STARTING OUT

The waiting room at Shifting Alchemy is pleasantly filled with nice
smelling plants, and a variety of pictures on the walls. The pictures
include both photographs and oils, but all are of attrative, apparantly
imaginary scenes. Closer inspection, however, reveals that many of the
photographs show none of the typical marks of chemical enhancement or
psionic production.

When Jane notices this she will look even closer at the odd photographs,
tilting her head slightly and looking a bit puzzled. Finally she mutters
something in a strange language, but smiles slightly as if she has
figured it out.

The furniture in the waiting room is suitable for a variety of body
forms and comfortable to any of the basic N'Ferran races. The well-made
tables are adorned with a number of pieces of literature in a variety of
languages. In addition to the obligatory company pamphlet, the local
paper and periodicals, there are several translations of "The Book of
Travels," the N'Ferran equivalent of the Bible. (Dustin _is_ familiar
with this book, but not the particular Peshka annotation here.)
Additionally, there are several classics of exploration and speculative
fiction.

Jane picks up and leafs through the company pamphlet, she also looks at
some of the local newspapers trying to make some sense out of them.
Other than that she simply sits still in her chair and tries to be
inconspicuous, although she is clearly a bit curious about her
surroundings, even if she tries to hide it. (Unfortunately, although
Jane can speak the local language, she hasn't gotten around to learning
the local alphabet.)

Dustin, a very young (he doesn't looks like he shaves regularly yet),
but large (over 6') human male has been waiting patiently for the past
half hour. According to the receptionist, the person he made the
appointment with was unavoidably detained, but can be expected back at
any time. To make up for the wait, the receptionist (a slahses neuter)
provided Dustin with a biscuit plate containing a wide variety of
crackers and cookies and a pleasant herbal infusion, refilling both as
necessary.

Dustin is of course FASCINATED by the exploratory literature as well as
the speculative fiction and is reading it, wishing he'd learned more
about that Speed Reading he spotted earlier in the university codex...he
will read until Jane shows up.

Jane, an extremely beautiful human female whose features make her
clearly not a native of N'Ferra, arrives in time for her appointment,
only to have the receptionist explain the same situation to her. The
receptionist ushers her to the waiting room and apologizes for the wait,
insisting that Mr. Jriu does want to talk to both of you.

Jane comes along without a fuss and says "Oh, OK", she sits down and
tries not to disturb anyone. She is dressed in black clothing, actually
black BDU’s if anyone would recognise that. She doesn’t look very
dangerous though, she seems rather timid in fact. Unless spoken to she
will sit nice and quiet in her chair until Mr. Jriu arrives.

When Jane notices that Dustin stops reading when she enters she smiles
nervously and fidgets a little, but she quickly gets into the pattern of
just sitting really still and trying not to seem obtrusive. She will not
make any moves until Mr Jriu arrives, and even then she would rather not
make the first move.

Dustin will simply say,"Hi, my name is Dustin."

If she leaves it at that, he'll keep devouring everything in print in
the room that he can get his hands on.

Jane smiles nervously, then she says "Uhm, my name’s Jane Guillard."

Dustin smiles,"pleased to meet you Jane."

She fidgets nervously, then after a pause she says "Do you know what
this job is all about? I mean all I know is that it involves energy
weapons". If asked she will say "Uhm, I mean Mr Dustin, I uh heard that
maybe energy weapons would be involved". She seems rather nervous, and
she also seems a bit timid.

Dustin shrugs,"I believe we're going to some other world..if it involves
energy weapons then it probably has a world where this "Electronics"
stuff I keep reading about works..."

She nods, then she says "Oh, yeah, it doesn’t work here does it?", she
smiles a little, and looks away waiting for his answer.

If he asks her about it she will confirm "Yes it works where I am from,
it is in fact very important". If probed further she can begin to say
"Well, uh, I am from Earth, and electronics and mechanical things are
very important there, I mean all communications and transportation and
such are done that way. I mean because there’s no public magic or
anything". She seems rather surprised that she has said this much, and
then clams up and says "Uh, sorry", waiting for him to go on.

