Preview: Training Event Chains

Aside from performance and animations, the most common thing people asked for in Stationmaster was individual interaction with your people. In Stationmaster 2, you'll be able to single out individuals for personal attention instead of normal assignments, and you'll have opportunities to talk to them at intervals. If you complete their training, they will give you special bonuses (based on their backgrounds and your choices) as long as they serve on your station.

I'm doing multiple separate event chains for each of around ten backgrounds (King/Queen, Soldier, Criminal, etc.). It's a ton of writing, but I think it will really help to make the people on your station feel like individuals.

You return to find Queen Maria lying in the bed, her face covered in tears. She looks up as you enter and tries to compose herself.

"Hello, Maria."

"Hello... please... just..."

She starts crying again. You sit down on the bed next to her.

"Why don't you tell me why you're crying?"

"I'm scared. Please don't kill me."

You rest a hand on her shoulder and she flinches.

"I would prefer not to, but you need to give me a reason to keep you alive."

"What more do you want from me? You've taken everything."

"Surely you have skills to offer. Or were you just an ornament that attended parties?"

"I... I could be an emissary. When I was younger, I traveled to many planets as a diplomat. I could speak effectively..."

"Were you good at what you did?"

"Yes. I did all I could to avoid war with our neighbors. And I was skilled in other ways as well."

"Such as?"

She looks up at you and takes a deep breath, then leans in closer.

"I'm a witch."

You burst out laughing.

"A witch? I thought your people were spacefaring."

"We are! I'm not a traditional witch of course, but I have some magical abilities. Mostly healing and mental spells, and a few love potions."

"I'm not sure how much use I have for a diplomat who believes she's a witch."

"You don't understand! I'm a real witch! Just let me show you."

"Fine. What are you going to do, cast a spell on me?"

She nods.

"Yes. It's called a compulsion spell. If I cast it on you, you'll be unable to do anything but tell the truth."

You laugh again.

"Alright then, go ahead."

"I'm... I'm not sure that it will still work. I haven't used it in a long time."

She closes her eyes, and begins to murmur. Her lips appears to quiver as she chants, and she grips her hands tightly. You notice a drop of sweat running down her cheek.

She opens her eyes and looks at you.

"This whole station is in the belly of a great whale that has eaten us all. I expect that we will soon be shat out into space"

"I can't! I used up all my energy. And I'm... I'm hungry."

"People let you believe you were a witch because the punishment for saying otherwise was ostracization from your inner circle. You have no powers. You were just an awful queen."

You look at her, and you can't hold back your laughter. She joins in, but hers is the laughter of desperation. The laughter of a crumbling mind.

"No! No! Please, I just... Just..."

She begins to sob, before looking up at you.

"Just what?"

"Kill me."

"No. Your journey to usefulness will be difficult, but not impossible. Killing you now would be a waste."

She continues to sob, and you put your arm around her.

"Get something to eat. I'll be back in a few days and we can try again."

You leave her in her quarters. You still sense potential in her, though you aren't sure where it lies. Still, it's probably worth continuing. You're not often wrong about these things.