Session 1

Marissa suggested that I start recording what we do. “Just in case”, she said. “Just in case of what!”, I asked. “You know, if something happens to one of us, the others can pick up and finish what we started. That bastard, Durrance must pay for what he's done!”

This represents the transcription of those recorded events from Mason Bray.

The start of a new week. As usual, Marissa returns with supplies and then hands out the payment from last week's bounty. Pitiful as it was, at least everyone got paid this week (-1 Credit). Well, almost everyone. Marissa always makes sure the “guys” have credits in their pockets, even if she doesn't.

Marissa tells everyone that she's going for a walk to clear her head and suggested to the others “to get out there and find us some work if they want to be paid next week!”

Grim, in his usual pissed-off style, just leaves and slams the door behind him.

Mason said he was gonna go out and shoot some Krol at the old processing station. Spacer said that it sounded like fun and joined him.

Snap said he would go see an old contact and was sure he could get them some work.

Annie said she was headed to The Lynx…

Mason and Spacer came back to the office bragging to each other about the shots they made earlier while picking off those Krols at the processing station (each earned 1XP). Their jaws hit the floor when they found Marissa already sitting there cleaning 2 Auto Rifles and a Rattle Gun. She said she paid 9 credits for them from some guy behind the Legacy Terminal. “They all seem to be in good working order too and they don't seem to be gene-locked either! I'm keeping one of the Auto Rifles but the rest is first-come-first-served.”, she said.

A few hours later Snap came back saying his contact at Kilsonic Security came through, although he did have to pay 3 credits for a “Sub-Contractor” card. The “Card” gives them access to their job portal anytime they want, and he's already found a job paying “Top-Dollar”. The job details says it pays extra and that there will be plenty of loot opportunities as well. Mason asked what the catch was… “Well, we have to do it tonight and there's a good chance this job will piss off the EPs again!” he said.

“Oh, Hell no!” shouted Marissa. “We're just now not having to look over our shoulders or around the next corner for those guys. No way I'm going back to living like that! Find something else!”

Annie had slipped in during Marissa's rant about the EPs and when the silence became awkward, she quietly said “I, I found us a pickup job if you're interested.”

“As long as we don't piss off the EPs, I don't care what it is!” Marissa continued to shout.

The awkward silence continued…

Spacer said, “Well, are you gonna tell us about it or what?”

“ok, I started talking this guy up down at The Lynx and it turned out he is a diplomat for the Sigma Federative Commonwealth. He had been told The Lynx might be a good place to find an individual or a group of individuals who could quietly retrieve a stolen package for him. I told him that my friends and I specialize in retrieving packages. He handed me his card and said if we really wanted help, to meet him at the address on the back in one hour. He said he has excellent intel on the package's whereabouts and if we could retrieve the package, undamaged, he would pay us handsomely.”

Mason got up, took the card from Annie. Turned it over, looked at the address, and said “The item is probably hot but what the hell, Let's go see a guy about a package.”

The group soon found themselves at the address on the back of the card. A large, multi-story glass building with a sign out front that read… Embassy of the Sigma Federative Commonwealth. A smartly dressed, middle-aged man walked briskly towards the group and introduced himself as Alexandre Hallett. “Follow me please, quickly.” he said.

The group followed him inside and up to a large ornately decorated room. An oval table sat in the middle of the room surrounded by a dozen or more finely crafted chairs. Finally breaking the silence, the diplomat said “Please, have a seat. We have much to discuss.”

He was legit a diplomat for the Sigma Federative Commonwealth and he was legit looking for someone to retrieve a package that had been stolen from him a few weeks earlier. He explained that his membership of this sector's governing body necessitated that the retrieval was to be done as discreetly as possible. Absolutely no Unity or EP security forces can be involved or we run the risk of the package being destroyed. Mason asked what was inside this package they needed to retrieve, it's physical size so they would know it when they saw it. Mr. Hallett simply said we would know it when we saw it and that his intel said the package was located in a shack at the old Zue's Hope research facility. He also provided tracker info for Mason's Scanner Bot to pinpoint the exact location of the package once our group was on site. The exchange of information took less than an hour and then we were back at the warehouse discussing the mission details when we heard several loud bangs coming from outside the warehouse. Almost as if someone was knocking. Knocking loudly!

We all exited the warehouse with guns drawn and it was at that moment, when we saw Grim laying on the ground in a bloody mess, that we realized none of us had known Grim had not returned. A guy standing there, with hands raised high in the air, said he found him behind Sixdigits. He found a Stim Pac on him while looking for ID, and used it just to get an Address from him. The guy said he didn't see what happened and was just passing through the ally on his way home. Mason gave the guy a Hand Gun. Told him to keep it, sell it, and thanked him again for seeing his friend home.

