they grow up so fast
CREATOR OF THE LOOP UNIVERSE Simon Stålenhag WRITER Oz Mills THE YEAR ZERO GAME ENGINE Tomas Härenstam COVER ART Jarosław Kubicki ILLUSTRATIONS Jarosław Kubicki, Martyna Starczewska, Simon Stålenhag COPYRIGHT © 2019 SIMON STÅLENHAG AND FRIA LIGAN AB ISBN: XXX PROJECT MANAGER Tomas Härenstam PROJECT COORDINATOR Daria Pilarczyk EDITORS Jason Durall, Adam Wieczorek ART DIRECTOR Monika Rajkowska-Fuczkiewicz MAPS Christian Granath, Marcin Bieliński GRAPHIC DESIGN Christian Granath PREPRESS Monika Rajkowska-Fuczkiewicz PROOFREADING Jason Durall, Kate Wieczorek
O1. INTRODUCTION O2. THEY GROW UP SO FAST THEMES 8 THE NORFOLK BROADS 8 LIVING IN NORFOLK 8 THINGS TO DO IN THE ’80S 9 INSIDE GREAT YARMOUTH 10 THE BROADS 12 THE BROADS LOOP 12 BACKGROUND 13 THE CREATURE 13 REGIS AND MAFF 18 CREATING THE KIDS 20 BOULDER CITY 21 THE SWEDISH LOOP 22 O3. EASTER EGG HUNT THE TRUTH OF THE MYSTERY 25 INTRODUCING THE KIDS 26 INTRODUCING THE MYSTERY 27 SOLVING THE MYSTERY 29 LOCATION 1: THE BROADS REACTOR 30 LOCATION 2: GREAT YARMOUTH MARKET 33 LOCATION 3: THE BEACH 35 LOCATION 4: THE LIBRARY 36 LOCATION 5A: THE SERVICE TUNNELS 37 LOCATION 5B: THE WATERLOGGED CAVE 38 SHOWDOWN 39 AFTER THE SHOWDOWN 39 NPCS AND CREATURES 40 2CONTENT
O4. THE BEST OF WHAT MIGHT BE THE TRUTH OF THE MYSTERY 45 THE CREATURE 46 THE LOOP FACILITY 46 INTRODUCING THE KIDS 47 INTRODUCING THE MYSTERY 47 SOLVING THE MYSTERY 47 LOCATION 1: GROVE HIGH SCHOOL 50 LOCATION 2: DANIEL’S HOUSE 53 LOCATION 3: THE LOOP LABORATORIES 55 LOCATION 4: THE LOOP REACTOR 57 LOCATION 5: THE MAGNETRINE HARBOUR 59 SHOWDOWN 60 AFTER THE SHOWDOWN 61 NPCS AND CREATURES 61 O5. THE YEAR’S LAST, LOVELIEST SMILE THE TRUTH OF THE MYSTERY 65 THE CREATURE 66 THE FREE TO CHOOSE 66 INTRODUCING THE KIDS 67 INTRODUCING THE MYSTERY 67 SOLVING THE MYSTERY 68 LOCATION 1: THE GARDEN 70 LOCATION 2: TRAVEL 71 LOCATION 3: ORMESBY FARM 72 SHOWDOWN 73 AFTER THE SHOWDOWN 76 LOSS OF CONTROL 76 NPCS AND CREATURES 76 O6. YOU CAN’T GET TOO MUCH… THE TRUTH OF THE MYSTERY 79 THE CREATURE 80 REGIS 80 INTRODUCING THE KIDS 81 INTRODUCING THE MYSTERY 81 SOLVING THE MYSTERY 83 LOCATION 1: ORMESBY FARM 83 LOCATION 2: SCHOOL 84 LOCATION 3: LEISURE CENTRE 85 LOCATION 4: LOOP FACILITY 86 LOCATION 5: LOOP CONTROL CENTRE 87 SHOWDOWN 87 AFTER THE SHOWDOWN 88 AFTERMATH 89 NPCS AND CREATURES 89 3CONTENT
CHAPTER O1 In They Grow Up So Fast, you can experience four seasons of raising and protecting one such new life. Over the course of a year, the Kids find an unhatched creature and keep it safe from those who may harm it before it makes its way back to its own weird dimension. All the while, they are dogged by adults, other kids, and even a government agency that wants to find the alien for themselves. Alternatively, use these Mysteries as inspiration for your own scenarios. Each Mystery includes unique challenges and situations the Kids must resolve that you can use to inspire your own stories. It was not fully understood in the 1980s that there were other worlds out there. Strange, alien worlds, separated from us not by distance, but by reality and dimensions. In these other places, where the physical laws are similar yet unfamiliar, previously inconceivable life thrives. What if that life needed your help? Would it recognize you as a friend? Would you be able to help it prosper and return home? What if there were others from this world who wanted that life for themselves, who did not understand that it was intelligent and feeling just like you? INTRODUCTION
5 ■ CHAPTER 5: THE YEAR’S LAST, LOVELIEST SMILE – By autumn, the strange creature has already grown to an unmanageable size. It is in danger of being noticed, or of escaping only to be discovered by adults. The Kids must move it somewhere it can live peacefully while it continues to thrive. The main problem is likely to be the existence of a new school club, one that threatens to expose the Kids and what they have found to both other kids and the teachers at the school. ■ CHAPTER 6: YOU CAN’T GET TOO MUCH – In winter, the inevitable happens. The creature is too large to hide, and is discovered and captured by the government. If the Kids want a chance of saving it from a lifetime of being studied, they must sneak into where it is being held and release it. After the creature helps them escape in a dramatic fashion, it communicates that the time has come for it to finally leave. Only by working with the man whose experiments trapped the creature in this realm in the first place can they get it home again safely. ■ CHAPTER 2: THEY GROW UP SO FAST – This book presents an interwoven set of four Mysteries, each one about caring for an unfamiliar creature in a new stage of its life cycle. The Kids must keep it secret from adults who might hurt it, intentionally or otherwise, before eventually returning it to its family by the end of winter. ■ CHAPTER 3: EASTER EGG HUNT – In spring, the Kids are taken on a camping trip by their parents. During the night, one of them sees something in the sky that sets the year of secrets in motion. By the end of the Mystery the Kids must sneak into a small section of the Loop to find what has been secreted there by something more alien than anything they have seen before. ■ CHAPTER 4: THE BEST OF WHAT MIGHT BE – It lives! At the start of summer, the Kids witness the hatching of an alien egg, with the creature inside imprinting on them instantly. They soon learn that the creature has needs of its own, although fulfilling them may be difficult while under the watchful eye of their new science teacher.
CHAPTER O2 Everything changed on that fateful day. Looking back, I know that whatever we did changed our lives forever. The sky raptured and something strange came through. It was a great adventure that showed us how little we knew about the universe. It was scary and yet magical. I wish we could do it again. THEY GROW UP SO FAST THEMES 8 THE NORFOLK BROADS 8 LIVING IN NORFOLK 8 THINGS TO DO IN THE ’80S 9 INSIDE GREAT YARMOUTH 10 THE BROADS 12 THE BROADS LOOP 12 BACKGROUND 13 THE CREATURE 13 REGIS AND MAFF 18 CREATING THE KIDS 20 BOULDER CITY 21 THE SWEDISH LOOP 22
7 This book contains four Mysteries, which are to be played as part of a longer campaign, They Grow Up So Fast. Each of the Mysteries should take approximately four hours to play through, and each one is part of an ongoing story in which the Kids discover, raise, rescue, and eventually release a living creature beyond their understanding. The events of the Mysteries might even aff ect other people the Kids meet during the campaign, and over the course of the year the players can witness their Kids growing up. The Kids are expected to be living in the Norfolk Broads, information for which is contained within the Our Friends, the Machines supplement, although a summary of the location and some extra information specifi cally for these Mysteries is available below. However, the story could just as easily be set near Boulder City or in Svartsjölandet. While American and British names are often similar with just a few cultural diff erences, names based on the Swedish language are highlighted [like this], while American-specifi c names are highlighted {like this}. MOVIES TO SET THE MOOD Inspiration for these Mysteries is based on several pieces of quintessentially British culture, as well as more general media where children fi nd and protect a living creature. For examples that might inspire your own Mystery, try the following: ■ The Secret Series, by Enid Blyton ■ The Railway Children, by Edith Nesbit ■ Water Horse ■ Pete’s Dragon ■ Free Willy ■ E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial ■ Gremlins ■ Stranger Things 2 ■ Hot Fuzz
THEMES With the story of They Grow Up So Fast, as a Gamemaster, you have multiple opportunities to have different experiences. Much like you might when watching a movie and empathizing with the people onscreen, you have a chance to feel a little of what others feel and understand their life experiences. Talk with the other players about bringing some of those themes to the forefront. Think about discussing some of the following as you play: ■ What does it feel like to be an outsider? ■ How does it feel to have lost your parents? ■ Have you ever had to go into hiding to protect yourself, or hide those you love? ■ Is life worth protecting, no matter what kind of life it is? Along with the other players, discuss if you would like to emulate any of these feelings through the Kids or everyday scenes you create for this series of Mysteries. Is there a new kid in school who has lost their parents recently? Is anyone in the neighbourhood an outcast because of where their parents are from? Does a construction company want to uproot a local nature reserve, possibly harming a suspected endangered species? Much like in a good TV series or movie, you could create mirroring themes in each Mystery between the Trouble the Kids find themselves in and their everyday lives. What do they learn through their experiences with this strange, alien creature, and how does it change the way they deal with the rest of the world after that? THE NORFOLK BROADS Growing up in or around Great Yarmouth, it is impossible to not have your life defined by the existence of the Broads. These features, created in the 14th century by peat miners, are a set of rivers and lakes that are navigable by boat, serving to create large swathes of wetland in the area. You are never far from seeing reeds or water, and the whole region is crisscrossed by ditches that channel the water away from fields into the nearby rivers and sea. Despite this wetland, a thriving community exists in the region. Small villages and towns surround the area of the Broads, and to the east can be found the seaside borough of Great Yarmouth (technically, more of a resort town). The region is known for its links to tourism, boating, and its fishing industry. Any of these things could affect a child’s life, if only through their parents’ chosen professions. LIVING IN NORFOLK Just north-east of London, Norfolk itself is not the UK’s centre of commerce. This is especially true of the Broads nearer to the coast. The region is largely countryside, filled with farms and fields, with the occasional small town. While kids might have a childhood filled with exploration and adventure, their parents might have a tougher time. With the installation of the Loop, jobs have seen a small spike, and the local inhabitants have benefited from the oil and gas industry that has brought a sense of financial security to the region. Although that all changes as the year progresses. THE UK IN THE ’80S This Mystery is intended to take place in the year 1988, and the UK has not been immune to the pop culture of the era. New and strange technology is starting to emerge throughout the world, and both computers and robotics are entering the forefront of both commerce and industry. In the era of the Loop, though, a few things might not be exactly as you remember. While the oil and gas industry expanded hugely on the east coast of the UK, the growth of robotics and magnetrine freight means a lot of energy jobs were lost to the expansion of automated work. As the Norfolk Loop was built, many construction workers and technicians were hired there based on their previous expertise on the offshore rigs that now drilled for natural resources. The Broads, though, are not the forefront of advancement that you might find in London or even closer, in Norwich. Complaints are often heard that such technological marvels frequently break down, with priority for parts given to other, wealthier parts of the country. The ’80s were famous in UK politics for being the era of Thatcherism. Britain had its first female prime minister, and her nickname of being the “Iron Lady” was well-earned, with her uncompromising neoliberal 8CHAPTER O2
