Episode 1: We Don't Fear the Boogieman

2014 Jan 20 1900 hours


The S.P.E.R.T.S. air transport vehicle (affectionately dubbed "Martha") wasn't fast - it topped out at just two hundred miles per hour. Rumbling along just over the tops of the power lines, it felt more like a boat than anything else. Commander Griswold was glad Martha was equipped with advanced cloaking technology, making her invisible to anyone more than 15 feet away.

Griswold took a long draw from his cigar, set the controls to autopilot, and ducked into the main cabin. He surveyed the odd bunch in front of him with obvious disdain. A computer nerd, a scaley rifleman, and a space ghost. He'd had a bad feeling about this outfit when he was assigned to it. But now they were in it, on their first mission, and darned if he was going to let them put a bad mark on his perfect record of victory. He'd cleared out heavily-armed terrorists in Fallujah. This was nothing.

"All right, listen up ladies. Our destination is Whitefish, Montana - population six thousand. Buncha rich folks and ski resorts up there. We've been getting complaints of kids disappearing in their beds. The local police are baffled and Washington thinks there may be some sort of boogieman at work here. Your mission is to go in, ascertain the nature of the threat, and neutralize it - by force if necessary. And honestly, when is it not necesary?"

Another long puff from the cigar. He directed the smoke at the chinese hacker, whom he didn't really trust. The guy was just too thin!

"I'm sure I don't need to remind you that the existence of S.P.E.R.T.S. - and of anything that isn't mundane - is a national secret of the highest priority. Widespread knowledge of other worlds would open up thousands of new portals and the planet would be destroyed. So if anyone outside the team learns your true nature, you do what you have to do to fix it. Whatever it takes. And yes, that includes the local authorities. Now I suggest you ladies speak to Mary Elsworth. She works up at the Big Mountain ski resort. Says her 8-year-old got abducted last night and she's worried for her 6-year-old. Find the problem, fix it, and get those kids back if they're still alive. Each of you has a transmitter in your belt buckle. Just click it on and I'll come to extract you. Any questions?"

--

You're free to move around the cramped cabin of the Martha and talk. Get your gear ready - for instance, decide if you're substantial or insubstantial, activate HIDE, etc. This part is free roleplaying (no need to wait for each other's posts). When you're ready, say so in your post (and strap yourself into your drop pod). When all three team members are ready, you'll drop into Whitefish and the adventure will begin.

EDIT: You are all equipped with the beacon belt buckles and encrypted 2-way radios with 10 mile broadcasting range. Griswold has one as well.

OOC: Drop pod? So no free fall or parachutes?

Dane Ulrag

"I am not a lady," Dane muttered under his breath, but he knew better than to openly defy a superior. Still, this man clearly had desire to bother too much with slow solutions like diplomacy or stealth, so at least he had that going for him. He took a moment to survey his companions. Dane was sure exactly what the small girl's purpose was, but he at least knew he could trust Xiaoming at his side. The boy had a knack for digital gadgets of every kind.

Standing, Dane said gruffly, "I see no reason to wait any longer than we have to." Activating his holo projector with a look of disdain, he began to move towards his drop pod.

Xiaoming Wang

Cough cough. Of course, big bad bully boss. Being a (young) man of no intention of causing any trouble, Xiaoming muttered "No, sir" and starts to strap himself onto Martha's seat. He prefers driving himself, to be honest, with his motion sickness and whatnot. Since he's just part of the social cog, Xiaoming knows better than to get in the way of other cogs.

Closing his eyes, he misses Alfred and the butler's milk before a flight.

Amadea

Amadea wondered if the two she'd been assigned with were actually females if the commander called them ladies, but her experience with aliens across the universe told her not to assume otherwise. More importantly, this case seemed like a simple one, and she hoped it would get more exciting. Too many past adventures had led to a sense of boredom and a search for the nearest exit, and such experiences seemed to always involve arrogant, bossy leaders.

She said nothing to the commander before turning to board Martha. She just gave him a quick nod, then announced to no one in particular, "I'll talk to the mother. She'll confide in me, most people do," and strapped herself into her own drop pod.

Dane Ulrag

Feeling secured by the fact he would not have to do the talking, Dane strapped himself into the drop pod. It was amusing to him the lengths humans had to go to in order to reach the ground safely.

--

I am ready for takeoff

Xiaoming Wang

Oops, drop pod. Xiaoming felt a blush coming to his face and the "I'm not amused" stare from Griswold and quickly strapped himself onto the drop pod. One can't really blame him, he's more of the technical team, field work isn't what he excels in. After making sure he was secure, he let out a timid,"Sorry about that, I'm ready."

Griswold punched a button on the side of the cabin, and the pods released. Wind whistled past the pods. Then the thrusters fired briefly and the pods thudded into the ground, shattering into tiny biodegradable fragments.

The three adventurers found themselves standing in front of the Big Mountain ski resort. Wide wooden steps led up from the parking lot to a big outdoor patio. The snow was high - about a foot thick - but cleared away from anywhere people would be expected to walk. The sun was setting, and country oldies wafted in from the bar & grill inside. A blond six-year-old boy on the top step looked up his gameboy. "We're about to close," he said.

--

This portion is free roleplaying, but don't do more than 2 posts since all the other players posted - especially if your post involves decisive action.

Dane Ulrag

"We need to speak with Mary Elsworth," said Dane bluntly. He still didn't understand the attraction of the little plastic toys. They made beeps and displayed an image on the screen, something that still defied Dane's understanding. The rifle was the only piece of modern technology he needed. "Official business," he added.

