Red Markets Beta Campaign: Spires of Deception

[Tadanori Oyama]

I've decided to make a thread that will chronicle the progress of our playtest campaign of Red Markets. I will be posting notes and details at the end of each job and I'm providing players incentives to provide additional information, specifically in character journals to get their character's perspective on events.

Player generated Enclave:

1 ) Name
Deception

2 ) Location
Deception Pass, Washington State on the connecting island of the Deception Pass Bridge


3 ) Defenses
Built on an island. Spires were raised prior to the Crash on the island which were repurposed for broadcast and vision. Bridges have had fortifications and gates built onto them.

4 ) History
Founded by a group of non-commissioned officers and enlisted from the military base on Whidbey Island left behind during evacuation. They assumed the military would be back for them but after a few months began broadcasting for aid. A group of millers and a collection of fishermen eventually responded, bringing much needed food and supplies to build up the island into an actual Enclave.

5 ) Exports
Raw wood and lumber and specialized knowledges

6 ) Imports
Building materials (nails, glue, tools) and medical supplies

7 ) Competition
South Whidbey: Founded by the naval enlisted who split off from the marines it was later reinforced by a local yacht club and the ferry operators. They have salavaged a few of the state ferries and are one of the only options for moving large amounts of gear around the sound. There is a deep rivalry between the South Whidbey enclave and Deception.

Hospital: A collection of surgeon and farmers manage a small enclave which produces food, medical services, and burials. Located on Whidbey Island itself.

The Carvers: An enclave in the port city of Everett run by the workers at the wood and paper mill. They are supported by the engineers for the train system who have directed the tracks and trains to serve as mobile zombie defenses and distractions.

The Free Market: A protected bay in Anacortes managed by the wealthy citizens of the town and the US customs agents from the border patrol with support from the forest service.

Steel Wheels: An enclave with the ability to produce metal goods in Mukilteo. They are also the only enclave with a professional made distillery.

North Point: The military base, originally abandoned by both the marines and navy enlisted has been reclaimed by the Recession as a Settlement. Insult to injury, many of the officers at the settlement are the same ones originally removed from the base. North Point presents navigational difficulties due to their tendency to fire on ANY ship that comes within their sights and range.

8 ) Social Structure
Tribunal rule with the head of each of the groups sitting on a council. Individual disputes are brought to the tribunal and majority rules. The exception is matters of enclave security which must be resolved unanimously.
Due to the marines having been left behind while their officers were saved the adage "don't call me sir, I work for a living" has been enshrined into law. This attitude has spread even to the non-military citizens and a general dislike of military officers and of anyone in a "command" caste is common to citizens of Deception.
Everyone works in Deception. You do duty or you do labor. The enclave hates the idea of leaving anyone behind (see above) and will find work for anyone in normal circumstances. Exceptional circumstances sometimes result in exceptions but people are sympathetic and will allow others to "donate" to supply someone unable to work. Willful violation of a duty is a capital offense punishable in one of two fashions, determined by the criminal. They are either allowed to leave via the bridge road on the condition that they do not make any attempt to come back or they are set adrift on a non-millable section of wood.

9 ) Neighborhoods
The Spires- The bridge spires where intel and technical individuals live and work.
The Road- The bridge itself has become a no-go zone. Only The Watch, the military responsible for manning the gates, is allowed to stand on the road. Anyone who steps on the road and gets noticed by The Watch is forced to work a full 8 hour shift by weight of tradition (this was intended to discourage kids from wandering around but has become a game, trying to dodge the Watch and walk the road without getting caught).
Up Town- The wooden shacks built high on the island, under the bridge itself. They are the most protected from the elements and the most comfortable. The upper class lives there.
Down Town- The majority of the settlement, quickly built wooden housing, often in long house form with a dozen or more people in a single "home".
The Yard- A protected pool and work area used by the millers to float wood and do the rough cuts before refining the trees into building materials.
The Dock- Across the island from the Yard, the dock is the rough port, a pier that sticks out from the island to provide some shelter for the boats. Some of the fisherman live here.

10 ) VIPs
The Tribunal (also known as Top, Chop, and Slop)
Top, military leader Sergent Gibbs
Foreman, lumber leader George Foreman
Cap'n, fishing leader, Tanelle

Gun and weapon quarter master Rodriguez

Master of the intel spire Vlad

Corporal Robert O'Nell, in charge of the falconry program

Salty, political extremist and isolationist who is attempting to built a fence in the ocean

Dr. Nathan Simms, former oceanographer turned bootlegger who has converted his research vessel into a refinery. He's gone more than a little crazy but the brew he makes from seaweed is basically rubbing alcohol which is actually useful to the enclave so he is allowed his oddities.

Muckscraper Jolly Buccanon, phobia of heights, he cannot live in the main city and lives in a wrecked boat pulled onto the rocky shore.

Former botanist (and former companion to Dr. Simms) Dr. Herbert Olivia, attempting to breed crops to survive the harsh environment of the islands.

The Red Horizon Cult- A practical joke that got out of control, this cult believes that they can undergo vision quests, like the native americans, by fasting an entire day and then drinking the alcoholic mixture that Dr. Simms creates in his lab. They are called the Red Horizon because they believe a new disaster is approaching, something as bad or worse than the Crash, and want to forewarn the others. The enclave thinks they are harmless enough but is somewhat concerned that their practices could result in a self inflicted death of the members aren't careful. Dr. Simms is viewed as a prophet by the cult but the doctor himself isn't a member and doesn't even seen to be aware of the cult's practices.

[Tadanori Oyama]

*Space reserved for PC Taker profiles*

Jimmy
Member of the lumberjack faction turned Taker

Dependent:

• Jolly- Jimmy's father, Jolly has vertigo and suffers nausea and vomiting as soon as he climbs above sea leave, rendering him unable to live in Deception proper. Since he won't even come into the Enclave he has to be supported by his son.