Dustin replies,"Earth? Interesting name for a planet....We called our
asteroid Dirt. That sounds really cool though, especially
electronics...how much do you know about them? Do you have any books or
such about them and how to use them? I wonder if that's why you're here
so we can go on an expidition to earth....

When Mr Jriu arrives Jane will get up, but will wait for Dustin or Mr
Jriu to make the first move. All she will say is "Hello Mr Jriu, I am
Jane Guillard".

Mr. Jriu turns out to be a Gennen, and comes bustling in apologizing for
his tardiness. "It seems that the Ch'vrr captain we hired paniced when
she discovered the cargo we wanted her to carry so I've been rushing
around getting a new ship hired and the cargo transferred so we get the
favorable conjunction we need."

Jane is a bit confused as to why anyone would panic at discovering a
cargo, she opens her mouth as if to ask what happened, but she quickly
thinks the better of it and clams shut.

Dustin has no such objections,"What was the cargo?" He seems fascinated.

"Aluminum," Mr Jriu replies. "500 tons of aluminum. Ch'vrr are born
cowards, so I can't blame her for panicing over such a valuable cargo,
and I should have made alternate plans, but, unfortunatly, I didn't."

"Wow. Sounds important." thinks Dustin, having absolutely no CLUE what
that is.

Jane raise an eyebrow at the mentioning of the amount of aluminium, but
she keeps her mouth closed. For a moment though she wonders if she
should say something.

After making sure you are both settled and comfortable, he continues.
"Well, I'm glad to have you both here. I'd intended to brief you
separately, but I hope you won't hold it amiss if I speak to both of you
together."

"To understand what you're being hired for we have cover a bit of
background first. I apologize if any of it is already familiar to you,
but _please_ interrupt with questions if anything is unclear."

Jane is just smiling and nodding at this point, it would seem that she
agrees perfectly with whatever Mr Jriu is saying, or rather she is too
timid to say anything else.

Dustin nods,"Ok...."

"Good!" He leans back in his chair. "7 years ago we N'Ferrans solved a
problem that we had been working on for over 5,000 years. That is, the
problem of interdimensional travel. From the sphere of N'Ferra we opened
a gate to here," he raps the table, "the Dark Sphere, and discovered
that from here it was remarkably easy to open gates to a multitude of
other dimensions."

"Why was it so hard to make a gate?" Dustin asks.

"Hmmm." Mr Jriu thinks for a moment. "Imagine a steel sphere resting on
a bunch of metal sheets stacked on edge. An ant could travel from sheet
to sheet quite easily, but can only travel from the sphere to the sheets
at a particular point. Its just an anaology, of course, but N'Ferra was
the sphere and we had to find the point which would enable us to travel
elsewhere."

"In order that no single government could dominate the process,
dimensional exploration was put into the hands of a confederacy
government group, The Gate Project, who were also made responsible for
controlling access so that it wouldn't be abused. The Gate Project
started their work about five years ago. Since that time they've opened
three dimensions up to colonization and about twenty more to limited
access mining and the like. For example, most of the water here on the
base comes from an uninhabited world with massive amounts of fresh
water, another world is tapped for its timber reserves."

"Exactly how many worlds have been discovered so far?" Dustin asks.

"I don't know the exact number. Over a thousand, certainly."

Dustin whistles,"So this has taken you guys quite a while to find huh?"

"Actually, the world was discovered some time ago. What's taken the time
is making contact with the people and arranging for mutually beneficial
trade as well as working out a means of preventing hostile forces from
tracking back to us."

"For quite some time now, I, and various other businessmen, have been
pressing the Confed Council to open up inhabited dimensions to trade.
Unfortunately, there were problems problems to overcome before we could
progress with this. Many dimensions don't have anything to offer that we
can use. Others have no needs that we're capable of supplying. Some
dimensions are so different that we just can't relate to them, and
others are too dangerous."

"How are they too dangerous?"

"Epidemic diseases; powerful, hostile inhabitants; physical laws which
change the nature of people who enter, to name a few."

