November 1997 Official Responses

From:  John Groszkiewicz (Tork)

Here is Tork's move(s) for this comming turn. :)

** Immediate situation **

"Mr. Heit. I assure you that I have no plans to take Loer into custody." Tork smiles at 
Crayman, lowers his voice, and adds "at this time." He then continues ( in his normal 
voice ). "We were hired by Mr. Streel to investigate a situation on Metrosphere and I am 
hoping to remove Stars' Arm from the list of suspects. I understand your hesitance to 
tell us where Loer is. Would it be possible to set up a meeting?"

<< Note to Layne: Tork would prefer to meet with Loer in person but will agree to a 
holographic meeting if it is the only way to speak to her. Tork does not fully trust 
the holo system to provide a secure and private conversation. The undocumented program 
changes found by Syzygy have caused Tork to wonder about the security of *all* 
Metrosphere systems. Tork will not bring this up in front of the Star's Arm people, no 
use giving out information. :) >>

Futher down in this note are some questions the Tork wants to ask Loer. Unless the 
situation gets unrulely' Tork will try to ask Mr. Heit those questions at this time.

At then end of the conversation Tork will add: "By the way Mt Heit. Some of your 
demonstrators at the life support facilities were infected by Laconian Red Eye. You may 
want to have your people checked to see if they are infected."

<< Tork feels these people probably will not want to go to the hospital to get checked 
out. He is hoping Zane will make and offer to help but Tork will not presume to offer 
his team-mate's services. >>

During this entire conversation Tork will try to keep his back to the door or a wall. 
He will try to not make any moves that could be seen as agressive but will scan the 
people in the room looking for trouble. While (visually) scaning the room Tork will try 
to memorize any faces he can. After returning to his room Tork will go over the list of 
known Star's Arm activists and see how many people in the room he can identify.


** If Tork gets a meeting with Loer **


If he gets Loer to agree to meeting in a public place he will try to meet at a local 
restaurant that serves Yazarian food. Tork will ask two team-mates to enter the 
establishment about 15 minutes before the meeting posing as dinners. Tork himself will 
enter the restaurant about 5 minutes before the meeting. Tork will then carry out his 
questioning over the course of dinner.

Tork will dress his best for this meeting. During converstion with Loer, Tork will try 
to find out the following:
1- What does Stars Arm hope to accomplish? ( Is it some grandeous "stop Streel from 
mining" ideal or do they have specific demands, eg "slow mining down by 50% until we 
have a chance to study the affects on the ecosystem".)
2- Why was she (Loer) not at the life support facility demonstration?
3- "There are a couple dozen know Stars Arm associates who have given up their places of
residence. Are all of them pack into apartments like Mr Heit's?"
4- How long has she known this Spider' fellow? What does she know of his background?

** If Tork has time **

These are some things that Tork want to do, provided he has time...

1- Talk to the team techs about: (A) changing/overriding the security codes on the 
monorail door locks. (B) Adding counters to the doors? (C) Can a chronocorder picture 
be displayed on an apartment "window"? Tork is thinking of changing his room's window 
to constantly show the monorail station.

2- Go to a store and check the prices on balloons, paint, squirt guns.

3- Background checks on the following: Blackjack, Baab, Yulua Chacuub (Tork's "new" 
identity), and Simeonne Arielle (Chimmy's old identity).

4- Tork will look into taking one of his pairs of sunglasses and painting the inside 
black. He will then hopefully find a sparing partner and practice blind fighting'. ( 
e.g., Luke, with blast shield down, vs the pratice ball. )


Tork has 284 credits to spend. He is not going to spend much as if he does have dinner 
with Loer An-Tehr he will insist on paying. ( I am assuming that if Tork's daily living 
expenses are 75 per day that dinner can't cost more than 100.)

As mentioned in my Official Moves Tork wants to price ballons, squirt guns, and paint. 
Also, is it my bad eyes or is a basic shotgun missing from the weapons list? And one 
last equipment question - it the Grenade Lanucher attachment from Zeb's Guide available?

Tork's purchases:

Item qty price
Tornadium D-19 1 50 
Detonator, Counter 1 10 
Detonator, Pressure 2 20
Detonator, Radio Beam 2 20

Total spent = 100 credits, leaving Tork with 184 credits.


TTFN
John 

From:  Albin Johnson (Syzygy)

Syzygy will thank Taanik, Urugg, and T'Klkk for their sympathies and for
their gifts. When approached by Taanik in particular, he will soften a
bit, revealing his frustration at not fitting in as a normal Vrusk, and his
difficulties in working with a team of any kind. Finally, he will confess
his frustration at feeling attracted to T'Klkk when she obviously wants to
keep things businesslike.