Jaxon
Member of the marines and survivor of the Whidbey Island defense

Dependent:

• Younger brother.

Rayne
Member of the marines faction.

Dependent:

• Dim witted younger sister.
• Younger sister's artist boyfriend.

Jeanette
Member of the fisherman faction and struggling mother

Dependent:

• Crippled husband.
• Young child.
• Younger sibling.

Roland
Catholic preacher adapting to a new faith environment

Dependent:

• Developmentally disabled man.

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #1-
Local Calls Only

PC were hired by hopeful entrepreneur Amortis to travel into the blasted remains pf Seattle and place a special broadcast device in the remains of the Space Needle that would allow the client to restart a cellular network.
*pending*

Job #2-
Arrived Locally, Awaiting Delivery

PCs were hired to travel to an Amazon distribution center and gain access to their secure vault. Inside they were told there would be two packed crates with specialized drone components they would need to secure and transport to a drop point nearby.

Jimmy's Journal
Jeanette's Journal
Rayne's Report
Jaxon's Report

Job #3-
No Passing (a.k.a It's Snow Time)

PCs were hired to travel to a mountain pass and get two boxes from a stranded train car.

Jeanette's Journal
Jimmy's Journal
Jaxon's Report
Rayne's Report

[Runor]

I stand by that sentiment.  Worst brother ever.

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #1: Local Calls Only

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #2: Arrived Locally, Awaiting Delivery

*pending*

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #3: No Passing (a.k.a It's Snow Time)

Character Journals, part 1: Jeanette Powers

Entry

Found a couple of new jobs along with the old ones. After a bit of discussion it sounds like we’re going to take one of the new ones: getting some goods from a train car that’s abandoned up in the pass. Sounds like the roads are still mostly clear for getting up there, so we should be able to just drive the truck. And as far as people go, there shouldn’t be any anymore. There used to be an enclave up there. I guess someone in their numbers had read the Prose Edda and believed this was the beginning of Ragnarok. Rumor says it fell to infection but no one seems to know for sure, and no one knows what’s on the other side at all. No one has been crossing the mountains and I can’t say as I blame them. So if we can avoid setting off an avalanche it sounds like a pretty easy job, and we might be able to scavenge up some extra on the side while we’re at it.

Then, if it’s still there when we get back, it sounds like we’re heading north. Another one of the new jobs was to go up to Victoria and retrieve a server. It’s kinda meaningless on this side, but back in the Recession I guess there’s someone who desperately wants a program that is on the thing. This would probably be a good spot for me to look for some mobility for Dane. There was all kinds of advanced medical research going on up there. We’ll just need to try and avoid any locals, because I think only me and the preacher could potentially pass ourselves off as Canadians. Whether it was actually the US that bombed them or not, all the stories I’ve heard of our neighbors to the north since the collapse are of executing Americans on sight.

So downsides, we’re likely to die from natural disasters or at human hands. But on the upside there’s quite a bit of loot we could bring back and make extra on while using the job to cover most of our expenses for getting it. And we have the ability to sell information about conditions around a lot more of the area to other takers now. That’s not worth nearly as much, but every little bit counts.

Entry

I’ve been putting every single thing I have into these negotiations. We’re definitely building a reputation, but not one that is particualrly good or particularly bad. We’ll get the job done well but you’re going to be paying for it! Not so bad I guess, but I’m going up against more professional negotiators now. There’s no way I could do it without everyone though, with Rayne scaring off other teams and everyone else getting me the information I need. If this were just on my ability to talk we’d be no where near as far ahead as we are now. I hope they all understand that. Every now and then I see the preacher give Jax a funny look or vice versa, Rayne has the unique natural ability of being able to piss off everyone around her upon first meeting them, and we are constantly using Jim as a human tank. But together we actually make a damn fine team.
So long as nothing comes up to tip those scales over the edge at least.

Entry

Ok, I know I was against us keeping a vehicle in general. Thinking about the upkeep and maintenance and noise and theft. But I am really starting to like the truck. It’s not like I’m going soft or anything. With how much the cargo we’re picking up weighs we’ll probably have to walk anyway if we can’t get the traincar to coast down the tracks. But it’s nice to be able to just relax a second, almost like things could be normal again. With Jim and Jax arguing about the one CD that was in the truck when we got it and the scenery of the northwest going by as we cut across the flats.

I felt my heart go into my chest for about a second when I heard the noises alongside the truck, but it was a herd of horses. Honest to god horses that have gone wild since the colapse. Even though they had likely been penned up in either pastures or barns and left for dead they managed to not only escape their confines, the blight, casualties, and natural predators, but they too had found others and found a place for themselves. I took a video of it with the webcam on the laptop. Maybe it was a waste of battery and memory space but I don’t care. I can’t wait to show Eric when we get home.

Maybe I’ll get one of those camera mounts for Mars and just start recording all of our jobs. Don’t know if anyone would really be interested in watching, so I probably couldn’t sell them. But the unbiased record might come in handy, and it always gives us another option for surveylence since the dog can squeeze into spaces the drones can’t. Especially Mars since he’s so much smaller than Pagan.

But I’m all distracted now. Before I can buy anything new or share anything we need to finish this job. We managed to scrounge some bounty, a shotgun, and a crossbow from an old cabin before we hit the flats. But the place had been long abandoned. Kinda hilarious watching Carl, Jim named his dronkey and loaded it with movie quotes, and Jax’ little stealth drone try and storm the place though. And then Jim caught one of the horses. He managed to get a rope around it and jumped on from the truck.

The horse was pretty unhappy to suddenly have, like, 200 pounds of muscle flung onto its back after five years of no human handeling what-so-ever. But it seemed to calm down pretty fast. Someone must have cared for it pretty well before. So while Jim was busy cleaning the mess he made upon shattering my day dream of normalacy out of his need to eat something that didn’t once live in the sea, I found a spot to tie the horse. Should be able to avoid anything that comes up and tries to gnaw on it, but not wander away so we can never find it again. I’m kind of hoping the herd will come back for it and we can try to catch another one. And not eat it this time. Asshole.

