Written by John Fiore using TSR’s Star Frontiers setting and the World vs. Hero solitaire rules. THE WORLD Star Frontiers Summarized from Section 1 of Star Frontiers, Alpha Dawn Genre: Science Fiction Size: Galactic  . THE HEROES Marina Tril Human Mercenary Determined to be a career Star Law Ranger after her grandparents were killed in a Sathar attack, Marina rose through the ranks of the elite law enforcement agency quickly, developing a reputation for tenacity and quick-thinking. Because of her standing as a no-nonsense crime buster, it came as quite a shock to all when a brazen act of sabotage revealed that Marina’s fiancé Dralen Thorpe, a PGC trade manager, was in actuality a deep-cover Sathar agent who had been using Marina for a year’s worth of sensitive information through pillow talk and low-level hallucinogens. Now, stripped of her rank and humiliated, Marina has studied how Sathar agents work, and, with hatred in her heart, a Yazirian combat vet at her side, and a high-level computer-hacking robot disguised as a service bot at her command, she hunts her former lover across the Frontier, taking out other Sathar agents along the way as she recklessly careens toward bloody revenge. SUIT ABILITIES Spades [2] – Beam Weapon Specialist, prefers a laser in each hand Diamonds [2] – Profiler, has deeply researched Sathar agent tactics Spades [1] – Martial Artist, fights fairly well against other humans ARTIFACT Diamonds [3] – M8, Robot: Computer Link, accesses most computers SPECIAL FX Queen of Spades – Deadshot: fires laser pistols with perfect accuracy . Szanchu-Ur-Salong Yazirian War Veteran, Clan Salong When an independent Vrusk trade house bought his clan’s entire planet and evicted every last Yazirian from it, Szanchu declared that trade house to be his life-enemy. However, retribution would have to wait for many years as Szanchu became involved in the UPF’s battles against the Sathar’s initial invasion attempts. During that conflict, Szanchu learned a variety of war arts that taught him many definitions of “battle” and many ways to defeat an enemy. That was why, years later, no one could explain how the twenty-five board members of a certain Vrusk trade house all mysteriously died on the same night from unknown causes and why no one would ever learn the terrible secret of how it was done and by whom. Later, when a chance encounter introduced him to Marina Tril, the seasoned Szanchu decided to aid the young woman in her hunt for Dralen Thorpe, using his formidable experiences and skills to destroy every Sathar agent in the Frontier. SUIT ABILITIES Hearts [3] – Conflict Savant, intuits creative battle strategies quickly Clubs [2] – Sonic Sword Wielder, fights deftly in melee situations SPECIAL FX King of Hearts – Masterstroke: takes an infallible course of action . THE ADVENTURE Adventure Premise (Inspired by Mythic – Oppose/Weather) On the outskirts of the Frontier, the predominantly human population of the planet Minotaur is losing its patience. The cities are over-crowded, and years of unchecked industry and heavy gravity have made the sky churn with foul weather that worsens each day. The Hardistar Project, a set of manned stations in geosynchronous orbit around Minotaur, has failed to deliver its promise to correct the situation. Now, a man rumored to be one of the Sathar’s most notorious agents has claimed he has the technology to make the Hardistar Project viable and save Minotaur – but at a price. What does the agent really want, and can he be trusted? Adventure Locations Port Ariadne [known, recurring] – Starship transportation hub of Minotaur, planet with primarily human colonists, heavy population, manufacturing industry; the port complex is divided into two sections, one for passenger terminals and another for the exporting of refined resources made from imported raw materials from other worlds. Port Ariadne Conflict List
Other Spontaneous Locations to be developed by the Mythic GME. . PROLOGUE Marina Tril had thirty seconds to reach the hovercycle that was sixty seconds away from her. Unlike the five Gollywog Conglomerate Vrusk enforcers chasing her, Marina knew that the stairwell that she was running down with all her might – as well as the rest of the conglomerate’s headquarters – was about to be obliterated by an unstable chemical reaction initiated by the conglomerate’s own raving mad owner. In twenty seconds. Electrostunner lightning suddenly flashed over Marina’s head, searing the wall in front of her. She couldn’t return fire, couldn’t stop for a single moment. The Vrusk enforcers skittering after her were just as insane as their leader, and his defeat at her hands was a defeat they all shared bitterly. Marina had exposed their alliance with the Sathar, ruining everything they had worked to build for a decade. Now, just a few hours away from the UPF’s fury, the conglomerate’s maniacal leader was determined to keep all of his secrets. A micro-nova burst in the heart of the company’s complex would destroy everything and everyone inside, including Marina. In ten seconds. Marina, her lungs and legs burning, knew she couldn’t make it using the stairs. She would have to do what Szanchu had advised because, as usual, he was right. This time, though, she really didn’t want him to be right. This new “Plan B” of his was her least favorite. Taking a hard right through an emergency exit, Marina bolted down a corridor, drew one of her laser pistols, and blasted out a large window at the end of the hallway. To the pursuing Vrusks’ surprise, the young woman leapt headfirst through the tenth-story opening. The parawing concealed in the pack on Marina’s back opened immediately, but the apparatus only served to slow her fall to the pavement below rather than gliding her gently to safety. She hit the concrete hard, disengaged the parawing, and rolled toward the waiting hovercycle. By the time the Vrusk enforcers could look out of the window at their escaping prey, Marina’s cycle was already jetting out of sight. Then the Gollywog Conglomerate’s headquarters exploded. All of its secrets – except one – vaporized in the hot cosmic glow of a lunatic’s wrath. The one secret that got away was in Marina’s pocket… . ROUND ONE – PORT ARIADNE, COMMERCIAL TERMINAL Shuttle E-27 of the starship Sureside rocked wildly through the stormy stratosphere of the planet Minotaur and docked into Port Ariadne’s Gate D with a resounding thud. The passengers inside were thankful to be on solid ground after the last few minutes of stomach-churning turbulence, and, impatiently, they pushed their way out of the craft and into the bustling Port Ariadne terminal. The most impatient of them all was undoubtedly Marina Tril. Despite her edginess, Marina and her companions, the Yazirian Szanchu-Ur-Salong and M8, the 4-foot tall anthropomorphic bot, moved through the crowd as nonchalantly as possible. M8 carried Marina’s two packs like the ordinary service robot he was pretending to be, while Szanchu smiled politely and ambled casually. The old Yazirian came up behind Marina, still smiling. “Well, we’re here now,” he said. “Does the Gollywog Conglomerate data you stole say where we should be going?” “Not really,” Marina answered. “That maniac Vrusk who played middleman between the Sathar agent and Hardistar set up the agent’s transport on the Severance two days ahead of us, but there’s no mention of which shuttle was used to get the agent and his tech from here to one of the Hardistar satellites once he arrived. If the Minotaur government is behind this, then they’d provide the shuttle, but if this is a backroom deal, it’d be harder to make it up without getting noticed.” Marina tapped at her chronocom while still walking. “So, first we find out if the agent has gotten up to a Hardistar station yet. Then, if he did, we follow.” Szanchu’s goggled eyes took in the terminal’s every element as he listened to Marina. “Do you really think it’s Dralen?” “Fits the profile.” “So did the last four agents we tracked down, and one turned out to be a woman.” Marina stopped walking, stiffened her back, and, without looking at Szanchu, coldly said, “You want out, Szan?” Szanchu growled. “For your own sake, don’t ask me that question again, girl. You can’t afford to.” He swept his fingers through the gray stripe in his mane and walked away. The young woman looked back at her chronocom. M8’s ready-prompt indicated that he was prepared to follow her next commands, to find and hack into a Port Ariadne primary data terminal – a feat that surely would be easier ordered than accomplished. . Round One Tableau – JH, 9D, 7S, 10H, AH World, Access AH – Crowd of passengers, Low Impact Is the crowd blocking M8’s Computer Link? (Very likely) – No Is the crowd impatient and troublesome? (50/50) – Yes “Follow me,” Marina said to M8 through her chronocom. The robot obeyed and kept pace with its instructor, though it was becoming more and more difficult to comply as the crowds grew larger. A suitcase slammed down on the floor in front of M8 as a human cursed aloud in three different languages. Another DELAYED status indicator flashed on the Departure Screen, and dozens of people groaned in frustration. Passengers waiting to board starships heading out of Minotaur’s system were getting angrier and angrier as dangerous weather conditions held back their off-planet flights. With the increased tensions, the crowds were becoming potentially more troublesome for anyone attempting something as subtle as Marina hoped to accomplish. Hero, Access 7S – Marina, Martial Artist, Low Impact M8 disappeared from Marina’s view in the swelling crowds, but it didn’t take much for the young woman to maneuver her way through the people and back to the robot. M8 may have been able to follow the signal on Marina’s chronocom without actually seeing her, but the robot was far too important to Marina to take any chances. Marina easily dodged the passengers storming to and fro the terminal and kicked away the large suitcase that blocked M8’s path. “Stay close,” she said to the robot through the chronocom. From this point on, subtly was gone, and Marina was prepared to force her way through the crowds if necessary. .World, Access JH – Being, Passive/Increase/Trials, Extreme Impact Interpretation: Someone informs the crowd that their current situation has gotten worse, inciting the passengers more. Is it a public address announcement? (Very likely) – Yes Are all flights delayed now? (Likely) – Yes Indefinitely? (Likely) – Yes Suddenly, delicate chimes echoed through the terminal, followed by a loud but charmingly sweet, cloyingly perky female voice emanating from the terminal’s speaker system. “Good day and thank you for flying out of Port Ariadne, Minotaur’s number-one center for transit and trade! We hope you’re enjoying your time in our galaxy-class terminals, and we encourage you to visit our many shops and services while you’re here! Due to inclement weather, all of our outbound shuttles are now grounded until further notice. Passengers are requested to remain at their assigned gates. Thank you for your understanding.” Almost immediately, a crush of irate customers stormed every ticket counter and service desk in the terminal, effectively blocking any chance that M8 could establish a radio link with the primary data terminal. Hero, Access JH, Use 10H, AH – Szanchu, Conflict Savant, High Impact While Marina desperately searched for some gap in the throng of angry customers to get M8 close enough to link to a terminal, Szanchu appeared beside her as if he had always been standing there. “This won’t work,” he said. “M8 will never get a clear line-in. The freight terminal would be a better choice. Over there, the workmen will be happy that shipping up has stopped, so no crowds. There are probably fewer data terminals to access, but at least the line-in will be open.” “Sounds good,” Marina answered. “Sticking around?” The Yazirian smiled. “Who else is going to keep you from getting yourself killed?” He walked away, following the direction of an arrow marked with the words “Freight Terminal” in glowing letters. . World, Access 10H – Inconvenient Public Address Announcement, Extreme Impact Is it about the freight terminal? (50/50) – Yes Is access being restricted? (Likely) – Extreme Yes Is there an emergency? (50/50) – Yes