We took Grim to Dr. Drewry to get patched up but the doc said it would take a few weeks and he'd be lucky if he don't come out of this without some sort of implant. We left Grim with Dr. Drewry and got back to the warehouse just in time to get a few hours' sleep before we were to head out to Zue's Hope.

We arrived at Zue's Hope just after dawn and took up positions on the southern edge of the compound. Dilapidated buildings were scattered about the area but they would still provide the necessary cover when needed. Mason was the first to notice the uneasy stillness that permeated the morning air. No wind, no noise, no sound of any sort.

Mason gave the hand signals to spread out as he deployed the Scanner Bot. He soon pointed northeast of his position and took up a crouched position on the right flank against the southeast corner of a large shipping container.

Snap took up a position also on the right flank but against the northwest corner of the same shipping container Mason was against. He had overwatch on the center of the compound and could see through a section of a warehouse to the other side of the compound.

Suddenly, the morning silence was broken by the distinctive sound of mechanical servos… Snap whispered into the Comms.

“Bots. Repeat. We have Bots. North of my position, far side of the compound. No visual. Repeat, No Visual.”

Marissa immediately moved into cover behind a shed as did Annie. Everyone froze.

Snap clicked the safety off on his Hyper Blaster and started sprinting towards the warehouse in the center of the compound. He came to a sudden stop as a Security Bot, armed with a Hand Laser came into his view. He still had several meters of ground to cover before he could take up a good firing position but remained frozen in place.

Mason identified the location of the Package and continued moving on the right flank from shipping container to shipping container. He whispered into the Comms that he had eyes on the Package's location; a small shack on the far side of the compound. He said he would be at that location in a few moments, retrieve the package. Once he had the package, they would bug out and meet at the large rock south of the compound.

Annie clicked the safety off on her Auto Rifle and moved into position on the northeast corner of the shed. She took up a crouched overwatch position and could provide covering fire for Snap if he needed it.

Mason continued moving on the right flank along the side of the shipping container towards the Package location.

The Security Bot turned towards the central warehouse, alarms blaring, and fired its Hand Laser. Instead of striking Snap, who was still unmoving out in the open, the white-hot plasma struck the building to his left, only inches from Annie's head.

Snap bolted into cover on the south side of the central warehouse and opened fire with his Hyper Blaster. A barrage of energy bolts filled the air inside the warehouse as the three loosed bolts of energy hurled towards the Security Bot. The first bolt sailed past the Security Bot and struck the building behind it. The Security Bot's luck quickly ran out as the second and third bolts of energy struck the bot center-mass, leaving a massive hole in its wake. The Security Bot fell backward onto the ground, unmoving, the light from its optic sensors quickly fading. “ONE DOWN!” Snap screamed into Comms.

Marissa moved towards the right flank and took up position against the shipping container.

No one even realized the Security Bot (Lieutenant) was there until it stepped out from the left side of the central warehouse and fired at Annie with its Infantry Laser. Fortunately for Annie, that shot also struck the side of the shed she was still crouched against. She yelled into the Comms “A bad-ass Bot on the western side of the central warehouse with an Infantry Laser!”

Mason replied back “you guys keep it busy, I'm almost at the package location and then we'll bug out”

“I'm on it Boss” screamed Snap as he shoved his Hyper Blaster around the corner and opened fire. “Damn it Snap” screamed Annie “That was not even close! Hang on, I got this!”

Annie steadied herself against the shed and popped off two rounds at the Security Bot (Lieutenant), both rounds striking the building mere inches from its head. “Damn it. I missed too!” she yelled.

“Do I have to do everything for you guys?” Yelled Marissa into the Comms as she reversed course back to the shed where Annie was. To that Annie replied “Come on Sis! Don't be like that. You know you want a piece of this action!”

Mason whispers into the Comms. “At the package location. Moving in for retrieval now. Stand by to bug out.”

“Oh, Shit! We've got more!” yelled Annie just as another round from an Infantry Laser strikes the building beside her along with a higher caliber round of some sort. “Another one is making its way on the left flank towards that crate pile” she continued.

She steadies herself again against the shed and pops off two more rounds at the newly appeared Security Bot. Both rounds find their mark and the Security Bot stumbles backward and hits the ground. “Another one down!” she screams into the Comms again.

