Lay of the Land: Briefing

[Freemage]

After two weeks of downtime, you are all called to the Briefing Room. Ossana's there, waiting, along with a large map of the continent. She motions for you all to sit around the table.

"Alright, so, officially, this is supposed to be another cake run. When they told me that, I told them to get your combat bonuses ready, because that seems to be the trend. Anyway, we need some mapping done--and you're going to love this, we need it done in South Dakota. I think it might have to do with some geomantic influences on ley lines, but that's just me guessing. The point is, they want an accurate, detailed map of the area surrounding a good bit of the Missouri River. Now, that's a long slog with the Creeper and Sasha, but fortunately, you don't have to drive all the way. You'll start here, of course, and cut due west for about 75 miles through the wilderness to avoid CS patrols." She runs a finger down a line on the map, roughly running with the border between CS Missouri and CS El Dorado.

From there, she traces another line, going almost straight north. "Another 125 miles here gets you to Kansas City. We've arranged for transport from there upriver. Overland, your travel will take about 6 days, but once you get to KC, you should be able to get to the southern end of the survey zone in about 2. You'll dock in Chamberlain. Once there, you'll commence the survey, heading north up the east side of the river, then heading south along the west bank when you get to the end of that run--the precise information they need you to get will be in the file, but I've checked, and the sensor arrays in Sasha and the Creeper should be able to handle the heavy lifting--you just need to make sure to get to the best spots for scanning. We anticipate this to take a week or two, total. Once you've got the intel, come back pretty much the same way you got here; the barge captain will be waiting for you in Chamberlain, though if you don't get back in two weeks, he'll send a message that there's been a problem."

Survey Mission Rules

Survey Missions are pretty straightforward. It's what you encounter along the way that makes things complicated. For simplicity's sake, here's the breakdown:

You need 8 successful Survival rolls to map the grids that you've been assigned, running along either side of the Missouri river in southern South Dakota (basically from Chamberlain to around Mission Ridge and back again--and in some places, several miles inland).

Which means that either Growler or Herra (both at 1d8+4, assuming they use the gear in their NG-S2s for the additional bonus on top of Woodsman) can literally only fail on a CritFail. So, you all pick which of them is acting as lead, have that person make 8 rolls to check for CritFails. If there are none, you will definitely succeed in the job in the 8 days allotted to you. For every CritFail rolled, the lead will need to roll again to make up the lost day.

In addition, other folks can aid. Since this is only to try to rack up Raises, we'll only care about the 8 rolls they need for the days the lead doesn't critfail. So, everyone but the lead also needs to post 8 rolls in this thread, as follows:
Herra (if not Lead): Survival
Growler (if not Lead): Tracking (gets scent bonus)
Echo: Notice at -2 (so net d12+2)
Henry: Mysticism (this represents him doing a single daily Divination/Communion to get them started on the right track)
Chok'lat: Climbing
Calyx: Psionics (this is him using his Broadcast Power to triangulate signals, letting them map out encampments without getting too close)
Sara: Knowledge: Electronics to operate the scanners on the Creeper; if you want, you can declare at the start of the rolling process that she uses Telemechanics strategically (to get the +4 bonus), but that will cause her to start any encounters down a total of 10 ISP.
Jacob: Notice (-2 from a penalty, but +2 from Sasha's sensors, so net a straight roll). Snack's player should also post 8 rolls for Driverbot: Survival d6, with a Wild die.

Critical Failures on Support rolls will only really matter for the following characters: Sara, Jacob and Chok'lat. Anyone who describes a truly impressive Epic Failure on a CritFail, with some sort of consequence that will matter for the remainder of the adventure, gets a Benny.

There's no cap to the benefit from Support rolls--and the higher the final total of raises, the better the end-of-scenario bonus will be, as you'll come across some 'neat stuff' in your travels.

So this thread is for your pre-mission questions, any final prep notes and other roleplay, and those 8 rolls mentioned above, once you've decided on the lead.

