FATE-Prism/01 - Start.txt

OPENING SCENE 
 
You open on a military base in a private meeting room. The table in the center takes up half the space of the room, but is large enough to accommodate 12 chairs, even though only (players #) are currently occupied. The room is otherwise decently lit, and the silence speaks volumes, only interrupted by the visual loudness of the (country) flag against the front wall before you. 
 
After several minutes of dead silence, the door directly to the right of the flag opens and in steps (players #) high ranking officers armed with the latest and greatest two handed military combat rifles, full thickly plated chest armor, and a surprisingly large backpack CLEARLY filled to the brim with supplies. The officers step back, take a saluting pose, and the farthest left one announces in a boisterous voice "ROOM CLEARED. SEND IN THE COMMANDER IN CHIEF." 
 
In steps a man everyone in this room recognizes as the president of the goddamn US of A himself, carrying a confident smile and a stack of file folders under his arm. He politely turns to the officers and says "thank you gentlemen, at ease." The soldiers step back and assume a more laxed position, but no less threatening with those guns in hand. He turns to all of you and clears his throat before dropping his folders onto the table, them opening to reveal every personal record and document to ever have your (player #) names on them. 
 
"I thank you for stepping forth to participate in what is now known as the single most dangerous recon mission in history. I know you've been briefed on it multiple times, but I'd like to take the jargon out and shoot straight so there's no misinterpretation, and when I'm done, I want each and every one of you to decide once and for all if this is really a task you are prepared for." 
 
He grabs a remote from his pocket, presses a button, and lowers a projector screen in front of the flag, then starts pulling up images on it of a massive island from a small projector in the ceiling. "For as long as we have documented it, we have been aware of a mysterious unknown land mass in the middle of the Pacific. This mass is approximately 10 miles wide, nearly circular, and is completely surrounded by a colossal rock wall. We believe this land mass originated naturally like any other, but the fact it ended up nearly perfectly circular tells us it is occupied with people who, bare minimum, have the tools and numbers needed to shape it as such." 
 
"Now I'm sure you've heard of us using... less than friendly means of gaining entrance, and it is true, but it has failed at every turn. Either the weapons we use never make contact or have no effect if they do." And true to his word, you see several clips of missiles, bombs, and massive artillery that would eventually evaporate a continent essentially either bounce off the rock walls, or explode on impact and leave none. 

"We are, of course, curious to see if such an amazing material has military applications, but samples show that whatever is causing it is not the rock itself, but something inside the island. Twice a year for over a century now, we've sent soldiers, scientists, engineers, the best of the best men and women we had to offer inside through this one entrance, a small cavern near the water's edge. Despite that, every single one of them has never returned, and we never receive communication from them again."

"As such, the military has opted to start taking in people of a more... unique background this time around, which is where you all come in. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, will be the same as those before you. Infiltrate this island, gather any and all intel you can about this place and its inhabitants, and (for once) return alive." 
 
"Now I know ya'll have lives, assets, and dependents of varying degrees, but we always ask for people to be prepared to never return to them. But in exchange, they will also have the most to look forward to. There is a dedicated monthly budget for this project, and all the excess proceeds went into essentially a "reward" for anyone that came back. That is well over a century's worth of amassed funds, and if any or all of you (players #) return with anything of value, you get the whole sum."

He then slides a folder toward your group with a single sheet of paper inside, listing a sum of money that would take a chunk out of the national debt. "In addition, we would even be willing to discuss your personal records and how to make certain... red flags and highlighted marks disappear. In the meantime, your personal possessions, homes, assets, and everything else would be funded by this budget and cared for either by your pre-selected caregivers or ones we select if needed. We do this for 25 years, and if you do not return, any remaining assets are liquidated and added right back into the budget." 
 
"And that is about the nitty gritty of it. If you are still interested, we will leave immediately to get you geared up in the finest weapons, armor, tactical equipment, and... well essentially everything the gentlemen behind me are wearing and then some. We also have a special arsenal set aside for those with a more unique taste from as far back as the first Century, with some slight modernization of course."

"If you have questions, feel free to ask now. And if you are having second thoughts, the exit is right there. And trust me when I say, no hard feelings, braver men and women have walked away from this offer. Myself included." 
 
