The Chronicles of Rudolf de Wahl, or ‘Storm in Paradise’

Introduction

This is the chronicles of the Blue Planet campaign Storm in Paradise, it ran during 2005 and 2006 and ended up in twelve four hour sessions.

A bit of a history; I read, in the spring of 2003, a reference for a post-apocalyptic games called Blue Planet, and I was intrigued. I googled for reviews and became more and more interested. As I am also somewhat of a game collector and enjoys to read games as well as play them, I decided that I should buy the game; especially since I found a store that could order almost all of the books (I later found the missing book, Ancient Echoes in a shop in London, Orc’s Nest). I read the books—or specifically read the Player’s Guide and Ancient Echoes and skimmed the rest. I joined the mailing list and the stories in the book together with the mood at the mailing list got me hooked. I decided that I should run a campaign with the game and started to plan what I wanted to archive. Very early on I decided that I wanted to focus on the conflicts on the planet, on roleplaying moral dilemmas and “What have we done!?” more then classic cyberpunk troubleshooters and combat. I was intrigued by the mentioning that the combat system was lethal and that an entire scenario could be about trying to stay out of a fight—I wanted to capitalise on that.

Soon I got a vision; all the players was situated in a room, all eying each other warily. They had been working together for quite some time and trusted each other, but now learned that everyone had their own agenda, but which one and who? Who could they trust and who would try to stab them in the back? Who should be drawing first? I would then stop gamemastering and let the players take it from there – I would essentially end my planning in that very moment and let the players take over. The whole idea struck me with awe every time I thought about it, I know my players and I knew that it wouldn’t be a classic shoot-out—at least not at once. I wanted to see the look on the faces of the players when the truth dawned on them.

I don’t know if it was before, at the same time or after that I got the idea to use the plot of Mike Resnick’s Santiago, an idea I had swimming around for quite some years but never found any use for. I think that I realised that using Santiago was a good plot for Blue Planet and from there I got the idea for the standoff (I much later, at the time of this writing to be specific, learned that Santiago had been an inspiration to Jeff Barber et al when they wrote the game!). From there on it was much agony in making it all fit but I decided that I wanted the natives, the GEO, the corps and the crime organisations represented. These where the elements I wanted to be included in the campaign in one way or the other:

  1. The conflict between the Incorporate States, GEO, the natives, and the colonists.
  2. The conflict between the environment and ”progress” (this is a sub-conflict of the conflict between the Incorporate States and the natives).
  3. The standoff described above, the climax of the campaign.
  4. “The flora and fauna can kill you.”
  5. “The weather can kill you.”
  6. “Mankind’s new frontier” – a new world, a new hope.
  7. The lack of knowledge about this new world.
  8. The Wild West-feeling, there is no law. (Ideal for roleplayers…)

I made my plans and started to introduce my players to the universe of Blue Planet; it actually went quite well, all the various fractions where represented. The information I gave the players was that a company (I later informed them that it was Biogene) would hire them as freelance, except one of them who would be employed by the Corp and who would be in charge of the operation, to investigate some problem at a research station on the island of Apache, south of Zion Islands. I also informed them that they needed some forensics skills, e.g. Forensic Medicine, and I expected them to be able to defend themselves, i.e. that they carried guns and that they could handle them.

Guggsa Shamsedeen
Native guide with some ties with the NRM; born on one of island in the eastern part of the Zion Island cluster and took the job as the group’s guide since he needed the money.
Nicholas Liu
Boat owner and trader with a “past,” born on Mars, wanted by the Martian Mafia and owner of a hydrofoil. I never used the Mafia connection, apart from letting him know, via NRM, that “little green men are looking for you.”
Alfred R. Tortini
Journalist, camera operator, information gather and evaluator
Dr. Mario Chavez
Medical doctor and scientist that revealed the shoddy and unethical research of his manager to the higher management in Biogene. A company man through and through, think that the aforementioned research was a on-time-only thing within Biogene.
Donough O’Conlon
IRA special forces marine, came to the planet about a month ago as a body guard of a higher boss within the IRA, whom did not survive the space travel. Awaiting orders from IRA HQ on Ireland and takes the job in the meantime to get some money.
A minor note about Alfred R. Tortini

His real name was Sergei Ivanovich and was a special agent of the GEO. This never was something that was revealed during play, esp. since the player couldn’t participate in the last 3-4 sessions. All the PCs where Exceptional in power level but Alfred/Sergei was Elite, something I allowed since the player gave me a very elaborated character description.

