Traveller T20: Tales of the Bray Keaven [Updated 12-20-05]

[Hatchling Dragon]

I'm starting to wonder what you use for medical sources, or are you just realy good at BS'ing?

Assuming you looked up enough facts to make a convincing plot I can't wait to see what you do after this little campain has finished.

Hatchling Dragon

 

[Shadowdancer]

I'm starting to wonder what you use for medical sources, or are you just realy good at BS'ing?

Assuming you looked up enough facts to make a convincing plot I can't wait to see what you do after this little campain has finished.

Hatchling Dragon

Thank you for the compliment, but I must reinterate that I am not the person running this game; I'm one of the players (Swann). I just take our game posts from our Yahoo club site, edit them together, and post the results here.

The GM and the person playing Doc Saro are the ones who get all the credit for the medical details. I don't know if those people have medical backgrounds, or just really good Google skills. I am often amazed at the level of detail for some of the subjects that come up in our campaign, from both our GM and from the players.

 

[Shadowdancer]

Chapter XXVI​

Date: 122-993
Place: Groves Airport outside Lowford, in Bromley, on Alief

The rescue group — Argent, Vargas, Martha, and Darishun — spends the day making final preparations for their first set of rescue runs to the capital.

Argent and Vargas talk with Lt. Col. Billings and one of Dr. Warren’s assistants, and agree on a procedure. For each run, the Bray Keaven will:

1). Perform the pickup with the evacuees being housed in the cargo bay during the short ride. Evacuees don biohazard suits where they are hiding before making their way to the cargo bay.

2). Do a relatively quick vertical rise to a suborbital altitude and then descend.

3). Drop the evacuees at the receiving center near the portable building the Bray Keaven brought.

4). Decontaminate the cargo bay. Receive new or decontaminated biohazard suits.

With this procedure, assuming that all goes well, the Bray Keaven can rescue two groups a day.

Argent and Vargas also plan the order of the first three rescues and look at where they can land the Bray Keaven.

There are three groups that claim that they had someone succumb to and recover from the virus.

Claim Alpha is a small family of three who are holed up in a house in one of the middle class suburbs. The Bray Keaven should be able to land in the street near the house without too much trouble (or damage) except for damage to vegetation.

Claim Bravo is a group of 10 who are occupying a mansion in one of the upper class enclaves of the city. The Bray Keaven can either land in the street about 100 meters from the mansion or on the mansion grounds. Landing on the mansion grounds will require destroying/clearing a couple of statues and a few large trees.

Claim Charlie is a family of four who are on the top floors of a skyscraper in downtown Medway. The Bray Keaven will either have to hover just above the top of the skyscraper or land in a traffic circle/park about 500 meters away.

Martha and Darishun install about 20 or so temporary seats in the forward part of the main cargo bay for the evacuees. The seats are not acceleration couches, but they will keep the passengers from bouncing around should the gravity be switched off for some reason.

Martha and Darishun also load 30 local biohazard suits and place them on temporary storage racks in the cargo bay.

-----​

Dinner finds the foursome in the lounge, munching on Marine rations, still discussing their plans.

"We will first ensure that the Bromlian military has contacted the groups, to let them know we’re coming, then we’ll contact the groups individually when we get within 5 minutes of landing," Argent says. "Once we land, Darishun will stand by in the cargo area, as Vargas and myself head in to help the victims out. Of course, that means that we’ll go through four vacc suits between the two of us — we should probably use Bromlian suits for that, to prevent contaminating our own suits.

"For the skyscraper, I will continue piloting, and Vargas and Darishun will handle getting the passengers aboard; we’ll warn them about Darishun’s appearance first.

"We’ll pick up Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie, in that order. We’ll go with the easiest and closest landing first, then the 100m distant landing, then the hover over the skyscraper."

Darishun cocks his head to the side slightly. "So, as standard procedure, you’d like me to stay in the cargo bay area while you and Vargas go in to help the people out? I think that we can decontaminate any suits that we wear in the shower that Martha set up in the port airlock, but we certainly can use the Bromlian suits also. I will wear my own suit since I cannot wear any of the emergency or Bromlian suits since they are a little small for me," the massive sophont adds with an alarming grin.

"What would you like Martha to do while you and Vargas go in to help the people out?" Darishun says. "Also, shouldn’t someone will remain on the bridge? Perhaps either you or Vargas should remain on the bridge, I’ll stay in the cargo hold, and Martha and either you or Vargas goes in to help the evacuees out?"

Martha says, "I am trained in all facets of operating the ship. If my services would be of better use on the bridge, piloting the Bray Keavan, then I am more than willing to fly her. I have my Level One Certification in Starship Piloting, and have kept my license up-to-date."

"Listen, Big Guy," Marcus says affectionately. "These people are probably scared out of their wits right now with the epidemic wandering around, effectively unchecked. And as gentle of a being that you are, my friend, to the primitive eye, you can be pretty frightening. Allow Vargas and me to make the initial contact; we can, at least, soften the blow a bit, OK?

"Now, for the first two rescues, the ship will have landed, so unless enemies of Bromley come across the border and attack the ship, I doubt there will be any need to keep someone at the controls at all times on the ground. And with Darishun at the cargo bay, we should be able to deter any would-be mobs.As far as Martha is concerned, she is the engineer, and I want to keep the engines running throughout the entire exercise. Thus, I feel it is best she stay in engineering.

With a slight look of surprise, which is somewhat amusing in such a large face, Darishun responds, "Marcus, I was not suggesting that I should be the first to meet the folks. I was just trying to make sure that I understood where everyone would be. I agree entirely that I would be most helpful if I remained at the cargo bay entrance."

-----​

After the meeting, Martha makes whatever preparations she feels are needed as far as equipment goes, double-checking everything to make sure the crew can more readily respond to any untoward threat. She also runs a Level One diagnostic on the ship’s anti-hijacking system, making sure its implementation is running properly in case one of the locals gets the bright idea of trying to take over the Bray Keavan.

 

[Shadowdancer]

The holiday group spends the day making its final arrangements for its trip to KGL.

-----​

Ian arranges for an ID for Saro. Saro now has identification that claims he is Mark Riddleston.

-----​

Vasilii sets up an account for Saro (under the name Mark Riddleston).

Vasilii also works to find the various items on the shopping list. He finds a combat knife, a throwing knife, one pair of binoculars, and four sets of night vision goggles for Swann, and an autopistol with ammunition for Saro. (6,400 BP from main account).

Finding the molecular (chemical) analyzer is considerably more frustrating, and doing so consumes a considerable amount of time. Ultimately, Saro finds a used TL-13 molecular analyzer first by working through the Bromlian doctors (1,1000 BP from the main account).

Vasilii arranges for the rental of a Reilley Motors Amadel (a mid-level, mid-sized wheeled car) in Nielsen, the Bromlian town just on this side of the border. The rental for a week will be 700 BP.

