XCOM: Enemy Unleashed

Game Master JDPhipps

Originally assigned as UN Peacekeepers after a mysterious incident in the Middle East, a group of exceptional individuals have been recruited by a mysterious government organization after it's discovered that Earth is facing an imminent alien invasion.


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Novice (16 XP) | Parry 7, Toughness 9 (2) | 0 Wounds | 3 Bennies

Gavril seems happy enough to chat with new blood, and he introduces himself with a handshake, a smile, and a nod. "Gavril Vasilescu. I was a Caporal-chef, Senior Corporal, Foreign Legion." The big Romanian speaks English easily, but with a heavy French accent--understandable mostly from careful pronunciation. "If we're talking specialties, I carry a SAW, and I'm trained in close-quarters fighting. I think I'm also our linguist, at least for the time."

He stretches his shoulders, trying not to move too much to do so, and nods. "Some R-and-R as a team would be good. Get to know each other a little better." He pauses, then says, "I don't do trust falls, though." His tone might mean it's a deadpan joke... or it might just be a serious comment.


Beer? In this cold?, Richard raises an eyebrow to the older man's suggestion, and gets ready to suggest something, then plasma is mentioned. "Huh. I seen that too. In humans, no less. At least, red-bleeding humans...", he adds, then grins. "Well, I suggest those more familiar in London lead the way. More familiar with jungles of the green variety.", he chuckles.


Male Human Brawler 8/Bard (Archeologist) 2/Slayer 5
House Rules:

"I'll leave you all to it, then." General Hatcher turns his back on the team to leave, before stopping for a moment. "Actually, I almost forgot. Petty Officer Bohan, could you come with me for a moment? You'll have plenty of time to fraternize, but I wanted to ask you some questions. I'm sure the rest of your team can update you on their location once we're finished." Not waiting for a response, General Hatcher continues walking, apparently expecting Borax to follow him.

The rest of the team has ample time to find their way to a fine English pub, likely led by Jacob; he may be an Irishman, but he's likely more familiar with London than anyone else on the team. Finally having the chance to change into street clothes and relax, many of them have the chance to swap stories and build a rapport before heading back out into the field.

Borax:
"Bohan, you seem to be concerned about something." The general's office, if that's what the room he's brought you to is, is fairly sparse. It features what it needs to with chairs and a desk, and what looks to be a new computer, but nothing else. The walls are painted white and he hangs no pictures anywhere around the room. For all intents and purposes, it's pretty spartan. "You think you and your team needed to stay in Basra, don't you? I would love to say I understand your concern, but... there's something more. We routed the terrorist forces and have their leader in custody, and Corporal Chase remained behind to head up excavation efforts and deal with any further threats." The general sighs, before reaching into the desk and retrieving a small remote. He points it toward the corner of the room, and as Borax turns he sees a small red light blink out a second later. "Bohan, you were the only recruit whose dossier and interview materials I didn't receive. I know very little about you, and it seems to me there is very little available for me to know at all."

"Most of the UN forces with you in Basra who were there when Miss Edwards was captured are still being debriefed, but the few who have been spoken with have all given similar reports. They said you lost your head, ordered them to try and ram a helicopter before it took off. They said you were speaking to Miss Edwards as if you knew her. It's just you and me, Borax. The cameras are off. I think it's time I learned what you know about what happened."

Borax: 7 of Clubs - Tragedy
Describe a tale of tragedy or misfortune from your hero’s past, featuring one of their Hindrances if possible. If the teller has a dark secret of some kind, hint strongly at it, drop clues, or otherwise give the rest of the group a glimpse into your hero’s dark side during your narrative.

Borax, you can give as much detail as you wish on this Interlude. Once you've told the general what you want to tell him, feel free to join the others at the pub. You can feel free to tell a separate story to the group at the pub with a similar prompt, or just interact with people after they tell their own stories if you wish. Just answering the general is enough to get credit for the Interlude, but you can interact with the others as much as you want as well.

The Pub:
Jacob leads the group to an old dive bar in London, and soon enough stories are being traded while the booze is flowing. It's likely the all tell a number of stories as they build up some camaraderie, but when morning rolls around, there's one story from each of them that'll stick out in the minds of the rest of the team...

Gavril: Queen of Spades - Victory
Tell the group about a great victory or personal triumph in your adventurer’s past. How did it affect them afterward? Was there a reward?

Jacob: Ace of Hearts - Love
Speak fondly of the character’s greatest love—lost, found, or waiting on them back home. What is their name? Where do they live? Why is the traveler not with them now?

Naomi: Five of Spades - Victory
Tell the group about a great victory or personal triumph in your adventurer’s past. How did it affect them afterward? Was there a reward?

Richard: Queen of Diamonds - Desire
Tell a tale about something your hero wants (or already has). It might be a material possession, recognition, a political goal, or even a trip they wish to take to some amazing destination.

Rosa: Ten of Hearts - Love
Speak fondly of the character’s greatest love—lost, found, or waiting on them back home. What is their name? Where do they live? Why is the traveler not with them now?


Toughness: 7 (Flak vest: 9) Parry: 6 (Bayonet: 7) Wounds 0/3: Rounds=5| Shooting d10 | Notice d6| Fighting d10 |Survival/tracking d6| Healing d6 | Stealth d6 | STR 6, AGI 10, VIG 8, SMA 8, SPI 8
Weapons:
Desert Eagle (.50) 15/30/60 2d8 1 w8 r7 — AP 2, Semi-Auto

Borax waits as the general requests.

General Hatcher:

"With all do respect, we didn't route the terrorist. They left and we don't have their leader. Lena is a pawn. A wind-up doll that was set loose in our base. The man that is most likely behind it, I don't know his name, but I know his game. Before I was assigned to the UN, I served under him. No idea who he is, but we called him The Spook. We rarely saw him. Just once or twice and he made my skin crawl each time."

Borax pauses and stares off...as if lost in thought.
" You have no info on me because my existence was scrubbed. Part of a cover-up. Our group was tasked with trying to track down aliens in South Africa. At least that's what they told us. At the time, I thought it was a cover for something else. Still do, but after recent events, maybe the Spook knew something we didn't. Lena was a part of that group. She was heartless. If I didn't know better, I'd say she wasn't even human.

We never found anything, That is until we hit Lesotho. The Spook told us to investigate Mount Moorosi. The official story is that decades ago, some local chief had gone crazy and fortified himself on the mountains. But the locals told a different story. One involving men from the sky and bunch of stuff that made no sense. Standard fare. But we found nothing. British troops had taken him down and wiped out all his men. Yet, the trail didn't end. Someone in our group made a habit of getting our guides drunk off of cognac just to see what tales they would tell. Sure enough, the local told us that Chief Moorosi had escaped British capture and made his way to some caves outside of Old Hoek. Lena calls it in. We sit around for a day and then the next morning we drop down about two clicks outside of Ha Ts'epo and locate some old cathedrals. The priest tells us he already told the other men that the Motlejoeng caves are the only ones near by, right before Lena strangles him. He was bald, maybe in his late sixties. Had pictures of his grandchildren on his desk."