The pretext to the campaign where that Biogene has had some problems with a research station on Apache, The Cochise Station. There had been a number of “accidents” and there had been very many unnecessary costs and repairs—it was not clearly stated but the manager, Mattias Hand, suspected sabotage. Their excuse for being on the station and snooping around where that a ship of Biogene, M/S Anthonia, has sunk between the Zion Islands and Apache during a storm and they has been sent to locate the ship and possibly salvage the cargo.

Mattias Hand was taken straight form the book Broken Angels by Richard Morgan, mostly since the player of Guggsa was talking about that character … quite a lot. If a player really can’t let go of a concept, I have to include it… We both enjoy Morgan’s work and Mattias Hand is a colourful character that the player really didn’t want to meet.

Something I really like with Everway is the interview the players have at the beginning of the campaign; each player displays a picture that is related to the character in some way (anything from a dream to how he looks or someone that is related to the character or an abstract representation of his situation, e.g. a picture of children in cages represents how hard he has held as a child by his parents). It gives an insight to a character that is very hard to convey through ordinary roleplaying—most players ain’t that skilled at acting—but at the same time is something it is usually very easy to see or realise if you live together with the person for a few weeks in an adventure. I really liked that moment and I think I laughed out aloud when I realised that I should hold the interview as an interview—they where all applicants for a job! One of the character, Dr Chavez, where the team leader and was employed by Biogene, reporting to Mattias Hand, and during the interview I played the role of Mr Hand. The questions the other players asked where actually questions from Dr Chavez and Mr Hand. It didn’t go quite as well as I hoped, but that was due to that we had problems coming up with good questions. But I think that it was successful and something that increased the quality of the campaign.

Time to get the feet in the water

The group had agreed to team up in Kingston and sets out to the shipwreck on 134.99. When they locate the remains of the ship and investigate they find that something has torn a huge hole in the side of it, it can be non-natural, i.e. not a wave, but it doesn’t seems to be a torpedo. They salvaged the ship’s computer and some other minor parts of the cargo. They would later contact a firm to salvage the rest of the cargo and that was a background story for the rest of the campaign–it took a few weeks to get proper quotations and select who should do the job. A few days later, Alfred found in the logs of the computer that an ‘auxiliary’ system connected to the computer (there where no information of what this system did, the group never investigated but the system was gone from the ship) had indicated a ‘point’ east-south-east from the wreck’s location. The background story, which the group never discovered, where that the eco-terrorist Rudolf de Wahl had ordered the sinking of M/S Anthonia. The reason was that Biogene had invented a new system for automatically discover Long John deposits, it was crude and not very good yet but it would make it possible for Biogene to just plough the waves of Poseidon and let the automated system plot where the xenosilicate where located. It didn’t tell that the system had found one of the areas largest deposits south of Zion Islands. If Biogene where to find that out, the impact from the mining would be an environmental catastrophe, hence the need to sink the ship. It had been sunk be firing a large harpoon into the hull and then tear it open using a automated mini-sub and an orca pod.

They arrived at Cochice the day after they salvaged the computer, i.e. 137.99 around 1200, where they introduced themselves to the personnel—and found out that something was not right at the station.

Something is amiss

They found, over the course of the following days, out that

Things picks up speed

The group now discovers that there is a third “settlement” on the island; in the north there are two small huts and—which Guggsa soon discovers—a small Pharium plantation. One of the huts has a small table and a chair and some equipment for one or two people staying over night and the other contains primitive refinement equipment, similar things can be found in almost all Native villages throughout the planet and isn’t strange. There is no traces of who might operate the place; since it is so removed from the village it is quite likely that most of the Natives doesn’t know of it.