Shouldn’t be too much longer. I can already see snow out the window and the client gave us a GPS locator for the car. We’ll just have to see if we can clear the tracks and move it, and if not we’ll have to find some way to load two tons of something into the truck. If we have the time I might suggest a quick forray down the other side of the mountain. Just so we can get a bit more news about what’s going on in the area. Since all the people have already cleared out of the pass it should be a peice of cake.

Entry

So, famous last words on my last entry.

Good old Uncle Sam, the bastards who abandoned all of us to die, turned the pass into a freaking kill box. I stumbled into the first noise trap while I was following the tracks. Luckily I didn’t fall into the pit of rusty metal spikes etc. Just knocked them over and listened to the noise echo and bounce around for a while. Then Jim sent Carl ahead and found three more, but not following the tracks. They were split down the middle of the town inbetween the old resort and what must have been some sort of ranger post or something.

I don’t even remember how exactly the firefight started. One minute we were waiting for word from Jax, the next we’re getting shot at and diving into a pile of snow that luckily still had a building in it. It also had a casualty in it, but one is nothing. One was actually kinda helpful. You’d think that since we got the radios maybe someone besides me would use them, but no. As soon as shots were fired both of my brothers became uncommunicative. Granted, they were both probably busy actually fighting people. All I really knew was that they were north of us, and we were being shot at from the south. So I did what any sister who doesn’t want everyone to die would do. I used the body as a distraction and meat sheild against the snipers, yes freaking plural, on the southside and drew as much fire as I could figure out how to.

And then the shooting just stops. I finally get some response on the radio besides Jax’ clicks. Jim chimed in and started swearing at him. And that was how I knew everything was going to be ok. Not because we had an adult conversation and caught each other up on events like normal people might. But because my brothers started fighting again. Some things will never ever change no matter how many times the world ends.

It was pretty bad though. Rayne got shot and was a bloody mess, so was Jim.

Also he had a hostage? Something really weird went down up there. He said everything was fine, but I beleive I’ve mentioned before that he’s a terrible liar. When I saw the state of the major I decided I didn’t want to ask. Wonder if it’s fully hit him yet that he’s stuck in the same boat we are now. As far as the boys back home are concerned he’s dead. There won’t be any attempts to rescue him, and if he were to try and go back to his base he would probably be shot on sight assumed infected.

Hell, they already tried to kill us all just for existing. And then again for winning the fight. Apparently the guys on the south side stopped shooting at us because they decided to retreat and blow the mountainside. No idea what luck kept us from getting burried in an avalanche right there. Maybe they had actually done some maintenance just to keep themselves from getting buried in snow. Because of course they would do something like that and leave casualties shambling around, but shoot any live person who walked through. And because of that I knew there was no way they weren’t going to just leave us alone.

I’m kinda glad no one else was killed, but I also really wish they had not escaped. Taking hours to find the train car, move the snow, find a pallet jack, load the truck, and cram all of us back into it was even more stressful than it needed to be knowing that the cavalry was going to arrive any minute. We did get the job done. We got paid and made it home with all our limbs still attached. But I will not attribute it to any amount of skill. Well. Ok, maybe I’ve just never seen Jim shoot before so I had no idea he was that good of a shot. But I feel much safer attributing it all to blind luck then depending on him to be able to make a shot like that again.

Horse murderer he may be, but god damn. It’s hard to look any more bad ass than by leaning out the back window of a truck, that is overburdened and carreening down a stretch of road that hasn’t been maintained in five years, while a pusuing helicopter is shooting rockets. And then take a pistol you have never fired before and, on the first shot mind you, take out the windscreen of the helicopter. This would have been one of those moments that a camera on Mars would have been amazing. Somebody would turn it into an epic found footage movie.

Of course all of this is opinion in retrospect. At the time it was more just clutching to the oh shit handle for dear life and being surprised I was still alive with each passing second. And upon getting home I pawned the boys off on Jax and proceded to let Dane remind me of just how alive I was.

I’m not looking forward to the next job.

I know it’ll put me that much closer to my goals of finding a safer place and maybe building up some kind of school system. But there is no way our luck can keep holding out like this. There’s no way in hell I’m giving up, other teams can do this crap for years and I think we have the makings to do the same. But there are also just as many teams of takers who go out to do one job and get killed right off the bat. Heh, maybe we’ll just be the crazy ones who somehow muscle through jobs when by all rights we should be dead. Not the worst reputation we could have.

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #3: No Passing (a.k.a It's Snow Time)

Character Journals, part 2: Jimmy

YEAR 6 BOOK 1 ENTRY 15 (Play session 5)
Fuck that cabin.
Found the sick fuck owner of this shit little hell hole. 
Sadistic fuck was torturing 3 girls.
They got him tho. Nice and slow, that punk could barely crawl towards me on the bits those girls left on him.

*The Market is a sadistic fuck that likes to force crack rolls.  Found evidence of a blonde, brunette and a redhead that had been tortured and mutilated in a cellar chained to the walls. 
One or all of them vectored and killed the creepy bastard.*

+1 to detachment




YEAR 6 BOOK 1 ENTRY 16 (Play session 5)

So after we left the cabin we came across a herd of horse steaks!

Jimmy is eating well tonight! No more fucking fish, and almost as good, I caught a horse!

I leapt from the moving truck onto the back of a horse and looped a rope around its neck to restrain it.  Carl shot the cowboy hat off of his head and I caught it.   Feeling like a bad ass.

To celebrate, Carl shot another horse while sis tied the one I caught to a tree for recovery later.

Skinned the dead horse and cut steaks from it, maybe get a few bounty from the skin?
 