economic and political style. Her push for British scientific and industrial advancement was said to be one of the biggest reasons for the investment in the Norfolk Loop. It was a period of division and upheaval in British politics that continued to have impacts for decades afterwards. While the Kids are unlikely to be affected, many adults, such as their parents or teachers, may have opinions which influence the scenes that play out throughout They Grow Up So Fast. If you decide to set this Mystery during a different year, consider how some of the following may affect the adults’ attitudes towards strange goings-on: ■ The marriage of Prince Charles and Lady Diana (1981) could be a cause for the Kids’ parents to organize community celebrations or be distracted on a specific day. ■ The Falklands War (1982) might make adults paranoid and cause them to act strangely. ■ The Chernobyl disaster (1986) might cause some adults to suspect that the strange creature in this adventure is a radioactive mutation of some kind, and to report it to the authorities. GROWING UP IN THE BROADS One of the most enjoyable things for children living in the Norfolk Broads is their proximity to the beach and swathes of countryside. Living in or adjacent to these places means easy access to a lot of space that is both far away from one’s parents and full of opportunities for childhood adventures. It is not uncommon for children to engage with the wildlife. Catching crabs or hunting for cockles to take home for dinner are common pastimes for those close to the beach. Because of a lack of organized events and organizations for teenagers to join, many end up moving away as soon as they can, to seek other opportunities or head to city-based universities. This leaves the region with a dip in its number of those in their late teens. This also means that many younger children end up making their own entertainment, and getting into a bit of trouble, through their exploration of the region. GETTING AROUND While buses and trains are common in the UK, the Norfolk Broads suffer from a lack of public transport outside of the larger towns. Many children use bicycles, or lifts from their parents, to get anywhere. The children of this era are very unlikely to have a mobile phone, too, meaning that having a spare 10 pence in one’s pocket to call home and beg for a lift is commonplace. THINGS TO DO IN THE ’80S The 1980s were a different time than you might be used to. The Internet was in its infancy, and television in the UK had only four channels. The following are some of the activities that kids in the Norfolk Broads might get up to when not at school. GOING TO THE BEACH There are many beach areas near the Norfolk Broads. You can travel to the tourist-oriented pleasure beaches of Great Yarmouth and enjoy the entertainment there. Alternatively, the grassy dunes further from the city centre offer less traditional beach fare. Outside of the town, the beaches become cliffs, rocky harbours, or long sandy stretches, depending on where exactly you are on the coast. PLAYING SOCCER Soccer (or “football”, as it’s locally known), is the national sport of the UK. It is played in just about every playground, and soccer-like games are played on many fields or in public parks, with sweatshirts used to imitate the limits of a goal mouth. WATCHING TV With the advent of “Channel Four” in the UK, there were enough things to watch that a television was always likely on in the house. Dinner in front of the TV with your parents became more commonplace, and the playing of musical instruments, reading, or listening to music together in the home started to drop off. Playground discussions often centred on Grange Hill or Blue Peter, while adults frequently spoke of the drama in soap operas such as Neighbours, Coronation Street, or Emmerdale Farm. BMXING AND EXPLORING With the plethora of footpaths through the region, traveling through the countryside of the Broads can be 9 SO FAST THEY GROW UP
a source of entertainment, and many children explore far and wide. Central to the area is the A47, a long main road that stretches between Acle and Great Yarmouth. It is famous among children for being very straight and a fun location for BMX racing along the edge of the road, despite parents’ fears for their safety. INSIDE GREAT YARMOUTH Some of the following locations are perfect for scenes with the Kids when they are in Great Yarmouth itself. LIBRARY With a rich collection of books on a wide number of topics, the Great Yarmouth community library serves many different functions. In addition to being a repository for books, it boasts microfiches that allow research into local and national newspapers going back decades. It hosts many local events, such as the Neighbourhood Watch meetings and Women’s Institute campaign meetings. SCHOOLS Several schools exist throughout Great Yarmouth and the region surrounding the Norfolk Broads. You may wish to use the following fictional school as inspiration, or develop your own: 10CHAPTER O2
■ GROVE HILL SCHOOL is a comprehensive school that sits in the northern end of Great Yarmouth among rows of suburban, red-brick homes. It boasts over 700 pupils as of 1988, split into multiple schoolhouses. These houses are named after four local castles, or halls, and inspire significant rivalry between pupils. The houses are named Bungay, Burgh, Felbrigg, and Somerleyton. ■ For more information on Grove Hill School and its headmaster, Mr Parker, see Chapter 4: The Best of What Might Be. SHOPPING DISTRICT With a tramway running between the city center and the seafront, the busiest area of Great Yarmouth is Regent Road. This region is known for its varied shops and amenities, although it is often very busy and hard to navigate because of the number of other pedestrians also doing the same. Also, the nearby Yarmouth Market Place is an open-air set of market stalls with sweets and drinks in good supply. ENTERTAINMENT There are many attractions in Great Yarmouth that Kids could visit during scenes. Most are for tourists, although many children sometimes get some pocket money from their parents to enjoy the sights. These include: ■ GREAT YARMOUTH PLEASURE BEACH – a series of amusements and rides, including a roller coaster, model village, and arcade. ■ BRITANNIA PIER – a lively seaside pier at the end of Regent Road, in the centre of the Great Yarmouth beach. For children, it is known for its eateries and amusements. GREAT YARMOUTH LEISURE CENTRE Yarmouth Leisure Centre is a relatively new building and was built after a large influx of magnetrine freight brought enough trade to allow for more civic luxury buildings to crop up. It contains a swimming pool, exercise facilities, and changing rooms. Note: This location is used by ReGIS in the winter Mystery to house the kidnapped creature. OUTFLUX EAST Ever since the Broads Loop was build, many service tunnels have been created. Some of these transport seawater into and out of the Loop for cooling purposes, while others are used as service corridors or for research and monitoring of the Loop itself. One of these, the Outflux East, travels underneath Great Yarmouth. Multiple exits or entrances to these tunnels exist, although they are not signposted. By looking into Great Yarmouth’s town records in the community library, a Kid can succeed at a comprehend check to find information on where these entrances are. This may be necessary during the spring Mystery to find the creature’s egg. 11 SO FAST THEY GROW UP
THE BROADS While much during the following mysteries occurs within Great Yarmouth itself, the wider Norfolk Broads have their own locations that may be of interest to the Kids. The following gives some information on the nature of the Broads, highlighting areas that may appear in the Mysteries the Kids get involved with. LOCAL TOWNS The area around the Broads contains several small settlements that dot the landscape. They all have road access, and many have access by water in some form or another. These quaint towns and historic villages also appeal to local tourists who are looking for a quieter holiday than that provided by Great Yarmouth itself. Although many of them house farmhands and other workers for the surrounding countryside, they also have a fair share of summer homes for wealthy urbanites. ORMESBY FARMS These tracts of land near the village of Ormesby are owned by a single family called the Chapmans. Due to legal issues surrounding inheritance and ownership, a large area of land at the back of their holdings has been left to overgrow into an area of wilderness for decades, and is currently used for little more than mooring boats. Betty Chapman, the current owner, has not ventured out into this area, and likely never will. She has her own farm to tend, and not enough time to spend clearing an unused area of woods. While the Kids are not aware of it in the beginning, they may learn of this location’s existence because of the events prior to the autumn Mystery. The Chapmans are major employers of farmhands in the Norfolk Broads. Adults connected to the Kids, such as parents or older siblings, could work for them in some capacity. THE MAGNETRINE HARBOR When the magnetrine effect was discovered, Norfolk’s local council decided it wanted to cash in on an investment quickly. Greater Yarmouth already had a strong shipbuilding harbour because of its links to the oil and gas industry. By converting Greater Yarmouth’s outer harbour to accommodate magnetrine freighters, it quickly established itself as the forefront of magnetrine-shipped freight in the UK. This pivot, and the notability of various local phenomena, was the reason that MAFF [Riksenergi] {DART} decided to set up its Loop in the area. Now, the magnetrine harbour is a major employer in the region. When creating the Kids, consider whether one of their parents may have a role in the production and repair of magnetrine ships in the area. Are they magnetrine specialists working with MAFF, or involved in more traditional shipbuilding work? THE BROADS LOOP MAFF, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food [Riksenergi] {DART}, was given the remit to build and then run the Norfolk Loop as part of the government’s push to be on par with other nations in the 1970s and ’80s. The Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher made a significant push to politicize the opening of the Loop as a symbol of “Britain of the Future”, leading as a centre of technology and science on par with the United States and Sweden. As a part of this, MAFF [Riksenergi] {DART} leads the country in agricultural research and environmental issues, but that is not the only research happening in the Loop. A secret division of the Department of Defence, called ReGIS (Regional Geomagnetic Information Sciences) [FOA] {DARPA}, undertakes research on the effects of magnetism on local flora and fauna, as well as ionization of local water including the North Sea, and its experiments have caused several strange phenomena to appear in the caves below the local area. Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] was hired as part of ReGIS’s [FOA’s] {DARPA’s} mandate of experimentation and given unprecedented levels of access to the Loop’s functions prior to being let go. THE MAIN FACILITIES The Loop facilities are a large circular compound in the centre of the Norfolk Broads. Within, three large cooling towers surround a power station reactor control room, all ringed by laboratories working on new and interesting discoveries. Meanwhile, a smaller building in the direct centre contains the facilities to activate, control, and harness the Loop’s ability to accelerate particles to extreme speeds. 12CHAPTER O2
The western road from Great Yarmouth is the main access for both adults and Kids to the Reactor, with a local bus and train service passing nearby. The surrounding countryside is mostly swampland which stretches across the area, making hiking difficult, but not impossible. A great many jobs are supplied by the Reactor and Loop, and a lot of the work is considered a state secret. As such, private security guards patrol the grounds inside the main facility’s chicken wire and barbed wire fences on a 24-hour basis. Anyone the Kids know related to the Loop are likely to work in the reactor or the laboratories, although plenty of non-technical administrative staff work in the other facilities, as well. THE REACTOR The towers of the Broads Reactor are generally considered an eyesore by the people of Norfolk. The towers are, however, a vital part of the local economy. After MAFF [Riksenergi] {DART} used the promotional tagline of “Surprisingly Clean Energy” in local newspapers, and engaged in local environmental issues, the Broads Reactor had enough public support that it was allowed to supplement the local Sizewell Nuclear Power Station’s output. This has allowed it to grow in budget, employees, and importance over the past few years. ReGIS [FOA] {DARPA} has not taken control of the Loop Reactor while it continues to produce results, and they wish to remain as hands-off as possible to avoid changing that. As such, aside from the shipping of batteries produced by the reactor to ReGIS [FOA] {DARPA} facilities, the majority of employees are local citizens rather than government employees brought in from elsewhere. THE LABORATORIES The separate laboratories of the Loop itself are varied in their research goals. At any time, one section of the laboratory may be devoted to robotics, another may be working on artificial intelligence, while yet another is investigating the makeup of the universe itself. Generally, this is an adults’ area, and without a good excuse (i.e. a “Bring Your Child to Work” day), any Kids will be questioned as to why they are visiting. At present, the laboratories are focused on a realm of physics known as “strange matter” and how it can affect space in the area around it. Once the events of the Mystery start to occur, the laboratory doubles down on this research, including how the Loop’s use led to the events of the first Mystery. BACKGROUND Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] is a driven and successful scientist who jumped at the chance to work in the laboratories at the centre of the Loop. Over the years, he has made strides in the understanding of the magnetrine effect, although he is starting to chafe at the lack of recognition for his efforts. When the Nobel prize in physics was awarded to one of his main career rivals, he started to work harder than ever before. Choosing to separate from his partner, Peter Alexander [Martin Karlsson], and his home life, he sought to find something, anything, to get the recognition he felt he deserved. The scientists at the reactor were intrigued when the magnetrine effect was found to fluctuate wildly under specific outside influences. With further study, they found that the effect wasn’t fluctuating in power, but was being sapped when its power extended into extradimensional spaces. Daniel [Östen] started to work furiously to prove these theories correct, excited by the possibility of tunnelling into other areas of space, or even other realities. The management of the Broads Reactor were worried about external funding and concerned for the larger safety ramifications of such experiments, and so they moved to shut down Daniel’s [Östen’s] investigation. In desperation, he decided to hijack a larger experiment to prove his theories. Redirecting the power from the Loop, he focused it on a point above and in the centre of the kilometers-wide construction, and watched as it took effect... THE CREATURE Daniel’s [Östen’s] experiment led to another section of the universe, or perhaps another universe altogether. In this other space, massive creatures fly through an endless sky in dolphin-like pods, searching for places to spawn. The one which traversed the tear in the centre of the Loop was heavy with young and searching for a safe place to lay its egg. At the start of the first Mystery, it implants an egg within the Loop’s access tunnel 13 SO FAST THEY GROW UP
THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD Agriculture, Fisheries And Food Division, Print n.3 Mid-Yare National Nature Reserve Tunstall Reedham Freethorpe Halvergate Cantley Hassingham Buckenham Strupshaw Brundall Lingwood Blofield Fishley Upton Acle Claxton Rockland St Mary Hellington Surlingham Limpenhoe Billockby Moulton St Mary KNEALE GATE ANDERSON GAOUTFLUX SOUTH 14CHAPTER O2 CC E L E R A T O R P R I M - 2 NORFOLKS BROADS AREA MAP 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 km Forest Cultivated land Populated Area THE LOOP 111402 Service Tunnel Ferry Route Transport Tunnel Civilian Road River Yare A C C E L E R A T O R P R I M - 1 A c c e l e rTHE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD Agriculture, Fisheries And Food Division, Print n.3 Mid-Yare National Nature Reserve Tunstall Reedham Freethorpe Halvergate Cantley Hassingham Buckenham Strupshaw Brundall Lingwood Blofield Fishley Upton Acle Claxton Rockland St Mary Hellington Surlingham Limpenhoe Billockby Moulton St Mary KNEALE GATE ANDERSON GAOUTFLUX SOUTH CC E L E R A T O R P R I M - 2 NORFOLKS BROADS AREA MAP 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 km Forest Cultivated land Populated Area THE LOOP 111402 Service Tunnel Ferry Route Transport Tunnel Civilian Road River Yare A C C E L E R A T O R P R I M - 1 A c c e l e r
The information in this map may be protected from disclosure by the THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD [MAPP]. No copies will be made without permission. The Broads GREAT YARMOUTH GORLESTON -ON-SEA CAISTER -ON-SEA Bradwell Burgh Castle Belton Ormesby St Michael Ormesby St Margret Browston Green Mautby Stokesby Clippesby ATE WYNDHAM GATE ADAMS GATE DARBYSHIRE GATE OUTFLUX ESAT OUTFLUX NORTH 15 SO FAST THEY GROW UP C A LY63-1300 THE BROADS REACTOR Cooling towers River Yare River Yare Filby Broad Rollersby Broad River Yare A C C E L E R A T O R A U X - 1 r a t o r P - 1 N O R T H S E A The information in this map may be protected from disclosure by the THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD [MAPP]. No copies will be made without permission. The Broads GREAT YARMOUTH GORLESTON -ON-SEA CAISTER -ON-SEA Bradwell Burgh Castle Belton Ormesby St Michael Ormesby St Margret Browston Green Mautby Stokesby Clippesby ATE WYNDHAM GATE ADAMS GATE DARBYSHIRE GATE OUTFLUX ESAT OUTFLUX NORTH C A LY63-1300 THE BROADS REACTOR Cooling towers River Yare River Yare Filby Broad Rollersby Broad River Yare A C C E L E R A T O R A U X - 1 r a t o r P - 1
systems, leaving it to grow until it can return once the offspring has matured. Unfortunately, it does not understand until it is too late that the portal created by the Loop’s experiment will not last. These creatures grow in numerous steps, or stages, each of which causes them to change their diet as well as how they interact with the world around them. See below for additional information on how the steps this creature goes through in its lifetime affect it. More detail is available at the start of each Mystery’s chapter. APPEARANCE When the creature has hatched, it has four short legs and a squat, rotund body with a head at one end. It is dark gray in color, which blends to a bright pink on its underside. It always appears with a slight sheen due to the oily residue it secretes. The head has what looks like a short muzzle protruding from its face, which ends in a very small, round mouth. Two small nostrils sit on either side of the end of the muzzle. It has no tail, and its face consists of two small, black eyes that sit one on either side of its head. It also has two ears that droop down, like those of a beagle. LARVA During its larval stage, the creature is contained within the egg. This skateboard-sized object is a white, black and grey organic mass, with ridges that make it look like the ripples in a pond are spreading unevenly sideways across it. It is too large to fit in a backpack, but one Kid may clumsily carry it. If it is damaged, the Kid who has been linked to the creature will experience a brief bout of pain. During this stage, the creature will be able to telepathically communicate its general needs or fears through feelings (not words) with whichever Kid(s) have bonded to it. It requires a low level of electricity to be fed into its surrounding area so it can grow. The creature hatches from this state at the start of the summer Mystery, or shortly thereafter if the Kids have not been feeding it electricity in the intervening period. YOUNG At this stage, the creature has emerged from the egg and can walk just a few minutes after hatching. Its size and appearance are equivalent to that of a moist, pink, baby pygmy hippopotamus, and it weighs around four kilograms. It can move around of its own volition and is incredibly curious about the world around it, seeking to explore and see things it has not experienced before. It does not have significant intelligence but may communicate feelings and sensations such as curiosity and hunger to the Kid(s) who have bonded to it. At this stage, it requires a significant source of energy that it can occasionally latch onto and suckle from. From this point on, once per Mystery, one Kid that the creature has imprinted on will be able to remove a single Condition by narrating a scene involving their connection to the creature. It can involve looking after the creature or similar situations. As Gamemaster, you should make it clear that this is a once-per-Mystery ability, and that the creature seems tired after it occurs, as though mentally exhausted. DEVELOPING At the stage of maturing into an adult (from the start of the autumn Mystery), the creature is around the size of a fully-grown cow. While it still has the exploratory habits of the younger version, it is slower and lumbering. At this stage, the creature finds itself able to defend itself with a shock of static from its body, although it requires a significant amount of rest afterwards before it can do so again. Also, as a significant part of its diet the creature needs neodymium, a component in the creation of magnetrine fields. From this point on, once per Mystery any Kid that the creature has imprinted on will be able to drain a single handheld electronic device of power, rendering it inert. Examples include deactivating a calculator, portable radio, or wristwatch. The Kid feels this power drain into the creature the next time they touch it; otherwise, it slowly dissipates over time. It does not store or affect anything else in their surroundings or cause harm. You should introduce this ability to the Kids through a short introduction scene for that Mystery, explaining the concept thematically and describing the ability’s limitations. 16CHAPTER O2
ADULT As an adult, the creature is capable of a small amount of levitation. Lifting its legs from the ground, it can start to propel itself using the neodymium it has imbibed to create propulsion similar to magnetrine freighters. The creature also starts to receive telepathic signals from its pod and wishes to return through a rift like the one which brought it here. It feels drawn to the centre of the Loop as it can still hear their song through the place where the rift initially opened. From this point on, once per Mystery, any Kid that the creature has imprinted on can emit a small static shock. This will not be enough to harm anyone but may surprise someone enough to cause them to be caught off guard. A Kid may use it to gain two bonus dice on one roll where thematically appropriate. Examples of its use include surprising a bully who is trying to tussle with the Kid, trying to overload a small electronic device, or making someone drop something the Kid wants to grab. You should introduce this ability to the Kids through a short introduction scene for that Mystery, explaining the concept thematically and describing the ability’s limitations. Once the creature disappears back to its home realm, all abilities that the Kids gained through proximity and imprinting quickly fade. PERSONALITY The creature’s demeanour during its time on Earth is generally friendly to the Kids, especially as after hatching it has imprinted on them. It is playful and wants attention, responding positively to Kids that pet or stroke it. On the other hand, it shies away from adults or children with bad intentions. The Kids can get it to perform actions in a similar way to someone asking a dog to follow them or go somewhere, but the creature generally dislikes doing “tricks” or playing “fetch”. It is not an animal. It understands the concept that humans may be living creatures like itself, but it does not fully comprehend the purpose of human interaction either. You should feel empowered to portray responses the creature makes to encourage the Kids to consider it vulnerable, cute, and something that should be hidden from others who might want to harm it. The Kids should be allowed to name the creature anything they want, to allow them (and the players) to imprint on the creature itself. It responds positively to any name they give it that is not meant in jest or as an insult. Should the Kids finish the first scene after the creature hatches without having named it, asking “Do the Kids name this creature?” should resolve this. THE LINK One of the Kids should be bathed in a purple light when the creature’s mother flies over the Kids at the start of the spring Mystery. Following this, the Kid experiences an empathic link to the creature. This Kid (or Kids) is known as the linked Kid for the purpose of descriptions later. FOOD Should the players ask about the creature’s dietary habits, they learn the following at different times: ■ EXCRETION: The creature does not seem to produce any waste material, aside from a thin oily substance that exudes from its skin and gives it a light sheen. While it has a mouth, it does not drink and does not otherwise have excretory functions. The creature’s primary sources of food become apparent over the course of the Mystery as it grows and needs new sources of sustenance. ■ NEODYMIUM: In Tales from the Loop, ships across the northern hemisphere make use of the magnetrine effect to allow for levitation and propulsion. This is enabled, in part, by a device called a “sinter disc”, a rapidly rotating neodymium rod in a plate- -shaped iron pod. The creature begins to devour small amounts of neodymium as it develops. This is not to sustain it but as part of instinct as it moves towards being able to use it for producing an innate version of the magnetrine effect. If it does not get any neodymium, it grows restless, constantly searching for a source of it. A significant source of neodymium can be found within the Outer Harbour of Great Yarmouth, on the mouth of the River Yare, which has been built to fit and maintain small magnetrine freighters. ■ ELECTRICITY: The creature can “suckle” on electrical energy. Up to the point where it hatches from the egg, it causes a near-constant drain on electrical de17 SO FAST THEY GROW UP
vices in the area around it. Due to the nature of the egg which contained it, this draining ability ceases once the creature hatches, and it must get the electricity more directly. This may be by latching onto the negative end of a battery, or by suckling directly from a wire. By the end of the summer Mystery, the Kids should have attained a source of constant electrical energy for the creature. Without a source of electrical energy, the creature becomes lethargic, and has trouble moving in a straight line. It may look to the Kids to carry it if they ever set a precedent of picking it up. THE CREATURE’S FAMILY These creatures do not have a family structure in the traditional human sense of the term. They reproduce via parthenogenesis and as such do not require a mate to begin the reproductive process, though any eggs they might lay only begin to form while they are in the social dynamic of a pod or school. The creatures are inherently social, preferring the company of others, and are suspicious of creatures they do not know. After birth, a newborn creature imprints onto the first group of beings it sees. They become its pod or family. While it may form or join a new pod later in life, during its development it is often dependent on the help of its imprinted pod to learn about its surroundings and find food. WHY IS THE CREATURE HERE? The creature’s mother belongs to a pod that has been roaming the area of space it originates from, searching for sources of neodymium and electricity. The mother intends to lay her egg near one of these sources before retreating to be with its pod once more and returning once the offspring has hatched. After crossing into our world, while the mother does not recognize the surroundings of the Norfolk Broads, she does not see anything initially that suggests the location is dangerous. As such, she enters one of the Loop’s access tunnels and lays her egg there, in a damp location close to sources of neodymium and electricity. She then retreats through the hole in space Daniel Wraff has created, not knowing it will soon close. REGIS AND MAFF MAFF, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food [Riksenergi] {DART}, is a government initiative to broaden the horizon of science in the country. Ostensibly focused on food and energy research, said focus has broadened since the discovery of the magnetrine effect. It now also investigates the new fields of science the Loop provides access to. Since the opening of the Loop, they have noticed strange goings-on around the area, as well as in the local wildlife. These unique circumstances have brought with them the attention of the government’s leading 18CHAPTER O2