[Henry_Price]

Rolls: 17, 13, 9, 5, 2, 3, 3, 19

Roll 1
Mysticism [dice:14dx818o]49717:0[/dice:14dx818o]
Ace [dice:14dx818o]49717:16[/dice:14dx818o]
Wild Die [dice:14dx818o]49717:1[/dice:14dx818o]

Roll 2
Mysticism [dice:14dx818o]49717:2[/dice:14dx818o]
Wild Die [dice:14dx818o]49717:3[/dice:14dx818o]
Ace [dice:14dx818o]49717:17[/dice:14dx818o]
Ace [dice:14dx818o]49717:20[/dice:14dx818o]

Roll 3
Mysticism [dice:14dx818o]49717:4[/dice:14dx818o]
Wild Die [dice:14dx818o]49717:5[/dice:14dx818o]

Roll 4
Mysticism [dice:14dx818o]49717:6[/dice:14dx818o]
Wild Die [dice:14dx818o]49717:7[/dice:14dx818o]

Roll 5
Mysticism [dice:14dx818o]49717:8[/dice:14dx818o]
Wild Die [dice:14dx818o]49717:9[/dice:14dx818o]

Roll 6
Mysticism [dice:14dx818o]49717:10[/dice:14dx818o]
Wild Die [dice:14dx818o]49717:11[/dice:14dx818o]

Roll 7
Mysticism [dice:14dx818o]49717:12[/dice:14dx818o]
Wild Die [dice:14dx818o]49717:13[/dice:14dx818o]

Roll 8
Mysticism [dice:14dx818o]49717:14[/dice:14dx818o]
Ace [dice:14dx818o]49717:18[/dice:14dx818o]
Wild Die [dice:14dx818o]49717:15[/dice:14dx818o]
Ace [dice:14dx818o]49717:19[/dice:14dx818o]

[Peta Chante]

Survival 17, 11, 19, 7, 7, 8, 18, 9 (no crit fails, jerks)

1
Survival [dice:38iayy80]49723:0[/dice:38iayy80]
Wild [dice:38iayy80]49723:1[/dice:38iayy80]
Ace [dice:38iayy80]49723:16[/dice:38iayy80]
Ace [dice:38iayy80]49723:19[/dice:38iayy80]

2
Survival [dice:38iayy80]49723:2[/dice:38iayy80]
Wild [dice:38iayy80]49723:3[/dice:38iayy80]

3
Survival [dice:38iayy80]49723:4[/dice:38iayy80]
Ace [dice:38iayy80]49723:17[/dice:38iayy80]
Wild [dice:38iayy80]49723:5[/dice:38iayy80]

4
Survival [dice:38iayy80]49723:6[/dice:38iayy80]
Wild [dice:38iayy80]49723:7[/dice:38iayy80]

5
Survival [dice:38iayy80]49723:8[/dice:38iayy80]
Wild [dice:38iayy80]49723:9[/dice:38iayy80]

6
Survival [dice:38iayy80]49723:10[/dice:38iayy80]
Wild [dice:38iayy80]49723:11[/dice:38iayy80]

7
Survival [dice:38iayy80]49723:12[/dice:38iayy80]
Ace [dice:38iayy80]49723:18[/dice:38iayy80]
Wild [dice:38iayy80]49723:13[/dice:38iayy80]

8
Survival [dice:38iayy80]49723:14[/dice:38iayy80]
Wild [dice:38iayy80]49723:15[/dice:38iayy80]

[Echo]

Rolls 12 (+3), 5 (+1), 9 (+2), 7 (+1), 12 (+3), 12 (+3), 13 (+3), 8 (+2)

Cooperative Rolls
Notice d12+4, Penalty -2, Total d12+2

• Day 01 Notice [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:0[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
  Forgot Wild Die [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:8[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
• Day 02 Notice [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:1[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
  Forgot Wild Die [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:9[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
• Day 03 Notice [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:2[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
  Forgot Wild Die [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:10[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
• Day 04 Notice [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:3[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
  Forgot Wild Die [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:11[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
• Day 05 Notice [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:4[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
  Forgot Wild Die [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:12[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
• Day 06 Notice [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:5[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
  Forgot Wild Die [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:13[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
• Day 07 Notice [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:6[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
  Forgot Wild Die [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:14[/dice:3k0tsxmn] Ace [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:16[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
• Day 08 Notice [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:7[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
  Forgot Wild Die [dice:3k0tsxmn]49724:15[/dice:3k0tsxmn]
  .

Lol, the irony of making fun of VV, here I have 16 dice rolls and not a single one was exceptional.