-----​

Swann spends another day doing research. The research on the public health facilities is pretty easy, and he finds one clinic in Judithan and three in Kingan. None have warehouses nearby. Breaking into their computer networks is fairly easy for the ex-Belter, and Swann looks around their networks. All have computerized drug inventory lists. Swann shows the lists to Saro who concludes that there doesn’t seem to be anything that screams "AHV Vaccine" on the lists.

Finding work schedules for the plants is also pretty easy. The main workday is from 8 am to 6 pm with cleaning crews working until 9 pm or so. There appears to only be a single shift at each facility at this point. Each facility lists two guards (from a local security firm) on duty at all times.

Swann now has maps (downloaded onto his handcomp and laptop) for Judithan, Kingan, and the border area.

-----​

The team loads their gear and weapons in the trunk of the air raft, and then heads to join the rest of the crew for one last dinner together, and to go over their plans one last time.

-----​

​

​

"Mark Riddleston, Has a nice ring to it," Saro says when Ian gives him his fake ID. "Now I only have to keep in mind everyone else’s identities. It wouldn't do to call you by your real names when we are in KGL.

"I agree that we should head to Kingan first and from there plan our next move. We can drive around and see the public health clinics and offices, any other outpatient clinics that might have vaccines, hospital, and the manufacturing plant. Before that little intelligence, I feel our best bet to begin is the plant, but we can decide when we are over the border. Perhaps the next order of business, once we decide we have everything we need, is to decide on a spot to cross the border."

Vasilii suggests that the items of interest Swann uncovered about the far trader Sanford be forwarded to the Marquis’ staff with the crews’ suspicions. "The ship would have had to go through inspection just like the Bray Keaven did. They should have kept records of the ship’s registry, cargo, and such. Surely the IISS or Navy could track down the trader in question and interview the crew.

"Also, if the far trader in question has ever carried passengers then TAS might have a record of the ship’s registry."

-----​

Items that Saro will carry on his person:

Personal communicator
Handcomp
Autopistol with two clips of ammunition
Fake ID
Weapons permit(s)
Bank account card
Filter mask
Some Bromlian Pounds in tender
A small medical bag with four doses of the antivirals, two doses Medical Drug, two doses Medical Slow Drug, two doses Broad Spectrum Antitoxin Drug, anti-inflammatories, analgesics (Vial with pills, disposable sterile scalpel blades, scalpel handle, silk sutures, gauze, gauze tape, syringes, small scissors, small forceps, sterilizing solution, two pairs of disposable sterile gloves, and a razor

Packed on the vehicle:

Analyzer
Baliset
Complete med kit with supplies
Spare clothes
20 doses of antivirals
Extra medical supplies (extra blades, sutures, gauze, etc)
Broad Spectrum Antitoxin (TL12) (20 doses)
Fast Drug (10 doses)
Fast Drug Antidote (10 doses)
Medical Slow Drug (50 doses)
Inertial locator
Binoculars
5,000 Imperial credits in tender
Laptop computer

-----​

Items that Vasilii will carry on his person:

Personal communicator
Body pistol (tucked in small of back) from Captain’s safe with magazines and ammo
Dagger (tucked in left boot)
Fake ID
Credit chit for fake ID and for general account
250 Imperial credits in currency

Packed on the vehicle:

Flak jacket
Snub pistol with magazines of tranq ammo
Food and water for three days
Clothes for a week, to include two nice suits

-----​

Items that Swann will carry on his person:

Local clothing (from military)
Fake ID
Weapons permit(s)
Bank account card
Body pistol with two spare clips in shoulder holster beneath clothing
Filter mask
150 in local currency
Knife in right boot
Throwing knife inside belt at small of the back
Personal communicator
Handcomp

Packed on the vehicle:


Extra clothing, include one outfit of basic black for sneaking around at night
Low-light goggles
Binoculars
Laptop computer — once they pick up the rental car, this will be in the
passenger compartment with Swann
Three spare clips for body pistol
Snub pistol with six clips tranq ammo
Auto pistol with six clips
SMG with six clips
Flak jacket
Two lock pick sets

He also takes some tools from the ship that might come in handy, especially ones which would be needed for bypassing/disabling an electronic lock or security system.

Martha tells him he can take any tools he needs, just so long as they don’t come from her "special" toolbox.

Swann also makes copies of any "hacking" software or programs he thinks he will need. They are on separate disks/storage units. They are locked/encrypted, with phony file names such as Projected Sales for Next Quarter and Prospective Clients -- things a businessman would have on a trip, but wouldn't want the competition to get its hands on. He also has copies of all the info he found on their targets on another disk. Maps are on the laptop and the hand comp.

-----​

Items that Ian will carry on his person:

Local clothing
Weapon permits
Handcomp
Long range communicator
Stun gun
InvisiKnife in left boot
Short range communicator
Fake ID and papers
Credit chit for fake ID
100 Imperial credits in currency
500 BP in currency
Filter mask

Packed on the vehicle:

Combat snub pistol from the ship’s locker with two clips of AP ammo
Gauss pistol and four clips of ammo
Combat environment suit
Reflec armor
Light intensifier goggles
Changes of clothes

 

[Shadowdancer]

Chapter XXVII​

Date: 122-993 and 123-993
Place: Groves Airport outside Lowford, in Bromley, on Alief

The evening before the crew splits up, Argent notifies the Marquis of events and plans to date in general terms. He does mention the Sanford to the Marquis, who promises to look into the far trader.

The Marquis reports that the other medical teams have basically duplicated the detection assay that Saro has done but really haven’t gotten much further other than to conclude that AHV seems highly unlikely to be a natural mutation of the rabbit hemmorhagic virus.

In the morning, Ian, Swann, Vasilii, and Saro set out on their adventure holiday. Rather than flying the air raft the 1,200 or so kilometers to the border, Ian arranges for the air raft to catch a military cargo plane returning to its base a few hundred klicks from Nielsen.

After arriving at the airbase, the four fly their air raft to Nielsen where they leave it with one of Col. Rundell’s contacts, pick up their Reilley Motors Amadel, and load it up. As the group starts to transfer equipment from the air raft to the Amadel, Swann offers to pack any "sensitive" material so it will be less likely to be discovered. "I’ve had some experience with this sort of thing," he says, offering no further explanation. He hides the more conspicuous items — weapons, personal armor, the analyzer, the night–vision goggles — the best he can beneath and inside their other gear and clothing.

Climbing inside the car, they head out driving on BR 35 towards the border with King George’s Land and Kingan. "Not a bad ride at all," Saro says. "For some reason I find wheeled vehicles reassuring. Give me some tires solidly planted on the road and I’m happy."

Saro turns on the tuner on the car and searches around for a nice music station appropriate for driving. He decides on a bluesy fusion station and he starts belting it out over the music, oblivious to the fact that he doesn’t speak the language of the song. "Hugha dion thre mea whaahh!! Yeah!!" he sings, head bobbing. The others roll their eyes or suppress laughs.

Approaching the border crossing, the quartet sees that there is a small line of vehicles waiting to enter King George’s Land. After just entering the tail of the queue, the four notice that the occupants of the vehicle at the front seem to be questioned and then lead off to a small building while their vehicle is searched. After about 5 minutes, the occupants return with their right hand over the insides of their left arm opposite the elbow.

