Thrilling Tales Featuring Operator M10

Episode 8 – Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap

The cave was dark and there was no trace of the woman. Sarah used her lighter and spotted a ledge with an electric lantern on it. On the floor was a piece of paper, it looked like it had fallen from the ledger the woman was carrying. She glanced at it but it was just a list of numbers and symbols.

She heard a weak voice calling from deeper in the cave, she went towards it. Suddenly a voice called ‘throw down your weapons, schnell.’

‘M42,’ called Sarah. ‘It’s me, Sarah.’ A burst of machine gun fire echoed round the cave and Sarah dived for cover. ‘Stop shooting! It’s me. I’m following someone who I think has got what we’re looking for.’

‘Fraulein White. I thought you had been captured back at the house. M42 stepped forward, behind him was the woman.

‘This is Luz, she was here trying to find out information for me.’

Luz nodded towards Sarah. ‘I was not meant to be there in the office and when you walked in like a guard .. I panicked. This ledger contains all of the details about Lo Fat’s operation – introduce addictive Black Lotus into the Whispering Crane rum. Its long term effect is addiction and susceptibility to suggestion and influence.

‘What are you going to do with the papers?’

‘I am due to meet with my brother Barney down on the beach. Then I will give them to the police..

Sarah and M42 glanced at each other. ‘Luz, I’m really sorry to break this, but your brother is dead. He was killed by Sun Lo Fat’s minions. He won’t be coming for you.’

Luz just stared, then screamed an ear-splitting scream and broke down in tears.

‘Hush. You will attract attention.’

At this point, five of Sun Lo Fat’s minions entered the cavern. They were armed with submachine guns.

‘Someone’s coming!’ cried Sarah and both she and M42 rolled into cover behind some rocks. The guards ran in firing and bullets were sprayed around the cave.

Both Sarah and M42 returned fire, one of the guards went down. Luz grabbed her papers and ran into one of the tunnels. Sarah felt a bullet graze her arm that threw  her off slightly; she rallied and they took down the other guards with two bursts.

They didn’t stop to search the bodies, instead they ran after Luz. There were several possible routes – old lava tubes? The floor was hard and did not hold tracks very well.

‘Schnell. We need to escape the island with the papers that Luz has. We must find her. Best if we split up – I go this way. Why the frown? We are both USIA agents (1)’

Sarah wandered the tunnels for some time but no trace of Luz and no indications that she had passed this way. The she hit upon some faint marks on the ground – a boot print here and there with some scuff marks as if something had been dragged. Entering a larger cave, she tripped over a body on the floor. It was M42! He had been shot three times in the back. Sarah examined the wounds – they were old, at least a day or so. (2) She heard voices approaching, Luz and Fake (as she now thought of him,) and concealed herself in the shadows.

‘No time to waste. Get into the cave and to the boat. Take the papers schnell.’

Luz turned, Fake calmly shot her in the back on full auto. He stepped forward and picked up the ledger.

‘Eskerrik asko’

Without a glance back he headed off into one of the tunnels.

Sarah ran forwards, Luz staggered up onto one arm and aimed a gun at her. She was too weak to pull the trigger and Sarah kicked it out of her hand.

‘Luz – listen. That’s not the real M42. But who are you, really? Do you have any pictures of Lisbon?’

Luz just stared at her blankly and coughed up some blood.

‘Wha … what?’

‘Never mind,’ replied Sarah. A quick glance showed that Luz was mortally wounded.  ‘I need to get you off the island. Where’s Fake gone?’

‘He … (cough) … said there was a way out to the sea … (cough) …. He had a …’ (3)

Luz suddenly spewed up a huge gout of blood and fell back. Sarah just stared, helpless, then amazingly the woman’s eyes opened again.

‘Barney is … calling to me … we’ll go crabbing together again in … Deadlight Cove …’

Sarah looked at the tunnels and though about the maze she had already wandered through. She didn’t have hard evidence – yes she did! She still had the single piece of paper! It might mean something, plus she had what she had learned. Enough to report back to Colonel Kleeman. So, she had to escape the island.

“Unlike Zafara, I don’t think I can count on the Brits rescuing me from this one.”

A disguise as a guard seemed the best way of escape so she returned to the entrance cave. Overconfident, she walked in to be men by a burst of machinegun fire. One of the guards had recovered. Sarah returned fire, the SMG was on full auto and  blew the guard away for good. She quickly looked for a relatively undamaged uniform, stripped down and pulled it on, smearing a few handfuls of blood over it.

Just in time as a squad of three guards ran in brandishing weapons. They had heard the firing. Sarah pointed to the tunnels.

‘They went that way. Please, I am hurt. I will go and get medical help.’ (4)

Sarah made her way through the plantation, past the still-burning distillery and down to the docks. She wasn’t skilled in using boats but had an idea to get aboard the freighter off shore, then take it from there. She rounded a corner, then jerked back into cover and peered round. A young man, wearing a reefer jacket with the Bisected Circle insignia and a captain’s cap was arguing with a group of people on the dock.

