau.”
STORY: “I left you?”
STORY: “I am not debating whether to scold you, Millie.”
MILLICENT: “What are you proposing then, Director?”
STORY: He stands. “Millie, this is your last chance. Explain how you came to be here, please, and now.”
MILLICENT: Millie takes a deep breath. “I think we started poorly. We’re both assuming the other is exactly the person we last saw. I know I’ve gone through a lot of change since then. So, I’m going to make a concerted effort to address the man in front of me, not the one I lost so long ago. I’ll trade you an answer for an answer. As colleagues. Best and final.” She stands. “Unless you’re prepared to do more than threaten.”
STORY: He shakes his head, disappointed. “Unfortunately for you, Millie, I am.” He looks at his watch. “If you arrived a day ago, your prime is almost certainly fine, and, I hope, far away from here.” He walks to the door, and it slides open. “Security, please.”
STORY: A security guard steps inside, and Manaaki nods to him. “Secure this woman, please, Benjamin.”
MILLICENT: Millie stands. “I don’t have a prime. If you space me, that’s all there is.”
STORY: “We’ll d– what?” He turns to you.
STORY: “Everyone has a prime.”
MILLICENT: “I am the prime, Nikau. I’m not a secondary, or a xerox, or whatever you call it. You’ll have to catch me up on the lingo.”
MILLICENT: “But we have a lot to discuss and I think tea is a much more appropriate accompaniment than armed guards.”
STORY: Manaaki nods to the security guard, dismissing him. The guard leaves and Manaaki locks the door behind him.
STORY: “Explain. Now.”
STORY: He crosses to you quickly and grabs you roughly by the shirt collar. “Millie, for god’s sake if you don’t answer me–”
STORY: “Tell me what is going on.”
MILLICENT: “I think it would be helpful to take a beat and remember that you never got anything talking to me like that.”
MILLICENT: Millie shakes herself free and straightens her coat.
STORY: He pushes you away, and walks to the door, unlocking it.
STORY: “Rot, then.”
STORY: He leaves.
STORY: What do you do?
MILLICENT: Millie sits down and sips her tea, finally breathing out. Nikau’s new attitude really shook her.
STORY: No one returns to your quarters for many hours.
MILLICENT: Okay! Millie takes what she knows of Nikau’s design preferences and searches the room, looking for an access panel or some other way out.
STORY: Assessment + Expertise please
MILLICENT: /roll 2d6 + 2
STORY: josh rolled 8 + 2 = 10
STORY: You manage to pull off an access panel that you believe, if you cross the wires correctly, will open the magnetic seal on the air filtration system for this room. You also gain a Data Point for the tech on this station.
MILLICENT: Cool! I do so!
STORY: You pop off the grate, and it’s just about big enough for you to crawl through.
MILLICENT: I crawl!
STORY: All right! It’s pretty noisy doing so, so you have no element of stealth as you do this unless you move extremely slowly. What’s your goal here?
MILLICENT: To very slowly work my way back to the boys or the control room, whichever I come across first
STORY: You assume the existence of a control room!
MILLICENT: I think I meant server room. We discussed a room with lots of computers last time!
STORY: Finding your way through the vents to a closet-sized room you only visited once is going to be… I’m going to say impossible. You can look for the server room, though – let’s do Assessment + Mettle on that one.
MILLICENT: /roll 2d6 + 1
STORY: josh rolled 5 + 1 = 6
MILLICENT: Can I use my Data Point on the tech of this station?
STORY: Not after the roll!
MILLICENT: Well dang
STORY: You spend a long, cold night crawling at the slowest imaginable speed through the vents, stopping frequently whenever you hear voices nearby and waiting until they fade – and as a result, after what must have been ten hours of searching, you end up sleeping in the vents.
STORY: Alejo!
STORY: Time for work! What do you do?
ALEJO: Alejo wakes from a fitful sleep. He sits upright, ready for a fight. Then he realizes where he is. Tux is still asleep, so he eases off the top bunk silently. He checks the time and gathers his things for his shift.