"Well, gentlemen, it seems like we are about to be inoculated," Saro says. "If anyone has an opportunity to swipe a vial of whatever they are using without attracting notice it might prove to be very useful. Another thing, maybe someone else should talk to them instead of me. I am not very good at, um, lying, so how about we keep our story simple. We are businessmen who come looking for investment opportunities. Nothing in particular. That’s basically what we had agreed on, right?"

The others agree, and Vasilii says he will act as the group’s spokesman since he is a Merchant and used to dealing with people.

As they get to the front of the line, a skinny KGL border guard approaches the driver’s side of the Amadel and indicates that Saro should roll down his window. Gesturing to the building, he says, "All of you, please step out of the vehicle and proceed to door No. 1 while we inspect your vehicle."

Upon entering door No. 2, the quartet is met by a bookish–looking border guard with a hawkish nose and thick glasses, and a nurse in a smock. The bookish guard looks them over and says, "Please hand me your papers." While glancing at the papers, he continues, "So, what brings you to King George's Land?"

Saro looks around and waits a second to see if somebody else answers the question. He hands over his papers, smiles, and says simply: "Business, we hope."

Vasilii pulls down his facemask and smiles at the border guard with an open expression. "My name is Vasilii Matahara, and I am a broker for off-world trading concerns who are currently petitioning the Imperial government for trade access to Alief. With me is my assistant," Vasilii points to Saro, "Mark Riddleston, and my company security team" he says as he waves vaguely toward Ian and Swann. Ian nods when Vasilii waves his way. Swann looks bored and unconcerned, but alert, like a good security team member would.

"I’m here on a fact-finding tour to register possible sources of trade opportunities with Alief," Vasilii continues, turning back to the guard. "My company feels that if we can establish profitable trade opportunities that the Imperial government may issue us an exemption to the current quarantine.

"We were able to book passage on a trader that was carrying relief supplies. Those countries that are afflicted by the plague are not in any position to deal with us, however, so we came here because you’ve been very fortunate to be spared. So, we loaded up all our gear and headed here to your country.

"Perhaps you can tell me if you know of anything that your country is known for? Artwork, minerals, tools, machinery, all these items have worth on other worlds and could be a stepping stone to establishing normal trade relations. I’ve heard that your country produces a drink that is considered quite popular. That could be a very nice ‘fad’ item on other worlds."

After hearing Vasilii’s smooth spiel and trade overtures, the bookish border guard looks up, his boredom replaced with a surprised, but pleased look. "Off world? Really? That’s great! We’ve really been trying to get more off-worlders to make their way through the blockade to set up some legitimate trade. I know that since the Sanford made it through, everyone has been really hopeful that other traders would come through.

"Hmmm, your papers seem to be in order. I’m surprised that you managed to get weapons permits: they’re hard to obtain. I would suggest that your security team keep them out of sight, though. King George's Land is a safe country, and people get nervous when they see people who aren’t the police with weapons."

Once Vasilii finishes he steps back and lets the others hand over their papers. He glances out the window to see how the vehicle inspection process is going, then rubs his lower back as if the long ride has made him sore.

Ian and Swann present their papers in a professional manner. During the process they stay alert, observing the layout of the office, and the actions of the officials.

Outside, the guards seem to have finished inspecting the trunk of the Amadel. One of them comes inside, walks over to the bookish guard, and whispers in his ear. At the same time, Swann notices that four other guards have wandered to the area between door No. 2 and the Amadel. Swann catches Ian’s eye; with a series of glances and slight nods, they indicate which guards each will try to take out. They also surreptitiously move hands closer to their weapons.

The bookish guard says to his co–worker, "It’s OK, they have permits." The whispering border guard looks surprised and skeptical, glances up to take in the quartet, and then goes back outside. After a moment, Saro lets out a breath when the guards disperse.

"Sorry about that, your security team’s weapons alarmed the inspectors a bit," the bookish guard says to Vasilii. "Anyway, I’m afraid that I can’t help you with trade opportunities much, but I can give you this brochure from the Trade Commission. They printed these up just in case, but I’ve never been able to give one to an off-worlder before." He reaches under the counter to get a brochure, finds the top one covered with dust, and then hands the one below it to Vasilii.

The Vilani Merchant opens the brochure and scans the contents, looking quickly to see if there is a point of contact. He looks up and says, "Thank you, this will be very helpful. I appreciate your assistance and will be sure to mention your helpfulness to the Trade Commission." He hands the brochure to Saro and brushes off his hands.

"Yes, my company was most thorough preparing for this trip," Vasilii continues. "I promise you that my security will be most discreet," he looks significantly at Ian and Swann, "so please don’t worry about us upsetting the members of your fine country." Ian nods once to acknowledge the statement.

"Ah, one more thing," the guard says. "We do have to get blood samples from you just to check to see if you have that virus. We haven’t found anyone with it yet, but headquarters is insisting that we check everyone coming through."

He motions to the nurse who comes over with a small tray. The nurse quickly draws blood from the four into test tubes, with Vasilii going last. After drawing the blood, she takes a syringe, withdraws a small quantity of liquid from a vial, and then injects a portion into each test tube. After a minute, she shakes each tube, looks satisfied at the apparent lack of change in the blood, and then nods to the bookish guard.

"Ah, I knew it. You’re fine. I heard that we’ve got doctors working hard on a vaccine for this plague. Nasty stuff, I’m just glad that they were able to find a test to detect it so quickly. Anyway, welcome to King George’s Land."

Rubbing his arm where the blood was drawn, Vasilii smiles and nods to the guard. "Well Sir, unless you have anything else, we’ll be on our way."

Trying not to breathe a sigh of relief, the adventure holiday crew of the Bray Keaven returns to the Amadel. Vasilii gets in back opposite the driver, with Swann sitting behind the driver and Ian riding shotgun. When everyone is in, Saro drives the Amadel towards Kingan with a wide smile on his face. "Good job, Vasilii," he says. "That was smooth."

"Yes, very smooth," Ian adds. "Good job."

Vasilii turns to Saro. "Doctor, I admit that I’m not medically trained, but something there puzzled me. Isn’t it odd that KGL has developed a definitive, easy test to determine exposure so quickly when they haven’t been afflicted by it to any significant degree? I don't remember hearing anything about that in Bromley or from the Marquis’ report. Would that test help in any way to develop a vaccine? At the very least such a test would be a quick way to help contain the spread of the plague, exactly like KGL is doing now."

"Well, there are two main approaches to quick diagnostic tests like that," Saro says. "One is genetic testing, a version of which we already developed and is being used back in camp. To do this you need to know at least a section of the unique genetic makeup of the virus. The second is immunoassays, which requires that an organism with an immunologic system survive an infection.

"Either way, if they developed the test they have more information than they are letting on. A likely event is that, since they apparently got the virus from an off-world source or at least off-world scientists, they got the diagnostic test and the vaccine at the same time.