Sarah stared as Lady Sin stepped forward, removed his cap, slapped his face and gestured for two armed guards to lead him off in the direction of the house.

Sarah found a boat with an outboard, similar to Barney’s. She was climbing aboard and untying the ropes when a burst of automatic fire erupted around her. Her luck had run out! She desperately tried to start the motor, a bullet ripped through her upper left shoulder, gritting her teeth she swung the boat away and headed out to sea, back to Port Royal.

Epilogue

‘So that’s it sir.’

Sarah sat back in the chair, nursing her bandaged arm and looked at Colonel Kleeman. The Colonel nodded.

‘You did well M10. We know more about Lo Fat’s … ‘ he chuckled. ‘Who can take anyone seriously with a name like that?’

Sarah leaned forward. ‘Seriously sir? I can. I’ve seen what he has done to people who laugh at his name. I assure you, we will hear from him again. By the way, who was the real M42?’

Colonel Kleeman looked deadpan.

‘An agent, like you. That’s all you need to know.’ He sat up and dropped the Bird Island files into a deep drawer. ‘Now, take some rest then another mission – undercover as Mrs Fildes. housekeeper to a Professor Orchard in a house somewhere up the Amazon. He’s working on something he calls Theramine – find out what it is.’

End of the Bird Island Affair

Mechanics

1. United States Intelligence Agency. Changed from OSS after watching North by Northwest. Can’t be bothered to go back and retcon everything for the last few years.

2. I really didn’t know up until this point that M42 was a Fake.

3. Foreshadowed in Episode (3) but still not tested yet – and still not tested at the end as Sarah never found the (possible) exit.

4. Persuade with a few bonuses for obvious evidence

GM Notes

Back in 2021 during lockdown I was playing out the Journals of Jake Montana. In the very first one – Terror on the River, Mrs Fildes the housekeeper turned up. She developed during that Game and I kept her as an NPC. By the end of Issue 3 it was obvious that she was a full-blown PC so I had to retcon Sarah (as in SWADE creating NPC’s doesn’t have to follow the PC rules.). The outline suggested that she had three previous Missions as Operator M10 before Terror on the River.

Okay, so now I’m in a corner, because I’ve lots of other ideas about M10 missions, but they don’t fit into Sarah’s timeline (with a couple of exceptions.)

So: –

At the start of Danger in the Desert, it was established that Sarah had resigned from USIA.

Time to create a new M10 Agent!

Thrilling Tales Featuring Operator M10

Episode 6 – Blazing Death!

Deeks gazed at the woman and hissed in Sarah’s ear –

‘That’s her. The beautiful torturer, Lady Sin.’

‘But what is Lo Fat doing and what is … oh shit!’

There was another exit from the lab; suddenly M42 burst in from it, waving a submachine gun from the armoury. (1)

‘Hand over that distillation, schnell.’

Everyone in the lab looked round, Deeks chose that moment to leap forward at Lady Sin, the knife raised.

‘Okay lady, now your turn to feel the blade.’

Lady Sin turned, dropped Cienfugas’ tongue and pulled out two slim daggers. Two of Lo Fat’s minions pulled tiger swords and engaged Sarah, who had her gun ready. She aimed a shot at Lo Fat, the shot missed and her gun jammed. Cursing, she fumbled for another magazine.

Lo Fat headed towards M42 carrying the vial of black liquid, he pulled out a curious cylindrical gun with a long barrel. With a puff of compressed air a dart flew out and struck M42. He grimaced and was able to pull the dart out; he was distracted long enough for Lo Fat to get past him.

Sarah reloaded but one of the minions threw a firecracker that burst, filling the lab with green-grey smoke.

‘I cut you good lady.’ One of the minions threatened Sarah with his sword, she ducked behind a bench covered with equipment. Deeks staggered backwards, blood gushing from a throat wound.(2) Lady Sin spun and threw another knife at M42, who ducked. He ran after Lo Fat, firing off a burst from the submachine gun. In the distance alarm bells began ringing.

Sarah rolled over, avoiding a cut from a minion. The blade sliced into a tank of gas that exploded into flames! Within seconds the room was ablaze.

Sarah stood, covering Lady Sin with her gun.

‘Come with me.’

‘You have a gun. I have a knife. I have no choice. What do you offer?’

‘Protection, in return for information.’

‘My father’s reach is long. But we need to escape. I will come with you.’

‘What about him?’ Sarah looked at Don Cienfugas.

‘It is too late now and he should not have laughed at my father’s name.’ Lady Sin touched a hidden stud in the wall and a panel swung open. ‘This leads to the boathouse.’

The panel swung shut and they hurried down the passage; behind them came a muffled explosion. The passage sloped down and emerged onto the jetty in the boathouse. Sarah moved to the boat they had come in.

‘Quickly now, before …’ She looked up to see Lady Sin watching her, a mocking smile on her lips. Flanking her were three minions carrying submachine guns.(3)

‘Take her to the Question Room.’ Lady Sin glided forward and spoke softly. ‘Soon you will tell me everything I want to know, and more.’