Desiring to help as much as possible Echo and Splinter take to the air as hawks scouting and memorizing as many details as possible. Their normally supernatural perceptions are accelerated to levels beyond comprehension while in the avian forms allowing them to contribute so many details that some where not even needed from any practical point of view. Each day coming back and helping to add details to features that may have been missed by the scanner or warning of potential threats in the area moving towards the team.

[Growler]

Rolls 19, 15, 7, 11, 14, 9, 8, 13

Before any assistance (d8... +2 due Woodsman, +2 due NG52)

• [dice:374646r7]49726:0[/dice:374646r7]
  • Ace: [dice:374646r7]49726:16[/dice:374646r7]
  [dice:374646r7]49726:8[/dice:374646r7]
• [dice:374646r7]49726:1[/dice:374646r7]
  • Ace: [dice:374646r7]49726:17[/dice:374646r7]
  [dice:374646r7]49726:9[/dice:374646r7]
  • Ace: [dice:374646r7]49726:18[/dice:374646r7]
• [dice:374646r7]49726:2[/dice:374646r7]
  [dice:374646r7]49726:10[/dice:374646r7]
• [dice:374646r7]49726:3[/dice:374646r7]
  [dice:374646r7]49726:11[/dice:374646r7]
• [dice:374646r7]49726:4[/dice:374646r7]
  • Ace: [dice:374646r7]49726:19[/dice:374646r7]
  [dice:374646r7]49726:12[/dice:374646r7]
• [dice:374646r7]49726:5[/dice:374646r7]
  [dice:374646r7]49726:13[/dice:374646r7]
• [dice:374646r7]49726:6[/dice:374646r7]
  [dice:374646r7]49726:14[/dice:374646r7]
• [dice:374646r7]49726:7[/dice:374646r7]
  [dice:374646r7]49726:15[/dice:374646r7]
  • Ace: [dice:374646r7]49726:20[/dice:374646r7]

[Chok'lat]

8 climbing rolls

Climbing 1
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:0[/dice:2l27reaq]

WD Climbing 1
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:1[/dice:2l27reaq]
Ace WD Climbing 1
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:16[/dice:2l27reaq]

Climbing 2
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:2[/dice:2l27reaq]

WD Climbing 2
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:3[/dice:2l27reaq]

Climbing 3
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:4[/dice:2l27reaq]

WD Climbing 3
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:5[/dice:2l27reaq]

Climbing 4
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:6[/dice:2l27reaq]

WD Climbing 4
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:7[/dice:2l27reaq]

Climbing 5
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:8[/dice:2l27reaq]

WD Climbing 5
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:9[/dice:2l27reaq]

Climbing 6
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:10[/dice:2l27reaq]
Benny EE Climbing 6 with Elan and Prior
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:17[/dice:2l27reaq]

WD Climbing 6
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:11[/dice:2l27reaq]

Climbing 7
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:12[/dice:2l27reaq]

WD Climbing 7
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:13[/dice:2l27reaq]

Climbing 8
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:14[/dice:2l27reaq]

WD Climbing 8
[dice:2l27reaq]49747:15[/dice:2l27reaq]

[SnackHappy]

Jacob Rolls

Notice: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:0[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:1[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Notice: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:2[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:3[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Notice: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:4[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:5[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Notice: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:6[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:7[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Notice: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:8[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:9[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Notice: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:10[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:11[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Notice: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:12[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:13[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Notice: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:14[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:15[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Drivebot

Survival: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:16[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:17[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Survival: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:18[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:19[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Survival: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:20[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:21[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Survival: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:22[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:23[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Survival: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:24[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:25[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Survival: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:26[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:27[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Survival: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:28[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:29[/dice:1iooz6ez]

Survival: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:30[/dice:1iooz6ez]
Wild: [dice:1iooz6ez]49762:31[/dice:1iooz6ez]

[SnackHappy]

Jacob Rolls 3, 3, 11, 5, 5, 3, 4, 16

Notice: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:0[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:1[/dice:iwcelduq]

Notice: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:2[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:3[/dice:iwcelduq]

Notice: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:4[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:5[/dice:iwcelduq] Ace: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:32[/dice:iwcelduq]

Notice: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:6[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:7[/dice:iwcelduq]

Notice: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:8[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:9[/dice:iwcelduq]

Notice: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:10[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:11[/dice:iwcelduq]

Notice: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:12[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:13[/dice:iwcelduq]

Notice: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:14[/dice:iwcelduq] Ace: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:33[/dice:iwcelduq] 2nd Ace: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:34[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:15[/dice:iwcelduq]