STORY: Tueller! You complete training for the day and are about to be sent back to your quarters when a general sort of hubbub begins to happen. You can’t make out anything being discussed, but you recognize the stance of the superior officers discussing things. Something is Wrong.
TUELLER: Just as a note about this place, what type of corridors and open areas are there?
TUELLER: I don’t have a good image of what the place looks like.
STORY: That’s a good question! Let’s do a general description. Everything inside is very smooth and new, given that this relay was built only within the last couple decades and is at least partially alien design. It has also, clearly, seen little use – between scientists, mechanics, and support staff, the crew is likely not more than a hundred, from what you’ve gathered.
STORY: The inside is pretty mazelike, and you wonder whether that’s intentional – the only large areas you’ve found are the main meeting hall, where Alejo told you the assemblies happen, which is about a hundred feet square, and the cargo bay Alejo found you in, probably fifty feet on each side and totally empty. Everything else is corridors and individual rooms, most just smaller than they ought to be. The gym you’re in, though the ceilings are twice as high as elsewhere on the base, is probably only about 30 feet long, ten across.
STORY: You still haven’t really sorted out where everyone’s rooms and the main common areas are, and you have no idea where the people who work on this base actually do their work, as your job is mainly to patrol hallways and go where you’re told.
TUELLER: Tueller mills around with non superior offices, and tries to chat with people, as Accommodating New Guy Trying to Learn the Ropes.
STORY: “Security staff, listen up!” The leader of the security force gathers all thirty-six of you together. He reads off a note that he holds in front of him. “Missing crewmember, they’re not sure where she is. Human, early thirties, dark skin, black hair. Petite. New hire, not a likely combatant. Capture if possible. Questions?”
MILLICENT: — IF POSSIBLE?
TUELLER: Tueller does not ask a question.
STORY: No one asks a question.
STORY: “Roll out. Epaphus, you’re with Diego.”
TUELLER: “Okay.” Tueller looks to see who Diego is.
STORY: Alejo, as you’re heading out with your mop and bucket, you clock the same weird, busy movement from the security guards – they’re searching the area.
STORY: Tueller passes you in the hallway, with another guard.
STORY: He’s got a security uniform on.
ALEJO: Alejo casually watches Tueller for any of their regular signals.
TUELLER: Tueller makes a flat, low, hand gesture, clenched fist punching down as he passes Alejo–CJH sign for “trouble.”
ALEJO: Alejo drops something and gathers it as he watches Tueller and the other guard pass. As soon as they are by, he heads back to the room to get Tux.
STORY: Tux is standing with his jumpsuit tied around his waist, rubbing a hand towel in his wet hair.
STORY: It’s still weird to see him with fewer tattoos than he had when you last saw him on Peregrine.
ALEJO: “Trouble. I need you not to panic and to step it up, buddy. It’s game time.”
ALEJO: “You’ve got it in you, even though you don’t think you do.”
STORY: Tux looks worried. “Trouble? What kind of trouble?”
TUELLER: Tueller, as he goes with Diego, reach back to trigger the comm to Millie, which he hasn’t used in a year. “So how does this work?”
MILLICENT: “Oh, hello dear. I have the biggest crick in my neck.”
STORY: Diego shrugs. “We look until we find her – we’re assigned to Deck 2, aft side. You head that way, I’ll cover the offices. Anyone asks, official business for the Director. Don’t hang out too long in any one place, if she realizes we’re searching she might get clever.”
MILLICENT: “I slept in the ducts.”
MILLICENT: “Not really sure where I am. Sounds like you got assigned to security detail.”
TUELLER: “Got it, sir. This happen much?”
TUELLER: To Diego.
STORY: Diego shakes his head. “Usually new crew, when it does. Some people panic when they start to get the job.”
TUELLER: Triggering comms again, “That is, searching for a runaway through the base, with a ‘capture if possible’ order?”
