(EPs: 0, total: 13; Art: 0, total 12)
Imperial Military Base, Planet Cinnamon.
Private: Jamie McFadden
The civilian invasion began.
Her father visited Jamie in her bunker. “Despite being cut off from family funds, you’ve never been cut from the succession. In fact, you have been booted past Ian in the line. Someday you’ll be a very good leader in our family and help us move towards becoming part of the Mor clan.” Jamie knew that Mor was the noble house most concerned with commerce.
Jamie: “I’d think there’d be more lucrative fairy tales you could chase.”
Dad: “You’re obviously busy.”
Jamie: “There’s lots to do while I hurry up and wait.”
Dad: “Life’s like that sometimes.”
Jamie: “Why was Ian moved in the succession.”
Dad: “Just because it was my opinion and that of those on the council that you would be a better leader and provider.”
Jamie: “How could you have any opinion about my capabilities? This is the first time I’ve been in the Core in years.”
Dad: “Your career has not gone unreported to us.”
Jamie: “Then why did you not answer any of my letters?”
Dad: “How could I be even vaguely certain that you’d read a letter?”
Jamie: “You couldn’t. You’ve never sent one. I’ve sent you and mom letters.”
Dad: “I wasn’t aware you sent any to me; I know the ones your mother has received.”
Jamie: “How did you know I was here?”
Dad: “I’ve been looking for you. Information was relayed to me that you were on Space Station Delta.”
Jamie: “I’d like specifics. There are at least three groups trying to kill us.”
Dad: “I’ll get you that information soon. But my source doesn’t know this planet.”
Jamie: “Then how did you know I was here?”
Dad: “Through our work with the government. Come see your mother if you get the chance. I know she’d love to have you come.”
Jamie: “Please give my best to her and Sean.”
After he had left, she commented over the chip, “Shepherd, did you get all that?”
Art finally had an opportunity to look at all the data and linguistic books available to Jamie. Art becomes very useful in establishing the language of the newly-dubbed TA-1 [teleporting-alien race #1].
The General made a request. “We want your bodyguard. We want to run more tests on her.”
Jamie: “Why?”
General: “Nothing vaguely human should have been able to hit and affect a powered armor suit.”
Jamie tried to redirect the investigation towards the suit operators but eventually said, “No. You cannot do anything to Jannisett.”
[Eddie knows that, when Jannisett hit the suit, it’s defenses came on line but he deactivated them.]
Over time it has become clear that Jamie’s irritability has had the effect of making the base staff less co-operative with her and her companions.
Art walked into Banker’s room, waking him. “Shepherd is exhibiting strange behaviour. He is consuming everything, even the inadequately-flavoured bio-wafers.”
Banker: “That’s weird. I suppose he’s not as sick of them as we were. But, still, that’s weird..”
Art: “I do not understand what he is doing. But I am going to see Jamie.”
Banker woke the blue girl. “I may need help dealing with Shepherd.”
Jannisett, instantly awake: “I am available.”
In the commissary, Shepherd mumbled, “Banker? Jannisett?”
Banker: “So why are you back in the suit?”
Shepherd: “What are you talking about? Where are we?”
Jannisett: “We are on the base on Cinnamon.”
Shepherd: “The place with the tower?”
Jannisett: “No, that was long ago. That was where we met Art.”
Shepherd: “Art? Who is Art?”
Jannisett: “My best friend. The strong alien.”
Shepherd: “It is good that you have friends. I’d the impression that you were pretty alone.”
Jannisett explained to Shepherd that Art had disassembled the original fat suit; he seemed unable to explain to Banker why he was “extruding a new one.” It was determined that Shepherd no longer knew about his ability to communicate with the ship. Art determined that it could no longer access Shepherd’s mind; once again, the alien felt loneliness close around him. Something had radically changed.
Jannisett woke Eddie whose observation of Shepherd led him to believe that the other’s nanites had rebuilt the “fat suit.”