Drivebot rolls 5, 4, 3, 4, 5, 4, 4, 7

Survival: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:16[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:17[/dice:iwcelduq]

Survival: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:18[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:19[/dice:iwcelduq]

Survival: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:20[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:21[/dice:iwcelduq]

Survival: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:22[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:23[/dice:iwcelduq]

Survival: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:24[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:25[/dice:iwcelduq]

Survival: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:26[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:27[/dice:iwcelduq]

Survival: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:28[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:29[/dice:iwcelduq]

Survival: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:30[/dice:iwcelduq]
Wild: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:31[/dice:iwcelduq] Ace: [dice:iwcelduq]49763:35[/dice:iwcelduq]

[Freemage]

As the group makes some last-minute purchases and loads up, Montcrief comes striding up. "I'm afraid we have to send you out one man short, Specialist Snackhappy; the brass read the reports about Calyx picking up on the CS transmissions, and they want to see if they can put that ability to use in some other ways. Sorry for the short notice." A bit of paperwork later, and Calyx goes off with the adjutant to do some intelligence work.

With that done, the rest of you get on the road. Working your way through the borderland between CS Missouri and El Dorado is, frankly, easier than it should be--they apparently largely ignore the mountains between the farmlands in Missouri and the patrol territories further south. The Creeper isn't fast, but it handles just about any terrain thrown at it, up to and including narrow gullies. Drivebot reveals he has no real knowledge of the area at all, even though his databanks seem to include plenty of generic information about plants, animals, dangerous monsters, etc.

It's nearly a week of overland travel before you get to Kansas City, where your ferryman--or rather, ferrywoman--awaits you. Charlotte ("Call me Char") runs a tight ship. It's faster on water than you were on land, and in addition, she has two crews; a mostly human and dwarven crew during the day, and a group of odd, amphibious D-bees who work the ship at night--apparently, their vision both in the dark and underwater is so good that they are able to run safely throughout the night, letting her make excellent time up the river.

Interlude Opportunity

You aren't the only ferryboat passengers, and you have about 2-3 days on boat with the other riders. Describe an encounter you have with a passenger, or even a crewmember--it could be someone you know casually, or a new acquaintance, or even an old rival that you end up having words with (Char will intervene before it gets beyond words, though). If you post an interlude, take 1 XP immediately.

When the ferry docks in Chamberlain, Char confirms that she's going to wait for you to get back. "I'm told it should be about a week, but I'm prepared to wait two. If you're gone longer than that, I go back down to KC and send word to your bosses that you've gone MIA."

With that, you head off--your briefing makes it clear that you're to go on something of a zig-zagging route, cutting inland, then heading back to the river, and repeat.

OOC Comments

There will be a new thread for the actual action--take your time posting Interludes here.

[Sara Turner]

8 K. Electronics rolls with Telemechanics

K. Electronics [dice:1grscay7]49927:0[/dice:1grscay7]
Wild [dice:1grscay7]49927:1[/dice:1grscay7]

K. Electronics [dice:1grscay7]49927:2[/dice:1grscay7]
Wild [dice:1grscay7]49927:3[/dice:1grscay7]

K. Electronics [dice:1grscay7]49927:4[/dice:1grscay7]
Wild [dice:1grscay7]49927:5[/dice:1grscay7]

K. Electronics [dice:1grscay7]49927:6[/dice:1grscay7]
Wild [dice:1grscay7]49927:7[/dice:1grscay7]

K. Electronics [dice:1grscay7]49927:8[/dice:1grscay7]
Wild [dice:1grscay7]49927:9[/dice:1grscay7]

K. Electronics [dice:1grscay7]49927:10[/dice:1grscay7]
Wild [dice:1grscay7]49927:11[/dice:1grscay7]

K. Electronics [dice:1grscay7]49927:12[/dice:1grscay7]
Wild [dice:1grscay7]49927:13[/dice:1grscay7]

K. Electronics [dice:1grscay7]49927:14[/dice:1grscay7]
Ace [dice:1grscay7]49927:16[/dice:1grscay7]
Wild [dice:1grscay7]49927:15[/dice:1grscay7]

Chamberlain
Morning
Round 0

The trip north in the Creeper to the river went rather uneventfully. This was nominally Coalition territory, though they saw no patrols, not even as they approached the ruins of Kansas City and the small town of Baldur’s Ferry where they would load onto a riverboat.