He waits for anyone to ask questions or walk out of the room before finishing, "Very well then, welcome to Project Invincible Island. Gear up, your chopper leaves in an hour." 
 
SEVERAL HOURS LATER 
 
The helicopter escorted you from the base to a military aircraft carrier floating in the water, where they will double check your gear and weapon stock. They also give each of you a "signing bonus" in the form of $100,000, but instead of your own currency, it is broken up into 100 different types worth about $1,000 each. They say it is "just in case there IS civilization based on ours, this will help you survive among the most likely related countries."  
 
They then drop you onto a speedboat, jetting quickly through the water to the island entrance, a deep rounded cave opening about 20 feet in width and height. You all step off the boat as the driver turns back and hands one of you a signal flare gun, to let them know if and when you are ready for your return trip. You are now faced with the ocean at your backs and the cave before you, and it only gets darker as you look deeper in. 
 
*IF YOU ENTER*
(NOTICE roll) while the rock is overall rough, it is NOT a natural cave. The walls have something of a carved and scraped pattern in them, like chisels were taken to it but not with a rhythm in mind. Even the floor itself shows a fair level of smoothness.

(INVESTIGATE ROLL) It's been about 20 minutes walking into the cave, and your flashlight shows the floor is not only getting more smooth, you could almost recognize a pattern in the ground.  
 
(NOTICE ROLL) You hear a soft rumbling noise in the distance, slow and repetitive like a growl on a repeat pattern.  

*IF THEY CONTINUE*
The noise only grows louder as you continue, the path before you slowly but surely getting even cleaner and more uniform, until you spot a light in the distance, coming from a lantern hanging off the front of an old wooden shack, roughly ten feet in height and wide enough to occupy the entire right side of the pathway. 
 
The box itself is fairly well maintained, a simple paint job coats it in a basic blue and white, but there are no obvious markings on it. There IS a large square opening on the front, which looks like an open window, and that repetitive rumbling noise is as loud as it could possibly be AND is coming from inside. 

(INVESTIGATE ROLL) Approaching the opening, you see a man sprawled out on a chair, and he isn't moving much. His legs are loosely flopped, his arms are hanging freely beside him, and his head is flopped almost all the way back and to the side.  
 
*If they start chattering, panicking, or running toward the opening, tell them the guy just snored loud as shit.* 
 
*If they make literally ANY noise at all, or move him in any way,*
He suddenly snaps his eyes open and shouts "OH FUCK" as his body flails and falls backward, chair and all. "Owww...."
 
After a minute, he stands up and dusts himself off, revealing himself to be a golden blonde Stallion of just over 6 feet, in a tan button front shirt and black slacks, dusting himself off. "Sorry about that, these shifts're so freaking boring... it's hard to stay awake." 
 
*If their weapons are aimed at him,*
He just stares at each of them for a moment and flatly states "Look I'm excited to see you all too, but please keep it in your pants?" 
 
He squints at all of you for a moment. "Wait... I don't... are you all new people?" 
 
*IF THEY CONFIRM*
He becomes excited. "Fantastic, I love greeting new arrivals! My name's Reiji, I operate the doorway into this little hovel we call home. I'm basically just here to answer any questions and to give the traditional warning that once you go in, there is a very definite possibility you might not leave. If you're all set, then I'll open the door." 
 
Once the questions are done, he pops out of a door on the left side of the box, walking to the far left wall and placing his hand on it. "And the password is... OPEN SAYS ME." 
 
Bright golden lines suddenly start growing from his hand into the wall for a few moments, before the rock wall behind him opens to reveal another stretch of path into the distance. But it is slightly obscured by a strange gold membrane of energy. (INVESTIGATE ROLL) And it is definitely magical in nature. "Alright, just follow the path ahead until you come out of the cave. Best of luck to you all!" 
 
*IS HE COMING*
He laughs a little and shakes his head. "No, I still have a few hours on my shift, go on ahead."  

*IF THEY CONTINUE*
Walking through the strange energy is no real issue, it just feels like walking through a wall made of cool wind.