Borax turns away from the general. "I had feared something like that might actually happen if we ever found something, but it was more of some hypothetical I kicked around. And I had never been given any directive to kill civilians. Sure, we were armed, and I've put down a few local militia and bandits, but that was easy to rationalize, they shot first. "

"So now I'm trying to keep it together. No one else is reacting and I'm wondering if I am being set up. So I roll with it. I put the man's body in a bag and carry him out, and throw him in the transport and ask why we aren't making for the caves. I figured I'd dump his body off a cliff or just leave him in the caves hoping some animal might eat him. Only we get to the caves and they're inhabited. Maybe nine or ten families, kids, grandparents, living like gypsies. Lena gets on the radio and are orders are to wait, set up a guard and make sure no one leaves. Two days, and the tension starts to mount. At this point, we're pointing the guns at them. Lena's liberal use of the rifle butt seems like it's losing its effectiveness when two trucks roll in. These are LNSS trucks....in hazmat suits. And they are bar coding them with some type of dermal Q-code grapher.

I never got inside the cave. And I have no doubt none of those villagers are free, if any of them are still alive. Lena must have suspected something about me, because after that, I was reassigned. And I should be dead. My transport back to the US went missing over the Altantic, only I wasn't on it. I got sick. Doctor's didn't know what it was. I had hallucinations and headaches. When I heard my plane went down, I stayed off the radar and reported in after I entered Monrovia. Changed hotels every night and slept on the floor making it look like I was in the bed with pillows. Then his happened. I got my orders and tried to forgot about the whole thing. "

Borax's tone suggests he'd like to think the past is behind him.

"I have no interest in tracking down the Spook, if that's what you're wondering. I am hoping he's got bigger fish to fry. And I've got nothing to say to Lena. I don't care what she knows or what she think she knows. In my opinion, she was a tool. Like I was, like all soldiers are. " Borax does not speak with any added emphasis and his tone is matter-of-fact.

"Will there be anything else General?"


Wounds: 0/3 | Bennies: 2/3 | Parry: 4 | Toughness: 8/10 (2/4) | Charisma: +2 | Pace: 6

At the Pub:
"Romance?" Rosa snorts into her pint, almost splash it on the table. "Ha, I don't have time to date, much less have a special someone. You try managing a social life when you have to be on call with SWAT five days a week in LA. But..." She sighs, and downs the whole mug in one go. "Someone's going to need to order me another one if you really want me to talk about this, because it's embarrassing and I'm not nearly drunk enough to tell it yet."

Once she's got another drink in front of her, Rosa finally starts talking. "Okay, so this one if from back when I was still an EMT, before I even started working with the LAPD. So I was young and stupid and I blame that for everything." She takes a long draw from the mug before she keeps going. "So I ran a lot of night shifts, especially when no one else wanted to. And there was this one doctor who seemed like he was always on call in the ER in my area, especially night shifts. He was pretty young too, only about six years older than me and I would have been maybe twenty-one at the time. So he was kind of new too. Anyway, I got to know him over a couple of months while I was working there, and I guess I had a little bit of a crush. Never really had time to act on it though. It's really hard to make small talk when you're covered in blood from trying to keep a car crash victim stable. Then one day when I was leaving the hospital, I bumped into his fiance while she was coming to drop off something for him." She laughs bitterly and takes another drink. "And wasn't that just a f*cking awkward moment. She was pretty hot though. Just about my luck that they were into each other. Needless to say, I was glad to take different shifts for a little while after that. I wonder if he's still there actually. I haven't really seen him since I joined up with the LAPD"


At the Pub:

Richard nods at the story, raising an eyebrow as SWAT is mentioned. "Oh. So we're not all from the milit'ry!", he shrugs, lifting a glass of red wine. Too cold for beer.

"I guess that's one reason why I som'times envied the police. You don't have to get dragged all around the place." He raises a hand. "And from what I know, usually less regulation on talking.", he chuckles. "I'd consid'red it. One of the things I've always wanted was a place of my own. You know, just a flat, with a balcony, ideally one where I can throw braais and a glass of wine or seven on.", he takes another long drink and shrugs. "I was looking at one, when I was stationed next to Cape Town. But there's no much point. You live and do ev'rything with the regiment, you know." He winks at Rosa. "And not every milit'ry in the world gets as good a pay as the American ones. I barely afford a new car, so rent and all its downsides are the world for the foreseeable future." He shrugs. "Although, aliens are more interesting than real estate!" Staring at the kitchen's door, he taps the table. Let's see how those steaks are in here.


At the Pub:

Naomi quickly downs her first pint and pours another, she is obviously a woman who gets right into her task, whatever that may be. Wearing a light windbreaker over her t-shirt and cargo pants, if you hadn't just seen her in full-on "covert warrior" mode, you'd take her for any other local college girl slumming it for the night.

"So, there were these fellows back in Tel Aviv, big talkers and BS artists like you wouldn't believe. You gotta remember, in the IDF, we're all together, men, women, you get the picture. So these two guys start bragging on how many girls they've "slain" and how all over Israel girls are just throwing themselves at them in their uniforms. You get the picture, yeah?" Naomi takes a pull on her beer, wrinkling her nose up at the memory.

"I didn't care one way or the other, let them blow hot air and seem like big men in camp, whatever. Another girl in my platoon, though, she took it a bit personal. Started getting upset and griping to me and a couple others, even said she was gonna go up the chain to lodge formal complaints. Luckily, I managed to talk her outta that nonsense; she didn't realize just how bad her career woulda tanked with that kind of noise getting around."

A wry grin crosses her tanned face as she continues, "So, I figured it was time to shut the blowhards up, take 'em down a peg and make 'em feel just a bit more humble. So I did what any sly little sneaky girl would've done; I flirted and played along and led them on a merry goose chase thinking I was into both of them. Finally culminated in a night they thought I was gonna sleep with the pair of them, only I told them to meet in an "empty" barracks around midnight. They popped in, naked as jaybirds and ready to roll, only to scramble away like roaches in the light when my whole platoon started hooting and hollering from the bunks as I flipped the switch. Neither of them boasted much, least not so publicly, after that!"

