Zantret beckons you towards his ground car No time to lose, off to the TAS hostel it is, hop in everyone. His car is more like a small van, and has plenty of seating for everyone. He opens the side doors, and waves at everyone to get in.

Andros will hop in after looking to make sure everything looks safe first (No guys sitting with stunners in the Van, the door has handles on the inside, the windows aren't unbreakable glass, etc.)

Oh Matthew, can I Retcon and add one more thing to what I brought?
I want to bring whatever form of offically valid ID is legal to bring down here. (Assuming this is not just the hand/eye scan)

Ever suspicious, Newton has assumed our group is under surveillance. He is discretely cataloging people and faces, and looking for movement patterns, to identify how many people are watching/following us and who they are. He's also looking to see if potentially there is more than one group involved.
+2(Investigate) +2(Int) = 14 !

Grainger A ground car...How Quaint Looking around and using his basic Streetwise sense to also check if anything looks amiss

+0 Streetwise +2 INT (assuming also its an INT base)

Tryn has never seen a groundcar before. He walks around it a few times, squats down and looks at the wheels with an expression of wonder on his face. His curiosity satisfied, he gets in after everyone else.

Zantret says Here we goooooo!, hopping in and closing the door after him. He starts the car and takes off at a faster speed than seems safe (or legal), weaving through traffic and pedestrians on the hectic streets of Regina. He seems very used to driving, and doesn't even flinch when he almost rams into a small sports car from behind.

I'll need someone to make a Recon roll during the car ride.

Additionally, if there's anything you want to discuss during the drive (questions for Zantret, etc), now is the time to do so, if not we'll fast forward to your arrival.

Thandon - I don't have recon, so I won't be making it.

So Zantret, how long have you been here for?

Looks like Newton's the only one with Recon.

Newton listens to Zantret's reply with one ear. Most of his attention is focused outside the vehicle, taking in the information he needs to start understanding this city, its inhabitants and its patterns of activity. Most importantly, for him, he is looking for those subtle clues that will start to reveal the hidden flows of power and covert activity.

Recon: +0(Recon) +2(Int) = 10

Streetwise: +4(Streetwise) +2(Int) = 11

Newton doesn't notice anything unusual. The city appears to be very clean and well kept from the outside, but he gets the sense that underneath it's outward appearance it's a world of crime and smuggling.

Zantret replies by saying I've lived on Regina ever since I was born. My father was in the military and was therefore rarely home, so I grew up mostly on my own, and I've been a guide for tourists for the past 5 or 6 years, after picking up a number of odd jobs before that. Being a guide is fine as long as the POC doesn't poke their big nose into your business. Lots of visitors come here, and someone's gotta show 'em what's what.

A short time later, Zantret pulls up outside of a ramshackle, old, run-down building with peeling plaster on the outside. TAS hostel, Credo. I'll wait here if you're not going to be too long, otherwise I can come back later. He says.

Lets head in.

With that Andros gets out of the car and walks to the door of the hostle.

Newton is very suspicious. This place seems unusually run down for the TAS. Surely an organization that costs Cr 1,000,000 to join and grants each member a Cr 6,000 high passage every two months can afford the occasional coat of paint.

Andros, can you check this place out. I think we'll stay right here with our friend Mr Zantret for a minute while you do that.
You don't mind waiting while we confirm we're in the right place, Zantret, now do you? He says in a intimidating voice, leaning forward and placing his hand firmly Zantret's shoulder.
Persuasion +2(Persuade) +2(Int) = 10

Zantret shrugs. Course not. I'm being paid to guide you around. This is the right place though. They just haven't repaired it in a while, don't know why.

Andros gets out of the car, but is forced to head around the side of the building, out of view of the rest of the group, as that's where the entrance is.


The following happens to Andros only:
A voice says Don't look over.
There’s a man leaning against the wall nearby. He’s got a hat drawn down over his eyes, and he’s facing away from you, talking into his hand-held comm – but you can see that the comm unit is turned off.
I know who killed Vlen Backett. I can help you find him. There’s a bar down in Startown, the Flotsam. Meet me there at 10pm. Make sure you’re not followed.
The man hurries down a back alleyway by the hostel and disappears out of sight before you have a chance to say anything back to him.


