Player 002

The story begins

Your entire body is in pain. You open your eyes slowly and realize through your
disorientation that you are naked lying on the grassy moss covered floor of a
jungle. You can't remember how you got there or even where there is. It is night
and the sky is lit with an aurora. You find a sliver of solace in gazing upon
the familiar constellations. A column or beam of light is pointed vertically
into the zenith originating about 100 yards away from you. It's colored white
and it does not seem to diffuse in the atmosphere. There are no other remarkable
sights to draw your attention away from this light and what might be originating
it.

(Aside: choices will become more apparently numerous as the game goes on.)

I get up rubbing the moss off my butt and start walking towards the light on my
way I find a nice straight stick I can use a a staff but I keep myself to the
shadows of the trees for safety on my way there.

The column of light is coming from a structure, now in front of you. It is
particularly inviting despite being made of all metal and in the shape of a
pyramid. The forest grew around the building making it seem nestled and
comfortable. A recessed door was left open yet all you can see through it is
blinding light. The warmth of its glow is alluring and hard to resist as you
stand in the wet, cold night of the forest.

I walk into the structure, while doing my best to cover my junk.

Your bare feet touch the cold metal as you step within. As your eyes begin to
adjust, your entire body briefly tingles as if it fell asleep. You find yourself
walking down a narrow and short hallway. All the surfaces inside are white. At
the end is a door; it slides open upon your arrival.
"ah, you've arrived"
A man turns to you. Dressed in a white lab coat and surrounded by technology, he
grabs a handheld device and walks your way. It is obvious that he is benevolent
and expecting you.
"like a wild beast, tracking dirt into my lab" he shakes his head as he types
away on his device.
"alright, you pass biometrics. Debrief is right through that door... As well as
your armor..."
He motions to a door.

I walk through the door (omitted:and put on my armor and wait to be debriefed.)

(partially omitted)

You walk through the door. It's automatic and slides apart. You walk into a
circular room with a domed ceiling. In the center is a place clearly meant for
you to stand on.

As soon as you do, the room lights up with a bright luminescent blue. You
realize you cannot move; something is holding you in place. Panels in the floor
next to your feet lift open and mechanical appendages begin to dress you with an
inner suit (garments made to be worn under armor). Without noise, a door appears
on the wall in front of you. A woman walks into the room from that door. She is
a gorgeous tall blonde-haired woman. She walks to you.
"there you are..."
She walks up to you and summons a holographic terminal.
"your operator left already, he's an impatient metal head."
She types away on her terminal.
"... Subject 002. Inducted into the service of the insurrection. It says here
that you've never been on Halcyon before and know little about the political
affairs surrounding this war..."
She glances up with a smirk and continues.
"you seem to have committed to the aid of the revolution or sided with us
openly. You might not remember it but you are here out of your own volition."

She seems to get frustrated as she shuffles through holographic documents.
"Ugh, these forms are incomplete. They don't even have your name!"
She continues scanning through the documents for several more seconds now
looking concerned.
"Or your preferred armor, or your skill sets, or your physical attributes, or
your upbringing, or even your age..."
She looks up from the terminal and stares at you blankly. Breaking her look she
plasters on a smile and says
"Let's start from the beginning..."

(Aside: Remember, this is a role-playing game. The only rules which apply are
physics and telling a good story. There are no limitations to the possibilities
you can choose here or anywhere else. Thinking about what you want out of your
skills or armor will help you with this next part. This is meant to be general,
hence why I've not given you a better understanding of the universe yet. Ex: I
prefer light, agile armor optimized for melee combat. I'm good at piloting and
I'm excellent at stealth. Just because you did not mention something does not
mean you are not good at it.)

My name is Sergio, I'm 24 years old and 6 feet tall. I was raised on an Island
by my father. I'm trained in improvising weapons and close quarters combat as
well as hand to hand. I prefer Light moveable armor for flexibility. I'm fairly
good at identifying and using poisons though I do not like to.

