The Ministry |
Oh, sure! Simply put, you did not take fallout. I’ll let you know when you do. The +4 is to simplify your resistance pool in conjunction with the fallout roll. You currently have 5 Shadow stress, but the first four don’t count when determining Fallout because of your Shadow +4. I have to track ALL your stress, even the first four points so that you can clear stress as needed. So I can either roll 1d10, look at your pool, remember to subtract four and compare...or I can just add 4 to every shadow-based fallout roll and compare the result to your total Shadow stress. Make sense?
Thusiax |
One more try...
"Like I said, our investigation suggests Laroche was the victim of foul play. We may be mistaken, but in any case, we don't know where he is to protect him. And don't worry, I'm not interested in your relationship with Michael. I need to know if you've seen any strange goings-on to do with Michael or Laroche. Did either of them say anything to you that didn't add up? Did you witness either of them engaged in any activities that didn't make sense? Anything? Anything at all? Please, think hard. Lives may depend on it, Duella!"
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 6
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 7
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 1
Dammit! Can't roll a clean success to save myself! I'm blown!
The Ministry |
She has a pained look. There are things she wants to tell you, but she’s scared.
Your insistent questions continue to nag at her, but eventually she confesses. Michael told me Laroach approached him to...steal fruit. He refused and Laroach left his office. I thought he quit, or maybe Michael turned him in as a thief. We never discussed Laroach disappearing or anything! Tell his family that Laroach was a thief and my Michael wanted nothing to do with him. Tell...tell everyone that Michael had nothing to do with this.
Her story doesn’t match up with your current information on the situation. In one of his final communications he reported that Michael was on-board and they’d begin smuggling fruit downspire within the month. Either Michael set him up, Michael lied to Duella or Duella is lying to you.
Thusiax |
I really, really, really want to have another crack at her, but I think I've taken too much stress, and the way I'm rolling, one more attempt might mess me up... Maybe it's Clive time...
Thusiax |
Thusiax sighs, genuinely disappointed. "Alright. I feel like you're holding back, but I won't push any further. Believe me when I say I'm trying to help you. But we're out of time; I have to go. I know it's probably futile to ask, but it would be best if Michael didn't know I'd been here, for both of us. If you reconsider, and want to help me help you, you can leave a message for Master Fillon with the barman at the Dark Farmer's Rest on Candle St. I can meet you wherever and whenever you like. Like I said, lives could depend on it." With that, he gives a short bow of the head and makes to leave. "Good day, miss."
Last chance Duella.
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 6
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 2
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 3
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 7
Sigh.
Guess I'm off to the aforementioned bar to pay the barman handsomely to run a PO box for Master Fillon!
The Ministry |
err...you’ll only get that mastery when you are aware of the evidence. Clive is in another room. The result is the same.
Duella agrees to your condition of not discussing the meeting with Michael. However...
You earned moderate shadow fallout: watched. -5 shadow fallout.
That may have been a bridge too far. Not wanting Michael to know? That is suspicious. You know she won’t tell her lover...but she’ll be investigating you...
Morris, the bartender at The Dark Farmer is happy to give you a mailbox in exchange for 1 silver stress. You could try to negotiate but...
What is the next move for either of you?
Clive, do you do anything else at Duella’s home or do you provide Thusiax with the evidence you found and find a new lead?
Thusiax |
Ok, all makes sense :) Learning early that I'm not a super-spy... yet!
Thusiax will wander around the Garden district, waiting for Clive to show up out of nowhere, as he always does.
*Clive |
Yes, I am going to do something. This is while Thusiax is still having a conversation with Duella:
Clive listens for a moment at the conversation happening just down the hall and then creeps his way to where he is standing just outside the room where they are talking.
Displaying her icon, Clive will say in a normal tone of voice "So, how long have you been in the Ministry?"
The Ministry |
She’s shocked at first, both by the bead and the sudden appearance of Clive. Then, relief crosses her face.
Four months. I was here to turn Michael to my side, but he’s loyal to the Aelfir. He wouldn’t turn. He doesn’t know I’m part of the ministry. He’s innocent. Just...take me away. Hang me, whatever. Leave him out of this.
*Clive |
I was gonna have us leave, but in that case.
"If you care about this human, stay quiet and don't get in our way, and unless he does something stupid, he'll live."
Clive motions for Thusiax to position himself where he wants to then finds a place to hide himself and wait to surprise him.
Stealth (+Hide +Crime): 1d10 ⇒ 81d10 ⇒ 81d10 ⇒ 21d10 ⇒ 8
The Ministry |
Michael enters the flat, his greeting dying in his throat as he sees Thusiax. Clive is, of course, nowhere to be seen.
Who are you? What’s going on?
Duella is shaking with fear, but she can’t hold it in. He claims to be from Greymannor but it’s a lie. I think they work for the Solar Guard. I’m sorry, I’m a priestess of a forbidden cult and a revolutionary and they’ve come to arrest me. I’m sorry, it’s a Drow thing, you wouldn’t understand.
Michael is dumbfounded. She’s...she’s lying to protect me. She’s loyal to the Aelfir, she was furious when I told her...my contact...Gorag...approached me. I lied to her and said that I wouldn’t help him, but we met in secret. He disappeared before we could finalize our plans to smuggle drugs from the Homelands. Duella is loyal, she had nothing to do with this. Exile me, but leave her alone.
Unless your intelligence is wildly off, they’re both lying to you.