Sarah glared but dropped her gun. ‘I’ll tell you nothing.’

‘Oh you will. Sooner or later, you’ll want to.’

To be continued …

Mechanics

This was quite an involved fight and took a couple of evenings to fight out.

I was testing my mapless solo combat system which works in a similar way to the abstract Chase system from SWD. The initiative card a person draws dictates what actions they can take when it is their turn to act. It simulates the fluidity of combat with constant movement, ducking, diving and use of cover etc.

Here’s the card draw from Round 1, it shows the cards drawn, the initiative order and possible actions

Round 1

Combat                                             Actions

M42           3C      5             Com-2. Shoot in Melee. Melee any.

Lo Fat        6S       4             Melee any Black

Lady Sin    2C      6             Comp -2. Melee any

Minions     JH      2             Shoot -2/ Melee any Red

Sarah         10H    3             Shoot -2/ Melee any Red

Deeks         QC    1             Comp -2. Melee any

Deeks acts first, he acts at -2 (due to a complication, let’s say the chair got in the way.) He can melee attack any other card so he attacks Lady Sin (of course.)

The minions attack next, they don’t have guns so can’t shoot. They can attack any Red card, the only viable target is Sarah so they both attack her, getting the Gang-Up bonus.

Sarah acts next, she can shoot at -2 (cover, range etc.) or melee any Red card (the minions.) She elects to shoot at Lo Fat. This makes her Vulnerable as she is in melee.

Lo Fat can melee any Black card so he could attack M42. However his prime goal is to escape so he pulls his poison dart gun.

M42 also has a complication (-2) and could shoot as if in melee (so pistol weapons only) or melee any card. He could attack Lo Fat but he didn’t (Emulator roll, does Character do ‘x’?)

Lady Sin faces the same complication as Deeks (the chair) but can melee attack any card so she attacks him.

1. Interrupt Scene – Action/ NPC

2. Deeks was Shaken twice so took a Wound.

3. “Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!” Sarah was far too trusting.

Thrilling Tales Featuring Operator M10

Episode 5 – Shadows Beneath the Lotus House

Sarah crept down the stairs, to her left came the clattering of knives. The gas-lit kitchen flickers with orange flame as six night staff bustle over preparing food for tomorrow. She slipped through the door into the dining room; too late she remembered the caged birds, scarlet macaws, that erupted in a cacophony of screeches. She dived into the shadows and strained her ears, the birds quietened down and no-one came to investigate. She quickly looked round the room but found nothing.

Back out in the hallway she caught a whiff of the incense smell from her room. Behind a silk curtain was a cupboard containing many pipes and valves all linked to a large tank. A servant wearing a black tunic and a futou looked round as she approached. He started to say something, then a distant scream pierced the silence.

‘He should not have laughed at Lao Da.’

Sarah looked inquisitively at him, her eyebrows raised.

‘Lao Da. The Big Boss.’

Sarah smiled and nodded. ‘I too am working for Lao Da.’ (1) The servant turned back to the valves, Sarah stepped forward and struck him over the head with the butt of her gun. To her horror, his temple caved in and he fell, lifeless, to the ground. (2) She bundled him into the cupboard and closed the door.

A short flight of stairs led down to a hallway lit by orange lanterns. Along the walls were hung glass jars; a lectern part-way along the hall held a journal. The pages were scrawled in Chinese pictograms which Sarah couldn’t read (3) Except for one – recently written in English.

“Here lies tongue of Olga Petrovna”

Sarah examined the jars more closely, then recoiled. Suspended in a yellow fluid was a severed human tongue.

“Sun Lo Fat is a fiend,” she thought, then suddenly remembered the scene in the dining room earlier. “Don Cienfugas is in danger.’

A further set of stairs led down to a stone-walled room, obviously now down in the bedrock of the island. The room dripped with water; in the centre was a stone table with hand and foot restraints. Over the head stood a stone pitcher. It was a Chinese Water Torture device!

Chained to the wall was a man wearing the remains of a business suit. He struggled upright as Sarah entered.

‘Who are you? Where is she?’

‘Who are you,’ replied Sarah.

The man grinned through cracked lips. ‘Senator Sam Deeks, Florida. She drips water on me for hours, then gives me nothing to drink. She wants me to sign over land in Florida. But so far, no. Hell, I’m from Florida. I’m used to getting wet.’

‘Who is – she?’ Sarah set about releasing Deeks. He scooped up some water and drank it.

‘Calls herself Lady Sin. Chinese gal, good looker. Sometimes a fat bastard comes in with her.’

‘Hush,’ whispered Sarah, ‘saying things like that might get you worse than being tortured. Okay, can you move quietly?’

Deeks nodded. ‘I was in the Middle East during the War.’ Sarah glanced at him but said nothing.

A search of the torture chamber revealed nothing more than a short knife that Deeks took. They crept along a passage; a set of stairs led up but a quick scout by Sarah showed that they led back to the main hall, coming out by the kitchen.