Dustin nods, feeling a little smaller in the grand scheme of things.

"Thoughout this period we've also had to consider the morality of
actions. Many dimensions aren't ready for contact with a different
dimension, and some have cultures which could too easily be destroyed by
heavy-handedness on our part. There's an ongoing debate as to whether we
have the right to interfere with local cultures at all."

"But, I assume you get the point. People are anxious for
interdimensional traffic, but we can't move too quickly. It was only at
the end of last year we finally got the go-ahead to open full, two-way
contact with another dimension."

"Why are people anxious?"

Mr Jriu sounds astonished, "Why, for the opportunity to learn new
things, to expand our horizons, to develop ourselves to be the best we
can be."

Dustin nods,"I can certaintly understand THAT! How much contact do we
have so far?"

"I'll cover that in a moment. This dimension was selected because it has
a set of natural laws permit all the familiar powers that we of N'Ferra
know. However, aside from technology, which is far in advance of our
own, they make little use any of the other powers. This gives us great
trade opportunities as we can trade our products for theirs with both
sides making a profit. However, this dimension was also chosen as an
experiment in adapting an alien culture. The overall government of the
dimension is corrupt and rules through military force. It suppresses
innovation and exploration, and encourages wars between its component
parts. Its also xenophobic and prejudiced against nonhumans. Part of the
reason for contacting this dimension is to see if we can interfere in a
way that improves the lot of the people over there as well as our own."

"The culture in this dimension spans multiple worlds, and, since we
don't want contact with their overgovernment, we have established
contact with one world in particular."

"Samsax is an extremely poor world with a great deal of hostility to
their Imperial government. While their population is on the low side,
their technology is still superior to ours and they welcome the chance
to improve their lot even if it means consorting with aliens. We've
introduced a basic trade in enchanted devices for certain materials, and
they've permitted us to establish a small colony of Bine on their world.
Unfortunately, Bine are the only race who can survive the local
atmosphere without artificial aid."

"Well can't you just magically alter part of the world?"

"Of course, but we hardly have the time or resources currently. Besides,
it's _their_ world and we aren't going to make any changes without their
permission."

Jane actually comments on this saying "Wouldn’t be smart", then she
quickly adds "Uh Sirs". If anyone asks her why she will say "Well Mr
Jriu, if you make magical changes wouldn’t the Imperials get a bit
suspicious, I mean if they show up and see this green and verdant patch
of land, and there’s no way it could get like that through natural
means, Mr Jriu".

Jane finally dares to open her mouth and says Uh, Mr Jriu, how advanced
are they exactly? I mean the locals, and, uhm, well, eh are they very
hostile and on guard towards aliens? She seems really small where she
sits, but she tries to seem more confident than she is.

"So far as the Samsaxans are concerned, it doesn't matter what race or
species you are as long as you can pull your own weight. That's one of
the reasons we selected them to contact. I don't know how to describe
their technology briefly, but we can discuss it later."

Jane nods quickly, then she adds "Thank you Mr Jriu, I would like that
very much".

"Let's see," Jriu says, consulting his notes, "what else. Oh yes! What
you're being hired for. Frankly the situation is too fluid right now to
make anything certain. You're both sort of in the situation of general
operatives putting your skills to use wherever they're most needed.
We're seeking people who would be able to adapt to this new dimension
and find their own place in it. We need people who can defend
themselves, but who are also willing to work _with_ us, and not as
maverics. Above all, we'd like for you to keep your eyes open for
possible dangers and opportunities both for us of N'Ferra and for the
people of the other dimension."

"Well how do you know we're the right people for the job?"

"Frankly, I don't, but you both came highly recommended, and the
divinations seem to indicate that you'll work out."

Dustin nods,"Ok."

"So, are there any more questions I can answer at this point?"

Jane hesitates for a while, then finally she says, "Well Mr Jriu, what
kind of a presence does the central government have on this planet?

"Supposedly none, but that's one thing I was hoping you would check
out."

