Maissa Haukea rolled -2 using 4 Fudge dice. Skill = notice (+2). Magnificent total of 0.

Maissa felt confused. Was this the answer for the request of a recommendation?


"Well, that went fast over the top", the pilot reflected.
"Just a wild guess, an improbable speculation and he's all fired up.
Is he so gullible or were the people here waiting for a messiah?
That info wasn't in the database!"

The Viper was lost in her thoughts. She reacted slowly and hardly noticed anything.

Since this notice (+2) looks like an Initiative roll, I declare that in her action turn, Maissa will draw her pistol, hunker down to level her eyes with the top of the table and call the attention of the importer with a quiet: "Backdoor?"

At the slamming of the fists Gothique jumps and out of instinct lets out a hiss.  But that also leaves her distracted and well not being the most astute she does not see anything and continues to follow instructions listening to what Maissa and Uncle Importer were discussing.

Sadly at this time she was lost and looking back and forth between him and her head almost looking like she disagrees with everything but really it was her following along.

Okay, none of you twigged to the sudden silence outside.  This means you have the Surprised Aspect for one exchange.   In this particular case, it's no big deal and won't impact you any.  But there was a chance you might've made it something more than it is.  From a metagame standpoint, I wanted to introduce this because this kind of thing may happen again in the future.  By the same token you can do this to others!


Now that I know that the inside is surprised, Casks words filter through.

Let's add OK (Kaede) into the scene, and we'll bring CM into it in a little bit.

Kaede, can you write yourself into the scene.  Outside the junk shop, where Chang Sheng-Xin in.  I don't care how you get there.   What's important is that you witness whatever's going to happen with Baylee and the folks with her inside...

During all this, a lone figure stood upon a building observing the scene unfolding. This particular stranger has been with the crew since the first time they've awoken. The reason they have never met her is because, well, she was distracted. At first it was a search for her name, until she hacked into a wealth of treasure she didn't understand but grew to love. When things got hectic, she moved to a new location which was coincidentally wherever the crew went. And ever since then, she's been following them ever since, always sticking to the shadows where she binge her shows at peace.

After hours upon hours of constant binging, Orochi Kaede sees that the time to step out of the shadows is now. Mostly because she felt that everytime she tried to want to speak to them, she felt sort of awkward. How do you explain to someone that you've been hiding under your bed and on occasions eating your leftovers. That was an awkward topic, so she watched and waited for when the time was right. When they made dock at this new colony, she knew this was it. The perfect opportunity arrived, all she needed to say that she's just a humble mercenary that opted to help them in their time of need.

She fist bumped to herself, and instantly appeared behind Chang Sheng Xin,"Greetings Xin-sensei, I am Orochi Kaede, you may call me Kaede-chan or Kaede if you prefer. I'm the one to have secretly been eating your snacks every night. I must say that your closet is a comfortable place to sleep." she says, then facepalm herself as she realized that she forgot her lines. What Chang Sheng Xin sees, is some sort of teenage girl, though she looks off. Half of her body is just covered in metal, her arm is an elegant prosthetic with a steel-like skin, her face looked more like a synthetic skin compared to her left arm which looked normal. Her right eye was covered by an oversized circular glass with a yellowish color, similar to a monocle or a magnifying glass,"Ergh, gah, I, ugh, mean that I'm here.... Yes, I am here to help Captain Baylee-senpai. No worries, I don't know how to fight, but I'm very quiet. And my machine parts are equipped with a lot of stuff that I don't know of." she says, not with a lot of confidence compared to when she first left the ship.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:58, Thu 11 Aug 2022.

The older man regarded her kindly, calm in spite of the threat before them.

"Well met, Kaede-chan.  I sensed you, and left the snacks out for you, and look forward to knowing you better.  But time presses..."

"You can't fight, have unknown capabilities, and are quiet.  Do you want to quietly follow after the departed fourth soldier, who just left down that tunnel?  Or do you want to stay with me, to see what can be done here?"

Orochi was surprised, both in the fact that he knew that she was the culprit and that his not very hostile to her,"I thank you for your kindness, Xin-sensei." she says in a soft and formal tone, then gives him a bow. She then looks toward the soldier's roaming about, her robotic eye magnifying toward the direction of the fourth soldier,"Hmm, I believe I won't be much use in simply observing, I would not like to be on standby again. And with that, I take my leave. Good luck to you, Xin-sensei." she says, giving him one last bow before disappearing right before the missionary's eyes. Either it was a cloaking device or she was just that good at being so-called "quiet". Either way, Kaede follows the soldier, wondering what they're going to do.