STORY: Diego raises an eyebrow, barely visible under his helmet. “Yes, rook, that’s what we’re doing.”
TUELLER: “I meant in comparison to…calmer stuff.”
MILLICENT: “Ah ha.”
MILLICENT: “Wait, IF POSSIBLE?”
MILLICENT: Millie kind of whoofs out a breath.
TUELLER: “Just trying to get myself to the level of the job.”
STORY: “Yeah, job’s usually pretty quiet. Breaking up the odd fight here and there.”
TUELLER: “Okay. May we live in uninteresting times. Okay. On it.”
TUELLER: Tueller acknowledges with a gesture with the radio, and takes off.
ALEJO: Alejo puts a hand on Tux’s shoulder, reassuringly. “Don’t know. That’s where I need your help. I need you to chat up that guy you like from Sec. I need to know what’s happening. And we need to find Cali and Millie.”
STORY: He listens to his comm. “All right, let’s get searching. You cover the rooms down that corridor, then radio me when you’re clear.” He gestures down the hall.
STORY: Tux looks surprised. “Jun? I mean… he should be asleep.”
ALEJO: “Wake him up.”
STORY: Tux nods, and departs
MILLICENT: Comms on. “Tueller, I ah. I found the Director. I think I can describe where his office is from where we last saw each other.”
TUELLER: Tueller starts looking around. Makes sure he’s alone.
MILLICENT: Almost a whisper, “It’s Nikau, Tueller. The Director is Nikau.”
TUELLER: “Shit.”
MILLICENT: Millie turns the comms off and cries softly for a while.
TUELLER: Quiet shit.
TUELLER: “See if Alejo’s comms still work.”
TUELLER: “I’ve got a search pattern to do and I don’t want to go rogue just yet. You’ve got two dozen guys looking for you.”
MILLICENT: Millie hiccups, turns comms on. “Alejo? Are you still there?”
STORY: Millie’s voice comes over your comm, Alejo.
TUELLER: “Any idea how old the Nikau back-up is?”
TUELLER: “How before your Nikau they diverged?”
TUELLER: Tueller covers his corridor, and does a thorough search.
MILLICENT: Tueller comm: “No idea. Well, I know he doesn’t know about his prime’s death. That’s what he called us. Primes.”
ALEJO: Alejo grabs his gear. He stops, the hum of the comm in his skull catching him off guard. He reaches up at turns it on. “Millie. Thank god. Where are you? Tueller said there’s trouble?”
MILLICENT: “He thought I was a clone, like him. He wanted to know how I got here, but I didn’t tell him anything.”
MILLICENT: “I’m somewhere in the vents. I haven’t been able to get my bearings. I’m afraid I got lost last night up here.” She hiccups, stifles a sob.
ALEJO: Alejo swallows. “Are you okay? What . . .” He stops. “I’m coming for you Doc. Do you have any sense of where you got into the vents?”
ALEJO: “Level, even?”
MILLICENT: “Not really. I’ll try to figure it out. Alejo. The Director is Nikau. My Nikau. But not anymore. I’m not sure when he came here, but he.” Hiccup. “He doesn’t know about us. About his death. About me. And he’s awful.”
MILLICENT: Some sobbing in the vents again.
TUELLER: Tueller radios Diego at an appropriate time, after doing a thorough good job.
STORY: Millie, you hear someone moving around outside the vent you’re leaning against.
MILLICENT: Millie freezes, listens. Is there anyway to look?
STORY: Tueller, you check a couple rooms with people inside them – computer bays with technicians inside, working. No idea what they’re doing there. And one with tanks in it, all empty, but human-sized.
ALEJO: He closes his eyes tight. “Jesus. Doc . . . I’m so sorry.” He gathers up his gear again. “We’ll find you and we’ll sort this shitty place out.”
STORY: Everyone is compliant and stops what they’re doing until you’re gone.
TUELLER: “Stay here until your shift ends, or you hear otherwise.”
ALEJO: Alejo heads out into the hall again. He heads to the mess, hoping to find Cali or Tux.