Back downstairs, the passage descended a sloping passage to an archway. From beyond came a bright electric light. Sarah peered round the arch into a laboratory. There was a confusion of workbenches and chemical glassware; a pungent chemical smell filled the air, along with the hissing of Bunsen burners. A large hopper held Black Lotus leaves. Against one wall was a stone chair, fastened into it was Don Cienfugas. Blood dribbled from his mouth, pooling in his lap. Next to him stood a stunningly beautiful Oriental woman, dark haired and green eyed, wearing a cheongsam. She held something in her left hand. In the centre of the laboratory was Sun Lo Fat, holding aloft a beaker of blacker than black fluid.

‘Father. He will not laugh again.’

‘Youyi!’ he cried. ‘ No matter, daughter. Time to test the new distillation. The rooms should be ready now.’

To be continued …

Mechanics

1. He was only a minor flunkey with a keyword of “Oblivious.” Sarah rolled 2 Raises on her Persuasion so he accepted it.

2. Oh crap. This wasn’t intended but Sarah rolled a Raise (with The Drop) on her attack and then aced the damage up to 28! This is x3 what he was capable of taking so it was Nearly Certain that he was dead. The Oracle made the final decision!

3. Even in Pulp it would be a massive distortion of reality to allow Sarah’s J-o-T to allow her to read Chinese.

Just realised that for some reason Episodes 5 & 6 are missing. My notes say I posted them so …?

Thrilling Tales Featuring Operator M10

Episode 7 – What a Waste

“Well. Are you ready to talk yet?”

Sarah blinked the water from her eyes. She couldn’t move, her arms and legs were chained to the table and her head was restrained in a stone block. The monotonous irregular drips of water had been going on for hours.

“No? Then perhaps I shall try something else. There are far worse things than water that can be dripped.”

Sarah angrily shook the thoughts from her head as the guard escorted her back. Amazingly, Lady Sin had only assigned one guard to escort her back to the torture chamber. They had taken her gun; maybe they thought she was helpless. As they crossed the koi carp pond she stumbled, fell forward and pulled the hidden knife from her shoe. She stood, whirled round and stabbed the guard in the throat. He died instantly without a sound. She took his submachine gun, wiped the blade of the knife on his uniform (useless as a disguise as he had bled all over it,) slid the knife back into her shoe and rolled the body into the carp pond.

“If Lo Fat was a true movie villain then those would be pirhana,” she thought

The sun was up and the temperature was rising. She skirted the house and headed uphill. Looking back out to the south, a steamer was anchored in the roads. She could just make out the name Evening Star. The emblem on the funnel was a gold circle bisected by a horizontal line. She didn’t recognise the logo, but there are hundred’s of shipping lines in the world.

“Lady Sin must be wondering where I am?” (1)

After a while she came across a track. Across from it, in a shallow cutting, was a railway track leading north and west. There was a whistle and round the curve to the north came a locomotive pushing several wagons loaded with black lotus leaf. The locomotive was “strange”, it had no chimney and emitted no smoke. The boiler looked like a high-pressure gas cylinder and there was only a driver, no fireman. (2)

There was someone coming; Sarah swore as the sound has been masked by the train. She dived back into the undergrowth. Five men came down the path, black Caribbean stock, dressed in simple clothes. They were laughing and joking. Sarah waited for them to pass, then followed them stealthily. She caught snatches of their conversations: –

‘The boss knows what he’s doing, he’ll see us right when …’

‘Last batch should be in tomorrow …’

‘You tried this stuff? Man, it’s good …’

Ahead the path led to the rum distillery, there was a hissing of steam and strong smell of raw spirit. The men wen in through a door; the locomotive pushed the trucks into a siding and then the driver connected up a large hose to the pressure cylinder “boiler.” He sat down and lit a cigar.

Sarah sneaked up and peered through a window. It was a laboratory, similar to the one under the house. There were large hoppers of black lotus leaves being processed down to a black distillate stored in a large glass carboy against the facing wall. Three workers were keeping an eye on things.

“Okay. Time to bluff it out. As my training officer said – the best way to be in disguise is to look as if you belong.”

Sarah moved to the door and, without knocking, boldly strode in. A black woman sat at a desk behind a typewriter.

‘Hello? Can I help you?’

‘I’m here to guard the factory – there’s a saboteur on the island.’

‘You’ll need to speak to the manager.’

‘Who’s that?’

The woman frowned. ‘Are you sure you are meant to be here?’

‘I’m new. Came in on the … the Evening Star.’

The woman lowered her eyes. ‘I don’t want anything more to do with this. He’s through there.’ Points to door.

‘Thank you’

The door led into the rum distillery; there was a multitude of copper tanks and pipe and a strong smell of sugar and rum. Sarah glanced back, the woman was watching her. Sarah waved and went on in. There were a couple of workers moving around but no-one who looked like a manager. There was a door opposite marked BOILER ROOM. She managed to get over to it and inside.

