Adventure Overview
Players: Mr. Rhyze, Morton, Tripp McIntyre, Mauritus, Hercule Poirot.
Enemies: The Scith, The Broker, Sherlock Holmes, and Moriarty.
Ended: With the capture of Moriarty.
Neither Jet nor Johnny knew where Mr. Rhyze could be found, but that didn't stop The Man from making several degrading comments about the communications officer. Since Jet was going to be practicing against the best Blitzball players on the station, Johnny assumed that Mr. Rhyze would be nowhere near the hydrosphere. This answer wasn't any more helpful than Tripp's suggestions that they should split up to continue their search. As such, Mauritus decided to lead the potential pilot and Joe down to the military bay in the hopes of stumbling upon Mr. Rhyze. These hopes would prove futile, as Mr. Rhyze was currently in Bennigan's. After having escaped Mauritus' sight, he had simply waited for them to leave the engineering tunnels, and followed several minutes later. After uploading the footage from the videocamera to his laptop, he was ready to replace the device. With his skills, Mr. Rhyze had no problem doing so, and in moments had the camera working properly once again. Now that this was done, he decided to smooth things over with Blank, just in case the Security Chief was annoyed with the way he had borrowed the camera. In truth, Blank didn't seem overly upset. He had doubted that Mr. Rhyze intended to keep the camera, especially considering the fact that the removal of the camera had actually been caught on camera, and the footage had automatically been transmitted to the security central server. Once he had cleared himself with Blank, a decidedly pleased Mr. Rhyze decided to search for Jet. He found him outside the Blitzball sphere, still stretching with Johnny. Contrary to Johnny's earlier statements, Jet seemed willing to test himself against Mr. Rhyze, but for one fact; Jet had no shoes. His worn Blitzball sneakers had been stolen from the Outer Ring while he practiced some tumbling, and now he was barefoot. Without his sneakers, he simply couldn't play. It looked like Mr. Rhyze had a mystery on his hands. Or feet, if you prefer.
As Mr. Rhyze worried about shoes, Morton had other things on his mind. He had returned to the military bay, intent on tuning up his Falcon-X for the Kessel Run. Falco was already there, working on his own Falcon. He had not yet gotten permission from Commander Zaya to attend the race, but he had gotten a pass from Johnny. Morton noted that it might be a stretch getting Zaya to let all her pilots go, but Falco retorted that Epsilon would still have Mr. Rhyze and Sam. Not that he could really call the former much of a pilot. Falco's other manner of persuassion included the large keg of Guiness he had brought down from Bennigan's. After all, everyone became more agreeable when offered a pint of Irish brew. Morton could only agree as he helped himself to a glass before beginning work on The Vesper.
The ship stats don't say everything about the capabilities of any given space ship. Truly dedicated pilots realise that every ship is unqiue, and with enough customization, even a Falcon can match the speed of a pilot. In a serious race like the Kessel Run, every aspect of a ship is tested to the limit. For convenience, racers have classified ships according to four important attributes.
Acceleration: As its name would imply, this stat details the speed at which a ship can accelerate. This is especially critical at the beginning of races. The fact that acceleration matters is demonstrated by Yoshi, one of the Run's most famous racers.
Top Speed: Another obvious statistic. Higher top speed scores imply that greater maximum speeds can be obtained. Note that circumstances often don't allow these top speeds to be reached.
Turning: Ships often lose a great deal of speed on the corners. This stat measures how well a ship can maneuver these curvers and around various obstacles.
Style: Some argue that this isn't an important statistic. However, others note that it isn't worth winning if your ship doesn't look good while doing it.