Banker shook his head, “That’s a serious deep-cover agent.”
Eddie: “All those bugs I built are useless now.”
Jannisett: “I didn’t like being bugged.”
Eddie mourned, “They can be accessed by him and no one else.”
The engineer perked up when Jannisett told him, “You’ll have to build a receptor that works like Shepherd did.”
The group proceeded to try to fill Shepherd in on their activities over the preceding year and on what they knew [not much] of his activities as an Imperial agent. He seemed somewhat less paranoid than the old Shepherd had been.
Art’s examination of the agent revealed that different parts of his brain were now active than had been active during earlier exams.
Others were brought into the discussion.
Art: “The energy of my youth has changed, evolved, to the current older, more-used, form.”
Jamie: “If energy has evolved so that none of that energy is around now, how can the aliens use it?”
Art: “Exactly my point!”
Eddie: “Then do the aliens come through time, not space?”
Art: “Mangosuthu thinks time travel is outside the realm of possibilities.”
Jamie: “Are we looking for the wrong thing?”
Art: “Good question. Their transport has to be assisted by some instrumentality.”
Art showed Eddie a power consumption curve based on the aliens’ energy readings. “When this ship is on The Line, does the power curve look like this?”
Art and Jamie returned to theSorcerer. The translator noticed a shovel next to a hole under the ship and summoned Eddie who sent one of his “bugs” to investigate. Although 60 soldiers now surrounded the ship, the engineer ignored them – save for one who seemed to have “more flashy bits.” He sent another bug to investigate that soldier. While he worked, Jamie found that her personal security detail was extremely uncomfortable about her being outside the ship simply watching Eddie. Jannisett, however, became suspicious of the same guard Eddie had noticed as the man seemed more intent on the ship (or its personnel – e.g. Jamie) than on the approaches to the ship.
Once the crew had assembled inside the Sorcerer, the blue girl insisted on having the ship opaqued and doing a bug sweep. Nothing was found – which may or may not have been due to Shepherd’s apparent loss of paranoia skills.
Jamie suggested that the Aliens might be easier to deal with than all the undercurrents on Cinnamon.
Jamie: “Art, how quickly can you heal yourself and finish charging the ship?” [The charge is currently 15%.]
Art: “It is limited to my ability to process energy during daylight.”
Jamie: “Maybe we should just stay on the ship.”
Eddie: “Do you trust anyone on this base?”
Jamie: “I trust those who were willing to die for us.” [Ed Robins protected Shepherd during the Power Suit episode; Maj. Woshorevsky leads the 3 survivors of the flitter crash.]
Banker: “We could leave right now if we wanted to. I am curious if a start from within an atmosphere uses more energy. But – yesterday’s Shepherd thought we should requisition more gear for the ship, such as a large simulator to let Eddie practise with the powered armor.”
Banker: “Are we going to have to contain the new Shepherd?”
Eddie: “He was ok before he became the paranoid Shepherd.”
Banker: “But will there be trouble if those he had working with him here give secret signs that he no longer recognizes?”
Art: “I’d like to see if his nanites did something that caused the functions he had to cease.”
Eddie: “Will this Shepherd be more polite in the presence of nobility than the last one was?”
After a bit of argument, Jamie agreed to requisition the gear, avowing that the simulator was to allow her bodyguard [Jannisett] to learn to use guns.
Art induced Jannisett to explore the nuances of opera as a form of human expression that well portrays the ‘human condition.’
Jamie received the first of a deluge – on paper! – of formal invitations. After the first three, she realized that they were being sent “in order of precedence.” [Clan Mor is the 7th in precedence of the 8 represented.] She went to discuss protocol with the Base Commander. “Are they aware of why we’re here? If they know why we’re here, why would they want to take our time from our research?”
Commander: “Did Shepherd share the dossier with you?”
Jamie: “Could you share that hypothetical information with me?”
Commander, shaking his head: “No. There are things I cannot repeat. I would highly recommend co-operating with them as best you can. These are individuals of relatively great power.”
