• Location: Inside the fenced property of J.W., lower slopes of the Atrana Mountains
• Type: Capture · Containment · Psychological Pressure · Power Imbalance
• Era: Beta Age
• Tone: Controlled wilderness · ritualized dominance · procedural cruelty · loss of agency

Atmosphere & Sensory Cues: Persistent mist · humid tropical air · muffled forest sounds · ordered paths amid wild growth · wood, iron, and animal musk · distant animal movement · the constant awareness of being observed

The wooden gate groans as it opens. Not fast. Not wide. Just enough. Rough hands guide you forward. There is no shouting. No urgency. Just pressure — steady, practiced, inevitable.

You pass through the wall.

On the other side, the forest feels almost unchanged. The same mist clings between the trees. The same damp air presses against skin and fabric. The same smells of wet leaves, wood, and slow rot linger in the air.

You are pushed onto a narrow paved trail, stones set carefully into the soil. It winds deeper into the property, flanked by tall trees whose lower branches have been trimmed away. You pass stacked timber, drying racks heavy with hides, tools hung neatly beneath crude wooden shelters. Everything is where it belongs.

Somewhere nearby, a Veyra snorts softly.

Ahead, a low, windowless wooden hut stands beside the path. Two pale figures linger near it, watching you in silence. Their skin, their hunched posture, and the way their reflective eyes catch the dim light instantly send a chill down your spine. They bear a striking, undeniable resemblance to the Nameless Man – the man whose death brought you here. And then you see the Main House.

A massive log structure rises from the mist, three stories high, its walls darkened by weather and smoke. A wide stone chimney climbs along one side, exhaling a thin ribbon of gray into the fog. Warm light flickers behind shuttered windows.

Near the house, set directly into the ground, is a heavy wooden hatch reinforced with iron bands.

One of your captors steps forward and pulls it open. A staircase descends into darkness. You are pushed down, boots scraping against wood, hands firm on your shoulders. The hatch closes above you with a solid, final sound.

When the light returns, it is dim.

You find yourselves in a low wooden room, the walls lined with thick planks scarred by age and claw marks. The air smells of animals — sweat, fur, fear — old and familiar, like a place meant to hold what does not belong outside. A narrow slit in the door lets in a thin blade of light. Along one wall, iron rings are bolted into the timber. Heavy chains hang slack from them.

Footsteps retreat. No voices linger. You are alone. For now.

There is no prolonged struggle. You are overwhelmed, disarmed, and dragged out of the main house into the freezing mist. The pale figures holding you are silent, their grip like iron.

Near the house, set directly into the ground, is a heavy wooden hatch reinforced with iron bands. One of your captors pulls it open.

A staircase descends into darkness. You are pushed down, boots scraping against wood, hands firm on your shoulders. The hatch closes above you with a solid, final sound.

When the light returns, it is dim.

You find yourselves in a low wooden room, the walls lined with thick planks scarred by age and claw marks. The air smells of animals — sweat, fur, fear — old and familiar, like a place meant to hold what does not belong outside. A narrow slit in the heavy reinforced door lets in a thin blade of light. Along one wall, iron rings are bolted into the timber. Heavy chains hang slack from them.

Footsteps retreat. No voices linger. You are alone. For now.

—

—

Before resolving any mechanics in this phase, read the Staged Read-Aloud “The guards bring the PCs into J.W.’s presence.”

DM RULE: The “Two Questions” Limit. J.W. is classifying the PCs, not indulging them. The PCs may ask exactly TWO questions. He will only answer questions related to the three topics below. If they ask a third question, or if they ask about anything outside these three topics, he immediately delivers the “Prey” response and issues his verdict.

—

The mist within the compound is thick, obscuring line of sight. The One Location Rule: If the PCs break out of their cell, they have a very narrow window before the empty cell is discovered. They only have enough time to investigate ONE location on the property (The Huts, The Tannery, The Fire Pits, or slipping into the Main House) before the alarm sounds and a compound-wide manhunt begins.

—

The main house is a massive log structure with no windows, only narrow viewing slots. Flickering torches illuminate the upper hallways. Strangely, a network of salvaged metal pipes — clearly stripped from ship-grade plumbing — runs along the ceilings and walls. The PCs must navigate the creaking architecture flawlessly. They also hear the heavy, synchronized shuffling of dozens of boots in the mud outside, followed by an eerie, absolute silence — as if a crowd has just been called to attention.

Note: The assembly in the yard only take place if the PCs did not already trigger an alarm and disrupt it during Scene 6a.

• The Irony of the Mandate (Main Path): Remind the players of the excruciating irony here. In Phase III, they are sitting three feet away from the exact man they need to capture alive, but they are tied to chairs, stripped of their weapons, and entirely at his mercy.
• J.W. is classifying, not interrogating (Main Path): J.W. does not seek confession, remorse, or justification. He is determining whether the PCs are noise, data, or risk. Let long pauses, the deliberate scratch of his pen, and his absolute silence do more work than dialogue ever could.
• The Sudden Execution (Main Path): J.W. is a creature of brutal efficiency. He will not monologue, and he will not march them to a fire pit if he can have them killed instantly in his office. Make this moment fast and terrifying. The PCs have exactly one chance to react the second he closes the notebook.
• The One Location Rule (Optional Breakout Path): If the PCs manage to escape their cell (Phase IVa/IVb), this rule is crucial for tension. The PCs should feel like they got away with it — right up until they realize they only had a three-minute head start. When their empty cell is discovered, make the acoustic siren or the pneumatic shriek deafening.

• ↑↑ Start: Hunting An Unknown Hunter
• ★ Overview: All Scenes of Hunting An Unknown Hunter
• ☞ Resolution: Case Resolution and discoverable Backstory
• ← Previous Scene: Scene 6a — In the Realm of the Hunter
• → Next Scene: The outcome of the captivity determines the next step:
  • If PCs break out and run for the wall: Proceed to Scene 6d — Escape Empty-Handed.
  • If PCs manage to take J.W. hostage during the audience: Proceed to Scene 6c — Escape With The Hunter.