The following techniques can be used to tune up a ship and improve its stats. Each move requires a certain amount of time to perform, and this time is used even if the move is not performed effectively. To accomplish a given tune-up, the pilot must make the associated check, with a -10 to their dice roll for every skill level in mechanics.
| Tune-up | Time | Check | Description |
| Engine Test | 5 | x2Dex | The pilot thoroughly checks the capabilities of their engine by running it through various testing procedures. |
| Polish | 3 | x3 Health | The ship is sure to shine after being thoroughly polished by its pilot. |
| Safety Check | 6 | x2 Str +10 | A safety check is performed, that involves ramming the ship into a wall at varying speeds. |
| Bumper Stickers | 2 | x3 Will | The pilot applies some obnoxious and/or ridiculous bumper stickers to their ship. |
| Aerodynamics Study | 8 | x2 Int | The pilot performs a detailed and complex Aerodynamics study on their ship, usually with the help of some sort of physics expert. |
| More Oil! | 4 | x2 Agi + 10 | Ships always need MORE oil. And by drenching their ship in oil, a pilot can surely reap some speed benefit. |
Time: 25
Morton's approach was very methodical. He started with the Engine Test and worked his way down the list, skipping only the polish. That kind of swishiness was only for someone like Johnny, after all. Morton was counting on his outrageous bumper stickers to deal with the style component of his ship. Some of the slogans on these stickers included the likes of: "If you're reading this, you must be flying a Falcon.", and many more obnoxious sayings. After affixing these stickers, Morton moved on with a comprehensive Aerodynamics Study of his ship. As a final measure, he pulled out several large oilcans and smeared his whole ship liberally with the black crude. He was sure this substance would increase the speed of his ship. After all, he wanted results rather than excuses! Of course, this oil did make most of the bumper stickers quite illegible. But in some ways, that might have been better. Having succeeded at all his tune-ups, Morton felt truly ready to bring The Vesper against any of the ships that might be participating in the Kessel Run.
Acceleration: 8
Turning: 6
Top Speed: 7
Style: 5
Morton had just finished dousing his ship in oil when Mauritus and his entourage arrived in the bay. There was obviously no sign of Mr. Rhyze, but before Mauritus could come up with a new destination, a message over the intercom summoned Mauritus, Mr. Rhyze and Morton to the briefing room. Seeing an opportunity to encounter the communications officer, Mauritus quickly led Joe up towards the briefing room. This finally left Tripp free to deal with his own business, something he was potentially very good at. Morton and Mr. Rhyze were both reluctant to attend any sort of station briefing, but neither had a good excuse for avoiding it. Mauritus was waiting when Mr. Rhyze arrived outside the briefing room, and confronted him about the missing camera. As he pushed his chair into position, Mr. Rhyze that the matter had already been cleared with Blank, and that security on the station obviously wasn't very well-informed. Joe asked whether he should attempt to apprehend Mr. Rhyze, but Mauritus decided that could wait until after the briefing. As the three entered the briefing room, they found both Commander Zaya and Jean-Luc Picard waiting for them. There was an unfamiliar man seated between the station's two commanding officer, and he was clearly the reason this meeting had been arranged.
Vandred
Race: Arsan
Occupation: Starfleet Special Envoy
A great deal of mystery surrounds the man known only as 'Mr. Vandred'. His appearance is almost ordinary, with dark hair, suit and a red tie. However, the mirrored sunglasses he always wears do not go very far towards concealing the long scar running down across one of his eyes. As such, it's easy to find Vandred's one-eyed stare to be a bit disconcerting. Officially, Vandred is classified as a special Starfleet envoy, sent to the station on very important business. The exact nature of this business remains a mystery, as well as how Vandred intends to go about performing it. The confidential nature of all this makes it quite clear that Vandred is far more than he seems. He seems to show an unshakable calm, and very keen observation skills. The only clue to Vandred's purpose on the station seems to be a desire to speak with Mr. Rhyze and Morton, though even these conservations seem sure to be shrouded in mystery.