 
SYS_LOG_CARL2
“Jack!”
Jimmy leans forward in the passenger seat of the truck, his beard tugging at the wind as he stuck his head out of the window.  The team is on the second leg of the trip up to the next job.
This trip was not the highest paying available, but it was considered the better alternative to the other jobs available at the time.  The Team is unwilling to interact with other teams of Takers do to their wariness to facing weapons.
REFERENCE_VANCOUVER
***Location: Vancouver Island
Type: Data extraction
Pertinent Data: Deemed to high of a risk due to the increased likelihood of encountering other survivors in a hostile environment***
REFERENCE_BABYSIT
****Location: Mobile
Type: Body Guard
Pertinent Data: Deemed to high of a risk due to the increased likelihood of encountering other survivors in a hostile environment****
“Ok… steady.”
Jim has jumped out of the truck at 23 MPH onto the back of a horse…
…
RUN_QUERY_1
“Hat!”
ABORT_QUERY_1
***REFERENCE_HATS; REFERENCE_MOVIES; REFERENCE_QUOTES; REFERENCE_ACTION; REFERENCE_HORSES
RUN_HAT_TOSS
PLAY: John McClane : Yippee-ki-yay, motherfucker.
“Now shoot me a steak!”
RUN_HUNTING
FIRE

YEAR 6 BOOK 1 ENTRY 17 (Play session 5)

*Camera pans out over the area surrounding the GPS Coordinates provided for the job.
 
Inviting, aint it.
Made it to the cords, no one here, nice and easy.


Sis almost fell in a trap, at least no one was here to take advantage of it.  Used Carl to find 2 more traps, this place is set up like an ambush but there aren’t even casualties here.  Hell, we found the traps with long sticks and spearing the snow.
We are looking for some train cars, or at least “A” train car buried under half a decade of snow and neglect.  No one around to spoil the beauty of it.  The simple joy of escaping from the needs of the enclave, the needs of family.  An escape from the sights and smells of death and despair.
The cold air and crisp smells are almost alien after so long surrounded by those fucking cannibals.  I could stay up here forever, even if it’s with the Team…  The loneliness is actually having a great effect on us.  I feel… less compelled to hit Jack in the mouth with a brick.

SYS_LOG_CARL3
REC_AUDIO
“Snipers.  Snipers everywhere.  I don’t even remember how it fucking started.”
*MUFFLED GUNSHOT*
“It was the traps, all lined in a fucking killzone.  There are sniper holes on the North and South mountainsides.  Jackoff is taking the North side with his riffle with the rest of the team drawing fire in a building preacher fell into through the snow.”

“Somehow, I uh volunteered to draw the fire of South side sniper pit.”
*Ricochet followed by Gun shot*
“I guess in retrospect… I should have borrowed a gun or something…. Or Kevlar or… fucking anything really.  But hey, I have an axe!”
*STATIC*
“So new plan Carl! That wall thing in the front there?  I want you to knock it down and pounce on the closest target!  Voice commands on my voice only!   If I die, tell my brother its his fault.  And AVENGE ME!”
*Crashing, banging and groans*

“Carl crashed through the wall and tackled the shooter, I am fighting the spotter.”
Unknown male voice: “Who the fuck?”

“WHY IS HIS HEAD SO HARD?!”
*Screams*

“Carl is attempting to shoot the sniper in the balls, only managing to get his legs.”

Second Male Voice: “WHY ARE YOU NARRATING THIS?!”
“HIS FACE IS LIKE STEEL!  Carl shot the other leg, still no balls.”
*Screams*

“STOP SHOOTING ME IN THE CHEST!”
First Male Voice: “Stop chopping my head!”


Player Notes:
Session ended with 2 head left on my target, Carl's target I am attempting to take alive.  I honestly can’t say if I am more impressed with the fact Jim rode Carl up the side of a mountain under heavy fire, through a wall, and into both hostiles.
Or should I be more impressed/embarrassed for my dice that Jims target survived 3 rounds of getting an axe to the face.  Seriously… impressive, kinda wish the guy could live.
The rest of the team is doing an amazing job, I think there are 3 shooters up there and the guys in the building are drawing all of the fire for Jack so he can basically take blind shots at targets behind cover from an exposed position.
Fairly certain I am going to end up dead here real soon.  The luck can’t last for more than one session of showboating on a Dronkey.


SYS_LOG_CARL4-6
RUN_AUTHORMODE_TYE
“The traps line up with those little mounds up on the mountains to the North and South.”  Jack looked around at the empty white field around them.  Small mounds, that could hide either shelter or another spike pit, dot the landscape between the two peaks to the North and South.  Squinting to the South, Jack shook his head in frustration.  A barely audible mumble is lost to the wind as he continues walking down the strip of snow he thinks that the train tracks are under.
Jimmy growled and climbed up onto his seat atop Carl’s back.  “What does the wise and bastardful wizard have to say now?”  Jackson stopped in his tracks and turned with a smile towards the team following him, casually pointing to the nearest mound of snow.  “Carl…. What does Admiral Ackbar say?”
“IT’S A TRAP!”
Jack darted forward as Preacher dove into a mound, crashing down through snow and glass.  Rain and Jen followed him as the snow puffed up around them several seconds later to the sound of crashing and cursing as they disappeared through the opening behind Preacher.
“Aww hell Jack!  I guess I’m going South then.” Jimmy leaned low as Carl tore off through the snow towards the South peak as Jack double tapped his throat mic and put his eye to his scope.
 
