Silence Of The Goatlings is a MegaTraveller adventure centered
around a missing person case on Yori prior to the Fifth Frontier War. It is based on the
write-up of Yori made for the TML Landgrab exercise on the internet, and the Referee should
be familiar with that document.
The Referee needs access to the basic MegaTraveller rule book, a couple
of six-sided dice, and paper and pencil for note taking. Other accessories are optional.
While pizza is the usual food of choice during Traveller sessions you may find Chinese
take-away (or better yet: Thai) is more in keeping with the atmosphere of Yori. (They eat a
lot of rice on Yori.)
Some sections of the adventure are meant to be read out to the players (at
the appropriate time). It is shown as:
Example text which can be read verbatim to the players by the Referee but
you should feel free to adapt or replace such text as desired.
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Finally, the players should have their own Traveller characters ... no
pre-generated characters are provided here. More or less any number and type of character will
do, but it would be beneficial if one character has Admin skill, and another has Streetwise.
Although this should be a thinking adventure there may be an opportunity for combat at
the end.
Plot Summary:
The plot starts as a simple missing persons case.
The group are approached by a local businessman whose daughter has gone missing in a rural
town called Aicmata. Investigating the town the group will find a fringe cult has been
abducting passers-by and sacrificing them to a man-sized aquatic creature that has swam up
from the Undersea. In addition to the patron's daughter they have also abducted a visiting
anthropologist who was following folktales of a monster which periodically visited the area,
and a vehicle mechanic who ran a one-man breakdown service on the open road.
Okay, so the aquatic creature is a "Deep One" from the Cthulhu mythos,
but this adventure should play better in the style of a Steven King story ... like "Children
of the Corn". Strange goings on in small rural towns, that sort of thing. And there are
enough red-herrings that this could be fleshed out into a mini-campaign if so desired.
This adventure starts with the assumption that the players are in Geronemo
(the startown on Yori) and that they are looking for some work while on the planet. To this
end they will be hanging out in a spacer bar in the startown ... a well-known common location
to meet prospective patrons.
The group are relaxing over a drink in one of the many spacer bars in
Geronemo when two men approach them. Both are humans. One is tall, and is dressed in
an expensive business suit. The other is clearly a bodyguard, eyes ceaselessly scanning
for potential trouble. The tall man asks if he can join their table to discuss business.
After he has sat down he will begin:
"My name is John Whitlam, I am the Regional Director of Sales for Baxter
Motors here at the starport. I have a problem which I believe you gentlemen may be able
to help me with. My daughter has recently gone missing on Yori and I am terribly concerned
for her safety. I can pay you Cr2,000 a day plus expenses ... within reason ... and a
bonus of Cr10,000 when you get her back to me safe and sound. Are you interested?"
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The group will probably have some questions before they accept but if they
are interested Whitlam will continue:
"My daughter's name is Veronika Quino ... her husband is dead but she still
carries his name. She's a Scout by profession but was visiting Yori on extended vacation.
She wanted to visit some of the Scarland countryside for a few weeks and was working her way
down from Market to Hemdian by ground car. The last call I got from her she'd just arrived
at a small farming town ... called Aicmata, about mid way ... and was stopping for the night.
It was her habit to call in the morning and give me her itinerary for the day but this time
she never did.
I went down to Aicmata last weekend. There was no sign of her. The local
police said they'd keep an eye out for her but they struck me as unconcerned. There is no
record of her credit chip being used in Aicmata either ... not even to pay for a local hotel
room. She's just vanished into thin air!"
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If the group accept Whitlam will hand over an envelope containing a Baxter
Motors credit chip and a memory stick. The credit chip allows Whitlam to transfer funds over
the local net to wherever the group is, and is stamped with his contact details. The memory
stick contains several pictures of Veronika, details of her rental ground car, her original
planned route from Market to Hemdian, and her actual route from Market to Aicmata (there were
a few minor detours).
