Adventure Edition: Babes in London, Act 3 - Little Girls Found, Scene 1A

You can find the links to each of the preceding episodes of the Babes in London adventure sequence HERE.

To play or run this game you will need the following:

PLAYERS: Fireborn Player's Handbook;
GAME MASTERS: Fireborn Gamemaster's Handbook;

This is a piece of fan fiction. It is NOT endorsed or acknowledged by Fantasy Flight Games; it is IN NO WAY official; it DOES NOT indicate any form of relationship between myself and Fantasy Flight Games; and I DO NOT CLAIM any of the setting specific material or setting specific concepts as my own.

Warning: Due to a lack of playtesters, this section has yet to be tested. GMs may need to adjust opponents to suit the level of your PCs.

PLAYERS SHOULD NOT READ BEYOND THIS POINT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scene 1A: Meeting the Artist

The artist isn’t in his Islington studio; staff there direct you to Cambden. After a bit of a juggle with transport and traffic, you arrived in Cambden and, after asking a few questions about unicorns and painters, you are standing in front of the gate that will take you into the rooms, secondary gallery and studios of one David Markovin – fantasy artist and painter of unicorns (among other things). The pocket-sized front lawn is bordered by a neat array of lavender, roses and low-growing somethings and divided down the centre by a path leading to the patio and front door where a unicorn set in stained glass waits to greet you. Below it, a small, brass plaque announces: ‘Welcome to the Markovin’s Madness: Please, come in.’

Give PCs a brief moment to react.

• If they decide to try to enter in a more surreptitious manner read or paraphrase the following: The windows on the lower ground floor appear to have been boarded up from the inside and there is no way to reach the rear of the gallery as it shares a wall with the buildings on either side. The only other alternative entrance would be the green-doored garage, but it is closed and locked. There are balconies lined by large, closed windows on the second floor, but you’re sure you would stand out against the cream-colored walls of the gallery and it wouldn’t be long before a passer-by called the police.
• If PCs decide to try and enter by the back way, play it by ear. There is a small garden area behind the gallery, which contains a couple of fruit trees and a small table and chairs beneath a miniature gazebo similar in shape to a band rondavel found in a public garden. The back door is unlocked and the Setite assassins have entered by the time the PCs have located the back yard. When they enter, to scene 1B and adlib their entry into the battle to rescue the artist.
• If PCs decide to enter through the front door, read or paraphrase the following: The unicorn doesn’t speak, of course, but a small bell tinkles as you open the front door. The room you enter is the professional face of David Markovin. Its walls are off-white and numerous paintings are displayed along them. Beneath each picture is a small label with the painting’s name, date of completion, a short description, and a price. One thing’s for sure, he doesn’t shy away from the necessity of making a living! A young woman dressed like a Romanian gypsy is dusting a painted vase that stands on a pedestal between two of the paintings. “Can I help you?” she asks as she walks to the counter and tucks the duster away.

This is Mischief Overton. She has no explanation for her name and is insistent on finding out what the PCs want. She can be convinced to allow them to meet David Markovin. (Any reasonable request or argument will do this, as will an Air (Interaction) 2 test.) She asks the PCs to wait and goes to see if ‘Mr Markovin’ will meet them, taking them upstairs to the studios shortly thereafter. Read or paraphrase the following on their arrival:

This area, you think, is the working face of David Markovin. A number of canvases stand in an open, wooden-floored workspace that takes up the front half of the second floor. Stands holding paint, brushes and what smells like mineral turpentine are scattered about between them, and a pile of canvas-clad clutter lines the front wall. Paint splotches have dried and faded into the floorboards and large windows lead out onto what looks like a narrow balcony. A middle-aged man with fuzzy brown hair and the first signs of premature baldness has just finished washing a paint-brush at one of the sinks along the rear wall of the room. His light green eyes are bright with curiosity behind light, wire-framed glasses and he has a pleasant smile: “Thank you, Mischief,” he says, then: “Can I help you?”