MILLICENT: Ahem. Is there anyway to look?
STORY: Millie, sure, but you risk discovery!
ALEJO: He keeps his eyes open for security, watching closely to see if they have a search pattern that he can recognize. He also keeps his ears open, hoping to overhear something.
MILLICENT: She’ll chill for now
STORY: Alejo, you catch sight of Tux in a hallway, heading the other way. No sign of Calixta.
ALEJO: Alejo runs and catches him. “News?”
TUELLER: Tueller listens to the radio to hear if there are any updates.
STORY: Tux shakes his head. “He wasn’t there. Must already be searching. What’s going on, Soto?”
ALEJO: “They’re after Millie. Her . . . ex is the Director. So, the situation is fluid right now. Our top priority is to find her. She’s in the vents.” He grabs Tux by the shoulders. “I need you to find Calixta. I need you to tell her what’s happening. Okay?” He looks intensely in Tux’s eyes. “I need you to do this, as fast as you can.”
STORY: Tueller, she hasn’t been found yet. They’re about a third of the way through a basic search, from what you can tell.
STORY: Tux looks behind and in front of you. “Jesus, how? Where is she? Do we even know where she’s been assigned?”
TUELLER: “Doc, I’ll knock as I’m making my search. You hear a knock, knock-knock-knock, that’s me. One and three, that’s me.”
MILLICENT: Whispered, “Thank you, Tueller. Someone’s close.”
ALEJO: “No. She’s lost. I have comms with her, but that’s not much help at the moment. Find Cali, okay?”
ALEJO: Alejo gives him a squeeze and turns to head back towards where he saw Tueller last.
TUELLER: Tueller does a search, casually leaning up against walls and doing an casual knock as he goes, like it’s just a nervous twitch.
TUELLER: Not if he sees anyone around.
STORY: Tux takes a deep breath and is off on his search.
STORY: Tueller, let’s have Face Adversity + Mettle to see how you do with this.
TUELLER: /roll 2d6+1
STORY: chris.stuart rolled 7 + 1 = 8
STORY: Millie! After a few minutes of counting your breaths, the voices nearby fade and disappear, and you hear – faintly, in the distance – the occasional knock.
ALEJO: Alejo has his gear, but he reaches down and loosens the mop head, so that he can quickly remove it and have a staff as a weapon, if he needs it. He keeps eyes out for security. And he keeps his eyes out for vent grates. Every time he sees one, he too gives a little knock, copying Tueller without knowing it.
STORY: Tueller, Diego catches up with you. “This deck’s done, next up is…” he looks down at a little pad of paper with his notes. “Four.”
MILLICENT: Millie heads toward the knock
TUELLER: What deck were we on?
STORY: Two!
MILLICENT: Tueller: “I hear a knock ahead. Give me two, then two.”
TUELLER: “Okay, sir.”
MILLICENT: Alejo: “I hear a knock ahead. Give me three, then three.”
TUELLER: “This isn’t just some new guy hazing, is it?”
STORY: “Wish it was, new guy. C’mon, you head up first, I’m gonna clear out the lav before we go.”
ALEJO: “Right.” Alejo does so.
TUELLER: “Okay, four is just that way, correct?”
STORY: “Yeah man, up the stairs there.”
TUELLER: “See you up there, Sir.”
STORY: Diego heads into the toilet.
STORY: Millie! Distantly, still: three knocks, a pause. Three more.
TUELLER: Tueller heads towards four.
TUELLER: Comms: “Let me know how it’s going if you get a chance.”
MILLICENT: Millie heads for the knocks
ALEJO: Alejo pauses, and then repeats the knocks. “Anything, Doc?”
ALEJO: He whispers, setting his gear down and pretending to mop up a spill.
STORY: Millie, are you moving quickly or at the slow pace that you know will make less noise?
MILLICENT: The slow pace
STORY: Okay! Alejo, you delay there, knocking, and Millie moves towards you, but you’ve been in this spot too long and people are starting to notice. A security guard approaches. “Move along.”
