Expected scene is for Chad to return home. After collecting herself a bit more, Catherine calls the neighbor's house for Chad to be sent home so David can meet him. Rolled 4 which is an interrupt scene. New NPC rolled. Roll to see if it is Chad's father. Yes. Rolled for Beautiful / Adventurous on Character Descriptors.
Within a few seconds after Catherine got off the phone, a man walks through the front door. It's Chad's father. Based on the letter David read, he assumed that Catherine and Chad lived alone - that the parents were somehow separated or didn't live in the same house together. The man introduces himself as Eric and after being told about what happened and why David is at the house, he becomes very receptive towards David trying to help his son and ex-wife. Catherine and Eric have a good parenting relationship and Eric occasionally drops by after work to spend a little bit of time with Chad after dinner.
Chad comes through the front door shortly after Eric and his eyes move towards David. Immediately and with great clarity of speech David hears Chad ask him if he's here for him and whether or not he is in trouble. This happens as Eric stands up to walk towards Chad and to greet him. This is the first time in David's life that he has received such a strong, clear telepathic message from someone. His stomach flips as he's filled with adrenaline and excitement, but also a bit of trepidation.
David decides to respond telepathically and tells the boy that he is like him and to not be afraid, that he is here to help. I need to roll 8 or less on the Unreliable activation number for David's Telesend power. Each failure costs 1 FP (fatigue point) and 1 second of time. 4 failed attempts means 4 spent FP and 4 seconds have gone by. In the meantime Chad's parents have introduced David.
David can't seem to get his message across to Chad. He knows when his psi ability is working or not and he is becoming fatigued. He breaks concentration, stands up from the table, and verbally introduces himself to Chad.
One more attempt roll still fails. 5 spent FP. A final attempt is allowed before FP 3 is reached which would require rest. I rolled a 7! Success! However David now has 3 FP and cannot use his abilities anymore until he is fully rested.
After 2 seconds pass and Eric starts speaking, David is able to telepathically speak to Chad.
This was a risk since David doesn't know how 8 year old Chad will respond. I will use a GURPS Fright Check roll to see how Chad handles being spoken to telepathically. Chad's Will is 8, adjusted from 10 for his age. I gave him a +1 modifier on the roll since he has some personal experience with psi - the Fright Check is because he's probably never been on the receiving end of telepathy. A roll of 14 against 9 for the Fright Check gives a margin of failure of 5. A roll on the results table gives 7, adding the 5 results in 12 - Chad begins to vomit. Fortunately it's not extreme vomiting since a roll 3 against Chad's HT ends the vomiting after 3 seconds.
Eric was in the middle of trying to set the stage for a discussion when Chad suddenly turns, doubles over, and begins vomiting on the kitchen floor. His parents rush to his side to comfort him. David feels an overwhelming sense of guilt for using his power on the boy - he had good intentions. A few seconds pass and Chad asks if he can go to his room. Eric looks at Catherine briefly and nods his head to Chad, walking him back to his room with a glass of water. David decides it is probably best he leaves at this point and asks if he could return at a better time to meet with the family again.
Roll to see if Catherine agrees for a return visit. Exceptional Yes.
Catherine apologizes for the inconvenience of not being able to talk this evening with Chad, but she seems very open to meeting again and David can tell he has her trust. He tells her he'll call again within the next day or so to set up another time. He also asks her to tell Chad for him that he's sorry he doesn't feel well and wants her to assure him that their next meeting will not be so unpleasant. A little puzzled at his choice of words, Catherine walks him to the door and sees him off.
Chaos Factor peaks at 9. Lists updated.
Threads List
publish / write book on Psi and faith
investigate Psi reports
make tenure
make tenure
pursue the lead from the letter
go to Hughes house
contact Duncan Britero or city council
go to Hughes house
check on Marie
meet Chad Hughes
meet Chad Hughes
call Catherine Hughes
Characters List
weirdness magnet
Dr. Marie Higgins
Jesse McManus
Dean Pritchert
NICPP
classroom / students
Dean Pritchert
protesters
Jesse McManus
NICPP
Manny Britero
Duncan Britero
Catherine Hughes
Chad Hughes
NICPP
city council
Jesse McManus
Marie
Marie
Chad Hughes
Catherine Hughes
Catherine Hughes
Chad Hughes
Weirdness magnet
Eric Hughes
No comments:
Post a Comment