The Creeper had to be left out of the city until it was ready to load, as there just wasn’t a place to park it in the close alleys of the frontier town. Sara was nervous as they entered the town. Small patrols of Coalition deadboys wandered the main street. They gave indifferent looks at the D-Bees in the party. Sara had never seen anything like it.

“Oh, the local governor is paid well to live and let live,” the proprietor of The Drunken Dragon told Sara when she inquired about their lack of concern and general slovenliness. “As long as D-Bees and magic users don’t step out of line, they’ll leave you be. But they’ll bring down the full weight of CS justice if you do. So don’t be gettin’ thoughts in that pretty head.”

“No, of course not,” Sara said dryly.

Loading onto the riverboat and meeting Char went well, and soon they were off up the river. Her amphibious night crew meant she had the advantage on most riverboat captains in that she could travel at night rather than tie up at the bank and wait for daylight to see the dangers of the river and location of the current.

There were a few other travelers on the boat as well. Sara was put in a cabin with a beautiful young woman of seeming North African descent, though she had a Polish last name, a traveling trader named Elizabeth Urzenski. Liz was representing the interests of a new Tomorrow Legion outpost north on the river near the ruins of Omaha, heading back with a load of supplies.

“Fort Hope, huh?” Sara said. “Aren’t they worried, being right on the border with the Coalition?”

Liz shrugged. “So far there is no evidence the Coalition even knows we are there. But it isn’t like Castle Refuge hasn’t just carved a chunk out of Missouri and Arkansas. We’re at least outside their borders. But they’re keeping an eye on the skull heads.”

The boat stopped at Fort Hope on the second day to disembark Liz and her cargo. Sara studied the encampment skeptically. It was little more than earthworks and a moat at the moment, encircled by rings of tents filled with refugee settlers. It looked like work was being done to improve the walls and and homes, and some kind of building was going up on the north side. It looked like they had brand new radio towers, too. A pit bull dogboy who seemed to be in charge came out to talk to Char and hand over the next list of supplies needed to be brought up the river.

The riverboat crept quietly under the walls of the Coalition Fort Sioux that night. The D-Bees kept out of sight off deck, just in case, though the sentries on the wall only swung a floodlight down over the river, giving the boat a cursory glance before the light beam moved away. River trade didn’t seem to much concern them.

They arrived at Chamberlain the next morning and unloaded the Creeper and their supplies. When they got to the survey site, Sara opened her mind and connected with the Creeper’s sensors to help direct the survey crew as they crept along the slow, boring work of the survey.

“At least no one is shooting at us,” Sara quipped. “And now I just jinxed it.”

[Peta Chante]

As the barge trundles along the river Herra flashes back to her last voyage aboard a vessel, fleeing Atlantis and making for the shores of North America. Much has happened since then: the capture and rescue of Spider, joining the Tomorrow Legion, becoming a Moonhunter. As she mulls her life, giving off her normal Stay the Hell Away From Me vibe a d-bee crew member approaches her anyway snapping her from her musings.

"I've seen those markings before," he said, indicating the white stars along her face. "Usually they meant trouble for my people...or lunch." Looking up Herra prepares to leap into action against a tribal enemy from one of the man psi-stalker clans that roam the swamps. He bares his fangs and leaps back keep her at a distance, "Easy sister. I left the tribe behind. While else would a stalker like me be working a river boat crew. You and your whole team lit up my senses like a ley line storm. Trying to feed off you would get me killed."

"It most certainly would," Herra agreed flatly.

Staying back and keeping his movements non-threatening the stalker introduced himself, "I am Peta Chante. My job is to keep a look out for bad stuff coming near the ship...you'd be surprised what kind of things live in this river. I thought, as another hunter, you'd want to help out. It's good to have a pack."

"You do not wish to join my pack, for I am surely your alpha" Herra said coldly without introducing herself.

Chante shudders, a wild animal look coming across his face, but he somehow kept his composure.

"Very well then," he said eyeing her somewhat hungrily. "Be sure to avoid using your powers less I stalk you by accident."

Bristling Herra stood her ground, "Try it and you will suffer an unfortunate accident."

The presence of the psi-stalker forced Herra to be vigilant for the entire journey as the two played a game of cat and mouse through the days and evenings.

