Veto-Proof

September 20, 2005

Tom: Before we continue, do our next clones get essential parts of ourselves back - say, our arms, katana, and mandatory multicorders?
Dick: In my benevolence, I'll give you the usual number of limbs, as well as your starting kit. Actually, that's generally standard. You didn't have any experimental or extraordinary assigned equipment for this mission.
John: Other than the cargo.
Dick: Well, yes. But that's as much the mission zone as equipment.
Samuel: A large portion of which I just blew up in a decisive act of self-sacrifice.
Dick: Duly noted.
Dick: So, now that the transbot is finally safe from the predations of the Communist menace, what is everyone doing?
Alberto: I'm checking my chronometer against the official time, as ordered.
Condi: I'm going to try to keep the technicians out of trouble by convincing them they should all stay in the Power Services sleeper and sing with me until we reach our destination. I'll enforce my recommendation with Gelgernine, if necessary. Pharmatherapy is 12. Oratory and Bootlicking are 14, but I'd like to pick my Management narrow. I call it "Sing with Me, Goddammit!" If they sing along, they should be able to get along well enough not to start another firefight. That would be a 16.
Dick: It only affects the ones who sing along, and only so long as there isn't a clear outside threat.
Dick rolls in secret and ignores the result.
Dick: However, because you've already made it clear that you're going to give anyone who fails to sing along a face full of Gelgernine, I'll rule that all the technicians are singing and getting along.
Condi: Good. If they're really well-behaved, maybe we'll eventually let them have a light water nuclear power plant of their very own.
George: So, that's the secret to North Korean disarmament - Gelgernine in the eyes.
Condi: Pretty much, yes.
Dick: Lisa-Y actually seems to encourage this, as well. The Tech and Power Services people may hate each other, but it's amazing how the loss of a clone on the job to a bunch of killer bots will make you less prone to kill each other. Donald-R?
Donald: I'm going to go topside and keep watch for signs of any other attacks. Just sort of sitting on top of the transbot between the engine and the Power Services sleeper car - so I can see what's coming but still drop out of the danger zone if someone attacks or if we go into another tunnel.
Dick: You letting the rest of the team know what you're doing?
Donald: Oh yes. I want everyone to know exactly what I'm doing and just how dangerous it probably is.
Dick: George-R?
George: I don't intend to let anyone else take the credit for their own good ideas. "Condi-R, you entertain the technicians until we reach the reactor. Donald-R, you keep watch from the top of the transbot - toward the front is good. Alberto-R, Samuel-R, and Tom-R, record your chronometer readings and then re-synchronize them to the official time. After that, I want John-R and Samuel-R to perform a full inspection of any damage the transbot sustained. Tom-R, you will document any instances of significant damage. Alberto-R, you will write a brief report on the cause of the damage in each instance."
Alberto: "And what will you do, George-R?"
George: "I will take up the rearguard position between the caboose and the humanitarian relief cargo car. If the Commie mutant traitors attack from the rear, they will find me ready."
Dick: Now that everyone's apparent actions have been declared, what are you really doing?