"I was able to find your extended records using the information you gave me."
She said as she makes a decisive key press and a computerized voice sounds
"initializing armor"
A suit of armor descends from the ceiling. The armor reflects your personal
stylization and specifications; mechanical arms begin to lock the armor to your
inner suit. It feels natural and comfortable as if you've worn it many times
before. The entire wall surface of the room opens up to display a gun rack with
every imaginable type of weapon. However, you still can't move.
"alright, any questions before we move on to debriefing?"

"Where am I and why can't I move?"

"You'll know where you are soon enough."
she smiles like a cute anime chick.
"We've put you in a warp field stasis for your own safety while your armor was
fitted. You're still in that stasis for my own safety." she smiles again.

A projected image appears all around the two of you. For now it is blank space
and stars.
"If that was all, I'd like to get the debriefing over with. I'm required to
review the history surrounding the war with you so I hope this short holovid
fills some gaps you almost certainly forgotten.

The image now zooms to a binary planet system (aside: both planets are
earth-like, one with much more water.) a low voice begins the speak.
"Long ago, humanity spawned from one of the two bodies known as Gemini. They
quickly dominated their surroundings and turned to the sky. Wars were fought
over the second planet once they got there. However, that's all speculation now.
Over 1000 years ago both planets fell victim to a total technology failure. It
was caused by an unknown and catastrophic cosmic event. Both planets were left
to rebuild from nothing. No infrastructure, no communications, no tools and no
history. They rebuilt idealistically, knowing already what to plan for in the
future. Four hundred years passed and once again humanity reached the sky. All
nations of both worlds came together to build a monument to their united
success, Halcyon."
The focus of the projection now zooms in on a large space station between the
planets.
"The most massive structure ever build. The space station Halcyon is positioned
at the barycenter of the two planets and acts as the bridge between the two
worlds. It was constructed after the outlawing of artificial intelligence but
still is self governed by the single most advanced and A.I. like system; capable
of constructing itself, producing robotic troops and even taking sides in a
conflict. The conflict at hand is named to exodus wars."
The projection zooms now to another planet. Slightly smaller and less green.
This planet is the next farthest in this system.
"For the past 200 years the close neighbor planet Pandora was being terraformed
by a joint effort. Nearing the end of the terraforming, some nations jumped the
gun in attempting to populate the planet. Mind you, overpopulation is at this
point uncontrollable and the pushing factor in politics today. The war started
when the colony ships (or displacement ships) were shot down while entering
Pandoras atmosphere. Dozens of vessels now lay strewn upon the surface with no
survivors. No nation is claiming responsibility."
The Gemini planets are brought back into focus.
"Still, war broke out between 2 of the nations and all others filed suit shortly
after. Today, almost all nations of Gemini participate in an all out skirmish on
the now ironically named Halcyon. It's the only space port capable of
accommodating a population displacement therefore whoever controls the station
controls Pandora. This war would have been long over had Halcyon chose a side.
By not doing so Halcyon has prolonged the war by not letting anyone win. Also,
it's creators never gave it the option to not choose a side. Much talk is about
Halcyon becoming sentient and the implications of that."

The girl chimes in.
"we are the group Solaris. We are a defecting group who's intentions are to take
Pandora away from the nations of Gemini. To do that we need Halcyon on our side.
That's where you come in. You are an agent of Solaris. As an agent your orders
are to make your way into Halcyons core. Once there it is your mission to
convince Halcyon to side with Solaris. We are far too small to ever conceive
winning this war without the aid of Halcyon. Even though you may not remember
doing it, you've signed your service to us. They said your memories would come
back gradually but we just don't have the time... Do you have any questions
about what's going on so far?"

"Not really but Maybe the space station is just trying to solve the over
population problem by letting everyone get themselves killed."

"Population is increasing too rapidly to ever stop in such a manner. I doubt
Halcyon would even come across an idea like that. Besides, Halcyon is not
programed like that." she says with a bit of detest.