Syzygy: "You gotta understand, Taanik. I don't know whether it's because
she's a consummate professional, a deep-freeze, or unconsciously feels
uncomfortable around a ZED. Handling rejection isn't one of my better
traits. Which is funny, as much practice as my kind gets in that area."
"But you have to swear to keep this all confidential. We don't
need messy personal feelings clouding the operation of the team. I've
learned first-hand what the stakes are...I won't have someone else suffer
because we've lost our focus."

Syzygy relates this to Taanik mostly because of the ease he feels in
dealing with the Dralasite mindset.

Syzygy will keep to himself for the next few days, avoiding any contact
with T'Klkk at all costs. However, if the team decides to take action that
involves his pairing with her in any way he will relent and pursue the task
professionally and with as few words to her as possible. If Urugg or
Taanik make overtures of friendship Syzygy will gladly return them, joining
them for meals or off-duty activities. If none are extended, he will keep
to his room in his off time, studying the Spire network.

OFFICIAL GAME DECLARATIONS - SOME FROM LAST TURN
--------------------------------------------------
>* program his chronocom to register the signal sent by the whip-wire/radio
>mechanism every time it counts a hit

* program his chronocom (or other suitable device - Layne?) that will track
the exact location and movement of Syzygy's lost chronocom located
somewhere in Lost Point. If necessary he will buy the equipment to do
this.

* Seek to purchase two clips of customized gyrojet rounds that contain
paint or other substance that will stick to cloaked individuals and make
them easier to see

>
>* consolidate all his research to-date on the anomalies found in the Spire
>machine code involving the security access programs / access control
>subroutines that managed to malfunction recently - save them on portable memory


>* access Metrosphere's vaunted computer relay system to contact Maxim
>Zek'et - engineer who founded Metrosphere project - and try to initiate a
>regular discourse with him. If he is old and prefers to stay a shut-in
>Syzygy will attempt to begin such a correspondence via email or holo-unit
>contact. If Maxim is willing, Syzygy will request a face-to-face visit at
>the place of his choosing, once Syzygy is well enough. Since Maxim is a
>fellow Vrusk, Syzygy will play down any signs of his being ZED, covering up
>the symbol on his shoulder. He hopes to start a genuine friendship with
>the older Vrusk, interested in what a great engineer has to share with a
>rookie. If possible, though, he will ask pointed questions about tactical
>considerations in the city and will make no secret that he is actually part
>of a Streel-hired team out to investigate the Star's Arm activities. In
>fact, he will try to probe Maxim for info on Selson and other prominent
>figures and how the history of Metrosphere plays into it all.
>
>
>* Lastly, Syzygy will finally address the variable known as Dakka Syte, the
>human hacker who may be loose in this system. Rising to Computer Level 4,
>Syzygy feels confident to begin a computer campaign to track this human
>down if he is in Metrosphere. This will begin with searches of the Spire
>database cross-referencing: recent human applicants for citizenship (a
>long shot - too orthodox for him - but a starting point), recent arrests on
>small charges, large-ticket-item purchases of computer equipment or
>software, recent personnel changes in the Spire itself (programmers),
>records of any sizable errors reported by the accounting division of
>Metrosphere (in the event he embezzles money), and lastly any remarkable
>billing activity for phone time/computer link time from a personal address.
>Again, this is all cross-referenced.

In additon, Syzygy will attempt to post an open-forum challenge to Daka
Syte, appealing to the foe's vanity in the likelihood a brilliant computer
criminal has one. This will be a straightforward computer nerd vs.
computer nerd hacking challenge under the guise of Syzygy's assume
identity. Syzygy will back up all files needed to prove who he is (in case
the criminal retaliates by erasing Syzygy's identity). It is hoped the foe
will slip up somehow and leave a trail to follow back to him.

All of these actions are secondary to any plans the team may formulate that
require his services. If the team dashes off to investigate some area, for
instance, and they need him he will go.

From:  Clark Valentine (Taanik)

---"Besides the problem I had with a few undocumented 
changes to a security algorithm, nothing at the Spire seems 
out of order,"said Syzygy last time. Taanik says to Syzygy: 
"We should try to find out who made these changes. Maybe 
you and I should go over the code changes. A 'Back Door', 
maybe?"

It's not easy for Taanik to relate to Syzygy's "girl trouble", 
not ever having had a romantic relationship idself. However 
Taanik will do ids best to be there for Syzygy. And of course 
id will heep everything absolutely confidential unless id thinks 
that Syzygy is doing something to put the group in unnecessary 
danger.

