Ch.1b Scouting Party (Benjamin & Boyd)

[Philulhu]

Wednesday, 29 October 1986, 08:45hrs.
Stikine River Valley, Kitimat-Stikine Regional District, British Columbia

Leaving the others to fashion a stretcher/sledge for Gavin, Benjamin and Boyd set out, following the pipeline. At first, the going was reasonably good, with the day starting cold, but clear. That barely lasted for an hour though before a blizzard blew in, reducing visibility significantly, even if the valley sheltered them from the worst of it. Thankfully, they had the pipeline, guiding them onwards even as the driving snow reduced the distance they could see to mere metres ahead.

A particularly dense flurry did manage to obscure the pipeline at one point but they could see the dark bulk of the next support not far ahead…

Spot hidden, please.

[Mr. Handy]

Benjamin.png (54.08 KiB) Viewed 509 times

Benjamin peers through the falling snow, seeing everything.

Spot Hidden roll (30% skill) following the pipeline:
d%

[kabukiman]

Spott hidden: 30%

[Philulhu]

As they drew closer to the support pylon, Benjamin realised that what he thought was a shadow on the snow, had an altogether more reddish hue… …

[Mr. Handy]

Benjamin.png (54.08 KiB) Viewed 493 times

"There's a discoloration in the snow," says Benjamin. "It looks red. Could be blood. Let's take a closer look."

[kabukiman]

"Blood? Keep ypur weapon ready just in case..."

[Philulhu]

Moving slowly forward with his weapon ready just in case, Benjamin rounded the support pillar to find the source of the red snow. Hung upside down against with his back against the pillar was the body of a man, his torso and face crimson with congealed and freezing blood. His stomach and chest cavities had been torn open and as Benjamin’s eye’s followed the ‘rope’ from which the man was suspended, he quickly realised that he had been hung up with his own intestines.

Looking back at the man’s face, two things became apparent. Firstly, the silent scream and wide eyes told him that the man had been alive when this happened. Secondly, the body was that of Ryan Harris - their missing pilot!

SAN checks are required for viewing the body. Lose 1 point if you succeed, 1d4 if you fail. Boyd has a penalty die for SAN checks where violence is a factor so that will apply here.

[Mr. Handy]

Benjamin.png (54.08 KiB) Viewed 485 times

"The only kind of beast that could have done this is the kind that walks on two legs," says Benjamin, gripping his M16 and looking around for tracks in the snow.

Sanity roll (current level 55) for seeing the body:
d%

[kabukiman]

Sanity: 40%

[kabukiman]

Boyd: sanity: 40%

[kabukiman]

Boyd was shocked with the vision of the pilot: he quickly looked at his missing fingers but recognized that this was much worseand immediatly recovered.

"You are right. Those wolves were some nice chaps compared with who did this. Should we bury him? At least in the snow, it is the christian thing to do, and then return to warn the others."


OOC: I rolled twice the dices to get the worst result (it is how I interpreted the rules), but by luck I passed both.

[Mr. Handy]

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"I agree we need to bury him," says Benjamin, "but that can wait. Warning the others cannot. The cold will preserve him, and he won't get any more dead. The others might, if they remain unaware. Or we might, if whoever did this is still in the area and catches us off guard while we're digging a grave. We need to go tell the main group now, and then return with them once they're ready to go. We can't have just one of us go back. We'll be even more vulnerable splitting up, and we all have to stick together going forward."

[kabukiman]

"Very well"- he says reluctant

"We need for now own to keep someone in pairs awake at night."

[Philulhu]

OK, that’s one point of SAN loss each. Please update your character records.

Can I have a natural world roll, please?

[Mr. Handy]

Benjamin.png (54.08 KiB) Viewed 461 times

Something occurs to Benjamin.

Already did it.

Natural World roll (15% skill) near the body:
d%

[kabukiman]

Boyd: natural world 10%.~

[Philulhu]

Contrary to his first impression, on a second look, Benjamin can see that the pilot’s flesh is torn, rather than sliced with a blade. Could it have been an attack by a bear?

[Mr. Handy]

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"Now that I take a closer look," says Benjamin, "this looks like it might have been the work of a bear. The flesh was torn, not cut by a blade. It's no less dangerous for that, however. We still need to warn the others and stick together."

[Philulhu]

Are you turning around and heading back?

[Mr. Handy]

That's what I want to do.