After inviting the officers to take a seat, Zaya introduced them to Vandred. Starfleet's special envoy offered no words of greeting upon meeting the officer, but simply looked them over in a disturbingly perceptive fashion. After a moment of unsettling silence, Zaya explained Vandred's purpose here. At least as much as they were allowed to know. He had been granted full authority from Starfleet, and they were directed to assist him in whatever he required. Picard noted that this was highly irregular, but the paperwork had come through, and so Vandred would certainly be receiving the full cooperation of any station employee. Curious, Mr. Rhyze decided to ask Mr. Vandred directly about his purpose on Epsilon. The only resonse was that the communications officer was on a need to know basis, and didn't need to know. Glancing over at Mauritus, Vandred asked his first question, confirming that the secuirt officer had only recently arrived on the station. Vandred's only reaction was a nod, before he rose to his feet. Apparently, the meeting was concluded. He added that he would be talking to all of them at a later time. Without another word, Vandred stepped quietly from the room. After watching him leave, Zaya apologized for any inconvenience this might cause, but noted that Starfleet had granted Vandred the authority to command any officer on the station. On that note, they were all dismissed to resume their duties.
During the meeting with Vandred, Hercule Poirot had gone to see Manolo about his missing shoes. A simple check with security got him the correct room number, and a few discreet knocks got Manolo to open his door. However, the station's acquisitions officer didn't seem eager to speak with the famous detective. Apparently, he felt that his time was too important to waste giving any sort of details on the crime. Because he had a marketing degree, after all. Of course, Manolo was also unwilling to let Poirot closely examine this degree. When faced with Poirot's perceptive psychology, Manolo finally consented to explaining the case. He had recently gotten his expensive shoes polished, and had left them outside his room to impress anyone walking through the outer ring. Things hadn't quite worked out the way Manolo planned. Someone had apparently been so impressed by the shine of his shoes that they actually took them. And now Manolo wanted Poirot to find the culprit, while he returned to his 'important' duties. This mostly seemed to involve admiring his framed degree. By this point, Mr. Rhyze was done meeting Vandred, and was working on a shoe mystery of his own. To solve it, he decided to call in the conveniently visiting private detective, Hercule Poirot. He sent a message for Poirot to meet him in Bennigan's, as well as Tintin, the station's most intrepid journalist. Not surprisingly, Tintin was the first to arrive, dashing into the pub at breakneck speed and punching a technician in the face. When Mr. Rhyze told him that Jet's shoes had gone missing, Tintin instantly suspected some sort of drug ring. After all, he could think of no better way of smuggling drugs than through shoes. Vowing to unearth this conspiracy, Tintin dashed from the room as quickly as he had arrived. Hercule Poirot showed up some time later, Hastings at his side. He was intrigued with the case of Jet's missing shoes, and noted that there seemed to be some serial shoe robberies. Both thefts had also occured at a common crime scene: the outer ring. Most of this conversation consisted of Mr. Rhyze buttering up Poirot, and talking up his detective skills. This was a topic the famous detective could discuss at great length.
Tripp McIntyre was also searching the station, but not for shoes. He was looking for The Broker. And he knew where to find him. Moments after Mauritus had left for the meeting with Vandred, Tripp was in the docking bay, checking the stock reports on the side of The Blue Chip. He saw no sign of The Broker, but this didn't stop him from knocking on the side of the ship. After a few moments, the hatch slid open, revealing a slick man on a scooter. It was The Broker, and he was ready to offer Tripp some more deals. He wasn't expecting Tripp to get the jump on him with deals of his own. The potential pilot had heard that The Broker had been hired to supply some missiles to the station by Manolo, and he wanted to be the one to transport them. The Broker's response was incredibly evasive. When repeatedly questioned about these missiles, his reaction was to flee on the scooter, shouting that Tripp would never catch him. Shrugging, McIntyre decided to investigate the interior of The Broker's ship. Inside, he found a bunch of hammers, some deeds for a fake hardware company and other such financial items. Curious about Tripp's intrusion, The Broker asked what he was up to. Tripp replied that he was looking for some sort of receipts about the missile sale. This once again caused The Broker to escape on his scooter. This time, Tripp decided to give chase. The Broker's scooter wasn't very fast, and despite the hammers he tossed at his pursuer and his shouted claims of his inability to be caught, The Broker was actually quite easy to catch. Now that he had captured The Broker, Tripp noted that there was more to his offer. He would throw in a fancy shoe and give a second shoe free once the shipment had been delivered. Faced with such a deal, The Broker could only grant Tripp authority to transport the missile shipment. Taking the offered shoe, The Broker started fixing his damaged scooter.