*But if you have any PLUS in MANA, you notice your magic feels a little... off, since you walked through the membrane, a little more... energetic* 
 
CAVE EXIT 
 
After another mile or so of walking, you finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, and it borderline blinds you as you walk out and see... about 50 people walking around, happy as can be, in front of what looks like a large tree and pond park within the rock walls. Some teens are riding on bikes on the paved sidewalks in the distance, some children are playing with toy cars in the grass around you, some adults are eating ice cream under some shady trees or on benches, and there are a few birds chirping in the trees eating away at the fruit and berries hanging from their branches.

You also see a few people using low grade magic to douse each other in water playfully, or to heal a kid's scraped knee, or to ignite some clubs and do a flaming juggling routine. Magic looks to be about as normal as cell phones for you.

*IF THEY USE COMMS*
The second you attempt to use it. your device SCREECHES and SQUELCHES with static, getting g the attention of a walking by family of parakeets. The mother and father stare angrily at your group before covering their two childrens' ears and walking away with a huff.

You didn't notice it because of the blinding light, but the path you were walking on has completely changed into a concrete slab path cuttiing through the massive park, leading to a small concrete building covered in a golden colored roof, with a banner in front saying WELCOME NEWCOMERS and a series of signs with (what you assume) is the same phrase in several additional languages.

*IF THEY GO INSIDE*
You open the glass door wrapped in steel framing and head inside to a fairly basic but spacious facility, and it resembles a tourist rest stop.
- Right beside the door is a crate of cold glass bottles of clear liquid, and there is a sign above it saying FREE TO TAKE in about ten languages
- On the left, there are racks of pamphlets, brochures, and maps in a myriad of different languages, with most of the prints in English.
- On the right, there are walls of corkboard covered in fliers about upcoming events, job openings, and other ads with phone numbers.
- In the middle is a six foot tall  and twrnty foot wide circular corkboard with a round map of the planet, covered in thousands of pushpins, with several unused ones in a box below.
- On the far wall behind the map is a series of bathrooms, one on either side of the glass exit door leading to the outside path.

*AFTER THEY LEAVE*
The path out the door leads you directly across another massive patch of grass and trees, but you can more clearly see deeper within, and you bear witness to a fully functional massive city, hundreds of people walking, biking, driving, or riding a trolley on the defined roads.
- On the left is a massive residential neighborhood filled to the brim with houses, most of them two stories tall
- On the right is a bustling business area filled with storefronts, each with simple signs representing them
- You can see a group of white and gold buildings  farther in, multiple people in dressier clothes carrying suitcases walking between them.
- There is a fairly large sized road sign at the end of your pathway pointing in five directions. RESIDENTIAL, BUSINESS, CAPITOL, GATED, and ESSENTIAL are all pointed out individually in different directions

*Every place they visit, have them make NOTICE rolls to detect if they are being followed*

You are approached (if not straight surrounded) by a group of average looking thugs carrying baseball bats, chains, rocks, and other random items. Most of them look young college age, wearing bandanas or helmets and otherwise REALLY generic clothing. But their leader, a decent sized black bull, steps forward with a chuckle, wearing a black leather jacket and wielding a white shortsword that is CLEARLY too small for him.

"Well hey there strangers, we're the welcome wagon, here to welcome you to Diadem." He aims his blade at your group. "Get 'em."

AFTER THE FIGHT

*IF THEY WIN*
The attackers lie on the ground, groaning in agony at their defeat. The leader of the group is in shock, holding his head to keep a bleeding injury from pouring out. "What the fuck?! I'd expect this from the Thunder Force, not a bunch of random asshole newbies!"

(NOTICE ROLL) You suddenly detect the stench of ozone, and in a matter of moments, both your group and the Marauders are surrounded by a series of oddly dressed soldiers, their bodies lightly cloaked in silver trails of electricity.

Each one is geared up with a thin knee-length black jacket trimmed in inch-wide silver all along the body and at the ends of the sleeves, the letters T.F. emblazoned on the back in identical silver. These coats somewhat hide a silver chestplate & matching gauntlets, black tact pants leading down into black boots with silver laces, chrome half-masks covering the bottom halves of their faces, and sunglasses that perfectly hide their eyes.