"Unfortunately, that test wouldn’t put us any closer to a vaccine than we already are, and we have our own quick diagnostic test. We know the whole genetic sequence of AHV, and antibodies used in immunoassays are no good for a vaccine. I guess it could be used as evidence or for comparison. It might still be worth getting a vial given the opportunity."

Vasilii ponders, and tries to remember the size and layout of the guard offices. "Did anyone see if there was a medical storage area located there? If not, I’ll assume that the test supplies would be transported there on a regular basis. Perhaps we should add that to our ‘shopping list’?"

He leans back and closes his eyes, letting Saro drive. "I wouldn’t be surprised if that guard lets someone in his chain of command know that we are in the country, given the interest he showed at my off-world origins. Perhaps we should head to the nearest population center and establish quarters. Then we can pursue an inspection of the soda factory as a ‘trade opportunity.’ Seems that the easiest way to get inside is for them to invite us, no?"

"Sounds like a good plan to me," Ian agrees.

"I like the way you think," Saro says. "It would definitely be nice to stop somewhere and eat, too. I am all for getting rooms and then trying to get an invitation to the factory. It might be difficult to get what we need while getting the tour, but we could check out the layout and make an appropriate plan for coming back if needs be. We could probably just stay in any business type hotel in Kingan."

Swann listens to the others talk. The Doctor’s comment about eating makes him realize how hungry he is. "Yeah, I think lunch should be the next item on our agenda, then we can find a good hotel in Kingan to use as a base of operations. A guided tour of the soft drink bottling plant would be a great way to get a feel for the layout."

Pulling out his hand comp, he consults his notes. "Hmmm. We could also try locating these three community clinics, see if any of them appear to be likely candidates for a late-night visit."

Scrolling through the information on Alief, Swann spots an entry that jogs his memory. "Doc, this planet has millions of Vargr on it. Maybe we can find someplace in Kingan that serves Vargr cuisine. I could really go for some fresh meat. Who knows, maybe they’ll let you sing some of those power ballads for your supper."

Vasilii shudders at the thought of trying to eat while listening to Vargr power ballads.

 

[Shadowdancer]

Chapter XXVIII​

Date: 123-993​

Place: Groves Airport outside Lowford, in Bromley, on Alief

Early morning finds the rescue team — Argent, Vargas, Martha, and Darishun — making final preparations for attempting their first two rescue pickups from within Medway.​

As the team is going over their procedures, Darishun again comments to Marcus, "As much as she likes to watch over her babies, I believe that the Bray Keaven’s engines do not require Martha’s presence to be running. Perhaps it would be wisest to have her on the bridge in case we need to depart in a hurry since you and Emile will need to be decontaminated before you can go to the bridge and we can take off, and that process takes 10 to 20 minutes if we follow Saro’s procedure."​

Marcus agrees with Darishun on this point. Martha will manage the bridge while he and Vargas are on EVA.​

Lt. Col. Billings reports that both the Alpha and Bravo rescue groups have been notified and are awaiting pickup. Bravo group was apparently quite insistent that they are rescued first, but they were told to wait for the afternoon pickup.​

-----​

After the holiday team departs and the rescue team finishes its final preparations, the Bray Keaven lifts off headed towards Medway. As the Bray Keaven approaches Medway, Marcus and Emile can spot a number of burned–out husks of vehicles that were destroyed trying to cross the quarantine zone. Closer to the city, they see a fair amount of devastation in the city itself. Vehicles and corpses litter the roadways.​

-----​

Five minutes from Claim Alpha site, Marcus contacts the inhabitants via their wireless phone system.​

"Hello? Is this the Bray Keaven? I’m Paul Hutch."​

"Yes, I am Marcus Argent, captain of the Bray Keaven. We’re 5 minutes out from your house. When we land, we will bring you three biohazard suits to wear. Please stay in your house until we arrive. We’ll bring the biohazard suits inside, let you put them on, and then we’ll escort you to the ship."​

"Understood. Please bring a child’s suit for Emily, if you have one."​

"I don’t think that we have any children’s suits, but we’ll bring the smallest one we have."​

"Thanks. Thank you again so much for coming to get us."​

"You’re welcome. Bray Keaven out."​

-----​

Claim Alpha is in a house in one of the middle–class suburbs of the city. The houses are squat, one–story affairs made of fired clay bricks or cut stone. Marcus finds the appropriate house without trouble and gingerly sets down the Bray Keaven in the middle of the street, managing to miss almost all of the nearby vegetation (though there is no one to protest if he had squashed any). Unbuckling themselves, Marcus and Emile then proceed to the port cargo lock, where they don their Bromlian biohazard suits and join Darishun in the cargo bay. Martha takes up position on the bridge.​

Once Marcus and Emile indicate that they are ready, Darishun opens the rear cargo hatch, and the pair head towards the house with three biohazard suits in hand. Darishun descends to stand at the base of the cargo ramp and awaits their return.​

-----​

Marcus and Emile approach the house’s door and press the doorbell. A muffled voice says, "Please enter, the door is now unlocked." The ex-Scouts open the door and enter a small room, the apparent equivalent of an airlock to help keep the ever–present dust out of the house proper (common in buildings in Alief).​

Once the outside door closes, the inside door opens, and a thin, somewhat scared–looking, sandy–haired man peers out and beckons the two in. "Thank you so much for coming to get us! Please, come in. We’re ready to go. This is Martha and my sweetie, Emily, is hiding behind her."​

Marcus replies, "You’re welcome. Come on, please put these suits on, we want to depart as quickly as we can."​

The family quickly puts on the biohazard suits. The girl appears about 9 years old, and seems to have a few healing sores and bruises on her body. She seems scared and is reluctant to let go of her stuffed rabbit. "Please daddy? May I take Smoochie with me?"​

-----​

Back on the Bray Keaven, Martha, who is listening over Argent and Vargas’ open suit mics, asks who Smoochie is. "A family pet?" Vargas explains it’s a toy. Martha smiles and recommends that they place Smoochie in plastic bag. "If the girl balks at that, tell her it’s a biohazard suit for the rabbit. That will make it easier for her to accept."​

"An excellent suggestion," Vargas says. "Except we didn’t bring any plastic bags with us. Ma’am," he says, turning to Emily’s mother, "do you have any plastic bags that can be sealed?"​

"Don’t use their bags — contamination," Martha tells him over the comm link. "In that case, I’d recommend that we leave the doll. Besides, we don’t have time to mess with it. It looks like the locals are stirring."​

Martha has been monitoring various screens showing images of the neighborhood captured by the ship’s external cameras. Outside several of the surrounding houses, people are emerging, attracted by the sound of the starship’s landing. Three men gather to the rear of the ship, about two blocks away. Others further away start to walk toward where the men are talking, pointing and gesturing at the ship.​

-----​

"Darishun’s in a suit and we can bag Smoochie when we get into the cargo bay, which is also considered contaminated," Argent reminds Martha over the comms as he turns to the family. "We need to go, now."​