“I'll take the little one!” says Snap as the whirring sound from his Hyper Blaster echos from within the central warehouse. Three more bolts of energy downrange. The first bolt strikes true as it spins the Security Bot around just in time for the other two bolts to take off its head. “Boyah!” yells Snap

Marissa moves into a corner shooting position just as the Security Bot's head mealts away.

Mason kicks open the shed door fully expecting to fill the air with bluish-white bolts of energy from his Plasma Rifle but he certainly was NOT expecting what he saw. A young boy, laying slumpted against the back wall of a large locked cage. “Package acquired!” came the faint call over the Comms. Mason yelled, “Finish off those damn Bots and meet me in the center of the compound. Marissa, we'll need water and Stim Pacs when you get here.”

“What's wrong Mason” she replied. “Just finish off those damn Bots and get here quick!” he yelled back into the Comms.

The Security Bot (Lieutenant) fired another round from it's Infantry Laser, striking Annie right in the center of her armor's chestplate, knocking her back and into the open.

“Annie is down, repeat Annie is down” screamed Snap into the Comms.

“It'll take more than an Infantry Laser blast to keep me down”, said Annie as she grabbed her Auto Rifle and crawled to her knees. “Dang that stung! It's gonna leave a mark too” she chuckled.

Snap steps out into the open from his position and levels his Hyper Blaster at the one remaing Security Bot (Lieutenant). As the Hyper Blaster starts spinning up, Snap glances up just in time to see the Security Bot (Lieutenant)'s head disappear from it's body. It's Infantry Laser falls to the ground as its slumps to its knees, motionless.

Marissa steps out from around the shed says “Yep, I wanted in on the action too.” As she smiles at Annie who was still on her knees.

The laughter and high-fives were interrupted when Mason yelled into the Comms, “Marissa, get your ass over here with that water and Stim Pacs.

All three members sprint through the warehouse and out the other side just to stop dead in their tracks once outside.

“Not the Package you were expecting huh?” Said Mason

“This is Jervis. Jervis Hallett” Mason continued.

Marissa, he is weak and not sure when the last time he ate or drank anything. Let gets him patched up enough to travel. The rest of you spread out and comb the area for stragglers and anything else of value we can find.”

Mason continued, “I want to get him back to his dad as soon as he can travel.”

Since the Bots were just the Hired Muscle of some other group, we did not pick up a new Rival. Annie found some nice electronic parts she sold to a scrap dealer on our way back to town. That scored us another 1 Credit.

Snap found what he thought was a large weapon stash but it turned out that it was picked over pretty good. He did manage to find enough parts to assemble a working Military Rifle. No one has an immediate need for it now so it will go into the group's armory.

To say Mr. Hallett was glad to see his son alive and well would be an understatement. He thanked us a thousand times and went on and on about remembering us if he ever needed something handled again. He paid us 7 credits and said we could call on him any time we needed to. Marissa jotted down his contact info for future reference.

Marissa then went and sold the two extra Hand Guns and a Colony Rifle we had in the armory. She got 3 credits for those and had enough to buy a Distraction Bot. That should come in handy.

Mason headed to the spaceport in search of a starship he might consider purchasing. However, the only thing available right now was an old Former Diplomatic Starship. The guy wanted 100 credits for the piece of junk as well! And the hull didn't look that great anyway. He told the guy he would pass on the ship today.

Some random guy approached Marissa in the market and said he had a “Strange Alien Device” that he thought she needed. He said he only wanted 4 credits for it. Turns out it’s some sort of freaky hand-gun called a Cling Fire Pistol. The damn thing can set shit on fire! Of course, she bought it and gave it to Annie.

Turns out that Annie was right after all. That laser blast to the chest did leave a mark! (You’ve had time to reflect on your adventures.– Character Event)( Annie earned an additional 2XP from her recent adventures)(Used the 6XP she earned so far to bump her Toughness to 5)

NOTE: As much as I tried, there is no easy way to account for the mechanical benefits a character receives from the Battle Experiences and Character ability upgrades from a story perspective. Some perhaps, but not all of them. In the Post Battle phase, Mason earned enough XP to increase his abilities by 1. I choose to increase his Reaction score by 1, to 3, so he can move first (or try to always move in the quick phase).

Mechanically, it means he will hopefully always act in the quick phase but from a story perspective, not sure how to say he always goes first because of…. In the Log recap writeups, I will continue to list all character/enemy actions in the order in which they occur during the round. Of the 6 rounds played in the First Session, Mason acted in the quick phase 5 of the 6 Rounds. Just lucky die rolls. – The Storyteller