Jamie made notes about the Eight:
| Clan | Specialty | Representative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Donboro | Nanotech | Drexler Donburo |
| 2. | Lawrence | Computer programming, AIs | |
| 3. | Gould | Weapons | |
| 4. | Sax | Medtech, Bio-sculpt, Biowarfare | |
| 5. | York | Military, Military transport | Armand York |
| 6. | Evans | Politics | Geoffrey Evans |
| 7. | Mor | Industry, Business | |
| 8. | McKenzie | Internal Security, Police, Covert Agents | |
| 9. | Smith | [none known] |
A tenth clan – the Goddard – was not represented.
Back in the ship, Jamie confronted Shepherd with the notion of Dossiers, but his amnesia persisted. When Art ‘broke the ship’s clamshell’, a message came through that a man was “waiting for a reply” from Jamie in Security. Jamie spoke with him, noting that he was in the colours of York, dark blue. He presented a reasonable argument for why she should see York’s representative “first’, secretly, and out of order of precedence. He offered to have a distraction provided to cover the interview. Jamie brought this notion back to the crew who accepted her setting up the interview. The discussion of who should attend the interview was finalized when Jannisett said, “If they have information to give, they ought to know they’re giving it to all of us.”
Shepherd, however, declined to attend the meeting.
York and his manservant arrived under some form of distortion field. The manservant took his bags to a corner of the hold where he planted himself.
Rep: “I’m Armand York; you can call me Harm. No titles are necessary.”
Jamie: “I don’t mean to be rude, but, what’s in the bags?”
York, airily: “Refreshments, amenities.” He gifts each of the crew with copies of his favourite video game and gaming system.
Jamie: “What did you need to speak with me about?”
York: “I’m not fully up-to-date with the exact process, but thought you could use some information.”
Jamie: “What do you know?”
York: “You are part of a team investigating a set of incursions by beings unknown.”
Jamie: “Why is it so important that you must be first.”
York: “My family doesn’t represent the military, but … if a peaceful resolution will not be readily successful, we must meet violence with violence.” He started pacing the hold, clearly interested in the unusual vessel. “We should get more military vessels here.”
Eddie: “This ship has something of a mind of its own.”
York: “This sounds like a dangerous ship. I can do much better for you. This ship has no pods, no safety ejection…” He lifted his arms and pantomimed flying around the hold. His audience watched bemused, starting to question the man’s connection to reality. “I like your ship. I should get you a bigger, better one.” After a bit more nonsense, he commented, “I was supposed to say something. Do you have lasers? It doesn’t matter….”
Jamie managed to politely show her visitors the door.
Eddie commented, “The talker had inactive nanotech.”
Jannisett received a note from Lady Juri. “Your sister is safe and in the process of relocation.” There was also an attachment (a chip) from Jinan that had a strong undertone of ‘ I hate you.’ It read: “No, I didn’t like my friends or the ranch. I’m practising the Art again and I haven’t killed anyone – just like I said – yet.” Jannisett tried hard not to let her companions know how much this upset her.
Mangosuthu let Art know: “When you’re done, we need to talk. I’ll listen.” There may or may not have been a mental snicker at the end.
About Aliens
The Houses of Donburo [nanotech] and Sax [biotech] would love to have access to the sample of TA-1 skin. “We might be able to replicate it better than you can with what’s available here.”
The General told Jamie in a later interview: “I can’t release the sample to the Sax and you shouldn’t either.”
Eddie Learns.
The House of York was mildly ostentations.
Harm: “Ah, Eddie, right?”
Eddie: “Usually. You came to tell us something and then you never did.”
Harm: “I did want to talk to you.”
Eddie: “Yes, so will you?”
Harm: “Did you want to accept our offer?”
Eddie:” You never said what the offer was, so no.”
Harm: “Really? I remember doing so. We will be leaving at some point and I wondered if you want to come with us?”
Eddie: “All of us or just me?”