Inside was an oil-fired boiler driving an electrical generator and a high-pressure steam plant. A window and door led out into the locomotive shed; the driver was still sitting there.

“Okay. Time to take stock. Obviously, Lo Fat is putting that black stuff into the Whispering Crane rum.” She remembered her taste of it on the boat – poor Don Cienfugas. “Now he’s refined it more so God only knows what it will do. The workers hinted that the operation was being wound up – is that why that freighter is here – to take the stuff?” She sat back and wished for a Lucky Strike.

“Okay. I need to get rid of this stuff. Rum burns.” She looked at the boiler and the pipework and a memory surfaced about an industrial accident in 1929 when the boiler exploded and demolished the factory.

Sarah called on her OSS training (3) and climbed up onto the maintenance gantry carrying a heavy wrench.

‘What are you doing up there?’ The speaker was Hispanic, wearing a white shirt and denims.

‘I’m checking for sabotage – Lao Din says there is a traitor on the island.’ She gave a hard pull to the wrench and held it up. ‘All done now – the valve is fixed.’ It certainly was – she’d jammed the steam safety valve closed. The man nodded and went out; Sarah descended to floor level. Just then the locomotive driver ran in. He pointed to the pressure gauge which was starting to redline. He reached towards a relief valve; Sarah has no option but to club him with the butt of the gun. He swayed back but came at her with the wrench. Sarah shot him at point-blank range. She dragged the body and hid it behind the boiler. (4)

“Right Now the laboratory”

The plan was to go in, loose off a few bursts to scare out the workers, get a sample of the black fluid and then destroy the carboy. And get out before the boiler exploded.

Sarah burst into the lab, firing off an auto burst into the ceiling. However, since she originally looked, three guards with submachine guns had arrived. A firefight erupted with Sarah pinned in the doorway from the boiler room. The lab workers fled. Sarah winced as a bullet tore a graze across her shoulder.

Suddenly the door that led to the office opened and a tall blonde man strode in. He wore a reefer jacket with the gold logo from the ship on the breast pocket. (5)

‘My name is Gloch. I have come to collect my personal consignment.’

No -one took any notice of him as the fight progressed – suddenly the boiler exploded!

With a shattering roar and burst of steam the flimsy wooden walls of the distillery caved in. Sparking cables set fire to the rum and the fuel oil; soon the distillery was well on fire. Sarah picked herself up (6), the guards and Gloch were out stunned on the floor. The carboy was smashed but she was able to collect a small sample of the black fluid.

Outside was pandemonium. Workers were rushing into the burning building and dragging out intact barrels of the rum.

From out of the office door ran the typist, she headed north towards the sugar plantation. She was carrying a book or ledger. Sarah followed her, after a time she veered off onto an overgrown path that led into a cave in the hillside.

To be continued …

Mechanics

1. Mythic said No. One of the key parts of interrogation is to keep the subject waiting so their own fears play against them.

2. This is a real 0-4-0 locomotive, no firebox, runs on high-pressure steam. Usually used in munitions plants.

3. J-o-T to gain Repair: Gained at d4

4. No one said Sarah is a saint! She is an agent and will kill if she has to.

5. Like – really! Mythic threw up a random event of New NPC.

6.Soak roll

The sharp-eyed reader will have noticed that Sarah encountered Gloch Shipping in Issue  5 – Scorpion Island, which happened after this Issue. So why didn’t she recognise it?

In-Game: She just forgot. It was some years ago

Real: The two episodes were played out at different times. I could retcon it but I can’t be bothered. There are many examples of inconsistencies in the pulps, the authors at the time weren’t worried about it so neither am I.

Thrilling Tales Featuring Operator M10

Episode 4 – Whispers Behind Silk Walls

Sarah concentrated on keeping the boat on station outside the sea cave, fortunately the sea was calm. From the land drifted the smells of a Caribbean island, with the distant sound of a train whistle.

“M42 said there was a steam railway here.”

Suddenly she jerked upright as she saw M42 swimming back to the boat. He climbed over the gunwales and stretched.

‘The sea cave is a no-go. Scheisse! It’s a dead end.’ (1)

‘So, how do we get ashore?’

‘The boathouse. It may be guarded so we’ll have to be stealhly. But the docks are and the beach … well, I don’t want to face the dragon.’

The boathouse was a large open structure with a short jetty. They moored the boat at the end of the jetty and crept into the boathouse. There were two boats in there.

The smaller one was a motor boat with an outboard engine. There was a pintle-mounted heavy machine gun on the forward deck.

The larger boat … Sarah just gaped in surprise. It was like something out of a Hollywood film. A sleek, obsidian-hulled luxury yacht with dragon-headed prow and crimson silk pennants. The vessel exuded wealth and menace. Emblazoned along the sides in huge characters was 殯葬者之風.

‘What does that mean?’

‘It means bìnzàng zhě zhīfēng – The Undertakers Wind,’ said M42. He glanced up. ‘There’s no guard. Schnell, it’s the only chance we’ll get.’ He ran up the gangplank, Sarah followed him.