With the family suited, the five exit the house. They see Darishun scanning the area from the foot of the rear cargo ramp and warily watching the small crowd of 10 to 15 people that has formed about 100m down the street. The crowd is starting to move towards the Bray Keaven.​

-----​

Martha tries to train the ship's laser on the street immediately in front of the crowd, and over the loud speakers/external comm, she announces at a volume that the approaching crowd can hear, "Captain, the ship's laser has been set to maintain an automated defense perimeter of 80m. Sensors indicate an approaching force of unknown purpose, which will shortly trigger the defenses. None have attempted contact as yet; I recommend that they be considered hostile. What are your orders?"​

Martha then switches to her comm link with the suited crewmembers. "Dunno how long the trigger–finger attitude will keep them at bay, but you better hurry, Captain. They may stop, elect a leader and try to contact us, or they may just decide to charge the ship. Either way, I’d rather not fire on civilians if I can help it."​

-----​

Emily, who has spotted Darishun and has figured out they are headed toward the large sophont, starts to cry. She pulls away from her father and hides behind her mother, clutching Mrs. Hutch’s legs so she is unable to move.​

-----​

Martha realizes that even though the turrets can be rotated rearward, because of their placement and the shape of the hull, the crowd is already within the "dead" zone where the turrets cannot be brought to bear. She thumbs the personal comms. "Gentlemen, we’ve got company coming, a hundred meters out and closing. Grab our guests and get in here. I’m dustin’ as soon as I get the ‘all clear’ from you guys. Unless someone’s got any better ideas, you’ve got about 15 seconds before the crowd gets too close, less if they decide to start running. That margin is dropping with each step they take. They mean to swarm us, Sir, and I can't say as I blame them. But I don’t want it to happen nonetheless."​

-----​

"Paul, pick up Emily and run, now." Argent gently urges the pair forward as he double-times it to the ship.​

Glancing over their shoulders at the approaching mob, Marcus and Emile hurry their charges into the Bray Keaven via the aft cargo ramp. Seeing Marcus, Emile, and the Hutch family running, the group of people breaks into a run also. At the same time, Darishun advances slightly; his voice — enhanced and filtered through his suit speakers — booms "Please halt! If you approach too quickly, you may harm yourselves!"​

The small crowd stops about 30 meters away and eyes things warily. A man cries out, "Please! Stop! Please take us with you! We aren't sick!"​

Marcus, Emile, and the family make it onboard, and Darishun backs up into the cargo bay. Once the ramp starts shutting, the crowd starts running again. Argent yells "Dust it!" over the comm, and Martha lifts the far trader off the ground just before the first people of the crowd can grab onto the ramp.​

Marcus leaves Emile to introduce the family to Darishun — and reminds him to bag the bunny – then heads immediately for the airlock to get decontaminated. Over the comm, he tells Martha, "Keep us around 300 meters and at a gentle clip until I get up there," he orders. "We’re going to have to rethink our strategy for the next group. I may just kill some statuary on the afternoon run."​

-----​

Following the Captain’s orders, Martha brings the ship up to 300 meters, and starts following the flight plan out of Medway as she awaits his return to the bridge.​

-----​

Emile gets the Hutch family settled. They are all watching the Virushi very carefully, but seem very relieved to be on the ship. Darishun places Smoochie in a sealable bag.​

-----​

On the street, the crowd gathers where the Bray Keaven once was, arms stretched to the sky and crying, "Please! Come back! We aren’t sick! Please take us with you!"​

-----​

Darishun asks, "Should we bring the people on the street with us? Perhaps they haven’t been infected yet. Maybe they are part of the list of people who want to be rescued and haven’t been infected?"​

-----​

Martha checks the list of people to rescue, and there are no people claiming to be uninfected and requesting rescue on this street other than the Hutch family.​

-----​

Vargas rises from beside the Hutch family and turns away slightly before speaking into his comm. "I hate to say it folks, but unless we have a handle on who’s boarding, I wouldn’t advise picking up strays. It could get out of hand quickly."​

-----​

Still inside the decom station, Marcus heads to a comm unit. Flipping the ship’s external speakers on, he grabs a mic."Listen, people. We can only pick up those people whom the government has identified," he says. "You must contact your local authorities to request pickup. We can’t risk contamination outside the perimeter if one of you is infected and doesn’t know it yet."​

After completing the decontamination process, Argent moves to the bridge and slips into the pilot’s chair. "OK, Martha, I have it now. Thanks." Marcus sets a course for suborbital decontamination of the ship, and he comms Emile to come to the bridge once the passengers are comfortable with Darishun and he passes through the decom station.​

-----​

"Roger that," replies Vargas. "I’ll see you folks later," he says to the Hutch family. "Thanks for flying Keaven Air." The former scout heads for decom and then checks to make sure Rusti is OK on his way to the bridge.​

 

[vutpakdi]

The GM and the person playing Doc Saro are the ones who get all the credit for the medical details. I don't know if those people have medical backgrounds, or just really good Google skills. I am often amazed at the level of detail for some of the subjects that come up in our campaign, from both our GM and from the players.

Roberto, who was playing Doc Saro at the time, provided the medical details. Roberto is a doctor, so he gets all of the credit. I can't claim any more than some filtering and regurgitating skills.

Ron

 

[Shadowdancer]

Chapter XXIX​

Date: 123-993
Place: Medway, Bromley, Alief

Leaving the group of 12 Bromlians staring forlornly at the sky, the Bray Keaven starts its decontamination and then heads for the reception station just inside the quarantine zone once the external and cargo hold decontamination is complete.

When the far trader lands, Bromlian military personnel in biohazard gear enter the Bray Keaven through the decom airlock and escort the Hutch family off the ship. The Hutch family appears very grateful though a little apprehensive at what is going to happen to them. They thank Darishun — and Marcus and Emile and Martha — profusely though they can’t see anyone other than Darishun.

After a break to spray down the insides of the cargo hold and grab some lunch, the Bray Keaven is off on the next pickup: a group of 10 who are holed up in a mansion in the Heights Quarter, a rich enclave near the center of the capital.

-----​

Approaching the center of town, Marcus and Emile see that this area of Medway is quite green. Water is quite precious on this dry world, and to have such a display of greenery speaks of a wide income disparity. On the other hand, like the rest of Medway, a number of wreaked vehicles and houses abound throughout the enclave.

Contacting the mansion where the group is holed up proves to be . . . interesting.

"Hello? I am Marcus Argent, captain of the Bray Keaven. We are here to pick
y--- "

"About damn time that you got here! We should have been picked up weeks ago. Do you know who I am?"

"Sir? My manifest says Gordon McClendon and party of 9. If you will . . . "

"Damn right I am. Now, I expect you to land outside the mansion grounds and send a vehicle to pick us up. You do have an air raft, don’t you?"

"Sir, yes we do, but the air raft is in use right now. As I was about to say . . . "

"Look here. I can make life really miserable for you if I want. You will recall your air raft and pick us up properly, and not damage any of the estate’s grounds. Do I make myself clear?"

