A Slug's Life

# Incoming Transmission # Source Identifier: Dark Water # Starlight Ebbing # Destination Identifier: TE3-Firebrand#Her Glorious Command#Starlight Ebbing#Muse IX#Endeavour#Unquiet Journey#* # Subject: Mytenean Pest Control # Message Begins

For the attention of capable explorers who have the interests of the Mytenean Industrial Corps at heart,

The Aspexx Corporation has been contacted by the MIC with regards to a novel security problem being encountered by mining operations in the fringe town of Molvos on the outskirts of Mytenea. Aspexx will be acting as a facilitator to provide capable subcontractors in this instance, and to provide due compensation.

Details of the exact security issue will not be publicly transmitted, but will be discussed with the subcontractors upon signing of their contract with the MIC.

Interested parties should contact myself, care of Starlight Ebbing, by eleventh hour on sixthday this week.

Regards,

Dark Water Executive without Portfolio Aspexx Corporation Starlight Ebbing, Deck 4a

# Message Ends

• Genuine Article - Anna
• Temporary Impulse - Susannah
• Roaming Vendor - Phil

• The party meet with Dark Water in the town of Molvos where a bridge construction project has been plagued by mysterious attacks. Dark Water has been hired by the Mytenean Industrial Corps and is subcontracting out to the party to find out what's going on here.
• The team ask around the workers who are embittered and fed up and eventually glean the existence of a Zeitgeist Bio Lab in the region. Given the hostility of the MIC employees toward it and its vague remit, the party head that way to investigate.
• They find they're on the right trail when they find a corpse of a researcher which has been savaged by baby slugs that exhibit abnormal spriteliness. The party dispatch the sluglets and head into the facility where they find something has definitely gone wrong. Among the dead researchers they find evidence of both a bio experimentation plan and a mechanical experimentation plan to use the natural aptitude of slugs to create an improved mining option. The mechanical one (“Mechaslugzilla”) appears to have been abandoned after movement of the Mytenea Ship Heart, the bio plan seems to be ongoing, and the presence of a Raktor certainly suggests there is something going on still.
• Before they can leave, the ground subsides and the party slide into a slug cave where large acidic slugs attack and nearly wipe them out. They deal with the slugs and investigate into the tunnels they uncover, doing some tinkering as they go to improve their odds. They encounter some old fashioned slug-herding bots that attempt to herd them but trick them by throwing slime onto the bots (which appears to be what the bots are detecting). They also notice a Flexible Slimehopper which appears to have camouflage and regenerative abilities. They chain it up.
• The party proceed into the caves and encounter Mechaslugzilla which has decayed and become far more vicious, which they just about survive. They carry on past it having determined it's not the cause of the attacks and find themselves looping back round to the locked end of the Bio Lab wherein they find a Vitruvian Splatterbeast which is being dripfed regenerative goo from the Slimehopper. They race to it but the tank breaks and regenerates the Splatterbeast so they fight it.
• With the Splatterbeast dealt with they find the full details of the project and find that the Zeitgeist team had genetically modified a giant slug to be capable of greater movement (Slimehopper), greater acidity (Splatterbeast), and of smartness to follow instructions (Raktor) but had inadvertently given it gene sequences from each that caused it to become rogue: regeneration and camouflage (Slimehopper), angry temperament (Splatterbeast), and cunning (Raktor).
• They call in Dark Water (which they've been doing periodically) and confirm that Aspexx is rounding up rogue slugs outside and has stabilised the floor of the lab. Carefully, the party exit the end of the lab that Article hacks open for them (taking control of a turret as they go) and Vendor reveals they had foresight to bring powdered sugar to show camouflaged things. They throw the sugar into the air and reveal the Überslug in the start of the lab. They fight and defeat it and finish up their time doing various tinkerings to improve their gear.

