The Maid Did It is a quick intro game I put together as a couple of my players where not able to make the first session. Parts of the final events purposely put them near to events from Electric Dreams the first published set intended as the main scenario.
Wed 13th May 2037 Night
Jessra Melady is killed at about 11pm. At about 5am just after sunrise, neighbours taking a walk with their dog replicant see and report the next door maid hurl the dead Mr. Melady across the patio and bury him in the flower beds behind the house.
Wed 13th May 2037 Morning
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| The Melady Residence (from Google images) |
Jessra Melady is watched being buried by his maid and reported to the LAPD. LAPD upon discovering that the maid is a replicant call the RepDetect department. Detective Hardee, Warkowski, Antoney and Amenda are detailed. They arrieve to inspect the scene and start to interview the staff and witnesses.
There is an obviously dug grave (no attempt to hide) in the flower bed where the burial could be over-looked by the neighbours. Security cameras to the house had been turned off. LAPD had already initiated some forensics before the believed culprit was identified as a replicant. This showed time of death at around 11pm on the 13th.
The neighbours Mini and Ted Rogers witness the event of the maid JUL.7.132 - Penny, burying a body and called the police. This was after sunrise. They did not see the murder. They give character witness for the couple Lucia and Jessra Melady.
The wife Lucia is crying in the corner supported by her friend Stevena Hance. Both are interviewed. They give run downs of their activities saying that they arrived after the killing. The times conflict slightly with the car timings. They show that Lucia had been home earlier than stated and that the car had then left to return an hour after the killing. She covers and is alibied by her friend, saying she went out with Stevena and returned together later which is why both arrived in the early morning but are not sure of the time (they had been drinking). The maid ran off, they were drunk enough not to be curious and she was not expecting Jessra home from a business trip until the next day. The first they knew of the murder was when the LAPD turned up at the front door and the maid was not available to admit them.
There are two licenced guns registered to the house but one is missing as is a magazine of bullets of the correct calibre to match the murder weapon. Detective Amenda is worried about the comings and going of the car and a private taxi-cab but cannot work out why they don't match.
Maurice Jacobs, the live in gardener was not aware of anything until the LAPD arrived responding to the Rogers alarm (they woke him up). He says that Penny may have gone to Clean Stuff a shop she frequents and one where many replicants go when in trouble.
The suspected murderer is JUL.7.132 - Penny a Nexus-9, who/which are incapable (officially and yet to be disclaimed) able to harm their masters. The Nexus-9 was only released a year ago and has undergone extremely stringent controls and checks to be allowed back on the streets after the previous ban, to the extent that some have even become Blade Runners, Detective Antoney being an example.
Interviews suggest Penny has gone to her favourite shop Clean Stuff where she is friends with the owner a Paul Sacreteddies. Jacobs suggests many replicants go there for help and support but doesn't elaborate. When asked about the Replicant Underground he seems genuinely ignorant of such a thing.
Late Morning
Investigations at Clean Stuff which is not far from the residence, show that Penny had been at the store and had gone through to the back. There is no camera to the rear but the shop is 'Closed' and the owners car is missing. While at the shop a call comes in from LAPD saying that the maid and another man have been identified (an APB had been broadcast earlier) near Animoid Row. The detectives rush to investigate.
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| Shift Report, not signed, not dated and useless in court, reprimands will be made |
Afternoon
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| Animoid Row map from Electric Dreams set showing The Ostrich Farm middle left. |
Reported events are that a man and woman, the woman matching the discription of the APB where spotted about mid-day. Attempts to apprehend them failed and the man disappears. The woman runs off into the shopping area of Animoid Row and shots were fired. As the Detectives arrieve, the woman is penned up in a outlet called The Ostrich Farm. Everyone has been evacuated and the LAPD are simply holding the perimeter until the RepDetect arrieve.
Although shots were fired it seems they were all by LAPD who had identified that the suspect was openly carrying a handgun. There is no report she fired it at any time. She is believed to be wounded and has hidden in a local shop.
The detectives enter, Warkowski and Hardee taking the lead. They talk her down, disarm her and escort her to their car and take her in. She is wounded and very frightened.
Evening
Penny is taken for interrogation. The resultant details are that Mr Melady had arrived home earlier than expected had taken coffee and relaxed, sending Penny off-duty, she retired to her room. She was later disturbed by Mrs Melady who told her to clean up Mr. Melady's body and bury it. She was also given a gun (later identified as the murder weapon) and told to keep hold of it, bury the body and run.
She followed her instructions. She never let go of the gun but never used it either (only one bullet, recovered from the Melady residence was missing from the magazine). She made no attempt to hide what she was doing but complied to the letter of the instruction and then fled. She knew that another replicant who had had some trouble had received help from Paul Sacreteddies and having nowhere else to go went to see him. He said he knew someone in Animoid Row that might be able to help and they went off in his car. As she left the car, police challenged her then saw her gun and fired at them. Paul was separated, she has no idea where he went. More shots were fired, she got hit and just ran until she found herself in a shop with no back exit. The people there all fled and a stand-off occured until the Detectives turned up.
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| End of session crime board |
An arrest warrant has been arranged for Mrs Melady and she and Ms Hance taken into custody. JUL.7.132 - Penny is absolved of all crimes and quicky becomes a celebrity as Wallace Corp use her to demonstrate the absolute loyalty and courage inherent in the new Nexus-9 model. They are very happy with the outcome. The detectives are awarded although they are also reprimanded for the quality of their paperwork where they left the trainee to do it all and he did not even identify himself on any of it. The trial of Mrs. Melady is arranged although Ms. Hance, who turns out to be Mr. Melady's business partner, seems to have an alibi and is freed.
After game discussion suggests that Ms. Hance had more to gain than her friend from the killing but no one had done any checks on her or even considered she might have manipulated events. Oh well, now the Replicant side is cleared up the rest of the investigation returns to the hands of the real police. Events of the same evening will be more than distracting enough as they lead into the published scenario for the next session.
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