SYS_LOG_CARL5-6
RUN_AI000.0001
Data collection Completed
Compile DONE
BOOT Complete
UI ALPHA
My name, is Carl.
I am a damned soul cursed to roam the waste of humanity.
Through this penance imposed by our Lord Jesus and the Holy Catholic Church I will serve Gods needs and preserve the balance of the Force, but not the Midi-chlorians, because those are bullshit and it’s the end of the world and hopefully someone on Ubiq will edit that crap out and they will be forgotten.
Casualties are demons, sent by the Fish Gods, to deprive mankind of something other than fish.  They hate cows, deer, chickens, goats, squirrels, and horses.  They may or may not be ok with sheep, not enough data to determine.
Marines are a Force Unto God and are Always Faithful.1  Corpsman are the only part of the Navy.
God sent me to protect the Chosen One, Jim.  He is a mean and spiteful creature but I believe that if I can protect and guide him long enough, he could rise up as a David to the Goliath of the recession.  I have not been able to discuss this plan with The Preacher in any detail since our return from Tye.  I regret that I am unable to partake in the bounty of the Lords love: Alcohol.  It appears to be an enlightening experience that The Preacher excels in.
Jack, Cap-i-tan Contagious of the Jarhead Clan is a tool.
Jen is the intelligent one.
Rains sister is the town whore.
The Preacher is the moral backbone.
Jim, the Chosen One, is my punishment for past sins.  Through my sufferance of him, I will grow.  With my guidance, he will not get… worse.
My memory is blank as to what I should do with him.
RUN _PREACHER PRAYER
“Lord,
Please grant me the guidance to go, the reasons to grow, and the patience to know.
You are amazing, and I really really like you.  I’m sorry I drink.
Amen
Hail Mary
Touchdoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooown!”
And also Lord, I would like to add that while I do not know your plan, I have trust in your creation.  The beauty of your creation is free will.  We can only guide and influence our charges through the subtlety of words.
But I am also a damned robot dog, so… Amen
 
1Always Faithful does not always mean that they are Faithful to each other.  Officers are apparently exempt from this clause into Corpsedom.
 
YEAR 6 BOOK 1 ENTRY 18 (Play session 6)
*Camera focuses on Jims eyes, a smear of blood covers half of his face like William Wallace*
“I had a long day…  The spotter is dead, finally.
It doesn’t look dull at all.  I could shave with it….
But it just wouldn’t cut.
 
Oh! This is Major!”
*Camera swings to show a muscular man looped over Carl, hands tied securely to his knees on the underside of the drone.  Blood stains his white thermal underwear, the only scrap of cloth left on the man other than the heavy bandages on his legs and throat.
As the camera zooms in on the Majors face, his baleful glare trying to burn holes into man on the other side of the lens.  A low gurgling growl forced bubbles from the bandage at his neck.
 
“Stop it Major!  I already wasted bandages on you once.  No more till you tell me what I want.”  Jim stabs the man’s forehead with a stiff finger with every point.   The deep purple bruise growing between Majors eyebrows proclaim that this is the common mode of communication.
“Major hurt his throat, he’s having trouble talking.  Might take some time to heal…  I can’t reward this kind of behavior though.  It’s not like he can’t write…. He could tell me his name, or maybe what the rest of the country is up to.”
Jim is seen waving a bit of grilled horse meat under the Majors nose until his eyes changed from its focused loathing to longing for the bit of meat.  Jim casually takes a bite and drops it on the floor just under the Majors head.  “Or, he could just tell me what his command was up to up there.  Why they had taken over the pass and FUCKING SHOT ME IN THE CHEST!  And that last one?! You spite shot my toe off!  ”
Jim spun the camera back to face his own beaming smile, “I brought the horse home, hopefully Rain wants it but if not, I can make a killing on selling steaks from it.  Just can’t let sis know, she was upset for some reason when I butchered the other horse… It’s not like it suffered.”

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #3: No Passing (a.k.a It's Snow Time)

Character Journals, part 3: Jaxon

After Action Report

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #3: No Passing (a.k.a It's Snow Time)

Character Journals, part 4: Rayne

 Taking the "back roads" to our job was a great trip.

Wild horses ran right up to the truck.  We left one confined so we could pick it up on the way back.  Jim actually butchered one, something about REAL Meat, Fuck Fish.  The man is a bit unhindged.

driving up through the pass was not bad, Road was mostly in tact. But the town well that was interesting.

  That is understatement,  DHQS  had a few snipers up there.  Do not know why yet. But I am sure we will gain that Information from any survivors of the fight.   I really hope this is not a set up.  I have no idea what the bounty is on me personally, but they have been hunting the Sarg.  for years.

Preacher , Jeanette and I were pinned down in a Building.  We used a  causalty  as  a Meat shield, worked well , we did however get "zombie" juice on our backs.   The fight is still continuing.  I hope to be present when we " interview" the soldiers that have been shooting us.

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #2: Arrived Locally, Awaiting Delivery

Character journals, part 1: Jimmy

Missed Play Session 3
“Space Cowboys!”
Jimmy paused in mid swing, a frown etched deep with dirt.  Leaning his axe against the side of the partly felled ash, he took a deep drink from his “lucky” bottle.  The aluminum bottle had once been emblazoned with the Marvels Avengers logo, now it sported a roughly scratched “A” below a braided leather thong tied firmly around the bottles neck.
Finishing his drink he spun towards the source of the interruption, 5 small children ranging from 3 to 7 years old.
“Who?!” Jimmy asked in a loud whisper, drawing the children closer.
“Who was it?  I will have their haul for inflicting that HORRIBLE excuse for a movie on you!”
Stacy, the kids Bunk Mom laughed.  She was in charge of the Recruits, orphans whose parents had been infected or killed in the past year.  Dependents of all, burdens to none.  Stacy made sure of that, she worked tirelessly to provide for and educate the Recruits.  Everyone helped out freely to feed and house the kids.  Well, at least feed.  Jim took care of the housing, and he and Stacy were thinking of expanding their lodge house on the south cliff.
“You laugh Stace, because you know it should have been a comedy!  Old astronauts! Pillars of American cinema turned into a commercial for Ensure!”
Stacy chuckled as she gave him a kiss, “Firefly.”
“OH! Well that changes things!”  Jimmy smiled and hefted the axe, turning back to his work, chopping at the wood.  “It all started in a valley…” Chop.
Thop.
Thlop…
The sound of the water lapping at the side of the boat.  Awesome, back on the wreck…
Jim rolled out of his hammock and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.  He had a lot to do if Jolly was going to eat while he went on another run.   Grabbing his pole, and throwing a blanket over his shoulders he climbed the ladder to greet the morning.
I fucking hate fish
 
