And on with the game, Jonathan Hawke guides Esmeralda towards the landing dock, he’s already given Becky the low down on the various contending factions in the station and she’s as up to date as you are, if you were paying attention earlier.
Torvald Karlsenn alternately puffing on his old briar pipe filled with St Bruno hand rubbed tobacco and swigging from his hip flask full of potato Poteen of his own distillation, gently matured for three whole weeks follows Hawke fairly closely.
Katie Monke is encouraging him onward, she wants to get to the landing first, in fact she wants to do everything first but Torvald is unsure of the river currents and depths and he’s not drunk enough of his home made spirits to listen to his paying passenger yet.
Amori you’ve already met but now she’s in close consultation with Abu El Soofah regarding the two river boats approaching the landing.
The conversation goes something like this.
Amori “There are 6 handsome women in the first boat but they are heavily armed, they would carry a handsome premium over and above my normal rates, can we discuss a possible trade?”
Abu “Hummm, your normal rates are already too high, what about the one in the second boat, I could possibly offer you half for her”
Amori “She looks to be a tough old bird, but you must have a client who would pay good money for her, I could probably do her for normal rates plus…say 10%”
Abu knows that Ju Wu-Shun is even now out on the trail of the party of Germans that passed through Morts Landing a few days ago and he is hopeful that Ju will have some merchandise to sell and his rates are much better than Amori’s.
Abu “The tall blonde woman I could possibly sell on, but she looks to have a lot of spirit, she would be difficult to tame, it would be costly. I could possibly stretch to 80%, maybe 90% if you throw in the tough old bird for free”.
Negotiations were going to be protracted but you get the gist of the potential danger for Becky and her companions in this nest of vipers.
Mei-Ling looks down into the first boat as Becky asks if they may come ashore and visit the market for supplies. Mei-Ling is having no truck with this young blonde woman. No is her emphatic reply.
Jonathan Hawke intervenes, he knows Mei-Ling of old, they’ve gotten drunk together a time or two. Well he’s gotten drunk with most of the people up and down the river at one time or the other but Mei-Ling relents a little. OK but she thinks hard and as her boss Jie on the far quay nods she decides that Becky may come ashore but only with two of her companions, the rest must stay in the boat.
Becky thanks her sweetly and quickly jumps up onto the quay, closely followed by Gabrielle and Roxanne. “Wait” Mei-Ling instructs, “you must go with Peng”. Jie had nodded and given his approval but Mei-Ling wasn’t taking any chances and so the four of them set off to the market together.
Becky has also seen Count Jaques Sparkk and realises this may mean trouble for her quest.
Mei-Ling is remarkably astute and instructs Jonathan Hawke to back his boat away from the quay before calling Thorvald to dock. She knows two things, one; that she only has the three dock guards and there are 10 strangers plus the river boat men, and two; that Jie is watching her every move and will punish her for any mistakes.
Katie Monk, pushy as ever insists she be allowed to land, she wants an interview with Zuou Jie but without Jie’s approval Mei-Ling is not going to allow this. Thorvald intervenes, it seems he’s also gotten drunk with Mei_Ling and again she relents a little.
There are more conditions this time, only Katie and one bodyguard are allowed ashore; also they have to relinquish their weapons. Gasper and Big Freddie are happy to do this (the fools) but Katie insists she doesn’t have a weapon. Mei-Ling searches her but doesn’t find the small pistol Katie habitually carries tucked discreetly about her person.
There are a number of encounter markers around Morts Landing and 13 of these represent something and 13 don’t. You may have noticed that Amori and Abu are no longer discussing business on the quay, they are two of the encounters and will hopefully appear in due course.
I’m hoping that the various encounters and the places that the encounters occur will guide my storyline.
Basically Becky has to find a guide and avoid trouble and leave Morts Landing with all her friends. There are 4 potential guides somewhere in Morts Landing, they all have pros and cons attached to them. Some decision will have to be taken over which guide to chose from the ones discovered and also pay the price for their help.
The reporter Katie Monk is just a buggeration factor in the game but I’m quite attached to the reporting team and their story hopefully will emerge from the encounters as well.
However as you see the first encounter is the enigmatic Fu Qing Sung Lee. So she’s obviously been sent by Zuou Jie to escort Becky directly to the headquarters of the White Hyacinthe Tong not the market as Becky desires.
This is complicated a little because the next encounter is Zuou Jie himself, so he’s obviously sent Sung-Lee ahead to greet Becky until he arrives.
There may be other explanations but this is the one that came to my mind first.
The meeting goes well Jie is marginally impressed with Becky but his dog likes Roxanne and lets her stroke him. Sung-Lee is quite neutral but Jie tells her to escort Becky to the Tong H.Q. The visit to the market can wait until later.
