• Location: Guest Rooms, First Floor · Saloon Gloria, Firetown
• Type: Social · Discovery · Blackmail Opportunity · Medium Risk
• Era: Beta Age
• Tone: Intimate · Muffled danger · Secrets behind thin walls
• Unlock Condition: PCs must already have access to a room* (via Mira Reis · Tamara Borg · or successful room booking in Scene 8b).

Atmosphere & Sensory Cues: Warm floor vents · thin walls · muffled moans · clatter of pipes · distant laughter from below · the smell of soap and Lumira-wood polish.

The first-floor hallway of Saloon Gloria is warm and dim, lit only by two oil lamps and the soft shimmer of bioluminescent Lumira-wood. The geothermal pipes beneath the floor give off a gentle, steady hum. As you settle into your space for the night — bed, blanket, or sleeping bag — the noise of the saloon below fades into a low, comforting murmur.

Then a soft thump echoes through the thin wall.

Another.

A muffled gasp follows… then the unmistakable rhythm of rough, breathless intimacy. The wall beside you trembles lightly with each movement. The sounds grow sharper, more uneven — until a sudden, violent crash cuts through them.

A woman cries out in pain. A man snarls something in panic. Then silence.

Heavy breathing. Footsteps. A hushed, frantic whisper: “Get up… come on… don’t do this…”

Something drags across the floorboards in the next room. Whatever happened in there… it wasn’t part of the fun anymore.

• Purpose of the Scene:

Give the PCs a decisive advantage for infiltrating the Trooper Station by witnessing Jace Laux commit accidental manslaughter and cover it up. This leverage bypasses several challenges in Scene 9.

• What the PCs Can Learn / Confirm:
  1. Laux killed a sex worker during rough intercourse.
  2. He panicked and called another Trooper for a covert cleanup.
  3. He tried to hide all traces.
  4. His identity is confirmed by badge, uniform shirt, and his Weber device call.
  5. Physical evidence (clutch, calendar, money, knife, chemical smell) proves this was an ongoing relationship — not a random encounter.

• What Makes the Evidence Powerful:
  1. Verbal confession (over Weber).
  2. Visual confirmation (PCs see him).
  3. Physical evidence that can’t be explained away.
  4. Pattern of meetings (calendar entries) proving long-term involvement.
  5. Chemical smell implying a deliberate, hidden body disposal.

• How to Play Jace Laux:
  1. Panicked, ashamed, terrified of exposure.
  2. Aggressively defensive at first (“She tried to blackmail me!”).
  3. Quickly becomes submissive once he understands the PCs can destroy him.
  4. More afraid of the Cartel than of internal investigation — use this in dialogue.

• Negotiation Dynamics (GM Mindset): PCs have total upper hand. Laux is desperate and wants one thing: “Make this go away.”

• What the Leverage Can Get the PCs:
  1. Access to restricted hallways.
  2. A forged “medical transfer” request.
  3. A temporary blind spot in surveillance or patrol.
  4. Laux personally escorting them to Cell 1 (rare but possible).
  5. Removal of the guard posted near the Nameless Man.
  6. Reduced hostility from Troopers (“Laux said you’re cleared.”).

• Tone to Maintain:
  1. Quiet, claustrophobic tension.
  2. Morally grey — nobody is heroic here.
  3. The PCs feel the weight of what they witnessed.
  4. Firetown’s darkness feels *very real* behind the saloon’s warm facade.

• If PCs escalate poorly:
  1. Laux may attack in blind panic.
  2. Backup Troopers may return sooner than expected.
  3. Laux may try to turn the accusation around (“They killed her!”).
  4. The cleanup Trooper might notice unfamiliar voices and suspect witnesses.

• If PCs walk away without investigating:
  1. They will still hear the Weber call and cleanup.
  2. But they miss the physical evidence → blackmail becomes weaker.
  3. Laux in Scene 9 is nervous but not panicked; DCs for intimidation rise.

—-

• ↑↑ Start: Adventure Hub — The Man Without a Name
• ← Previous Scene: Scene 8b — Saloon Gloria
• → Next Logical Scene: Scene 9 — Trooper Station