Grand Lodge

Male
Abilities:
Strength d6 Agility d8 Spirit d6 Smarts d8 Vigor d6
Stats:
Toughness: 5(7) Parry: 5 Pace: 8 Run: d10 Charisma: 0 Bennies: 3/3
Skills::
Fighting d8, Notice d8, Repair d8, Investigation d4, Streetwise d6, Stealth d8, Shooting d8

At the pub:

The pints a-flowing, one after the other. The patrons laughed and chatted around them. The smell of beer and spirits.
Jacob felt at home after a long time drifting.
The irish laughed like a madman, told the others stories of his time in the Middle East (partly truth with extra topping of dramatism and excerpts from 80s action movies he remembered). He seemed happy, yet his eyes betrayed him.

Jacob stood up and walked to the pub owner "Oi mate, could you do a favour to an old brother returning home soon?" but the rest he whispered.

As he returned to the table an old song started playing Her song.
"She always shone like a fukken star the moment she heard the Sinead voice... My sweet Eyre."

"She was a tempest, I tell you, with emerald eyes and fiery hair the colour of red hot iron." Jacob continued speaking, but he wasn't looking at anyone in particular, as if the irish was rewatching part of his past "I remember the day I fell in love with her... I was drinking with the mates at Finn's, pretty usual stuff mind you, drunk as all hell and spoiling for a fight. Then some Unionists entered Finn's... you may not know, but at the time there was some pretty bad blood between us. The kind of blad blood that ends with people bleeding in the ground, sometimes dead."

"I remember starting to sing the Army's hymn, Jake by my side spitting at them. One of them Union boys drew a knife and then... then a fukken bottle broke against my head. I was drunk as all hell and almost unconscious, but I could see Eyre behind me with half a bottle in a hand and a rolling pin in the other. He threathened the whole fukken pub into silence and made both the Unionists and my mates to made peace. Peace! Between the fukken Army and the Unionists!" he exclaimed before bursting into laughter "I knew that a woman capable of that would be capable of saving me... and I spent the next six months trying to get a date with her. When she finally accepted I even cut my hair and dressed like it was Mass... She was so beautiful and pure, and they stole her from me... her and Colin. I've never talked to a priest since their funeral... Oh God, Eyre... I miss you."

The Irish started silently crying as he sipped on his pint. No amount of ale or whiskey could erase his pain, and it wasn't long because he excused himself.

Sorry for the delays. As the post is already long (and I hope worth reading) I will write Jacob visit to Ireland with details in my next post, but assume he spends the next two days after the Night at the Pub on it.


Novice (16 XP) | Parry 7, Toughness 9 (2) | 0 Wounds | 3 Bennies

Apologies for taking so long, but it finally clicked.

A Night at the Pub:
Gavril laughs along with the others through the night, grinning at the high points of stories and nodding along with more somber moments. He offers an anecdote of his own here and there, but he avoids telling any sort of story of his own, at least for a while. Eventually the circle of storytelling comes around to him again, though, and between prior skips and prior drinks, the Romanian finally relents. The group agrees they want to hear a story of victory and glory, and after a moment's thought--and another swig of beer--Gavril leans forward.

"This was back during my training days with the Foreign Legion." The introduction is straightforward, simple, but hints at what goes unsaid--Gavril won't be telling stories from his combat days, at least not now. "You must understand, the Legion is very different from most military units. We come from many cultures, many lands. Backgrounds, languages, we all swear service together. It leads to a mixing of styles, of training. We all learn the basics, but each man adds some of his own experience to things. I knew some old knife tricks from my grandfather, an Arab shares what his family taught him about life in the desert. A good place to learn more languages, too." He grins and sniffs.

"But there was one, this real fils de putain--pardon my French--a Belgian from Marseille. Every day when we drill hand-to-hand combat, he goes on about savate. French boxing, you know? Many others would call it kickboxinng, I believe, since you use the feet. We learn different methods for close combat, knife and wrestling, where I learned to use an hatchet. We drill and learn, but every day with him, the same. 'Why bother, I am a master of the savate, I cannot be touched.' When he drills with the others, always the same--he snaps kicks into them, always high and fast.

"Well, rivalries form, same as any unit. He and I, we were the favorites for the best in that area, hand-to-hand, I mean. So, men start talking. Betting, wagering, spreading rumors. 'The Romanian is best,' or 'the Belgian could win any fight.' Me, I don't care, it's so much talk. But the Belgian, he takes it personally. An affront to his skill as a tireur. So finally, on the last day of hand-to-hand training, he calls me out. Wants to fight. He wouldn't leave it off, so I agree."

Here Gavril takes a long sip of his beer, finishing the drink. He sets it on the coaster with a smile and nod. "Do you know something about high kicks? They are strong, yes. A good strong kick to the jaw will usually put a man down. But if you miss, it leaves you very open. Slow to recover." The Romanian leans back. "And when you see the same kick many times, you learn how to duck. The face when he missed was almost as good as the face when I punched him right in the..."

Gavril's gaze lands on Rosa and Naomi, and he coughs. "Anyway. He spent a couple days in the infirmary, I got latrine duty as reprimand, and there was no more arguing or jostling for respect. A win all around, I think." The Romanian turns and holds up his thumb, signaling for another round of drinks.


In the pub:

Richard listens to the tales with interest, ordering the bottle of wine after the conversation starts unfolding. He laughs out loud at Naomi's escapades, nods solemnly as Jacob retales a tale of love long lost, and delves deep into his steak as Gavril starts talking about brawling and hatchets, eyebrow raised. "Eh! A fellow hatchitman! It's a lost art, it is.", he laughs. Pausing for a moment, a wide grin shines on his face. "Speaking of hatchits and pairs, I think I got something you'd like to see!", he laughs, eyes darting left and right to indicate he's fully aware of the innuendo, and doesn't feel even remotely sorry. "It's a good thing this is a smaller unit, then. Less cockwaving." He takes a bite from his steak, shrugging approvingly at the taste, then looks around. "So we're working for the UN? I worked for thim for years, and nob'dy ever told me they had...", he looks around to check if anyone's eavesdropping, "anti-alien taskforces.", he whispers.


Male Human Brawler 8/Bard (Archeologist) 2/Slayer 5
House Rules:

Borax:
"I see. That's an interesting story Bohan, and it isn't one I was expecting. Now I feel a bit disconcerted that I never received your entrance evaluation." The general just ponders for a moment before he clicks the button and the camera in the corner turns back on. "Thank you for speaking with me, soldier. I wasn't aware your sister was ill." It's almost imperceptible, but Borax catches the slightest nod from the general to play along. "I'll make sure to have her flown in so you can see her, as soon as possible. Lauren, you said her name was? Alright then, she should be here in a few days. Go join your team. Dismissed." The general stands up and opens the door for you to leave, and just gives Borax an uncharacteristic pat on the shoulder. "I'll take care of it. Let me know if you need anything else."

A few days later, Borax wakes up to find a small slip of paper pushed under his door. Unfolding it slowly, there's only a short message inscribed on the paper.

The Spook still has plans for you.