However I soon changed my mind when Katie Monk and Gasper follow Becky up on to the quay. As Katie wanted an interview and Zuou Jie has a high opinion of himself, he’d obviously come down to the dock to meet her and create a strong impression.
Surprisingly he is quite taken with Katie and invites her to his H.Q. but alone. Katie tries to explain that she needs Gasper to accompany her but Jie is unmoved by this argument and Katie can’t persuade him to change his mind.
Gasper is very unhappy to be left behind but without starting some sort of ruckus there is no alternative and he waits impatiently with Tang Xiao Peng. Peng weighs his big chopper thoughtfully in his hand; he’s going to need some advantage to counter Gaspers bulky muscles if it comes to a fight, and Peng is always ready for a fight.
Gasper sizes up his potential opponent and is unimpressed with a man who needs to bring a big chopper to a fist fight.
So Sung-Lee guides Becky, Roxanne and Gabrielle to the White Hyacinthe H.Q.
Becky speaks to her in Mandarin, something that impresses Sung-Lee and so she starts to thaw her initial icy reserve and when Becky asks about guides she is more forthcoming than would have previously been the case.
As they pass the market place she points out Oe who is drinking heavily and Emily Reno who is in deep discussion with him. There are two of the local guides Sung-Lee says, one is a drunk and the woman owes us money, a gambling debt, neither are of them are much use to you.
Jie may be quite short but he walks at a fast pace and Katie has to exert herself to keep up with him, wearing high heals don’t help her speed either.
Out of the corner of her eye, and just as they pass the blue van Katie notices a tall statuesque man watching her group intently. For a fleeting moment she wonders what his story might be and if she can’t get the interview with Jie maybe this enigmatic figure would be worth her time and effort. She trips on one of the irregular flagstones and immediately concentrates on walking in a dignified manner by Jie’s side as an equal. She isn’t going to walk behind any man, no matter what pace he sets.
Abu the slave trader notices this and is impressed by Katie, he runs through a list of likely buyers and decides there are 2 or maybe even 3 of his clients who would give a very fair price for her. All he needs to do is make a good bargain with the Japanese Yakuza, Amori, and then he will make a handsome profit on this deal.
Becky doesn’t have time to mull over the pro’s and con’s of a Debtor or a Drunk as a guide before they are approaching the Tong HQ.
She does have time to see the piles of produce stacked by the warehouse and asks Sung-Lee about it. Sung-Lee does not like the Americans, Yankee yáng guǐzi she says and carries on walking.
Becky decides to let this pass.
As Katie struggles to keep up with Jie, an old man steps in front of her. Get out of my way you old fool she hisses and she pushes him away.
Jie looks at her curiously, a mix of admiration tinged with a degree of worry in his face. “That’s Tadaoki, he’s blind and supposedly he can see into the future and has the ability to cast Noroi”, Jie informs her. “I’ve heard of Noroi” she smiles, “you surely don’t believe that nonsense do you, not a sophisticated man like yourself, that’s old Japanese folklore, this is the 20th century”
Jie looks impassively back and doesn’t comment either way.
Emily Reno hisses at Oe who is still drinking heavily, these women could be our way out of here, we need to work together, you need my help to try and get them to hire you. Jie will laugh if he thinks they are taking you as a guide but he won’t let me go until my debt is paid. Oe gazes back blankly, there is either a lot going on behind his red eyes or nothing at all, it’s hard to tell.
Becky arrives at the HQ of the White Hyacinthe, by this time she’s getting on quite well with Sung-Lee and feels things will work out ok. She’s still concerned about her friends still in Hawkes boat, she can’t leave them behind but at the moment doesn’t know what’s happened to them or exactly where they are.
Entering the White Hyacinthe’s den of iniquity Sung-Lee introduces Becky and her friends to Dietrich Eckardt. She tells them he is a well respected guide, knows the area between here and the Monastery and is a favourite of Zuou Jie. Becky takes one look and instantly dislikes this man, she doesn’t know why but that is immaterial.
Detrich smiles a cold smile but holds his hand out and says “Welcome to Morts Landing, I’m pleased to meet you.” He normally has a soft spot for tall blonde women, especially if they are good looking but he doesn’t like this one, not one little bit.
Sung-Lee continues, oblivious to the coldness between these two characters. “Dietrich has just returned from guiding a group of Germans to Banteay Chhmar, the Monastery you wish to journey to, he would be a perfect guide for you”. Becky nods mechanically and wonders how she can get out of this difficult situation without upsetting Sung-Lee who she has been at pains to cultivate.
One of the characteristics I assign my characters is something I call Affinity, I use it in this sort of situation to determine if two people like or dislike each other, this was a very decisive result.
Before the situation is resolved Jie and Katie Monk arrive. In her normal pushy way, Katie wants to start the interview immediately but Jie responds ambivalently. He still hasn’t had a decisive dice roll either way and so just says “Maybe later”.