Harm: “We=family; you=you.”
Eddie: “Why?”
Harm: “Don’t you want to meet the rest of the family? So now you know? Now you’ll come.”
Eddie: “Why? Meeting people is not what I do.”
Harm: “Dray, take care of this.” Armand York wandered off in mild confusion. The attendant, Dray took over conversing with the engineer.
Dray: “Yes, it’s come to our attention that you are a relative of ours.”
Eddie: “Huh?”
Dray: “Your great uncle left an inheritance for which you have registered.”
Eddie: “I was born on a dirt-poor mining rock ball. I can assure you no one from your family would have gotten near that place.”
Dray: “Who is your father.”
Eddie: “Mark. A miner.”
Dray: “Marcus York. He had been heavily modified for the military. Is he still alive?”
Eddie: “He didn’t look like you. He was a heavy worlder miner, not military.”
Dray exhibited some pictures which Eddie had to admit seemed to be his father.
Eddie: “My mother died of a plague.”
Dray: “That’s your father’s fault. If he’d been in the Core…. How old are you? You look 18-19.”
Eddie: “I’m in my 20s.”
Dray: “You’d’ve been born 8 years after they left the Core.”
Eddie: “My father was a big heavy worlder; mom was a tall thin light-worlder.”
Dray: “No. Your father was born on Capital. We don’t know where your mother was born.”
Eddie: “This doesn’t make sense. Excuse me.”
Eddie told Jamie of his supposed York parentage. “They said my father was in the army and had to leave the Core to marry my mother. They want me to go back with them.”
Jamie: “Into the family fold?”
Eddie: “I think that’s what they meant.”
Jamie: “You’ll have to talk to them some more.”
Eddie: “Yeah.”
Jannisett eventually decided that she “did want” whatever information about her background could be gleaned. The deal was made for a percentage of the gross -- and databank information.
Jamie tried to sell Eddie’s designs for his “bugs” to appropriate noble houses but draws a blank because protected military technology is identified within his designs. Some of the crew may have recalled that the old Shepherd once suggested that Eddie had at some point been employed by the military.
An Accident.
Eddie was distraught enough about the York connection that he took his paired pistols out to a wooded area on the base and started target practise. Unfortunately the security forces had not been forewarned. Eddie was surprised by three guards one of whom fired as he turned without dropping his weapons. [14 out of 17 Body.]
A security person knocked at the Sorcerer; Shepherd answered. “There’s been an accident. It seems your engineer Eddie was out shooting and the people who investigated over-reacted. He is in a regen tank and will be ok.” The spokesman hesitated, “Should we tell Miss McFadden or will you do that? I know that scientists don’t like to be disturbed.” Shepherd agreed to pass on the information and the spokesman explained the incident in detail, winding up with “We’re a little bit jumpy – since the suit and all….”
Shepherd started to inform the crew but, just as he said “Art” he realized that he called out with his brain not his voice.
Art: “This is excellent! It is back to working.” Shepherd suddenly felt uncomfortable as a wave of Art’s underlying emotion – like a big dog’s – lapped over him. ‘I ruv roo.’
The other crew members were made aware of the new change in Shepherd.
Banker, humourously: “You don’t have to talk out loud – historically.”
Shepherd to Art: “It would have been nice if you had told me that you left something within my brain to keep me company.”
Art: “?”
Shepherd: “The way we’re talking.”
Art: “Oh, no. That was the ship. Do you have any memories at all of trying to re-attach yourself to the ship. Why you did so?”
Shepherd: “How do you turn this off?”
Art: “It doesn’t turn off. But you can consciously not use it.”
Art, Jamie and Jannisett went to visit Eddie. The doctors assured them that security would co-ordinate so that this sort of thing would not happen again. They noted that for a militarily-augmented person, recovery would take about 3 days; for a normal, 7-8 days. Art opinioned that the engineer might improve faster in his lab on the ship.
Jamie: “Let him wake up and decide himself.”