Thusiax |
Thusiax shakes his head exasperation. "Sit down, the pair of you. I'm not here to arrest, exile, or execute anyone. Regardless of what you may think," he says to Duella, "I'm here to investigate Laroche's disappearance, and find him if possible. I'm a drow, and proud of it, and if Laroche, or either of you, are in danger from the aelfir, I may be able to help."
He turns a stern eye on Michael. "I think it's time you started from the beginning."
Not sure how many dice you're letting me roll, so I'll do four and you can eliminate them from the last one back as you think appropriate.
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 10
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 4
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 8
Compel: 1d10 ⇒ 10
The Ministry |
I’ll burn off a little more shadow stress from you for that 10.
Michael seems more relaxed. You know about Laroche? Are...are you Ministers too? He came to me, told me that Drow were dying. He needed my help to deliver fresh fruit. We’d meet in my office a discuss plans. Duella was...sympathetic to the plight downspire but she was scared I’d be exiled. She begged me to turn him away. So...we met in secret. Right before we finialized our plans he vanished. I don’t know what happened to him. Don’t be angry with Duella for asking me to stay out of it. She was just scared.
Thusiax |
"You're a member of the Ministry, and you told your girlfriend?" Thusiax asks incredulously. "Crazy. Almost as crazy as being in the Ministry in the first place. No, I'm no Minister, I'm just trying to find Laroche. But don't fear, I've no intention of blowing your cover. In return, I'd ask that you don't mention me to anyone, either."
"Now, is there any information you can give me that can help me find Laroche? My clients are very concerned for his safety, and I intend to find him, or at least find out what happened to him."
As Michael seems cooperative now I assume I don't need to roll any further- I'm just asking. But if he's still resistant and I do need to, let me know.
The Ministry |
Duella cuts in. He’s not ministry and he doesn’t know anything. He just wanted to help some starving elves. Laroche vanished. I never met him.
Not only does this blatantly contradict her story of being a minister and Michael being a patsy, but neither of their stories explain the presence of that bead.
Out of curiosity, why are you denying Ministry membership? Won’t that make it hard to reestablish the pipeline if you can’t locate Laroche?
Thusiax |
I thought it unwise to reveal that until we could establish without a doubt what's going on and exactly which one of these folks is what. I figured I could always fess up later if necessary, but once the toothpaste is out of the tube... A natural instinct to obfuscate, I guess.
Maybe Clive should step in. They seem as intent on hiding the truth from Thusiax as he is from them. A bit of brutal directness may be the answer.
Thusiax |
I'm not into torture details whatsoever. Thusiax is also not keen for that either; he probably would go along with it in seriously extreme circumstances, but not with these two, and Clive would have to administer it. That was just joke (I know, not the funniest), both on his frustration at not getting answers and at Clive's relatively brutal ethos.
*Clive |
Torture doesn't work. It's been proven quite extensively. Now the threat of torture, on the other hand...
Watching the two of them lie outright, Clive sees that Thusiax's way isn't working, so he steps in to try his. He moves low and slow so that he isn't seen until his arm with the dagger appears in front of Michael's right eye, stopping just short of piercing it. Standing, Clive whispers "Stop. Lying." into his left ear.
The Ministry |
Moving with speed you didn’t expect from her, Duella leaps from her chair and drives a blade into your back.
Don’t you dare touch him! Don’t you dare! I’ll kill again if I have to.
Clive, you feel the blade wedge itself harmlessly into your armor. She still has her hand on the blade, and she’s behind you so it’s a matter of time before she gets to your flesh.
She’s sobbing as she crawls over Clive, trying to puncture him.
What do either of you do?
Thusiax |
I should probably let Clive take care of this, but hey, partners help each other out, right?
Thusiax leaps over the low couch separating him from the others, and attempts to knock the blade from Duella's hand, or at least grab her hand and stop her frenzied stabbing.
Assuming Fight.
Fight: 1d10 ⇒ 10
Whew!
The Ministry |
You better the blade out of her hand (still driven into Clive’s back) and knock Duella to the ground. She sobs in a heap.
Michael takes the opportunity of the scuffle to move away from Clive. He draws a knife of his own.
Get out. Both of you leave and never come back. I see your faces again, I’ll kill you.
What do you do?
Thusiax |
Thusiax pops his own dagger out of his wrist sheath, holding it warily before him. "I don't think it's that simple Michael. You let your girlfriend in on your holy secret, that you're a minister. And she was so worried about your safety that she killed Laroche to stop you getting in too deep, to protect you. You've f&~!ed up, Michael. It's cost the Ministry an operation, and Laroche his life. No, this isn't simple at all."
The Ministry |
He shakes his head. I’m not a minister, you moron. I’m an asset! I’m the only way you’re ever going to get fresh fruit. What do you think you’re threatening me with? We humans turn a blind eye to your squabbles. Some of us, like ME, risk our businesses to help you ungrateful wretches. But if one of you “ministers” lays a hand on a human? We’d remove Spire from the map. The Ministry would serve your heads on a platter to King Gregor for what you’ve done so far.
He sits with his back to the wall, knife still pointed at you.
Here’s what you’ll do. One: you’ll report to your handler that LaRoche was killed by a collective of Darkfarmers called the Rot, as a way to hurt our hydroponic farm. 2. You remove Jono Kant from his position as the leader of The Rot any way you can. You do that and I’ll help you reopen the fruit pipeline. If anything bad happens to Duella or myself, it’ll be on your heads when cinder bombardment splits the Spire in half.
He gestures to the door. Now...fix this.