Session 31: Atoms Chosen
General Summary
The session began with the party debriefing with DiMa after their retrieval mission. Gerrek, in particular, had more questions for DiMa about the history of the island, his philosophy, his leadership, his modifications, and Chase, his former Courser head of security. Faraday regretfully informed the players that it would take a few days to complete the restoration of the long-range radar, so DiMa advised them to rest up. However, he also asked if they would be willing to help with another job in the meantime. The players readily accepted.
DiMa explained that High Confessor Tektus was convinced that the radical heretical Strontomites were infiltrating The Nucleus, the most sacred high cathedral of the Children of Atom. DiMa emphasized that if this were true, it would pose a great threat to peace on the island, as the Strontomites were much more militaristic than the open-minded Tektus. The players split up, with Quinten, lacking a leg, opting to stay and heal while RM, Kenny, and Reshaun stayed with him. Leroy, Jim Bob, Gerrek, and Jason rested before setting out, arriving at The Nucleus in the early hours of the morning. The Grand Zealot and his men, who were in charge of guarding the entrance, stopped them, noting the heretic armor Leroy wore. Leroy convinced them that he had been misled and was still faithful, so the Zealots sent him on a vision quest so Atom could judge him. The players joined Leroy in solidarity, all of them drinking from the poison spring. Each of them had wild visions surrounded by deep fog. Jim Bob saw Kutter, broken and insane, little more than an animal, and was attacked and beaten by this illusion. Gerrek saw a strange institute-like facility with an extremely tall and gaunt man approaching him. Jason dreamed of being attacked as his armor failed him, and his strength was no longer enough. Finally, Leroy traveled through the fog as the glowing animals of the island observed him. He eventually came to a massive glowing green pool, where he saw his friends in the treeline. As he stepped into the pool, the pain of the searing armor subsided across his body as it was submerged. At the bottom of the pool, the armor plates broke off, and the power armor frame dissolved. Then he began to astral project, his spirit rising from the pool as he watched the trees and the island fade away behind him, and he was blasted across the vastness of space. He saw his god, Atom, as a black silhouette against a raging green star. Atom addressed him, acknowledging his mistakes but also recognizing that he had been deceived. Atom made him an arbiter, burning an atomic symbol over his heart and sending him back to earth to weed out the heretics and assist Tektus. Leroy emerged from the pool, naked as his armor had dissolved. He found that any armor or clothing he wore burned him, so he donned only a loincloth. The pond and the fog faded away as all the players regained lucidity, seeing now only a small pool of water in the middle of the day. Jim Bob used his magic to dry Leroy and then attempted to retrieve the Quantum X-01 armor. He dug and grabbed something, but as he pulled, he was struck with a godly smite, slightly wounding him. The players returned to The Nucleus and were allowed in by the guards. They made their way through the holy city inside the submarine base, where Leroy was met with a mix of pity, disdain, and respect. They met High Zealot Richter, the head of all the Children of Atom's military forces, who appreciated their help with the investigation. Then they met Tektus himself, who treated Leroy with empathy, grateful for the assistance and hopeful for Leroy's redemption. They began their investigation by walking around and gauging unusual reactions. They observed three individuals closely: the medicine woman, Zealot Ware, and Grand Zealot Richter, all of whom watched them intently, likely interested in the progress of the investigation. Gerrek first investigated the medicine woman, mentioning He Who Burns and suggesting he might be what he was looking for. The medicine woman immediately yelled "heretic" and called the guards. Zealots took Gerrek down to the pool beneath the submarine, ready to throw him in should he be found guilty. Leroy stepped in, assuring Richter that Gerrek was not a heretic. To continue the investigation, Leroy used his divine sense to try and detect the true heretics. He sensed something but couldn't discern its source, knowing something must be blocking it. He asked the Zealots wearing their heavy marine combat armor to remove it. When they did, he sensed the profane object inside the armor piece of Zealot Ware. They opened the stitching and found a pendant denoting a Strontium atom inside the padding of his shoulder plate. Ware was seized and taken away for interrogation, where they found nothing else incriminating, but he admitted that High Zealot Richter had inspected his armor only a few days ago. The players immediately went to search Richter's quarters and found more of the pendants under his mattress. They fully enlisted Ware to help them take down Richter, then headed back to Tektus to report their findings. Richter intercepted them, and while he let them pass, he was tipped off to their intentions. Jim Bob stayed nearby and tried to spy on him using his spider drones, but Richter noticed this as well. The players informed Tektus of their findings, and with solid proof, Tektus agreed to take down Richter. As soon as the players left sight, Richter acted, stomping on Jim Bob's drone and unleashing a hail of lasers on him, wounding him. Jim Bob radioed in time for the players to warn Tektus. Tektus declared a state of emergency, and The Nucleus erupted into civil war as the other heretics attempted a coup. With Jim Bob down, Richter made his escape and ran to the exit of the city, where he was spotted by the players. They caught up to him, and Leroy used his powers to hold Richter in place. The players declared that their leader had been captured, and the heretics surrendered. Tektus approached Richter and ordered Leroy to release him. Leroy begrudgingly obeyed, and Tektus used his power to drive Richter into the ground with crushing gravity, pulling him into the earth until he was nothing but red mush mixed with gravel. Tektus thanked the players for their help and then told Leroy that he knew what to do. Leroy returned to the poison spring and the glowing pool. His spirit once again flew back into Atom's presence, where his god redeemed him. Atom imbued him with his blessing and commanded him to gather his faithful and lead them away, as the East Coast was no longer safe. Leroy accepted this task and returned to his body, rising from the pool as a glowing one. His armor floated back to the surface, Strontium cleansed from it, rendering it black as coal. Atom commanded him to construct new armor with his own hands. The players said goodbye to Leroy as he set off on his new quest.