The first avenue of investigation is to check the local computer net. This
can be done from the group's ship (if they have one, and it is in the downport), a terminal
booth in the starport concourse (cost Cr1 per 5 minutes), or most hotel rooms of average or
better quality.
If the group wish to check out Whitlam's identity then ...
To confirm Whitlam's identity via the local computer net: |
Simple, Admin, Int, 5 min (uncertain) |
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Referee: |
If the players' roll fails then no information is found.
If the players' roll and the referee's secret roll succeed then
confirm everything Whitlam told them ... he is exactly as he seems.
If the players' roll succeeds but the referee's secret roll fails
then confirm Whitlam's basic identity but there is no information
about any daughter. |
If the group request basic information on Aicmata ...
To get basic data on Aicmata from the local computer net: |
Simple, Admin, Int, 1 min |
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Referee: |
Aicmata is a small rural town of 3500 Zhurphani and 150 humans. Its
local economy is based on rice farms and Yorian Goat ranches. |
If the group wish to search for clues then ...
To search the local computer net for useful information: |
Routine, Admin, Int, 5 min (uncertain) |
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Referee: |
If the players' roll fails then no information is found.
If the players' roll and the referee's secret roll succeed then a
clue is found.
If the players' roll succeeds but the referee's secret roll fails
then give out a false lead. |
1d6 |
Clues: |
1 |
A news story (dated 3 months ago) tells
of a mutilated body discovered near Aicmata. The victim was a young human woman called
Amada Fitzpatrick (a junior navigation officer on a visiting passenger liner). She'd
been missing for more than a week before her body was discovered dumped in an
irrigation ditch on the outskirts of town. The injuries suggested some kind of large
animal attack. As there are no large animals on Yori police are baffled. |
2 |
Searching local census data reveals that
Aicmata's water supply has been steadily decreasing year after year. The local rice
farms have all but gone, and the goatling ranches are finding it more difficult.
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3 |
A recent article in a current affairs
magazine details the rising worship of the fringe god Taino in rural areas of
equatorial Scarland. Although the Advisor's are reluctant to give out much
information, in Yorian mythology Taino is Zeludeous' younger brother. Taino is
described as jealous of his older sibling's success and he would entice Zeludeous'
supporters away with favours ... but those favours often came with a terrible price.
The article points out that while the Taino cult was still tiny, it was a growing
phenomenon. |
4 |
A private 'advertisement' lists
Eneri Sharim (human male) as having gone missing in equatorial Scarland. The
'advertisement' was posted by his wife and asks for any information on his
whereabouts. No reward is offered and it is obvious that that she is poor.
Sharim is described as a ground car mechanic who ran a one man breakdown
service. |
5 |
An electronic bulletin board
belonging to Hemdian University reports Professor Doshari Kulkul (Zhurphani male)
as not being available to lecture the following semester's courses in
anthropology. He has apparently not returned from a recent field to several
rural communities. |
6 |
Local police forces in rural areas
between Market and Hemdian have stopped publishing figures on missing persons cases.
The official reason is that such cases are too infrequent to bother compiling for
statistical analysis. |
1d6 |
False Leads: |
1 |
A local news story (dated a month ago)
tells of a serial killer from Hemdian who was chased to Aicmata and caught. The serial
killer, Ernesto Armand (a male Zhurphani), is currently in custody in Hemdian awaiting trial.
Armand is claiming diminished responsibility. |
2 |
Searching local census data reveals the
demand for organ donors in the rural areas (including around Aicmata) has skyrocketed
since many people are now refusing high tech vat-grown organs. |
3 |
A recent article in a current affairs
magazine details the problem of organised crime in Market. It suggests that the recent
loss of high tech surveillance tools by law enforcement has 'opened the door' to a
growing black market in stolen goods. The article alleges that crime gangs have even
murdered offworlders in order to steel their possessions. |
4 |
According to law court summaries the number
of cases of police officers in Market being charged with corruption has doubled this year.
