Operation WHITE HARE

## Background

Two teenagers are found dead in an abandoned building in Sacramento, California. They have violently killed themselves, most likely during a drug psychosis, but there are no signs of injections or any other signs of drug intake. The agents have been called to investigate to the crime scene.

## The Crime Scene

An abandoned two-story building with a hole in the roof. There is a teenage boy and a girl laying on the floor. Their hands and fingers are covered in blood. Both have a gunshot wound on their torso, and the girl is lying on the ground with her hands stretched out to the direction of the front door. **Forensic** skill at 40% reveals that there were two other people on the scene, with one of them firing a small caliber pistol. A thorough check of the bodies leaves the investigators baffled, since there seems to be no signs of intake of any drugs, which would’ve caused the girl’s death. The wounds in their hands are from scratching something so hard that their skin broke and started to bleed, but not enough to cause significant blood loss.

Checking the teenagers’ phones and last conversations will reveal that they were supposed to meet up with their friend Peter (see **The Boy With The Device**) nearby the house at 9pm.

There is a 9mm shell on the floor. **Forensics** and **Firearms** at 40% will tell that the boy was shot at close range with a pistol by a taller person. The gun’s serial number is filed off. Close to the body lies a metal briefcase, which seems to have bloody scratches on it. Opening it (either by destroying the mechanism by force or by using **Lockpick** or **Craft (Locksmith)** or getting the key from Mark Holloway (see **The Engineer**)) will reveal a plastic foam padding on both sides, which seems to have a sphere-shaped hole in it. If searched under the padding, there seems to be a small text written on the inside that says “#358771, Property of March Technologies, Inc.” The fingerprints inside will not match for the victims.

Searching around the area, there is also a crumbled piece of paper. It has a logo of a Motel 6 on it and it has writing on it: “Old house near the Coroner St.  MEET AT 9:30 PM”. The location refers to the crime scene.

Outside the building, there are tire tracks, broken glass and plastic on the ground, a Glock 17 and a bullet case are found easily nearby. Someone escaped with a car that was shot, but it only hit the side mirror.

## Asking Around

If one of the agents have **Criminology** at least 40%, they would guess that the whole situation seems like a drug deal gone wrong and the seller didn’t have any experience on this. Maybe the person tried to sell in the near neighborhood before trying to sell some kids? If the agents go their way to ask around from places where the local drugheads hang out, they can find out from few of them that someone tried to sell them a drug that would be “ten times better than heroin”. They describe the seller as a tall guy with short mustache and square glasses. They thought he was a narc and told him to fuck off.

A drug dealer followed the man walking into a local Motel 6 and stayed on a watch for him for a while but did nothing to him. To get this info you (or combined with another agent) must have Law and **Persuade** 40% or more to get them to talk.

## Autopsy

An autopsy will be done in next day after the agents have visited the crime scene. It will not reveal anything abnormal from their system. No signs of drug intake or unusual chemicals in their bodies. However, in their bloody hands, small amounts of silver are found. The victims have held some metal object in their hands.

## Calling For Assistance

If the agents are working for the Program and mention March Technologies and the number in the suitcase to their case officer, they are more interested than usual to know the details. However, figuring this out will take time inside the Program as they have to do swift, but careful investigation of their private facilities. In about sixteen hours, they have figured out that a certain device has been stolen from them by a man named **Mark Holloway** and the agents must recover it quickly back. The case officer warns them to not touch the device if they see it, but not the reason why.

If the agents don’t mention the number inside the suitcase, the Program won’t be certain what the briefcase used to have inside, but the case officer tells the agents to get it back as it used to be their property.

If the agents work for the Outlaws, their contact for the mission might know something about March Tech (Handler decides) and will tell them to destroy whatever the case used to have inside.

If the agents (Program or Outlaws) don’t mention anything about March Tech or the missing device, their contact will suggest covering the whole thing up quickly.