It's curious that the trivid isn't working in the hospital room. 
Anyone read 1984? The TV's watched you as you watched 
them. Taanik will quickly examine the trivid to make sure 
nobody planted a listening device in it or otherwise tampered 
with it.

The gyrojet "paint" idea spark's Taanik's imagination. What if 
get paint that contains a mildly radioactive barium isotope (or 
something else detectable but harmless)? That way we could 
track them with a radiation sensor.

Taanik asks Syzygy to make id a fake ID just in case an 
undercover Ixiol purchase becomes needed.

If id gets a chance, Taanik still wants to look over the mining 
robots, just to see if they are involved somehow. (Remember 
Warriors of White Light? The smugglers hid the stuff in the robots.)

On Kare going off on her own: Taanik isn't opposed to the idea, 
remembering an ancient spy novel he once read "The Little Drummer 
Girl", in which a Palestinian activist was used by the Israelis to spy 
on the Palestinians. Whoever the hell the Palestinians and Israelis 
were. However, Taanik wants to make sure she stays in contact
with the group and can call for backup if she needs it. And so we 
can keep an eye on her.

Layne, is Mentalism a part of this SF universe? Could Cimmy be a 
Talent? "see without seeing"... Hmm...

Taanik thinks that the group should try one more time to corner some 
raiders before exploring Lost Point. However he'll go along without 
complaint if that's what folks want to do.

Taanik's bad joke for late November:
"Why do chicken coops have two doors? If they had four they would 
be chicken sedans!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!"

From:  Ruben Rivera (Kare)

Man is it the 15th already? I for one did not realize. And I'd bet two
sathar skins no one realized the date either. Well...what is Kare to
do? Well considering that she is face to face with her accussers she
will tell them all about the ductwork and how it runs all throught the
city. She will tell them all she saw and the fact that it runs into Mr.
Streel's office. If they except that well, she...may tell them about
leaving her chromocom behind.

Either way, Yes Kare would love to buy that holo recorder...VHS please
no one uses beta anymore. 

She would also like to find maps for the ductwork, if she can't find
them easly, she will purchase,if she still has any money left, some sort
of digital compass with lots of memory. That way map the tunnels
herself. She still is worried about police chief apeface.

Kare would love to go and visit lost point if anyone is going, she loves
trendy vacation spots. She'll bring her sungoggles, sun tan lotion, her
autorifle with oxygen primed ammo, and lot of gernades.

Kare would also like to follow up on the lead the group discover several
months ago, the one concerning change programs, and user tags being
attached to them. Do you remember? I don't remember if she was even
given that information. Anyway that is last on her list of things to
do.

Recap.
1 Buy Holodevice for chrom. 
Sales person, some ageface with a well manicured nails and slicked back
hair,"May I help you?"

Kare "Yes I'm looking for a Aurora 2000, with 380,000Mhz processor and a
860gig capacity harddrive, and real time videodata transfer."

The saleperson starts to lead her to the Oni Senade and
PanGalatictronic, "I think we may have what your looking for..."

Kare "Save your cheap, marked up, outdated trash, how much for this
one?" Kare points to a new charcoal finished STREEL "Excite200". Please
note Streel is a registeried trademark of GATESCONSORTIUM, 'Dominateing
for a thousand years'.

2 Tell bugface and monkeyboy what she discovered, information will be
limited, depending upon interaction. Please note if her team mates tell
her about Bugboy and the holo projectors at the hospitial she becomes
very suspicious, and would advise that teammembers investigate the rooms
with IR goggles and physically touch all the walls to ensure they are
real. 

Kare, "Hey guys...nice blasters...uh...who me?...no where"

3 Recover her chrom. and inspect Mr. Streels computer files. If nothing
useful is discoveried, leave. If unsure or fearing the worse, plant a
different, better easydropping device. 

Kare, "Well Mr Streel has been having an affair with that dral porno
queen. Very interesting, gross, but still very interesting. Also not
useful for this mission, but Blackjack would love these pictures..."

4 While making her way back to office and when she leaves, Kare will
make a map of the ductwork, with her digital compass. Or she will check
it against existing hardcopy maps.