investigation committee, responsible for unexplained phenomena: ReGIS (The Regional Geomagnetic Information Sciences) [FOA] {DARPA}. MAFF [Riksenergi] {DART} had hoped to avoid such scrutiny with the fi ring of head scientist Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg]. After the rift opens, though, the organization scrambles to contain the problem, up to and including scouring the tunnels on the Norfolk [Malaren] {Boulder} coast for evidence of what the entity was doing before it returned through the closing rift. MAFF [Riksenergi] {DART} continues to b e an ongoing source of Trouble throughout these Mysteries as it works to contain the secrets of the Loop. This is exacerbated by ReGIS [FOA] {DARPA} exerting more infl uence as the year progresses, shutting down MAFF [Riksenergi] {DART} processes and taking over projects. You should make this clear to the Kids during later Mysteries by having their parents or local adults express concern that their job is becoming more diffi cult because of the existence of “extra oversight”. By the end of the year, ReGIS [FOA] {DARPA} has nearly completely taken over the Loop and its research projects. Despite the diffi culties this causes, it also provides opportunities. As ReGIS attempts to assert itself over management of the Loop, the facility’s organization has some trouble. This gives the Kids an opportunity to do things they would otherwise not be able to do, such as sneak into the facilities while the security is notably more lax than usual. REGIS [FOA] {DARPA} TAKEOVER You should use the following prompts, scattered through the Mysteries, to build up the idea that ReGIS [FOA] {DARPA} is taking over the Loop, and that the Loop employees are being sidelined. ■ The parents of the Kids mention new management at the Loop. ■ A new security fi rm with different uniforms is hired to take over security at the Loop. ■ Advertisements for jobs at the Loop stop appearing in the local newspaper. ■ A Kid comes down for breakfast to fi nd their parent receiving a letter making them redundant in their Loop-related job. ■ Protests are organized by locals regarding the takeover. ■ The UK government starts promoting ReGIS countrywide as a leading worker in the fi elds of science and industry. 19 SO FAST THEY GROW UP
CREATING THE KIDS There are several options for each of the Kid archetypes in the Tales from the Loop rulebook to fi t them into these Mysteries. The following are some ideas to inspire you: LINKING KIDS TO THE ERA This approach assumes you are playing in the year 1988, although any year in the ’80s could be used with a few tweaks. MAJOR NEWS STORIES While the Kids might not be too interested in what is going on in the wider world, they would get a sanitized version of current events through shows such as the BBC’s Newsround. This program aimed to help children understand current events while supporting the BBC’s mandate to entertain. As such, there is every chance they have at least a basic understanding of the following news stories throughout 1988: ■ The Troubles in Northern Ireland continue. ■ £1 notes stop being circulated by the Bank of England in March. ■ In July, the Piper Alpha oil rig explodes, killing 167 people. ■ The Social and Liberal Democrat Party is formed, eventually becoming the third-largest political party in the UK. ■ Pan Am Flight 103 explodes over the town of Lockerbie, killing 270 people. LINKING KIDS TO THE CAMPAIGN One of the main locations that all the Kids utilize during the campaign is the school, through interaction with its pupils and teachers. For this reason, as the Gamemaster you should ensure that all the Kids are attending the same school. While the Mysteries contain the suggestion of using Yarmouth School, you could use any school with very few changes. Before starting the campaign, the Gamemaster should attempt to link Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] with the Kids. Maybe one of the Kids knows Daniel [Östen] from a “Bring Your Child to Work” day and started corresponding with him about science or someMUSIC FOR THE SEASONS As the Kids progress through the year, the top hits change. The following were the longest-running UK Number 1 hits released around the different seasons in the year 1988, which could form inspiration. ■ Spring: “I Should Be So Lucky”, Kylie Minogue (fi ve weeks) ■ Summer: “With a Little Help from My Friends”, Wet Wet Wet (four weeks) ■ Autumn: “The Only Way Is Up”, Yazz and the Plastic Population (fi ve weeks) ■ Winter: “Mistletoe and Wine”, Cliff Richard (four weeks) THE IDIOT-BOX The 1980s for many children were defi ned by the TV shows they watched early in the morning or in the evening after school. The following are just a few examples of shows you could mention as being shown on television during the game. ■ Count Duckula ■ Danger Mouse ■ Ducktales ■ Penny Crayon ■ Stoppit and Tidyup ■ Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles (as it was titled in the UK) ■ The Shoe People ■ The Trap Door 20CHAPTER O2
thing more mundane. Equally, the Kids could have had Daniel [Östen] as a guest speaker at their school, extolling the virtues of the Loop and how phrases like “Loop Madness” are a thing invented by the British media to sell newspapers. Alternatively, he could be linked to the Kids through their parents. The parents could have mentioned to the Kids that Daniel [Östen] was having some trouble at work and acting frustrated, or this fact could appear within the first few scenes, depending on whether any of the Kids’ parents’ work involves the Norfolk Loop. BOULDER CITY The following sections explain how to adjust the Mystery if you are playing in Boulder City rather than the Norfolk Broads. EASTER EGG HUNT While the appearance of the creature’s mother does not significantly change due to the location, the creature is likely to be birthed into Charlie Gate on the edge of Boulder City itself due to the direction of Boulder City from the Loop. Alternatively, the mother may instead aim for the service tunnels alongside Hoover Dam. This would provide additional opportunity for the Kids to hear about the ongoing effects of the Mystery, as DARPA may have closed the road over the dam. As a third option, the creature may even have laid the egg in Prohibition-era smuggling tunnels, adding an element of local history to the adventure. Instead of the Mystery being introduced at a camping trip, in Boulder City it is more likely to be a trip to the harbour aboard a boat owned by a family or a family friend. Try to make sure the Kids have a reason to stay and cannot easily sneak off to investigate as soon as they see the creature. Having a Kid taken to the harbour by a parent and then left alone while the parent retrieves something from the boat may be an exciting way to introduce the Mystery. 21 SO FAST THEY GROW UP
THE BEST OF WHAT MIGHT BE The two primary aspects which would need to change in a Mystery set in Boulder City would be that of the Magnetrine Ship Harbour and the Loop Research Facility and Reactors, the latter of which may be easier to access due to a freeway passing through the border of the facility. While the Magnetrine Ship Harbour could easily be placed anywhere in Boulder, the most suitable location is on the edge of Hemenway Harbour. This allows for easy access to the Magnetrine Ship Harbour through existing road networks for logistical reasons, while giving a thematic twist of recreational sailors being irritated by large magnetrine freighters “ruining the view”. As for the Loop facility, having the primary way inside be a freeway which runs through its borders means additional opportunities to sneak out of a bus, or get the Kids’ parents to drive them to the facility. If the players struggle to think of a way to get their Kids there, have the local school organize a suspiciously impromptu science trip to the facility, which will afford the Kids a level of freedom to explore the area, as well as allowing Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] an opportunity to scope out his old employer. THE YEAR’S LAST, LOVELIEST SMILE Should the Mystery be based in Boulder City, the primary area of change is the specific location of the decommissioned ship. Whereas the Norfolk Broads requires the use of a small peninsula onto a lake, Boulder City has the nearby Lake Mead, which contains numerous small islands. However, none of these islands have wooded surroundings like the farmland has in Norfolk. Instead, they are entirely separated from the mainland and have no items of inherent value on them, making them the perfect place to both hide a creature and place a freighter. The island just off Black Rock Point beside the Alpha Gate is especially appropriate. Instead of being decommissioned here, however, the ship could have been forced to make an emergency landing and subsequently be unable to reinitialize her engines, at which point she was gutted and left to rust. An ongoing lawsuit with Boulder authorities means that it will be removed eventually, but the court case has been pushed back to the next year due to various complications in the legal process, meaning the ship will remain in place for some time. YOU CAN’T GET TOO MUCH As a follow-on from the previous Mystery, the Kids may once again be dealing with the island where the ship was forced to make a landing. After this, the adventure should run fairly similarly. THE SWEDISH LOOP The following sections explain how to adjust the Mystery if you are playing in the Mälaren Islands rather than the Norfolk Broads. EASTER EGG HUNT Passing over the town of Färentuna from the Loop, the creature’s mother will fly towards the East Gate, where it will implant its egg. The kids may be camping in Munsö, where the creature can pass over them before traveling to the east. The cold weather may mean that the Kids are not camping outside, but instead in a camping van, or some other similar warmer situation 22CHAPTER O2
overnight. Either way, try to make sure that one or two Kids can get away from the others before seeing the Mystery introduced. THE BEST OF WHAT MIGHT BE Because the Swedish Loop contains many homes belonging to the families who work there, the Kids here may have an easier time accessing the facilities. Due to this lack of security inside the borders, there may be additional security in the facilities themselves. Feel free to increase the amount of Trouble represented by the security within the laboratories and reactor buildings to make up for this. THE YEAR’S LAST, LOVELIEST SMILE Because the Swedish Loop lies on its own set of islands, the solution is very similar to that of Boulder City. Ideally, this should be an offshore island to land the freighter, using an ongoing lawsuit to encourage the Kids to believe it will remain in its present location for a while. The most appropriate placement is just to the South of Vastport 5A. YOU CAN’T GET TOO MUCH The Swedish Loop should follow a similar course to this Mystery, save for the location of the creature at the start. Introduce the Mystery by having the Kids attempt to approach the island by rowboat on the sea, only to be met with FOA agents, and have FOA question them as to why they are visiting. FOA will believe the Kids if they say anything innocent, and the questioning is just to scare them. 23 SO FAST THEY GROW UP
CHAPTER O3 It’s a cold spring, but not cold enough to avoid camping. The Kids are being taken to enjoy the great outdoors, for what they are promised is a life-changing experience. Little do they know that this promise is truer than their parents meant, and the next year will be defined by what they see and do in the days to come… EASTER EGG HUNT THE TRUTH OF THE MYSTERY 25 INTRODUCING THE KIDS 26 INTRODUCING THE MYSTERY 27 SOLVING THE MYSTERY 29 LOCATION 1: THE BROADS REACTOR 30 LOCATION 2: GREAT YARMOUTH MARKET 33 LOCATION 3: THE BEACH 35 LOCATION 4: THE LIBRARY 36 LOCATION 5A: THE SERVICE TUNNELS 37 LOCATION 5B: THE WATERLOGGED CAVE 38 SHOWDOWN 39 AFTER THE SHOWDOWN 39 NPCS AND CREATURES 40
25 THE TRUTH OF THE MYSTERY Prior to his experiment, Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] was becoming desperate. His work was getting sloppy and his bosses noticed he was not getting enough sleep. He was, in truth, let go from employment at the Broads [Bona] Reactor laboratories shortly before the events of the Mystery. However, he was also not one to give up over such a trivial matter as losing his job. Trading in every favour he had at the reactor, and using no small amount of his own ingenuity, he made his way back to the laboratories, where he knew the Loop controls would be undergoing a maintenance cycle. Cancelling the cycle and activating the Loop itself, he focused it in such a way as to direct its power above and to the centre of the Loop. Then, the very fabric of reality shifted and tore. On the other side of the tear in reality opened at the centre of the Loop, the creatures stirred. Usually drawn to the magnetrine-infused areas in their world, where they could deposit their offspring, they felt the strong magnetrine effect from various sources within the tear they saw open in reality. Moving through, one of the creatures found it did not recognize the place it entered. Heaving with eggs, however, the matriarch of the pod of creatures decided to deposit an egg somewhere close, somewhere hidden. It sensed the caves and access tunnels on the coast, and decided to leave the egg there. After all, what danger could there be in such a cold, damp, unwelcoming location? After depositing the egg, the creature returned to its pod through the rift it came from, to wait for its offspring to come of age...