"There's a few more things to cover with you. There are many different entry
points to Halcyon's core. There are five other agents working on entering the
core. Not all agents have the same mission. In fact not all agents are going to
enter the core. You have one such mission. It was predetermined for you by your
skill set. I still feel it is important for you to know what the other agents
are doing in case your intervention is necessary."

"First there is the front door. This entry will need the most firepower, which
the agent on this mission will not have. The agent will need to be creative for
this path." (aside: this path will require the player to have a basic
understanding of physics and be able to solve logic problems to which have many
solutions.)

"Second is the maintenance entry. It consists of a zero-G approach. Besides
there not being any simulated gravity within the core itself, the agent will not
be assisted along the way by the centrifugal layers. This path will take a
master of agility." (aside: the player will float their way through a mechanized
shaft. Magnetic fields barrage them as they stop at terminals along the way
sending power surges to gate controls. The horror movie path.)

"Third is the backdoor. Though not technically a door, the weak section of wall
will be more than adequate to get in. The real trouble is getting the explosives
there. Having skill in the art of deception and speaking will be mandatory."
(aside: this path requires a player to infiltrate the ranks of enemies.)

"Fourth, the remote access. Though this path goes nowhere near the core, it is
still an essential part. The agent on this path will navigate the battle scared
layers of halcyons commodes to reach specific terminals. These terminals will
allow the agent access to hack into mechanical units and help out the other
agents remotely with an expendable body. The operator will directly accompany
the agent on this mission and is already heading to the first terminal" (aside:
on this path the player will always be greatly outnumbered and will need to use
what they have to it's maximum effectiveness.)

"The fifth path is reserved for you. This path is a recon mission. There are
reports of a nation who has broke the conventions of war and is sending an
illegal tank onto the station to eliminate Halcyons opposition. This unit is
said to be a massive walking tank capable of crippling Halcyons manufacturing
layer. If it succeeds it will mean the end of our cause. Your mission is to
verify this units existence and if possible prevent it's success. Your secondary
mission is to find out what nation made this unit. This may be an overwhelming
task and might need the intervention of the whole team if the tank gets close to
Halcyons manufacturing. However, the tank is still in transport and has not
reached the station yet. You will begin your mission in the main docks. This is
a neutral zone and you'll be free to walk around naturally. I suggest
infiltrating the dock controls but the operator will probably recommend
something else. This mission is why we are putting agents in the field
prematurely. We can't wait for the agents to fully recover from conditioning
because this tank could ruin everything."

"I apologize, I forget to explain things a lot. I realize this is all new to you
right now so if you have any questions I'll try to answer them before you head
out. If not, you always have a direct communications link with the operator. If
you run into anything in field, he can do more than answer questions." she makes
a cute smile.

Will I be getting any weapons, tools, or equipment. Also, how will I get there?

She looks at you for a few seconds. "you mean besides your armor and weapon? The
main docks are a very civilized location of Halcyon. You'll be able to obtain
anything you need from venders. I'll upload some currency to your wallet." she
types for a few seconds.

"you may pick any weapon you like."
You notice your restraints are lifted. Like before, the entire wall surface of
this room is one humongous gun rack.

(aside: the conventions of war do not apply to you. Although all nations are
made to follow strict warfare rules set long ago, you may pick any weapon you
wish to fight with; exotic or non. In the presumably rare occasion you choose a
weapon which is not acceptable in this game universe, I will let you know. You
can fight with a hammer for all I care, just think about your weapons utility in
a role playing sense since that's all it will be used for. Standard issue
weapons are plasma/energy based weapons. That is what you will see the enemy
using.)

"you'll be taking a gondola ride to the Mdocks. Actually, we are all finished
here. All mission data and mission control will be handled by the operator while
you're out in the field." she walks up to you and presses some buttons on your
right armor chest. "your comms unit is synced up."

"If you have any more questions for me, please ask them before you head out.
When you're ready, head through the door behind me."

I walk up to the weapons rack and pick up a concealable knife and tuck it at my
back, I than grab a Plasma Pistol and Laser Pistol and put each at a side. I
look for a satchel (and if I find one Grab three grenades and put them inside).
I then head out the door.

