WttSS session 17: 'Many Plans, Many Enemies'

Written by Doctor Weather

General Summary

Khalil and Masruq visit the palace

They join a procession of worshippers heading to the palace
All are wearing white, grey and gold, allowing Masruq in his finest golden robes to fit right in.

Masruq mingles and gets the talk of the palace

The city's business is on hold untli the upcoming vote happens
Trade is stalling, business deals aren't being struck and workforces wait, running out of money. Everyone wants to make deals with the right Faction and power, making the best possible contracts. Richer families can afford to wait but others are reaching their limit.
People are hoping Khamzi makes an appearance today but aren't holding their breath
They have been waiting for a long time. No-one is yet demanding action, and the people seem to really believe in Khamzi's divine power, but frustration is evident, nonetheless.

Khalil scans for evil sorcerers

If Khamzi is being harassed by an Abouelkassem sorcerer it will likely be in one of a few select places
The palace is built of the white rock of the mountains but key areas are reinforced with the metal of the Independence, the colony ship that brought Khamzi's people to Ghodar. If the sorcerer is here, it will be within those metals.
Palace locations reinforced with ship metals

• Khamzi's residence
• Inner Council residences
• The 3 tower suites
• Temple to the Star Singer
• Palace's outer walls

Khalil and Masruq decide to join the noon ceremony in worship of Khamzi
If Khamzi is to appear today, it will be at that ceremony, along with all the city's key players.

Kerman gets on the holo-vids

A mysterious woman sends Kerman two drinks by way of an apology
Whilst the rest of the party scouts, Kerman makes friends with a crew of stevedores in the Cantina. They have nothing better to do but drink, as many work contracts are on hold whilst the city's traders wait for a decision from Khamzi. Settled for a pleasant day, his plans are then scuppered when one of the Cantina's few wait-staff - employed only by the larger vendors - approaches with two drinks and an apology for two interruptions from "the sayyid over there". Looking up, Kerman sees a short, young woman dressed entirely in black robes, with black jewels in her hair. Standing nonchalantly on top of one of the vendor's rooves without the knowledge of the local patrons, she offers Kerman a polite nod. Kerman takes the drinks and, with a wave, invites her to join him but instead she simply drops back off the roof and vanishes.
Buletin reporter Samala Hafi-Joahn throws some tricky questions at Kerman
As the woman vanishes, a reporter with a camera drone appears at the edge of the sand dip in which Kerman has set up hospitality. Whether disappointed at the refusal from the mysterious woman or not Kerman extends the invitation to the reporter instead, something he potentially regrets when the reporter starks asking tricky questions. Why do the mountain natives refer to him as Walker With Demons? Is it true he helped release the Dark that led to the Valley of Madness incident? Having made short work of the Solar Wind and some 'local traders', what trouble will he next cause in the city?
Kerman ends the interview by smashing the drone and throwing the reporter from his table
After a few valiant attempts at diplomacy, Kerman's patience is worn too thin and he insists the reporter leave. Samala picks himself up and starts recording an end to his 'interview'. His exit was less dignified than he'd have liked but he's enough material stored in his headpiece to create 'a good story'...

Murad and Zarzur sneak onto the Divine Algebra

Wearing their fake uniforms they stroll into the ship's landing bay
Surprised to see other Agents returning from the city at this time, a pair of Agents on security come over to chat. They've lost track of time and the current duty schedule in all their comings and goings, trying to get the day's prayers worked in around their job. Conversation about the local's worship of a false Icon - especailly on this holy day - easily distracts them from any thought of Murad and Zarzur's presence being odd.
They steal the ID codes from an Agent's pass
Murad (with 4 infiltration successes) sleight of hand's one of the Agent's passes and makes a copy a spare tag. No-one suspects a thing, allowing Murad and Zarzur to head to the ship to 'report in'.
A security drone stops them getting onto the ship
Murad presents his stolen ID but the security drone reminds 'Agent Sima' that she should be on guard duty at this time. Zarzur attempts to break into the drone with her headpiece but with no luck the two are forced to turn back. A Ranger outside observes their passage - unsuspicously at the moment, it's just his job to be aware - forcing the PCs to make a quick choice.
Moving quickly around to the other side of the ship where there're fewer people they have better luck
They scoot round the back of the ship as if they were continuing their normal patrol and try the drone on the other side of the ship. This time Zarzur hacks it successfully and both drones update their logs that two Agents were already in the ship rather than entering now. In an empty hangar bay, Zarzur access ship's systems. She can look for the blackmail material here, facing extra security, or she and Murad can head to the bridge or science stations for more direct access. They choose the latter.
Heading towards the back of the ship they see the Agency's ACE unit in a workshop
Within the ship, most corridors have only distracted agents, some even completing the day's prayers whilst walking between jobs. Having to pass the ship's workshop they get a look one of the Consortium's new toys: an Autonomous Combat Exo. Tempting a target as it is, the PCs' use their willpower to head straight to the science stations.