-Lucius

Later, Borax arrives at the pub in the middle of the storytelling. The night goes on for quite a while before you all return to the barracks, and the next two weeks or so are filled with more team-building and whatever else the team wishes to do, and they have plenty of time to do it. The city of London is full of activities to pass the time, but after a few weeks you all get the call to the briefing room. Over the past days there have been workers milling about to upgrade the premises, and when you enter, it certainly shows. The room is far more in line with what you saw in New York, with the large holographic globe glowing in the center of the room. The general is already waiting for you as you enter, a clipboard in his hands again. "I hope you all have enjoyed your time off, but there's something I feel we ought to be checking out. There's been a few disappearances in Stamford, north of here. Eight children have gone missing over two weeks, under surprisingly similar circumstances, and there seems to be very little being done about it. It could be nothing, but it smells fishy to me. I want you all to check it out."

If you want to describe other stuff you did, feel free, but it is by no means required. Also, you all get an extra Benny.


Wounds: 0/3 | Bennies: 2/3 | Parry: 4 | Toughness: 8/10 (2/4) | Charisma: +2 | Pace: 6

"I'm not going to say no to trying to stop children from being kidnapped," Rosa says. "But what makes you think this involves our kind of threat? Is there any unusual activity we should look out for? Any signs of trouble that we can prepare for in advance?"

Grand Lodge

Male
Abilities:
Strength d6 Agility d8 Spirit d6 Smarts d8 Vigor d6
Stats:
Toughness: 5(7) Parry: 5 Pace: 8 Run: d10 Charisma: 0 Bennies: 3/3
Skills::
Fighting d8, Notice d8, Repair d8, Investigation d4, Streetwise d6, Stealth d8, Shooting d8

"More unusual than a bunch of little fellas disappearing in half a month? I am in sir, this might be the grays or it might not... but it sure as hell is bad." says the Irish
"In any case, this being european soil I guess heavy ordinance and explosives are out of place, am I right? In fact I'm not even sure we are officially cleared to act according to the local authorities, so silenced arms, fake IDs and that kind o'shady stuff might be in order." Jacob continues "Oh! In the case we encounter the cloaking things I would like to requisite thermal vision goggles too, sir,
I want to test if those things can be spotted by thermal signatures different to our own.

Jacob stops, considering the fact that he jumped straight to the gearing to kill part and scratches the back of his head "Well... a map and a briefing on the kids, town, places of disappearance and escape routes probably won't hurt either."


Male Human Brawler 8/Bard (Archeologist) 2/Slayer 5
House Rules:

Two of my posts in a row? For shame, Paizo.

"To be honest, I'm not certain it is. However, all the children have gone missing in a relatively short period of time, and the parents... they all seem to have no recollection of when the last time was that they saw their child. At first there appears to have been some concern about negligent parents, but family members said they were responsible parents, and no one in the area of the disappearance seems to remember anything either. It certainly seems, well, fishy to me."

"That's correct, Farrell. You don't have permission to be carrying around the weaponry you're used to. There are no restrictions on civilians wearing body armor, but it might look suspicious. I'd recommend you don't wear your full combat gear unless absolutely necessary. We can supply undercover vests, but of course they will be less effective. I'll make sure to have a dossier on the town for you while you travel, as well as information on the kidnappings. All the gear we can give you will be in your bags, along with your cover identities and clothing." General Hatcher sighs, flipping a page on the clipboard. "One more thing. You can't take the Skyranger on this mission. It's too high-profile. You'll be traveling by train instead."

"Any more questions?"


"Any pattern to the missing kids, sir? Age, gender, racial background, socioeconomic status, geographical? It's a bit different if someone's nabbing all the Lebanese children than if they grab everyone within 1km radius."

Naomi seems entirely unconcerned about packing concealed, civilian style.

"Primary objective is find the kids, secondary is put a stop to the baddies? Or do I have those flipped, sir?"


Having enjoyed London, to the extent his salary allows, Richard comes into the command centre. Throwing a wolf whistle at the new hardware, he lets out a chuckle. "Eh, taxpayer would be proud.", he remarks as he stares at the globe, then throws the general an honest-to-god, formal salute. "Gen'ral Hatcher, sir."

Scratching his head, he shrugs. "Eh. The polis in Landon seems to be good, ye?", he comments, scratching his head. Oh, shit, forgot to remove the earrings..., he bites his teeth, sitting and putting a hand on the side of his face, doing his best to conceal the breach of conduct. "So if they're not invest'gating, and they're surely not bribed, ye? So that means it's us invest'gating." He sends a nod to Jacob. "It could be the government itself covering it up, ye, Captin?", he says with a smile.

Standing up a bit more formally, he throws a glance at the General. "Eh. Gen'ral, sir. The Brits don't have 'formal firearm' and 'everyday firearm', right?", he grins. "I imagine this place, it's a small British town, ye? Could I request that my clothing is a suit with a tie, and get a briefcase and a pair of glasses?"Not so sure how it is in here, but small town polis is small town polis. Suit is better than a hoodie, and I brought my 'decorative ceremonial copies' paperwork.

Richard is suggesting he get a briefcase to carry his axes, as well as a bit more formal attire than what would be usual civilian. Small English towns are terribly, terribly polite and well-mannered places, which comes with a lot of gossiping and keeping of tabs, speaking from experience.


Toughness: 7 (Flak vest: 9) Parry: 6 (Bayonet: 7) Wounds 0/3: Rounds=5| Shooting d10 | Notice d6| Fighting d10 |Survival/tracking d6| Healing d6 | Stealth d6 | STR 6, AGI 10, VIG 8, SMA 8, SPI 8
Weapons:
Desert Eagle (.50) 15/30/60 2d8 1 w8 r7 — AP 2, Semi-Auto

Borax listens to the breakdown of the situation. After Naomi speaks, Borax follows up.

"The memory wipes make it a near certainty we're dealing with a true alien abduction, the background stuff is most likely a waste of time. These people will have nothing in common other than this is where the aliens have set up shop. What we need to find is the base from which the aliens are operating from and it can't be too far. Probably underground. But just in case it's something cloaked and we are dealing with cloakers, we'll need low energy lasers pointers. Cloaking devices can't reproduce or re-emmitt a laser that hits it."

Borax pauses for a moment as Richard makes his requests.

"We'll need to get the layout of the sewer systems and any underground tunnels. For good measure, let's find out if there are any natural cave system nearby as well. We should be able to locate the point of abduction from GPS trackers on the victims cell phones and vehicles. If the parents can't remember losing the kids, then we can look at cell phone records and see when they stopped remembering sending or receiving texts and calls. If we're really lucky, someone took a photo before they got their memory wiped."

Borax pauses again, and it seems like he's distracted.

"Finally, we'll need a neurologist to examine the parents and see if we can figure out how the memories are being erased and if there is a way to guard against it."