The inside of the yacht was opulent and beautiful with silk screen pictures and ornate sculptures decorating cabins and saloons.  An office yielded a set of accounts in English that showed that Whispering Crane was outselling everything in the market. A margin note said ‘phase 1 complete.’

A door out led to a path, to the left were the docks and ahead was the house – a Chinese pagoda rising over the trees.

‘Rechts. I’ll check out the docks – I’ve been there before. You check out the house. We’ll meet back here at dawn. (2)

Sarah approached the house; the path led over a wooden bridge across a large lake of Koi carp. The house door was unlocked and she cautiously stepped into a long hallway hung with floor to ceiling wall hangings. She quickly found that these concealed doors or passages, the first one led into an armoury. There were several sub-machine guns of an unfamiliar make; Sarah toyed with taking one but decided against it.

Moving along the hall, she became aware of a strong smell of Chinese food from somewhere.

‘Excuse me, are you lost? The meeting is this way.’

The maid was Oriental, she dropped a slight curtsey, then beckoned to Sarah, opening a door.

The door opened into a large room with a central table and several chairs spaced around it. Around the room were cages containing exotic birds. Sarah glanced round the room, taking in the three guards spaced around the walls. Then she looked at the table. There were several people seated there, with drinks and the remains of a meal in front of them. She knew them all, except one.

Nearest to her was the desk clerk from the Lantern Court hotel. Sitting next to her was Don Cienfugas, talking to the person at the head of the table. Opposite Don Cienfugas was Operator M42. He appeared to be at ease.

At the head of the table was an Oriental man. He sat in an ornate chair carved with dragons, he wore a silk kimono which he amply filled and a round futou on his cropped hair. He looked up at Sarah with cold, dead eyes.

M42 rose and beckoned to Sarah. ‘ My apologies Sun Lo Fat for my assistant being tardy. This is Sarah White, my assistant and secretary. Trans-Pacific Logistics & Trade are looking to expand into the Caribbean. (3)

Don Cienfugas glared at Sarah. ‘You did not say you were a competitor for Whispering Crane. Now Mr Lo Fat, although your size would not suggest that, we talk business. I am prepared to …’

Lo Fat raised his hand, suddenly there was a chill in the air. ‘ ‘Business is concluded for today. We speak more in the morning.’

Don Cienfugas looked confused. ‘But …’

Lo Fat clapped his  hands, several servants appeared and the guests were shown to rooms on the upper floors. Sarah tried to speak with M42 but he just gave a slight shake of his head.

Sarah looked around the room on one of the upper floors of the pagoda.

There were laquered paper screens painted with cranes and plum blossoms divided the room into several areas. There was a bed with a comfortable mattress. A writing desk held an incense holder  with a faint smell of sandalwood and – something else. The holder was  carved like Chinese dragon. The narrow window looked out towards the koi pond and the boathouse. She tried the window – it could not be opened. Sarah examined the room more closely, the incense holder was connected to a pipe coming out from the wall. She pulled some cotton stuffing from the mattress and blocked up the holder.

There was a closet with dresses and general clothing – none of them hers but most of them would fit. She chose the darkest clothes and changed. Then she sniffed the air – there was a strange sweet cloying scent in the air. Faint wisps of vapour were escaping out of the nostrils of the incense holder. She grabbed her gun and exited the room.

To be continued …

Mechanics

1. Meta-Gaming here into Player vs Character knowledge.

> I’m treating this as Reliable vs Unreliable information. As Mythic puts it: –

One way to deal with this dilemma is accepting that something you, the Player, learned earlier in the adventure might be wrong.

Player knowledge is not official adventure canon until the Character discovers it, allowing for the chance for it to be wrong.

So, when I first drew the Bird Island map I put in a link from the sea cave to the land. Subsequently, M42 says there isn’t one. Either he’s lying or he didn’t find it.

This is Unreliable information

Only if and when Sarah investigates the link is the theory tested: –

a) Did she find it? or

b) Does the link actually exist?

This now becomes Reliable Adventure canon

2. Okay, this is a pretty shit plan but 007 went into the bad guy’s lair in broad daylight on oh so many occasions … This is pulp action – just go with it

3. OSS cover story (like Universal Exports.)

Thrilling Tales Featuring Operator M10

Episode 3 – Ill-Met by Moonlight

Lantern Court hotel. Port Royal

‘So, what’s in the case?’ Sarah lit a Lucky Strike and leaned forward.

M42 picked up the cigarette case. It was silver colour, hinged at one side with an embossed swastika in black. (1) He twisted the swastika and a hidden compartment opened. Inside was a leaf from a plant.

Sarah stared at it. It was jet black, a teardrop shape with a serrated edge. It was so black it seemed to absorb the light from the room.

‘Careful,’ warned M42. ‘It is razor-sharp.’ He held up his bandaged hand.

Sarah sniffed the leaf – it reminded her of Whispering Crane.

