Agenda
Episode One
"Invitations"
Adventure - Aberrant - Aeon Trinity
Finally got to hold a game with Rocky, Mahar and Urim again. This time, I was excited to throw in something I've been wanting to run for quite some time: a game spanning chronicle that would start some time in the 1920s with the Adventure! era and end far in the future of the Aeon Trinity universe.
Yes. Crazy, ain't it?
It get's even better. To start off, I had them create their Adventure characters AND their Trinity characters. While their Adventure characters were going to be fresh new pulp heroes, their Trinity Characters were meant to be major movers and shakers in the world. Why? Because of the plot, that's why! As to what the over-all plot will be, that my friends will be something I shall reveal in time. For now, here's the session record for the first game.
The characters are the following:
A British Stalwart with a Leader Nature (Reflective and intuitive facets).
Known as the Sleepwalker, Samuel uses the Gas Gun and Mask he created using his Mad Scientist Knack to strike fear into the hearts of crime. With Indisputable Analysis and Sensory Filtering Knacks, no clues evade his scrutiny. And his Sun Tzu's Blessing makes him a natural leader. Long acting as a vigilante alone, he is still learning how to manage things as a group now that he has joined the Aeon Society for Gentlemen.
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The American Mesmerist tends to be a Charmer (Reflective, intuitive and destructive).
Formerly just a waitress who loved working at a diner, Candy has discovered the world is far more complicated than it seems and now is part of the Aeon Society for Gentlemen in hopes of helping make it a safer place. She uses her recently discovered Brain Skimming Knack to draw out secrets during conversations, her Perfect Translation Knack to understand whatever anyone says, her Psychic Hand and Teledigitation knacks to protect herself, and her Mindhammer Knack when the worst things come to light. Still a civilian though, she tries to maintain a better composure, holding on to the Engagement Ring of her dead fiance when she needs to draw some privacy and strength.
The German Daredevil is a Hotshot at heart (Destructive, intuitive).
Formerly an agent of Branch 9, Nicklas went AWOL after discovering how the group was secretly sustaining certain dictators in power for their own ends. While many attempts have been made to find and kill him, his Death Defiance and Indomitable Will knacks have kept him alive more times than others could ever dream. As a Master of Dissimulation who is Universally Deadly, any weapon or object is potentially either a tool or weapon in his hands. But his favored weapon remains guns since he uses them with Enhanced Impact, knocking his targets out of windows or into walls when necessary. He owns one remaining super science gadget from his time in Branch 9, the Panzer Suit, which provides him with Complete Privacy and makes him practically Untouchable to firearms. He may or may not be working in secret with someone else, even as a member of the Aeon Society for Gentlemen.
The first game session opened with the players all receiving an invitation in one form or another to join the Aeon Society for Gentlemen. The Sleepwalker was approached by Danger Ace during one of his nights where he fought against the Klu Klux Klan that were going to do a public burning of a black man who was quietly in his home working on a model kit. Candy was out on a date with her boss when the theater they were in was suddenly occupied by waiters who had guns. What they didn't know was Nicklas was under a mission to privately meet up with a certain Svetlana Koshkova in the same theater, and the armed waiters were after them. Svetlana had information about the Super Soldier Program that Russia had been working on with Germany. The theater debacle was dispatched when Candy learned that moment to use her strange abilities at the same time Crackshot came to save them. Nicklas and Svetlana found themselves meeting Doctor Primoris for the first time and learned he had come to invite them to the Aeon Society for Gentlemen as well. With each considering their invitation, Candy decides to call the number while The Sleepwalker and Nicklas eventually opt to try to sneak into the headquarters of Aeon Society as a show of their potential. The Sleepwalker uses his superior deductive skills to identify the comings and goings of various known Aeon Society members, and triangulates the most probably locations for the headquarters. When he narrows it down to somewhere in Central Park, he then identifies the plain clothed security and follows them to the lair. Candy is picked up by Whitey Styles after she calls him to join. They soon meet The Sleepwalker whom Doctor Primoris found trying to hide in the wine cellar. And finally, Nicklas and Svetlana join, after they meet with Maxwell Mercer on the park grounds and are invited in. Discussions quickly are shared on the need for Aeon Society and while questions are posed by some on whether or not the group truly has altruistic motives, the discussions shift when it is learned that Svetlana's husband, Dmitri, is a prisoner in some Siberian camp and her joining the Society is the requirement for Aeon Society to step in and rescue him.
The group clamors to help Svetlana, and while Doctor Primoris seems unhappy with this turn of events, Maxwell Mercer smiles and later admits that he was hoping they would do exactly that. "We were always worried about who will carry forward our dream and goals, Michael. Now we know we have them."
The group flies to Siberia with Svetlana handling the plane. A plan is quickly formulated with Nicklaus posing as his former role in Branch 9 having captured Svetlana and giving her up for a reward. Candy, all dressed up as a Russian as well, was to pretend to be his interpreter. She had hoped to use her Brain Skimming to learn where Dmitri was imprisoned. The Sleepwalker was to sneak in, try to break Dmitri out on his own, while Crackshot covered from the plane's landing site.