As Marina and M8 followed Szanchu, the public address chimes emitted their pleasant sounds again. “Good day and thank you for flying out of Port Ariadne, Minotaur’s number-one center for transit and trade! At this time, we would like to inform all passengers and staff that access to the freight terminals is currently restricted to everyone except emergency personnel. Thank you for your understanding.” The glowing letters that spelled “Freight Terminal” immediately went dark, and dozens of freight and shipping workers began to pour out of the corridor and into the commercial terminal. Hero, Access 10H, Use JH, AH – Szanchu, Conflict Savant, High Impact Szanchu stopped where he was, and Marina and M8 caught up to him as the freight terminal personnel filed out of the corridor that they had meant to enter. “Now what?” Marina asked. “This terminal is only going to get more crowded,” replied Szanchu. “We’ve got to get into the freight area fast, especially if this ‘emergency’ is related to your Sathar agent.” “Exactly what I was thinking. Suggestions?” “Well, from the looks of things, they’ve already cordoned off the interior entrances, but they probably won’t have figured on anyone trying to get in from the outside of the port, especially in such severe weather.” Marina shook her head. “M8 can’t go out there.” “I know,” Szanchu said. “Tell M8 to go the normal route through those corridors. Since he’s a robot, they won’t stop him. We’ll meet up with him once we get through.” “Got it,” Marina answered and she began to speak instructions to M8 through her chronocom. “Now,” snarled Szanchu, “an emergency exit would be best…” . World, Access 9D – Locale,Incidental/Adversity/Benefits, High Impact Interpretation: More Minotaur Transit staff is dispatched to help. Do they block emergency exits? (50/50) – Yes As the overcrowding of the terminal got out of hand after the evacuation of the freight side of the complex, the Minotaur Transit Authority dispatched as many employees as it could spare to manage the crowds of inconvenienced patrons. Most important, they needed to ensure that tempers remained eased and no one tried anything desperate. That meant putting a few extra personnel at every ticket counter and posting at least one person at each emergency exit so that no one got any crazy ideas about opening those doors, setting off an alarm, and causing a panic. Hero, Access AH, use JH, 10H – Ally, Transit Staffer, High Impact Marina and Szanchu approached the nearest emergency exit and found a nervous female transit staffer manning the door. “Excuse me,” Marina said as she quickly flashed her now-invalid Star Law ID Card, “we’re on an undercover assignment and we need your help. Do you know what the emergency is in the freight terminal?” “N-n-no,” stammered the wide-eyed girl still staring at the spot where Marina had flashed her ID. “Well, we do,” Marina whispered, “and it isn’t good. We need to get through this emergency exit. Can you open it so that the alarms don’t sound? We don’t want to panic any of the passengers needlessly.” “Of course,” the girl answered. She fumbled through her key ring of swipes, found the right one, and turned her attention to the exit activation pad. It took two jittery passes, but the girl was able to deactivate the alarm from the exit. She opened the door, and even held it for Marina and Szanchu. “Thank you,” Marina said to the girl, and she and Szanchu began to walk down the canopied emergency platform. . World, Access 7S – Star Law Ranger(s), High Impact How many? 1 Male? (50/50) – Yes In uniform? (50/50) – Yes On the emergency exit platform? (50/50) – No Still in the terminal? (50/50) – Yes Did he recognize Marina? (Unlikely) – Yes The Minotaur Transit staffer smiled, feeling as though she had done a good job. Before she could re-secure the emergency exit door, she felt the presence of another person close to her. She turned to find a tall, uniformed Star Law Ranger standing by her side. “Oh! Are you with the other rangers?” she asked. The Star Law Ranger nodded. “Sure. Yeah. They headed toward the freight terminal?” “Yes. Do you want to come through?” The Star Law Ranger shook his head in disbelief. He had come to Minotaur for one thing, but finding Marina Tril was an added bonus. Her vigilante ways had been a bane to the Sathar’s undercover agents, but her methods, which usually involved a lot of stuff blowing up, were nothing short of lawless. She may have been one of them once, but now she was nothing more than a loose cannon that needed to be bolted down. Could she possibly be involved with the reason he had come to Minotaur in the first place? The ranger definitely wanted to find out. Hero, Access 9D – Marina, Assumption, Star Law SOPs, Low Impact Before heading out into Minotaur’s savage environment, Marina instinctively turned around and looked up at the exit door from which they had come. At the top of the platform stood a Star Law Ranger who was obviously looking down at her and Szanchu. The ranger’s face was obscured in shadow, but his uniform was clear to see. “We’re made,” she said. “Star Law.” Szanchu did not turn around. “That’s a problem,” he muttered. “Yeah. It’s standard operating procedure for rangers to be briefed on each other’s activities. If that girl tells him that we said we were Star Law, he’ll know we’re fakes. We’ve got to ditch him.” And with that, Marina and Szanchu left the safety of the canopied platform and entered the wicked Minotaur weather. . ROUND TWO – PORT ARIADNE, EXTERIOR (New Location) Jagged streaks of purple lightning flashed across the Minotaur sky-line followed by deafening peals of booming thunder. Bitter-tasting raindrops fell in torrential waves of force that choked the muddied earth. Though it was daytime right now, the planet’s red-orange sun remained almost entirely hidden behind the thick ash-colored clouds that blanketed the heavens. It was all about as unpleasant as any heavily colonized planet’s environment could get. Marina could see now why people on Minotaur would consider making a deal with a Sathar agent. If the agent’s claims were true and he could provide the technology to stabilize the planet’s weather system, then life on Minotaur could go on as it had. Without some sort of relief, Minotaur’s citizens faced an uncertain future. But what did the Sathar agent want in return? Could he even be trusted? Marina doubted it. She knew these saboteurs’ operating procedures extremely well. Their ultimate aim was the personal profit and power that would come the day the Sathar conquered the Frontier. Until then, they would do anything to undermine Frontier society, even things that were unthinkable. Like what Dralen did… Marina shook the thought out of her head and pulled the hood out of her jacket, covering her head. Szanchu had already converted his tunic into a cloak and head wrap. They walked along the length of the commercial terminal exterior against the hard-falling rain in the direction of the freight terminal which was many meters ahead of them. “Can you see any sign of what’s caused the emergency at the freight terminal?” Marina asked. “No,” said Szanchu. “Even with goggles on, it’s hard to see anything up ahead. So, far, it all looks normal.” Purple lightning struck a nearby landing pad causing a small blast that sent purple sparks dancing across the airfield. The booming thunder that followed startled both Marina and Szanchu. “We’d better hurry!” Szanchu called out. “It’s worse out here than I thought it’d be. As soon as we get to the first freight entrance or emergency platform, we take it, and then we improvise!” Most of the time, “improvise” meant something was going to get broken the hard way. Instinctively, both of Marina’s hands brushed against the grips of the laser pistols at her hips. . Round Two Tableau – 4S, 5S, AC, 10C, 9H New Conflict List to be developed entirely by the Mythic GME World, Access AC – Thing, Concrete/Open/Vehicle, Low Impact Interpretation: An “open” vehicle blocks the heroes’ path. Is it a shuttle? (Very likely) – Yes Is it a freight shuttle trying to dock? (Likely) – Yes Is the “open” part its storage bay? (50/50) – Yes Before Marina and Szanchu could get very far, an incoming freight shuttle descended at a dangerous speed out of the inky storm clouds and headed straight for their location. The bulky vessel’s storage bay doors were opened wide and drinking in the deluge of acidic rain which certainly did not help its wobbly approach to the surface. The shuttle’s pilot was clearly either ignoring the landing pad or could not steer toward it with any accuracy. As the ship’s thrusters attempted to break its too-rapid descent, the shuttle skimmed the surface of the airfield and slid with a metallic squealing directly for the freight terminal itself. With barely a meter to spare, the shuttle came to a halt before crashing into the building, missing every gate and blocking the path of Marina and Szanchu. Hero, Access 9H – Szanchu, Conflict Savant, Low Impact Szanchu had crouched down defensively at the freight shuttles precarious approach. He now remained in that stance and growled low and deep, Marina knew that sound well. “Szan?” “You getting this, girl?” Szan snarled. “Evacuation…a grakkin’ risky landing…open storage compartment. Somebody’s moving merchandise that they don’t want anyone to see!” The Yazirian raised himself up. “Let’s get to the freight terminal before that shuttle’s crew does, but we have to go around it!” With that, Marina took off for the landing pad with Szanchu immediately behind her. . World, Access 5S – Locale, Incidental/Postpone/Outside, Moderate Impact Interpretation: Auto-security keeps people off airfield landing pads. Is it mechanical? (Likely) – Yes Does it restrict access? (Very likely) – Yes Purple lightning streaked across the sky and cast bizarre shadows across the entire airfield. Coming wide around the freight shuttle, Marina and Szanchu suddenly and inadvertently activated the motion-sensitive Port Ariadne security measures that restrained beings from walking out on to the usually busy landing pads Several metal stalks popped out of the asphalt and pointed automated anesthetic needler rifles at the two trespassers. “Warning! This is a restricted area!” boomed a robotic voice over the sound of the fearsome wind and rain. “Return to the Port Ariadne main terminal at once!” The needler rifles began charging… Hero, Access 4S, Use 5S – Marina, Beam Weapon User, Moderate Impact Without breaking her stride, Marina drew a laser pistol from each holster and fired a double-shot at the three automated needler rifles in her range. Pop! Pop! Pop! The stationary targets were easy for the former ranger to hit even while running in a storm. Each one of the metal stalks burst into smoking electrical blooms of uselessness that sizzled in the rain. “Warning! Causing damage to Port Ariadne property can result in fines of 500 Credits or up to 90 days in jail!” Marina and Szanchu kept running. .World, Access 10C – Thing, Concrete/Dispute/Military, Extreme Impact Interpretation: Something military-grade tries to stop heroes. Is it Port Ariadne security? (50/50) – No Is it from the freight terminal? (50/50) – Yes Is it a robot? (Likely) – Yes How many? 1 As Marina and Szanchu advanced to the closest embarkation gate at the freight terminal, a warbot emerged from the gate’s opening and faced them, its bright white eyes fixed on Marina. Most likely, its attack/defense program was responding to her laser fire moments before. At first the military-grade cross between a being and a hover tank