Encounter-a-Day

An American spy was in Russia, investigating a suspected terrorist cell. He had retrieved two new weapons developed by the cell, a microwave gun capable of stopping a man’s heart and a powerful airborne biological weapon.

Some teenagers on the train, seeing the American man and thinking he looked like he’d have some valuables on him, mugged the spy and ran off. They escaped with his briefcase and his suitcase. They were unable to open the briefcase, which contained the biological weapon as well as the spy’s collected intelligence, but in the suitcase they found the prototype weapon.

Looking to make a quick buck, they sold all the stuff to a man named Alexei Bobylev. Alexei used the weapon to kill some personal enemies in the Russian mafia. The gun leaves no traces, it’s as if the victim died of a heart attack. The only thing suspect about the deaths is that they all happened so closely together and only two of the dead men were in poor enough health to be at real risk of a heart attack.

And this is where the PCs come in. They’ve been sent in by the American government to recover the spy’s belongings, and keep it quiet. Unfortunately, the string of bizarre deaths made the national media, and now everyone’s swarming over the area. The PCs will have to contend with the following:

The mafia: They strongly suspect Alexei is behind the murders and are looking to exact their revenge.

The Russian government: The PCs have to recover the items before the Russians do; the spy had also gathered some intelligence on Russia itself, and it lead to an international incident if they found out the US was spying on them. Needless to say, the use of force in dealing with the Russian agents is not an option.

The terrorist cell: They recognized the cause of the deaths and immediately guessed that their stolen technology would be found there. They’ve sent men to recover it.

Time: Immediately after committing the murders, Alexei went into hiding. Since then, he’s been trying to bust open the briefcase, and his less-than-gentle means could spell disaster if he breaks the seal on any of the vials inside.