You walk through the door and It slides open revealing a colossal metal-scape.
You now stand on a catwalk around 20 meters above the floor. It leads only to a
spherical craft.

An unnaturally low voice speaks to you from your com device.
"Alright agent 002, I have quite the mission for you. You can call me Operator
or Ops for short."

"The gondola will take you to the main docks, hop in and I'll give you the
rundown on the way."
Not really having a choice, you walk up to the gondola and enter it's open door.
It closes behind you. It is a spherical craft made of mostly a transparent
material like glass. Its around 10 meters in diameter and doesn't look to have
any apparent engine or controls.

"Halcyon is made up of cylindrical floors known as levels. These levels have
different names but they all work the same way. They are laid out in layers one
on top of the other. These layers never touch though. In between each layer is a
frictionless gap of space known as the interval chasms." the gondola reaches
the bottom of the level you are in. It then passes through a hole on the floor
and enters the interval chasm. Looking around you can see the curvature of the
layers and then a sliver of open space in other directions. "As you can see,
each level spins opposite of the levels above and below it." the gondola passes
through a hole in the top of the next layer. "centrifugal force from the spin
simulates gravity for each level. This means that 'up' is always in the
direction of the center of the station. We call it the spine. It is a tube
running the entire length of the station. It houses the magnetic drives which
regulate the speed of the levels."
The gondola now descends upon a populated commercial district. Everyone seems to
bustle about in commerce. As you get closer to the ground you see venders lining
the buildings each with their own shop front. A couple of kilometers off you see
the edge of the level which clearly has large ports for ships and cargo to pass
through. The rest off the landscape looks like a see of cargo being organized
and reloaded to different crafts. These shopping districts seem to be nestled
everywhere they can be.
"these are the main docks. It is the outermost level of the station and for the
time being is still a war-free zone. Even Halcyon is aloud to maintain a
security force here for peace keeping. Most people down here are suited up for
combat despite the ceasefire since commerce is heavily under fire everywhere
else."
The gondola touches down in an open area of this shopping district. Buildings
tower all around you and stacks of cargo boxes are seen past the buildings and
stacked equally high. The vendors make the place look like a giant mall.

"alright, this is it." says the operator. "You only have a short time before the
cargo ship arrives. I would suggest finding out if it is actually carrying our
target or not before then. Other then that I don't have any more info for you. I
wish I did but my intel doesn't cover everything in the docks. Though, I will
help you out along the way. Any questions before you.... Hold on..."

A minute of silence goes by before the operator responds.
"We seem to have a problem already. Another agent is incapable of completing his
mission... I hate to do his to you but I'm going to need you to change paths to
fill in his spot. I wish I could get you there via gondola but I don't actually
control the things. So... Here's your new mission. Find a means of
transportation to the core. I suggest heading through the commercial districts
to the docks and then, hijack a small craft. Up to you though. Not many
transports go near the core let alone level PROD. Any questions before you head
out?"

(aside: this is the end of the prologue so your entry here is meant to be your
final thoughts and not an action entry. Also, blame tobin for the run around.)

I ask the operator which roll exactly I'll need to fill before I head towards
the dock to continue.

"you'll be going through the front door" the operator says.

______________

Pandora example

Narrator-
The mainframe room lay just beyond your reach; taunting you with it's
transparent door. You don't have the means to get in. Hell, knocking would work
if there was anyone in there but this place is all but vacant. If only the few
roaming guards you passed up had security routines in the mainframe room. You
see your objective through the door; The security core. You need to deactivate
it.
"we are almost out of time" the Operator urges you. "you need to think of
something fast or team alpha is dead. 1 minute and 20 seconds until impact"
You start a mad dash back to the hanger in hopes a walking tank could fit
through the halls.
"Merc! Look out! Guards are about to turn the corner!" the operator urgently
warns for action. The narrow hallway you are in leaves little option, for you
are directly in the center of a lengthy section of it. Already having hacked
into the monitoring system you see that one man is of high rank. A high enough
rank to access the mainframe room with his digi-presence key given he is alive.