14:42, Today: Orochi Kaede rolled 3 using 4 Fudge dice.  Stealth +5.

Woah, a +8. Makes sense for a master of stealth.

OK:
The lone militia-man hustled down several corridors until he came to what appeared to be yet another nondescript corridor.  Kaede's location trace suggested that this was actually much closer to her original location with Sheng-Xin than she might have guessed otherwise.  So... it was another entrance to the junk shop, probably.

The soldier took up a position beside the door, and placed two small metallic egg-like things on either side of the door, approximately six inches from the doorway.  Though there was no actual wire, Kaede could surmise that it was a tripwire like set-up.  Maybe a laser focus?  Or targetted audio-stream?

Out front (Casks, everybody inside)
"Attention!  This is K-Zino Authority."  A voice boomed out.  The figure with the raised hand.  A megaphone receiver/speaker in his gauntlet amplified his voice dramatically.

"Please empty your hands and step to the center of the room with your arms raised.   Non-compliance will be registered as an act of aggression.  You have ten seconds."

Inside:

Uncle Importer's eyes seemed to bulge out of his head for a moment, and he began to sweat.

He fixed his gaze on Baylee.  "Tell them you're a joke.  A stupid joke by the Resurrectionists."  His voice went higher, then, faster, carried more of lilt to it than it had earlier.   "You're not Bai Ling Li.  If you were her--even as her ghost--Reyes would make you pray for the end!  Who sent you?  Why are you here?"


If any of you want to do anything other than comply with the Authority soldier's direction, this would be the time.  I may opt to compel that Surprised, depending on what you want to do.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:55, Sun 14 Aug 2022.

The older man stretches out his empathic senses to assess the emotions of the soldiers...

Seeing the trap being set, Kaede begins tapping her metal plate next to her mechanical eye. Her eye briefly showed a loading screen, and then various 0s and 1s load up and she feels a connection in her mind. In the shop, Baylee's comm piece received a message, if she answered, a stranger's voice was heard,**Ugh, Baylee-senpai, it is good to finally speak to you. Unfortunately, I don't have time for introductions it seems, or I guess the best term of phrase would be you don't have time for introductions. I'm calling to bring you some measure of awareness that there is another entrance out of the building. Only one soldier is protecting it, unfortunately he has set up some sort of laser trip wire trap, probably a bomb. Do not worry, explosions tend to be a better escape route than any other, as I've seen. Remember to shout blast off when doing it.** she says in a serious tone, though the information she got that from is pretty unreliable,**Though if you prefer it disarmed, I can make such an attempt.** she says as she taps her arm which opens up a compartment filled with computer chips, four to be exact.
This message was lightly edited by the player at 09:10, Sun 14 Aug 2022.

Baylee's eyes narrow slowly. Her form slowly, minutely goes still. First, someone claiming to be an authority commanded her. She grit her teeth in response. Then this guy said some things about the person she was pretty sure she was and someone called Reyes.

Baylee had very little to go on regarding her former life, mostly vids and such. She hadn't expected a warm welcome in the more regulated parts of the system. However, to be immediately accosted in a neutral zone. It spoke to enemies and her appearance being recognizable. Her lip slowly curled as she sneered at the Uncle.

"I came here because it was the closest station when we dropped. Because we are low of food, resources, and cash. BUT, if someone is itching to give me a reason to cause..."

She paused suddenly, blinking rapidly, as a barely recognized voice came out of her ear piece. One of the people she thought they were dumping on this rock. She struggled to put a name to the voice, the mob sort of all blended together, but she'd heard that voice before on the ship. It forced her to consider the situation. She looked slowly around to the others present with a raised eyebrow. She had not brought a PEP, but she had charged ZM marines mostly unarmed before. Some local yokel types did not scare her. But, she was not alone. "Well, fight or flight girls? You know my vote." She licked her lips and anyone with sense would note her widening irises as she was getting excited.