Things get really awful on 139.99; the group observes how three fast speedboats passes the island at a large distance towards the north and a little later a larger catamaran follows. In the evening they hear a lot of strange sounds from the sea and they go out to the reef to investigate; and finds something that points out the differences within the group. A lot of Sunburst carcasses float ashore and they can see in the twilight how several large predators feast on the free food. They decide that they do not want to go out in the sea; an Guggsa argues against it (not that anyone is suggesting a boat trip) when he sees a Bad Mojo! Guggsa get pretty upset about the obvious Sunburst poaching (all the animals has been skinned), while Nicholas just shrugs and would have liked to share the profit from the selling of the hides.

While they observe this, one of the spots a bright light, as from a big fire, from the north of Apache, and they decide to investigate. What they find there will really increase the pace in the campaign; it is not a quiet investigation anymore. They rush to the site and sees that one of the huts are on fire. As soon as the fire has been put out and a more thorough investigation has been commenced they find a dead man in the bushes close to the Pharium plantation, a dead girl in the second hut and tracks they cannot make sense from in the sand from the back side of the burning hut down to the water, there are no boats or canoes at the beach but there are indications that there has been at least one canoe moored on the beach. The girl in the intact hut has been shot through the door (when she pressed herself against it to prevent anyone from entering the hut) and then shot again from close range when she lay on the floor (the bullet could be found in the sand floor). She where later moved to the small table and put on the chair, arranged to look like she where resting upon the table. On the other side of the reef they find a very run down motor boat, obviously owned by the dead man (who has been shot from the behind) and examination of it shows that he is a drug runner, moving from island to island buying Pharium and similar things from the Natives, for the NRM.

About the time when they are nearly finished examining the boat, three canoes, with a fourth on tow, arrive with nine Natives. They are very terse and doesn’t say much, they are obviously stricken by grief and knows about the dead girl (who’s name is Heliose) and doesn’t really talk very much with the Company Men. Dr Chavez and Guggsa (?) speaks with the Natives very tactfully and offer their condolences and leaves the Natives to themselves. The Natives puts Heliose in the fourth canoe and sets of towards Farnsworth and leaves they burial of the NRM man to the group. When the group has buried the man, and learned from the Natives that he is called Rainbow (the boat is called Rainbow Warrior), they all return to the station, in time to see, from a distance, the third catastrophe in a row happen.

The fifth session ended with this scene, and this was the last session the player of Alfred participated in the campaign.

Alfred has not participated in the excursion to the huts, he has stayed in the station to work on the salvaged computer from the wreak, and has made quite some progress. It is getting late when he hears a strange sound from the shore (the station is built on stilted platforms in the lagoon) and he uses his body comp to check the perimeter security cameras he has set up around the base, all hidden, after the sabotages. Only a few of them shows any picture at all, the rest just shows a black picture. He soundlessly walk to the door and looks out—just in time to see the bolt of fire that emerges from the lab house and how the hopper takes of from the garage on the shore with zero run way, at full throttle and passes over Alfred with a handful of meters, the hull gleaming in red, yellow and orange from the fire.

The hunt is on

It was now a personal thing, the characters did not like the turn the events has taken and made quite a thorough search of the site and they found quite some leads:

This made the group very suspicious of the natives; the scientists where very quick and eager to blame them (and at the same time clear themselves from any accusations of provocation—we have worked so hard on a good relationship with the villagers and now this!) and this made the group a little less eager to jump to conclusions. The group’s main theory where that this was a internal vendetta within Biogene and the villagers where either used or innocent. They sent a report to Mattias Hand and reported that they suspected Sarah for theft of the hopper and arson.