remained motionless, unperturbed by the wind and rain that would have damaged M8’s more delicate frame, but, after a few seconds, it abruptly raised its arms. The warbot’s hands suddenly exploded in a firestorm of blazing weaponry. The right hand emitted rapid bursts of laser blasts, while the left hand unloaded rounds of bullets. And all of it was aimed at Marina. Hero, Access AC, Use 10C – Ally, Star Law Ranger, Moderate Impact Vulnerable in the open, Marina and Szanchu fled from the warbot’s weapon fire, but not quickly enough. Marina’s right side erupted in pain, and she nearly fell from the impact of the automatic fire that struck her. “Here!” cried out a voice from behind her. It was the uniformed Star Law Ranger who had observed Marina and Szanchu at the passenger terminal. The ranger stood behind the large silvery aura of an albedo screen that was being projected from a small disk on the ground in front of him. The ranger discharged his own laser pistol at the warbot, drawing its fire away from Marina. Szanchu pulled Marina along and got her behind the albedo screen. But the albedo screen was only protecting them against laser fire, and its silvery sheen was already beginning to flicker out of existence. . World, Access 9H – Being, Deliberate/Arrive/Information, High Impact Interpretation: Someone’s use of info makes things worse. Is it new orders for the warbot? (Likely) – Yes Is the person human? (50/50) – Yes Can the person be clearly seen? (50/50) – No From behind the warbot, a human figure appeared, shadowed by the canopied gate. The person touched the warbot, and the automaton stopped firing. The being then seemed to speak into the back of the warbot’s head. The warbot’s skull suddenly withdrew into its chest. Its arms tightened against its body. Its legs went into motion. The warbot’s search and destroy program had just been activated. Hero, Access 5S, use 4S – Marina, Beam Weapon User, Moderate Impact “We’ve got to pull back!” the Star Law ranger yelled at Marina and Szanchu. “Like hell, I am!” Marina screamed. Lying on the ground with her side slightly burned from the burst parabattery that took the full deadly force of the warbot’s bullets, Marina fired both pistols awkwardly at the oncoming warbot. Her weaponry did little more than slow the metallic juggernaut down. “Enough, girl!” Szanchu roared. He grabbed Marina under the arms and tried to drag her out of harm’s way, but she resisted. The wind wailed madly around them, but even a hurricane-force gale would have done little to stop the warbot’s march. “Get up! We’ll take cover behind that ship,” the Star Law Ranger yelled, pointing toward the recently-landed freight shuttle. Purple lightning slashed the skyline, and the thunder crashed. Marina shook Szanchu off her arms and fired more laser blasts at the warbot. The warbot paused to activate its own albedo screen, protecting it from lasers. And it kept coming. .World, Access 4S – Locale, Mysterious/Mistrust/Weapons, Moderate Impact Interpretation: The weather is inexplicably causing tech malfunctions. Is it a specific type of tech? (Near sure thing) – Yes Electrical? (Likely) – No Sonic? (50/50) – Yes To cover their retreat to the back of the freight shuttle, the Star Law Ranger threw down another defensive disk, activating a sonic screen to hopefully impede the warbot from tracking them by sound once they were out of sight. Unfortunately, activation of the device resulted in a crackle of static and virtually no energy output at all. Effectively, the sonic screen was a dud. “Damn it!” cursed the Star Law Ranger. He looked up at the churning sky. “The weather must be fouling with sonics! We’re screwed!” Just a few yards away, the warbot could hear every other expletive the ranger blurted out as he ran behind the freight shuttle and disappeared from the warbot’s ocular sensors. Hero, Access 10C – Szanchu, Character Assumption, Yazirian Strength, Low Impact Defying his age as much as he could, Szanchu summoned the strength to get Marina behind the freight shuttle. “Let’s go, girl!” he snarled. Marina fought him, but not for long. Soon, they were behind the bulky freight shuttle that had practically crash-landed a few minutes before. The Star Law Ranger was there desperately looking through the inside of his jacket. For now, all three of them were out of the line of sight of the relentless warbot, but what could they do against the mechanical monster once it reached them? Though raging Marina seemed oblivious to their situation, Szanchu knew their time was quickly running out… .ROUND THREE – PORT ARIADNE, EXTERIOR The raindrops slammed down like liquid bullets against Marina’s head. She shrugged off Szanchu’s claws from her person, and ripped the scalded parabattery out of her jacket.“I almost had the shot!” she screamed at him. “What shot?” “Its eyes!” “No chance, Tril!” the Star Law Ranger exclaimed. “Warbot eyes are shielded!” Marina’s rain-drenched face contorted with rage at the ranger’s presence. She lifted up one of her pistols and pointed it at the ranger’s forehead. “And just who the grak are you?” Without flinching, the ranger stared deeply into Marina’s eyes and answered, “Marshal Jared Cotes. You and your boyfriend murdered my little brothers.” The ranger’s words struck Marina’s gut harder than the warbot’s weaponry had. Her teeth clenched, and the laser aimed at Marshal Cotes’s head began to tremble. “What happened on…on that day…that was not my –” “Not your fault?” Cotes said coldly. “Tell that to the families of all of those people who were killed because of you!” “Enough!” growled Szanchu. He grabbed Marina’s wrist and aimed the pistol toward the ground. “There’s a warbot coming!” A peal of thunder resounded above their heads like the rumbling of some great beast’s belly. “We’ve got to come up with something, now!” Szanchu exclaimed. He turned to Cotes. “You know anything about this?” “A bit.” “Where would a Sathar agent even get a warbot?” Szanchu asked. Marina just listened as she loaded new clips into her pistols and set their dials to 10. “I’ve been on this case for weeks,” Cotes answered. “It isn’t the Sathar’s warbot. It belongs to Hardistar.” “But the Hardistar Corporation is an environmental research affiliate of the PGC,” said Szanchu. “They’re clean.” “The company is clean,” Cotes replied. “I meant the warbot belongs to Alhrick Hardistar, the CEO.” Marina and Szanchu exchanged expressions of curiosity. . Round Three Tableau – 10D, 2D, 3D, AD, 4H Continuing previous Conflict List developed by the Mythic GME World, Access 3D – Locale, incidental/Adversity/Energy, Low Impact Interpretation: An accidental release of energy traps the heroes. Is it caused by the weather? (Very likely) – No Is it caused by the freight shuttle? (Likely) – Yes Marshal Cotes inspected the area around them, including the freight shuttle beside them. “There’s no way to climb into the shuttle, but we might have a chance over there.” He pointed a few meters off toward the terminals. “If we crawl under those conduits, we should be able to put some distance between us and the warbot. I know about these machines. Warbots are dangerous, but they aren’t very fast. All we have to do is get across that –” But before Cotes could finish his thought, the grates in front of the conduits exploded in a frenzy of electrical sparks. The freight shuttle’s reckless descent had damaged Port Ariadne’s airfield infrastructure, and now another path toward safety was blocked. Cotes slammed his fist against the hull of the shuttle. “We’re cornered!” Hero, Access 4H – Szanchu, Conflict Savant, Low Impact “We’re not cornered!” said Szanchu. “An electrical fire could be what we need to scramble the warbot’s sensors!” “How?” Marina asked as the pouring rain dripped in an unbecoming manner off the tip of her nose. She looked over toward the sputtering, sparking malfunction, but saw little hope of using it for cover. “While the shuttle gives protects us on one side, more electrical output from those grates will throw off its targeting systems once we take the risk of jumping over the grates!” “That’s a hell of a risk!” Marina said. “And where are we going to get more electricity?” Szanchu tapped Marina’s chronocom. “M8!” . World, Access AD – The Freight Shuttle, Low Impact Does it start to move? (Near sure thing) – Yes Toward the freight gate? (A sure thing) – Yes Suddenly, the freight shuttle rumbled to life. Thrusters flared beneath the craft. Slowly and clumsily, the ship lurched forward. “The shuttle’s heading for the gate where the warbot came from!” yelled Cotes. “We’re going to be exposed!” Cotes was right. In seconds, the heroes’ only solid cover was soon to be lost. Hero, Access 2D, use 3D, 10D – Marina, M8, High Impact Marina knew that their only advantage was almost gone. She had to try Szanchu’s idea. “M8! M8!” she screamed into the chronocom. “Are you in the freight terminal?” The freight shuttle scraped the airfield, tearing through the asphalt, but it was still moving off. Purple lightning streaked across the dark sky. “M8!” Marina cried out. “Are you there?” The chronocom’s display was then illuminated by M8’s response: YES. “Are you linked into a data terminal?” YES. The bulky shuttle leaned forward and was finally on the correct trajectory to engage itself with the nearest freight terminal gate. Marina wiped the stinging rain out of her eyes and looked across the airfield. The warbot was on its way. “M8,” she cried into the chronocom, “there’s damage to the power grid! Tell the system to increase output instead of decreasing it!” YES. Almost immediately, the exposed grates by the conduit became a fountain of white-hot electrical energy. .World, Access 2D – Locale, Deliberate/Create/Enemies, Low Impact Interpretation: The security system makes something to stop the plan. Is it a fix to the electrical output? (50/50) – Yes Is it robots? (50/50) – Yes Maintenance Robots? (Near sure thing) – Yes In response to the excessive output of electricity, ground ports near the grates opened up and out of them emerged a dozen spider-like maintenance robots that skittered across the airfield and headed straight for the damaged electrical works. As soon as the robots arrived on the scene, those that did not get fried by the dangerous output began to close off exposed wiring and remake burned circuitry. “Repair bots!” Cotes yelled, pointing toward the little drones. The flaring electrical burst needed to help mask Marina and the others from the warbot was beginning to diminish. Hero, Access 3D, use 2D, 10D – Marina, M8, High Impact “M8!” Marina yelled into the chronocom. “Get rid of the repair drones!” YES was the response shining on her chronocom.The maintenance robots quickly skittered back into their underground storage ports. “Good work!” said Szanchu. “Let’s get to those grates!” The Yazirian led the way, and Marina and Cotes closely followed. .World, Access 10D – The Warbot, Extreme Impact Does it attack? (A sure thing) – Yes As the freight shuttle finally docked at the gate it had missed minutes before, the warbot’s line of sight and range of fire finally became optimal. Its “search” subroutines were now completed. Its “destroy” subroutines immediately became active. Laser blasts fired from the warbot’s right hand strafed the area where Marina, Szanchu, and Marshal Cotes were running through a shower of electrical sparks. The warbot’s ocular sensors were having trouble locking in on moving targets through the electrical “noise” it was registering. Responding to the uncertain data, the “destroy” subroutines concluded that a fragmentation grenade was in order. Out of the warbot’s shoulder, a thick tube appeared, and, with a popping sound, it launched a frag grenade straight at the flaming grates. The grenade exploded on impact, throwing hundreds of sharp metal projectiles in all directions. Hero, Access AD, use 2D, 3D, 10D – Ally, Cotes, Extreme Impact Marshal Cotes’s inertia screen collapsed