Meanwhile, the search for missing shoes had enlisted Mauritus to its cause. Poirot seemed to feel that security would only be a nuisance, but Mauritus couldn't allow such an investigation to go on without his involvement. He had a hunch that Tripp might be involved, and felt that the first step would be to track down the potential pilot. Of course, Poirot claimed that he already knew everything, but could not yet reveal his theories. Mauritus' exasperation was only relieved when Tripp was located. In truth, McIntyre had been looking for them. He had heard that some shoes had gone missing, and now wanted to inform everyone that The Broker was responsible. Pulling out the other high quality shoe, Tripp claimed to have found it on The Broker's ship, and that the fiend still possessed the other half of the pair. Noting that this was surely Manolo's shoe, Poirot suggested they should all go have a little chat with The Broker. Of course, such a chat involved first catching The Broker. This proved more difficult due to the fact that The Broker's scooter was broken, thus forcing him to flee on foot and greatly increasing his speed. Still, quick action from Hastings and Joe proved sufficient to snare The Broker. Everyone was shocked that Joe actually managed to tackle someone, although the Red-Shirt did not seem to know what to do once he had brought his target to the ground. Upon searching the financial fiend, Poirot was pleased to find the other shoe, declaring that he knew this would be the solution to the mystery. Tripp suggested checking The Broker's ship for more shoes. Although Mauritus was hesitant to enter without a warrant, Mr. Rhyze reminded him that this was a military station, after all. And The Broker didn't seem to mind, even offering to throw in some hammers with the deal. While searching the interior of The Blue Chip, Tripp 'unearthed' another pair of shoes: this time, some worn sneakers. Mr. Rhyze recognised them instantly as Jet's shoes, and dashed off to deliver them to the Blitzball player. Rather then deny these crimes, The Broker admitted that they had caught him, but then broke free moments after Hastings turned him over to Joe. Shouting how he could never be cut (despite empirical evidence), he fled from the bay, leaving Mauritus to question Tripp on how he had located the shoes and Poirot to congratulate himself on the solved mystery.
Now that he had his lucky shoes, Jet was ready to play. Mr. Rhyze wasted no time in pounding out shot after shot, gradually increasing his distance from the net. Jet proved up to the challenge, and his hundred-hand stop shocked and awed Mr. Rhyze. Still, the communications officer was not without tricks of his own, and he pulled ou the Sphere Shot to score his second goal of the session. By this point, five minutes had passed, and the sphere began to empty. Mr. Rhyze was impressed with how Jet's skills had improved, but noted that he had only been trying for the last few shots. As he opened the door to exit the sphere, Mr. Rhyze found himself confronted by a hideous man, who seemed to lean towards him repeatedly.
Bruno
Race: Terrorian
Occupation: Butler
Bruno had served for a long time as the butler aboard The Milk Chocolate, working for the wealthy, if eccentric, Mr. Cadbury. Bruno was not without his eccenticities, the first being the fact that he was hideous. His Terrorian deformity seemed to be his extremely hunched back, and pocked face. But he was terrifying in more ways than one. Bruno was also wearing a tasteless brown suit that could never have been called in style, and his puffy black hair could best be described as a very bad haircut. Aside from groaning in pain, Bruno's other major action seemed to involve leaning back and forward while making some sort of sound effect, in a rough attempt to emulate some sort of 3-D effect.