ALEJO: “Sure thing, sorry. Sticky spot.” He picks up his mop and gear and heads around the corner, staying as close as he can to the spot where he was without drawing too much attention. He repeats the knocks again, once he’s as clear as he can be. “Sorry, Doc. Had to move.”
STORY: You lose some more time to this delay, Millie. Tueller, upstairs you search more rooms, these mostly living quarters, cafeterias, small common spaces.
STORY: Millie, let’s have FA + Mettle to see how you do in your approach.
MILLICENT: /roll 2d6 + 1
STORY: josh rolled 3 + 1 = 4
TUELLER: Tueller does as good of a job as he can with this, tapping out his code, while occasionally comming in to let Millie know he’s there for her if he can be.
STORY: Millie, you’re climbing past a vent in one of the main hallways when you slip and a huge bang echoes out into the room. You hear movement coming towards you, quickly.
STORY: What do you do?
ALEJO: Does Alejo hear this?
STORY: Distantly, yes, but not close enough to affect what happens.
ALEJO: Alejo will head in the direction of the sound, in any event, cautiously but quickly.
MILLICENT: Millie moves through the vents making a guess at Alejo’s position and moving as quickly as she can
STORY: Okay. The speed of your movement means you make more noise, and you hear a vent behind you get knocked off the wall and someone shout down the vent towards you. “You there! Freeze!”
STORY: What do you do?
STORY: They’re maybe thirty feet down, sticking a head in.
MILLICENT: Over her shoulder, “No!” Continuing on until she reaches a corner. Once she does and is out of sight she’s going to freeze.
STORY: Alejo, you come around a corner to find two security forces standing outside an open vent, shouting into it.
STORY: What do you do?
ALEJO: Can I get a sense of the space. I’m at a corner when I see them? How far away are they?
STORY: Twenty feet. You’re at a corner, they’re in the middle of a corridor.
ALEJO: Alejo ducks back behind the corner, assuming that the’ve not noticed him. “Doc, you okay? I see the security looking in the ducks. Where are you?”
STORY: Millie, a security guard crawls into the ducts after you, shouting for you to stop.
MILLICENT: Whispered, “Around the corner. They’re coming. Should I run?”
STORY: What do you do?
ALEJO: Alejo knocks softly at the corner three times. “This corner?”
STORY: You guys don’t have time for this conversation.
STORY: Millie, moving or no?
MILLICENT: Yeah I was wondering.
ALEJO: “Move!”
STORY: You used your time to ask which corner!
MILLICENT: I’ve stopped around the corner and out of sight. I pull off a shoe and am readying to smack the dude coming around the corner.
MILLICENT: Shock and awe with a French heel
STORY: Terrible shoes.
TUELLER: Not great for the situation, no.
STORY: Terribly ugly and terrible for moving around space adventures. Wear boots like a sane person.
STORY: Okay! Millie, you are a noncombatant and this guy is a security guard, so I’m just going to rule against you on this cramped battle – the guard comes to the end of the duct and fully takes a smack from your shoe without really flinching, then grabs your wrist and orders you to stop.
STORY: “Fuck’s sake, stop! I’m armed, you stupid bitch!”
STORY: He keeps one hand behind him, holding something on his hip.
STORY: What do you do?
MILLICENT: It’s honestly probably more of a short heeled boot
MILLICENT: Anyway, she’s making a huge ruckus
MILLICENT: If he pulls a gun she’ll fight him for it.
MILLICENT: She’s going cheap shots and in a cramped quarters I think the woman who’s closer to 5 feet has an advantage
STORY: Okay. You make a lot of noise, so Alejo it’s clear to you what you’re hearing.
MILLICENT: Eyes, balls, joints
STORY: Millie, you claw and fight, but he’s in body armor and he tases you. Would you prefer to be asleep or in terrible pain?
MILLICENT: Terrible pain, please and thank you
STORY: There’s a lot of yelling!