The next day they learnt that the hopper had been found; it had exploded at about 100 meters altitude and crashed into the waters between Heather Point and McDerriton at 23.1° South and 20.2° North. The only lead they had where the one to Kingston so they headed there 141.99. After a short detour to McDerriton, to speak to some of the witnesses, did they arrive in Kingston at about 14 142.99.

Things started to take off while in Kingston; they located the apartment the messages originated from, which turned out to be a very small Pharium den (think Tintin’s Blue Lotus) located in Backbay Centre Cross. In a small room they found blueprints for the Volkshaus and plans for an attack on the compound – they had heard a sound, almost as thunder, and seen a great pillar of smoke to the north just a few minutes before they entered the apartment. When they where investigating the contents of the rooms (and intimidating the Chinese operator to be passive) the door opened and a man in a beard stood there; a split second after he saw the group he bolted from the room and ran down the stairs. The groups wasn’t slow to follow and soon everyone where speeding down the stairs. Donough and Guggsa where the first ones out and it was only the high speed of Donough that saved him from being hit by the bullet that hit the door frame the moment he came crashing through the door. He stumbled into a dive and went rolling, desperate for cover. Guggsa had been a little slower down the stairs and had time to throw himself down on the floor and stay inside. The sound of the gunshot rang out in the neighbourhood and was soon followed by others – a full blown fire fight took off and the others used at least one smoke grenade to help their crony across the wide street (it was a long run to safety and he was shot in the leg by Donough or Guggsa). Since the characters where quite good at shooting and hiding the “others” decided to go for the big guns and soon the clatter of heavy machine gun fire echoed along the street.

Under the cover of a smoke grenade did the wounded get away, but a drone from Alfred was in hot pursuit and identified the street door they ran into. The PCs found that there had been a speedboat in waiting beneath the house and they where now fast moving out of town. In a stroke of luck did Alfred succeed in getting a photograph of the crew and one of them was removing a false beard, sufficiently to later be able to identify him.

Nicholas is asking around in the harbours to try identify the boat and ask around after Sarah (they don’t believe that she’s dead) but founds nothing and Guggsa is asking around in NRM circles to try to identify anyone from the photo. He gets lucky after a while and one of them is identified as “Masid”, by some known to be living in Crystal Beach Parish. The manhunt continues.

Political ties

At some time previously had Donough got a message from his commanders back home that he should contact a certain Klaus Vögel, Hanover Industries, and put his services to good use for IRA’s partners in Hanover. Donough did so and explained that he already had an assignment but as long as it didn’t conflict with any new, it should be all right to work for Hanover as well. Hr Vögel saw the advantage of having a man inside Biogene and advised Donough that he should continue in his current endeavour and keep Hr Vögel updated about any events that might be of interest. Hr Vögel informed Donough that Hanover was in no position to talk to Biogene, the attack had been very well timed and destroyed several important projects, this would benefit Biogene tremendously in several important business cases during the coming year; it was far too well timed for him to truly believe that Biogene didn’t have anything to do with it. Donough never told the group of the connection he had to Hanover.

It was a bit of irony that when the group contacted Hanover about the plans they found in the Pharium den, it was Klaus Vögel they was advised to speak to. He informed them that he was very interested in any findings the group had and would discuss the offer of collaboration with his superiors (he never came back about his, as explained above).

The group headed for Crystal Beach and started to ask the locals, and got some insights in the life of the “citizens,” they didn’t quite like the “anti-paradise” that unfolded in front of them. They found Masid though—dead. He had been shot in the ramshackle shed he lived in and they started to ask around for clues to what has happened. It was about this time that Guggsa ran into some “friends” of his that where looking for him; their message was quite straightforward, in a way. (For a picture of how they look, have a look at the back side of Frontier Justice, the fellow on the left.)

“Eeh, Guggsa, come on over, walk with me. … What are you doing brother, have you lost your mind? You are owned by Babylon and they won’t help you out of the shit. I should play cool with you, we are like a big family and I only want you best, brother. I know the bunch of you want to get your hands on those that blew up the lackeys of Babylon here in Kingston, and get to their lair first—only Jah knows what you’ll plan to do with them then….”