After recovering from his initial shock, Mr. Rhyze asked Bruno what he wanted. In response, the butler introduced himself and offered Mr. Rhyze an invitation. Snatching it from Bruno's swaying hands, Mr. Rhyze was pleased to discover that he had been invited to dine aboard Mr. Cadbury's luxury liner in half an hour's time. After delivering the message, Bruno lurched away, groaning. Though Mr. Rhyze didn't know it at the time, the butler was on his way down to the Military Bay Lounge, where he interrupted Morton and Falco's Y-Box session. After offering a similar invitation to Morton, the pilot went in search of the final guest, Mr. Hercules Poirot. Of course, any such offer would clearly include an invitation to Hastings by definition. After commenting on Bruno's hideous nature, Hastings mentioned to Poirot how excited he was to see The Milk Chocolate. For his part, Poirot was simply pleased to get his chance to obtain the promised box of chocolates.
As it so happened, the four invitees happened to arrive at the ship around the same time. Mr. Rhyze was surprised to see someone as 'uncivilized' as Morton arriving at this classy joint, especially without his Starfleet uniform. Morton didn't care about his state of dress, and noted his plan simply to get chocolate, a plan that Hercule could smugly agree with. The ship's hatch opened to reveal the 3-D form of Bruno, causing all four guests to recoil in horror. After welcoming them to the ship, Bruno led them into the dining room. As the others followed, Poirot paused a moment to examine the foyer's decorations. To his delight, he found the statues and tapestries to be made entirely of the best Belgian chocolate. With no one else nearby, Poirot indulged himself to a bite. Or several, before rushing to catch up to the others. The dining room was similarly decorated, complete with a chocolate table cloth. Several bites had already been taken from this, likely by a hungry Morton. There was one other man in the room, currently inspecting a clock on the wall with a magnifying glass. Poirot was not pleased to recognise him.
Sherlock Holmes
Race: Tortalian
Occupation: Private Detective
Sherlock Holmes claimed to be known as one of the top private detectives in the galaxy. Using the power of observation, he was regarded as a skilled rival of the galaxy's other most famous detective, Hercule Poirot. Of course, it doesn't take much deduction to realise what Holmes looked like. He wore a brown detective's hat and coat held on by a single button. In addition, he always carried a cane which he would use to tap objects and thereby make great discoveries. No one else could comprehend the significance of these discoveries, but it was all elementary to Sherlock Holmes. There was also much speculation about whether the pipe he constantly smoked contained any sort of illegal drugs. Holmes' main inspecting methods seemed to involve observing everything a magnifying glass, acting extremely smug and claiming that everything was elementary. He was also known for his refusal to let anyone solve a case before him, even if it meant pulling out his tiny handgun. Ah yes.
After tapping Poirot with his cane, Holmes claimed to have deduced everything about him. Highly indignant, Poirot demanded to know why Sherlock Holmes was on the station. Apparently, the response to that was elementary. Quite literally. As Bruno advised everyone to take a seat, three more people entered the room.
Miss Hershey
Race: Electran
Occupation: Wealthy Daughter of Mr. Cadbury
As the first daughter of a highly regarded chocolate baron, Miss Hershey had an aura of superiority about her. She seemed to think that life revolved totally around her or chocolate. And for her, it probably did. Hershey wore a white fur hat, and a brown dress draped with chocolate ornaments. Her other most defining characteristic was her repeated claim that a strange man in grey coveralls had been seen in the ship earlier that day.
Laura Secord
Race: Electran
Occupation: Second Daughter of Mr. Cadbury
Laura Secord didn't act quite as superior as her sister, and seemed to have some interest in some things outside the chocolate world, like icecream. She wore a green and white dress, and her brown hair was laced with both white and dark chocolates. Laura Secord also disregarded her sister's claims about the mysterious man in grey coveralls,l and implied that Hershey was given to flights of fancy. Secord also had other abilities that few were aware of, such as Icecream magic, which allowed her to attack with such moves as Cookie Crumble and Double Scoops of Pain. She really didn't get a chance to use many of these abilities before being ice.