Jane nods, then she says "Mr Jriu, uhm, if this is a oppressive state it
is almost certain that there will be several government spies, just . .
. uhm . . . how far can we go to keep our presence secret?".

Mr Jriu frowns. "You're certainly permitted to defend yourselves. So far
as keeping our presence a secret is concerned . . . I'd have to say that
killing isn't in order, and torture will never be approved for anything.
However, other than that I'll have to leave it up to your judgement,
which I'll back to the government if it reaches that point.

Her other questions which will come in quick order are, "What kind of
security measures are they taking Mr Jriu? Do they use Bio-Scanners,
that is devices that scan for deviant DNA?"

"Not on Samsax, but yes they have bioscanners and a very tight ID
system. However, they also have an extremely large variance in their
population so that, as long as you're human or a varient, there won't be
any problems. A shapeshifted Gennan would have problems though."

Jane nods softly, then she says "Fortunately Mr Jriu, I show up as
perfectly normal on scanners", she smiles a little and then says in a
somewhat bitter voice "I suppose that’s a good thing, appearing normal
that is Mr Jriu".

Followed by, "Mr Jriu, Sir, you mentioned that they do not seem to
practise magic or psionic techniques even though these are possible, is
this due to government oppression? If so, Mr Jriu, are they undertaking
a genocide of practitioners, or are they merely oppressing them and or
forcing them to join the governments forces?"

Mr Jriu frowns, "Well, there's no active opression, and psis do exist,
they just aren't as well trained or possibly as talented as we are in
N'Ferra. Psis do face a lot of prejudice from the 'normal' citizenry,
but are also in demand for a large number of jobs. Frankly, we'd like to
know more about this aspect of their culture."

Jane nods then she says "I see Mr Jriu, I shall do my best".

She will also be asking Mr Jriu, how much do you know about the culture
and government of this place?

He laughs, "Not as much as we'd like."

Jane smiles a little at that, then she says "I shall try to find out
more Mr Jriu".

Finally she asks So Mr Jriu, how much will you be paying me?

He laughs again. "Oh my, how could I forget that. You, Jane, will be
earning $400 a month, and you, Dustin, will be earning $210 a month. You
will also have an expense account and we will provide you with certain
needed equipment. (Sheena will be paid $300/month.)"

Jane nods at this and seems quite pleased, as is Sheena when she finds
out.

Dustin feels sad at being paid less, but then, he is just an uneducated
hick from the Dryad cluster after all. It's not like he actually knows
anything to help on this mission. Yet.

After this Jane is more quiet and reserved, she will be willing to leave
right away, she already has everything she needs packed up and ready to
go. She will be reasonably eager to go, she feels better about things
when she is able to focus on her mission rather than be left up to her
own devises.

Dustin asks, "Is there any way I could take spell books or something
with me so I can keep learning magick while I'm there?"

"Of course. We would also be interested in learning if you encounter
anyone with magical aptitude. We'd like to recruit them if possible."

The door opens and a young woman enters; she looks a little flustered.
She has long honey-blonde hair, liberally streaked with black. Despite
the fact that she's wearing sunglasses, it can be seen that she is very
attractive. She is a long-sleeved blouse and an ankle-length skirt, with
high-heeled leather boots visible under the skirt.

"Sorry I'm late," she announces breathlessly. "I just got out of
debriefing." She looks at each of the people in the room. "I'm Sheena,"
she explains. "Apparently I'm part of your team."

Jane looks at her and smiles, then she says "Hello Sheena, I am Jane,
Jane Guillard, I’m glad to meet you". Jane is 5'0" tall and slender (100
lbs.). Yellow Blonde hair, dark green eyes, Caucasian features. Jane is
a slender but very beautiful woman, she looks a lot like Grace Kelley,
though perhaps not quite as glamorous. She does appear to be physically
weak, though athletic and healthy, she has a certain healthy and
wholesome beauty (think All American Girl). She wears her hair in a pony
tail. She is dressed in a black BDU which does somewhat clash with her
appearance.

Dustin smiles,"Nice to meet you Sheena...."

Sheena favors Dustin with a slight smile. "Uh, thanks. I just hope I'm
not going to be in the way.."