For those who have been teamed with Borax:
There is something off.

General Hatcher:
Borax waits for the meeting to end and then remains to talk with General Hatcher. Once alone, Borax reproduces the note.

"Either you're working for the Spook, you've been talking, or your office is compromised, sir." I request that I be relieved of duty until this man is caught or you convince me his men aren't operating under your very nose."

Borax seems to let his emotions show and it's clear the note has him riled.


Wounds: 0/3 | Bennies: 2/3 | Parry: 4 | Toughness: 8/10 (2/4) | Charisma: +2 | Pace: 6

"Sounds like we have a series of strange disappearances to investigate then. This'll be just like working with the LAPD again I guess. Sidearms, light weight, try to keep the civies from getting in the middle when everything inevitably goes to sh*t." Rosa rolls her shoulders. "If we're traveling by train, we can go over the files and dossiers once we're on the rails, along with our cover identities."


Male Human Brawler 8/Bard (Archeologist) 2/Slayer 5
House Rules:

"Correct, Miss David. First and foremost, you are to attempt to find and rescue these children. Ideally you track down whoever or whatever took them, but first off you'll need to find these children. It's possible they may remember things that the parents don't." General Hatcher just nods when Richard asks him about attire. "We've supplied you all with several possible cover identities and sets of clothes, to accommodate how you wish to proceed. The local authorities have contacted the government about the missing children, so such an avenue is possible if you wish to pursue it. You'll need to convince the local police you're there to help, but it will mean you can move around with your firearms without risking being arrested yourselves. However, there are pedestrian clothes if you would prefer to work in that way." When Borax mentions his own thoughts, for the most part the general nods along, waiting for the other man to finish before he continues.

"I'm inclined to agree with Bohan, but it is worth noting none of the children were over the age of 12. Other than that, there doesn't appear to be a link." The general does raise an eyebrow when Borax comments on cloaking technology, but he doesn't comment on that on its own. "I'm afraid I can't get you the city planning documents on the sewers, at least not on such short notice. I'm sure they're on record somewhere in town if you want them, perhaps try to obtain them yourselves? As for a neurologist, I'll let Dr. Stein know he's coming with you. He can examine the patients, presuming you can persuade them to permit to a procedure."

"Just remember, unless you masquerade as government officials investigating the disturbance, you'll need to keep your firearms concealed. Handguns are illegal in the UK, and the last thing you need is to be arrested. In lieu of arranging accommodations for you, you'll each find some money in with your things. You can arrange whatever living situations fits your cover."

Borax and General Hatcher:
The general looks at the note, and Borax can easily read the general's face before he looks up; the man looks not only surprised, but angry. "I'll make sure to sweep my office... personally. As I mentioned, I never received your personnel interview when you arrived." General Hatcher coughs, motioning to Borax with the letter. "I can't convince you no one is operating under my nose, Bohan. This entire protocol was re-activated a few weeks ago. I can have someone I trust—people I worked with before XCOM was re-instated, old friends from the military—run some forensic analysis on this note, see if we can find anything identifying who left it. I understand if you'd rather keep it, though."

"I won't grant you leave, Bohan. I can't, not now. We know too little,
and I know this team's capabilities, unlike some others. I can promise you I'll look into this, but that's all I can do for now. I don't have the kind of red tape you see in the military, but it will take time.

You can make a Notice roll to see if he's lying, if you want.

In other words, you all are free to determine your own cover identities and the reason why you're coming along. Anything (within reason) will be provided for you, and you guys can determine what you go with. Once you arrive in town I'll give you some leads you might want to follow, but this adventure will be a little more open-ended than the last ones. Dr. Stein will accompany you, acting as an NPC under my control, and he can reasonably help with things you guys ask of him, assuming he's capable.


"Not for nothing, but some of you lads practically scream military. Maybe we can engineer a way to use that? Escorts and assistants to the good doctor, fabricate some line about infection or chemical toxicity, or what. That way, the folks will be more likely to talk with us, and we don't spook them with ET talk. Of course, we could try a completely clandestine insertion. I dunno how successful that might go, but we can certainly try it."

Naomi looks down at her outfit, evaluating it's fit into the civilian sector.

"New shirt, swap my boots for some trainers, and I should be ready to roll covert. Anyone need some fashion tips, or wanna brush up on tradecraft?"


Wounds: 0/3 | Bennies: 2/3 | Parry: 4 | Toughness: 8/10 (2/4) | Charisma: +2 | Pace: 6

"That seems like it may be the easiest option. I have full medical credentials. Not as a full on doctor, but they're official and someone who's not in the field probably wouldn't know the exact difference. So being Dr. Stein's partner or assistant should be easy to pull off. We'll have to be on guard though. If we act like the good doctor is the main investigator, hostiles will likely target him first."


"Good point. I was thinking about having us there but not directly 'attached' to the investigation. Dr. Stein and you, Vasquez, can be a mobile aid team, perhaps a grief counselor or something and emergency medical tech? If we establish a rapport that way, we might be able to get some good intel without tipping our hands."


Novice (16 XP) | Parry 7, Toughness 9 (2) | 0 Wounds | 3 Bennies

"I could serve as, ah, luggage porter and bodyguard?" Gavril puts forward his suggestion after looking over himself, keeping in mind Naomi's comment about 'screaming military.' "It would be hard to suggest I am much else related to a doctor."


Toughness: 7 (Flak vest: 9) Parry: 6 (Bayonet: 7) Wounds 0/3: Rounds=5| Shooting d10 | Notice d6| Fighting d10 |Survival/tracking d6| Healing d6 | Stealth d6 | STR 6, AGI 10, VIG 8, SMA 8, SPI 8
Weapons:
Desert Eagle (.50) 15/30/60 2d8 1 w8 r7 — AP 2, Semi-Auto

"Naomi and Rosa's suggestion should work out fine. We'll pretend where simply doing some clinical research for a privately funded organization. The rest of us could pose as ghost hunters doing a documentary. I'll let you two work out the details. However, it might be better to split up. Perhaps Gavril, Richard, Jacob, and I will search the sewers and any likely targets for the aliens to set up shop. We should stash some weapons down there as well at key junctions so if we get caught in the thick of it, we can retreat and arm ourselves."

Borax turns to Jacob,

"If these creatures are using any underground system, I'll want us to be prepared to collapse tunnels and rig escape routes. Can you prepare some proximity bombs, tripwire bombs, and remote detonation devices? I'm also thinking we'll want some way to monitor movement and give footage if we come across."

"Getting back to the missing children, It's most likely the children were abducted at the homes. This would make it easy for the aliens to alter the parents' memories. If I'm correct, then relatives or neighbors would most likely have the most recent recollection of when the kids were last seen. If the aliens are somehow able to modify the memories of everyone in town, then we've got a much bigger problem on our hands."