Jumbo
Race: Deksiilan
Occupation: Pilot and Marketing Assistant
Jumbo doesn't much seem like a model employee, but he was actually an integral part of Mr. Cadbury's operations. He served as both pilot of Cadbury's ship and a marketing assistant of dubious quality. Although he had an actual name, Jumbo seemed only willing to respond to his chosen alias. It helped that he looked the part. Jumbo was a very big man, with blond hair, glasses, a floppy green shirt and shorts. He was constantly eating, even when on duty. This was particularly easy on Mr. Cadbury's ship, where chocolate was extremely prevalent. He also ate many tomatos, though where he obtained them remains a mystery. Aside from food, his passions included his very large and loud soundsystem.
Miss. Hershey was a bit surprised to see guests, but noted that her father often invited people without informing the rest of the family. Both sisters seemed pleased to meet the Starfleet officers, and suggested they should begin eating. Poirot noted that they should wait for their host, but Hershey assured him that Mr. Cadbury frequently worked late in his study, and would surely be joining them later. Holmes seemed to find this statement extremely illuminating, though no one else could say why. However, Bruno noted between groans that one more guest was expected. Almost on cue, Tintin came dashing into the room. The journalist didn't waste time assessing the situation before hitting the massive Jumbo in the face with a knockout punch. Jumbo went down with a crash, his half-eaten tomato splattering all over his face. Now that everyone had apparently gathered, Laura Secord declared that the meal would begin, and ordered Bruno to start bringing in the food. The butler began doing so with the aid of another man.
Dirk
Race: Electran
Occupation: Bodyguard
Like most wealthy old people, Mr. Cadbury needed a bodyguard. And like most bodyguards, Dirk seemed highly paranoid and yet somehow totally ineffective. Dirk was a big, broadshouldered man with short, blond hair and a professional suit. He also wore sunglasses and one of those cord communicators on one of his ears. As a bodyguard, he considered it his duty to keep everyone nearby from harm, and continually noted that he had developed immunities to many poisons for just such a task. He also cooked all the food served on The Milk Chocolate, though he still often speculated that it could be poisoned. His other manner of 'protecting' seemed to involve tackling people to the ground at various moments.
Dirk and Bruno brought out three courses, all of which predominantly involved chocolate. The first course was chocolate patte, followed by chocolate mousse as the main course and black-bottom pie for dessert. Needless to say, this meal was greatly enjoyed by all. The conversation wasn't quite as enjoyable for Hercule Poirot. He had decided to approach Tintin about the latter's theories concerning drug smuggling. Tintin didn't seem to have any concrete evidence to offer, and made the further mistake of assuming that Poirot was french. Bristling about how he was Belgian, Poirot turned instead to speak with Dirk. He was interested to know why the Bodyguard was not actually with Mr. Cadbury in his study. Dirk was still eyeing the food suspiciously, and replied that Mr. Cadbury liked to spend his afternoons in private, working on his affairs in his study. On that topic, Laura Secord noted that Mr. Cadbury had brought a box of chocolates for Poirot, and these were also in his study. Miss. Hershey added that it was something of an inconvenience for them to come all the way out to the middle of Deep Space for a single sale, but she supposed that Poirot and her father must truly be good friends. Intrigued, Poirot replied that it had been Mr. Cadbury who had arranged this meeting place. Hershey didn't think that was the case, and claimed they had received a letter from Poirot urging them to meet on the station. All of this only cause Holmes to puff on his pipe smugly, and declare the whole situation elementary. Noting that Morton had consumed all of the chocolate mousse, Bruno and Dirk went into the kitchen to get more. They had only been gone from the room for a minute when a gunshot rang out. It seemed to have come from the direction of the study...
To find out more about this gunshot, proceed to page three of this adventure.
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