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Encounter Conditions
Orbital Watch equipped
Etheric?
Initial Text
You pass through a veil of dust, finding your way into a well-appointed tower overlooking a violent battlefield. If it were not for the faint roar of the battlefield audible through the resident's sullen silence, the war below could be a projection on screens.
Among the residents of the room, three stand out as particularly important. An executive surrounded by aides instead stares into her visor, ignoring those subtly jockeying for her favor. What appears to be a king in full regalia stands on the opposite side of the chamber. And a harried, but somehow still smiling, woman makes her way back and forth between the parties with little apparent progress.
All three look like they could stand with a distraction, looking at everything but the war beyond the tower's windows.
Summary of Choices
- Talk to the CEO - gain 20 Creating Distance, unlock Speaking With The Executive
- Approach the king - gain 20 Creating Distance, unlock Audience With The King
- Chat with the runner - gain 20 Flicker of Peace
- Try to broker peace (After chatting with the runner) - gain 50 Flicker of Peace, or, if you have helped both CEO and king consider peace: learn Time of Peace skill or gain dove plaque
- Explore the battlefield end encounters*, and with automatic weapon: learn Cutting Crossfire, or, with National Call and Orbital Demonstration: learn Dust of Time
Choice Text and Results
Talk to the CEO
The corporate leader gives you a nod as you approach, withdrawing from the back-and-forth to give the two of you some space to chat.
You've gained 20 duration of Creating Distance.
(Hidden: Lose any energy of Flicker of Peace)(Leads to Speaking With The Executive a few turns later)
Approach the king
He gives you a nod and leads you off to a private chamber where you can speak freely.
You've gained 20 duration of Creating Distance.
(Hidden: Lose any energy of Flicker of Peace)(Leads to Audience with the King a few turns later)
Chat with the runner
She gives you a smile and does her best to explain how the war began: both sides wanted control of what's in orbit and now both are too proud to step down. She laments that neither side respects her enough to accept her simple offer.
In her perfect world, they would lay aside their differences and share the resources they seek to conquer and risk destroying. But, alas, the world is one of endless swirling dust, a far sight from perfection.
You've gained 20 duration of Flicker of Peace. (If you already have Flicker of Peace active, it will set it to 20 duration rather than adding to it.)
(Allows this encounter to show up again later today)
Try to broker peace
You confront the sides, asking them to come together. Things break down quickly, with both sides making unreasonable demands of each other as well as you.
Exhausted, you retreat to a side chamber to reconsider your tactics. A single shot rings out and the bloody ground rushes up to meet you.
The world seems clearer when you awake, bereft of the cloud of dust lingering at its edges.
You've gained 50 duration of Flicker of Peace. (If you already have Flicker of Peace active, it will set it to 50 duration rather than adding to it.)
(Stops all orbital watch encounters for the day.)
Or, if you have the dove plaque installed and have not gotten both sides to agree to peace:
You speak more of peace. She's hopeful, but cautiously. You take a little of her hope into yourself.
You learned a new Technique: Echo of Doves
Or, after you have convinced both the king and CEO to agree to peace:
Leveraging your influence on both sides of the aisle, you negotiate peace between the factions, ushering in a new era of peace and prosperity.
Joy spreads throughout the lands, save for one tiny corner of the world that still wars. You look on in sadness as a plume of flame licks the dusty night air.
You've learned a new Skill: Time of Peace
Or, if have convinced both the king and CEO to agree to peace and already have the Time of Peace skill:
Leveraging your influence on both sides of the aisle, you negotiate peace between the factions, ushering in a new era of peace and prosperity.
Joy spreads throughout the lands, save for one tiny corner of the world that still wars. You look on in sadness as a plume of flame licks the dusty night air.
For all your achievements, you are awarded with a plaque to mark your contributions to world peace, but it seems your work may not yet be done.
You found: dove plaque
Explore the battlefield
You make your way outside, weaving through the warring sides until an unlucky missile lands near you. Your vision goes white and a horrible whine drowns out all other noise.
The world seems clearer when you awake, bereft of the cloud of dust lingering at its edges.
(Stops all orbital watch encounters for the day.)
Or, with an automatic weapon equipped and enough ranged techniques in your deck but not National Call and Orbital Demonstration?:
You make your way outside, exchanging hails of bullets with both sides as they get too close for comfort. Eventually your tactics up with you, catching a bullet from an unguarded flank, but learning an important lesson.
The world seems clearer when you awake, bereft of the cloud of dust lingering at its edges.
You learned a new Technique: Cutting Crossfire
(Stops all orbital watch <and dusty clipboard?> encounters for the day.)
Or, with National Call and Orbital Demonstration (in your deck?), and NOT an automatic weapon equipped(?)*:
You make your way outside, weaving through the warring sides without any fear of bullets or even missiles. You know their ways and can escape them. But time still catches up with you, your dance halted by the grinding of ages.
The world seems clearer when you awake, bereft of the cloud of dust lingering at its edges.
You learned a new Technique: Dust of Time
(Stops all orbital watch <and dusty clipboard?> encounters for the day.)
* With otherwise identical setup, I was getting Cutting Crossfire with army drone model, and Dust of Time without it?
Notes
This encounter does not consume energy. (?)