"Shit! Thunder Force!" The leader tries to scramble away. Two agents step up and each grab an arm, stopping that right quick. Their outfits' silver stripes begin to glow and crackle with energy, and all three appear to be teleported away, as do all the other knocked out thugs. The ground is scorched in several straight lines, implying they were really just moving insanely fast.

One of the operatives stays behind, a Panther man standing at just over six feet in the same outfit with a visible scar under his eye. "I don't know who you are, but you have helped us contain a significant threat today, and we appreciate your assistance."

Your group is suddenly approached by dozens of passerbys, all of whom are really curious and start bombarding you with questions. He will lean down and mumble to your group "Consider this my compensation."
 
You hear him speak loudly and proudly. "People of Diadem!" That declaration alone was loud enough to cause everyone to back away a good couple feet, before he continues, "I apologize sincerely for the commotion, the Marauders paid us yet another visit! But with the help of these valiant heroes, they were soundly defeated AND in record time!"

The random people around you slowly but surely start to applaud and cheer for your group, giving you a few moments of (honestly well deserved) glory. You get offered handshakes, a couple people want autographs, the whole ordeal you'd expect.. But once the excitement dies down,, the people start breaking away, trying to clean some of the debris up.

He will turn back to your group. "I must return to my duties. Head to Capitol Quartz in the city center and ask to see the King. If nothing else, he will also want to thank you for your service." His body will begin to crackle with identical electrical energy before he takes a single step away and is GONE in a flash, only leaving another scorch mark.

*CAPITOL QUARTZ*
The capitol itself is actually five different buildings, four of which are surrounding the larger one in the center. Each one has several floors and you can spot businessmen walking around inside them through the windows or between each building with armloads of papers.

-----

*IF THEY ASK*
A brown deer man stops and approaches your group, sipping a cup of coffee softly. His suit is black, his tie is red, and his gold nametag reads YAOTL. "You uh.. look like you need some help?"

*THE KING*
"Oh you're here for him? He should be working today, uh.. Head to the main complex, the big one in the middle. They'll be more helpful. Now I have a meeting in like five minutes, so good luck to you all." He will trot off to a different building in the complex, sipping his coffee as he goes.

-----

The main complex building is almost physically identical to the buildings around it, but is a bit wider with more prominent doors on the front and a large staircase leading up to it. The staircase is loaded with more people all talking, trading papers, and seeming to enjoy the day.

*INSIDE*
The inside is just as massive inside as it is out, several people are walking about in professional suits, carrying stacks of papers across a spacious marble-lined floor covered with deep red carpets. You only see a few desks and tables out here, hardly anything that would be royalty related, but there are several doors all over the place with gold colored nameplates.

You see a fox man in a black and red suit approach your group curiously, his gold name badge reading NASH. "Hello? Can I help you?"

*ASKING FOR KING/SAY THEY ARE NEW*
"Oh! Well my name is NASH, I'm the King's Aide. Gimme one sec and I'll see if he can squeeze you in." He trots over to a nearby desk with stacks of paper, pencils, and an old fashioned intercom box. He will push the speaker button before speaking, "Your Majesty, we have some new local heroes here that I think you would like to meet?"

The voice on the other end is a bit garbled, but you do hear someone say SEND THEM IN PLEASE. He picks up a clipboard and guides you through a pair of double-doors marked KING'S CHAMBERS, down a looong carpeted hallway deep into the building. "I'm assuming you have questions, but I'm gonna ask you to hold onto those until you meet the man in charge, if that's okay."

He takes you to a massive pair of golden colored doors, one of which is open, and guides you inside before closing them behind you. The office is nothing spectacular, a few file cabinets, a couple couches on the left and right surrounding a decent sized coffee table, one large wooden desk, one chair behind it, and one man sitting in it. 
 
Behind the desk sits a deep purple birdman, draped in the finest golden laced draperies you've seen anyone manage to pull off, and whom sticks out a bit compared to the rest of the room and people. He stands and walks around, revealing himself to be just under 5 feet tall, offering to shake each of your hands. "Hello, my name is Akarui, and I am King of the city of Diadem. I understand you valiantly kicked the asses of the local Marauders, despite being brand new to our little slice of paradise?"