A grungy sign above the door of the hostel bears the official TAS logo, and scrawled underneath reads "Members Only". The building is archaic, and appears to need some serious renovations to bring it up to shape.


Assuming Andros enters the building....
He's greeted by a foyer with old couches and poor lighting. A few spacer types are sitting around, having drinks. There's a reception desk, and the computer there greets you, saying,
Welcome to the TAS Credo Hostel. Please present your membership card.


What do you do?

What better way to tail somone/s than to be their guide

For Andros Only:
You present your membership card to the computer, which scans it and then says Welcome to Credo Andros

From here you probably want to talk to the human staff about Vlen, as the computer isn't programmed to deal with complications. You'll have to convince it to allow you to do that, however.[/i]

Not sure what skill I need to use, or stat to try to get past the computer to a person.
But I'm guessing this going to be Int and Computers or Comms.

Computers is +0, Comms is +3, Int is +1
Roll is:
With Computers and Int that's an 8
With Comms and Int that's an 11.

By the way, I was expecting the others to follow me, so after I talk to a human, and figure out what I can do here, I'm going back out to get at least a couple more people.

The computer seems annoyed at having to deal with this, but you eventually convince it to get a staff member.A young woman emerges from a door behind the desk and says How can I help you, sir?

Please step this way. She beckons you behind the counter and into a back office. Now, the matter of citizen Vlen Backett... very unfortunate. He was murdered right in our hostel. Did you have any questions about his death, or have the police already told you everything?

Grainger POC Told us virtually nothing...you know how they are Could you start from the beginning and tell us what happened please?

Oh, my, this could take a while. Please take a seat. Oh, pardon my manners, I'm Sophie, how are all of you today?

The matter of Vlen Backett.... ah yes, most unfortunate. He was a nice guy, my condolences to you. Anyhow, if you really want to know the details.... He arrived three days before his murder, and nothing seemed amiss then. He was an infrequent visitor here, he'd show up every few years and stay for anything from a few days to a few months.

On the night of the shooting, he returned to the hostel with three other men. Guests are allowed here, as long as they provide ID, which they did. The POC has, however, since found that all three cards were forgeries. Backett seemed nervous that night, but not intoxicated or worried, really, I guess. I remember talking to him, he always used to say hi to me in person. Oh, the poor man!

Anyway, our security cameras captured footage of the men, two of them were big, dangerous looking thugs and the third couldn't really be made out, apart that he had reddish-colored hair, as he was standing behind the other two the entire time. They all went into Backett's room with him, and ordered drinks to be brought up. Actually, that's not quite correct. Two of the visitors remained in the corridor outside, as if on guard. After an hour, one of them left the hostel and returned forty-five minutes later.

Two hours later, the three visitors left in a hurry. Before they left, one of the visitors called the front desk and reported a spillage in Backett's room. When the cleaning robot arrived, it discovered Backett's corpse and raised the alarm. He'd been shot at close range with a projectile weapon, the poor man.

And one more detail - Around the same time, there was an unexplained power surge that knocked out computer and surveillance systems in the area. The origin of this surge has yet to be discovered.

A message for Backett arrived earlier today - as you are his next of kin, it belongs to you.

She grabs a printout and hands it to Andros.

It reads:

To: Vlen Backett, care of the Regina Down TAS Hostel
From: Professor Iaros Ujinka, Department of History, University of Regina
Subject: Meeting
Dear Vlen,
I have returned from Beck’s World, and am now available for that meeting we discussed at your convenience. If you would care to visit me at my home on Dancado, I shall be delighted to receive you and discuss topics of mutual interest.
Yours,
Professor Ujinka

Newton: Did Backett have any other visitors or receive any messages that day or on the days prior to his murder?

Also, please would you show us the security camera footage.