upon absorbing all of the damage from the frag grenade. The flames and fumes surrounding the three of them were now expanding as their options for escape began diminishing. “I’ve got an idea!” Cotes yelled. “Draw its fire away from me!” “Yeah, you’d like that!” Marina scoffed. “Just do it!” he screamed as he held up his last defensive disk, a gauss screen. Szanchu saw the disk and understood what Cotes was considering doing. “Come on!” he yelled at Marina, and pulled her with him in a desperate run toward the docked freight shuttle. The warbot turned toward the running Marina and Szanchu and fired just as Cotes charged in suicidal fashion directly toward the death machine. The warbot twisted its trunk to attack Cotes, but it was too slow. Cotes jammed the gauss screen disk into the warbot’s neck port and activated the disk. The gauss screen, which inhibited electrical impulses, cut off the signals from the robot’s brain to the rest of its body. So, for the next several minutes, the warbot would be motionless and utterly harmless. . World, Access 4H – Weather-Based Interference, Moderate Impact Does it interfere with the gauss screen? (50/50) – Yes But to the ranger’s surprise, the gauss screen emitted a rapid succession of quick flashes of light, indicating that its charges were being used up far more quickly than he had anticipated. “The weather,” he muttered, remembering what had happened to the sonic screen he had tried to activate. The gauss screen now wasn’t going to exhaust its SEUs in a few minutes. It would exhaust them in a few seconds. Standing in the pouring rain just a meter away from the warbot, Marshal Jared Cotes was in the most serious trouble of his life… Hero, Access 10D, Use 2D, 3D – Marina, M8, High Impact Meanwhile, safely at the freight shuttle, Marina and Szanchu could see the front of the ship for the first time. Its pilot was a cybernetic robot, probably programmed to do nothing but fly the shuttle. The cybot had successfully docked the open storage bay doors in the freight terminal gate, blocking them from being able to enter the building. The sound of heavy machinery loading something into the shuttle could be heard even over the sounds of the wild storm outside. “If we can’t get into the terminal, maybe we can stowaway on the freight shuttle,” Marina suggested. “The pilot is linked to the shuttle, and now the shuttle is linked to the data terminal.” She talked into her chronocom. “M8, can you get the pilot of the ship that just docked to let us into the shuttle?” For a moment, nothing happened. Then a ladder emerged from the side of the freight shuttle and lowered to the ground at Marina’s feet. “We don’t even know where this ship is going,” Szanchu said, “but, wherever it is, it’ll put you out of M8’s range.” “So, then maybe we just stop it from taking off,” Marina replied. “I don’t know. I do know that getting inside brings us one step closer to the Sathar agent.” Without hesitation, Marina climbed the ladder. . ROUND FOUR – HARDISTAR STATION 9 (New Location) As they entered the freight shuttle, Marina and Szanchu received no acknowledgement from the cybernetic pilot. M8’s superior hacking ability had been as flawless as ever.Marina looked through a port into the rear of the shuttle and its storage bay. Heavy duty robots were moving several large objects into the bay. Some of the objects were crates labeled with the Vrusk Gollywog Conglomerate logo. The other objects were definitely of a more dubious origin. They were large blocks as big as a heavy duty robot, but certainly not made of the same material. They seemed to Marina to have been carved out of solid black slime. The surface of the blocks glistened with a slick sheen, and nodules and pipes covered the entire exterior of the blocks making them appear even more bizarre to the eyes of a woman who had met every alien species in the Frontier. Though she could not identify the exact function of the blocks of black material, she was almost positive who made them. “That’s Sathar tech,” Marina said to Szanchu. “This must be what the Sathar agent promised would solve Minotaur’s weather problems.” Now coming into view just outside of the storage bay was the figure of the man who had given the search-and-destroy orders to the warbot. His features were still not clear enough to be seen, and the commands he was issuing to the robots were imperceptible over the sound of the storm outside. Marina whispered into her chronocom. “M8, can you see the man directing the robots? Can you identify him?” The chronocom lit up instantaneously: ALHRICK HARDISTAR. “Is there any other being out there?” NO. “Hardistar is alone with his robots.” Marina said to Szanchu. “He probably paid people off to fake the emergency in the freight terminal so he could move the Sathar tech without eyewitnesses,” Szanchu replied. “So, the Sathar agent must already be up in the weather station.” Marina grinned hungrily. “That means we’re going for a ride, Szan. Brace yourself.” The storage bay doors closed. The cybot pilot disengaged the shuttle from the gate, and the ship launched itself perilously into the stormy atmosphere. . Round Four Tableau – 6D, 2C, 8S, 4D, 4C New Conflict List to be developed entirely by the Mythic GME World, Access 4D, Use 4C–Being, Passive/Mistrust/Art, High Impact Interpretation: Someone on the station is concerned about the tech.Is it a Hardistar employee? (Likely) – Yes Is he human? (Likely) – No Race roll result: Vrusk Is he related to the Gollywog Vrusks? (50/50) – Extreme Yes After a terrible ride through the Minotaur stratosphere, the freight shuttle finally entered space and caught up with Hardistar Station 9, the geosynchronous weather station that was the control center for the Hardistar Project. The freight shuttle docked at the station without incident, and the storage bay doors opened, but there was no one there to welcome the Sathar merchandise. Instead, a perceptible scan field that covered the station’s docking bay wall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling hummed at the shuttle’s goods. After a few minutes, a single large Vrusk looking down at a data pad entered the docking area on the other side of the screen. “I’m initiating the biological scans now,” the Vrusk announced as the scan field moved forward toward the shuttle. “The last thing we need is to pick up some sort of Sathar virus from this equipment.” A voice crackled back through the station’s intercoms. “You still don’t trust me?” “I don’t trust anyone,” the Vrusk replied matter-of-factly. “After what happened to my conglomerate on Gollywog, why would I?” Hero, Access 2C, Use 4C – Szanchu, Sonic Sword, Moderate Impact “The bioscan is going to pick us up,” Marina said as she watched through the port the scan field’s approach. “Then let’s take out the Vrusk quickly,” Szanchu answered. He leapt out of the storage bay doors, activated his sonic sword, and charged at the Vrusk.The Yazirian was partially successful. With a single swing of invisible sonic force, the Vrusk fell, unconscious, but not before activating the station’s alarms. . World, Access 2C – Locale, Incidental/Separate/Victory, Low Impact Interpretation: The alarms initiate security “zones.” Is the docking bay its own zone? (Very likely) – Yes Wailing sirens echoed through the docking bay, and the entrance doors to that section of the station quickly slid closed. The voice that had spoken to the Vrusk before crackled over the intercom. “Dr. K’Klirt! What’s happened? The station’s going into zone mode! What’s going on?” Sirens continued to wail, and it looked as though anyone in the docking bay would remain there until the security protocol launched by the Vrusk was disabled. “Dr. K’Klirt! I’m sending robots!” the voice stated with a squeal of audio feedback from the sirens. Hero, Access 6D – Marina, Star Law Security Knowledge, Low Impact Marina, her laser pistols drawn, joined Szanchu beside the fallen Vrusk. “Nice going, old monkey,” she said. “Back in my prime, I could have knocked a Vrusk out faster with just my feet. Now, we definitely have lost the element of surprise and we’re trapped.” “Not necessarily,” Marina said. She walked over to the doors to the interior of the station that had just slid closed. “This isn’t a high security installation. The doors should respond to any being.” Marina holstered a pistol and waved her hand in front of the motion sensor pad. The door slid open, and the way into the next hall was clear. Marina and Szanchu looked at each other, hesitated for a second, and then both rushed out into the hallway, weapons at the ready. .World, Access 4C, Use 4D – Dr. K’Klirt, High Impact As he’s unconscious, is this indirect impact? (Very likely) – No Does he awaken? (50/50) – Yes Did he see Szanchu just before the attack? (50/50) – Yes Dr. K’Klirt’s mandibles twitched and his antennae pointed upward. The rest of his eight-legged body roused, and very quickly the Vrusk jolted himself upright. “Com-Cent, can you hear me?” he called out. “Dr. K’Klirt, what’s going on” the intercom voice asked. “A Yazirian just attacked me! He came out of the shuttle and hit me with something!” “Are you injured?” “Of course I am, you idiot! He hit me!” The Vrusk clicked wildly between each syllable. “He’s gone out into the station, and I don’t think he was alone!” “Understood!” “And get on the radio to Hardistar!” K’Klirt snapped. “Tell him to send up his toys!” Hero, Access 4D, Use 6D – Marina, Profiler, Moderate Impact Marina and Szanchu moved through the station’s halls cautiously, but quickly. “Plan?” asked Szanchu. “We go straight to the heart of the operation,” Marina replied. “Sathar agents are experts at infiltrating people’s lives, even when the people know they’re agents. They’re skilled in persuasion, empathy, and some of them are even hypnotists. So, this agent will be wherever the shots are being called.” “In a station like this, that would be Command Central,” Szanchu said, “the middle-most chamber.” Marina turned a corner, both laser pistols pointing forward. The whining of the alarms still rang through the station. Szanchu growled as the sounds began to irritate him. “With all this racket, he’ll be ready for us,” Szanchu said. “He’s a Sathar agent, Szan,” Marina stated. “He’s always ready to kill.” . World, Access 6D – Locale, Deliberate/Overindulge/Balance, Moderate impact Interpretation: The stalling against the heroes is excessive. Is it the robots mentioned before? (Very likely) – Yes Are they security robots? (Very unlikely) – No Are they service robots? (Likely) – Yes How many? 15 Through the doors of a hallway that had been closed off by the alarms triggered by Dr. K’Klirt, a large group of service robots appeared. The 15 service robots – the majority of the contingent that worked on the station – were not armed, but they had obviously been ordered to locate and slow down the trespassers on the station. The robots closed in on Marina and Szanchu, ignoring the weapons that both heroes held. They put their arms out and tried to grab the pair’s limbs with their strong clamp-hands. “Please remain where you are!” the robots announced over the emergency alarms. “Please remain where you are! Thank you!” The robots pressed in close and were certain to hold the trespassers in place. Hero, Access 4C, Use 2C – Szanchu, Sonic Sword Wielder, Moderate Impact Szanchu took the lead and swung his sonic sword in a wide arc. The “blade” of the sword – made from pure, focused sound – was invisible, but Szanchu’s expertise was well honed. In a single maneuver, the lead service robots had their clamp-hands snapped at the point of articulation that served as their wrists. Marina followed through by knocking down the robots with useless hands, making them impediments to the robots that were right behind them. That moment’s hesitation by the robots gave Szanchu the chance to leap over them and attack from behind. The Yazirian’s sonic sword hummed with