*AFTER THEY RETORT*
He will hop onto the desk and sit on it like a chair in front of you all, guiding you to sit on the couches. "I'm sure you have endless questions and I will be happy to answer all of them for you here and now." 

ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS AS HONESTLY AS YOU CAN

*WHAT IS THIS PLACE*
"The core of it is, countries from across the world suddenly saw this land mass spawn and wanted to find out what happened. Every one of them sent in soldiers, scientists, and volunteers of the highest caliber to the land, but none of them ever came back." 
 
"The reason is because of the special magic of this land. I'm sure you saw the golden membrane that surrounds our city as you came in. It's difficult to put into words, but its a type of protective magic, a barrier built into the rock itself. The magic prevented our ancestors from leaving, so rather than simply starve, they found a way to cultivate and make the land liveable." 
 
"And since the first wave didn't make it back, the various countries kept sending new ones every so often to find out what happened. A new generation would be added several times a year from all across the globe, refreshing the gene pool, and we became a capable city. Far from perfect, but akin to what many would consider a paradise." 
 
*WHAT ABOUT THE ATTACKERS*
"THAT would be the Marauders. Or at least that's what they're calling themselves. They're just a huge collection of troublemakers that hate not being able to leave. Their logic is since they are stuck here, they may as well make everyone else as miserable as they are. We ARE trying to find a DIFFERENT way out of this island, but... yeah." 

*THUNDER FORCE*
"Ah yes, our soldiers in silver. They are the peacekeeping force in this town, our version of the police and military all rolled up into one. Someone found out harnessing lightning magic in our bodies in just the right way gave people a massive speed and strength boost, so those that were gifted for it usually ended up joining them. And thanks to the Marauders, they have recruitment drives every week it seems.."

*HOW DID THEY CULTIVATE*
"THAT would be thanks to the Domains adjacent to the city. I'm sure you noticed we don't exactly have the LARGEST amount of liveable space, but there are other magics at work here. We aren't really sure how or why, but there are gateways leading to other uh... domains is what we call them, where we managed to find and cultivate resources from. One gives us our food, one gives us our wood, one gives our metal, all the major resources are provided."

*POWER IN TOWN*
"Funny story, THAT was a happy accident. About 20 years ago, we had our scientists try and devise a way out of town that DIDN'T rely on some... I'm just gonna say it, hokey magic legend to get out of, and tried to drill our way out. We managed to make a hole straight down through the island, with some casualties, but we couldn't exactly escape through it."

"Being on an island in the middle of the ocean with our limited resources meant it wasn't a feasible or safe escape plan, so our remaining engineers converted it into an access point for a hydroelectric generator system. Took a few years, and it's a bit buggy at times, but it makes living here so much more pleasant."

*DIFFERENT WAY / HOKEY MAGIC LEGEND*
"There's an old island legend that predates all of us, says there's a way for US to escape. There are several uh... let's call them "treasures" that basically act as magic keys, and if you get them all, you can "liberate the people" or "be given any wish" or something, the legend is REALLY fucking old. It's all very mystical and religious in tone, but noone has ever actually got them all, or we wouldn't... ya know... BE here. Uh, provided that legend is true of course."

*NO OTHER QUESTIONS*
"Okay well, before before you go, I'd like to offer you a token of my gratitude for your selfless service." He will reach back and hit a button on his desk on his own intercom. "Nash, please bring me Anais and Garamond." It takes a moment, but the double doors open again, and Nash steps in with a pair of people, a man and woman both dressed in suits.

(NOTICE ROLL) You notice Nash is walking with a bit of a limp, his hair is ruffled some, and his shirt is wrinkled in the front. The guy is shaking his head a little, and the lady has a kind of "superiority" judgment in her eyes.

Akarui walks back around to his seat. "This is Garamond of the local Bank, and this is Anais of the Homeowners' Association. We're gonna transition you from your currency to ours, AND get you a decent place to live so you don't have to worry about either. And since you helped us, I'm footing the bill for the first month AND paying for the transaction fees out of pocket. Consider it a token of my gratitude."