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5 |
Hospitals in Market are now openly
advertising for organ donors. "Top credit" for natural organs is being offered. |
6 |
According to local news reports there has
been a rise in tension between Zhurphani street gangs and offworld aliens everywhere on the
planet. Violence is becoming more common. Hemdian can be proud to be the exception to
this rule. |
Local law enforcement is provided by the Public Guardian Service, which
provides most of the law enforcement functions throughout Scarland. The Chief Guardian
in Aicmata is Cornux Relin (Zhurphani male) and his assistant is Alaken Blan (Zhurphani female).
Other public guardians are local townsfolk employed on a volunteer basis.
Approaching the Public Guardian building you see it is a single story
circular building (about 22 meters across) with a low peaked roof. The walls are white
washed, the roof is beige tile. Two enclosed air/rafts (with "PGS" on the side) and a
battered G-Carrier are parked on the wide tarmaced forecourt. A simple painted wooden
sign at the edge of the forecourt merely says "PUBLIC GUARDIAN
SERVICE" in 20 cm high letters, and nothing else.
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If the players enter the PGS building ...
Entering through the wide main entrance into the cool interior reveals
an almost spartan foyer. A single desk, a couch, and a few simple chairs ... but no
posters, ornaments, or desk equipment. The floor is stone. Several unmarked wooden
doors lead off to elsewhere in the building.
As you walk into the foyer one of the wooden doors opens. You get a
brief glimpse of an office as a uniformed male Zhurphani comes out and meets you (pulling
the door closed behind him). His uniform is stencilled with the name "Relin".
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The rest of the building comprises a few offices, a storeroom, and some
empty holding cells.
Relin is a typical heavyset Zhurphani. In another life he might have been a
salt-of-the-earth farmer. He is a common sense no-nonsense small town sheriff. You could
say there is nothing Relin wouldn't do for his town. Although he has often had to arrest
people for drunken behaviour, etc, he seldom brings charges. He has a strong paternal
instinct. He is also misguided. Relin knows what is going on and what happened to Veronika
Quino (and the others) ... but it is bringing much needed water to Aicmata. He believes
that to allow what is happening to continue is the lesser of two evils. As such he will be
obstructive and unhelpful to the group, starting out as peeved and irritated but becoming
increasingly hostile as the players poke around. After a while he may even try to run them
out of town. The players are unlikely to get useful information out of him.
Blan also knows what is happening but she has been friends with Relin for
a very long time, she possibly even loves him. As such she is totally loyal to Relin and
will follow his lead. (So when the mutilated bodies of Professor Kulkul and Eneri Sharim
turned up at the same place as Amanda Fitzpatrick she disposed of them, and didn't tell
Relin!)
The two enclosed air/rafts outside are TL-11 Cova class. (Vehicle number
74 in 101 Vehicles.) Size = 4dtons, top speed = 180kph, seats = 9, cargo = 13.5kl. They
both have "PGS" stencilled on the side.
The battered G-Carrier is a second hand (or even third hand) TL-10
Motherlode class mining grav ... heavily modified. (Vehicle number 65 in 101 Vehicles.)
Size = 10.5dtons, top speed = 540kph, seats = 4, cargo = 5kl, with a 1 ton crane. It has
been stripped of most of its sensors (it only has 50km All Weather Radar and headlights),
its pulse laser, and its airlock (it no longer space-worthy). This is actually Eneri
Sharim's breakdown 'truck' which was being sold for scrap when he bought it. If the
players realise what it is and ask Relin or Blan they will say it was found abandoned
about 30 kilometers south west of town a week ago. Relin will be reluctant for the players
to get a look inside, but if they do they will find no clues. Actually, Sharim always
parked his 'truck' there when he was staying in town, Relin cannot decide what to do with
it and it is a source of tension in the PGS building.
If the group go to Aicmata they will find a small 'hick' town.
There is no street life as such, but it is possible to gain information from farm
hands in the town bar.
To gain information from a conversation: |
Routine, Carousing (confrontation, uncertain) |
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Referee: |
If the players' roll fails then no information is given.
If the players' roll and the referee's secret roll succeed then a
clue is found.