energy as he struck the service robots in the back of their legs at the places where their frames created simulated ankles. The robot victims of the sonic blunt force were instantly rendered immobile, but their arms still reached out to fulfill their programmed objective of holding the trespassers in place. . World, Access 8S – Being, Mysterious/Break/Enemies, High Impact Interpretation: Someone arrives who somehow subdues the heroes. Is it the Sathar agent? (Very likely) – Yes Race roll result: Human Gender? Male Is it Dralen Thorpe? (50/50) – No Is it someone known to the heroes? (Very unlikely) – No Complex Question: Subdues how? Abuse/Dispute As the remaining functional robots tried to follow their program, into the hallway walked a man dressed in formal business wear. He was tall and handsome and unarmed, but he seemed confident despite facing two weapon-wielding opponents. “Please,” the man said politely, “there’s no need to destroy the station’s equipment. The robots only wanted to keep you from hurting yourselves or someone else.” “It’s him!” Marina shouted to Szanchu. “It’s the Sathar agent!” The smiling gentleman looked at Szanchu and calmly said, “Does she always accuse strangers of being Sathar agents? Does it bother you when she does?” Szanchu tried to respond to the man, but his lower lip quivered. He turned to Marina and growled angrily. “You always do this! You’re paranoid girl! Everyone is a Sathar agent to you!” Marina’s jaw dropped. “Szan?” “Those lasers she’s holding could hurt innocent people,” the man said to Szanchu. “Please help her to be rid of them.” Szanchu immediately swung his sonic sword at Marina’s hands, disarming her and sending the pistols clattering to the floor. Marina found herself too shocked to respond to the threat. The clamp-hands of the robots made their move. Hero, Access 8S – Marina, Martial Artist, Low Impact Marina deflected the robots’ maneuver as best she could, but the blow from the sonic sword had left her hurting. Her combat skills were nearly useless. Within seconds, several service robots had both Szanchu and her by the arms and wrists, utterly incapacitated. . ROUND FIVE – HARDISTAR STATION 9 The clamp-hands of the service robots held Marina’s wrists and arms much more tightly than she ever thought they could. As the robots pulled her along to follow the well-dressed Sathar agent into the station’s Command Central, Marina’s mind raced to figure out what was happening around her. What little she knew wasn’t making much sense.Her friend Szanchu, who was right behind her with his own forceful robot escorts, had turned on her. Of course, she realized the Sathar agent had been responsible for the betrayal, but she could not fathom how he had done it. She knew Sathar agents were trained to be persuasive – in fact, she knew all too well how smooth they could be – but what this one had done was not subtle. It was superhuman. Worst of all for Marina was watching this Sathar agent’s confident swagger. He was handsome and dashing, just like Dralen had been, and she hated thinking about Dralen in that way…as a man…as the most perfect man she had ever met. She wanted to only think of him as a monster. No one who had ever met Dralen Thorpe had ever questioned why Marina had been so in love with him. He had been a successful trade broker, had traveled First Class to the best Frontier resorts, and had an influential friend in every star system. Most importantly, he had treated Marina like a princess, softening the rough edges of her past, the ones that had led her to become a Star Law Ranger. Yet, it had all been a ruse, a sick, subversive scheme to enable the Sathar to extract information about Star Law activities out of her. When the truth about Marina’s fiancé Dralen Thorpe was finally revealed, 500 new Star Law recruits were dead in a single act of unthinkable violence masterminded by Thorpe, but made possible by Marina’s unwitting complicity. This Sathar agent, whoever or whatever he was, would have to be another stand-in for Marina’s burning vengeance. As she was led into the Command Central room with Szanchu, she was surrounded by monitor screens displaying images of Minotaur’s savage weather, maps of atmospheric phenomena, and streams of incomprehensible scientific data. But the only picture Marina wanted to see in her mind was the image of this suave Sathar agent dead at her feet. . Round Five Tableau – 7D, 7C, JS, 8C, 5D Continuing previous Conflict List developed by the Mythic GME World, Access 8C – Sathar Agent, High Impact Does he want to know the heroes’ identities? (Likely) – YesDoes he have the means to do so? (50/50) – No Can he access the means from elsewhere? (50/50) – Yes “Welcome to Hard Star 9!” the dapper gentleman holding Marina and Szanchu captive said to them warmly. “That’s what the previous staff called this station. They’re all gone now, except for Dr. K’Klirt. It’s been one failure after another up here.” He waved a hand at the monitor screens’ visuals of Minotaur’s worsening weather. “See? After millions of Credits, the Hardistar Project has made no progress whatsoever.” The alarms had been deactivated, and the hum of the equipment in Com-Cent was as soothing as the agent’s voice. “I’m sure you’ll understand,” the agent said as he comfortably lounged in a chair by a console, “that I wasn’t expecting guests, especially today, but this could be interesting. I have a feeling you two are something special.” “Luralia!” squawked Dr. K’Klirt’s irritating voice over the intercom. “What’s going on?” “Everything’s fine, Doctor,” the agent said. “Do finish scanning the cargo if you must, and then get everything down to the Climate Engine.” Luralia turned off the intercom and then pointed a small camera at Marina and Szanchu. “I’m sending a subspace photo of the two of you to my friends,” Luralia said with a smile. “They might be able to tell me who you are.” Hero, Access 7D, Use 5D – Marina, Profiler, Moderate Impact Marina leaned forward. “Why don’t you just ask us? Is it because Sathar pawns don’t know what the truth is?” Luralia seemed somewhat surprised by Marina’s knowledge of his identity, but he betrayed no real concern. “Come back to the Frontier, Luralia” Marina pleaded, pretending to offer support. “Whatever you’ve started here…we can make it right.” . World, Access 7D, Use 7C – Being, Passive/Procrastinate/Friendship Extreme Impact Interpretation: Someone helps Luralia maintain his Sathar loyalty. Is it another Sathar agent? (50/50) – No Is it someone on the station? (50/50) – No Is it someone monitoring Luralia? (50/50) – No Is it someone being monitored by Luralia? (50/50) – Yes Is the monitoring live? (50/50) – Yes Is it via holovision? (Likely) – Yes Is it a loved one in danger? (50/50) – Extreme Yes “Don’t be so dramatic. I’m not what you think,” Luralia said. He removed a disk from the interior of his suit jacket and activated it. The disk produced a holovision image of a young couple on a picnic by the shore of Lake Silaine on Gran Quivera. “This is a live subspace feed of my parents from thirty-five years ago. Yes. I said ‘live.’ The images are coming from a Sathar ship that was blasted by a UPF armada using an experimental pi-tachyon weapon. It caused a localized wormhole which allows the Sathar ship to exist now and then simultaneously. “It’s quite simple, really. If I don’t use my special gift to help the Sathar, they’ll kill my parents in the past, and I will cease to exist.” Hero, Access 5D, Use 7D – Marina, Profiler, Moderate Impact “You really believe that?” Marina asked incredulously. “It’s a trick. The Sathar are always coming up with new ways to coerce people into doing their bidding. Just throw that disk away and leave them behind.” Marina knew her attempt was not as strong as it needed to be. Luralia seemed to completely believe the story he had told her, and a part of her almost believed it, too. That’s what made it so hard to counter the claim. But a temporal anomaly scheme did not fit the usual profile for the Sathar or any other beings for that matter. Marina was truly at a loss right now. “Blackmail across time…you don’t look stupid enough to fall for that.” . World, Access 7C, Use 7D – Temporal Blackmail, Extreme Impact Does Luralia have proof it’s real? (Somewhat likely) – Yes Luralia deactivated the holovision feed. He leaned back in his chair, recapturing his earlier composure. “Oh, I know that it’s real,” he said. “There are famous people you once knew who don’t exist now, so you never knew them. The Sathar killed their families in the past or killed them as children. I can remember them all because if I watch the live feed at the moment when the Sathar in the past change history, I still remember the way things had been.” Luralia sighed like a man exhausted, and then smiled. “These paradoxes…they’re starting to get to me. “But the Sathar don’t have long before the temporal instability collapses and the link is gone. So, that brings us to here, now…and then!” Luralia laughed in a manner both charming and hysterical. “If I complete the Hard Star operation, they’ll leave my parents alone in the past…and then I could give a damn about the future!” Hero, Access 7C, Use 8C – Szanchu, Sonic Sword Wielder, Moderate Impact The Sathar agent seemed completely engaged with Marina, and Szanchu was glad for that. He and the girl had been through moments like this before, and the Yazirian had advised her to use her profiler skills to keep all eyes away from him so he could get them out of trouble if her conversational skills could not. Luralia had ordered the robots to hold Szanchu’s wrists and arms, but he forgot to secure Szanchu’s legs. Yazirian feet are four-knuckled and have an opposable toe that acts like a thumb, making them just as useful as hands. Szanchu slowly reached his right foot up to the edge of the gliding membrane at his ankle where he kept an emergency sonic knife. The small golden tube slid into his foot’s grasp, and he lowered his foot back down, safely unseen. With his knuckles wrapped tightly around the tube, Szanchu would now wait for the optimal moment to act. . World, Access JS – Locale, Mysterious/Dominate/The spiritual, Extreme Impact Interpretation: The station affects beings internally. Is it caused by the Sathar tech cargo? (Near sure thing) – Yes Did K’Klirt inadvertently activate it? (50/50) – Yes Is the tech related to the connection to the past? (Likely) – Yes Was it meant to stabilize the connection? (Very likely) – Yes Hard Star 9 suddenly shook violently, pitching forward as if it was being wrenched out of its orbit. Luralia lost his cool composure, almost falling out of his seat, and the service robots holding Marina and Szanchu wobbled precariously. Luralia leaned over to the console. “Dr. K’Klirt! What’s happened?” There was no answer. “Dr. K’Klirt!” The intercom crackled to life, but K’Klirt’s voice was weak and almost unintelligible. “This machine – zzz – feedback scan – zzz – I saw my old conglomerate when I was – zzz – Luralia the past is – zzz!” And then K’Klirt screamed. Luralia turned off the intercom. “Stupid bug!” the Sathar agent spat. “He’s started the machine!” Hero, Access 8C, Use 7C – Szanchu, Sonic Sword Wielder, Moderate Impact With Luralia distracted, Szanchu made his move. His toe thumb activated the sonic knife, and the invisible blade – set to “slice” – hummed to life. Twisting his flexible Yazirian body around, he swung his right foot back, slicing off one restraining robot’s leg at the knee and then coming around to stab another in its parabattery compartment, shutting it down. Szanchu flipped the sonic knife in the air and caught it in his hand. He readied himself to face Luralia. . World, Access 5D – Thing, Concrete/Oppress/A burden, Moderate Impact Interpretation: The station reacts to the Sathar machine’s effects. Is it maintenance robots? (Somewhat likely) – Yes How many? 8 Has the Sathar tech confused them? (Near sure thing) – Yes Before Szanchu could make a move on the Sathar agent, the doors to Command Central slid open. Eight maintenance robots burst into the room and began to feverishly clean. Their activities cut off Szanchu from Luralia. “Get out!” Luralia yelled at the robots, but the robots ignored him and continued to scramble around the room fixing things that did not need to be fixed. The Sathar agent touched a few more controls on the console, became completely irate, and stormed out of the command room through a different doorway. Hero, Access JS – Marina, Martial Artist, Low Impact Szanchu’s sonic knife sliced through the arm of one of the robots holding Marina captive. Marina took the opportunity to bash another robot in the ocular sensors with the loose arm, then flipped another over onto its parabattery compartment, cracking the casing and shutting it down. She was now free. “This guy’s crazier than that Vrusk on Gollywog!” Marina said with a laugh to Szanchu. Szanchu did not return the humor. He removed his goggles and stared at all of the monitors of Minotaur’s worsening weather. “Szan?” The Yazirian scratched the fur on his chin. “He might not be all that crazy, girl. I was there with the UPF armada thirty-five years ago, and they did use a pi-tachyon weapon on a Sathar ship.” “So?” “So, the whole story could be true.” . ROUND SIX – HARDISTAR STATION 9 I need lasers!” Marina grumbled as she pushed her way through the malfunctioning maintenance robots tidying Hard Star 9’s Command Central. “I don’t have time to entertain crazy notions! I have a Sathar agent to kill!”