Give the PCs time to interact. Mischief returns to the downstairs gallery as soon as David speaks and they are left in private to talk. When they start asking questions about the painting, David guides them to a room at the rear of the second floor: “This way,” he says. “This is my break time and I need a cup of tea. Malady will be almost ready for us. She said I might have visitors today.” Before you can protest, he leads you towards the back of the room and through a door that leads to a cozy, if somewhat small dining room. A tall woman, dressed incongruously in yellow, blue and green greets you with a small smile. “Ah, Malady,” David says. “You were correct. We have guests for tea.” Once she serves a traditional tea, Malady steps back and takes off her apron. “If it’s all the same with you, Mr Markovin,” she says, “I’m going off for a few hours. You can ring if you need me.” Her hand rests beside a silver bell mounted on the wall beside the kitchen door, and then she turns and walks back into the kitchen. “Now,” David says, turning to you, “What was it you wanted to know?”

Allow the PCs to interact with David before the Setites attack. They are able to discover the following information:

Where did the idea for the painting come from?

“It moves, you know. It was the first in the unicorn series. I painted it after weeks of trying to get the image out of my head. They came in my dreams, you know – the unicorn maid and her beast. Wouldn’t take no for an answer. Night after night after night” he seems almost in tears. “Some say I shouldn’t complain; it defined my career, but it still worries me. Once I had painted her, she never visited me again. Funny you should ask about that painting, though. You’ve got to be the third lot who’ve come through wanting more information.”

Who else has been asking about the painting?

“Well, it’s been more about the print. Where did I sell it? Who did I sell the painting to? Where was it painted? You know, all the usual types of questions. Guys in suits – not the usual type of documentary makers at all… Brought a film crew and all, they did. Then there were the ‘men in black’ – I gave those creeps the brush off.”

Who bought the unicorn print:

“Any one of two hundred and fifty people,” David replies. “It sold out within a week of production, and there’s been demand for it ever since, but I haven’t reprinted it – I never do. One painting, two hundred and fifty prints, and no more; it’s what keeps my work valuable.

Where was it painted?

“There’s a mansion, you know? One of those places the public can visit. Beautiful gardens, absolutely lovely. Kept up by some private gardening supplier – I can’t remember his name but I guess he does it for the free advertising. Anyway, I knew of it from my student days. It’s got this oak tree, and a small stand of birch, and one of the best camellia gardens I’ve ever seen. I did the painting in early autumn, just as the leaves were turning. There’s a beautiful contrast in color then.

Can you tell us the name of the mansion?

Tenson’s Place. It’s quite a way from here, more to the south although Heaven knows what it’s doing there. Maybe it was some sort of hospital or monastery. I’m not sure; I didn’t pay much attention to its history, I was just after the scenery.

Can you tell us the name of the gardening supplier?

Not really. It was something strange. Something to do with hours. No! No. Minutes? No, wait a minute – Time. It was something to do with time and maybe sport. Half Time. That was it! Half Time something or other. Look it up in the yellow pages; I’m sure you’ll find it.

As the PCs talk, have them make Earth (Senses) TH4 tests. The Setite assassins have arrived and, after successfully sneaking past Mischief, have made their way upstairs to the studio. If the PC/s are successful, read or paraphrase, the following:

There it is again! At first you weren’t sure, but now… And again! There is definitely something, or someone, moving in the studio. The faint ripple of shadow across the wall visible from the doorway and the faint sound of what might be canvas being lifted signal that you’re not alone. It can’t be Malady; she’s disappeared back through the door leading to David’s tiny kitchenette and, presumably, her quarters beyond. At least, you think that’s what she meant when she said she was ‘going off’ for a couple of hours, because she certainly didn’t go down the stairs.

If the PCs mention seeing anything, David immediately leaps up and rushes through the door opposite the one leading to the kitchen. Go to Scene 1b: Attack on the Artist. If the PCs don’t mention seeing anything, or don’t notice the Setites, the distinctive rumble of a metal drawer sliding out is heard from the next room. Go to Scene 1b: Attack on the Artist.

Next Week: Babes in London, Act 3 - Little Girls Found, Scene 1B.