Borax turns back to the general, "I'm assuming we have access to night vision gear, body cameras, and GPS trackers? I'd like us to have our body cameras running whenever we're in the field. Along with have reviewable records of people we'll talk to, We'll review the and GPS movement and video footage nightly, to make sure we aren't experiencing gaps in our memory. Also, sir, can we get a map of the homes of the missing children?"

Turning back to the group, "If we can time stamp the disappearances, we might see an abduction pattern. Maybe the abductions are happening radially from a central point, or along a specific path. Either way, our first priority is determining the exact time and location of each event. "


"Sounds good to me. I would suggest we include a handful of frag and concussion grenades in our underground weapon stash. Nothing says 'thick of it' than some man-portable bang-bang. I'll grab my rifle, you can include it in the gear down there, as well as my combat vest."

Turning to Rosa: "So, Doctors without Borders, UN Medical Assistance, the Red Cross, or something a little more 'exotic'? I can play your assistant and driver, keep an eye on your six, along with the good Doctor Stein."


Toughness: 7 (Flak vest: 9) Parry: 6 (Bayonet: 7) Wounds 0/3: Rounds=5| Shooting d10 | Notice d6| Fighting d10 |Survival/tracking d6| Healing d6 | Stealth d6 | STR 6, AGI 10, VIG 8, SMA 8, SPI 8
Weapons:
Desert Eagle (.50) 15/30/60 2d8 1 w8 r7 — AP 2, Semi-Auto

"Whatever cover you use, make sure that it justifies your asking questions about the missing kids. These parents should be desperate to find their children, so anything in the ball park of a group that could do that should work."

Borax pauses for a moment.

"Which reminds me. It's possible that if aliens are responsible, they could be disguised as humans. Anyone experiencing memory loss should be willing to provide blood samples on even the off-chance it might help. If any parents refuse, ask for hair samples of the missing kids and the parents. If they refuse that, leave the house without arousing suspicion and we'll keep an eye on them."

Grand Lodge

Male
Abilities:
Strength d6 Agility d8 Spirit d6 Smarts d8 Vigor d6
Stats:
Toughness: 5(7) Parry: 5 Pace: 8 Run: d10 Charisma: 0 Bennies: 3/3
Skills::
Fighting d8, Notice d8, Repair d8, Investigation d4, Streetwise d6, Stealth d8, Shooting d8

"I could, chief, given a little time and enough supplies... but I'd vote against motion activated booby traps, we don't know if any civvies are going to randomly enter the sewers." Jacob says to Borax.

"If we could get minicameras I could lay out some sewer surveillance and set up the place with remote activated traps and motion detectors just in case they got cloaking or some bullshite." continues the Irish as he takes a piece of paper, draws a pen and starts writing and drawing. "I could rig different detonators for each one, perhaps get a firework's one instead. Thing is that way the explosives will go off only if we have visual with the greys."

"As far as cover, I betcha Richie and I can pass as tired lazy workers if you give us a dirty enough jumpsuit. We can carry the weapons, gear and explosives down there in toolboxes." smiles Jacob before turning to Borax "No offense, chief, but you have too much an aura of command and dignity to pass as a working drone... the spooky documentary, though, that I can see working."


Toughness: 7 (Flak vest: 9) Parry: 6 (Bayonet: 7) Wounds 0/3: Rounds=5| Shooting d10 | Notice d6| Fighting d10 |Survival/tracking d6| Healing d6 | Stealth d6 | STR 6, AGI 10, VIG 8, SMA 8, SPI 8
Weapons:
Desert Eagle (.50) 15/30/60 2d8 1 w8 r7 — AP 2, Semi-Auto

Borax nods as Jaocb lays out a plan, "Right. We don't wan't to leave any active traps, I was thinking that we'd want something already in place that we could activate if we were making an escape. And truthfully, there may be nothing in the sewers. I am just thinking out loud. The alien lab could be in the woods, or 1000 ft off the ground in a some undetectable ship. But the sewers seem like a possibility, so we should be prepared.

And on that note, we may need to do more surveillance than demolition, particularly if the abductions keep happening. Let's come up with a plan for keeping track of things topside once we narrow down the search area. Let's find out if the town has surveillance cameras and if so, tapping into their feed."

Borax almost cracks a smile at Jacob's last comment. "I'll let you do the talking when we get in town. I'm not one for making friends."


Jacob Farrell wrote:

"I could, chief, given a little time and enough supplies... but I'd vote against motion activated booby traps, we don't know if any civvies are going to randomly enter the sewers." Jacob says to Borax.

"If we could get minicameras I could lay out some sewer surveillance and set up the place with remote activated traps and motion detectors just in case they got cloaking or some b$~+$+!@e." continues the Irish as he takes a piece of paper, draws a pen and starts writing and drawing. "I could rig different detonators for each one, perhaps get a firework's one instead. Thing is that way the explosives will go off only if we have visual with the greys."

"As far as cover, I betcha Richie and I can pass as tired lazy workers if you give us a dirty enough jumpsuit. We can carry the weapons, gear and explosives down there in toolboxes." smiles Jacob before turning to Borax "No offense, chief, but you have too much an aura of command and dignity to pass as a working drone... the spooky documentary, though, that I can see working."

Richard nods, grinning at Jacob. "Yes, boss.", he replies, before scratching his head. "Eh, so if we've got the covar of a big agency, one based here in Landon, it should be easy to explain what an Irishman and a South African are doing in there." He pulls out a phone and starts flicking on the screen. "Just need to see what company works in there...", he mutters, before grinning. "There! Going to put the req's at the quartamaster."

Eh. Sewercrawling. At least they're probably relatively clean in here, with the rain and whatnot.

So, I'm suggesting them obtaining two overalls for whatever company works the sewers in that town, as well as two toolboxes for me and Jacob.


Male Human Brawler 8/Bard (Archeologist) 2/Slayer 5
House Rules:

"It sounds like you all have a plan ready to go, I'll make sure everything you request is loaded into your luggage. As I said, you'll be traveling by train. Dr. Stein will meet you shortly, at the train station. While it isn't much, Lieutenant Winger will have operating voice comms with you at all times if necessary; there's only so much we can do for you from here, but we'll be of what help we can." The general leaves you all to prepare to travel, and you all find a change of normal civilian clothes on your bunks in addition to your luggage, loaded with all the requested accouterments. Not long after, you head out to the train station. While the newer members of the team won't recognize him, the others can immediately pick out Dr. Stein in the crowd. Even without the lab coat, the man sticks out like a bit of a sore thumb; his lanky body still looks like a twig someone decided to clothe, even in civilian garb. He stands near the station polishing his glasses, his unkempt platinum hair billowing around his face. When he sees the group, he waves them over with an enthusiastic smile.