YEAR 6 BOOK 1 ENTRY 10 (Play session 4) (I was running late so my character was inactive in the truck)
Wait in the truck he said.  It will be fine he said.  Well, for once brother, you were correct.
I waited in the truck like a good little log splitter while the team went into the Amazon Warehouse to try and score some drones.  So there I am, protecting the truck while Jack goes running by with a small group of casualties behind him.  Does he want help?
No!  He fucking points at me like I’m a fucking dog.  Well fuck him.

YEAR 6 BOOK 1 ENTRY 11 (Play session 4)
Hearing lots of noise out there, hopefully that asshole got shot.

YEAR 6 BOOK 1 ENTRY 12 (Play session 4)
WHAT IN THE ACTUAL FUCK!  Not a word, NOT A GOD DAMN WORD!  Just pushes me over and lays on the horn.
The fucking horn!  I’m forbidden to get out of the rolling lunchbox so Jack does me a solid and HONKS THE FUCKING HORN!

YEAR 6 BOOK 1 ENTRY 13 (Play session 4) (Arrived)
Well, I may have been over reacting.  Slightly.
Captain Contagious is covered in blood.  Not his, but atleast we found 2 Dronkeys in addition to the 2 drones needed for the job.  I asked the team and they said I can sell one and keep the other.
I watched that truck like a boss.

YEAR 6 BOOK 1 ENTRY 14 (Play session 4)
Rain seems to thing Cash is hooking out kids.  Not sure if I believe her, Cash is a dick but he doesn’t force anyone to do anything like that.  Well, he convinces people to do stuff like that all the time… but not kids.  I hope.
Fuck.  Why is it always kids.  Either Cash is dead for being a dick or Rain is for being a lying piece of shit.

YEAR 6 BOOK 1 ENTRY 14 (Play session 4)
Dad is still… dad.
Found him naked again… dangling his… feet in the water like it’s a game.
He forgot about the zombies in the water, and traded his clothes for some of that sea hooch.
I don’t even know what to say.  I would write it off as a poor choice associated with drinking salty rubbing alcohol… but he traded his clothes for the drink.
He wasn’t even drunk at the time.
I’m not even mad about the clothes, if the crazy old man wants to get a sunburn on his pecker, I get instant comedy for the next few days.
I could kill him.  It’s like dealing with a really big, drunk 4 year old.   That demands hookers and beer.
Well, at least I KNOW he’s a needy fuck.  And at least I know he isn’t going to bite my fucking ear off.
HA!  Jack got his ear chewed off!  I fixed him up without laughing or anything.  While I was patching him up, he told me about the run in Rain had with Cash.  Bitch almost started a war between the Fishers and Jarheads.
Cash doesn’t sell kids, Rain just took offense to her adult ass sister turning tricks for Cash.   I told her I would kill her if she lied to me about that….
DUDE!  I’m a fucking genius!  I’m getting dad a hooker!  And I reckon Rain can live, should provide me with days of entertainment!

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #2: Arrived Locally, Awaiting Delivery

Character journals, part 2: Jeanette

Entry

We came up with five different jobs. An open call for boats for the civil war going on in the South Sound, a security job, a closure job, a warehouse job, and a repair job. It took a lot of debate but we finally settled on the warehouse job. It didn’t have the greatest payout, but it was the best one for trying to avoid a fight. With the Preacher down his shotgun and me only knowing basic self defense our chances in a brawl aren’t so good at the moment. It’s being done by a professional negotiator, Mr Price. This guy is supposed to be one of the best, and I would tend to agree since no one really knows much about him or where he actually is. If you can get to a point where people pay you to negotiate on their behalf, have every taker know your name, and still have no one know where you are you definitely have some skill.

I’m a little bit nervous to go up against that. But if I can get one up on him. That’s not only a huge plus for us for the job, but also another point of bragging rights for me. Heh, maybe I could get to a point where I just negotiate for other people and not have to go out anymore. I would probably get bored though, just hiding behind a screen somewhere. I won’t do anything outright stupid, but no one can say I don’t put myself out there.

Entry

I’d hate to have to pay the maintenance, but I have to admit I like the truck. I managed to push Mr. Price all the way up. So he not only covered all our costs, but he also doubled the price of the job and gave us a truck. This job was a lot more… Active, than the last one. We paused at a Safeway to get out of the truck and stretch. I managed to find some kids books for Eric, I hope he likes them, but Rayne fell through a soft spot in the floor to a Casualty filled basement. I guess she was going for the message board in the middle of the entry way. One of those spots where people put up their stories to at the very least say that they existed, and at best to try and reunite with friends and family. I’m kinda surprised that any of it is still legible. It was back far enough to be out of the weather, hence why the floor caved in. But I would have expected most of it to be sun bleached by this point.

When we came across a chunk of the road swarmed by bugs Jax decided to take us off road. Took us a while to find a way back on the highway after we managed to leave that behind, but I’m glad he made that call. For one, bugs are gross and I had volunteered to ride in the bed with my dog. But more importantly because bugs usually swarm around dead things. I don’t really want to speculate on what we would have found as we crossed through there.