Kare, "Damn its dark"

5 Look up possible computer tampering.

From:  Andy Campbell (Urugg)

At his first opportunity, Urugg will purchase the following with his recent
paycheck:

10 Cr - 1 Knife (note: he will rig a scabbard for it in his boot 
as a holdout weapon; will be about a 4 inch blade)
40 Cr - 2 Fragmentation Grenades
25 Cr - 1 Tangler Grenade

5 Cr - 1 Staydose
15 Cr - 3 Stimdoses
20 Cr - 2 Telol doses

5 Cr - 1 Flashlight (note: Urugg will use his Making Tools / Weapons
skill, with help from the techs if necessary, to mount the spare
flashlight on his spacesuit helmet, with both a jaw-triggered on 
switch and an exterior one)
10 Cr - 1 Solvaway
10 Cr - 2 Holoflares

TOTAL SPENT: 140 Credits 

We don't have a unified plan this time around, so Urugg will pursue as much
of the below agenda as possible. If any situation comes up that the team
needs him for, he will drop whatever he's doing at the time and help out. In
the meantime:

1) Urugg's immediate reaction to Kare's sudden reappearance will be one of
concern - ie. where she got to, why is she caked with dust and grim, etc. He
will bring her up to speed on Syzygy's mishap, and subsequent developments. 

2) After his conversation with Syzygy in the hospital, Urugg realizes he may
have missed some important data from the ambush site. He will round up 1 or
2 team members (probably T'Klkk (sp?) or Tork, plus one other team member -
most likely Zane as the other Biosocial spec) and head back out. The site
should still be pristine except for minor disturbances from micrometeorite
impacts and tracks from the first team outing; Urugg's first priority will
be to make sure noone raked over the surface or otherwise destroyed / altered
the tracks, etc. Next, he will use about 20 frames in his camera to get
several panorama views of the scene (a couple looking towards the monorail
tube, a couple looking towards the violated storage pods); he will also take
a number of close-ups of the spot Syzygy was found, the boot prints
themselves (close enough to check the boot's sole pattern). 
Next, he will take a cast of one of the prints using some vaccuum-drying
resin (similar to patching material used to temporarily seal suit and hull
leaks) (basically like taking a plaster cast of a print here on earth). 
This done, he will use his enviroscanner to take detailed scans /
measurements of the prints, specifically a "topographic scan" measuring
depths of the prints to millimeter accuracy; this data will be examined to
determine how many different individuals were involved (ie. since print depth
is mainly determined by mass, how many "mass ranges" are present in the mix),
and whether the assailants walked heel-to-toe (ie. probably bipeds -
therefore yazir or human) or had other walking styles. 
Once different individuals have been determined, Urugg will compare
these readings with the patterns (if any) in the tracks, to see who led the
group, who walked behind, etc. Urugg will also look for signs that Syzygy
was dragged from the monorail tube to the rescue site, or - of no signs that
Syzygy was dragged are present - compare the boot / individual mass estimate
data to see which individual(s) carried Syzygy and how many were involoved.
He will try to apply his Tracking skill here, with the aid of Zane if the
latter is present; all this analysis of tracks will be a welcome refresher,
as he spent much time doing this during his biological field studies of game
animals on Histran.
This whole site investigation will occupy Urugg for a half day or so,
not including the analysis tasks which will be done back inside Metrosphere.
Urugg will head down to one of the university-type facilities to do the
analysis tasks - they will likely have useful, specialized equipment more
sensitive than the portable enviroscanner. 
While doing the analyses described above, Urugg will also work on the
soil samples he took from several of the bootprints. He will request access
to Metrosphere's geological databases, to compare the ambush site soil
composition to that of the bootprints as well as compositions of Lost Point's
soil and the other (still active) mining zone's composition; perhaps traces
of a rare mineral found at one of the other locations will match the
bootprint but not the control sample from the ambush site - or maybe traces
of a manmade solvent or other industrial residue will offer clues to where
else the invisible crew has been stomping around.
Finally, Urugg will check the sole pattern of the bootprints to current
Streel boot designs to see which make of boots these guys are marching around
in. If the bootprints are all Streel patterns from the initial colony's
days, they are probably 1st-generation Lost Pointers; if the prints are more
recent Streel designs, maybe they were stolen during the raids, & Urugg will
try to figure out where and when they were stolen; or if any of the
bootprints are non-Streel designs, then we have unwanted company on this
little moon - since most if not all stuff bought and sold here is
Streel-made. 

3) He likes Taanik's suggestion of an undercover Ixiol buy. Urugg will
suggest that Taanik go ahead with the idea, with backup from 2 or 3 team
members; Urugg will volunteer for the duty, and will replay the records of
his and T'Klkk's interrogation of the female human addict to get the names of
her pusher(s) and other contacts to make the ploy convincing. Taanik may
wish to pose as a new immigrant worker, trying to locate a fix in his new
home; Urugg suspects the Ixiol pipeline may cross paths with his "old buddy"
Baab the smuggler - maybe the latter is involved in bringing in the drug, or
just "knows people". On a side note, Urugg will ask one of the computer
experts (probably Taanik) to check Metrosphere's hospital records for
admissions of addicts (overdoses, arrested for drug-related crimes, etc.);
maybe some sort of pattern (escalating problem?) will emerge.