STORY: Eventually, he drags you out, tasing you a few more times for good measure.
TUELLER: Comms: “How’s it going, Doc?”
MILLICENT: Tueller comms: “Aaaaarggh”
STORY: Alejo, the guard is dragging Millie out into the hallway, with his partner backing him up. What do you do?
ALEJO: Alejo spills some water around the corner he’s at, creating a slip hazard and then rushes around the corner at the guard presumably still outside, sneak attacking him, if possible.
STORY: Launch Assault, please!
ALEJO: /roll 2d6+2
STORY: ablair01 rolled 11 + 2 = 13
TUELLER: Yikes.
STORY: What do you plan on doing to this guard? He has no idea you’re there.
ALEJO: Knocking him out, very, very quickly and quietly.
ALEJO: And then getting his taser and waiting for the duct guard to come out.
STORY: You press on a few spots on his neck, cut off the blood to his head, and he’s sleeping peacefully within seconds.
STORY: The noisy guard and his very noisy quarry come out butt-first. What do you do?
ALEJO: Use the taser on this guard and knock him out too.
ALEJO: Hopefully before he can see me.
STORY: Roll +Mettle!
ALEJO: /roll 2d6+2
STORY: ablair01 rolled 7 + 2 = 9
STORY: Okay! You can either capture/disable him, or rob/disarm him. Choose!
ALEJO: Disable him!
STORY: (So knock out without the taser, or take the taser and face him)
ALEJO: Knock him out without the taser.
STORY: All right! You slam him – not very gently – into the bulkhead, and he’ll probably have a concussion.
STORY: But he’s asleep! And hey! It’s Millie!
STORY: She looks terrible
STORY: And has just been tased, like, four times. What do you do?
ALEJO: Alejo helps her out of the duct as gingerly as he can. “Hiya, Doc. Come on. I got you.” He supports her as she gets legs under her. He smiles at her.
MILLICENT: “Ugh, yech, ugh.”
MILLICENT: She bends and leans against the wall, putting her head between her knees.
STORY: So, you’re standing in a hallway with two unconscious guards, and the rest of them are moving pretty quickly throughout the base. You’ve gotta move.
MILLICENT: “Did I say yech?”
ALEJO: “We gotta go, Doc.” He puts his shoulders under her arm and pulls her towards the corner, back towards his quarters. “Can you tell Tueller I’ve got you. We need a place to get you out of sight.”
MILLICENT: “Tueller, I’m with Alejo. We’re finding cover.”
MILLICENT: To Alejo, “How, uh, how’ve you been? And why do tasers hurt so goddamn much?”
TUELLER: Comms: “Where, Jesus, you guys. I’ll be wherever. Take care.”
STORY: Alejo, where are you taking her?
ALEJO: Alejo slips the taser into his belt as he moves with her as fast as they can manage. “Yeah. Tasers suck. You know. Great. Glad to see you. Wish our plans would sometimes work out.
ALEJO: What’s closer, my room or the unused conference room we rallied at before?
TUELLER: Tueller changes his search to look for things that can be damaged, adjusted, or otherwise rigged to make distractions.
STORY: Your room.
TUELLER: Using his reputation and uniform to search and be intrusive.
STORY: Tueller! Assessment + Mettle please
ALEJO: We’re moving towards Alejo and Tux’s room.
TUELLER: Not Physique?
STORY: Nope! You’re looking for tactical advantages
TUELLER: /roll 2d6+1
STORY: chris.stuart rolled 7 + 1 = 8
ALEJO: “Tell Tueller we’re headed to my room. We’re gonna need a better spot, but we’ve got to get you patched up a little.”
STORY: You spot a few things that would work, but they’d also all be quickly discovered as intentional distractions. They’d be short term solutions that would alert security to the fact that this fugitive has help.
TUELLER: Okay. Tueller mentally logs them but doesn’t do shit just yet.
STORY: Alejo, let’s have FA + Mettle to get Millie back to your room undetected.