“But this is a Bandulu business, it was on our land, our world and it was our brothers and sisters that bled. You’ll play with me? This is to be decided by our Elders, this Zipper has some to sing about for them. So if you can make ’em to play cool in our orchestra, then it will be a groovy song we’ll play for long, you’ll get? If they’ll won’t play the pipes, they have to take a swim, you’ll drifting?”

What he was saying was that he wanted Rudolf to be bought in front of NRM’s Elders, or be killed. If Guggsa could get him in front of the Elders, then that would be something NRM would remember for a long time.

They started to look around for any signs of the killer but had little luck; until they started to bribe a woman that lived a few “houses” down the street—she gave sufficient information that they was able to track down someone that ought to be the killer. It seemed like the persons had been wounded because the trail lead to a doctor who after some coaxing pointed out in which direction his patient had left. They later arrived, after a lot of asking “witnesses” for directions, late in the evening to a large fenced in compound where one of the timber industries put up their trucks and vehicles during the nights, Kingston’s Deforestation, Inc. They saw how a group of army fatigue dressed men got into a jeep and drove of into the jungle by the large timber road that led to the tree felling areas. As time was of essence, and they had no compassion for the work of Kingston’s Deforestation, Inc, they broke into the compound, they had a bit of trouble with the dogs but got away quite clean, and stole a jeep and drove after the would be killers.

I don’t remember if Guggsa got a glimpse of the insignia the men wore now or later when they later caught up with them, but he identified them as belonging to Sword of Zion. He did not like that.

There was a race against time, they were lagging behind and the jeep before them knew the way and there where numerous junctions where they could loose the other car. But the other car wasn’t trying to get away from them. When the group came around a bend in the road they found the other jeep standing in the middle of the road with the headlights in their direction and three men were standing around the car, one of them just retracting his arm from within the car after had switched on the headlights as when the players came around the bend. It was an obvious ambush.

The players came to an screeching halt and heard one of the others, probably the commander, saying in a loud voice “this is about as far as you will go”. Donough, as the professional soldier as he was, realised that there where probably at least two others in the forest around them and that these where beyond doubt pros like himself. He tried to find a way to get out of the car to get into a good firing position but it was obvious that the others had the advantage on them, so he gave up on that thought. A short argument ensued between the commander and Dr Chavez but the commander just barked “return to Babylon!” and Dr Chavez realised that this was pretty much it, so they returned to the city of Kingston.

They returned Masid’s shed and found out that someone had been there—apart from those that had taken care of the body—a secret compartment had been opened and plundered in the wall of the bedroom, something the size of a cubic decimetre had been removed. A new hunt was on.

Getting closer…

The tracking went faster this time, they where hot on the trails of the thief and where racing through the city in the night, down to the docks. Using their mobiles they kept in touch with Alfred (who was still in their boat guarding it) who was using his drones to help in the pursuit. They soon found out that the thief was heading for the same boat that had escaped them earlier after the fire-fight, which only made them run faster. Alfred fired up the boat and steered it to a pier where they could get on and soon they sped through the waters between the parishes, getting short glimpses of the other speedboat. As soon as they got out on open water they could increase the speed and go up on the hydrofoil and start to close the gap to the criminals that had mocked them for so long. It didn’t take long before they traded fire, mostly missing but the boats took some minor damage and at least one of Rudolf’s gang seemed to had got hit (a minor bruise, but it made them more cautious).

But it ain’t over until it is over; while racing over the sea under a dramatic thunderstorm, another boat turned up on the radar and later signalled to them that they should stop their engines—they saw the flag of the NRM harbour patrol hoisted. There where no way they where going to let Rudolf, they had been quite convinced since the bombing of the Volkshaus that he was the one they where pursuing, get away so they ignored the call from the larger boat and where soon under cannon fire. The last thing they remembered where when their boat exploded form a direct hit and they where flying through the air and hitting water at high speed and debris raining down around them.