It came from Bird Island, the source of the too-good rum. Do you have any Schnapps? No matter.’

‘How did you get hold of it?’ Sarah was entranced by the leaf. ‘And what is it?’ She stared at it more; there seemed to be patterns hidden within the blackness of the leaf.

‘They call it lotus, black lotus. I cannot find any reference to it, but it obviously exists. As to how … I have a contact, a fisherman called Barney. He was the one who warned me that Bird Island was haunted by a dragon. Obviously, I disbelieved him, but then he turned up with a body. He found them drifting in the sea off Bird Island, they were badly burnt. A victim of the dragon?’

‘The men who attacked us on your boat said, ‘”return what was stole.” Did he say who’s body it was?’

‘Nein. I need to check out the island again. I have a special frogman suit on the boat – it allows you to swim underwater. We go and get it, take the boat out to Bird Island and I go ashore.’ He shook his head. ‘Sorry, fraulein, but I only have one suit. We go now, schnell’

At the docks, M42’s boat was still burning and there was quite a crowd of onlookers.

‘Scheisse. The suit is gone, along with some other gear I had. Still, (he patted the cigarette case,) we have this.’

‘Mister Shell? You strike a bad match yaas?’

Sarah turned at the voice. She saw a large black man, grinning and grabbing M42’s hand.

‘Ja, Barney, ich bien dummkopf. Listen. I and … my friend need to go to Bird Island tonight. You can do?’

‘Yaas, mister Shell. I pick you up Deadlight Cove at ten o’ clock tonight. The lady too.’ He grinned white teeth at Sarah.

‘We need to get ready. Back to the hotel, schnell.’

‘Why does he call you mister shell?’ asked Sarah.

M42 laughed. ‘Because I keep saying fast or quickly. You know, schnell in German.’

Lantern Court hotel. Port Royal

Sarah had fortunately brought some work clothes with her so was wearing a dark shirt and trousers. She had her hidden knife in her shoe and her Browning in her waistband.

“Not sure they cut ladies clothes for shoulder holsters,” she thought.

There was a double knock at the door and M42 came in, wearing some dark clothes. Sarah wondered where he had got them from.

As they left the hotel for the beach, a street urchin dived out of the shadows and made a grab for the cigarette case. He failed and M42 pushed him away and went to strike him.

‘Stop,’ cried Sarah. ‘Look at him. Half – starved, on the streets and desperate. Here kid.’ She handed him a five-dollar bill.

‘What?’ She looked up to see M42 staring at her.

‘You Americans are too soft.’

Sarah glared. ‘He is the reason why we fight to protect the free world.’

M42 just shrugged. ‘Of course.’ (2)

Deadlight Cove

The beach was reached by a twisting path through a dense wooded area, palm trees interspersed with mango and pimento. On the beach was a listing metal structure, an old watchtower. M42 pointed out to sea, dimly on the horizon was an island.

‘Bird island’

They sat on the edge of the beach.

‘So, best way in? How did you get onto the island before, to get the lotus leaf?’

‘I posed as a seaman. Bird island is served by a contract to a German shipping company, Gloch Shipping. I was able to sneak ashore. It is quite a set-up. There is a rum distillery, a large house and a steam railway. I got into a laboratory in the distillery and found the black lotus leaf. The alarm was raised and I had to escape; Barney was waiting for me off the beach.’

Sarah checked her watch. ‘He’s late. Did you see the dragon?’

‘No.’ M42 stood and pointed. ‘Here he comes, that’s his boat.’

The doat did not slow, it  motored up onto the beach and scrunched to a halt, the motor still running. There was a sickening stench of burning. Barney’s body was in the bottom of the boat, severely burnt. Sarah looked away and retched, then crept closer. M42 was just standing and staring, white-knuckled.

‘This was a flamethrower,’ whispered Sarah. ‘You can still smell the gas.’ She turned again and retched until her stomach hurt.

M42 leant into the boat and stopped the engine. He then prised up the rear thwart.

‘Barney has … had a hidden compartment here.’ He pulled out a notebook. ‘The boat is not damaged. He was killed and dumped in here – possibly a warning?’

‘Did he have a family?’

‘What? I don’t know.’

‘We should …,’ Sarah suddenly looked up, back towards the trees. ‘There is a vehicle approaching.’

‘Get in, schnell.’ M42 pushed the boat down back into the sea and started the engine. They headed out to sea.

‘What …’

‘He was a fisherman and a boatman. He lived for the sea.’ M42 lifted the burnt body and heaved it overboard. (3)

Once offshore, M42 cut the engine and they drifted whilst looking at the notebook. It was handwritten in pencil.

Rough map of the coast of Bird island

NW: Cliffs – said to be unclimbable

E: Sea cave

S: Docks and Boathouse

SW: Beach. Lair of the Dragon

‘We don’t have the gear to climb the cliffs, the docks are probably guarded, don’t know about the boathouse and the beach … someone’s using a flamethrower. That’s probably what the dragon is.’ Sarah shuddered. ‘A vile weapon.’