Dustin is a handsome fellow, and rather massively built. He's 6'5" and
200lbs, with tan hair and peircing blue eyes. He is wearing a leather
vest (no, not that kind, tanned leather) and blue jeans. He has a rather
innocent look about him...oh, and he looks to be about 14. He smiles,
"no more than I am! I've only been in civilization for about a month!"

When the meeting is over you are led to a fitting room where you are
equipped with survival gear for Samsax conditions. These include a
bodysuit, breath mask, small oxygen tank, and a heavy laser pistol (the
laser pistol doesn't work in N'Ferra). You are given a quick run through
on how to use all of them and given the opportunity to select from a
variety of other gear.

There aren't any spellbooks, elixers, amulets or other N'Ferra devices
among the gear. It's all equipment that's available on Samsax. However,
you can easily purchase N'Ferra gear whenever you're on the base.

Sheena takes a pistol somewhat dubiously, but she takes a breather and
oxy-tank. She apparently already has a body-stocking. She doesn't talk
much and appears somewhat shy.

Jane gently grabs one of the lasers and quickly examines it, she removes
the power-cell and inserts it again, she seems quite at ease with the
weapon. Finally she comments "Heavy laser pistol, packs quite a punch,
not my favourite but better than most slug-throwers". The rest of the
equipment takes a little longer for her to get used to, but she does
eventually get it done.

Sheena looks over at her. "You've used things like this before?" she
asks. "I've never seen anything like it in my life."

Jane nods then she says "Yes Miss Sheena, it is as I said a heavy laser
pistol, it has between 12 and 24 shots in it, basically you just aim and
squeeze the trigger, no recoil". Also if asked she adds "Light
Amplification by Stimulated Emissions of Radiation, abbreviated to
LASER, very nasty, like focusing the light of the sun on a tiny area".

(This model has 18 shots. Ion pistols (Blasters) and Hand Flamers are
also available, but are much less sturdy than the lasers.)

As for other equipment, Jane already has a pair of revolvers, a two
handed sword, and a few knives. She is a bit interested in vibro-blades
if they have any. Other than that she would like some communications
gear (of any nature), as well as some sensor equipment, and finally some
way of making recordings. Other than that she is ready to go.

Vibro-knives are available in both large and small versions. Short-range
scrambled single-channel ear-plug communicators are available and are
simple enough for anyone to use. You can also pick up a holomotion
camera. Other communicators, sensors, and recorders are also available,
but you doubt your abilities to use them. Enchanted items and
photography gear the like are available from the Base N'Ferra shops.
Limited amounts are available on your expense account.

Jane will take a big vibro-knife, she will smile a little as she moves
in careful and graceful arches. She will take one of everything else, or
rather at least one camera (small and concealeable would be preferred),
a multi-scanner (preferably with a assisting computer), some stun
grenades (if available), a light helmet with HUD, multiview visor and
communicators. Finally if she can get a couple of devices that can
create a three dimensional illusion of herself then she will (they
should be small though).

Sheena seems a little reluctant to weigh herself down with weapons apart
from the laser pistol, and she doesn't seem to have much how to use that
either. She will take an earplug communicator and a camera. And a small
laser pistol, but she won't want to depend on it. She also takes two
breathers; one for human and one for leopard.

"Oh, I know what a laser is; I just didn't know you could use them as
weapons. Outside of a science-fiction story that is." She pauses and
looks around. "Oh. Oh, of course."

Jane smiles shyly, then she says "Most people back home don’t seem to
believe in lasers, I know I didn’t know about them before ...", she then
says "It’s not that hard, even I figured out how to use one". She then
stops and just stands around trying to be quiet.

Dustin says,"It's a shame we can't practice with these things..." he
likes the feel of it, which is odd for a hunk of metal he's never picked
up before. He puts it in his holster and begins to try and take it out
really fast. It's pretty comic to watch at first, but if you pay close
attention...you'll see he gets a noticeably better at it each time.
Dustin ends up taking two blasters and two holsters for them as well as
a good amount of ammo.