Garamond, a portly Dachsund in a deep blue suit, steps forward first and asks for any currency you have on hand. When he sees you literally have a hundred different types of cash, he is a bit ecstatic, and hands over a bag each of coins in various sizes.  
 
The coins themselves are relatively basic. They come in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100, and are all fairly lightweight. He explains their currency is called Z, and each coin is filled with magically infused sea salt using a special type of INFUSION technique that is a trade secret even on the island, so every coin is ever so slightly special and practically impossible to fake. (If you count it, you have each been handed a bag of 1,000z)
 
Anais, a well groomed Sheep woman in a red suit with a bit of a grumpy disposition, steps forward after and asks several basic questions. The biggest ones are your names, ages, species, and how many of you plan to live together & separately.
Based on that, she offers you three options. They have some relatively low cost 2 bedroom apartments, some midrange houses with as many as 4 bedrooms, and some vacant Gated community homes with as many bedrooms as needed.

-----

*IF THEY SELECT GATED*
Anais will perk RIGHT the fuck up, her demeanor doing a complete 180. "Well fantastic, I should let you know that there are some special... let's call them 'guidelines' we follow there. Nothing too special, just that you keep your yards trimmed to a certain height, you choose specific colors for your fence & house to be, no noise after a certain time of night--"

She is interrupted by Akarui with a bit of irritation. "ANAIS... We've been over this. The people can do whatever they want with the houses, the lawns, the parties, I do not care. So long as they don't blow them up or set the yard on fire or anything, it is theirs to do with as they wish." Anais suddenly returns to her prior demeanor of irritation, and simply hands you a fancy looking piece of folded paper before walking away.

*IF ANYWHERE ELSE*
Anais will sigh a little. "Are you sure? Given the size of the group, you might be comfortable in a larger home, in our more upright living area?" Akarui will clear his throat, causing her to shut right up, and hand your group a document before stepping away with a scowl.

-----

Akarui claps his bird hands together. "And you are officially all set. Feel free to stop by any time if you have questions, concerns, change in circumstances, anything like that. I'm usually busy running the town, so you might have to set up appointments with Nash first, but I'm here to help. Have a fantastic day, and Welcome to Diadem!"

Nash will guide your group back outside and ask to see your map & approval letter. Once he sees both, he points out exactly where your new home(s) can be found, and a VIVID description of how to get there on foot. He shakes each of your hands one last time before waltzing himself back inside the building and closing the doors behind him, leaving you to your own decisions from here.
 
OUTSIDE TOWN HALL 
(NOTICE ROLL) You hear a rustling noise and a hissing voice from beneath a shady tree, calling out to your group. "Ooooh~ Fresh meeeaaat~" The voice is coming from a large black tarantula man, but his appearance is somewhat obscured by a long brown trenchcoat.

*IF ANYONE REACTS*
He raises all six arms at varying degrees and angles. "Don't be alarmed, I'm just here to offer my... special services~" He laughs a sinister chuckle before giving a generous bow and continuing, "Call me Striker~ I'm an informant, here to offer my information and 'special skills' to you and yours, for a small fee of course~ Tell me, you all seem a bit out of sorts... I could give you a bit of guidance as a one-time courtesy for free?~"

*IF THEY ASK ABOUT FREEING THE PEOPLE* 
"Free the people of Diadem? How incredibly noble... and fruitless. Half the newbies that worm their way around try to find a way to do it, but most of them give up sooner rather than later. However..." He thinks for a moment, his multiple arms tapping his chin like long fingers. "...the last one to try mentioned the way to free Diadem was connected to the old lore of the land, but most people have forgotten it to time."

He raises one spiderleg digit. "AH... but there WAS a copy of the nation's old history book in the bookstore over in the Business district last I checked, there might be some treasures hidden in there~" He pauses and raises a second leg on the same side. "But I should warn you, the old bookstore owner can get a bit... ornery~"

"That's all I have for now, but if you require my assistance for anything else, just find a shady little spot and call for me with coin at the ready~ I'll be seeing you soon~" He then slithers up into the tree and vanishes as quietly as he came.