“We’ve got a higher priority, now!” Szanchu growled. “We have to destroy that machine!” “I don’t give a damn about the machine! The PGC can have it when we’ve cleared out of here!” Marina ran through the doorway that led to the hallway where she and Szanchu had been captured. Szanchu followed after her. In a few meters, she found her pistols. The young woman held her lasers and looked at them almost lovingly. She turned to Szanchu and said, “Next time you get mind-controlled and want to disarm me, I’m shooting you.” “It wasn’t mind control,” Szanchu replied. “It was emotional agitation. This human is able to stir up how beings already feel.” Marina loaded new clips into her pistols. “So, you feel like hitting me?” “Often. Now, are you going to listen to me?” “Make it fast.” “If what Luralia said is true, then this machine is some attempt to extend the Sathar’s reach into the past. The unique environmental turmoil on Minotaur could be the catalyst to make it work.” “How?” Szanchu found his sonic sword on the floor beneath a disabled service robot and picked it up. “The pi-tachyon weapon the UPF tried out during the war was nicknamed the ‘storm gun’ because its core energy source was literally a massive, condensed storm in a tachyon chamber. The output was a single shot, and no one even knew if it had succeeded when they fired at that Sathar vessel over Gran Quivera, so they never tried it again.” “And you think it worked the way Luralia said it did?” “Do you want to risk not believing him? Minotaur’s storms may give the Sathar the power to rewrite the entire Frontier’s history.” Szanchu set his sonic sword to “slice” and cut into an inactive service robot’s torso to test it out. The results were destructively satisfying. Marina took the safeties off her lasers. “OK. Let’s go break stuff.”. Round Six Tableau – JC, 5H, 8H, 6C, 2S Continuing previous Conflict List developed by the Mythic GME World, Access 2S – Security System, Low Impact Do the alarms sound? (Very likely) – YesDo the doors close? (Very likely) – Yes The station was jolted again by a gong-like pounding that shook every last bolt of the station. The lighting of the hallway went dim, emergency strobes began blinking, and the whining of the alarms resonated in every room and hallway. Doors slid closed as they had before. Although it wouldn’t be difficult to get through those doors, anyone unfamiliar with the layout of the station would find it confusing to navigate the halls under the current emergency situation. Hero, Access 5H, Use 8H – Szanchu, Conflict Savant, Moderate Impact “We’re going to the lowest deck down to the Climate Engine!” Szanchu yelled to Marina over the security alarms. “What’s a Climate Engine, and how do you know where it is?” Marina asked. Szanchu led the way, seeming almost sure of where he was going. “I don’t actually know what it is or where it is, but the agent told that Vrusk to bring the Sathar machine ‘down’ to it, so we keep going downward. I figure it’s the equipment Hardistar was using to try to control the storms on Minotaur. That kind of control could theoretically provide an energy source for a Sathar storm gun that’ll open a massive hole to the past!” Szanchu found a secure hatch on the floor of the end of the hallway and pried it open with two swipes of his sonic sword. The opened hatch revealed a ladder that led downward into darkness. “Typical secondary passage,” Szanchu said. “This is the way we take until we run out of down. The agent may have other ways blocked.” The Yazirian deactivated his sword, put the golden tube handle in his mouth, and disappeared into the hatch. Marina reluctantly holstered her pistols and followed. . World, Access 6C – Luralia’s Service Robots, Moderate Impact How many? 6 Have they been ordered to stop the heroes? (Very likely) – Yes As the heroes climbed down the ladder, service robots from the station’s lowest level were climbing up the ladder to intercept them. Their orders were the same as they had been before – subdue the intruders and hold them in place until new orders were issued. The simplicity of the orders carried an unintended danger in the current setting: if the robots used their clamp-hands to fasten themselves to a target, their weight might cause their victims to plummet down the secondary passage shaft to a certain death. Hero, Access JC, Use 6C – Szanchu, Sonic Sword Wielder, Moderate Impact Szanchu heard the robots climbing before he ever saw them coming up from the dark. Tucking his knees up to his chest, the Yazirian gripped a rung of the ladder tightly with both feet. His four-knuckled toes and thumb-like digit held on as tightly as his hands could have, and he had no doubts about the strength of those toes, either. Fearlessly, his hands released their hold and he allowed himself to slide by the back of his furry neck against the side of the narrow passage until he was hanging upside down. He opened his mouth and dropped the golden rod that was the hilt of the sonic sword into his waiting hand. He activated the sword at its sharpest setting just as the first service robot was only three rungs away from him. The sword’s invisible blade sprung to life with a hum and split the service robot’s skull and artificial brain in two. The robot fell down the secondary passage, taking out two other robots with it. As the remaining robot’s climbed up the ladder, Szanchu climbed down with his feet. The robots’ simple programming offered no defensive alternative to their orders, so each proceeded up the passage with total disregard for its own functionality. It only took another minute for the upside-down Szanchu to counter the threat of the service robots and leave them in a pile of rubble at the bottom of the passage to greet him and Marina when they finally got there. . World, Access 5H – Malfunctioning Maintenance Robots, Moderate Impact How many? 3 Are they still erratic? (Very likely) – Yes Are they drawn to the disabled service bots? (Very likely) – YesDo they think the heroes need to be cleaned up? (50/50) – Yes Even through all the chaos, the station’s maintenance sensors picked up the pile of rubble that Szanchu had created and dispatched the erratic maintenance robots directly to the site. Very quickly, the nearest janitorial droids arrived, prepared to cleanse the lowest level of its debris. The two beings standing near the rubble were read as debris as well. Their movement to the maintenance robots placed them as high-priority targets of their neatness protocols, and the bots attacked the moving messes with every cleaning apparatus they had. Hero, Access 6C, Use JC – Szanchu, Sonic Sword Wielder, Moderate Impact Marina and Szanchu, used to maintenance robots as a matter of course in Frontier life, dropped their guard around the big robots rolling their way toward them on thick, all-purpose treads. That attitude quickly changed when the three robots immediately tried to grab the heroes to stuff them into their inadequately-sized disposal cavities. “These are malfunctioning like the ones in Com-Cent!” Marina cried. She had not drawn her weapons, yet, and the arms of the closest maintenance robot were grabbing at her maniacally. Szanchu’s sonic sword went into action again. With two or three spark-producing passes to each maintenance robot, the Yazirian countered the threat to their advancement to the Climate Engine rather handily. The maintenance robots were now part of the rubble of which the station’s maintenance sensors would soon be aware. “Damn, we destroy a lot of robots when M8 isn’t around,” Marina said. She now had a laser pistol in each of her hands, and she moved with eager purposefulness down the dark hallway toward what she hoped would be the Sathar agent’s diabolical project. . World, Access JC – The Machine’s Temporal Feedback, Extreme Impact Does it hit the heroes? (A sure thing) – Yes The dark hallway echoed with a sudden gong-like booming sound that jarred the very bones of all who heard it this close to the source. Along with the deep vibrations of sound came a wave of raw, corrupted tachyon energy that washed over everything on this level of the Hardistar station. Every being was bathed in time energy. Every being became temporarily unstuck in the “now.” And every being experienced the worst moment of his or her own history even more acutely than on the original day it had been experienced. Hero, Access 8H, Use 5H – Szanchu, Conflict Savant, Moderate Impact Marina was back in the crowd on Recruitment Day, Port Loren’s grand celebration of all things Star Law, and she was happy. She had been proud to lend her expertise to the security detail that protected dignitaries and recruits alike. She had been proud…and happy. As the shuttle-prime containing the 500 recruits descended to the receiving platform before thousands of elated spectators of all races, Marina remained proud…and happy. Suddenly, everything she looked at slowed down. The ship’s descent became almost imperceptible. Her head throbbed in pain. And then, she knew. She knew what was going to happen. The ship would explode before the horrified crowd. Everyone inside would die. It would be her fault. She watched the doomed ship descend, and every second stretched out for hours. In all of that interminable time, Marina’s guilt, shame, and self-loathing intensified as she stood helpless to change the inevitable. This was the hell of her every waking moment made manifest and intensified into unspeakable suffering. “Shake it off, girl!” echoed the far-away sound of Szanchu’s voice. “Whatever you’re seeing isn’t real!” She knew he was right. She remembered where they really were. Marina awakened, but still ached from the terrible memory, and the pain and anger. . World, Access 8H – Luralia, High Impact Is this indirect impact? (50/50) – No Does he attack with his powers? (Likely) – Yes Luralia emerged out of the shadows at the other end of the dark hallway. “My, my,” he mused, “I can taste her rage from here.” He walked closer with the casual gait of someone taking a pleasant stroll. “I wonder what would happen if I nudged it a bit.” His head cocked to the side, and his mind reached out to enflame Marina’s seething anger. Luralia howled from the shared experience of drawing out Marina’s wrath. Hero, Access 2S – Marina, Martial Artist, Low Impact Marina felt the fury rising within her. The desire