If the players' roll succeeds but the referee's secret roll fails
then give out a false lead (from "Scanning The Files"). |
1d6 |
Clues: |
1 |
A few months ago a female human was
found dead nearby. She was discovered floating in an irrigation ditch on the
outskirts of town. She was nearly "shredded and ripped apart" ... her jawbone
had been torn off and was missing, her legs were found floating besides her. The
local police just said it was some kind of animal attack and didn't investigate
further. |
2 |
There is a local 'church' in town ...
many of the locals are members. The 'church' worships "Taino" (in Yorian mythology
Taino is Zeludeous' younger brother) who promises protection from Zeludeous.
Aicmata's water supply had been steadily shrinking over the years and the town was
facing extinction. But since the 'church' has started the water has returned: the
irrigation ditches are full again, and the fields are fertile. |
3 |
A one man breakdown service run by
a human male called Eneri Sharim runs through town, but no one's seen him lately. |
4 |
There was a visiting professor from
Hemdian here recently (a Zhurphani). He was noseying around the 'church' but he's gone
now. |
5 |
There was a young human woman here
recently ... a pretty Scout on vacation. She made friends with a passing professor
from Hemdian (see #4). They're both gone now. |
6 |
There is a local 'church' in town ...
many of the locals are members. The 'church' worships "Taino" (in Yorian mythology
Taino is Zeludeous' younger brother) who promises protection from Zeludeous. A local
goat rancher by the name of Trepe Bervoir (Zhurphani male) introduced the worship of Taino
into the town. He holds sermons and other rituals up at his ranch house. |
If the group go to Market they will find a 'normal' city ... a
cross between Vegas (USA) and Rotterdam (Holland). Keeping to the main area will
be safe but unproductive. Searching out the bad parts of town will reveal a
barely concealed world of seedy casinos, narcotics and prostitution. Gambling
is legal but many con operations exist to rip off the unwary. Possession of
drugs for personal use is also legal but while unregulated sources are cheaper
they are also more dangerous. Prostitution is legal up to a point: it is illegal
for a prostitute to advertise, it is illegal for more than one prostitute to work
in the same place (apartment, etc), pimping is illegal, and the age of consent is
16 standard years. Black market goods are usually half the normal price but are
often stolen and/or defective (roll a red and a white six-sided die: if red die
is odd then goods are defective is some non-obvious way, if white die is odd then
goods are stolen). In any case there will be no leads to Veronika Quino.
To gain information from a conversation: |
Routine, Streetwise, Carousing (confrontation, uncertain) |
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Referee: |
There are no leads to Veronika Quino, but success can
reveal there is a thriving black market ... run by Buxton Jones (a Zhurphani male)
with tacit approval from an Advisor. |
If the group go to Hemdian they will find a 'normal' city. Hemdian
is much cleaner than Market (both metaphorically and literally). There is very
little that is seedy or unsavoury in Hemdian. Nice for tourists but quite boring
for adventurers. Again there will be no leads to Veronika Quino.
To gain information from a conversation: |
Difficult, Streetwise, Carousing (confrontation, uncertain) |
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Referee: |
There are no leads to Veronika Quino, but success can
reveal the University Medical Center will buy natural organs without making
proper background checks. On failure the street contact turns out to be an
undercover policeman ... depending on what the character was asking he or she
may be guilty of some crime (if cash was offered for information then this
includes attempting to bribe a police officer). |
Eevet Sharim is the wife of Eneri Sharim (the roving ground vehicle
mechanic and one-man breakdown service). She works as a waitress in a cheap dinner
on the outskirts of Market. The dinner has no name and is only open during the work
periods.
As you enter the dinner you see a long counter with what appears
to be a formica-like top and numerous bar stools. Behind the counter stands a
waitress filling sugar bowls (or is that salt?). Behind her is a wall with a
serving hatch, through which you can see a kitchen. The whole place seems cheap
and slightly run-down, the air is stale and still ... almost claustrophobic. Apart
from the waitress the place is deserted.