• The party explain everything that happened to Dark Water who is most interested in a public failure of the Zeitgeist Research Department. Impulse makes sure that Dark Water is intending on filling in the Mytenean Industrial Corps and Dark Water happily explains intention to give them a full debrief as part of their own contract with the MIC. Vendor asks for permission to share the information they found with the weapons tech division and Dark Water has no objections provided it remains proprietary to Aspexx.
• They also return to the workers' bar to fill them in on what happened. The workers are unsurprised that the BioLab was to blame and are grateful for the work done to secure the area. Impulse suggests that they probably want to be on alert for powerful mutant slugs and the security team of the workers take notes from them on how best to detect and manage the rogue wildlife. They are most grateful for the party helping them and welcome them to join them at the bar any time they like.
• The party split up for their own agendas:
  • Vendor goes to the Aspexx Weapon Tech Division and reports to them about the Acid and Acid Proofing Salve, as well as the regenerative Slimehopper extract. The division are most interested in getting to look at the Acid since Splatterbeast Acid is notorious across the galaxy, and equally interested in the regenerative extract. They believe these could be brought into mass production, particularly taking into account the Drone. They suggest that with resources as tight as they are, Vendor would be best positioned as a somewhat freelance operative to secure the resources to bring such a mass production online. In particular, they suggest that the current tensions between ACE and Her Glorious Command could be an excellent catalyst for making a lot of money in this area… (OC: Vendor may put in a Player Request to bring their Weapons Tech work to the next level).
  • Vendor makes a MkII version of the Slimehopper regenerative serum capsule they fashioned in the field, which is able to either give them a one-use jolt back into action, or able to overcome the Ziline Metabolic Recovery a few times.
  • Impulse receives an addition thanks for providing details on how best to proceed with the Molvos Bridge Project with rogue lifeforms around, getting additional reputation with the MIC from this.
  • Impulse makes a MkII version of the deployable scaffolding that Aspexx used to stabilise the floor of the Zeitgeist Biolab, creating something smaller but more portable.
  • Article looks around for the most appropriate place to sell on the exquisite Splatterbeast steaks that she acquired before Dark Water took control of the BioLab. She eventually stumbles through the niche culinary world into a group called the Epicureans who are very interested in the Splatterbeast steaks. She makes some good connections here as they discuss their goals to find the greatest cuisines in the galaxy, and the fact that she makes off with one of their prized knives unnoticed is purely coincidental.
  • Article also finishes the MkII of her burst fire gun, allowing her to periodically charge her weapon for multiple shots.

• Zeitgeist Research Department faces public embarrassment at the hands of an Aspexx advertising campaign focusing on the damage done by rogue unregulated scientists at the Zeitgeist Bio Lab. Their reputation takes a hit.

• +3 Clout with Aspexx Corporation (or +1 with any Faction of your choice).
• +5 Clout specifically with Executive Dark Water.

• Sufficient Connections for a Weapons Tech player request.
• +3 Clout with Aspexx Weapons Tech.
• MkII Slimehopper Serum (CHOOSE ONE OPTION NOW):
  • Once per Mission you may restore yourself to full hits (as per the Commando Determination ability).
  • Three times per Mission you may ignore the Ziline Metabolic Recovery drawback when revived from Unconsciousness.

• +3 Clout with Mytenean Industrial Corps
• MkII Deployable Scaffolding:
  • With 30s of uninterrupted roleplaying you can set up or take down the temporary scaffolding.
  • When deployed, the scaffold will allow you to safely cross gaps up to 10m wide. Additional tinkering can help to provide additional options at the risk of damaging the scaffold until you can take it home to repair it.

• +3 Clout with the Epicurieans
• Exquisite Chef's Knife:
  • This is a Throwing Knife that calls BREAK when it hits. It can be reused if you pick it up, but is lost if it becomes unreachable.
• MkII Burst Fire Gun (CHOOSE ONE OPTION NOW):
  • Once per Encounter, you may charge your weapon for 3 shots instead of 1.
  • Once per Mission, you may overcharge your weapon to allow you to always charge it for 3 shots instead of 1, at the expense of being unable to charge your weapon for the following Encounter (if this happens in the final Encounter then you get away with no consequence).