Khalil and Masruq take in a local ceremony

Joining in the faithful they head into the temple and see that people really believe
Within the circular temple, the Inner Council - Bakhtiyar Yazdan summoned with the rest - take position around a raised dias. The rest of the faithul form a second ring of worshippers further out. Their patience is rewarded when Khamzi, Countess of the Sun herself, is led into the room; but she is not what the PCs' expect. The faithful believe that Khamzi is in a divine state, constantly in communication with her father, the Star Singer. The PCs however, see a woman with a degenerative brain disorder, coming to the temple's dias only as she is led by Solar Wind priests. When she is distracted or tries to pull away, the priests insist she keep going. When she is left atop the dias, she looks, in the main, simply afraid. But the worship continues nonetheless, led by Councillor Abdulin.
A Solar WInd priest gives Khalil and Masruq instruction on how to commit heresy
One of the priests notices that the PCs are not joining in with prostrated worship of Khamzi and comes towards them. A pretence of being poor foreigners who don't know the correct rites only brings them a lesson from the priest. Originally avoiding the heresy of worshipping a false Icon, both Masruq and Khalil put the mission first and join in with rite, hoping the Icons understand.
Khalil detects the presence of an evil sorcerer
Before forced into the worship, Khalil's detector reveals the presence of an entity of the same energy that infected the Caliban Crow - another Abouelkassem sorcerer spirit. In comes in with Khamzi, posessing the walls the temple.
Khamzi reveals no great wisdom today but her presence means the Inner Council can meet
Abdulin tells the crowd that there is no wisdom from the Star Singer today but the crowd don't care. If the Inner Council can meet then there will be a vote and the city will be able to start trading again. Masruq sends Bakhtiyar a private message, asking how long before the vote takes place. He replies there is little more than an hour to go, at best.

Kerman sees off the Legionaires that survived the Valley of Madness incident

They invite themselves into Kerman's company but regret telling Kerman it's his round
Five Legionnaries appear as the reporter leaves - the second promised interruption to Kerman's peaceful drinking. Angrily asking "where is she?" they don't wait to be invited into Kerman's holo-vid pit. When they add that Kerman's buying though, they find themselves alone as he gets up and leaves to go to the bar.
Before they lose all control they start a fight
As Kerman walks off they realise their mistake and chase after him to start a fight. However, Kerman's friends from earlier are bored, half-cocked and remember enough of their parents' ideologies to retain a hatred of the Factions; it takes little effort to persuade them to join Kerman in giving the Legion a good hiding.
One of them is stupid enough to pull a knife and Kerman gets them all arrested
Now having only to face off the group's leader, Kerman swiftly disarms and knocks the man down before he can do more than play with the whip he'd brought to capture Kerman in. In a rage at being on the verge of another humiliating defeat, the Legionnairy pulls his knife and the Cantina's patrons nervously pull back as one. Seizing the initiative, Kerman calls out the knife and a nearby Solar Wind patrol wades in with divine purpose, using their shock sticks to detain the Legionnaries. Kerman gains a whip.

Murad and Zarzur find and destroy the blackmail material

They sneak a view of one of the science bays through the ship's ventillation
Six scientists are hard at work on some of the planet's artifacts, some technological, some cultural.
Zarzur breaks one of the scientist's consoles, allowing Murad to drop in unseen
With more deft infiltration (3 more successes) Murad fakes the sound of door opening and closing, leaving Murad and Zarzur standing there as if verily summoned by the broken console. Expecting to be served by mere Agents, the scientist demands the PCs fix his station at once.
Murad distracts the scientist whilst Zarzur drops into secured files
With a feigned interest in the planet's artifacts, Murad comes 'accidentally' too close for the scientist's comfort to knocking one over. Before he turns back to oversee Zarzur 'fixing' his console she gets one chance to hack into the ship's secure data core and access the Agent's data in the palace's tower suite. 4 successes would have bought her the blackmail material on Nuha Mifsud, the blackmail material on Ghalib Qureshi, the successful deletion of both in the palace data banks as well as in the ship's data core and a total bypass of security. She gained 3, successfully choosing to complete the mission but triggering the ship's alarm.

Khalil and Masruq bring the ceremony to a big finish

The two of them hold a loud conversation, running through the names of evil sorcerers
As Khamzi is led away to join the Inner Council at the meeting, the PCs begin innocently disussing the names of evil sorcerers they know. Though the dark energy is leaving the temple with Khamzi, enough of it hears mention of the Abouelkassem family name and a slight tremor builds throughout the temple, whilst a hanging oil lamp jumps from its chain to break on the floor; and Khamzi herself becomes distracted by something.
Their show almost brings down the house
Reaching the name Avihu, the sorcerer spirit reacts violently at being discovered and the tremors build through the walls and floors, causing candles and Icon statues fall from the walls. At the same time, Khamzi's murmuring turns to distressed cries. The sorcerer fully drawn back into the temple, Masruq risks a mystic power and asks the Icons to exorcise the Dark spirit. The crystal ceiling of the temple shatters, raining shards down on Solar Wind priests. Khamzi faints under the shock and the Inner Council move to protect her. Their timing is perfect: much as the last sorcerer ripped out the Caliban Crow's docking station when forcibly exorcised from the ship, Avihu tears out most of the north temple wall as she is cast out. Khalil attempts to bring in his drone and spirit capture device but either the Colonial Agency or the Solar Wind destroy it in the confusion and Avihu is left somewhere out in the palace grounds.

Campaign

Whispers to the Star Singer (concluded)

Protagonists

Report Date

16 Dec 2020