After you mention practicing, Mr. Jriu agrees that its a good idea.
He'll arrange for you to visit a N'Ferra colony where electronics work
and who are also doing research into that area. It takes about an hour
to reach the gate, and you're all given the schedule for when this gate
is open so you can revisit whenever you want.

Jane will be very interested in this and will go there to test out all
of her weapons, and do some basic exercises. She will also be interested
in learning about training areas where she might practise her other
combat skills more extensively. If anyone watches her Jane is very good,
she is a natural master with all melee weapons, and she is a quick
learner with any other weapon.

Dustin is also highly interested in testing out his new toys and gets in
some good shots with the blaster pistols and the laser pistol.

Sheena is quite interested in watching. She readily confesses that she
has little in the way of formal training.

Jane is a bit nervous, but if you watch her train it is clear that she
is frighteningly skilled with just about every form of weapon imagined
by man. She can literary pick up any melee or thrown weapon and use it
like a professional. She is also skilled in boxing and wrestling,
although it looks more like crude brawling when she uses it in a fight
(she is simply VERY efficient). Finally she has expert level of skill
with most fire-arms, at least if she gets a chance to work with them for
a while.

If Sheena asks Jane will say "I used to work a lot with weapons Miss
Sheena, and I got some", she hesitates seeming a bit nervous before she
adds "Some natural talent". She is not a teacher but will give it a go
if asked, or at least give demonstrations.

Sheena opts to pass. "I have a ... unique ... way of fighting," she
says. "I don't often use hand weapons close in."

Once you're fully accustomed to the new gear you recieve your first
mission. It seems a vessel has detected the gates N'Ferra is operating
on Samsax. They've hinted that they are from another dimension
themselves, but it could also be an Imperial sting operation. Your task
is to escort a gate theoretician to talk to these people and find out
what the real situation is. (There will be a total of four in the
party.)

Sheena professes her lack of knowledge in such matters, and prefers to
follow the lead of anyone who has prior experience.

Jane will make this suggestion "Well Mr Jriu, fellow team members," she
hesitates then she goes on saying "We should meet in a neutral location,
perhaps on the planet surface, but certainly not aboard their ship.
There should be several escape routes just in case this is a trap, and
we should not inform them of the meeting place until the last possible
moment, thereby preventing them the time they would need to set up a
trap of their own, or to find and block our exits. We should have some
kind of diversion, preferably magical or psionic in nature since if they
are Imperials they are unlikely to have good counters for these powers.
Explosions have always been good diversions, that and teleporting us
out, and dangerous things in". She stops then she says "Of course that
is just a suggestion," she then goes on with "As a group I think that I
should pass myself off as a secretary or assistant, I don’t look like
much of a threat and such a rouse would give us the benefit of surprise
if something should go wrong. Mr Dustin should probably act like a
‘real’ bodyguard, he is big and strong enough to make that credible, and
that should make them focus all their attention on him."

Dustin blinks,"Well I'm a bit young to pose as one; but I suppose I
could pick it up as I went." (He does seem rather comfortable with that
laser.)

Jane pauses, "Well you are very big Mr Dustin, I mean if you get some
kind of disguise, or just wear the breathing apparatus then no one would
ever think that you are as young as you are". She smiles and says "Just
stand around and look menacing, that’s a big part of bodyguard duty
anyway".

Dustin thinks,"I suppose I could wear some kind of robe or silvery mask
or something so that no one could see my face."

"As for the rest of you, you could either act like genuine bodyguards or
find some credible cover story to explain your presence at this meeting.
If something should go wrong our tactic should be to cover the expert,
launch a quick counter-strike to mess things up for them, trigger our
diversion, grab the expert and run".

Jane stops realising just how much she has said, then she smiles a
little and then says "Most of the time we have more time to plan Mr
Jriu, it is the best I can come up with right now". She then stands
around quietly waiting for a response.

Sheena looks around at everyone else. "Uh.." she says softly. "I've got
no problems with the plan as such, but I'm not entirely sure if I could
pass as a bodyguard. Maybe I could go as a secretary...." she pauses,
then seems to make a decision, "... or as a pet."