"Hello!" He gives a warm welcome to those he knows before extending a hand for a handshake to those he doesn't. "I'm Dr. Stein, but you can all me Elliot. It's nice to meet you both, although of course I wish it were under better circumstances. It will be nice to get out of the lab, though. Ever since I left the army, I feel like I've been stuck in one big white box or another." He looks at the group and grins again, picking up his suitcase in one hand. Despite his physique, he doesn't seem to have much trouble with it. "Well, shall we? I believe our train is about to depart."


Toughness: 7 (Flak vest: 9) Parry: 6 (Bayonet: 7) Wounds 0/3: Rounds=5| Shooting d10 | Notice d6| Fighting d10 |Survival/tracking d6| Healing d6 | Stealth d6 | STR 6, AGI 10, VIG 8, SMA 8, SPI 8
Weapons:
Desert Eagle (.50) 15/30/60 2d8 1 w8 r7 — AP 2, Semi-Auto

Borax nods to Stein as a way of greeting. "These are better circumstances, Dr. Stein."

Once onboard and situated. Borax will reviews the city map and begins marking the residence of each missing child.


Male Human Brawler 8/Bard (Archeologist) 2/Slayer 5
House Rules:

"Hmm, I suppose that's true." He leans in close toward the group and speaks with a hushed voice. "I'm fairly certain I'd be the one doing your autopsies should you die in the field, so I guess any circumstance is better than that one, right?" He leans back and gives you a crooked grin, his glasses dipping deep onto his nose as he does so. "I'd say I was joking, but that probably is in my job description. Let's hope we don't have to deal with that, though." He looks up at the display of arrival times and cocks his head. "Looks as though we're ready to board." With that, the doctor strolls away toward the platform, waiting for the group to follow. While the train seems normal, the news of mysterious kidnappings definitely has the group on edge as they get ready to head out using public transportation.

Girlfriend just got back into the country and came to see me for a weekend, so I was preoccupied. I wanted to give a chance to interact with Stein as an NPC if people want to, but if not we'll just get on the train and head out.


Wounds: 0/3 | Bennies: 2/3 | Parry: 4 | Toughness: 8/10 (2/4) | Charisma: +2 | Pace: 6

Rosa follows the doctor to the platform. "I'm more worried that we're going to end up doing autopsies of the children we're looking for than on the members of our group," she says quietly as they head for the train. "Not exactly the nicest first field mission for you I suppose."


"It's a good thing to be out of the lab, yes.", replies Richard, sending his grin towards the doctor. As the conversation turns somewhat grimmer, he laughs out loud. "Ah, Doctas! We don't know anythin' before we do, yes? So let's go and operate, and what was that smartass thing that American shows said, ye?", he grins, scratching his stubble. "Ah, yes. Assuming makes asses of you and me, yes? So let's go and see what's stirrin' up little England. Things that aren't five foreigners suddently arriving in a small town.", he laughs, pulling one of the overalls' straps over his shoulder.


Toughness: 7 (Flak vest: 9) Parry: 6 (Bayonet: 7) Wounds 0/3: Rounds=5| Shooting d10 | Notice d6| Fighting d10 |Survival/tracking d6| Healing d6 | Stealth d6 | STR 6, AGI 10, VIG 8, SMA 8, SPI 8
Weapons:
Desert Eagle (.50) 15/30/60 2d8 1 w8 r7 — AP 2, Semi-Auto

Borax looks over at Richard. "We're not all going to disembark at the same time or from the same door. It's a safe bet that XCOM is being spied on by other international organizations. We'll also need to operate out of separate hotels to try and stay off the local radar as long as possible. Those of us doing the documentary should either get off on the stop before or after the main town. We'll catch a taxi or rent a car and drive in."


"Agreed. We pair off, maybe one of us goes solo for a bit, and we roll with deep cover protocols as best we can. The longer we can stay under the radar, the better."


Wounds: 0/3 | Bennies: 2/3 | Parry: 4 | Toughness: 8/10 (2/4) | Charisma: +2 | Pace: 6

"I'll stick with Doctor Stein since we're supposed to be working together then. We'll stay in touch as often as we can. Hopefully we'll find something useful examining the parents."


Novice (16 XP) | Parry 7, Toughness 9 (2) | 0 Wounds | 3 Bennies

"I can stay with the doctor and Vasquez." Gavril cracks his neck and shrugs, trying to get used to his cover outfit. "It fits the role, and means more of us together."


Male Human Brawler 8/Bard (Archeologist) 2/Slayer 5
House Rules:

"Oh, I assure you this won't be the first time out in the field. The most interesting, perhaps, but not the worst. Hopefully though, there won't be any humans on my autopsy table by the time we leave." He just listens and nods along while the others lay out the plan, then motions for them to follow him onto the train. "We can leave by separate doors, but for the time being there's little reason we can't travel together. We'll have plenty of time for espionage once we arrive, I'm certain." The doctor makes a face as he looks around to make sure no one heard his slip of the tongue, but a slight shrug suggests you're in the clear. "Come on, then. We might as well get a good seat. No point in being uncomfortable for the whole ride, right?"

As the group sits through the ride, it seems relatively normal... for a while. Some time later though, an uncomfortable pulsing takes up residence in their temples; it grows until they feel a persistent headache for several minutes, then it fades. Looking around, it doesn't seem like anyone else—including Stein, or the other members of your own team—felt anything of the sort. They just sit their making idle conversation around you, much like you might expect.

Smarts:
As the pain in your head subsides, your vision loses focus for a moment. As you regain your composure and take the time to look around, no one else—save for those comrades of yours that seem to have had a similar experience—react to your movement. They all sit and stare directly forward, and you eventually notice the train has begun to slow as well. Again, no one else seems to notice.

For those of you new to the system, roll your Smarts die and Wild die; if either of them come up as a 4 or higher, you meet the Target Number and can read the spoiler presented.


"Sentiment's shared here, Docta.", says Richard. "Whatever's out there, we find it, yeah?", he mentions before entering the train.

As he stares through the window, the green planes of South England moving before his eyes, dotted with the occasional, almost pastoral, village, his head starts hurting. Frowning, he turns back to the rest, putting a grin on his face. "Oh. Is it just me, or did we have bad chasers last night? My head is pulsing, ye?" Rubbing his temples with a slightly annoyed look, he notices nobody pays attention to him. "Are we... there yet? I don't think we're there yet?"

Rolls:

Smarts: 1d8 ⇒ 2
Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 5


1d8 ⇒ 7 smarts
1d6 ⇒ 5 wild

"Something strange just happened. My vision went fuzzy for a second, and, I dunno, time slowed down? No-one else seems to have reacted, though. That does not bode well, I think."