The scene is set

When they woke up they where all in a modern hospital bed, with all possible medical equipment around, everything brand new and nearly gleaming in the nearly dark room. By the door Sarah stood and waited hem to wake up.

Sarah greets each one of them with an welcoming, but at the same time not very warm smile, and check each one’s biomonitor and asks them how they are. All of them are green coveralls with zips so the garment can be put on or off regardless of in which position the patient is and without really moving him, they don’t see any of their belongings around. They all has various injuries and have all been bandaged at various places, but no one has any serious injuries.

“I would like you all to come with me, I have something to show to you,” says Sarah and then goes towards the door, and given few options the groups follows here down a narrow corridor—they are obviously on a ship—and after about 20 meters she opens a door into a similar hospital ward where ten women, men and children are all under intensive care–they recognise several of them as villagers from Farnsworth.

“You have been sleeping for nearly forty hours, the doctors did not allow us to wake you up until for an hour ago, and this is what has been running on the local and global news channels the larger part of the day.” she says and switches on a screen, showing Mohammad with Cochice in the background.

“…off course did we help with fighting the fire and to help the wounded, it was terrible to see [he succeeds in looking chocked, even if it is a new experience to him to have such feelings for anything else then scientific research]; children that was screaming and the stench by everything the fire has consumed. We, my wife and I, did what we could—it is self-evident, and I know we got the support and commitment from all our colleagues within the company, that you help your fellow human beings when they are in need. We have always been working in close relationship with the local communities and Apache is no exception, even the name of our research station is a praise to the local culture and naming tradition, we within Biogene wants to build a new future here at Poseidon and the first step is to lend a hand to those in need and …” The camera fades over to a native in Khaki uniform of the Native Patrol, still quite sooty, with a harsh face and visibly shaken.

The reporter asks “Do you know what started the fire?”

“We cannot yet say anything about it for sure, the question is if we ever will be able to do so, the entire village and all clues has been completely burned to the ground. It was probably a leaking oil or gas lamp that was lit to give some light in the night, maybe by some child’s bed so the children shouldn’t be scared of the dark if they woke up during the night, and it has been a very dry season so all the houses was probably bone-dry. We are currently still searching for the remains of the citizens but the heat has been tremendous so it is very little that remains. The small handful that has survived after all are currently treated at the research station and they has shown great competence in taking care of and treating their neighbours.”

She turns of the screen and adds that it has been running more or less continuously for the last couple of hours and little new has surfaced.

“At half past three, AM,” she continues, “did three P-19 Hawk Eye fighter jets come in from the west and made a yaw eleven nautical miles from Apache. They came in from due South and dropped eight RMX high explosive fire bombs over the village and then turned due West again, accelerating to Mach 4. We were then going at full speed ahead and had desperately been trying to reach anyone in the community for the last twenty minutes and warn them. A small number succeeded in escaping into the jungle but even that was transformed into a flaming inferno. You can see most of the survivals here, an additional eight, all only lightly wounded, was left behind and receive treatment at Cochice once the scientist has woken up and got the message that they should get to the other side of the island and do something heroic.”

She looked a bit sombre when she told this and stared at the ceiling with an sigh when she continued, “I cannot deny some of the responsibility for this, I maybe shouldn’t had allowed the fire bombing of the station but we needed it as an diverting manoeuvre, and regardless of what the scientists say—they have never found anything important at that damn station.”

One of them asks why she stole the hopper; “May I introduce you to Maria,” she responds and indicates a teenage girl that sleeps in a chair by a middle aged man’s bed, the man is heavily bandaged and is visibly in a critical condition, “You have already met her friends, Heliose. I maybe should add that the entire village was grateful that you respected their grief and did not visit them during her funeral. Rainbow, who you also has met, shot Maria but she lived when I found her, but she where wound where critical. I had to take her to one of Rudolf’s hospital ships as soon as humanly possible if she would have any chance of survival. I got Maria to Rudolf in time and that is something I always will be grateful to her for.”