The waitress is a middle-aged, slightly gaunt, human female. She
wears a cheap dress and apron, and looks like she's lived longer than chronological
age. Her lifeless movements tell of a tiredness that goes deep into the bone. She
appraises you with a cynical stare, sighs and says "What can I get you?"
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This encounter will not be very productive. Eevet knows nothing, except
that her husband is missing. She probably loved him once, too, but now he's just another
piece of the furniture of her life. She thinks he's dead ... lying in a ditch somewhere
after a crash ... but would like to know for sure.
If the group decide to snoop around the University of Hemdian (where
Professor Doshari Kulkul was from) they may not find much. The University is in "recess"
(summer, mid-term, whatever fits in with the time of year) and most of the staff are away.
Only 2 departments are open: the admin department (on a skeleton staff), and the library
(with a staff of just one).
The admin department, open only to keep things ticking over during the
recess, will be reluctant to give out any information. They will confirm that Professor
Doshari Kulkul was a lecturer in anthropology at the university, he was the leading
expert on Yorian mythology (outside of the Advisors), and he has gone missing. He was
supposed to be working over the recess but he has disappeared ... and he is not at home.
The library is open for no apparent reason, but has more promise for
the group.
As you enter the library your first thought is that you've entered
some kind of relic storeroom by mistake: before you is a large open space with a big
table, beyond which are isle after isle packed with actual hardcopy books! Several
weighty tomes lie haphazardly on the big table. The musty smell of some much genuine
old paper outside of a low-tech world seems exotic ... almost decadent. A female
Zhurphani of slight frame is sitting besides the table lost in one of the books. She
looks up in surprise at the intrusion.
"Yes?" she says, and then "Oh, oh, er, Welcome to the library ...
er ... where the books live." She flashes you a wide friendly grin, which falters
slightly with embarrassed shyness.
That confirms it: she's a book geek!
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The book reader is the librarian. Her name is Gipert Rules and every
year she has to tolerate the new students' jokes about her name. They are the same jokes
each time but of course the students think they've come up with something new and witty.
Fortunately most of the students avoid the library like the plague. The book she is
reading, and the rest on the table, are all on the occult.
Gipert knew Professor Kulkul personally, and knew Kulkul was working
on a new book ... exploring the mythology of Yorian culture. (Of course, such a book
would horrify the Advisors.) Recently, Kulkul heard of a new cult growing in rural
areas. Kulkul thought such a cult might be the early signs of an impending change in
the ascendant god of Yorian religion. Thus he had gone on a field trip to the countryside
(including Aicmata) intending to only be gone a week ... he never returned.
If the group decide to investigate where Amanda Fitzpatrick's mutilated
body was found (assuming they have the directions) ...
Following the directions you were given you come to an unremarkable
stretch of farm irrigation ditch. It is three meters across, has steep sides, and is
cut straight across the land. It is about half full of clear water and from the hardy
grasses it looks like its usually less full (the grasses on the edges are submerged).
There is no sigh of violence or any kind of struggle ... not surprising given the time.
There is nothing to indicate that this stretch of irrigation ditch is any different
to any other.
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There are two things of note: First, the ditch runs through Trepe Bervoir's
land (Trepe Bervoir is the head of the Taino cult). Second, if the players use a densitometer
or similar device they will discover the ditch is fed at this point by an underground stream
(well hidden beneath the weeds).
If the players have picked up the right clues then sooner or later they'll
want to look over Trepe Bervoir's farm.
Trepe Bervoir's goat ranch looks decidedly out of place, even in
Aicmata. It consists of a stone house, a large wooden barn, several smaller wooden
sheds, and a pen with about a dozen Yorian goats. In all, the appearance is of a
rundown low tech farm: only the large barn seems to have electrical power ...
supplied by a makeshift overground cable from the town. The ground is worn bare of
grass.
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How this goes depends largely on what approach the players take.
Trepe Bervoir is an ageing yet rugged Zhurphani. He will not be interested in talking to
the players, answering their initial questions with non-committal grunts. He will not
allow them access to any of the buildings ... the players must use stealth or force.