"Sir, that is not . . . "

The exchange continues in the same vein for several minutes, after which the Bray Keaven is directly over the mansion. Rather than continue the argument, Marcus hands the controls over to Emile, heads to the starboard turret, and proceeds to clear out a landing zone with the lasers.

Being a life–long field Scout, Vargas finds he likes Argent’s approach to the situation; it’s direct and efficient. It might just teach McClendon that he’s not the boss in every situation, no matter his social standing, but Emile wouldn’t bank on it. "Nicely done, Argent," is his only spoken remark before he begins to bring the ship down. He sets the Bray Keaven down in the wreckage of some trees and statuary.

"Oh well, there goes the lawn I guess," says the former Scout as he runs the post flight check sequence.

-----​

Martha says little, but is frustrated by McClendon’s constant demands. She smiles when the Captain decides to take matters into his own hands, and nods approvingly as she steps onto the bridge. She watches her sensor arrays, and prepares for immediate dust-off, if requested.

Marcus and Emile suit up, and enter the cargo hold with Darishun. On the bridge, Martha is still trying to deal with an irate Gordon McClendon, who is now sputtering about suing for damages.

Despite her lack of training in the diplomatic arts, Martha tries to keep calm as she reports that their orders come directly from his local government, and that he should be directing his objections to the local authorities.

Since he doesn’t, she begins modulating her microphone up and down over the narrow range of commlink frequencies he’s on. She raises her voice over the resultant squelches and squawks. "Sir, sir, what's that, sir?" Static hisses. "You’re breaking up! You’re breaking . . . " Static hisses. " . . . ust be solar flares! The person you really should speak to is . . . " and then disconnects.

She then begins intermittently jamming his comm frequencies, while reporting on the personal comm link to the others with a grin. "Mister Connections appears to be having technical issues with his comm unit. Captain, I would like to ask if you could inform him of the recent solar flare activity today, and how it might be impacting his antiquated technologies." With a soft chuckle, she continues to monitor the situation.

"Change of plans, gentlemen," Marcus announces as he reaches the cargo hold. "Emile, stay here at the cargo bay. Darishun, my friend, you’re with me. Look big and intimidating." He smiles mischievously at Darishun as he heads for the mansion’s front door, his hand resting casually on his pistol.

"Aww, and I got all dressed up and everything. More seriously, you want me to arm up Argent?" asks Vargas.

"Just a sidearm, I think, Emile," he answered. "As much as this jerk needs a lesson in humility, I don’t think he’ll put up much resistance."

"Roger that."

"Big and intimidating? I suppose I could try to appear big and intimidating, but wouldn’t that be a stretch for me?" Darishun replies with a low sonic rumbling rather reminiscent of a mild earthquake and a rather alarming smile. Darishun then grabs four biohazard suits (ah, the advantages of four arms) and then follows Marcus down the cargo ramp.

"Have fun you two," Vargas says as they leave.

-----​

As Darishun and Marcus get to the bottom of the ramp, they notice a couple of decomposing bodies at the foot of the ramp. It’s hard to tell given the decomposition, but it appears that a high–power slug thrower of some sort, possibly automatic has hit the bodies.

As Marcus and Darishun briefly examine the bodies, a speaker barks, "Halt right there! You human may approach closer, but if that THING steps any closer, we will open fire! Bring the suits to us immediately so we may depart before the scum mobs the far trader! Be snappy about it!"

Darishun, still sounding amused remarks to Marcus, "Are you sure that looking big and intimidating is the right approach? Perhaps if I crouch down a bit, I won’t seem so large."

After a beat, the Virushi more somberly and sadly asks, "Perhaps we should have gone to pick up the other group first? I really would like to help the most people possible, and if these people have recovered from the plague, they could be the key. But, it seems like this could be a little trying."

"Now you listen here!" Marcus yells back at the mansion, his auto pistol instantly in his hand. "Darishun is a valued member of my crew, a top-flight medic, and a bloody pacifist! You either put your damned weapons down, or we will leave your sorry asses here to take your chances!I will not put up with you threatening my crew! He comes, or we both go!"

-----​

In the cargo bay, Vargas smiles a rueful smile while staying out of line of sight of the mansion. "People do crazy things under pressure Argent," he thinks. "I hope you’ll keep that in mind the next time I ask about weapons." Vargas draws his auto pistol, holding it at his side.

-----​

A few beats after Marcus’ threat to just walk away, comes "OK, OK. But if that thing charges, you should know that I’ve hunted beasts larger than he is."

Darishun looks briefly amused, turns to Marcus, mutters, "I think that I’m terrified now," and adds more seriously, "What is it with humans, weapons, and threats?"

"I don’t know, my friend. Sometimes I think that with all of our technology and ‘evolution,’ we’re still only barbarians with guns," Argent replies.

Marcus and Darishun approach the mansion entrance, but no shots are fired, and the outer door opens once they are at the door. When they enter the inner area, the outer door closes, and the inner door opens, revealing a hostile looking man in his 30s. Darishun shakes his head sadly while Marcus commands, "Lower that rifle, or we walk." Warily, he lowers the rifle and goes to join the rest of the inhabitants.

The rest of the pickup actually proceeds as can be expected from the reception. The party of 10 turns out to be Gordon McClendon, his wife, their two adult sons and daughters–in–law, and four servants. The servants look very relieved, possibly because the possibility of escape from being confined with McClendon and his family.

Gordon McClendon and one of his sons are still pretty belligerent, but both seem to mute their belligerence a bit when Darishun decides that he needs to help them into their biohazard suits. In spite of the son’s claim with his rifle, he does seem a little intimidated by the Virushi.

Of course, Gordon McClendon and his family insist on being put into the biohazard suits first and then escorted out. He briefly puts up a protest when told he can’t bring the huge mound of possessions that has been assembled, but then quiets again when Darishun sidles up to him and politely suggests that he get moving.

Darishun escorts the family to the cargo hold and leaves them under Emile’s watchful eye (and his auto pistol) and returns with another four biohazard suits. The servants are much more appreciative and thankful.

Once everyone is on board and the rear cargo ramp is sealed, Martha lifts the Bray Keaven off to hover above the mansion until Marcus and Emile can complete their decontamination process. Once completed, Marcus and Emile then return to the bridge and guide the Bray Keaven through an uneventful jaunt to the upper atmosphere and down again. Darishun stays with the group of 10 in the cargo hold and spends the rest of the trip trying to convince Gordon and his sons the wisdom of being polite and finding reasonable, non-violent solutions to situations (a futile effort, but the Virushi’s close presence seems to stifle any protest).

Once the Bray Keaven lands at the reception area and the Bromlian military arrives to escort the group off, Gordon McClendon is back in normal form, protesting gross abuse to his family and property, and loudly threatening lawsuits.

-----​

The crew flies the Bray Keaven to its landing spot at the airport, completes their decontamination of the cargo hold, and performs some normal maintenance before getting dinner in one of the Bromlian military mess halls. After the Marine rations, the fresher cooked local food is delicious to their abused palates.