DiMa explained that High Confessor Tektus was convinced that the radical heretical Strontomites were infiltrating The Nucleus, the most sacred high cathedral of the Children of Atom. DiMa emphasized that if this were true, it would pose a great threat to peace on the island, as the Strontomites were much more militaristic than the open-minded Tektus. The players split up, with Quinten, lacking a leg, opting to stay and heal while RM, Kenny, and Reshaun stayed with him. Leroy, Jim Bob, Gerrek, and Jason rested before setting out, arriving at The Nucleus in the early hours of the morning. The Grand Zealot and his men, who were in charge of guarding the entrance, stopped them, noting the heretic armor Leroy wore. Leroy convinced them that he had been misled and was still faithful, so the Zealots sent him on a vision quest so Atom could judge him. The players joined Leroy in solidarity, all of them drinking from the poison spring. Each of them had wild visions surrounded by deep fog. Jim Bob saw Kutter, broken and insane, little more than an animal, and was attacked and beaten by this illusion. Gerrek saw a strange institute-like facility with an extremely tall and gaunt man approaching him. Jason dreamed of being attacked as his armor failed him, and his strength was no longer enough. Finally, Leroy traveled through the fog as the glowing animals of the island observed him. He eventually came to a massive glowing green pool, where he saw his friends in the treeline. As he stepped into the pool, the pain of the searing armor subsided across his body as it was submerged. At the bottom of the pool, the armor plates broke off, and the power armor frame dissolved. Then he began to astral project, his spirit rising from the pool as he watched the trees and the island fade away behind him, and he was blasted across the vastness of space. He saw his god, Atom, as a black silhouette against a raging green star. Atom addressed him, acknowledging his mistakes but also recognizing that he had been deceived. Atom made him an arbiter, burning an atomic symbol over his heart and sending him back to earth to weed out the heretics and assist Tektus. Leroy emerged from the pool, naked as his armor had dissolved. He found that any armor or clothing he wore burned him, so he donned only a loincloth. The pond and the fog faded away as all the players regained lucidity, seeing now only a small pool of water in the middle of the day. Jim Bob used his magic to dry Leroy and then attempted to retrieve the Quantum X-01 armor. He dug and grabbed something, but as he pulled, he was struck with a godly smite, slightly wounding him. The players returned to The Nucleus and were allowed in by the guards. They made their way through the holy city inside the submarine base, where Leroy was met with a mix of pity, disdain, and respect. They met High Zealot Richter, the head of all the Children of Atom's military forces, who appreciated their help with the investigation. Then they met Tektus himself, who treated Leroy with empathy, grateful for the assistance and hopeful for Leroy's redemption. They began their investigation by walking around and gauging unusual reactions. They observed three individuals closely: the medicine woman, Zealot Ware, and Grand Zealot Richter, all of whom watched them intently, likely interested in the progress of the investigation. Gerrek first investigated the medicine woman, mentioning He Who Burns and suggesting he might be what he was looking for. The medicine woman immediately yelled "heretic" and called the guards. Zealots took Gerrek down to the pool beneath the submarine, ready to throw him in should he be found guilty. Leroy stepped in, assuring Richter that Gerrek was not a heretic. To continue the investigation, Leroy used his divine sense to try and detect the true heretics. He sensed something but couldn't discern its source, knowing something must be blocking it. He asked the Zealots wearing their heavy marine combat armor to remove it. When they did, he sensed the profane object inside the armor piece of Zealot Ware. They opened the stitching and found a pendant denoting a Strontium atom inside the padding of his shoulder plate. Ware was seized and taken away for interrogation, where they found nothing else incriminating, but he admitted that High Zealot Richter had inspected his armor only a few days ago. The players immediately went to search Richter's quarters and found more of the pendants under his mattress. They fully enlisted Ware to help them take down Richter, then headed back to Tektus to report their findings. Richter intercepted them, and while he let them pass, he was tipped off to their intentions. Jim Bob stayed nearby and tried to spy on him using his spider drones, but Richter noticed this as well. The players informed Tektus of their findings, and with solid proof, Tektus agreed to take down Richter. As soon as the players left sight, Richter acted, stomping on Jim Bob's drone and unleashing a hail of lasers on him, wounding him. Jim Bob radioed in time for the players to warn Tektus. Tektus declared a state of emergency, and The Nucleus erupted into civil war as the other heretics attempted a coup. With Jim Bob down, Richter made his escape and ran to the exit of the city, where he was spotted by the players. They caught up to him, and Leroy used his powers to hold Richter in place. The players declared that their leader had been captured, and the heretics surrendered. Tektus approached Richter and ordered Leroy to release him. Leroy begrudgingly obeyed, and Tektus used his power to drive Richter into the ground with crushing gravity, pulling him into the earth until he was nothing but red mush mixed with gravel. Tektus thanked the players for their help and then told Leroy that he knew what to do. Leroy returned to the poison spring and the glowing pool. His spirit once again flew back into Atom's presence, where his god redeemed him. Atom imbued him with his blessing and commanded him to gather his faithful and lead them away, as the East Coast was no longer safe. Leroy accepted this task and returned to his body, rising from the pool as a glowing one. His armor floated back to the surface, Strontium cleansed from it, rendering it black as coal. Atom commanded him to construct new armor with his own hands. The players said goodbye to Leroy as he set off on his new quest.
Report Date
12 Aug 2024
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