Player-
"this isn't going to work" I think aloud to myself as I sprint towards to
hanger. It's too far and I know it.

(rehash:"Merc! Look out!" the operator warns.)

This is perfect! I need only drag this man to the door at the end of the hall
behind me. I wall jump my way to the high ceiling and wait in the trusses. The
heavy contrast of the hanging lights concealing my presence. I loop the end of
my utility cable into a simple slipknot and wait to lower it. The useless lackey
walks in front of my target in the practically one man wide hallway. As they
pass under me I lower my fishing line and adeptly drop it around my targets
head. Immediately I jump down from above leaving the cable around the trusses
like a pulley. The target flys up as I drop down in front of the lackey. The
lackey turns behind him to find no one to his amazement. He turns back to me who
already has a gun to his face.
"WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU?!"
he screams.
BOOM I plant a shot into his face.
" ... I'm the juggernaut... Bitch"
I kick both the mens dropped weapons down the hallway and retract my cable which
pulls me quickly to the ceiling. I jump through the trusses to undo my loop and
both the target and myself fall to the ground. I plant one good blow to the side
of his head which knocks him out immediately.
"20 SECONDS!" the operator now screams.
I begin running back to the mainframe room while putting slack in the cable.
It's close but my cable just barely makes it back to the mainframe door. I grab
the handle and hold on with all my strength and then... retract the cable. The
amazing force of the cable pulling the man to my right wrist stretches me but I
hold. The guards unconscious body slams head first into the door with a mind
shattering crunch. I quickly release my cable from his neck as I say "there's
something I didn't mention in acclimation... I can throw like a mother fuckin
riot"
The door slides open. As it does I prime my grenade and whip it through the
mainframe room.

__________


This interaction gives a good example of what a player can do. The only reason
this world is ambiguous is for the player to fill it in. At first the player
starts out a little bit before the point the narrator ended. Gave his thought
process during the previous narration. In each narration after the intro, the
player will be presented a new goal with certain hurdles to get by. This goal
can be something as simple as going through a door (mind you, if you do not know
what's on the other side of that door then it's not a good idea to keep going).
The goal can also be complicated with many prerequisite parts to achieve. This
example is one such goal. As the narrator I give the player a setting and
obstacles to surmount. It is assumed this player has already been in the hanger
and therefore can go to that area and come back all within his turn. If he had
done so, the player could have expanded upon that part by adding more obstacles
of his own to make a better story. In this case the player took the challenge of
telling how he neutralizes both enemies without killing one of them. To do this
he took an ambiguous aspect of his surroundings and described it further in his
favor. This change to the environment is very small and would not affect
anything vital. Things like this are acceptable in the game and encouraged in
order to make a good story (since that's the real goal).

Truthfully this is almost a minimalistic entry in respects to description. The
player tells just enough to make it understandable. What the player does do well
however, is manipulate the enemies. This is allowed to a point. The player
defines how the enemies are walking, how they react and what they say. I don't
have any rules about what you can make an enemy say but good rule of thumb is
keep it short and purposeful and only faceless minions. I will almost always
omit something you make a main character say. This example is one of those
exceptions. try not to step on my toes as the story architect and I won't cut
your feet off.

The last thing the player does is assume an event. He ends his turn with his
grenade in the air. This has little more purpose besides being a good story
element. I as a narrator will not make the grenade miss since his comment right
before makes the success so much sweeter.

There isn't any rules on enemy difficulty but it's a good idea to follow some
guidelines when killing an enemy. Enemies should all fall in a few general
categories. You will find infantry, mechs, tanks, and massive enemies. If a
player decides he's going to one shot a tank with a pistol, I'm probably going
to omit the rest of his message after that action, not kill the tank, and give
him a 'stumble'. So, enemies do have an effort rating. This is not to say you
can't kill a tank in one shot but you'd better make a good reason.

(aside: you needn't reply this time. I will send you the first entry to chapter
1 next... when I finish it.)