While they are eating a Bromlian corporal sits down with them and remarks, "There is someone who would like to meet you for a business proposition that could be very much worth your while. If you are curious, please go to the Yellow Dog Cafe in town in an hour and ask for Mr. Zakaria." With that, he gets up and quickly goes to join a group of soldiers at another table.

Marcus looks at Martha, Emile, and Darishun, shaking his head in disbelief. "We just don’t have time for this," he mutters. "What do you all think?"

Between bites of chow, Martha answers, "To be honest, I don’t know even if we can. We go and get caught, we might be asked to leave the planet in violation of some ImpReg or another. I’d hate to see us leave our friends behind because of that."

She pauses to savor another bite. "You know, it’s not legit, or they’d have contacted you officially. Illegit crap will get us kicked out faster than no one’s business, and we don’t need to be on the Imperial blackball list. Bad for business."

She ponders thoughtfully over another bite. " ’Sides, if they need us specifically bad enough, they’ve got ways to make contact, I’m sure. Of course, chances are, if it’s for us in particular, the only people that really know us here are the people we’ve saved, and one of them doesn’t have anything nice to say about us."

She sits her fork down with a clatter. "In fact, he could be trying to set us up." By now, it is obvious Martha’s rambling just a bit. "No, sir, I wouldn’t trust it. That’s what I think about it, anyway." She looks over at Emile.

"I don't know much about business," replies Vargas, "but this guy might know or have something we could use and is just trying to contact us. I say we have someone from the Brom government go with whoever of us talks to this guy, if we send anyone at all. That way, if it’s illegal, we’re clear with the Broms, and have a local as witness. If it’s legit, we just have the local sign a non-disclosure agreement. But like I said, I’m not a businessman."

Darishun pauses while eating his fifth helping of a large bowl of salad and comments, "It seems odd that a legitimate businessman would choose to contact us in such an odd fashion. One would think that he could have just as easily commed us with a dinner invitation.

"In any case, I think that we should do whatever we can to help the people most in need. I do not think that a business venture qualifies as being helpful to people in need."

"That’s why I don’t think the offer’s legit, and since we didn’t get any info,’ Martha says, turning her head toward Emile, "I don’t think it’s about helping the locals, Emile. Then again, it may be about helping a few of them, at least to get ahead of the rest in a financial sense. Could even be looking for a way offworld. I’m not opposed to such business, so long as no one gets hurt, but not on a quarantine planet that’s been interdicted and is being actively patrolled." Martha gestures toward the ceiling, indicating the High Guard stationed above the planet, with her fork. "Too many eyes are watching, you know. Not a good risk."

"I’m inclined to agree," Argents relies between bites of food. "A side trip serves no purpose at the moment. If this guy is desperate to meet us, then he’ll probably try to contact us later."

Marcus shovels another bite of army chow into his mouth and pauses thoughtfully for a moment. "I am curious, however, about who this mystery contact is," he adds. "I wonder if the Bromlians would be willing to send someone to scope the place out and see who, if anyone, shows up."

The crew decides to pass on the mysterious dinner invitation. Marcus does inform Lt. Col. Billings about the incident. He agrees that it sounds rather odd, but declines to send anyone to investigate since the military is stretch pretty thin just keeping the quarantine in place and taking care of the refugees, which is part of the reason the Bray Keaven crew is being paid to undertake rescues.

A little while later, Dr. Hays comms to inform the crew about the first groups of evacuees. The Hutch family did have the Rabbit Hemorrhagic Virus (and recovered), but show no signs of AHV. The McClendon family and servants show no signs of any viral infection (of any sort). The bad attitude is deemed to be genetic. Since the family is being as charming as ever, Dr. Hays is considering keeping the family quarantined for a week for extensive and extremely invasive tests.

 

[Shadowdancer]

Chapter XXX​

Date: 123-993
Place: Kingan, King George's Land, Alief

As Saro drives the Amadel towards Kingan, he notes that such a fast–acting — and quickly–developed — viral blood test (if that was what it was) is something that only becomes available at TL-9 or 10. He observes that the Bromlian researchers have been working around the clock with their TL-8 equipment, and they haven’t developed a test that works quite as quickly as the nurse apparently expected a reaction, if the crew was carrying the virus.

Vasilii looks over the brochure the border guard gave him. It appears to be about five years out of date and touts King George’s Land as a powerful nation on Alief with ready access to water. Natural resources appear to be various types of minerals, and the brochure does brag about KGL ATVs (armed and not armed). There is contact information for a trade ministry in the capital.

-----​

Saro sees a sign for a hotel, the McClure Kingan, which appears to be just inside the Kingan city limits. Since the McClure seems to be a decent looking place from the outside, he turns into the parking lot. The travellers then inquire about rooms, which are available.

Vasilii gives the desk attendant his fake name, stating that he would like a suite capable of housing his party for a local week. He is firm in what he wants, and says cost isn’t an issue for the suite.

While waiting to check in, Saro asks about a decent place for Milorilk or Riquidish cuisine and is directed to Corshhi’s Cafe which apparently also features live Vargr power ballads on the weekends, much to Vasilii's delight (it’s not the weekend yet) and horror (they could be here that long).

Vasilii is able to get a two–bedroom suite for the group. One room has two double beds and one room has a single king–sized bed. The central room has a couch with a fold–out bed. Vasilii takes the king–sized bed, claiming it is in keeping with their cover story. Swann takes the fold–out. He says that will allow him to do some late-night computer searching if the mood strikes him without disturbing anyone else. He’s also heard that Ian snores worse than Darishun. The room is pretty pricey in local terms: 1000 KGL Pounds per night. There are 1.5 KGL Pounds per Bromlian Pound. Vasilii makes a note to keep all the receipts, hoping to get the Marquis’ staff to reimburse them if they succeed.

-----​

Since they have some time (and Kingan isn’t that large), the "businessmen" decide to take a little tour around Kingan.

The bottling plant appears to be a squat, somewhat squarish looking place on the northern outskirts of town. The facility is decent sized, but not terribly big.

The first two clinics are in towards the center of town on the east and west sides, respectively. One is located next to a police station, while the other is located in a shopping mall. The third clinic is a small affair located in the far western suburb in a little strip shopping center.

-----​

After the little tour, the four pull into the parking lot for Corshhi’s which turns out to be a small hole–in–the–wall–type place. The cafe is relatively narrow, and a microphone and speaker are set up in one corner. An elderly Vargr welcomes them and seats the group in the middle of the restaurant. There is a Vargr couple in the far corner of the restaurant, but no other patrons.

Swann tries to find a wireless access point for his laptop, but there doesn't appear to be one within range. A hotel room placard did give information on how to access their wireless network, so he decides to do some research after dinner.

After ordering non-alcoholic drinks and dinner Vasilii waits until the restaurant becomes more active, then leans forward. "My story got us over the border, but it won’t last too long. All anyone has to do is check with the trade ministry to find that we haven’t checked in with them for all of this to unravel. We should consider what our next move should be.