Only the barn holds anything of interest but let the players exert themselves in the
other buildings if they wish. The interior of the barn is described in "Creature From
The Depths".
Inside the barn electric lights have been strung between the rafters.
This harsh light illuminates a water-filled hole or well of some kind in the middle of
the floor. Three pairs of beams reach up from the floor to support the roof, and tied
to one is a bedraggled human figure ... female. Looking closer you see the figure is
none other than Veronika Quino! She is unconscious but alive.
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The barn is used by the 'church' for ritual services and its possible
that the players will choose to enter the barn during such a ritual. If they do then
they will see some kind of ritual summoning by Trepe, after which a creature (described
below) which the cult members believe to be Taino will rise out of the hole and walk
over to Veronika. If not stopped it will cut her free with its claws, take hold of
her head and snap her neck. Then it will take the body and jump back into the hole.
The assembled cult members will applaud and then disperse.
If at any point the players try to stop the creature then it will
attack the players unless and until it feels outmatched, then it will flee down the
hole. It will psionically assault the best armed player first, then use telepathy to
induce panic in everyone present while simultaneously attacking physically with its
claws. Meanwhile the cult members will also attack the players.
If the players try to rescue Veronika before the creature appears
then they will have to fight the cult members first. The creature should appear in
the midst of combat, use telempathy to induce panic in everyone present and then
attack physically with its claws.
Alternatively, if the players enter the barn when it is empty and
go over to untie Veronika then the creature will attack the players. It will use
telempathy to induce paranoia between the group members (trying to get them to shoot
each other), followed by general feelings of panic, before rising from the hole to
attack physically with its claws.
It is also possible that the players will wait outside the barn while
the ritual takes place, unaware of its significance. They will hear typical ritual
goings on ending in applause, after which the cult members will disperse. Entering
the barn then they will find the torn ropes that held Veronika and a few strips of
cloth. Observant players looking for forensic evidence will find DNA traces of
Veronika (some blood on one of the upright beams, a few hairs at the edge of the hole).
There will also be similar DNA traces of Amanda Fitzpatrick, Professor Kulkul, and
Eneri Sharim.
Wily and well-armed players may think to pre-empt anything coming
out of the hole by dropping grenades (etc) down the hole at the start. However, the
hole is not straight and so this will be ineffective until the last moment before the
creature appears. The creature can use Life Detection to detect an ambush.
Amphibian Creature:
Qty | |
Animal | |
Mass | |
Hits | |
Armour | |
Wounds | |
Weapons | |
Reactions | |
1 | |
"Taino" | |
100 kg | |
6/6 | |
jack | |
2 | |
claws | |
A0 |
F6 |
S1 |
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This bipedal creature can walk on
land at speed=1 but swim underwater at speed=2. It is a water-breather but can
survive out of water for half an hour. Despite exhibiting animal
intelligence only (albeit high), it has psionic abilities:
Psi=12
Telepathy (Life Detection, Telempathy, and Assault only)-6
Awareness-6. |
The creature is an amphibious bipedal humanoid. A half Zhurphani,
half frog-like being with a fish-like head. It has a grayish-green skin, shiny
and slippery, with a white stomach. It has bulging eyes, palpitating gills, and
its claws are webbed.
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It is left to the Referee to determine events after this encounter but
if 'Taino' is killed then the cult members (most of the townsfolk) will be seized by a
murderous rage!
If the Advisors are called in then the entire town will be sent to the
exile camp on Heddle (elsewhere in the system). The official position will be that the
creature was not Taino but one of Taino's minions. Thus the townsfolk were following
the will of a god. As such their actions cannot be considered to be murder under Yorian
law ... but due to Imperial law neither can they be permitted to continue. Exile to
Heddle becomes the only option (unless Taino becomes the ascendant god on Yori in which
case the townsfolk will be allowed to return). This is not the first time something like
this has happened and Imperial policy is to accept the exile option.
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