4) Urugg will try to visit Cimmy again, bringing along one of his team-mates
with medical skill; he will keep the visit as inconspicuous as possible -
entering the park dome during "evening hours" when the colony lights dim - to
reduce the chance that her hidey-hole is discovered and she is evicted,
harmed, whatever. Once he reaches her, he will try to get her to open up
more about the shadows and related topics, while the medic present gives a
her a full checkup - including a check for mental / brain damage if any, and
any possible hypnotic / memory blocks she may have been subjected to. Prior
to heading out, Urugg will ask one or more of the team's computer gurus check
the Metrosphere databases for her real name again (immigration records, work
records, residential records, etc.); something about her present state
doesn't "smell" right to the young yazir - call it a gut feeling that she was
the victim of an accident or foul play.

5) After the reviewing the conversation between team members and the folks
in the Star's Arm apartment, Urugg will pitch an idea to the rest of team and
if they agree, pitch it to Selson Streel. The Star's Arm claims to be
concerned about the moon being despoiled by Streel mining operations. 
One way to see if this is their (or their leaders') true motivation
would be to create a program which agrees with some of there goals and gauge
the reaction. Urugg's idea is that Selson publicly appoint a Metrosphere
Monument Commission to compile a list of "natural wonders" on the moon which
will be considered for designation as "no mining" areas. The commission
should include university geologists / geophysicists, a few mining officials,
and a few Streel corporate officials (one or more Streel officials having
veto power over commission decisions). The commission will get a small
budget (say a few thousand credits) to award grants to study areas chosen as
possible "monument" sites. Such sites would be unique geological features
with visual / aesthetic appeal and scientific value - unusual craters,
volcanic formations, etc. Besides drawing reactions from Star's Arm and
possibly winning back some of their sympathizers, monument sites might be a
good marketing tool to attract new colonists and vacationers to the moon in
the future (the tourist trade might prove profitable even after the mines are
exhausted in the long term). With regard to the matter at hand, any public
reactions from Star's Arm will help us get a better handle on their ideology
(if such exists) and possibly discredit them if they unilaterally bash the
project. 


Well, that should keep my furry friend busy for a few days : )

From:  John Whitfield (T'Klkk)

"Greetings, teammate-Kare. Your absence was noted at our latest strategy 
meeting." T'Klkk will wait to see what Kare has to say and will be very 
interested in any information that Kare has to share. At some point, T'Klkk 
will say, "Since we are teammates, it is customary among my people to be 
forthright and uncensored among teammates. So, I must tell you that your 
disappearance raises suspicion in light of your alleged involvement with a 
group which has proven to be enemies of our current employer. All of the 
other teammates are aware of this information. And, I will say to you as I 
said to them: My first loyalty is to all members of this team. Until you 
prove otherwise, I work from the assumption that you are equally commited to 
this team, and I will defend any challenges that others may raise against 
you. However, if you do indeed prove to be working counter to this team, I 
will personally exercise the right of k'aa-ti nih kltl, the right of righteous 
retribution. I know no other way to be more up front or honest with you, 
teammate-Kare. You are very important to this team, and I will continue to 
support and advocate for you until I have reason not to." With all that said, 
she will try to pump her for as much info as possible!

T'Klkk will gladly agree to accompany Urugg on a second scan of Syzygy's 
attack site. She will serve soley as security for this expedition and will 
focus her attention exclusively on scanning the environment. She will watch 
for any distortions in the atmosphere or sudden appearance of tracks, and will 
fire (Projectile rifle) at the first sign of anyone invisible coming into the 
area.

T'Klkk is also in agreement that an assault on Lost Point should be delayed 
until the entire team is ready to go. She will return to her role of assuming 
responsibility for the "command center" and coordinating the moves and check 
ins of her teammates. She'll ask Syzygy for his help in constructing a 
computer generated map of the layout of the colony, marking all of the sites 
of vandalism and theft to see if they're all easily accessible from an outside 
airlock. She'll also try to do some research into holoscreens to see if there 
are any (conventional or otherwise) means of disrupting them or detecting 
their use.

In her spare time, she'll continue to practice her martial arts training and 
may even venture to socialize some with any of the teammates who offer. If 
none do, she will approach Urugg and see if he would like to join her for a 
meal or engage her in mock hand-to-hand combat to hone their skills. She will 
continue to search for a Vrusk master of martial arts and will request 
tuterage under that individual.

Finally, has any of her superficial damage that she incurred during the riot 
healed yet?

Can't wait to hear what happens next!!!

-JWW