He acquiesces to Becky’s request to wander round, he knows she’s looking for a guide but this isn’t discussed yet. Strangely Dietmar wants to accompany Becky but she asks Jie if he minds her walking around with her friends alone. He agrees but at the last minute decides Sung-Lee should go with them. Becky decides not to push her luck and thanks him for allowing Sung-Lee to show them around.
Katie decides she wants to do the same but Jie is reluctant to allow this and so she has to be content with enjoying Jie and Dieter’s company.
It becomes obvious that the two men are close, not necessarily friends but colleagues maybe, Jie is superior but Dieter is not subservient to him.
Leaving the White Hyacinthe building, Becky almost falls over a strange group making their way towards the market area. Two men are obviously taking a pair of captive women somewhere. One turns to Gabrielle but before she can open her mouth she is prodded in the back by a rough looking fellow. “Schwein” she responds but moves on quickly.
“Who was that” Becky asks Sung-Lee. “Ju Wu-Shun and his man Chang”, she replies “they are a pair of locals, they’re often in Morts Landing.” When questioned more closely about the women and what business the men have in Morts Landing Sung-Lee becomes evasive.
Passing her brains test she decides it would be unwise to reveal that Jie as the Benevolent Despot of Morts Landing is also involved on the periphery of the Slave and Brothel business. He has interests all the way along the river, from the mountains to the sea. He doesn’t actively run any of these businesses but often acts as a Broker or go between, for a percentage of course.
Ju Wu-Shun always offers any produce he brings through Morts Landing to Jie first, this is as a safeguard for his continuing livelihood. Jie usually has a straight Customs Tax of 20%, for anything that transits the Landing; this is adjusted plus or very occasionally minus depending on circumstances and his mood at the time. On this occasion he had refused anything to do with the women, an action that worried Wu-Shun a little but he was fairly sure that the Yakuza or Abu the Slave Trader would be happy to pay well for these two specimens.
Becky, Gabrielle and Roxanne head back towards the market hoping to buy food and obtain some more information to help choosing and hiring a guide. On the way Roxanne stops to talk to a young blonde woman; Chardonnet could possibly have been helpful but seeing they are with Sung-Lee decides to keep quiet.
In the market the girls meet the two guides, Emily Reno who is rather reluctant to talk and Oe who is drunk and doesn’t stop talking. However he indicates he would be very willing to guide them but has a high price. A price that he will discuss with Becky alone, this must be in a private place of his choosing. Becky wisely tells him that she will think about his offer but realises he is very keen to have the meeting, although she isn’t sure why he’s so keen.
From her location in the market Becky sees Ju Wu-Shun and his man Chang with the two women approach a Japanese woman with green hair and a statuesque chap that you already know as Amori and Abu El Soofah or Abu the Slave Trader. Becky however doesn’t know this and Sung-Lee doesn’t divulge the information either.
However when a well set young man emerges from the tin hut Sung-Lee tells Becky that this is the last of the four guides in the Station. Billy Ryan has upset the Yakuza and they are holding him prisoner until they resolve what they will do about the situation. She doesn’t appear to know what has caused the issue, something personal she thinks.
This is all the information that Becky and her friends will get. There are three more encounter tokens to be discovered but they are in the Yakuza and Gangster head quarters and I couldn’t think of a good reason for her to go there. So they make their way back to Jie’s place, their they will thank Jie for his help and return to their boat and friends.
On the way Roxanne slips away from the rest of the party and tries to talk to Chardonnet, she must have realised that there was something to be gained from trying again.
Without Sung-Lee watching, Chardonnet is happy to talk to Roxanne, she says that she and her friend Lola are good time girls, they work for the Americans, the pay is good, the hours are short, and they’re on a fixed term contract which she knows will be honoured. The problem is that Billy Ryan the guide has fallen in love with Lola, a feeling that is reciprocated. Sung-Lee is mistaken in thinking that Billy Ryan is a prisoner of the Yakuza, he is a prisoner of the Americans but is being held in the Yakuza’s tin hut.
Complicated ain’t it.
Charlene the head of the American gangsters has emphasised to Lola that she still has 5 months of her contract to serve and it’s a fixed term contract, there’s no get out clause, there’s no option to terminate without severe repercussions.
When pushed, Chardonnet is fairly certain that if he was able, then Billy Ryan would try and escape from Morts Landing with Lola, maybe whatever the cost. Ideally they would head back down river to the coast and back home, but he might be persuaded to guide Becky’s party to the monastery if they help with the escape.
The only fly in that ointment is Chardonnet, she tells Roxanne that she wouldn’t be able to stay if Lola left. She would be held responsible, because they came as a team she would face the wrath of the Americans alone, it’s not an inviting prospect. Also strangely, she is happy in Morts Landing and doesn’t want to leave. She indicates there would be severe repercussions back in America if they terminate their contract prematurely but won’t elaborate on that. It’s all a little enigmatic but Roxanne is out of time and rushes on to catch up with the others.