Jane looks surprised, then she says "Uhm, yes, maybe a secretary, but,
Miss Sheena can you shapeshift?". If the answer is yes Jane will say
"How wonderful, what can you become?".

"Uh.." Sheena pauses. "Best I show you, I think." She puts down the
equipment she has already selected, and unbuttons her blouse. She
removes and her skirt to reveal a full-length body stocking. Then she
unzips her leather boots and puts them next to the pile of clothes.
Finally, she removes her sunglasses and drops them atop her clothes. Her
eyes, now that everyone can see them, are brilliant green, with cat-slit
pupils. From behind her, protruding through the body-stocking, a long
tail curls from side to side.

For a second, nothing seems to happen. Then her form shifts; she drops
to a crouch, her fingertips touching the floor. Seconds later, the
change is complete; an adult leopard stands before them. The only thing
that hasn't changed is the eyes and the tail. She shakes herself and
yawns, pink tongue curling over sharp teeth. Then she shifts and changes
again, becoming once more a young woman in a body-stocking.

Jane gives the Leopard shape a odd look, not hateful or fearful, but
almost longing, the way you would look at a puppy in a petshop window.
She seems almost sad to watch Sheena change back into human shape.

"It's not so wonderful," she tells Jane somberly. "I'm a lycanthrope; a
were-leopard. This nearly got me killed back home."

Jane seems quite surprised, then she says "I am sorry to hear that Miss
Sheena, but it would make a good disguise. . . . Don’t you think?" She
stops and waits for a response from Sheena.

"Just call me Sheena -- I'm only twenty, for Heaven's sake. And yes, I
guess it would be a good disguise. Of course, as a pet, I would not be
wearing anything more than a collar..." Sheena trails off, as this
occurs to her.

[OOC to GM: how exactly does this body stocking change shape? Can it be
adjusted to form a collar?

The bodystocking is a silk knit leotard (no hands or feet) which is
sufficiently stretchy to conform to a variety of bodies with four limbs.
It also has a slot for a tail, and the person who sold it to asked if
you wanted wing slots as well. Making it with a collar wouldn't be a
good idea. However, there wouldn't be a problem with a separate collar
which you could wear in either form.

Sheena will get hold of a collar with a clip for either a leash (for
disguise purposes) or the "sentient being" tag (if she feels like going
around in leopard form).]

Jane looks a bit startled by Sheena’s reaction, then she says "Of course
Miss Sheena", then she adds "It would make a nice disguise, but it’s
your decision, I can understand if the idea doesn’t suit you ...". She
hesitates then she says "I don’t like collars much anyway".

Sheena looks at Jane oddly. "If it'll help the mission, then I can do
it," she says finally.

Jane nods and says "Very well Miss Sheena, I admire that attitude". She
notices Sheena’s look but ignores it.

Dustin asks,"Where exactly was that? Back home that is . . ."

Sheena pauses in the act of putting her skirt and blouse back on, and
looks at Dustin. "A city called New Tr'oy, on a planet called Urt. If
you're different there, you're dead. I was born to lycanthropes, but all
I ever wanted was to have a normal life." She blinks rapidly and wipes
her hand across her eyes. "That was all I ever wanted."

Dustin nods,"I can understand that; but then why are you going with us
to adventure across the universe? That's hardly . . . normal." he
smiles.

Sheena shrugged. "It depends on what your definition of 'normal' was. I
just wanted to associate with people my age and have fun." She smiles,
and it becomes apparent that her canine teeth are somewhat longer and
sharper than the norm. "With the telltales that I carry, this was
impossible. Now it's not." She finishes buttoning her blouse and puts
her skirt back on. "So what's your story, Dustin?"

Jane looks even sadder when she hears about Sheena, she listens to
Sheena and Dustin but doesn’t say anything, instead she just sticks to
herself.

Dustin sighs (he is, by the way more than distracted by Sheena's body
stocking but is polite enough not to say anything)...