Remarkably calm, Naomi breathes a few times to get her heart rate back under control, then slides her switchblade to her front pocket, ready to grab. She quietly racks the slide on her Glock, ensuring it's ready to fire and easy to grab. Looping the straps of her knapsack around her left forearm, she looks around and tries to assess any threats coming their way.

"Anyone else feel the train start to slow? I don't think we're that close to our destination, are we?"


Toughness: 7 (Flak vest: 9) Parry: 6 (Bayonet: 7) Wounds 0/3: Rounds=5| Shooting d10 | Notice d6| Fighting d10 |Survival/tracking d6| Healing d6 | Stealth d6 | STR 6, AGI 10, VIG 8, SMA 8, SPI 8
Weapons:
Desert Eagle (.50) 15/30/60 2d8 1 w8 r7 — AP 2, Semi-Auto

Smarts: 1d8 ⇒ 21d6 ⇒ 2

Borax immediately reacts to Naomi and Richard, " In my experience, once is strange, twice is no coincidence." Borax looks at his GPS device and quickly determines if their location matches the time and distance on the map.

"Everyone do an equipment check. Also, from this point on, if we separate and meet, we'll need to confirm our identities with a challenge and response. The challenge is "super". The response is "sunny" on days that start with an "s." "Tree" and "tomato" for days that start with a "t." And "princess" and "pea" for the other days."

Borax reexamines all his gear and then the cab they're in, looking for any slight detail that is amiss.

Notice: 1d6 ⇒ 61d6 ⇒ 2
1d6 ⇒ 3 Total = 9

If the gear checks out, Borax will ask everyone to identify some specific event that occurred before they boarded the train and that someone else can verify has having occurred. Borax wants to make sure someone hasn't been switched out for an imposter.


Novice (16 XP) | Parry 7, Toughness 9 (2) | 0 Wounds | 3 Bennies

Smarts: 1d6 ⇒ 4
Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 2

Gavril settles in for the ride, but when things start to go strange, he reacts about the same time as Richard and Naomi. "Something is not right," he mutters, touching his temples. He looks to Borax as the man starts his usual paranoia, trying to follow his quick and quiet instructions for identification. Finally, he blinks and grabs at a memory someone else can corroborate. "Eh, the interrogation. I stopped Chase from skinning the man. Vasquez knows."

The man shakes his head and grunts before standing, finally noticing that none of the other passengers appear to be moving. "Doctor Stein? Hello?" He reaches up with one hand to steady himself as he steps over to the other man. "Are you okay?"


Wounds: 0/3 | Bennies: 2/3 | Parry: 4 | Toughness: 8/10 (2/4) | Charisma: +2 | Pace: 6

"Never really did autopsies before," Rosa agrees. "And I'd rather not start with missing children if I can help it." She takes a window seat across from the good doctor and reclines, absently staring out the window as the train moves along.

Rolls:
Smarts: 1d8 ⇒ 1
Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 2

Benny
Smarts: 1d8 ⇒ 7
Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 1

While she doesn't feel the shift at first, the rest of the party's sudden shift, she shakes herself and looks around. One hand comes up to her temples and she winces. "That's not normal. And definitely not a good sign." She's hesitant to reach for her sidearm in a crowded train, but carefully reaches inside her jacket and pops the holster open so she can draw if needed.

Grand Lodge

Male
Abilities:
Strength d6 Agility d8 Spirit d6 Smarts d8 Vigor d6
Stats:
Toughness: 5(7) Parry: 5 Pace: 8 Run: d10 Charisma: 0 Bennies: 3/3
Skills::
Fighting d8, Notice d8, Repair d8, Investigation d4, Streetwise d6, Stealth d8, Shooting d8

Jacob's head was hurting really bad as he stared out the window, bad enough to need a whiskey or three to shut the pain down...
Smarts: 1d8 ⇒ 31d6 ⇒ 3
C'mon! I'm supposed to be smart and paranoid and I go and fall for it? Dammit RNG!
... but he kept staring, british' landscapes sure are captivating.


Richard's eyebrows start darting up and down, as more of his squadmates seem to react to the wave. Raising one at the medic, his lips curl in a nervous smile. "Yis, it's not something you should start with. So, I'm taking you've not had...", he scratches his shaved head, "Brain-mumbling shit like this, ye?" He pauses. "I see two possibilities. Either something's targeting us specifically, or the whole train. If it's the first, we're f~*#ed, yes? If it's the second, I want to make sure the train driva is not staring blankly at shit, ye?" He stands up, grabbing his backpack from above, unzips it and straps it on one shoulder. "I suggest someone come with me, and two more stay here to keep an eye on them.", he notions towards Jacob and Borax. "We've got comms, ye?", he whispers as he stands up, feeling inside of the bag, then smiling as he feels what he's looking for. Well, axes aren't strictly illegal here.

I'm suggesting we head for the first car of the train, while someone keeps an eye on the hypnotised/tranquilised individuals and try to ask what the surrounding passengers feel like?


Wounds: 0/3 | Bennies: 2/3 | Parry: 4 | Toughness: 8/10 (2/4) | Charisma: +2 | Pace: 6

Rosa puts a hand on Doctor Stein's shoulder, shaking him and seeing if he responds. "Seems like the whole train. Maybe they don't want witnesses, or it's just a target of opportunity and we're here by chance." She doesn't want to add the option that whoever's behind this might just be trying to take the entire train. She adjusts her windbreaker and checks the sidearm concealed in her shoulder holster. "I'll try to wake them up. I think we want all hands on deck for this."


"I'm with you, Makeba. There might be a few locks in between us and the engineer, and I'm your girl to get through them."

Naomi scoops up her backpack and makes sure her lockpick set is easily accessible in her jacket, confident with her pistol and switchblade in position already.


Novice (16 XP) | Parry 7, Toughness 9 (2) | 0 Wounds | 3 Bennies

"I'll stay here," Gavril says. While Rosa checks on Doctor Stein, the Romanian moves to the other teammates, shaking their shoulders if they don't come to on their own. "Hey. You feeling alright? Something's wrong."


Male Human Brawler 8/Bard (Archeologist) 2/Slayer 5
House Rules:

One by one the team snaps out of the trance, noticing the others on the train are simply staring straight ahead as the train slowly churns to a stop. For a moment it seems like Borax has remained locked in his own mind, but as Gavril approaches him the man snaps to attention. After Rosa and then Gavril attempt to rouse Dr. Stein, he shakes his head and blinks a few times before looking up at the two of them. "I'm... oh my." He looks around at the others, and furrows his brow. "This isn't good. How long have I been out?" It takes a moment to realize that Jacob is still staring blankly ahead, but at the prompting of the others he seems to be coming to.

Jacob, take a point of Fatigue.

If you want to move up the train, please roll me a Lockpicking check,
with a -1 penalty please.

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