Episode 4.02 ended with the PCs launching from the dead INS Drake.
Now, I’m on to plotting for the next session.
As had been my tendency during this run, I want to start the session with a ‘flashback,’ though this time, I’m shifting to Sae (whose wiki entry really needs to be updated. Making a note to harass the player about that.) I’ve got two intentions here:
- This scene will provide the character with local challenge codes & how to signal his availability so undercover Imperium Intelligence operatives can identify him and reach out. Originally, I was going to do that last week, but realized the player would not remember this when it came up, so I decided to do it immediately before the appropriate scene.
- Second, this scene is intended to set up some future plot elements that will not bear fruit for quite some time. Sae is charged to act as a courier for some information to an ImpIntel guy in the Spinward Marches.
After that’s squared away, we get to the actual session and I’ve currently got this split up in two or maybe three, depending on how one splits up the second one. The first scene involves the PCs arriving on the Crucible station where they are met by a young junior lieutenant (who uses the above-mentioned challenge codes to let Sae know that he’s an ally.) This group has shown their willingness to surrender in the face of legitimate authority, so I’m hoping to use that against them; this lieutenant (and his accompanying marine support) will escort the PCs to a scanning checkpoint where alarms sound and they’re informed they must go through decon due to “Hawken Radiation” (which is a bastardized ‘Hawking radiation’) from exposure to the black hole. Even the marines & the lieutenant must go through decon – this is to put the characters at ease and, to put the players at ease, I’m going to immediately award +1 CP to all characters so they “play along.” While in decon, they’re gassed into unconsciousness.
(Behind the scenes, the scanning checkpoint has detected Abe’s implant which identifies him as a registered psi and since this station commander is conducting illegal experiments on psis, it is decided to capture him. The ImpIntel LT is new to the station and is actually trying to investigate what is actually happening.)
PCs will wake in cells, stripped of their gear and fitted with gear that blocks any cybernetic stuff’s (Aris’ NI Jack and Sae’s arm, ear, and eye.) The ImpIntel LT will escort Sae (and only Sae) to an interrogation booth where the Vargr is to be interrogated by another officer. (ImpIntel LT is going to be elsewhere, eavesdropping on this interrogation by piggybacking onto the signals of Sae’s implants.) In the course of this, Sae learns that Abe has been positively identified as a psi and is being operated on … without anesthesia! ImpIntel LT deactivates the inhibitors on Sae’s implants…
Simultaneously, the other PCs are in their cells – there are two guards outside – and two more guards enter, carrying an alien that none of them know. However, Abe (who is still missing) has interacted with Rolemnarla, a Sparrial who was originally going to be his “Yoda.” Since Rolemnarla is a psi, he’s going to use Emotion Control (or Suggestion, maybe) to enrage the PCs while one of the guards kicks and beats him. And then, the Sparrial will telekinetically open their cells.
What I’m planning is to run both fights – Sae versus the major, the other PCs versus the guards – at the same time. Afterward … afterward, I’m a little unclear about the next step. Probably have ImpIntel LT get Sae back into the cells to assist the other PCs? As to Rolemnarla, he’s a psi so he’s used precog (Star Wars would call it Farseeing) to learn that he needs to be here to potentially aid Abe.
What I really need to figure out is how to end on a cliffhanger…maybe the alarms begin sounding?