The Amazon Distribution Center in Kent was the warehouse for the job. The Client wanted the parts for those delivery drones that Amazon had been working on. Of course the warehouse had already been broken into and searched, but they were sure the parts would still be there because they were locked in a secure vault. When we got down to Kent it was wrapped up in one of those quintessentially northwest fogs. Couldn’t see clearly more than about 20 feet in front of us. We decided to cut the engine and coast down to the fence, take out the few chompers whose attention we got, then push the truck the rest of the way up to the building. That way if we needed to make a quick get away we wouldn’t have to go far, but we were also able to get in without making any real noise.

Unlike whoever had put the holes in the walls. If it can make Jax freak out I know I don’t want to meet it in person. We loaded Pagan and Mars into the cab so they wouldn’t draw attention, and we had Jim stay with them too for back up. Inside the place was a mess, just everything everywhere. I know people would be in a panic and hurrying and all, but you would think they would still leave some sort of a path, at least for their own escape. It was a little overwhelming to try and think of how we were going to do anything in that jumbled chaotic mess, and I was distracted enough that I have no idea what got Jax’s attention.

I got Rayne and the Preacher to duck out of sight and wait with me for an all’s clear from Jax before we started moving forward. It’s almost too bad we don’t have some sort of two way com on that drone of his. Or at least an LED we can flash in some kind of a code. Maybe that’s something we’ll figure out before we go on the next job. Either way, when he had it come and buzz past us I figured we must be good to move ahead. Maybe he had just wanted a better spot to cover us from, he’s always thinking about the strategic positions so I wouldn’t be surprised.

Our attempt at Casualty distraction didn’t work out anywhere near as successfully. I got one of my extra batteries hooked up to an old alarm clock no problem. But it kinda has to land somewhere farther away if we don’t want them to come right up on top of us. So we ended up making a stupid mad dash across the masses of boxes and deserted product to make it to the offices where we figured any kind of secure items would be. At that point we needed it for the cover anyway. There were swarms everywhere from the noise we made and the noises the other swarms were making knocking stuff over. Jax took the silencer off his rifle at one point to help get them off of us.

Luckily we guessed right, there was a lead I could use to get power to the controls, it had been sitting there for long enough that it had completely reset, and we were able to find a post it that had the default login and password. Unluckily we had a swarm outside trying to push the walls down around us, we had to do a couple of tricks to get the whole password, and I had to call Taj to figure out exactly how to put everything in. Now I like the guy, he’s pretty nice for some of the Marines I have to deal with on a regular basis. But he’s loud. Yes, I’m in the middle of a job. You watched us leave. But no, we couldn’t possibly be in a life threatening situation where you geeking out about getting to see what we do on a job could be detrimental. Take your time, look around at the dim dirty remains of civilization. Oh this Casualty gnawing on me? That’s nothing. Now we’ll get to find out if I am immune or a latent or not! And if not you’ll have some awesome webcam footage of someone going vector and freaking out. It’ll be fine!

Anyway. I could hear the two of them taking shots as I was trying to read off the serial numbers so he could help me with the controls. Managed to get it all open as our cover was fully compressed under the press of rotting bodies. So I just shouted for everyone to get in the vault. I don’t really regret making that call, it saved our lives and all, but I’m not really happy about it. My battery only powered the controls on the outside, so we had no light, no air vents, no sound. Just locked in the dark with a fanatic and a moody marine. Waiting to find out if I’m gonna live or die. Just like before… Needless to say it was a very tense hour and a half we sat in there.

Finally the vibrations we could feel through the door stopped feeling like the clumsy fumblings of the ravenous dead and more like the deliberate movements of someone who was conscious. I was hoping it was the cavalry arrived at last, but I really had no way of knowing. I made the call to open the door while the two of them had weapons at the ready. At the time we almost shot him. Looking back on it now it was like a scene out of an action movie. We open the door and there’s Jax, standing with his rifle at the ready, just covered head to toe in gore. There are bodies all over the place and broken windows and the only sounds are of slight movements from outside in the fog. Then when he saw it was us and we were OK he dropped the gun down and gave a sigh of relief.

It was like all of the tension went out of all four of us. Yeah the job wasn’t actually over yet, but we had survived a pretty damn close call. First we had to find something that we could cover Jax in so that no one else would get infected from the goo all over him. I managed to find a tattered old coat that wouldn’t do much of anything but worked for this at least. Then he went and got Jim and the truck while I searched around for any other bounty we might be able to grab. Then we loaded up the truck and booked it. I wasn’t sure what was in the other two big boxes, they were like the two that we had gone down to get but didn’t have the drone logo on them. Just an item number code. On our way to the rendezvous Jim was looking them over and then started acting funny. He had been going on this whole trip about how he wanted a Dronkey, How he was hoping we would find one while we were down here, or maybe make enough to buy one, or blah blah blah. So when he got back into the truck and was trying to act all nonchalant Jax jokingly asked him if there was a Dronkey back there.

Jim is a terrible liar. His no was about as convincing as Jacob or Jason’s when you ask them if they did something wrong and the broken glass is still on the ground behind them. So the two of them proceeded to start arguing about whether to sell them or not as the engine cut and we coasted the last bit up to where we were dropping the parts from the job. I had already decided we would keep them. Yeah we could have potentially sold them to this guy for more than we could get for them back home, but I also knew how bad Jim wanted one and anything that can haul some extra gear that I don’t have to pay the upkeep on is a bonus. They were still debating and trying to make motions to me one way or another as I went up to close the job. Mr. Price’s associate was curios, but I shut that down pretty quick so we could get our bounty and get home.

Triumphant.

Hope that trend keeps up. Both jobs we’ve done so far have gone our way, if not to plan. But I’ve invested my extra bounty between the laptop and making some contacts to find a new place for my family to live. If I come up against a hard ass and can’t get him to cover at least our equipment we could be screwed. There goes most assurances that we will survive the job, the ability to make the bounty I need to move my family off this rock, any chance of finding the resources to educate my son and brothers so that they know how to live and not just survive. Guess that means I better just show off that Buchanon backbone and not give an inch unless we can turn it to advantage.