to destroy everything – to become a force of annihilation that would inevitably reach Dralen Thorpe – became all-consuming. She tried to summon the self-discipline that came with her combat arts training, but it wasn’t as potent as the rage that wanted to burst through her very skin. She perceived every shadow to be a Sathar agent, and she fired full-power laser blasts indiscriminately at them. She thought the robots that had earlier attacked her might repair themselves and come after her again, so she shot at the rubble behind her. In case he was a Sathar agent, too, Marina turned on Szanchu and fired her lasers… .ROUND SEVEN – HARDISTAR STATION 9 Luralia had made a terrible mistake. Releasing the full fury of Marina Tril’s rage had resulted in the disintegration of whatever fragile bastions of self-control remained in her psyche after Dralen Thorpe’s act of sabotage. Now, she was pure, unbridled rage.Now, she was unstoppable. Szanchu watched as his friend ran screaming and firing down the hallway toward the Climate Engine. He hoped the effects of Luralia’s emotion-pushing power would soon wear off, but he feared for Marina’s safety while she was out of control. Luralia had disappeared into the shadows as soon as Marina had gone mad, but Szanchu knew the Sathar agent would not be far. The Sathar time manipulator was still malfunctioning and still needed to be connected to Hardistar’s weather machines to work properly. Presumably, Luralia was sane enough to do all of that. The old Yazirian leaned against a wall to painfully pull himself to his feet. Marina had shot him, and the wounds were serious, but he had to press on. Too much was at stake. As Szanchu’s hand pressed against the worst of the laser blast holes in his body, he thought about what the Sathar could do with malevolent hindsight if they could extend their reach into the past and rewrite history. Star Law would never be formed. The UPF might fail to be unified. The races of the Frontier would fail to ban together. Worst of all, the Sathar would probably win the war. Everything Szanchu and his comrades had fought and died for so many years ago might all be undone. Szanchu broke into a run. With every pained step, with every drop of blood lost, he knew that, ironically, as his time was running out, the Sathar came closer to making and re-making more time for themselves. The entire Frontier’s very existence was in mortal peril. Like Szanchu, history would bleed. .Round Seven Tableau – 3C, AS, 9S, KH, 2H Continuing previous Conflict List developed by the Mythic GME World, Access 3C – Thing, Concrete/Antagonize/Business, Low Impact Interpretation: Something arrives to complicate matters. Is it a new shuttle’s arrival? (50/50) – YesAn echoing boom sounded through the corridors of Hard Star 9, but it was not as severe as the temporal feedback effects of the Sathar machine nor did it rock the station’s gravity cells. It did, however, cause the shrill noise from the alarm claxon to be joined by an overly loud automated announcement. “Shuttle docking in Bay Two. Authorization required.” The announcement repeated three more times, and then ceased. More guests had arrived. Hero, Access 3C – Szanchu, Assumption, Yazirian Battle Rage, Low Impact Szanchu worried that whoever or whatever had arrived on the shuttle would only make things worse for him and Marina. In response to that and the wounds that were slowing him down, he allowed the primitive anger inside every Yazirian to well up within him and rise to the surface. He gritted his sharp teeth and snarled like a Volturnian Cave Bear. The berserk fury pressed Szanchu on further, making him forget the pain of the bleeding wounds. He had to reach the Climate Engine before the new arrivals did. And when he got there, he’d tear them all apart. . World, Access KH – The Machine’s Temporal Feedback, Extreme Impact Is the feedback getting worse? (50/50) – No Is Luralia fixing it? (Likely) – No Is Luralia attaching it to the weather equipment? (50/50) – Yes A wave of temporal energy cascaded through the station, washing over everything and everyone. Luralia did not experience any side effects from the feedback that was certainly wreaking havoc on the minds of his enemies – and that was a good thing for him. He needed all of his concentration to finish the connection of the machine’s power matrix to the elemental manipulators of the Hardistar Project’s weather machines. Soon, the storms below would serve as the catalyst for a pi-tachyon blast the likes of which the universe had never seen before! Once Luralia activated the weapon, the entire planet of Minotaur would collapse in on itself, matter and time would be twisted together, and the Sathar on the other side of the original time distortion would be capable of channeling the oblivion into a reality-altering assault on the past that would allow them to be the masters of Creation! Luralia forced more connections together, causing another blast of feedback energy. Surely, only he would be able to discern reality from memory, and that would mean those two intruders were no longer a problem for him. Hero, Access KH – Szanchu, SFX Masterstroke, Extreme Impact The wave of temporal force hit Szanchu hard, knocking him off his feet. He saw his clan fights, the Sathar War, and the night he eliminated his life-enemies. He saw the worst moments of his existence laid out before him like a cosmic chain of crisis after crisis, and it all encouraged the berserk Yazirian to draw a single, defining conclusion while his mind was in the unique state of battle rage: Szanchu-Ur-Salong was best damned predator in the Frontier – smarter than any Yazirian, fiercer than any Human, Vrusk, or Dralasite – and he was now going to prove it! “Luralia!” he roared. “Take a taste of this!” There would be no way Luralia could resist the pulsing, fiery, primordial ego that the machine and berserk rage had roused out of Szanchu’s old soul! And when he did, Szanchu would have him! . World, Access 9S – Being, Aggressive/Bestow/Peace, High Impact Interpretation: Someone wants to right wrongs. Is it someone from the new shuttle? (50/50) – Yes Is it Marshal Cotes? (50/50) – Yes Is he alone? (50/50) – No Is he with other Rangers? (Unlikely) – No Is he with Alhrick Hardistar? (50/50) – Yes “Yazirian! Stop where you are!” yelled Marshall Cotes while pointing a laser rifle at Szanchu. “He’s going to the Climate Engine!” Alhrick Hardistar told Cotes. “That’s where my weather machines are! You told me I’d get immunity from Star Law if I gave you Luralia, but my machines have to be safe! That’s the deal!” “Just be quiet!” Cotes screamed at Hardistar. “I need to think! I can’t remember why I came up here!” The ranger rubbed his forehead trying to understand what was going on as the Yazirian disappeared into the Climate Engine chamber. The years had somehow magically melted away from Cotes moments ago, and the stranger who had gotten off the strange shuttle with him wasn’t making much sense. The worst moment of his life – the death of his younger twin brothers who were about to be inducted into Star Law – had just happened…or had it happened further in the past? He was not sure, but he knew whose fault it was. That woman…Marina Tril…she should die, Cotes thought to himself. Hero, Access 2H, Use KH – Szanchu, Conflict Savant, Moderate Impact “Luralia!” Szanchu roared again. “You feel that inside me? That’s real power! Try enhancing that!” Szanchu’s belief in himself suddenly rose to such heights that he felt himself a god! Luralia must be feeling it, too – ego on a celestial scale! “Power, Luralia!” Szanchu snarled, foaming at the mouth. “Greatness over everything, even over the Sathar! You have it, now! Aim the machine at the Sathar in the past! USE THE LIVE FEED OF YOUR PARENTS TO TARGET THEM!” . World, Access AS – Being, Passive/Haggle/Leadership, Low Impact Interpretation: Someone doesn’t want the machinery damaged. Is it Alhrick Hardistar? (Has to be) – Extreme Yes “Luralia! Leave my machines alone!” Alhrick Hardistar cried out as he grabbed Luralia’s shoulders. Luralia had begun to give in to the ego boost he had received from tasting Szanhcu’s heightened emotional state. He had pulled out the holodisk that broadcast the live subspace feed from the past and turned it on. His parents were walking hand-in-hand through a park. Now, Hardistar was trying to stop him, and the distraction might just ruin Szanchu’s brilliant masterstroke. Hero, Access 9S, Use AS – Marina, Beam Weapon User, Moderate Impact Twin laser blasts suddenly struck Alhrick Hardistar square in the chest, sending him falling backwards onto the hard metallic floor. Luralia looked over to see Marina Tril only a few meters away standing near the dead body of Dr. K’Klirt, her pistols extended directly at him. “Do it!” Marina yelled over the sound of the alarm claxons. She was shaking with the effort to resist killing the Sathar agent, something she desired to do with every fiber of her being. “Do what Szan told you to do!” .World, Access 2H – Security System, Low Impact Does the system respond to the laser fire? (Likely) – Yes The chamber suddenly became awash in streams of saline rain as the security system’s sprinklers responded to Marina’s gunfire. The subspace feed of Luralia’s parents flickered in the downpour. The cold water shocked Luralia’s face. The Sathar agent began to awaken from his ego-drunk reverie. Hero, Access AS, Use 9S – Marina, Beam Weapon User, Moderate Impact Marina fired at the sprinklers spewing water in Luralia’s vicinity. Her aim was off on most shots, but she eventually got the job done. Water stopped falling on Luralia. Dripping wet, Marina looked at Luralia who stared down at the image of his parents like a deity looking down at its minions. Marina had heard what Szanchu had told Luralia to do. She knew he had exploited the agent’s own power. If this time manipulation story was true, Szan’s gambit was their best chance out of this mess, and possibly a way to hand the Sathar a major loss now and in the past as well. They might even be able to undo things the Sathar had done for the last few decades, to change terrible events so that they never happened…like Dralen’s betrayal. But would Luralia do it? . ROUND EIGHT – SHUTTLE ESCAPE (New Location) Marina held her breath as she waited to see if Luralia would follow Szanchu’s ingenious and insane suggestion to focus the Sathar machine’s power into the subspace transmission from the past rather than at the planet Minotaur.As Luralia brought the holodisk closer to a slimy black tube on the machine, time began to decelerate. The water cascading out of the sprinklers fell more and more slowly. The alarm claxon drew out into long moans of woe. The very air around Marina became thick and stifling. And then Luralia’s body froze. His eyes widened, his mouth curled into a snarl, and, madly, he crushed the holodisk in his hand! Szanchu had failed, and Minotaur and the past were doomed! Marina charged at the Sathar agent through the temporal distortions. Flashes of a life’s worth of hell battered her mind, pummeling her senses in and out of every reality she had ever experienced. Childhood clashed with ruined dreams, and what-had-been slammed into what-is with the force of a thousand micro-novas. Yet, she thrust herself forward, driven by the only power that could have prevailed against the psychic onslaught – that single-minded obsession to let nothing stand in her way until Dralen Thorpe was dead. Right now, Luralia stood in her way. With her left hand, Marina fired repeatedly at the slimy black machine, particularly targeting the black tube that Luralia had almost used. With her right hand, she fired a single laser pistol shot directly into Luralia’s forehead. The machine exploded in a shower of green and blue sparks. The result of the damage was almost immediate. Time moved normally. Luralia’s body hit the floor. The machine burst into an inferno the