The boy stood up, looking nervous. "MOM!" He ran into the restaurant.

A middle-aged woman came out, brushing her hands on her apron. She stopped short when she saw the trio. "Sorry ... we're about to close. Can I get you rooms in the lodges? We have plenty of vacancies."

Dane Ulrag

Growing impatient, Dane said curtly, "We were told you could give us information on the vanishing children." It took all the willpower he could muster to keep from scowling. Hadn't the boy seen them drop pod in? Shouldn't they have known that their visitors were more than just skiiers on a mountain vacation?

"Humans," he muttered softly.

Xiaoming Wang
Aww, the boy ran before Xiaoming could ask what game he was playing, might be an overlooked masterpiece? He's always a fan of portable gaming consoles, only that he can't peel himself off other matters long enough to pay much attention to the ones he owns. Oh well, business first.
"My friend means that it's very sweet of you, we would like 3 rooms please. With wi-fi, I assme?" Xiaoming stepped in before the innkeeper gets too intimidated.

"We don't want to trouble you, ma'am," Amadea said finally, aware of her companion's impatience with her. "I'm sure having a missing child must be very hard for you. Is there a chance you'd be willing to tell us what you saw? We're here to get your...er...son? daughter? back if possible."

Mary clamped her hands over her mouth and trotted down the steps to the team. "My baby Michael," she whispered, holding back tears. "The police said he ran away, but I know better! Michael was very happy here. He had a science fair coming up and his light and shadow project was going to win. He was so excited ... there's no way he could have run away. Who are you? Are you from the government?"

--

Mary appears to trust the team completely. She will show them whatever they want to see, including Michael's room, etc.

Amadea mustered her most sympathetic face. It was important to look serious and concerned if you wanted information. "Please, ma'am, calm down. We just need to ask you a few questions, and we'll see if we can find him. Why do the police think he ran away?"

Mary took a deep breath. "There was no sign of intrusion, or a struggle. He was just up there working on his project - I heard him tinkering with it when I went to bed. And then he disappeared. His window and door were still locked! They said he slipped out the window and locked it behind him, but you can't lock the window from the outside."

Believably why they'd called in the team. "Did you see anything strange, something the cops wouldn't believe? An odd noise or light...anything. We'll believe you."

Dane Ulrag

Dane took a deep breath. From what little he knew, this woman was good. "Perhaps we should... investigate the room," he managed to say. He checked his holo emitter in a paranoid fashion.

Amadea turned to Dane and resisted the urge to glare at him. "No, we'll listen to what she has to say." She looked back at the woman, resuming her concerned look. "We don't mean to rush you, I'm sorry. It's just...urgent, and the sooner we have some clue about what happened, the sooner we can find your son."

"No, no" said Mary. "Please, follow me." She led the team into the restaurant, speaking as she walked. "Well, there were some strange lights, but that was Michael's science project. He was making a puppet show with flowing liquid ... my baby is so smart!" Two employees were putting chairs up on the tables and wiping things down. Mary lived upstairs in a surprisingly spacious and rustic apartment. "Here's the room," said Mary, indicating the first door on the left from the main living area. "The police have already been through it ..."

The room was blocked off with yellow police tape.

Dane's face took on a confused expression. "Why would they block off the bedroom?" he thought to himself. Something was not right here. He was used to what earthlings called "supernatural" of course, but this seemed like something else entirely.

"Mary..." Amadea tried using the woman's name and watched for her reaction. "if I may ask, what sort of science project was Michael working on?"

Mary looked confused at Dane's question. "Well ... I hadn't thought about that," she answered. "I just assumed it was protocol!"

Then Amadea asked about the science project. Mary looked sincerely enthusiastic about it. "It's so great," she said. "He made liquid dance in front of a light, and it cast shadows - cute animals and little stories. I thought for sure he was going to win at the science fair!"

--

Amadea has 12 Perception*. GM rolls for her and gets a 10. That's a margin of success of 2, meaning she probably has a pretty good idea of how Mary feels.

--

As we proceed - and Cynthia you're new so definitely go at your own pace - try to predict what skills/advantages/equipment you need me to use to calculate something. For instance, you might say "Amadea has 13 Perception." I will handle rolls so I can add/subtract modifiers as needed - just give me the number.

For Cynthia's sake bc she's new to tabletop roleplaying, I'll explain the mechanics behind everything in extreme detail.

* Perception is shown as PER in the upper left of the character sheet.

"Did he ever explain to you how he could make liquid dance?" Dane asked. He began opening the door to the room. He sent a knowing look in Xiaoming's direction.

--

Dane is starting to suspect that magic is probably involved.

Xiaoming Wang

Nodding, Xiaoming started an attempt to trace nearby teleporting activities.

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Xiaoming uses Trace Teleport. Modifiers: The spell operates at a cumulative -1 for each minute that elapses between the teleport and the casting. There is a further -5 penalty if the caster didn’t witness the teleport. Spell at level 14, roll gets 8

"Mary, would you mind letting us assess the scene amongst ourselves?" Amadea asked, seeing the looks on the other team members' faces. She had suspected magic back when the mother mentioned a science project, but discredited the notion due to the child's age. How would an eight-year-old find the keys to this level of power? Had the boy summoned something that wanted to be summoned? She waited to see if Mary would leave the room or not.