A Stay in Mercy

I shall not retell this chronicle from the beginning. But be assured that it was written in blood and spent shells and told to the noise of screams and gunfire. It is a tale of treason, vengeance and sudden reversals. It is a tale about the search for riches, glory and the promise of redemption. It is a tale about five very different men making their way in a desolate world.

The last session offered some respite after lots and lots of bloodshed, with the group resting in the trading community called Mercy, a small island of civilization which provides shelter to about a 1000 souls. When we left our intrepid adventurers last time, they were ready to start their expedition to the very fringes of the Great White - the deadly white zone to the west of Mercy. Ben Spencer seems to know what he is doing, and up to now, the loot has been good - so no challenges to his authority up to now. The group greedily stocked up on survival gear (gas masks, flashlights, foodstuffs and the like) and dust-proofed their vehicles. They also repaired an old Geiger counter to the marvel and astonishment of Mercy's resident juice technician. Finally, the travelers beefed up Mercy's defenses with a fake mortar and received a chemsniffer for their work.

They paid for services and goods with lots of old and damaged guns and busted armor. When shopping for ammunition, they soon found out that Mercy has quite limited resources in this regard and that they are scraping the bottom of the barrel - no one will sell them any ammo now.

When talking to Ericson one got the impression that he has been out in the wastes for far too long and that his sanity suffered for it. But he knows lots about the surrounding area and its dangers, and the travelers got a few pointers from him.

Generally everyone seems to think their voyage to the West is madness, but it is a free country, and you are allowed to cut your own throat any way you like...although it seems that earlier travelers brought trouble with them when they returned from the western desert.

While their stay was mostly peaceable, Carlos el Loco, always the impeccable gentleman, got into trouble (again) - in a brothel and, a few days later, in front of a gunshop. Hilarity ensued, but there were no fatalities. Also, someone tried to sell off damaged gas filters as "brand new" and "originally sealed" to a fellow trader - despicable behavior! When found out, this individual fingered poor Ericson, who then was visited by an enraged trader and his retinue.

After a forthnight of rest, the group is healed, geared up and ready to go!

People met:
- Father Ataxerxes, leader of Mercy. A kindly catholic priest. Would like to get his chemsniffer back.
- Ke Mai, owner of an electronics shop. Fascinated by Ben's and Mal's skill with the old soldering iron.
- Red, merchant of death. The owner of "Red's Gunshop" might be bandy-legged, skinny and balding, but mano-a-mano there is no better in all of Mercy, as Carlos found out.
- Ericson, scavvy. The only inhabitant in Mercy with some knowledge about the Great White. Borderline-crazy, but not crazy enough to guide the group into a white zone.
- Bosworth Ting. Ho'teller of the "Four Curves and a Bang". A very accommodating and understanding individual.
- Morgan Morgan. A trader who now thinks that Ben Spencer may either be a mediocre fraud but an accomplished liar or else a dupe dumb enough to buy damaged goods. He travels the Corridor between Pike City and Point Transit.

People met their demise:
- none, but some scrapes, bruises and indignities suffered

A German description of this charming little settlement is available at rapidshare in pdf. format: get Mercy.pdf