O wonder!
How many goodly creatures are there here!
How beautious mankind is!
O brave new world
That has such people in't!
How many goodly creatures are there here!
How beautious mankind is!
O brave new world
That has such people in't!
The Tempest, Act V, Scene I
The stiff and sullen tock of each moment echoes from behind the face of the clock as the greater and lesser twin arms slowly align themselves into an arrow pointing upwards—or so observes a sandy haired man, dressed conservatively in a cut-away clerk’s black coat and grey flannel trousers. Looking towards the face on the wall, the clerk considers just an observation, then mutters beneath his breath, “Or is the arrow pointing downwards?” A wry smile inches across his pale face, beneath his pencil thin mustache.
But just as quickly the grin veers into a grimace. The lanky clerk scratches his head, then turns back several pages in the ledger open before him. Running an ink-stained finger over the paper, the bookkeeper tallies the numbers in the column once again, ticking and tying each account. As he runs the sums, the hunched figure shakes his head slowly, then mutters, “They simply do not add up.” As he jots down several numbers upon a scrap of paper, the sound of a door closing in the anteroom rouses the tall clerk. Heavy footsteps echo down the hall as they methodically grow in volume and menace the closer they get. A frown creases the young man’s face as wrinkles break across his wide forehead. Unsure what this means, the bookkeeper jams the hastily written note into his hat just as the door swings open.
From the darkness in the hall, a gruff voice assaults him, “Youse the right ‘onorable Reginald Crowne, is yah.” Though voiced as a question, it comes out as more of an accusation. “Youse working late there Reggie, ain’t youse. T’ain’t good fer a youngsta to be all work an’ no play, eh.” From the dark hall a brawny arm punches into the dimly lit office, the index finger flicks into a point at the clerk; the broken finger nail caked with dirt and grease almost stabs at the frightened young man. “Git yer hat and coat, Reggie, yer comin’ wit me.”
*****
I'm looking to start an Etherscope game, 4 to 6 "human" characters at first level according to the rules in Chapter 1 (page 17) of the Etherscope basic rules; if you have other Etherscope books that add feats and so forth, that is probably fine too. A background is necessary, as this type of game relies upon Influence.
The action begins quite benignly in the Great Metropolis--Miss Samantha Crowne is quite worried about her brother, while the constabulary is completely stymied by his apparent disappearance--but where the story goes is entirely up to you and your fellow players.
)