Eddie, still dopey, was awakened and allowed himself to be put back in the tank. During these procedures, Art observed enough to make some improvements to the sick bay tank. Eddie was recovered in 2 days.
Eddie decided to promise to visit the House of York. In return, the legal beagles released his inheritance to him.
Banker had time to move towards Jamie and Jannisett before the walls of the hall nearest Art exploded [21 pts] , taking down many party goers and one of the 4 armed security personnel. Three figures appeared in the opening to the sound of gunfire. Two of the remaining security were covered by the intruders’ weapons.
Jannisett moved towards the intruders as two security guards fire, taking out the knee of one of the intruders. Through the opening, Eddie saw a perimeter guard go down. He yelled, “They’re all around us! and headed for the guard partially under the rubble.
The intruders shoot down one of the guards as Janniset slammed into them. The first intruder’s helmet flew off under the force of her blow [11,72] , the man himself landing in the next space. The second intruder took Jannisett’s fist in his chest [10, 45] . Shepherd heard over the intruders’ frequency, “We need some help in here…ackhhh!” The third intruder shot the blue bodyguard in the thigh [8,20] , stunning her.
Jamie scooped up an intruder’s pistol and shoots [10, 40 AP in the 12] , stunning him.
Eddie finds that the guard’s gun had fallen clear of the rubble.
Art, having picked up a buffet table, bore down on the intruders.
In the ship, Shepherd had found “Betsy”, a sniper rifle, in his room. Relocating near the party, he located the enemy com officer thru the scope of the rifle. Then – due to the headset signals – he swung the weapon around and focused on a bush which hid an enemy sniper. He fired and hit – with a tracer round – just as the enemy fired causing the latter to miss his aim at Jannisett.
Jamie braced and shot again, hitting her target in the hand. Unfortunately his weapon did not drop.
Eddie shot another in the shoulder.
Art rammed the table into one of the bad guys [11, 33] , knocking him back some 10 feet. Miraculously, the alien’s target landed on his feet.
Eddie shot Art’s target in the head, stunning him.
Jannisett hit the target in front of her in the head [10, 35] , felling him.
Art proceeded to block the explosion entrance with tables; Jannisett stood guard; Jamie began to paramedic those who could be helped. Reinforcements arrived relatively quickly. Of the party-attendees and guards, 6 had died. 5 were Evans; the guard was a Lawrence. Geoffrey Evans, the representative from House Evans, had not been harmed.
As her guard formed up around her, Jamie insisted that she and the Sorcerer’s crew would house in the ship, not the bunker. As they approached, she chipped, “Shepherd, you in?”
Shepherd lied, “Never left.”
The transports were driven straight into the Sorcerer’s storage hold.
Jamie: “We’re leaving.”
The general asked if she wanted him to “clear all ships away from this hemisphere.” He insisted that a military contingent would go ahead and clear all ships from the relevant Star Gate.
Eddie noted that the ship’s power was up to 18%.
Banker insisted on keeping the Sorcerer slow en route to the Gate to hide her capabilities as long as possible. Of the planets in the known plane of TA-1 access, Banker and Jamie picked the Zero-pop planet #2, because it has the longest contact with the hypothetical plane. The distance would normally be 12 jumps. Eddie and Jamie both lobbied to make it in one jump. Banker complied, saying, “They’ll figure it out at some point.”
Art contacted Jamie’s chip: “What does this mean to Jannisett and Cleopatra?”
Jamie: “It depends on whether or not Cleopatra is telling the truth.”
Art insisted that Jannisett be consulted on the fact that Cleopatra would not be able to contact her if she accompanied the Sorcerer off planet.
Jamie: “Will you come with us and hope for the best?”
Jannisett: “She does not believe me when I know nothing and that hurts my friends and I can do nothing about it. At least in going, I’m doing SOMETHING.”
(EPs: 0, total: 13; Art: 0, total 12. Next Run: 14.Nov.04
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