sprinklers could not contain. The Climate Engine vibrated in a way that large pieces of unstable equipment should never vibrate, and Marina knew that something very unpleasant was about to happen. “Szan!” Marina cried out over the alarms. A grunt from the Yazirian brought her to her friend who was bleeding badly. “Get up, you old monkey!” Marina screamed at him, pulling him up to his feet. “I swear I’ll leave you here if you slow me down!” Szan laughed weakly. “Liar…you need me too much, girl.” With Marina’s effort, the two of them headed for the docking bay and got into the first shuttle they found. . Round Eight Tableau – 9C, 3H, 6H, 5C, 7H New Conflict List to be developed entirely by the Mythic GME World, Access 7H – Locale, Deliberate/Inspect/Friendship, High Impact Interpretation: The shuttle requires proper identification to take off. Is it the shuttle that just arrived? (50/50) – Yes Pressing the shuttle’s instrument panel activation button produced the message “AUTHORIZATION REQUESTED” on the windshield display. Marina and Szanchu knew what this meant. Hardistar must have programmed a personal identification code into the shuttle’s dashboard when he and Marshal Cotes took off for the station. A small explosion shook the framework of Hardistar Station 9. Time was running out. Without authorization, the shuttle’s system would have to be overridden, but that would take more time than they probably had left. Hero, Access 3H, Use 6H – Szanchu, Conflict Savant, Moderate Impact “We’ll never get this ship working,” Szanchu grunted. “Let’s get to the other shuttle that got us up here. M8’s hack might make the cybot pilot listen to us.” Marina lifted Szanchu up, and the two of them headed toward the docking bay where they’d first arrived. When they got there, the shuttle was exactly where they had left it, but with its storage bay closed. The cybot pilot was still inside. “Lower the ladder!” Marina commanded the cybot. The ladder began to lower. Szanchu had been right about M8’s hack. Pushing the Yazirian up the ladder, Marina got her friend into the shuttle and followed right after him. Just as she did, another explosion rocked the station. “Return to Port Ariadne!” Marina told the cybot pilot. The pilot obeyed, and, within two minutes, the shuttle vacated the docking bay, leaving Hard Star 9 behind them.. World, Access 9C – Being, Aggressive/Control/Adversities, High Impact Interpretation: Someone tries to prevent the shuttle’s escape. Is it Marshal Cotes? (50/50) – Yes Is he in the other shuttle? (Likely) – Yes Is he trying to control the heroes’ shuttle? (Very likely) – Yes Is he using Star Law techniques? (Near sure thing) – Yes Not far behind Marina and Szanchu’s shuttle, the first shuttle they had tried to use emerged from the docking bay of the station just as the lower level of Hard Star 9 blasted apart in a soundless explosion of thousands of fragments of metal. “Star Law Directive L-790,” Marshal Cotes transmitted to the cybot pilot on Marina’s shuttle from his own narrowly-escaping shuttle now in pursuit. “I’m commandeering your ship,” Cotes announced. “You’re not getting away, Tril! You’ll pay for what you’ve done!” Hero, Access 5C, Use 9C – Szanchu, Sonic Sword Wielder, Moderate Impact While Marina desperately searched the storage bay cabinets for a medkit or some biocort or plastiflesh to save her friend, Szanchu heard the Star Law Ranger’s voice coming through the shuttle’s dashboard console speakers. He saw the cybot responding in compliance to the command codes, and the 360° display screen revealed the shuttle pursuing them. “Cotes is overriding the pilot,” he said to Marina. “He’s gunning for you hard, girl.” “Take out the cybot, Szan!” Marina replied without ceasing her search for medical supplies. Szanchu lanced the cybot’s parabattery pack with his sonic knife. It was an easy hit on a seated opponent. Had the cybot been an opposing combatant, the wounded Szanchu wouldn’t have been able to even scratch it. The cybot slumped over, deactivated. Several lights on the shuttle’s control console began to flash in blinking red emergency indicators. The shuttle was now spinning spaceward away from the planet, a direction that left them completely vulnerable to their pursuer. . World, Access 6H – Thing, Abstract/Imitate/Illusions, Moderate Impact Interpretation: The effects of the machine linger, making past present. Are these effects influencing Cotes? (50/50) – Yes Is he still confused about time? (Very likely) – Yes Cotes tried his Star Law override commands a second time, but to no avail. Either the robot pilot had been disabled, or Tril had found another way to maintain control of the shuttle’s navigation. He slammed his fist against the console of the shuttle that he and Hardistar had used to get up to the station, but he couldn’t quite remember who Alhrick Hardistar was or why they had gone up there. All he could think about were his brothers, two young, eager Star Law recruits who had joined the force because of him. They had looked up to him; they wanted to be just like their big brother, the marshal. Cotes wept at the thought of it all. Since the day of their deaths, he blamed himself for putting them in harm’s way even though he knew the ones responsible were Dralen Thorpe and Marina Tril. He knew he had to make them pay for what they did last week. Had it been a week since his brothers had died? Or was it last year? Cotes was so confused. He was sure it had just happened, maybe only minutes ago. Tril was responsible. Tril had to pay. Cotes pushed the shuttle’s thrusters to their limit. Ramming into Tril’s shuttle would end the pain for everyone. Hero, Access 6H, Use 3H – Szanchu, Conflict Savant, Moderate Impact “Forget the meds and get up here!” Szanchu yelled at Marina as he watched the pursuing shuttle on the 360° display screen. “We’re out of control and the ranger’s going to crash into us!” Marina climbed up to the cockpit and took the seat next to the unmoving cybot. The control console’s blinking red lights indicated all of the things that were wrong about their meandering trajectory, but it was the image of the shuttle behind them that worried Marina the most. “What do I do?” she asked. “Dive into the storms!” Szanchu said. Marina obeyed, and the shuttle pitched at her command as it rocketed into the dark swirls below. . World, Access 3H – Locale, Incidental/Mistrust/Goals, Low Impact Interpretation: The storms make piloting uncertain. Uncertain because of instrument interference? (50/50) – Yes At Marina’s command, the shuttle plunged toward Minotaur. Entering the storm-ravaged stratosphere at high speed caused the shuttle’s instrument panel to react wildly. Readouts became jumbled, indicators flickered with confused meaning, and every display became a canvas of static. Regardless of the expertise of any pilot, there was no way to rely on the console’s crucial flight information once the shuttle was enveloped in the wicked weather.Hero, Access 9C – Marina, Assumption, Star Law Training, Low Impact The lack of dependable instrumentation did not concern Marina beyond the high anxiety she was already experiencing. Training for Star Law included piloting by “feel;” recruits learned early on how to use the steering column with hands, arms, and torso to maneuver a small craft with the natural motions of the body. However, the unnatural turbulence of the terrible storms outside made this physical feat extremely difficult. Marina struggled to pull out of every shearing dip while keeping the thrusters from putting the shuttle into a perpetual spin from which there would be no escaping. “Hang tight, girl!” Szanchu yelled, encouraging Marina to remain undaunted. As the shuttle careened through the atmosphere, Marina pushed and pulled at the steering column with every ounce of strength she had left. The instrument panel may have given out, but she had no intention of giving up. .World, Access 5C – Thing, Concrete/Develop/Tactics, Moderate Impact Interpretation: Something in the Minotaur sky is a calculated threat. Is it a ship? (50/50) – Yes Is it one of Hardistar’s? (50/50) – No Is it the UPF? (50/50) – Yes Were they requested by Cotes? (Very Likely) – Yes Hanging in the turbulent sky like a floating sentinel, a United Planetary Federation corvette hovered a few hundred meters above Port Ariadne. At the request of Star Law – which had recently received an urgent subspace communiqué from Marshal Cotes – the UPF light battleship, the nearest touring defense vessel to Minotaur, remained on stand-by awaiting orders. The storms above the ship interfered with telemetry, but the communications operators had picked up signals consistent with high-level tachyon emissions and electromagnetic distortions. Thus, the corvette’s crew was on alert for anything else unusual or potentially threatening to the citizens below. Hero, Access 7H, Use 3H - Szanchu, Conflict Savant, Moderate Impact As the shuttle emerged from the worst of the storm, the UPF corvette loomed menacingly in the distance between Marina and Port Ariadne, her destination. “UPF,” Marina stated, still struggling with the steering column. “What’s our move?” “Hit every button on that console that could signal for help,” replied Szanchu. “Distress beacon! Holoflares! Whatever! Get something to work!” “What?” Marina did not expect that to be Szanchu’s answer. After so long on the run, dispensing vigilante justice to the Frontier’s worst, Marina’s natural inclination was to attempt another daring escape. She hesitated momentarily, concerned for Szanchu’s reasoning, but then, ultimately, knew there was no other choice. Her friend was seriously injured, and, if Cotes made it through the storm, he’d be on them within seconds. Their run had ended. Marina started pressing buttons… . EPILOGUE “I have one last question,” Dr. Purp burbled to Marina. The Dralasite psycho-pathologist shifted her elastic form into a reclining position without the use of an actual chair. “If the UPF releases you, would you continue hunting down Sathar agents, knowing that you are ostensibly breaking the law?” Of all of the questions the Dralasite had asked Marina in the five sessions of interviews that she had conducted during Marina’s week of detention on the UPF corvette, this was the first one that had been perfectly straightforward. Marina did not answer immediately, though. She considered how close her friend had come to dying at her own hand. Szan was better now, and even Cotes was under medical care, but Marina’s internal wounds would never heal. She thought about the wild rage inside of her and how dangerous it could be to those nearby, but she also thought about re-living Dralen’s sabotage through the effects of Luralia’s machine. What Dralen had done could not remain unpunished, and, on so many levels, she needed to bring him to justice. “I’ll never stop,” Marina stated matter-of-factly. “Never.” “Thought you would say that,” Dr. Purp gurgled. “That’s why the UPF would like to offer you a place on a special team…an anti-Sathar strike force that will operate outside the, um, usual parameters of polite society. Your Yazirian friend is invited, too!” Marina sighed heavily. Could this offer end the hardships of a life on the run, but still allow her the pursuit of her revenge? Or, would taking orders from an organization like the UPF stifle the freedom she had enjoyed as she hunted Sathar lackeys? She closed her eyes. Choices were never easy on the Frontier. * * * Many light years away in a dark part of the universe, the tapered, worm-like head of a Sathar turned toward the reception nodules of its ship’s communications array. A picture had appeared. It was the image of a girl and a Yazirian held captive by robots. The Sathar hissed. Was this pair the scourge they had heard of, the killers of so many of their agents? It had to be them, it thought, and now, finally, every Sathar agent in the galaxy would be able to hunt them down… |