In the comms, she replied, **What the fuck is a sen... whatever. If you can do it without anyone seeing or knowing, do it.**

**Oh, that's too bad, but understood. Good luck Captain Baylee-senpai, I shall report to you of my success.** Orochi Kaede says, though she looked disappointed as she wanted to see the explosion in real life. Either way, she needs to focus on the task at hand, she pulls out one of her chips. She remembers finding these during the escape, she wondered if this is what she usually used back then. She shook her head, she shouldn't bother,"It'll be distracting to what I have to do." she says to herself in order to focus, she then inserts the chip on her metal plating near her eye. The chip seamlessly merged right onto her metal plate, but only halfway until Kaede received a warning from her iris, it said that further insertion of a chip while a current one was being in use will take a while for swapping to commence,"Ah, I forgot about this. But they need my help, maybe if I just..." she says and slowly pushes the chip further in her head. The warning kept flickering on and off as she did so, and suddenly a chip flew off, to which she managed to grab it in time. Thankfully it wasn't the chip that she put in, it was the old one she used last time. She was successful,"And with no repercussions." she says, but felt her head making a static shock for a brief moment, she shrugged upon that strange occurrence and stared at the trap on the door. Her mechanical eye started rotating, its camera view zooming in and scanning the egg-like item, trying to see if there's some sort of weakness.

17:51, Today: Orochi Kaede rolled -1 using 4 Fudge dice.  Tech +4.

I'm trying to create an advantage in order to hack it. And I got a 3, I hope the consequence was worth it, whatever that maybe.

"I will do my best to back you up Captain but I don't think I am much of a fighter but I will admit I am not sure."  Gothique offers but really is in a state of unknown.  "Either way it is your call!"  Gothiques ears do go back in a bit of fear mainly as this seems to be a defensive reaction.  The way she was built was such that she could not hurt whoever it is that had control.  You know easier to keep control...docile.

"- so much for disguising Baylee as Madre Lin Ling Li - ", Maissa reflected.



"Flight then fight when we're cornered, cap'., was her glum reply.

Kaede

Kaede crept closer.  The soldier backed up, crouching over a rifle-stocked Particle Emission Projector (PEP).  She could see the power-bar on the side of the weapon was set to the lowest setting.  So, probably set for stun or incapacitation, like an electrical jolt, rather than a a sustained electrocution.

The egg was a manufactured cylinder of brushed steel and plastic.  An, incendiary device with a directional cone that pointed at the door in a small arc.   It probably wasn't a fragmentation grenade or anything lethal.  Kaede could put that together from the PEP setting.  The two parts were probably connected via a tight-beam of light.  And if that beam of light got broken.... boom!.

Disarming it would be pretty easy.  The larger egg would have a disarm switch somewhere.

But getting to the egg meant dealing with the soldier who'd set it in place.  Of course, his attention was on the door, not on her....

--
OOC:
she then inserts the chip on her metal plating near her eye.
Okay, so which chip is in play?

Also, as per our discussion in the character-creation thread, "You could "hot-swap" a chip for immediate use if you're willing to take on a Consequence."  It would be a mild consequence.

I suggest Visual Ghosting, meaning that every now and again--ie, when I compel it--you get ghost images of things you've just seen... so someone walks across your vision, there may be, for a moment, two of them...  potentially distracting?  Yup.  I'm open to other possibilities.

17:51, Today: Orochi Kaede rolled -1 using 4 Fudge dice.  Tech +4.
I'm trying to create an advantage in order to hack it. And I got a 3, I hope the consequence was worth it, whatever that maybe.
Okay, so 4dF(-1) + Tech(+4) = Tech(+3).  It's unfamiliar tech, but it's also not particularly difficult.  It's a trip-wire grenade.  The big question--that OK doesn't have an answer for is: what kind of grenade is it?  She's determined that it's probably not a lethal effect.   But OK doesn't have any idea of whether it's a flash-bang, a smoke-grenade, an audio effect or even a stink-bomb or a paint-bomb...

I'd set difficulty for this at Average Tech(+1).  With a Tech(+3) result to Create an Advantage, you succeed.  Which creates an Aspect and gives you one free invoke.

As I'd envisioned it, this is a strictly mechanical contraption.  So, hacking it remotely isn't going to be possible.  But you've got the Aspect... Tell me what you're thinking?  Suggest an Aspect.   (It's your roll, it's your call.  I'm not going to put words in your mouth here).  I'm open to negotiation.  The narrative is flexible.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:05, Tue 23 Aug 2022.

Chang Sheng Xin

The older man stretches out his empathic senses to assess the emotions of the soldiers...