[Chok'lat]

"You seem tense." The hooded figure before him spoke with an otherworldly calm. The calm was especially eerie, since the figure's gnarled wooden staff effortlessly intercepted a practice swipe from Chok'lat's chainsword and showed not a single sign of damage.
The brodkil wasn't one to be startled by anything, but he had been shadow-fighting for at least ten solid minutes on a clear portion of the deck of the watercraft, and it wasn't a quiet affair. At this point in the voyage, everyone knew enough to stay away from Chok'lat when he was trying to blow off steam. This stranger must have appeared out of thin air. "Hey! Where'd you come from?! Chok'lat almost took your head off!"
The voice from under the hood chuckled, a musical laugh that rang pleasantly in the demon's ears. "No, pilgrim, there was little chance of that. No weapon you carry would prosper against me."
At this, Chok'lat looked down at the impressive array of destructive devices within arm's reach. "Chok'lat's got a lot of weapons. Maybe one would work."
The figure looked out over the side of the boat into the darkness of the evening. Midnight hadn't yet tolled. "You're walking the path well, Chok'lat. The violence within you has found direction. Truly, you were born for war, and you excel at it. There are times for peace, and there are times to deliver Justice and Judgment."
Chok'lat lowers the blades he's carrying as if they were hindering his hearing of the stranger's words - words and a voice that sound vaguely familiar - even though every instinct says to remain on guard against this person he hasn't seen onboard since they departed. "Chok'lat was bad, yeah. Now Chok'lat hurts bad people. But how you know?"
The figure raises a golden-skinned hand and a single finger points towards its still-hooded head. "Because it is my task to watch you. You're well on your way. But your attachment to the things of this world will do you no service. To be sure. More and better weapons make violence easier and more effective. But it will also drive a wedge between you and your companions. See the value of flesh, and spirit. There will always be more toys, wanderer. Those you walk with cannot be replaced. Cannot be assembled new, short of Divine Action. See that you focus on placing value where it truly matters - the heart and soul. These things in your hands will slip through your grasp as rust and rot corrupt them. But those you protect should be kept closer even than your own skin."
The brodkil looks down at the meat of his body, the mingled cybernetics, and the weapons of war he carries so effortlessly. He speaks as he looks back towards the stranger. "Yeah, but how does Chok'lat protect...huh." His eyes find the place where the stranger stood just moments before. The figure, hood, cloak and all, are gone.
Chok'lat ain't dumb. That man...woman? Ain't on this boat. Chok'lat would've known that staff. Who...is watching Chok'lat?!

[Growler]

Watching the banks pass by from up from the best vantage point he could find, Growler keeps an eye out for threats from air, land, or water. SO far his efforts have been thankfully unneeded, but who knows what the future might bring. Growler sees a young Dogboy out with his family, slips out of their sight to run and play to burn off some of energy. Unseen by anyone else, the pup falls into the river and was starting to be left behind by the ferryboat.

Drawing upon his mental energies, Growler speeds himself up and teleports to the swimming Dogboy. Grabbing him, he then teleports back to the ferryboat, depositing the now soaked Dogboy pup on the deck before teleporting again to his vantage point. As he settles in again, though now with a headache from the efforts, Growler meditates to relieve that headache as he hears...

"Tommy, how did you get soaked from tail to nose? Did you try to go swimming? I TOLD youi that you wouldn't be able to keep up... and how did you get back up on the deck? A shadowy Dogboy saved you? Really, you come up with the wildest stories. Now lets go and see what we can get to dry you off before you catch a cold."

[Echo]

Retreating down to find a place to watch the videos Echo sees what it is that most people enjoy. While she can imitate many others easily, she always struggled with popular culture aspects she was unable to take time for. the Corporal was right, some of the videos really did villainize magic users and dimensional beings. It helped her to understand them, this must be why so many of them hated her on sight, or as soon as they understood what she was. Really it was sad, her empathy for others was part of her nature. But her previous experiences have always had the Coalition Forces as enemies who attacked her or her masters on sight.

With the context of their indoctrination put in scope Echo wonders if the more noble fight would be to assassinate the Coalition High council. The people who presented these things are fully convinced of the evil of so many others. But then to assassinate a group of men. Would that itself make them as evil as the CS. Someone had to do something, perhaps something to try and convince them of their errors.

The rest of the trip is spent with Echo watching videos and contemplating what should be done.