"In my opinion, we can either try to bluff the soda factory directly into giving us a tour or we can try to work it through the trade ministry. If there is a secret government project going on there, the odds of us getting a tour through the ministry are slim. The only way is if its a secret within the government itself, sort of what I’ve heard described as a 'black' program."

"Well, I don’t know how much information they actually share," Saro says. "Another thing is that I’m not sure everyone looking for business opportunities has to check in with the trade commission. Sometimes those organizations are there to promote and not necessarily in a regulatory capacity. We are ‘just looking’ after all. We are not going to ‘invest’ just yet."

Turning to the doctor, Vasilii asks, "Mark, do you have the names of the people locally who were hospitalized with the disease. I have an idea, and would like to follow up on it."

"I think I have it here somewhere." Saro looks in his handcomp.

Swann says, "I believe I have that information." He checks his handcomp. "Yeah, here it is. Mark Laird. I have his address, too. But he lives in Judithan."

"My theory is that if the people got sick, it would have been because they didn’t drink the sodas that the government gave away," Vasilii says. "Possibly friends or relatives would know if the people didn’t like King Cola, or couldn’t drink it because of some idiosyncratic/dietary reason like diabetes. Who knows, if we get really lucky we might even find a spare can of the soda stashed away in a pantry somewhere."

"We could check with them for more than those reasons too, although vaccines aren’t always effective, and sometimes the vaccine itself will make someone sick," Saro says. "You do bring up something interesting. If we presume that they are still producing soda with the vaccine, which is why we are going to the plant, then soda of the shelf has a chance of having the vaccine. Now, after dinner we could get six-packs from different stores around town and I’ll try to analyze them tonight."

Swann says, "My interpretation of the information we gathered was that the vaccine was put in special cases of the soft drink which were given away free. It might not be in sodas that are on the shelf. But we can buy some and check anyway."

"Unless we can get what we need in a day or two and get out of here," Vasilii says, "My suggestion is that we contact the trade ministry and play it through them. It would take them a day or so to get someone here from the capital. Maybe we could ‘innocently’ get a tour of the soda factory before they get here."

"Why don’t we try to learn more about the trade ministry or commission, and what their function is?" Saro asks. "Then we can make a more informed decision."

Ian says, "I don't see a problem with setting up a tour with the coke plant. We should pick up a couple of the drinks produced from the plant, at least so we can talk intelligently about the product with the plant personnel. I like the idea of checking out the trade ministry to see what role they would play in our business inquiries."

Swann says, "I can do a search on the computer once we get back to our suite."

-----​

After a fairly decent dinner, Ian, Vasilii, Saro, and Swann stop at several stores to pick up a few cases of the King Sour drink and then return to their suite at the McClure Kingan.

Vasilii brings everything from the Amadel except his snub pistol, not wanting to tote the weapon through the hotel lobby. "Please remember to be discreet people, we don’t want to be too obvious." Swann, Ian, and Saro bring all of their gear and equipment inside, taking care to hide all the weapons so as not to draw attention.

-----​

After setting up shop, Saro tests his samples of the King Sour drink. The drink is actually pretty tasty: basically a sour fizzy drink with hints of citrus. "Hmmm, this stuff’s not bad," Swann says after taking a sip from a can Saro had already tested. "We should actually pursue trying to export this stuff. We could give Hava-Cola a run for its money."

Saro runs samples of the cases through his analyzer. After a couple of hours of testing, he doesn’t find anything viral or antibody related in the cases that were bought. He looks up and smiles. "It was worth a shot." He then opens up a container and drinks deep. "Yeah, this isn’t bad. Maybe it could become one of those cult drinks on Sentry."

While Saro is testing the sodas, Swann does some more research via the computer. He doesn’t find any new patients in the local or Judithan hospitals who are suffering from symptoms similar to those of AHV. He does some checking into the trade ministry and finds that its function is to promote and regulate trade between King George’s Land and other nations on Alief as well as trade with entities outside of Alief. Apparently, the latter work is highly uncommon (given the embargo), or at least Swann doesn’t find much public mention of any extra-Alief trade.

There doesn’t appear to be a branch of the trade ministry in Kingan or Judithan. There is one in the capital, Dungannon. Registering at the trade ministry probably has to be done in the capital since there isn’t a branch office locally.

The information site does mention the successful trading mission of the Sanford four months ago. The Sanford brought in spare parts for the Crown Prince’s milk formula factory and Hava-Cola concentrate, and departed with samples of ATVs in a deal set up by Adjunct Minister Niles Flanagan. The information site’s announcement states that the ministry hopes that the initial trade will result in regular exchanges of non-military equipment that should be allowed through the blockade of Alief.

"So Mr. Matahara, how many ATVs do we have room for in the cargo hold?" Swann asks Vasilii. "And we could fill them up with cases of King Sour."

Vasilii reads over Swann’s shoulder, nodding his head. "Good, that looks promising. We can work that angle for days, hopefully giving us enough time to get what we need. We might have a problem with extracting ourselves from their over-eager clutches, though. We should give some thought as to why we suddenly need to leave."

"Perhaps we could investigate more on Mr. Flanagan," Saro says. "I’ll bet he has kept a stash of the vaccine for himself and other bigwigs."

After some more searching, Swann finds some information on various ATVs produced by King George’s Land. There are varying sizes, but the most common size is about 8 dTons in displacement — six should fit in the Bray Keaven’s cargo hold.

He also locates some information on Adjunct Minister Niles Flanagan. He lives in one of the suburbs of KGL’s capital.

-----​

While the others are busy in the suite, Ian takes a walk around the property just to check things out. He intends to use this "base line" observation to hopefully help him spot anything suspicious in future observations. The hotel’s security consists of a rent-a-cop type security guard (unarmed) who walks around the grounds every now and again. There is no gate into the parking lot, though the parking lot is well lit. Access into the hotel building is through the lobby and a couple of side entrances which require guest key card access after dark.

-----​

After finishing his tests, Saro pulls out his baliset from the mess in the corner where he keeps his things. He starts strumming softly and singing an old Terran song.

"Oh, the shark has pretty teeth dear
And he shows ’em, pearly white
Just a jack knife has Macheath dear
And he keeps it way out of sight

"When that shark bites with his teeth, dear
Scarlet billows begin to spread
Fancy gloves though has Macheath dear
So there’s never, never a trace of red

"On the sidewalk, one Sunday morning
Lies a body, oozin’ life
Someone’s sneaking ’round the corner
Could that someone be Mack the Knife?

"From a tugboat, on the river going slow
A cement bag is dropping on down
You know that cement is for the weight dear
You can make a large bet Mackie’s back in town"

After the song he puts the baliset away and goes to sleep.

-----​

Swann wedges a chair under the doorknob of the suite’s main entrance, and sleeps with his snub pistol and auto pistol loaded and within easy reach.

 

[Broccli_Head]

Love watching you and your fellow players and their Gunboat Diplomacy. Do you think it's because T20 combat is so deadly that they resort to talking things through first and then intimidation before a shot is fired?