I don’t quite remember if any of the PC’s asked why she didn’t take the girl to the station, if they did she would dismiss the scientists as medically incompetent, and the wound was too serious with massive internal bleeding even for Dr Chavez to treat with the equipment at hand.

”You see around you exactly what Rudolf is fighting, that the little people gets crushed in the spread sheets and budget columns of the big corporations. That the greed that created the Fisher Virus shall not be able to gets its dirty and bloodstained fingers around Poseidon, the second chance of humankind.”

After a short pause she turns to the group again, who has all been quiet during the monologue, “I cannot agree with everything Rudolf does, but how can you defend an attach such as this? If they thought that it was wrong by me to take the hopper, why did they punish the villagers? If they regarded the fire bomb as a crime, why did they not fill a complaint in front of the tribal Elders, as the law and the traditions states? Those children that was burned alive, what evil had they done? What we did to the resources of Earth was a result of that we had lived for thousands of years according to the principle that each one unto his own, and if you are strong enough to force someone else to something, then it is you right to do so. The weak ones could do nothing but obey and clench their fist in their pockets. On Poseidon we have the chance to build a civilisation worth the name, but greed and egoism rules and the only organisation that is put to the task of working for everyone’s good, the GEO, is so circumvented by the corporations and the anti-UN lobby that they cannot do much else then standing with their arms on the back and just watch instead of doing something. I mean, how can they …” She hauls out a small pager, that goes brrt, brrt, from a pocket, and all air seems to go out of her as she reads the short message; “I’ve spoken too long, Rudolf would like to talk to you.” She walks towards the door and indicates that they should follow her.

Conclusions, allies and enemies

They are led into a very tasteful furnished room with very expensive art on the walls, a sofa, some armchairs and a low table with a built-in refrigerator with some soft drinks in. And they are left on their own.

The discussion that ensued was not what I had hoped for, but it was at the same time obvious that each player had some thinking to do about what to do—except Donough who was pretty straight forward in his mindset. The player’s took very much the easy way out; “let’s wait and see what happens.”

After a few minutes the door opened and Rudolf entered; dressed in a simple dress and sandals on her feet. The chock of Nicholas at the sight probably was quite visual, as he recognised his old girlfriend Aimee, and she greeted him with a smile “Hello Nicholas, surprised to see me?”. The green scarf around her neck did not quite play well with he blue dress, her long hair is shaved on both side of the head, revealing the pink scar of a not-yet-healed wound by the left ear, and she holds, theatrical, a deck of playing cards in one hand.

After the initial shock has succeeded that a woman has entered, she states to the group “I am Rudolf, you where looking for me?”

During the following half hour to hour the conversation reveals that Biogene is far from a nice company, Dr Chavez get any remaining doubts or illusions thrown over board when he get to read internal Biogene documents ordering the fire bombing, cheating on the natives in a number of cases around the globe, polluting the environment etc. Mattias Hand has recently been promoted for his handling of the case. She also informs them that she is Rudolf the seventh, “being the most wanted criminal in the known universe does not carry a pension plan.”

Guggsa and Nicholas was all in and offers to join Rudolf, Dr Chavez is quite easily swung over once he understands what kind of company he works for and Donough finally just swings with the mood and joins as well. Donough is here very much an opportunist and joins with the knowledge that he can always contact Klaus Vögel at any time and bring Rudolf in, and/or move on to some other opportunity later.

Final words

I was hoping that Donough and/or Chavez should stick to their loyalties, that’s why I let Aimee be Rudolf, but I probably overdid the roleplaying during the last session. A GM gives a lot of (unconscious) hints about where he wants the players to do and it probably was pretty obvious that the “right course” where to join Rudolf. I, on the other hand, where trying to push them to a stand off. You cannot always win, but I think that I succeeded in giving the players a good ride for the money. They have shown some interest in playing Blue Planet, especially Guggsa’s player that has been very found of the setting and quite found of his character. We’ll see, but it won’t be on this scale and any journal from that campaign has to be written by the players… I’m finished.


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