MAFF, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food [Riksenergi] [DART], is a government initiative to broaden the horizon of science in the country. Ostensibly focused on food and energy research, said focus has broadened since the discovery of the magnetrine eff ect into investigating the strange goings-on around the Loop and its eff ect on wildlife, with such specifi c investigations headed up by ReGIS (Regional Geomagnetic Information Sciences) [FOA] [DARPA]. With the fi ring of Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg], the local management of MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] had hoped to avoid a larger problem. As the rift opened, however, they scrambled to contain the issue, up to and including scouring the tunnels on the Norfolk [Malaren] [Boulder] coast for evidence of what the entity was doing before it returned through the closing rift. INTRODUCING THE KIDS With the Easter Holidays starting, children are staying away from school, spending time together outside, and generally enjoying themselves as the cold weather slowly gives way to more agreeable temperatures. A chill is still in the air, but the last snow was a month ago. The Kids have been invited out camping by one of their parents, or perhaps someone from their list of known NPCs from their character creation. It should be someone the Kids are unlikely to suddenly leave without a very good reason, so that they don’t all go to investigate straight away once the Mystery starts. If it is a parent, perhaps he or she tries to be closer with their child, or wants to encourage them to socialize by inviting their friends out on the trip. Multiple parents may well be with the Kids, which gives ample opportunity for the parents to occasionally disappear to have a sly cigarette and gossip about local news in a way which the Kids may overhear. Ask the players where they would like to meet up, and introduce the Kids in individual scenes as they make their way there. Let the Kids enjoy their time before introducing the Mystery. It is important that the Kids establish their rapport and existing camaraderie before the game continues, in order to represent the fact that most, if not all, of the Kids have known one another for years. While they have spent a lot of time together, their lives are starting to diverge as they apSUMMARY ■ The Kids go camping with their parents and are promised an unforgettable experience. ■ At the same time, scientist Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] sets off an experiment which draws an extraterrestrial entity to Earth. ■ During the night, one or more Kids see the Loop activate. A creature makes its way out of a portal that opens above the Loop’s center. ■ As the creature passes by the campsite, the Kids are affected by a supernatural bond with the creature’s larval offspring. ■ The affected Kid(s) will later experience fl ashes of emotion and pain as Loop employees begin to experiment on the egg. ■ By investigating the Broads Loop, the Kids fi nd out more about the events of the night of the camping trip and hear rumours of what happened to Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg]. ■ By searching where the creature landed, they discover that the Loop’s authorities have closed off a section of the facility. ■ In researching the Loop in the area, the Kids fi nd a way into the access tunnels, and from there fi nd the creature’s unhatched egg. ■ The Kids discover that inhumane tests are being done on the creature. They escape the Loop and rescue the creature, aided by the bond they share with it. ■ After having rescued the creature, the Kids must bring it to a safe place and learn how to look after it. 26CHAPTER O3
proach their teenage years, and each Kid is becoming a unique individual (as represented by their Types). Don’t introduce Trouble, but perhaps ask for a few examples of scenes where the Kids had fun, such as during hiking, or when setting up the camp. Even allow for a short scene which makes it clear that the parents are around at this point. Prior to the Kids retiring to sleep in their tents, one of their parents might mention Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] to another adult, and his recent troubles at work. Allow the Kids to ask questions, but remember that the parents will not have been given too many details and instead rely on workplace speculation. Use the following quote or summarize it: ■ “You hear about Dr Wraff?” ■ “Daniel? Yeah, poor guy.” ■ “Just shows what happens when you get obsessed with work, I guess.” ■ “I think he got frustrated. There are rumours going around that someone’s interfering with research projects. Might have something to do with it.” As the Kids go to bed, the lights on the horizon flicker slightly as the Loop starts up for the experiment and drains power from the area. To draw attention to what is happening and the fact that it is unusual, one of the parents should comment that the Loop does not usually run at such a late hour. INTRODUCING THE MYSTERY Halfway through the night, narrate how one Kid needs to get up to undertake normal bodily functions. Should one of the Kids have narrated having had a drink, this would be a good way to choose them, otherwise select the youngest Kid. Utilizing a nearby piece of foliage, or perhaps a chemical lavatory should the player prefer, they resolve their discomfort. On the way back to their tent, they notice that the Loop is undergoing a strange disturbance. With a pulse of light (not bright enough to wake the other Kids or their parents), the awake Kid sees a small hole appear above the Loop, in the centre, 27EASTER EGG HUNT
IMPRINT COUNTDOWN After the Kid sees the creature fl y past on the night of the camping, they are supernaturally affected by an imprinting bond. Over the course of the Mystery, the following events should occur: 1. Shortly after the fl yover, as the night continues, the Kid who has been bonded to the creature will begin to sense a calm presence, as though someone non-threatening is watching them. 2. The bonded Kid begins to dream about a long, endlessly curving corridor with a waterlogged cavern off to the side. In the distance, they hear the faint sounds of something like a rollercoaster and seagulls. This is a sensory transfer from the creature, portraying the beach entrance to the Loop tunnels. 3. The Kid starts to feel anxious, lonely and helpless, but knows that it is not their own helplessness. The Kid is not harmed by these feelings, but may choose to take an Upset or Scared Condition if they believe it is suitable. 4. The Kid who has been bonded to the creature begins to experience what it is like to be the creature under experimentation. They feel extreme emotional states, as well as sharp pains in various places in their body. The Kid is not injured, but they may choose to take an Upset, Scared, or Injured Condition if they believe it is suitable. The Injured condition is psychosomatic, not representing actual hurt. 5. If the Kids do not make signifi - cant progress towards fi nding the creature, the bonded Kid begins to feel dizzy, potentially falling unconscious from the pain. They receive the Broken Condition until the Kids make progress towards the source of the link, slipping into a coma should the situation not improve. LOOP COUNTDOWN 1. Increased activity in the area surrounding the Loop indicates something has happened there. Perhaps one of the Kids’ parents is called in to work over the weekend or late into the evening. The parents explain this away as a large amount of extra data due to a weekend experiment, and may even admit that it’s caused by a wayward employee. 2. Additional MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] employees are seen around town, either traveling through streets in labeled trucks, or performing unassuming surveys on locals, including such questions as “What is the most interesting thing to have happened recently in this town?”. 3. As the MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] presence on the beach increases, it starts to attract local BBC [Fox News] [SVT] news reporters, who decide to get soundbites of local people, including the Kids. 4. Blurry photos of the creature’s egg chamber are leaked to the BBC [Fox News] [SVT]. Statements of denial from the UK government do little to dissuade conspiracy theorists from traveling to the Norfolk Broads with the intent of revealing all the Loop’s secrets. Introducing the Mystery 28CHAPTER O3
which quickly expands to a wavy circle. From this circle they see something emerge, lit up by the Loop. ■ The object they see is approximately the size of a small bus. ■ It quickly moves away from the Loop, flying loosely in their direction. Making no sound, it curves in its direction as it moves. It is following the underground service tunnels, but the Kids do not know their significance at the start. ■ As it approaches the Kid, they see a glow is present on its underside. ■ Whether or not the Kid hides, the object flies over their head, silently, about twenty meters above them. It bathes them and any other Kids who may have been gathered with them in a pale purple glow before it continues past them. It does not slow down. ■ The object then continues towards the town, where the streets are now largely empty due to this being the middle of the night. The Kid loses sight of it as the creature disappears into the dark sky above the town. ■ After laying its egg out of sight of the Kid(s), the creature moves directly into the sky. Should the Kids be watching the Loop a half-hour later, they may notice the flying object descending from the clouds back into the rift shortly before the rift closes. If the Kid wakes everyone else up, the adults do not emerge from their tent until the object has already passed overhead, and they are unaffected by the purple light. Adults pass the object off as any number of things, including helicopters, airplanes, weather balloons, a mundane experiment at the Loop, a smoke cloud, or just a bad dream the Kid(s) had. Should the Kids try to push that it was a thing, the adults become angry, potentially causing minor Trouble for the Kids, possibly making them Upset. Regardless, the adults disallow the Kids from leaving until morning, as at this point in the Mystery it is still the middle of the night (approximately 3 a.m.). SOLVING THE MYSTERY After the introduction, the Kids are free to explore the Mystery. What was the object? What was happening at the Loop? Where was the object going? Did anybody else see it as it passed over town? The Town Beach Library SHOWDOWN Service Tunnels / Cave The Broads Reactor 29EASTER EGG HUNT
In this Mystery there are four important locations besides the initial campsite: Great Yarmouth Market, the Broads Reactor, the Beach, and the Service Tunnels. They are marked on the map above. With the kids equidistant between the Broads Reactor and Great Yarmouth, they may choose either location to investigate fi rst. As they did not see the creature interacting with the town in any signifi cant way, they are likely to investigate the Broads Reactor, and they are more likely to do this if they saw the rift close as the creature disappeared. Should the players not know what to do, feel free to suggest investigating the reactor, as that is where this Mystery seemed to start. LOCATION 1: THE BROADS REACTOR The area is currently extremely busy, as ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] agents rush to cover up the actions of Daniel [Östen]. MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] employees mostly do what they are told, under the belief that they are working overtime to increase the Loop’s energy output due to a minor mundane diffi culty overnight, or they have been told to pack up the data from the experiment overnight to ship to another facility. If the Kids talk to any of these employees, they notice other groups standing nearby watching them carefully. For more information on the Broads Reactor, see The Broads Loop, on page 12. TROUBLE If the Kids visit the reactor in the day directly after the rift opened, they easily notice the bustle of activity as employees and agents move between labs and offi ces with printouts of data sets and various pieces of scientifi c equipment, while trucks move from the warehouses out towards Great Yarmouth, apparently to contain the situation. To get close enough to attain detailed information about the situation, rather than make assumptions, the Kids must gain either unauthorized or authorized access to the Reactor compound. To do this unauthorizedly, they need to climb the barbed-wire fence, Beach Market Tunnels Camping Site Reactor Entrance 30CHAPTER O3 Beach Market Tunnels Camping Site Reactor Entrance
Beach Beach Market Market Tunnels Tunnels Camping Site Camping Site Reactor Entrance Reactor Entrance 31EASTER EGG HUNT Beach Market Tunnels Camping Reactor Site Entrance Beach Market Tunnels Camping Site Reactor Entrance