Encased in armor as they were, there just wasn't much to get a read on.  Tenseness of body and economy of motion suggested these three had long-standing training, and further, they had trained together and were used to working as a unit.

The smaller one was definitely a woman.  The one with the megaphone moved with a casual motion that suggested boredom or overconfidence.  The other neither spoke nor moved very much.


--
OOC:
As discussed in private, I'm really disliking the idea of an empathic sense.  I'm feeling it's me giving you a lot of information without you actually doing anything to get it.  It's too powerful, too much insight.  At the very least, we need a roll, and there wasn't one this time.

Casks has had a little bit of time to observe them.  They're not hiding what they're doing, so it's a straight Notice(+0) test to Create an Advantage.   I rolled for you.
Control, on behalf of Chang Sheng Xin, rolled -4 using 4 Fudge dice.  Details about KZ Authority soldiers.
This gives you a result of +0, which is, actually, a tie.  This means success with a minor cost or a partial success.  You are welcome to invoke your Aspects to bump this up to a full success, should you wish to do so.

As it's your action, you can define an Aspect that applies to these soldiers, that would be a representation of your notice--empathic or not--roll.

Baylee, Gothique, Viper & Gilina
& Uncle Importer

"If they wanted you dead, they wouldn't have announced themselves." Uncle importer said.  But he was still frantic.  "You've probably got Reyes scared.  Maybe.  He Bai Ling killed.  We all know it. You walking in with her face..."  He shook his head.  "If you fight, they will take you.  Or send you inside."

Baylee, Casks, Gothique, Viper & Gilina
& Uncle Importer

The biggest of the three flipped the latch on the door and nudged the door open with a heavy step (though, curiously, not a forceful kick).  He flicked on a beam light on his PEP and stepped inside.  The other one--the quiet one--stepped in behind him, but went low.

The woman--their leader, Casks thought--remained just outside the door.

The big one spoke, his voice augmented by the megaphone.  "Lin Li-Ling.  Unauthorized biological irregularities have been identified in association with your arrival.  You are to come with us to assist in the investigation.   Do you understand?"

It didn't change the fact that there were two men with rifle-stocked PEPs trained on them.

"Biological Irregularities?" Uncle Importer cocked his head to one side.  He relaxed dramatically.  "What kind of irregularities?"

The shorter one, the quiet one kneeling with his weapons trained on Gilina and Viper, responded.  "Unknown.  Possible contaminants that may affect atmospheric integrity."

"Car."  the big one said.

The shorter one nodded curtly.


--
OOC:

At the moment, I'm thinking this ties in with the rainbow spore things Gothique and Gilina cleaned out of one of the smuggler's holds.  But, you know, that can change...

After her scan was complete, she tap the side of her plate again, her cybernetic eye's holographic data disappearing,"A bomb of the incendiary kind... Hmm, but he set his PEP to the lowest setting, I can only assume that it's set up with the same goal in mind." she says, then tries to analyze the best way to disarm it. But then another idea came up as she remembers that it was only one guard, and one trap. Put two in two together and she has a plan. She hops from her rooftop and lands gracefully like a cat or cat girl and slowly approach the soldier. Not even making a sound or give any sign that she was even their.

13:16, Today: Orochi Kaede rolled 1 using 4 Fudge dice.  Stealth (+5).
Ooh, a 6, that means I succeed with style.  What added benefit do I get :D

"is it a ruse to quietly capture Baylee?" wondered Maissa in her head. "Let's put it to the test".

The young woman addressed the patrol and drew the attention to herself - as she was so good at - "I'm the perp you're looking for!", she claimed, with a little melodramatic aspect.

"Here's your biological hazard." She showed the paint can where she had put the slime - or whatever - away. "My intention was to bring it to a biolab - I'm sorry... we - I - forgot to mention this biohazard on arrival." She bit her lip out of frustration - she knew the details of docking procedures as any smuggler, but had been so enthralled to start a new pirate crew and a new romance with the captain, that caution had been thrown overboard.

She neatly put her pep down on the counter and stepped forward. "Arrest me. I'll follow you. Let my sisters and Madre free."

Maybe Gothique was carrying the paint can; in which case - since Viper has sworn to herself to protect the innocents - Viper quickly seized it.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:01, Thu 25 Aug 2022.