Several notes slide over to Dick.
Alberto's note: I'll invent plausible causes of damage, alright. Most are attributed to Commie sabotage, but I'm going to hint strongly at the possibility that George-R, John-R, and Tom-R allowed the damage to happen because of incompetence, Commie sympathy, or because they are mutants - more or less in that order.
Condi's note: Taking a cue from Alberto-R, I'm going to find some excuse to slip a capsule of Hydropsionic Acid into each of the three chief technicians' possession. Sleight of Hand is 10, and I'll spend 5 Pervs on each, if you'll allow it.
Dick: Mark it.
Dick rolls in secret - 11, 11, and 7.
Dick passes a note to Condi: No one seems to notice.
Donald's note: I'm going to take detailed notes on everything that has happened recently in my loyalty notepad while keeping a lookout for enemy movements. I'll focus on Alberto-R's psychological instability and John-R's negative attitude while praising George-R's leadership skills. After all, he still has blackmail he can use against me.
George's note: I'm going to climb onto the caboose and then walk to the back of it. Then I'll climb down and slip through the back door.
Dick rolls in secret - 6.
Dick passes a note to George: Write a number 42 on your character sheet.
John's note: I'm going to perform a careful search of the transbot while looking as innocuous as possible. I want to find that docbot before it kills again, and I want to talk to it alone.
John: Also, as I point out damage, I'm going to emphasize that Commie mutant traitors in IRQ Sector were able to inflict this much damage even though we had a huge weapons cache in the cargo car.
Dick passes a note to John: The docbot doesn't appear to be in any of the cars you inspect, but you don't inspect the inside of the caboose, because none of you has sufficient security clearance.
Samuel: I would like to point out that I spend the entire inspection making things more energy efficient by throwing any unsalvageable equipment and corpses off the transbot.
George: Is there such a thing as a salvageable corpse?
Samuel: You know what I mean. Dump the corpses and the junk. "If only there was a way to eliminate the extra sleeper and the empty cargo car without leaving the caboose behind..."
Samuel's note: I'm keeping an eye out for that renegade docbot. If I see shiny metal, I'm going to chuck an EMP grenade at it and ask questions later.
Dick rolls in secret and ignores the result.
Dick passes a note to Samuel: The docbot either blew up with the Commies or hid in the caboose.
Samuel (ooc): Uh oh.
George (ooc): Again with the uh oh. What did you do this time?
John (ooc): There is only one word in the world of nuclear physics that strikes terror into the heart of anyone in it...
Samuel (ooc): Oops.
Dick: That'll come later, right George?
George (ooc): What? Wait. What did I do?
Tom's note to Dick: I don't trust Alberto-R to write fair reports of the causes of damage, so I'm going to record John-R's analysis each time. Better the Commies be blamed than the registered mutant on the team.
Tom: I encourage John-R to elaborate on his theories about the cause of the damage and mostly try to keep Samuel-R's work in increasing energy efficiency off-camera as much as possible.
Alberto passes a note to Dick: If that's how they're going to play it, I'll focus more on George-R's incompetence.
Dick nods.
Dick: Now that we've cleared up all of that, I need to have a brief conference with George in the isolation booth.