‘They were used a lot in the Great War, on both sides.’

Approaching Bird Island

M42 looked at Sarah as he stood.

‘Can you swim?’

‘Yes’

‘I am a champion swimmer; I was at the Olympics and narrowly missed out on a medal. I will swim into the sea cave and see if there is a way ashore. You stay and wait for me.’

The Sea Cave

M42 stripped down to swim trunks, glanced at Sarah.

‘Give me to dawn,’ then dived overboard.

To be continued …

Mechanics

1. This is a real cigarette case from the period

2. Oops. Relations between the two suddenly became strained.

3. A Reaction test, but ultimately practical. They are OSS agents after all and should have some degree of practicality.

I am not sure about M42 myself – I’m being led by Mythic.

He’s German, young (so didn’t serve in the Great War,) blonde, blue-eyed, and a champion swimmer. Typical Aryan poster-boy model. But he works for the OSS. Hmm.

Thrilling Tales Featuring Operator M10

Episode 1 – A Voice from the Past

Sarah returned to her apartment in the Garment District and threw herself down on the couch. Since her return from Zafara she had been doing nothing but boring office paperwork. Her protests to Colonel Kleeman had fallen on deaf ears.

‘We’ll find you something soon.’

Why? She had foiled a devious plot in Zafara, she had been wounded but that was now healed. Okay – tackle the Colonel in the morning. She fixed some supper and went to bed.

Sarah jerked awake, pulling the Derringer from under her pillow. There had been the sound of breaking glass. She paused and listened but could hear nothing; she snapped on the light, holding the gun ready. There was no-one there, but the mirror on the wall was shattered.

The following day she requested to see Colonel Kleeman but he was unavailable. Sarah returned home, seething. It was obvious that she was being kept back, protected, and she didn’t like it.

“Maybe it’s time to do something myself.”

In her apartment she opened a drawer and took out a leather bag. Inside was the red metal object she had found in the pyramid at Tikal. (1) It was strangely warm, suddenly it vibrated in her hand and several glasses on the counter burst into fragments.

‘What!’ Sarah turned, with a loud ‘CRACK’ the window in her apartment split from top to bottom. Sarah hurridly stuffed the artefact back into the bag and buried it under a layer of clothes.

The next day, Sarah paid off the cab and went into the Northport Natural History Museum. She made her way to the office of Professor Armitage. His office was on the third floor, musty, oak-panelled with a bookshelf and a case of curios and exhibits. Prof Armitage was unchanged, he still had the long grey hair and beard, wore a weed jacket, and smoked the inevitable foul-smelling pipe. He was very pleased to see Sarah, they had not spoken since the mission to Tikal.

Sarah handed over the artefact, Professor Armitage examined it with a lens and then pulled out several reference books.

‘Interesting. This would appear to be part of a stele dedicated to Kukulkan, a Mayan deity. However, this part indicates a reference to Tezcatlipoca, an Aztec deity. Could there be a connection between them?’

Suddenly the artefact vibrated and several of the glass panels in Armitage’s bookcases shattered.

‘Tezcatlipoca was known as ‘the smoking mirror.’ You said that your mirror and other glass in your apartment has been broken?’

Sarah nodded.

‘’I remember saying to you – Do not be so fast to dismiss things out of hand. In my studies and travels I have come across many strange things. I think you need to leave this with me to research further.’

Professor Armitage crossed the room and opened cupboard. He took out a wooden box and a phonograph.

‘However, you may be interested in this.’

From out of the box, he carefully lifted a wax cylinder, which he attached to the phonograph. He wound it and carefully positioned the needle.

‘This is very old, I have made a transcription but I’d like you to listen to the original.’ He set the machine in operation.

A faint voice came from the speaker horn: –

Islands hide what maps deny.

Secrets kept beneath bone and shell,

Lurking deep where shadows dwell.

A pirate’s greed shall find its test,

No compass guides the soul’s unrest.

Dead men chart this haunted quest—

There was a pause, a faint noise and what sounded like a chuckle. Then silence.

‘That was recorded by a Dr Elias Gaspard, a British linguist and occultist in nineteen hundred and four. It was found in Port Royal Jamaica and sent here. It was in this wooden box, the parcel came from the Lantern Court Hotel. There was no name of the sender, just a scrawled note RAB. On the lid, in Latin, it says – For the ears of the Outer Chamber only. Translate with care. There was only one cylinder in the box, but space for two more. I would like you to go to Jamaica and track down the missing cylinders.’

Sarah was intrigued, but had to ask: –

‘Why? It’s just a poem.’

‘It’s more than a poem. It’s an acrostic. Read the first letter of each line.’

‘ISLAND … What’s that supposed to mean? It could be coincidence.’

‘Possibly. But the faint noise? I can’t be certain, but it sounds like something heavy hitting the floor.’

Sarah stood. ‘Okay. I’ll head for Port Royal and see what I can find out.’

To be continued …

Mechanics

1. The Valley of Fear