Baylee was liking this situation less and less by the second. She could feel the blood accelerating in her veins. It pounded a tattoo in her ears. She was just about to make some type of aggressive comment when Viper started talking. It was like splashing ice water on a sleeping person-shocking. Baylee blinked at the woman then at the guards. FInally, she glanced down to the PEP now on the floor.

She let Maissa try her gambit. But the captain was still ready to cause a lot of trouble in the blink of an eye.

(OOC - I am good with Gothique carrying paint can.  Why not.  :) Actually if it has biological or not I am fine with either but also good with that is her container she is using like a basket.  A sealable basket.  Either way I am good.)

At this moment a lot sailed over Gothiques head but still she had no worries playing along with it when Maissa grabs her paint can.  But now this person that seemed to care to help her when she had no reason to do so.  She could not let her take the fall.

"No it is not her fault it is completely my fault but honestly I did not know better.  I am so sorry."  Gothique says actually trying to help and actually going very wide eyes like many a neko from the anime.




(OOC - OK I am not sure how this system works still but could Gothique use - "But She's Cute & Innocent!" in this endeavour and would it help?)

Scratching for now

This message was last edited by the player at 04:19, Fri 26 Aug 2022.

I'm going to suggest that this won't come into play quite yet.     I'm certainly aware of it from a narrative standpoint.  But for it to be used mechanically, we want for Gothique to need to roll the dice for an action.

The Action would be either an Attack, Defend, Overcome or "Create-Advantage" Action.  Invoking But She's Cute & Innocent! would either give her a +2 to an already-rolled roll or allow you to re-roll (and take the better of the two rolls).

Great that you're thinking of how the Aspects might tie in, though!

Without skipping a beat, once the cyborg ninja comes close to the soldier. She sprinted, her robotic leg giving her the kick she needed to create momentum. Once her mechanical arm place it's palm on the soldier's armor, she could tell that it was heavy. Their was no way she could have lift this person nor even push him, he was like a boulder. Yet, she knows that this soldier was only human, if she applied enough pressure like so, even a rock could give way. That's exactly what she did as the soldier felt a sudden force on his back, which he suddenly trip due to his armor being heavy and fell right toward the laser sensors. If her calculations where correct, the design to these grenades have a time delay if it were applied with a little static shock. So she released a bit of electricity from her reserves in the few seconds she pushed the soldier. And then she calmly walked out of the radius of the bombs and contacted the captain,"Captain Baylee-senpai, mission complete. Backdoor secured." she says and an explosion was heard from the background in Kaede's comms.

13:17, Today: Orochi Kaede rolled 0 using 4 Fudge dice.  Fight With Boost (+6).
+6 just beats the first attempt

13:18, Today: Orochi Kaede rolled 2 using 4 Fudge dice.  Tech (+4).
Overcome with Style, meaning I gain another boost or maybe a free invocation

INSIDE:  Baylee, Gothique, Viper & Gilina
& Uncle Importer


The big one stayed where he was, his PEP Rifle held at the ready.  The beam of cold light illuminated much of the small space of Uncle Importer's shop, casting harsh shadows all over the place.  "Step away from the container."  He said, his voice almost preternaturally neutral.

The smaller one--Someone had called him "Car"--took two steps forward.   He wore over-sized gloves.  They looked like treated rubber or some other product to handle hazardous materials.

"What is it?"  Car asked.  "Bio-filters didn't recognize it. I'm sure it's just a precaution.  But we can't risk a contaminant in the Atmo system."

"Yeah."  the big guy followed up.  "We need to hustle back to Customs for a decon and analysis.  All of you, including you, Marcus."

Uncle Importer looked even more startled, his eyes nearly bulging.  "Me?" he squeaked.  "We haven't had any physical contact!  They just got here!  They haven't even touched anything..."


"Move along."  someone beyond the doors said.  Presumably, the locals were gathering to watch.

"You know the regs." Car shook his head as he reached for the cannister.  "We can't risk another Nano Horizon."  He looked up-picking Viper of all people to focus on.  "Anything that threatens life-support is a priority response.  We don't think you mean any trouble, but we don't know."



--
Scene Aspects if you want them
Small Space, Big Shadows
Car: Big Clumsy Gloves

Just cause we have them does not mean that we need to use them.  I can see this immediate scene ending without tactical maneuvering.  Or with.  Your call.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:29, Sat 03 Sept 2022.