which requires a move roll with 2 successes to do so without being hurt or caught in the process, or a charm roll, also requiring 2 successes, as well as a good excuse to convince the security guard(s) that they should be allowed in. Kids who name-drop a parent who works anywhere in the Loop facility will make the charm roll with 2 bonus dice. Kids who sneak in must avoid employees, as they do not receive the guest badges that those entering through the front gate are given. CLUES When the Kids are investigating the area, most of the employees refuse to engage with them or give them information. The ReGIS employees are hostile to the idea of the Kids being in the facility. The following are ways in which the Kids can fi nd information in the facility: ■ An empathize roll allows the Kids to notice that there appear to be two signifi cant groups of adults. First are those focused on busy-work, such as moving boxes of papers and research into trucks, or throwing shredded paper into large dumpsters, to destroy research data. These are the MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] workers who are being told what to do by management. Then there are those who have formed small teams and are highly-organized – the ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] agents. They appear to be studying the research data, blueprints of the Loop and its surrounding area, and quietly discussing plans amongst themselves before they get in trucks and cars to head out. ■ A contact roll allows the Kids to fi nd someone they know within the Loop facility. The player should work with the GM to determine why their contact is within the location. ■ A Kid using charm on someone they know allows the Kids to fi nd out specifi c information on what is happening. The MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] workers only know a little of what is going on, such as that the overtime work started the previous evening at 3 a.m. Common knowledge and gossip also reveal that Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] was escorted off the premises by security in the wee hours of the morning. ■ A ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employee is more likely to know that Great Yarmouth’s beach is where the trucks are headed. Unfortunately, they are harder to get information out of than a MAFF employee. BETWEEN LOCATIONS Here are some examples of things that the Kids encounter while traveling between the different locations: ■ The Kids come across a group of scientists taking samples from the ground along the fl ight path of the creature. They are putting dirt and samples of plants into transparent plastic boxes and loading them onto a small trolley, ready to take to a nearby van. The Kids may be asked if they were camping out the previous night. This requires a charm test to avoid having to be questioned in detail. ■ Protests – either large, organized demonstrations outside the Loop, or a few grumpy people outside a council offi ce – complaining about the semi-regular blackouts or power fl uctuations in their homes caused by the Loop. Medical personnel from local hospitals, as well as any other profession that requires constant power, might become involved. ■ Small convoys of MAFF-branded [Riksenergi] [DART] trucks move between the Broads Reactor and Great Yarmouth, eventually extending their scope of activity along the beach to other service tunnel entrances. In general, adults did not see the events that unfolded the previous night. Those that did are likely to be MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] employees, rather than trustworthy individuals. They may cause Trouble for the Kids should the Kids attempt to gain information on what happened the previous night. 32CHAPTER O3
■ Kids attempting to sneak (requiring 2 successes) around the area can try to catch snippets of conversation between MAFF or ReGIS employees, revealing more of the above information. ■ At some point, the Kids should overhear a pair of ReGIS employees having a hushed conversation. Quote or summarize the following: “Did you hear? That guy who started this whole damned thing is running around Great Yarmouth Market asking all sorts of questions. Don’t worry, he’s under surveillance…” LOCATION 2: GREAT YARMOUTH MARKET The Kids might wish to investigate Great Yarmouth due to seeing the creature hover above the town area on the night of the camping trip. If they do so, Great Yarmouth market is the most open place to fi nd people who might have seen something. The market is a location the Kids are likely to have frequented multiple times before, containing a great many of the shops and facilities in Great Yarmouth. As a mix of open areas fi lled with benches, fi xed market stalls, and temporary fi xtures, it provides a large amount of bustling local colour. A long road allows the Kids to see all the way from the top of the market to the beach. Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] has already attempted to gain access to the ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] project on the beach. Having failed, he is now going around asking locals if they saw anything strange last night. As he hasn’t slept all night and is somewhat desperate in his relationship with the project, he has already alienated most of the shoppers in the area, aside from two distinct groups: ■ A few older children in the area have started mocking and bullying him. ■ A pair of ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employees have also been keeping tabs on him, ready to intervene if he goes into too much detail about what happened at the Loop facility. If questioned, Daniel [Östen] may suggest that he knows something, but does not reveal anything while “They’re watching,” motioning at two shoppers seemingly engaged in a discussion in front of a shop window. TROUBLE To be able to talk to Daniel [Östen] and receive information about the ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] project 33EASTER EGG HUNT Main Road Train line Smaller labs Broads lab Car park Trees Entry barrier Parked trucks To the reactor Lab entrance 0 1 2 3 4 5 meters
on the beach, as well as context as to what happened the previous night, the Kids need to get rid of the two groups. First, the ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employees, Tony Miles and Toshia Kawasaki, must be convinced to move along and stop following Daniel [Östen]. Two examples of what the Kids could do is tell a convincing lie with charm about something happening elsewhere the two should have their eye on, or convince the local constabulary that they appear shifty. If the Kids doubt the idea that these two employees are anything more than normal shoppers, an attempt to empathize allows the Kids to see them glancing at Daniel [Östen] more than their heated conversation would warrant. Once Tony and Toshia are out of the way, a group of local children approach the Kids and start teasing them about interacting with Daniel [Östen], suggesting that his unkempt and dishevelled look means that he is a vagrant, and that by interacting with him the Kids are somehow losers. Information about these bullies can be found in the NPCs and Creatures section of this chapter (page 40). If this interaction escalates to a fullblown brawl, police may intervene. Daniel [Östen] will disappear down the road, but the Kids may end up with Conditions even if they succeed. CLUES With a captive audience, and when not being watched by ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA], Daniel [Östen] is more than willing to share the information on his former employees with the Kids. He suggests that he gets to ask a question of the Kids for each question they ask, as he can tell they know something. 34CHAPTER O3
■ Daniel [Östen] does not know exactly what it is that came through during the experiment, but he saw that it had a vaguely quadrupedal form. He believes it to be a creature of some kind. ■ He believes that it was moving with an intent, but does not know what it was, as the creature did not pause before fl ying directly for Great Yarmouth. ■ The creature landed on the beach. Daniel [Östen] asked a couple of adults about it, but they thought it was a weather balloon. ■ The beach where it landed is now swarming with ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] agents. ■ Daniel [Östen] saw it leave through the hole in the sky, but he is certain that it either aff ected the beach or left something on the beach. LOCATION 3: THE BEACH The “Golden Mile” of Great Yarmouth stretches between two seaside entertainment piers and is mostly a sandy tourist attraction. It is not yet summer, but the picturesque atmosphere has been destroyed by the hastily-constructed chicken-wire fence blocking off a section of the beach in front of the local aquarium. Approaching the fence, the Kids see that a set of marquee tents have been put up, hiding a section of the beach close to the road. Occasionally, individuals wearing decontamination suits enter or leave the tent. A few town residents stand nearby, and a large cordon has been erected around the site. Local police offi cers prevent the Kids getting close. They have been told that an unexploded World War Two bomb has been found buried in the sand beside the service tunnels on the beach, warranting the security. GREAT YARMOUTH LOCATIONS 35EASTER EGG HUNT
In actuality, the service tunnels are where the ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] agents are coming and going from, gaining access to the creature’s egg. TROUBLE If the Kids decide to try to gain access to the service tunnels directly from the beach, they fi nd it extremely diffi cult, if not impossible. The fenced off area is under near-constant surveillance by police, and ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employees are moving in and out of the tunnels on a regular basis. If the Kids still wish to try, then while attempting to investigate, they may notice tire tracks heading along the beach into the area, although no vehicles are within the area at present. As such, the Kids can fi gure out where trucks carrying equipment enter and leave the beach, should they wish to sneak in from within one. The kids also need to sneak inside the tunnels themselves, requiring 3 successes to do so. CLUES ■ Should the Kids manage to get inside the entrance to the tunnels, they hear voices in the tunnel they have accessed. There is a map on the wall of the tunnel entrance showing that the tunnels extend underneath the town to multiple other entry points. These are signifi cantly easier to sneak into should the Kids wish to attempt such a diversion. ■ If necessary, explicitly inform the Kids that locations such as the town library have offi cial records on both the history of the town and the Loop, as well as newspaper records. ■ Should the Kids manage to charm and befriend a police offi cer guarding the tunnel entrance, she does not allow them access to the area but expresses confusion about MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] being involved, as she thought they were all “a bunch of nerds” and not bomb defusers. LOCATION 4: THE LIBRARY This two-story brick building sits just beside the Market. Inside, rows of metal shelves on rollers hold stacks of books, occasionally disrupted by desks and tables at which a few individuals sit. Aside from the occasional rustle of clothes or paper, the inside of the building is extremely quiet. Equipment Kids’ play area Aquarium Beach entrance Beach 36CHAPTER O3 Beach 0 10 20 30 40 50 meters
The Kids may decide they do not need to visit the library to fi nd out information during this Mystery. However, its features are listed for the sake of consistency in case they visit it later. The librarian, a wiry man in his late 50s, has very little patience for the Kids, or in fact, any children. Kids so rarely come into the library to look up serious information that he tries to keep an eye on them as they move around the building. TROUBLE: GENERAL TROUBLE FOR THE AREA If the Kids investigate the Mystery, the location of service tunnels in the town, or any other concern they may have, there is always the chance of a Kid dislodging a book and harming themselves, or becoming Upset if the librarian starts berating them for making too much noise. CLUES When attempting to investigate the service tunnels via town records and maps, the Kids discover that there is a second entrance in Great Yarmouth, on the edge of the church grounds to the north of the market. They can also try to discover other information related to the town, including the fact that the Loop is being operated by both MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] and ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] (prior to this, the Kids may only know about MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART]). They also learn that the creation of the service tunnels uncovered older, waterlogged natural tunnels which seem to extend under the whole of the Broads, although these have not been mapped. LOCATION 5A: THE SERVICE TUNNELS The church entrance to the service tunnels is a relatively insecure one. While the entrance at the beach would usually require a high-tech key to access, this rarely used entrance on the edge of a graveyard appears to have been jury-rigged by frustrated MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] employees. As such, the key card reader has a spare key card tied to it with wire, and cigarette butts overfl ow from a small crack in a wall a few meters away from it. The tunnels themselves are wide enough to be able to drive a car down, and occasionally a small electric buggy sits in an alcove ready to be used. Should the Kids