"I...well, I have something the doc called Temporal Inertia...so what I
thought happened to me, keeps happening in lots of different ways...but
I grew up in a small village in the Dryad cluster...and then some bad
people came and attacked it...and then I was sent/came here to learn
magic and knowledge and fighting and music like Doc wanted me to.

"Wow -- magic," says Sheena. "I heard that they could do magic on Urt,
many years ago. But now it's not possible. Or something." She looks at
Dustin with sympathy. "You must've been close to this 'Doc'?"

"Oh yeah," she says all of a sudden. "How come you look so young? If you
don't mind me saying, you're definitely on the large side."

"Um...well, I'm 14....as to why I'm so large..." he shrugs,"Doc just
said I was large for my age I guess...and yeah, we were close. I can do
one spell now...it's pretty nifty too, it's called 'Apportation' and
lets me move things around in the air...

"Wow," replies Sheena. "That is pretty nifty. But what's this 'temporal
inertia' thingy that you said you had...?"

Dustin says,"It's something I'm just learning about, but it means that
if somebody goes back in time and changes the past then I remember the
past and the present...it seems to be more trouble than it's worth
though, just a major headache most of the time.

"Sounds weird to me," replies Sheena. "Weirder even than being born a
wereleopard..." She grins and favors him with a wink.

Dustin shrugs and smiles,"I never even really noticed it until I left
home...I guess what happened was something pretty important or
something."

"I suppose.." muses Sheena. "All I really know is that the universe --
sorry, the multiverse is weirder than I can ever imagine..."

Dustin nods,"Amen to that. Amen to that.

-----

The person who knows dimensional theory is a human male, Najkas Qutunp
(Najas Kaltap on Samsax). He stands about 5'8" and looks to be a very
healthy 55 or so. He also has experience with the conditions on Samsax.

He mentions that there are two possibilities for the meeting. We could
meet at Samsax's capitol, Freedom, or we could meet at the household
nearest the colony of Bine N'Ferra established. Any preferances? Once
the location is set up he'll call to arrange to meet with the contact.
If we can manage to get some equipment from the contact that originally
came from her original world we can determine whether she's real or not.
Otherwise, we're going to have to go aboard her ship.

>Jane hesitates before she says "Both options have their advantages, if
>this is a Imperial trap then meeting at Freedom would mean that we would
>be surrounded by potential supporters, people who might tip us off if
>something is wrong, and a sea of people for us to hide in if we have to
>run. However some of these people could be Imperial agents, and we would
>not be able to spot a Imperial trap on our own". She then goes on "The
>Bine colony would mean meeting on our own homeground, we would be able
>to fully trust the people there, and we could probably spot Imperial
>infiltrators or a Imperial trap rather easily. Problem is of course that
>this would reveal the location of the Bine colony, thereby endangering
>the Bine, and if we have to make a run for it we might have trouble".
>She then stops and waits for someone else to make the finally decision,
>she seems rather anxious not to make it herself.

Events will preempt this plan, so further discussions about planning
are snipped.

I forgot one very important piece of equipment. Everyone is given a
Peshka-Anglaman translator. This is a computerized translator which
automatically translates Anglaman (the Imperial language) to Peshka. To
translate Peshka to Anglaman you have to say the phrase in Peshka, and
then the translator will tell you how to say it in Anglaman. You then
have to repeat what the translator tells you. The device is a bit
clumsy, but Anglaman language enchantments aren't available yet.

If Sheena wishes, she can buy a collar which contain enchanted
"Hideaway" pockets. The hideaways can hold up to 12 pounds or 24 cubic
feet. They cannot be seen under normal circumstances. Hideaways normally
cost $200 per pound, but the company will give you a loan and even
arrange for a 25% discount so that you can purchase whatever size you
desire, but you will be expected to pay them back. Minimum size for an
individual hideaway is a half pound (1cf), maximum is six pounds (12cf).
Collars are available with hideaways reachable from both the outside and
inside of the collar or any combination. The weight of objects placed in
the collar does add to the weight of the collar.

Continued in the "Significant Matters" thread.