The Lone Wanderer wakes on a cold white floor. The round room has no seams, doors, windows, or shadows, only six other figures laying on the floor nearby. His rifle is gone.
Titus Aemilius
No sudden movements. Stay where you are.
Titus rises first, reaching for his weapon, only to realize he has none. No one is armed.
Delfarius
A soldier ordering me around? Do you have any idea who I am?
Mera
Where am I? Where are the spirits?
Miko
I have no memory of this place... or of being abducted.
Miko sits up, looking around with wonder. All the strangers stare at each other with uncertainty, waiting for someone to make a move.
✓ Quest Accepted
Escape the white prison
✓ Quest Accepted
Figure out what is going on
“Stand up, fists ready to fight, and demand answers.”
SUCCESS (Great Willpower, rolled -1)
The Lone Wanderer rises sharply, fists clenched and shoulders squared. His eyes sweep across the room, reading each face for the first sign of attack.
The Lone Wanderer
Don't try anything. Who are you people, and how did I get here?
The demand hangs in the white room. His fists stay ready, though the effort of holding himself against panic leaves a visible tremor in one hand.
Titus Aemilius
Easy, son. I am just as confused as you are.
Delfarius
How charming, a little boy playing tough. If I knew how I got here, I would've walked out the door by now.
Miko
I cannot identify an abductor or the location. This place is unrecognizable.
Mera
This is not my world... I cannot sense the spirits.
Director's note
Suddenly, a dark screen appears on the ceiling. The Warden appears in the static screen and begins introducing each character and their past feats.
A dark rectangle suddenly opens across the ceiling, drowning the white room in flickering static. A distorted figure forms within it, watching the six strangers below.
The Figure on the Screen
Welcome, subjects. I am The Warden. You have all been chosen to play a part in my experiments.
The Figure on the Screen
Titus Aemilius, Roman soldier. Forty-three years of battles, discipline, and loyalty have kept you alive... but for how long?
The Figure on the Screen
Delfarius, powerful manipulator and practitioner of magic. Mera, seer of the Bon-rion, guided by spirits of frozen water.
The Figure on the Screen
Miko, self-aware android, armored beyond ordinary human endurance. Dagg Nabbitt, rancher and survivor, protected by a secret that death cannot easily claim.
The Figure on the Screen
And the Lone Wanderer, hero of The Capital Wasteland. You survived many situations that would have killed an ordinary mortal. Impressive, most impressive.
“Who are you? What is this place? Why are we here?”
SUCCESS (Legendary Persuasion, rolled +0)
The Lone Wanderer
Who are you? What is this place? Why are we here?
He lets the question stand plainly, reading the strangers' faces for hesitation and concealed threats. Distrust tightens his posture, but his measured tone keeps the room listening instead of turning hostile.
The Figure on the Screen
This is a simulation that will be testing your skills and knowledge to see if you will survive. All of you are powerful beings from your own worlds, far too powerful to be left unattended.
The Figure on the Screen
You are here because I selected you for trials. Complete these trials, and I will let you go. Fail... and your corpses will be used for study.
The answer lands with brutal clarity. Even the room's silence feels arranged, confirming the Warden's claim without offering a seam, door, or shadow to contradict it.
The Figure on the Screen
You must work together in order to survive. Or just fight each other to death, either way will be amusing to me.
Titus Aemilius
Let me out of here, demon! I will not be your plaything.
Quest Complete
Figure out what is going on
Attribute Upgrade: Willpower Great→Superb
Director's note
A door slides open, leading to the first trial.
The Figure on the Screen
Your defiance is noted, Titus Aemilius. The first trial begins now. Cooperation is optional, but survival is not.
A seam appears in the spotless wall beneath the screen. Panels withdraw with a heavy mechanical hiss, revealing a dark corridor and a single red light pulsing at its far end.
Titus Aemilius
We're doing this then... let us work together to find a way out of this place.
The others rise behind him. Everyone begins walking down the dark corridor, shivering from the cold and unease.
The Lone Wanderer looks back up at the screen, only to be met with static. He does not trust these strangers, but follows them in hopes to find the exit.
Miko
Stay alert. This place is unknown to me. The technology is far too advanced for my expertise.