Vestigial Memories, Session 15: The Snake Pit

Scene setup

Countdown event roll:
[D8]: [4] => no event

No other setup necessary

Before heading out, I mark the phone booth near my apartment with three X’s. My hand is steady, but my mind is racing. I head to the Snake Pit, taking my usual stool. I order a beer, pretending to watch the dancers, but my eyes are constantly sweeping the reflections in the back-bar mirror.

Q: is there any danger?
Question check roll:
[D10]; [9] => yes

Q: What kind of danger?
Cipher table roll:
[D6 + D12]: [4 + 5] => Destroy + Life
A hitman

Observation roll:
[D10 + D10]: [5 + 3] => fail => I do not spot him/her in time

I spot her—a new girl behind the bar. She hands me my beer with a look that’s a second too long. I take a few sips, then notice her leaving her shift early, practically bolting for the back.

The realization hits me like a physical blow. I don't wait for the cramps. I sprint to the bathroom, shove a finger down my throat, and heave until my stomach is empty.

Stamina Roll:
[D6+D6 (Advantage)] — 1 Success.

Status change:
[D3 damange]: [1] => 1 health damage

The world spins. Nausea rolls over me in waves, and I grab the sink until my knuckles turn white. I splash freezing water on my face. My stomach burns, but the dizziness recedes. I’m alive, but I’m compromised.

I exit the bathroom to find Dante waiting. He looks at me, eyes wide.

Dante: "Nate, you look like hell. What happened?"
Locke: "Follow me. It's not safe here."

We slip out to the Spinner. I don't talk until we’re airborne, circling the neon spires of the district.

Dante's Tech Roll:
[D10 + D10]: [6 + 4] => 1 success
Dante successfully altered the data

Dante: "Job's done. I masked the hash. The 'Stop Codon' is buried so deep their diagnostics will think it's a legacy error from the Tyrell era. Here’s the drive."
Locke: "Good. Now listen: they just tried to kill me, Dante. They’re burned into the Pit. Lay low. Don't go home, don't call me. Disappear until I finish this."

He doesn't argue. I drop him in Hawker’s Circle and pull a dangerous U-turn. I have to get back. I told Kael to meet me there, and I’ve just walked him into a kill box.

I re-enter the Snake Pit, my hand on the butt of my blaster. I spot Kael at the bar. He’s clean—no drink in front of him.

Observation roll:
[D10 + D10]: [5 + 7] => 1 success
Q: is there any danger?
Question roll:
[D10]: [7] => yes
Q: do they notice me and kael?
Question roll:
[D10]: [6] => yes

But near the back exit, I see the bar girl talking to two men in heavy coats. They see me. They see Kael.

I reach Kael in three strides, my voice a jagged whisper.

Locke: "RUN."

Chase - Round 1
Starting range: medium because we have a head start

Locke + Kael Manouver: Flee
Pursuers manouver:
[D8]: [8] => stand and shoot

Obstacle: crowd at the snake pit

Manouver resolution: ranged attack performed by pursuers
NPC skill roll 1: [D8]: [4] => competent [C + C]
NPC skill roll 2: [D8]: [6] => experienced [B + B]

Pursuer 1 Firearm roll:
[D6 + D6 + disadvantage because of crowd]: [6 + (6+3)] => 1 success
Q: does he hit me (1-3) or Kael (4-6)?
Question roll: [D6]: [4] => Kael
Weapon: .357 MAGNUM => 2 Damage

Pursuer 2 Firearm roll:
[D8 + D8 + disadvantage because of crowd]: [4 + (4+3)] => 0 success => miss

Manouver resolution: flee
Mobility check
[D8 + D10]: [7 + 6] => 2 successes.
Range increased to extreme

I grab his arm and we bolt for the main entrance. Behind us, the crowd erupts. The two men don't care about witnesses. They draw .357 Magnums and start clearing a path with lead.

A round catches Kael in the shoulder, spinning him, but he doesn't go down. Replicants are built to endure. We burst through the front doors into the rain, our boots thundering against the pavement.

Chase - Round 2
Starting range: extreme

Locke + Kael Manouver: Flee
Pursuers manouver:
D8: 5 => pursue

Obstacle:
[D12]: [10] => The chasers suddenly find themselves in an open space, the crowds [traffic] clearing for a moment. This gives an advantage to Stand and Shoot but a disadvantage to Hide.

Pursuers manouver resolution: mobility check
NPC skill roll:
[D8]: [4] => competent [C + C]
Mobility roll:
[D8 + D8]: [5 + 6] => 1 success

Manouver resolution: flee => mobility check
[D8 + D10]: [9 + 4] => I pull the roll: [9 + (4 + 7)] => 2 successes.

Range increased by 1. We escape

We dive into a side alley, winding through the labyrinth of steam pipes and trash until the sounds of pursuit fade into the city’s hum.

We stop under a flickering neon sign. Kael is bleeding, his synthetic blood looking black in the artificial light.

Locke: "How bad is it?"
Kael: "I’ve felt worse. I know a medic who doesn't ask for ID."
Locke: "We’re still doing this? The man you’re sending in... he’s going to die, Kael. They’ll kill him the second they find the drive."

Kael stops, looking at me with a gaze that feels ancient.

Kael: "He’s a Replicant, Locke. His expiration date is a week away. He can either die shivering in a gutter, or he can make his death mean the end of Vestige. Would you take that choice away from him?"

I have no answer. The morality of this city is as grey as the rain. I hand him the poisoned drive.

Locke: "So what now?"
Kael: "Now, you wait. When the mark changes to three circles, meet me at the Seawall near Tsingtao. We’ll watch the towers fall together."

He vanishes into the gloom, leaving me alone with the smell of ozone and the taste of copper in my mouth.