On arrival and over a cup of green tea Jie informs Becky that he has decided she should employ Dietmar as her guide. This is met with a stony silence from Becky and she looses a little of her influence with Jie.
Each time she had ‘won’ a discussion I added a bonus to her next roll on the basis that having agreed once he was more likely to agree next time, similarly if he disagreed he was more likely to continue in that vein. In this instance I decided that as she didn’t have a clear favourite guide she wouldn’t argue for them but also she didn’t want Dietmar because she didn’t like him. Jie didn’t like this show of independence.
Jie had also decided that he wasn’t going to give Katie Monk an interview but he hadn’t told her yet and also hadn’t decided what to do with her.
So the upshot of this rather decisive turn of events meant that he refused to allow Katie to return to her boat but she was to remain as his ‘guest’ in the house. Her crew would have to spend the night in their boat tied up at the dock. Katie didn’t like this at all but she was enough of a pragmatist to realise if she was still with Jie she could still get an interview, once she left that was off the table.
The tall statuesque Arab was in her mind as a second best option if it all fell through with Jie.
Becky’s fond farewells were cut short when Jie informed her that he had ordered his servants to make up beds for them and Becky, Roxanne and Gabrielle were also to spend the night ashore.
Her protests were in vain and Sung-Lee guided them to the warehouse where they would sleep that night. The warehouse has another function and is generally known as the Opium Den.
Chardonnet is still in the area and so sees where they are sleeping, but what, if anything, she will do is a mystery.
Gasper Big Freddie and Donald are informed they will spend the night in the boat with Thorvald.
Mei-Ling is still on duty, she hopes someone will have some supper sent down if she is not to be relieved before day break.
After discussions with Jonathan Hawke, Rebecca decides they will make camp ashore and downstream of Morts Landing. They head off into the evening gloom.
If you got this far, thanks and I hope you enjoyed the story; in return I’d like your thoughts for the next stage of the game.
The opening phase hasn’t gone as well as I’d have liked, the location of the various encounters has given me a strong story line but it’s split my team in two, worse there’s no communication between them and so they will have to formulate two separate plans that might conflict.
The other reason for asking for independent thoughts is that there are still certain things that I want to bring into the story that I know but you don’t and neither does Becky.
So a quick recap.
Guides
Oe - a drunk who is keen to offer his services for an unknown fee. There’s no provision for money in the game and so it will be a task of some sort. This will likely upset someone! Why does he want to meet alone? Is a drunk going to be a reliable guide anyway?
Emily Reno - Owes a gambling debt to the White Hyacinthe, and is effectively under house arrest in Morts Landing until this is paid off. Her ability as a guide is unknown. Escape will antagonise the Chinese who have the greatest influence outside of the Landing.
Billy Ryan – A star struck lover! Maybe or maybe not. It sounds as if Lola, who you’ve not met yet will leave with him but will Chardonnet, that is unclear. Will Billy let you help him escape and then set off for the coast leaving you in the lurch having upset the Americans and also the Yakuza who are guarding him?
Dietmar Eckhardt – a man Becky doesn’t like but that isn’t the worst part. Becky knows that there was a party of Germans ahead of her in the race to the Monastery. She knows Dietmar guided a party of Germans to the Monastery. She knows that Ju Wu-Shun and his man Chang have captured two women, one who used the word schwein. She is fairly sure he is either trying to sell them to the Yakuza or the tall Arab or enlist their help in some way. Refusing to accept Dietmar will antagonise Jie unless she can trade something in exchange.
Becky must have a guide, she can’t get to the Monastery on her own so accepting Dietmar and then disposing of him on the way will not work. Logically he will arrange an ambush on the trail somewhere between Morts Landing and the Monastery and the best Becky will be able to do is survive this and return to Morts Landing to face Jie, not an attractive proposition.
Other things to consider:
The three groupings of gangsters need each other to conduct their business but they are not friendly, they are also not foolish. So they won’t hurt another gang if it will hurt their own business but they would all be happy to see another grouping loose face without it being obvious who did it.
The only way into Morts Landing is through the fence or along the dock, the cliffs can’t be climbed without aid.
Sung-Lee hasn’t come across as a strong adherent of Jie’s but certainly given no indication she would cross him. It’s possible that she might help but just as possible that she would dob you in as we say here.
I appear to have set myself a bit of a conundrum, any and all thoughts gratefully received, not only in choosing a guide but in joining up with her friends and escaping Morts Landing without it turning into Morte Landing for them. These are 6 friends and they all need to escape together.
Also spare a passing thought for Katie Monk!
Cheers
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