The plan goes well at first, with the group meeting Ruka the Undying, the Super Soldier who had Dmitri imprisoned. Ruka and her Undying Army were infamously known to be immune to pain, and the group knew they had to be careful or they would easily be outnumbered. While Candy and Nicklaus charmed their way into Ruka's good graces... and her penchant for lots of Vodka, Candy discovered to her dismay that while Ruka's German was translated by her Perfect Translation, she could not speak "back" to carry a conversation for Brain Skimming. It wasn't until they realized she knew English that this felt like a dead-end they had to deal with. The Sleepwalker snuck to the upper levels, quickly discerning the house had no sewage system. Merely a central pit which had a reinforced body. On the third level, he quickly prepared a molotov trap to burn the building as a massive distraction. Svetlana played possum below, chained to the cover of the pit, while the Undying Army feasted. Ruka soon lead the two below, and dragged Svetlana away from the pit cover to reveal a naked, tired, and beaten down Dmitri inside.None of them, save for Crackshot who could not warn them without alerting the enemy, anticipated the approach of a man named Pope who looked American yet claimed to be working for the Germans. Pope came to purchase Dmitri (using money from a bag strapped to his belt) and had hoped to warn Ruka that enemies were enroute. However, Pope quickly spied The Sleepwalker above and warned Ruka that Aeon Society was already here. As Ruka drew out her gun to fire at whoever Pope was referring to, the team used that initial uncertainty to their advantage. Nicklaus kept Ruka off balance with numerous gunshots that kept flinging her to the ground. Interestingly, Ruka's Undying Army would fall as well, reflecting Ruka's injuries as if they were all sharing a single nervous system! But when a killing shot should have dropped the German horror, one of the Undying soldiers exploded into biological goop, healing Ruka of all her injuries! The Sleepwalker quickly acted, throwing smoke bombs down to distract them all, and aiming his gas gun into Ruka's mouth to disable her whenever he could. But each time she should drop, another soldier would drop in her stead! Candy reached out and discovered her ability to launch balls of force could be finely focused, and began lifting Dmitri out of the pit.
With the smoke blinding practically everyone, save for the Sleepwalker whose gas mask gave him Aetheric Vision, Svetlana grabbed Dmitri to hold him close while Nicklaus carefully continued to time his shots to keep Ruka unstable. But Ruka then leapt for freedom by throwing herself out of a window, with her Army quickly following suit. Outside, Pope was enroute to escape, even as Crackshot brought down some of his other soldiers. Using what seemed to be a super science device to boost his powers, Pope launched a Mindhammer at Crackshot even if she was far too distant to normally be affected. With blood gushing from his nose, Pope sneered and cursed the Aeon Society for disrupting his goals.
Ruka hoped to run for freedom but Candy used her new powers again to grab hold of a person, only this time it was her. Ruka struggled to break free from Candy's hold, but her eyes reflected utter fear when she saw something that was more deadly than the angered waitress/translator. Pope had channeled his Mindhammer towards the mountain slope above the Siberian camp, and started a massive avalanche! With The Sleepwalker quickly calculating the odds, he realized the safest bet was to head back into the Pit! As all dove in, Nicklaus was far too distant to make it in time. Instead he kicked the cover closed, lit a cigarette, and welcomed the falling white death.
Minutes later, the group reemerged, and Crackshot and Svetlana toiled to find the missing former agent. Dmitri's energy armor kept him warm, while the others searched for Nicklaus' remains. Alas there seemed to be no sign of the good man. Calling him a hero, the group made their way back to the plane and Crackshot even got infuriated at Candy for being so calm about losing a friend. Candy admitted she was simply staying in control because she had never saw violence like this before. And if she didn't stay calm, she would probably break. The group starts the plane and Dmitri offers a short moment of silence of the lost man. Only for all to see Nicklaus walking back towards the plane with a few bottles of vodka in his hands. Miraculously, as the avalanche hit, he found himself buried between crates of vodka and the massive roof of the base. While the group was searching for him, Svetlana must have torn the roof off, giving him enough of a crawlspace (once he had awoken from the shock) to crawl out with some vodka. The group headed home, feeling victorious.
Back at the Aeon Society mansion, the group agreed to join. Dixon, the resident scientist, admitted having prepared costumes and codenames for each one. Nicklaus declined on his many suggestions and simply agreed to be referred to as The German. And while all seemed to end well, the Sleepwalker could not help but look at Michael Donighal and feel a worry about the future. Maxwell asks to meet with Nicklaus and asks him who initially hired him to make contact with Svetlana. When he admits he is not in any liberty to say, Maxwell reminds him there will come a time he will have to make a choice as to who he can trust. And who he is working for.Later, the German going to a drop off point, marking a mailbox, and receiving a large bag of cash from an unknown person. From the body language, however, and the way the bag of money was strapped to his belt, it seemed to suggest the man was the same one called Pope.
*
Epilogue of game one:
A woman looks over a massive block of ice. The two flanking the cube inform the woman, "We have uncovered one of the bodies of the so-called Inspired people. It was uncovered from a frozen area in Siberia. Are you willing to purchase." The woman turns to a monitor and another person, perhaps someone of higher rank or position, tells her to make the purchase. Autumn Lacierda-Wu gives the word and the two smile and leave. Autumn wonders what these "Inspired people" are and considers why the Ministry would want to have anything to do with this frozen soldier.
End of Episode One
So the players had an enjoyable ride of superhero action and super spy thrills. And one of the Trinity player characters, Autumn Lacierda-Wu, has been introduced. Clearly the events of the Adventure game will shape or be reflected somewhat in the Trinity game. One can only wonder why, and how this will all come together when the game reaches all the way to that part of the timeline.
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