wish to drive one, it may well draw attention to them as the buggies are difficult to hide 2 and generally remain plugged in and charging when not in use. The service tunnels are lit from above by strip lights, which occasionally buzz and fl icker, giving the tunnels a gloomy atmosphere. Pipes run the length of the walls, supplying water and electric cabling to various parts of the Loop. At irregular intervals, small cupboards are built into a wall, containing electrical and mechanical supplies, as well as stationery. When traveling within these tunnels, the Kid who was aff ected by the creature at the start of the Mystery starts to get strong feelings of fear and even pain from the direction of the beach entrance (although they themselves do not feel the pain itself). The aff ected Kid feels this empathic link grow stronger as they approach the waterlogged cave. TROUBLE Traveling along the tunnels is likely to cause the Kids to encounter at least one group of ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employees. They wear decontamination suits, and with the loose curve of the tunnels the Kids hear their radios crackle before they are seen. The Kids may try to sneak to avoid being noticed. If one or more Kids are seen, the employees give chase to try to scare the Kids out of the tunnels. They do not know how many Kids there are, however, and a Kid may easily charm the employees to convince them that the caught Kid(s) are the only ones there, allowing the others to continue onwards. CLUES Listening to any conversation between the ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employees they encounter, should the Kids manage to hide, reveals that they are performing experiments on some kind of “thing that was left in the cave”. Sentences heard may include: ■ “The bigger one probably won’t be back. The scientists say they spotted it heading back into that weird hole in the sky before it closed up.” ■ “That thing is making everything electrical malfunction. If it’s got a battery, it’s not gonna work.” 37EASTER EGG HUNT
■ “Bloody scientists, saying ‘We can’t move it’, and ‘It could disturb it.’ We already shifted it twice… it’s fine. But no, they get to make the decisions.” LOCATION 5B: THE WATERLOGGED CAVE If they continue along the service tunnels, the Kids come across a set of double doors which have been left open. Voices come from within. Inside the double doors, the Kids see a deep and wide cave, approximately ten meters round, with puddles formed from dripping stalactites above them. Around the edge of the cave are various pieces of electrical equipment, such as spotlights focused on an object in the centre. The object is an elongated spheroid, approximately 80 centimetres long and 30 centimetres wide. Its white, grey and black dappled surface appears to have ridges on it which look almost like ripples spreading from one long side to another. It sits in a puddle. A ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employee kneels next to it and cuts a tiny sliver from its organic surface. When she does this, the Kid who had been affected by the purple light (from the mother) suddenly understands that the odd-looking thing appears to be in some amount of pain and is afraid. 38CHAPTER O3
TROUBLE At this point, there are fewer ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employees coming and going from the cave at any time, but three are currently focused on trying to get scientific data from the object in the centre of the space. Attempting to approach it, or do anything with it, requires the Kid(s) to sneak towards it. This can be made a lot easier by attempting to tinker with equipment around the area to distract the employees, or just making noise such as breaking items using force while the rest of the Kids approach the object. Carrying the object is not easy and requires a successful force attempt, as it appears to be stuck to the floor with some kind of viscous fluid. The Kid who is telepathically linked to it feels it calmed by their presence when they approach it. SHOWDOWN Shortly after the Kids retrieve the object, the ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employees notice that it is missing and give chase. The Kids need to escape the service tunnels and retreat to a safe place. This can be their Hideout, but the players should be warned that from the next Mystery onwards, they should try to decide on a different Hideout, as bringing the object to their current one might allow Trouble to occur there, and adults to be able to find the object. Escaping from the ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employees and to their designated location is treated as Extended Trouble with a normal Threat Level (equal to two times the number of Kids). EXTENDED TROUBLE Inform the players that the Kids not only need to escape from the tunnels quickly, but also must avoid the adults who are after them once outside. Use this to allow the Kids to expand on how they wish to roll. It is relatively easy to narrate that the Kids get far enough ahead in the tunnels to get into Great Yarmouth before the adults catch up to them, at which point they can play their scene, or they can split scenes between inside the tunnel and the outside. Should the Kids fail, the ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employees detain them and confiscate the object. Worse than that, their parents are informed of their misdeeds and the Kids are grounded. This does not have to be the end of things, as subsequent Mysteries in this campaign can be changed to suit such a scenario with Gamemaster intervention, but the Kids will need to go through considerable efforts, or significant events must occur, to get the Kids in possession of the object when it hatches. The following suggestions are for the Gamemaster to get this Mystery back on track if the Kids are detained and the object confiscated: ■ A rogue scientist removes the object (or if it has hatched, the creature) from the research lab as they suspect a link to (one of) the Kids. They contact the Kids and provide a means for them to get it to “safety”, away from ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA]. ■ An animal rights group breaks into the Loop and frees the creature after hearing about an “animal” being experimented on, allowing the Kids another chance to track it down. ■ In the wake of the ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] takeover of the Loop and potential negative press, they start to allow for school tours around the Loop. As they arrive, the linked Kid senses the presence of the creature nearby, knowing it is being held somewhere and experimented on. In any of these opportunities, the linked Kid may receive intuitive calls and cries of distress from the creature, fueling their desire to find and rescue it. If appropriate, they may suffer one or more relevant Conditions until they become Broken, adding to their friends’ eagerness to recover the entity. AFTER THE SHOWDOWN After the Kids get away to their safe space, they should describe what they do with this object, such as where they put it and how they keep it safe. Inform the Kids that if they put it near electrical items which run on small batteries, such as Sony Walkmans or flashlights, they quickly find that those batteries lose their charge after a half hour. Even more strangely, the linked Kid feels somewhat sated. The players should describe a scene in the Kids’ everyday life in the days following the Showdown. Despite everything the Kids have done, nothing in the world changes. Adults are still distant, and the world is 39EASTER EGG HUNT
still mundane. Should the Kids suggest that they wish to announce this creature to the world, it is dismissed as a prank by every adult they show it to. ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employees continue to scour the Broads for signs of the object. After a few weeks their presence diminishes, but never quite goes away. Their presence at the beach, however, remains. The Kid linked to the creature feels that it is calm, and that it will wake up soon, but that it needs time. EXTRATERRESTRIAL RESEARCH In any of the Mysteries, the Kids may want to learn more about extraterrestrial life or how to rear animals. A location such as a library is an excellent choice to research these subjects, and the Kids should use the library as a useful tool for Mysteries moving forward. ■ They should learn that alien life is not necessarily like what they see on television. Aliens could just as easily be animal-like creatures from another dimension as they could be intelligent beings who travel across the stars. ■ Through research into animals, they also learn that they need food and shelter for any creature they look after. It should also become evident that if they do not know what the creature eats, they need to pay attention to things like what it has already eaten, when it becomes hungry, and what it tries to gain access to. They also read that some creatures only eat when they need to, and that as an example some whales can go up to six months without eating. ■ Should the Kids choose to avoid the library, other options for research into animal care might be older adult relatives from rural areas (farms, etc.) or even a trip to a pet store or zoo, if possible. NPCS AND CREATURES Here are the Gamemaster characters of particular importance to the Mystery. Some have special attributes that can change the Threat Level the Kids face during some Mystery scenes. Depending on how the Kids interact with them, these can be a bonus or a hindrance to the Kids’ eff orts. DANIEL WRAFF [ÖSTEN AHLBERG] “No, no, no. You don’t see. It’s imperative I fi nd… uh… nothing.” Daniel [Östen] is desperate for professional recognition. Thinking of himself as constantly a hair’s breadth away from greatness, he almost moved to the American [Swedish] Loop before the British government decided to start funding a Norfolk Loop. He is under permanent pressure from himself to try to succeed, so he always aims higher than he should. This has caused him to be disrespected by colleagues who want him to follow certain important protocols, and has led to his work being sloppier as time has gone by. 40CHAPTER O3
When the Rift opened and Daniel [Östen] saw the creature come through, he perceived it as his final chance to prove to his colleagues that he had discovered something wonderful. Unfortunately, in his excitement, he never wrote down the settings the Loop was running at when the rift was opened, so the creature itself and its young may be the only opportunity he has to make his mark on the world. When the Kids catch up to Daniel [Östen], he has been desperately trying to talk to people in the area who may have seen the creature in order to glean more information about it and document all he can. As he has now been removed from the Loop facility, he thinks that this may be his final opportunity in life, and so he will try anything he can to learn more. BULLY KIDS “I guess you lot are desperate if you’re trying to make friends with that guy.” Alison Stevens [Agneta Stenbock] is the most boisterous of these four fifteen-year-old kids. Each from a difficult home, they have started to act out as a way of trying to gain control in their life and as an outlet for their frustrations. Alison is joined by Katy and Johnny King [Kristin and Joakim Dahl], twins, as well as Simon Turner [Sebastian Magnusson]. Alison is happy to start a fight given a chance (brawling 2), and she doesn’t mind getting in trouble for it as her parents never punish her, blaming the parenting of others for her actions instead. Katy and Johnny mostly do whatever Alison says, whereas Simon more often tries to make wise-cracks and insult those who Alison is picking on to try and rile them up. If these bullies are too much of a challenge for the Kids, the Gamemaster can have local law enforcement – or even a nearby security guard – come to their aid. If the Kids are in possession of the object, this might lead to additional difficulty explaining what they are up to. 41EASTER EGG HUNT
TOSHIA KAWASAKI AND TONY MILES [TORSTEN HOLMQUIST] “Watching who? That man? I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Toshia and Tony are both in their late 30s and extremely (loyal 2) to ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA]. They have seen a lot of strange things while working for the company and intend to keep people safe from the more dangerous things in the Broads. They are usually employed in the role of security for people attending events on behalf of ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA], so they both have the ability to physically (protect 2) things or people if they need to, but in this instance, they are keeping a watchful eye on Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg], making sure that he does not tell people too much about what has been happening, for the good of everyone around him. REGIS [FOA] [DARPA] EMPLOYEES “The sample is being analysed as we speak.” Employees in ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] are aware of the strange goings-on in the world that might be caused by the Loop. They have been investigating some of the sightings of strange lights and mists reported by locals, although as of yet none of their actions have borne fruit. Employees of ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] are highly trained scientists and engineers, helping the Norfolk Loop remain one of the most advanced science facilities in the world, as well as keeping its secrets hidden. They are, for the most part, in charge of the Broads Loop, although MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] employees make up most of the public face of the project. 42CHAPTER O3