## The Pleasure Sphere

A silver sphere shaped device, which is size of a soccer ball. Touching the device makes its user feel euphoria and happiness (get 1D4 WP per turn). This calls for **POWx5** check. On failure, user must hold it for two turns, causing them to become addicted to device, while on success they realize that device is giving him a weird feeling and can drop the device (if they want to). Realizing this will cause 0/1d4 Sanity loss. Holding the ball for more than 12 seconds will cause the user to become obsessed with the device and will not give it up for anyone else without resistance.

If the device is taken away, the user starts to suffer the effects of addiction in under an hour or so. The character takes -20% penalty on all tests, until they get ahold of the device again. If the user has had the device more than an hour in their hand, the user starts having biological mutations, such as growing of the brain, abnormally high heartbeat and quicker metabolism. Realizing the effects of it costs 0/1D6. After three nonstop hours of using the device, the user’s heart stops and dies.

The sphere is hard to be destroyed, but it’s not indestructible. Throwing it into a furnaced made for melting iron will do but smashing it with a car won’t make a dent to it.

## The Boy With The Device

Peter Graham, 17, has the device. While his friends attacked the drug dealer, he stole the device and ran to his car. He drove off and parked his damaged car at his parents’ place. He has locked himself in his room and won’t come out of there, since he’s been mesmerized by the device. Most likely, he’ll be dead before the agents arrive to find his dead body. Getting the device from the boy’s hands will require a bit of time or if the players don’t want to touch the device, a **STR x5** check to forcefully take it away.

If the agents arrive almost immediately from the crime scene, they might have a chance meet the boy alive. Taking the device from him will be much harder, since he’ll fight for his life to get it.

If the agents arrive much later (the very next day), the parents have found Peter’s dead mutated body and have called the police. The Agents will have now to deal with the local police again and the device now might get into wrong hands.

## The Engineer

Mark Holloway, 38, is a desperate man behind the murders. From his previous job as a micro electrician at March Technologies, he stole the device quietly and tried to make quick money by travelling and selling the usage of it. He didn’t think the situation through, so that’s why he got attacked by the three teenagers and got his device stolen. Now he wants it back, before any more trouble ensues.

He’ll be staying in a local Motel 6, keeping a low profile for a while. If the agents find him, he’ll try to talk his way through. If the agents tell him about the Program, he’ll get terrified and begs for his life for not to kill him for taking the device from March Tech. If persuaded, he’ll tell the how the device works and how touching it is dangerous. He might provide a gripping device to not touch the device and gives the key to the briefcase if asked.

If Peter Graham has died, he’ll be soon at the apartment trying to get hold of the device. He’ll most likely try to pose as a member of the authority to steal it back and flee with it.

## NPC STATS

### Peter Graham, victim of addiction

**STR** 9, **CON** 6, **DEX** 8, **INT** 7, **POW** 6, **CHA** 7

**HP** 8, **WP** 6, **SAN** 22, Addiction (Pleasure Sphere)

**Skills:** Drive 25%, Athletics: 30%

**Attacks:** Kick (30% 1D4-1)

**SAN LOSS:** 0/1D6 if witnessing his mutated body or doing an autopsy on him.

### Mark Holloway, engineer who broke bad

**STR** 11, **CON** 12, **DEX** 11, **INT** 14, **POW** 11, **CHA** 10

**HP** 12, **WP** 11, **SAN** 39, **BP** 33, Obsession (The Pleasure Sphere), Paranoia

**Skills:** Bureaucracy 50%, Computer Science 60% Craft (Electrician) 40%, Craft (Mechanic) 30%, Craft (Microelectronics) 60%, Firearms 32%, Science (Engineering) 60%, Science (Mathematics) 40%, Science (Physics) 55%, SIGINT 40%, Unnatural 4%

**Attacks:** Pistol (32%, 1D10), Pocketknife (30%, 1D4), Punch (40%, 1D4-1)

## Credits

Operation WHITE HARE was written by zomner for the 2018  shotgun scenario contest.

Published by arrangement with the Delta Green Partnership. The intellectual property known as Delta Green is a trademark and copyright owned by the Delta Green Partnership, who has licensed its use here. The contents of this document are © zomner, excepting those elements that are components of the Delta Green intellectual property.

Operation WHITE HARE is not available here under CC-BY-SA.