Entry

So tonight was interesting. Probably the most lively a good portion of Deception has been in a while. I’m sure people will be talking mostly about the train wreck that seems to be Rayne’s homelife for the next several weeks, but all I can really think about is how that almost split this enclave into a civil war and destroyed it. So, the story is that while we were gone on the Seattle job Rayne’s little sister Erin got herself into some debt with Cash.

Cash is a sleazeball of an ex-marine who works on the docks now. I’ve always made a point of avoiding him and keeping the boys away from him. I understand everybody’s gotta do what they can to make it, but I’m not gonna let anyone in my family stoop to doing business with him unless it’s an absolute last resort. I’m positive that he would sell his own mother if there was a profit in it and would be willing to bet that he did in order to make it this far.

But what Rayne did? She tried to accuse him of peddling children in order to discredit him and get him to back off. While he was in his usual spot on the docks where his clientell know where to find him. Which is in sight and ear shot of everyone and anyone. Rayne is hard, but Cash is sensitive enough to know just how far he can push this community before they retaliate against him. He isn’t anywhere near that line yet and he knows how to play a crowd way better than Rayne does. Everybody could hear him when he shouted “Are the Marines accusing all of us.” I don’t remember the rest of exactly what he said but that was the part that got everyone’s attention. The only part that anyone seemed to care about.

I don’t know what angle he was trying to play with that stunt. Seemed like he was trying to discredit the marines and get himself in better with the fishermen. Or maybe I give him too much credit and that’s just the part he’s going to take advantage of while he was really just trying to get her to back down. She made some quip back that I didn’t catch before I could get up there, and then Erin showed up and it all seemed to just get worse. Rayne almost kicked her out, but came back from the edge of her temper just barely enough. Probably remembered that Erin and her boyfriend, Carn I think?. Something that starts with a Ka sound. Were some of the only people who care to keep company with her and that no one can make it through this alone. So Rayne threw some bounty at Cash’s face, I’m guessing how much he was owed, before getting ready to storm off.

Which was right when Jax showed up. He’d probably been working up in the spire. And you could see other Marines up there with binoculars, leaning out and trying to figure out what was going on. He gave her a very loud and very public dressing down about the whole thing. Besides his quick temper, I know why he did it. He had to do something to show that the Marines aren’t against the Docks at all and that this was all on her. But I hate that it reinforces the idea that people like Cash can get away with pulling crap like this around here. Maybe I’m not the best example of a moral person, but there should be some kind of limits. Some kind of law in our enclave besides “Touch the road and do a shift”. There just isn’t right now, and I doubt there is going to be with the kind of folks we have here. Damn hard workers and good friends to be sure, but crass and misogynistic. Obviously not the best of role models as I heard Fitz yammering about a peeping tom incident later.

But at least it gave me something to distract Dane with for a little while. When I got home later he was just staring off into space while Jacob was standing on the roof throwing stuff at Jason, who was on shift for whatever reason, and Eric was no where to be seen. I wanted to be mad, I was mad at first. I really need to know that I can count on him to hold things together when I’m not around. I had to get Jacob under control and send him out to round up Eric and make sure he wasn’t about to get seriously injured in any of the various death traps littered around here or cause any other problems I would have to solve. Like Erin did for Rayne. But then Dane mentioned that Chop had been by, saying that we had to pay more rent. And I could see that frustration building back up in him again. That darkness that I might lose him to.

This has been harder on him than on most other people. It was bad enough to lose a leg when we still had all the comforts of being middle class Americans. When he could go to physical therapy to figure out how to move again, and doctors for prosthetics, and a psychologist to deal with the depression and anger. And then the blight came and tore down what little we had been able to rebuild. So I know this has been probably harder on him than it has been on me. Somehow I have to find a way to let him know that I’m still here for him, and to let him know that I still need him. Maybe I can find him a new prosthetic while we’re out on a job. Or bribe my brothers into taking the kids off our hands for a while. Pretty hard to find any kind of alone time when there are four of us living in a two room shack. And God knows I could use it as much as he could.

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #2: Arrived Locally, Awaiting Delivery

Character journals, part 3: Rayne

 It was a pretty easy trip down, having a truck made things so much easier. 

Stopped at  Safeway, store was abandoned and picked pretty clean.  There is a Remberance board there, we should really take a look at it again, if we head that way again.   There are Zombies in the basement though.. may take a bit of careful planning.

Could have done without the Locust. No matter what they say, there is not much nastier than driving through the swarm, so we drove around. Took a bit longer, but it was better than picking Locust out of the grill of our nice truck.

Everett is a smoking ruin.  The Naval Yard was bombed out and much of the Town suffered in the attacks.. I remember it being a really pretty place, now it is more of a ghost town in the north end.

We arrived in  Kent to  socked in Fog , at the distribution center.  Lots of Zombies there, and there were large HOLES in the building.  I have no idea what caused those holes, but Sargent turned pretty pale when he saw it.  I believe I do not want to know what caused him that much fear.

Jeanette , Preacher and I were locked in the vault for a while, hiding from the Zombies.. Sarg and his Brother got us out of the vault, we loaded our bounty and 2 nice Dronkeys,  Jim kept the Dronkey,  Sarg has the Truck. And we made some really nice coin on the job.

That Cash, is a slippery devil, but he is paid, and I , well I am cleaning and scraping boats.  Being a Marine with a sort Temper will get ya in a world of trouble.

Erin, my sister, is an idiot. I am going to have to have a chat with her and Cameron.. damned dead beat, I hoping he will attempt to help out, But I will not be holding my breath on that.

[Tadanori Oyama]

Job #2: Arrived Locally, Awaiting Delivery

Character journals, part 4: Jaxon

After Action Report

[Tadanori Oyama]

Between Jobs #3

Character journals, part 1; Jaxon

Disciplinary Report