MAFF [RIKSENERGI] [DART] EMPLOYEES “What did the suits tell us to do this week?” White-collar workers and low-level scientists working at the Broads Loop are generally employed by MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART]. Anybody visiting the facility who does not have clearance to learn more likely sees this public-facing side of the facility and assumes that there is not much going on. Most of the local employees are hired by MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART], and as such, view ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] as “outsiders” who have decided to take over one of the most important projects for the local area. Still, they tend not to complain, as in the current economy, they prefer the regular pay packet they receive versus going to work for a local supermarket. 43EASTER EGG HUNT
CHAPTER O4 With the summer holidays fast approaching, the Kids would usually be looking forward to months of freedom. Something they’ve found, however, has their attention, and it’s not long before the result of their spring investigation turns summer into a season of danger. THE BEST OF WHAT MIGHT BE THE TRUTH OF THE MYSTERY 45 THE CREATURE 46 THE LOOP FACILITY 46 INTRODUCING THE KIDS 47 INTRODUCING THE MYSTERY 47 SOLVING THE MYSTERY 47 LOCATION 1: GROVE HIGH SCHOOL 50 LOCATION 2: DANIEL’S HOUSE 53 LOCATION 3: THE LOOP LABORATORIES 55 LOCATION 4: THE LOOP REACTOR 57 LOCATION 5: THE MAGNETRINE HARBOUR 59 SHOWDOWN 60 AFTER THE SHOWDOWN 61 NPCS AND CREATURES 61
45 THE TRUTH OF THE MYSTERY In spring the Kids witnessed an event which would set in motion four seasons of strange goings-on. The truth of the Mystery turned out to be that when disgraced scientist Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] performed unsanctioned experiments in the Loop, a creature, a denizen of another realm, crossed over into this world. This creature laid an egg in one of the Loop’s service tunnels on Norfolk Beach, and the government group ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] have been seeking to understand it. At the end of the previous Mystery (Easter Egg Hunt), the Kids retrieved this egg, based on their investigations and the encouragement of a psychic link to one of their number. At the start of this summer Mystery, the Kids are present to witness the moment when the egg hatches, revealing the creature inside. Soon, they come to realize that in order to survive it requires a few things which the Kids cannot easily provide: small amounts of neodymium and a strong electrical current. During this Mystery, the Kids are forced to find a source of these two things in quantities enough to sustain the young creature until autumn. ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] and MAFF [Riksenergi] [DART] have a large amount of data gathered from their time examining the egg, and Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] has gained some of this data from his old associates and ex-partner. He is attempting to uncover
details of what the creature is, where it went, and what its life cycle is. At the start of the Mystery, he is not aware that the Kids stole the egg, but he has learned that it is missing. ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] are on the lookout for their lost artifact, and have their eyes set firmly on the Broads. Soon after the previous Mystery, they sealed off the roads out of Great Yarmouth and set up a number of traffic stops, with the excuse of IRA bomb threats. When these efforts came up empty, they concluded the egg must still be within the area. SUMMARY ■ The Kids witness the creature hatching. The creature imprints on the Kids who are present, especially the one who was telepathically linked to it in the previous Mystery. The Kids may be able to tell that it is hungry, but if not, they discover this later. ■ At school, the Kids once again meet Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg], who has attained a new job as a science teacher for Groove High School. He is also looking for the creature as he has heard from his ex-colleagues that a few local children were involved in stealing the egg. The Kids can see that he has various notes on the creature. ■ The Kids can visit Daniel’s [Östen’s] home and/or the Loop facility, to find out more about the creature and gain some insight into what it might require for food. ■ The Kids can visit the local magnetrine vehicle harbour in order to attain neodymium. ■ The Kids must gain access to the Loop Reactor to allow the creature to leech electrical power as a source of sustenance, or alternatively, find large numbers of batteries to wean the creature over time. At the end of their investigation, one of two things will happen. Either: ■ Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] has been following the Kids and catches up to them, leading to him attempting to steal the creature, or ■ The local bullies, last seen in the previous Mystery, turn up once again when the Kids are no longer able to be aided by local law enforcement. THE CREATURE After hatching, the creature is around the size of a cat, or baby pygmy hippo – about 5 kilograms (12 lbs.) in weight and half a meter (1.5 feet) long. It is likely to imprint on at least one of the Kids, looking to them for food and companionship. The creature’s needs are not easily met, requiring the Kids to go out of their way to retrieve rare or exotic resources to sustain it. If the Kids help the creature, it is visibly grateful, displaying affection and making cooing or highpitched purring noises at whichever of the Kids outwardly helps it. To promote the creature’s vulnerable nature, describe it as failing to perform feats, like falling harmlessly off small boxes or wanting to explore in a manner akin to a kitten or puppy. At this point in its life, the creature is entirely dependent on others to provide for it and needs the Kids to secure transport for it to move significant distances. It does not travel quickly and happily rides in a rucksack or similar bag without making noise, unless startled. Should people be made aware of the creature, they assume it’s a hairless rabbit or some form of science project the Kids are involved with at school. They may tell an adult, and while that adult is quizzical, unless they are a ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] employee or Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg], they are dismissive of the creature as anything but an entirely mundane curiosity. At most, they may suggest that someone should take it to a nearby zoo or animal shelter. Should ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] or Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] notice the creature, they may attempt to pursue and attain it. An example of such a pursuit is detailed in the Showdown section of this Mystery (page 60). More information about the creature can be found in Chapter 2: They Grow Up So Fast, on page 13. THE LOOP FACILITY Two primary locations may appear during this Mystery: the Loop laboratories and the Loop Reactor. More details on each appear in their specific sections, but following is a brief overview: ■ LABORATORIES: The primary laboratories of the Loop are heavily involved with research into some of the greater and more abstract mysteries evoked by the Loop’s operations. If the Kids have been in46CHAPTER O4
volved with any additional Mysteries prior to this one, this facility may have data about any number of strange goings-on in the local area. Recently, however, the laboratories have focused on quantum tunnelling, attempting to utilize the Loop to travel to other places, using the information gained during Daniel’s [Östen’s] spring experiments as a basis for further testing. ■ REACTOR: The Loop Reactor serves two functions. First, it supplies power to the Loop itself – a facility which would otherwise draw massively from Great Yarmouth’s own power supply. In doing so, it often creates excess power which it can then supply to the greater town area. Secondly, the Loop Reactor also runs its own series of experiments on harnessing electricity using a variety of methods and creating portable power sources. Despite the power station providing a stable source of electricity, ReGIS [FOA] [DARPA] has investigated theoretical hydrogen fusion, creation of antihelium particles for matter collisions, and zero-point energy, all to negligible success. INTRODUCING THE KIDS This Mystery starts with the egg hatching prior to the Kids going to school for the day, so it should begin with each Kid getting introduced by talking about their morning routine. Do the Kids see their parents in the morning? How do they interact with their siblings or pets? If any of the Kids’ parents are employed by the Loop, perhaps as a piece of environmental storytelling have a Kid stumble upon a letter discussing redundancy alongside a full ashtray or a box of tissues. Eventually, allow the Kids to all converge, early in the morning, in the location where the egg has been hidden in the previous Mystery. INTRODUCING THE MYSTERY Before school, the egg will hatch. It already had a small crack in its surface, which the Kids had been watching, and this morning the creature pushes itself out of the organic surface, slightly slimy but absolutely healthy. After a couple of minutes, it is ambulatory and makes cooing noises at the Kids, apparently believing them to be its parents. ■ The creature tries to get close to the Kid who has been affected by the purple light of its mother in the spring Mystery. It does not try to escape anyone who is kind to it but generally stays close to the linked Kid. ■ When the Kids leave for the school day, the creature tries to go with them. It attempts to climb into bags or other “pouches” such as large pockets, even if it will not fit. When in a bag, it appears as though it is snoozing quietly. While the Kids do not have to take the creature with them should they find a way to keep it contained somewhere, the addition of the creature with them may add an entertaining element to scenes going forward. CLUES ■ The creature refuses to eat any human or pet food offered, and Kids who investigate the creature notice that its mouth is relatively small, and it does not have other digestive orifices. ■ Attempting to empathize with the creature reveals that it appears to be comfortable around the Kids and does not seem to want to travel far from them, especially the linked Kid. ANDROPHOBIA While the Kids are generally fine around the creature, they find that adults make it nervous. Showing the creature to adults causes it to shy away, and it starts shivering to show its discomfort. The linked Kid also gets a feeling of unease in these situations. This is a result of how it was treated by adults while it was in the egg. SOLVING THE MYSTERY After the introduction, remind the Kids that if they do not go to school, they may get in trouble with their parents. If the Kids decide to skip school, they should be directed back by the appearance of a parent of one of the Kids driving past them and offering a lift, or similar. Make sure to build up this parent’s connection to their own Kid by asking about school or making potentially embarrassing inquiries about the Kids' social life. 47 MIGHT BE THE BEST OF WHAT
There are fi ve important locations in this Mystery: the Kids’ school, the Loop Research Facility, Daniel Wraff ’s [Östen Ahlberg’s] home, the Loop Reactor, and the magnetrine ship facility on the Outer Harbour. They are marked on the map below. The Kids approach the school early in the Mystery, after which they are likely to discover that Daniel Wraff [Östen Ahlberg] has research from the Broads Labs on the sighting of the creature’s mother. At this point, they may choose to try to visit the Labs or Daniel’s [Östen’s] home. The information they could fi nd at these locations, as well as the creature’s slowly changing attitude, should cause the Kids to be guided to fi nding a source Introducing the Mystery Daniel's House The Loop Research Facility Outer Harbour SHOWDOWN The Loop Reactor Facility or Power Station Facility The school of neodymium at the Outer Harbour or electricity at the Broads Reactor. The concept of this Mystery is one in which the Kids should discover how to provide a sustainable method of feeding the creature what it needs, rather than one-off sources. Should the Kids attain, for example, batteries, suggest that the creature quickly drains them of power and looks expectantly at the Kids. Should the creature be instructed to draw power from an outlet, have the fuses quickly blow with the amount of power it draws. This should give a clue as to the excessive needs of the creature. 48CHAPTER O4
Magnetrine Harbour Grove High School Daniel's House Broads Reactor Broads Labs 49 MIGHT BE THE BEST OF WHAT Magnetrine Harbour Grove High School Daniel's House Broads Reactor Broads Labs Magnetrine Harbour High School Östen’s House