ALEJO: “You’re damned tough, though! Sounded like one hell of a fight in there.” Alejo smiles sidelong at her.
ALEJO: /roll 2d6+2
STORY: ablair01 rolled 4 + 2 = 6
STORY: Oh no
TUELLER: Did Millie say anything to Tueller
STORY: No
MILLICENT: Can I help Alejo?
MILLICENT: Feels like a roll I could assist on
STORY: Nope! You’ve been tased.
MILLICENT: Okay
STORY: Alejo, you help Millie around a corner, your arm under her shoulders, moving as quickly as you dare, when you step out and see The Director, standing in the middle of the hallway, facing you, hands folded in front of him, pursing his lips.
STORY: “Ah.”
STORY: “That explains some things.”
MILLICENT: “Nikau.”
MILLICENT: “What are you doing here?” Millie tries a step forward, falters. “What are you doing? This isn’t you!”
STORY: He holds up a hand. “Not interested in hearing from you just now, Dr. Breedlove. Please, Mr… is it Soto? Join me in my office.”
ALEJO: “Huh.” Alejo stops. “Okay.” Alejo assesses the environment as he eases Millie up to the wall so that she can brace herself. Then he slowly closes the distance between him and Nikau.
STORY: “Oh, bring the good doctor, please.” He turns around and starts to walk towards a doorway.
ALEJO: Alejo watches him cooly. He steps back and helps Millie. “Ugh.”
MILLICENT: “He’s not the man I knew.”
MILLICENT: “I don’t. I don’t understand.”
ALEJO: Alejo helps her into the Director’s office. He also pushes the taser down, concealing it as best as he can.
STORY: It’s the room Millie escaped from earlier. There are two chairs across from his desk, at which he takes a seat, gesturing for you two to sit.
STORY: You note the security guard who takes up a post outside the door as you enter.
ALEJO: He helps Millie into the chair on the right. Then he sits. “Director.”
MILLICENT: Millie sits.
MILLICENT: More caustically, “Director.”
STORY: “You,” he begins, pointing to Alejo, “are most definitely a copy. I’m certain of that. So,” he opens his desk drawer and removes a gun.
STORY: And stands, pointing it at Alejo. You have the time it takes him to stand up. What do you do?
ALEJO: Alejo puts that augmented speed to use and takes the gun from him.
MILLICENT: Millie leaps in front of him
STORY: Millie, you get there after Alejo’s already holding the gun. Manaaki reflexively reaches out for it, trying to struggle with you. Alejo, what do you do with it?
ALEJO: Alejo pushes him back into his chair and then kicks the chair, assuming it’s on wheels, against the back wall, while watching the door behind us, in case the guard comes in. “We’re going to have a civil conversation, Director.”
STORY: “Oh, for christ’s sake.” He looks annoyed. “GUARD!” He stands and rushes you.
STORY: What do you do?
ALEJO: Alejo hits him in the forehead with the butt of the gun, to knock him out. Then he pivots to fire at the guard’s legs or torso, depending on how armed the guard is.
STORY: The guard enters, in the same body armor and with the taser the rest of them have. As you level the gun at him, a door behind you slides open, and Nikau Manaaki steps out, wiping his hands with a small towel. He surveys the scene with a furrowed brow, then sighs, shaking his head. “Complications, complications.”
STORY: “Hannigan, back into the hallway, please. You’ll be briefed later.”
MILLICENT: Millie groans. “He didn’t even kill you!”
STORY: This Other Manaaki puts his hands on his hips, looking disappointedly at the unconscious one in his office chair.
MILLICENT: “You have backups for your headaches?”
ALEJO: “I really hate your ex, Doc. Have I said that?”
STORY: “Suppose we ought to have a conversation, then. Sit, please.”
ALEJO: Alejo backs up, trying to keep an eye on both the door and the new Nikau.
MILLICENT: “Oh good, can we talk now? After I offered before and you had to send your goons to chase me around the station for twelve hours? I slept in a vent!”
MILLICENT: “More tea. Then we talk.”