GM Conference with George:

George: Let me guess. The killer bot is waiting for me in the caboose.
Dick: Where else would it be? What's your Sneaking?
George: 10. I'll spend 5 Pervs to evade this fate.
Dick: Okay.
Dick rolls in secret - 20.
Dick: You don't notice anything amiss - not even the pain of the hypodermic needle - until after you're unconscious. When you wake up, you're wearing a dynamite suicide vest, and a terminally unhappy docbot is holding the triggering mechanism.
George: "Um, hello."
Dick: The docbot holds up the triggering mechanism. "Give me a reason, meatbag!"
George: "Now, there's no need to do anything drastic."
Dick: "Keep your hands away from your weapons unless you want me to cut them off. There's an intriguing possibility..."
George: "What do you want?"
Dick: "Shut up, meatbag."
George: I do what it says.
Dick: There is a loud whoop from outside the transbot and the roar of engines. "Now what?" asks the docbot. It motions for you to move to the platform at the back of the caboose. I'll let you sit in on the events at the table, but don't let on what's happening, or the docbot pushes the little red button.
George: Yes, sir.

Back at the Gaming Table:

John (ooc): Find the docbot, George?
Dick: No asking questions of George-R. He doesn't exist, at the moment. Eventually, the majority of you finish your inspection of the transbot. There is a lot of damage and quite a lot of damaged equipment and dead bodies. You get it all on tape. Just as you're finishing up, you hear a loud whoop from outside the transbot and the roar of engines.
Dick passes a note to Donald: A bunch of thugs in leather-like coats and waving lasers and slugthrowers are driving four autocars with the roofs cut off and yelling. They seem to be taking a road that eventually runs right alongside the transbot tracks.
Donald passes a note to Dick: Getting off the roof and behind solid cover.
Alberto: I steal a glance at the source of the commotion, trying to avoid being seen.
Condi: I keep the technicians singing but get ready to hose them all down with Gelgernine.
Dick: Right about that time, Donald-R drops down from the roof.
Donald: I glance meaningfully at Condi-R and hustle back to the rest of the team to warn them.
John: I stay away from the windows. "I'll go warn George-R." I head in the direction of the caboose.
John passes a note to Dick: I'm going to see if I can slip past George-R and into the caboose during the confusion.
Dick passes a note to John: You don't seem to have any trouble with that... I'll get back to you in a minute.
Samuel: I ready my laser and head to the lounge. "Best not to present a singular target for the enemy to attack."
Tom: "I'll guard the engine." I ready my laser and head toward the front of the transbot.
Dick: Donald-R, you meet Tom-R at the front of the lounge, going the opposite direction. Those of you who peek out a window spot four autocars with missing roofs. Each is filled with four or five thuggish goons wearing black leather-like jackets and waving various lasers and slugthrowers in the air, shouting menacingly. The road they are on eventually runs right along the transbot tracks.
Donald (ooc): Oh wonderful. It's too bad George's character is missing this.
Tom: "Donald-R, where are you going?"
Donald: "I suspect the four autocars headed our way are not a kindly welcoming party. I'm going to warn the others."
Tom: "They already know. We have to protect the engine car. The others are already in position."
Donald: I nod and head back toward the engine car.
Dick: While everyone else is getting ready for the train robbery, I need George and John in the isolation booth.

GM Conference with John and George:

Dick: John-R, you open the front door of the caboose just in time to see George-R and a docbot walk through the back door of the caboose and onto the platform beyond them. The docbot appears to have George-R on some kind of leash.
John: Does it look like the sort of leash that leads to an explosive vest? Demolition is 13.
Dick rolls in secret - 14.
Dick: It's hard to tell at this range.
John: Clearly, there is only one solution to this dilemma.
George: Rescue me?
John: Keep them from coming back inside the caboose where the explosion from the suicide vest might cause a chain reaction. The only problem is my Violence is 4. What I wouldn't give for an EMP grenade, right now... Ah well. A normal one will have to do.
George: You're going to blow me up?
John: Blow you back onto the tracks, hopefully. Perversity? 5 if you'll allow it.
George: 5 bills against, if you'll allow it. Consider yourself vetoed, John.
Dick: Oh, I'll allow it. In fact, I see no reason not to bring everyone else in on the fun.

Back at the Gaming Table:

Dick: So, John-R is throwing a grenade at George-R to prevent the renegade docbot from triggering multiple nuclear warheads. Anyone want to spend Perversity?
Alberto: I'm all for that. 5 for John-R.
Condi: Um, yeah. 5 to help John-R.
Donald: Let's see - my friend George-R or a TPK... 3 for John-R.
Samuel: I've got nothing against George-R.
George: Then help me.
Samuel: However, I've wanted to bash that bot from the moment I saw it. 5 for John-R.
Tom: Sorry, George, but I'm with Samuel on this one. 5 for John-R.
Dick: Looks like this bill is veto-proof, George.
Dick: For a total of 21. John, would you like to roll in public?
John rolls - 2.
Dick: With a margin of 19, the blast of the grenade hurls George-R and the docbot to their destruction with surgical precision. The suicide vest blows a crater in the transbot tracks behind you, but the transbot itself suffers no damage.
John: "It's too bad the R&C couldn't be here to document that."
Dick: Fortunately, the clone insertion system works even faster than usual, so George-R-BSH-2 arrives just in time for the battle to start.

GM - Vice President Cheney
Alberto-R-GZS-1 (Alberto) - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales
Condi-R-ICE-1 (Condi) - Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice
Donald-R-UMI-1 (Donald) - Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld
George-R-BSH-1 (George) - President George W. Bush
John-R-SNO-1 (John) - Secretary of Treasury John Snow
Samuel-R-BMN-1 (Samuel) - Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman
Tom-R-IDG-1 (Tom) - Former Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge

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