Interrogating the Cockroach

Summary

In Session 11, Safia employed her ability to communicate with animals to question a cockroach discovered in the Underground Facility. Through a combination of food offerings and flattery, Safia extracted critical intelligence about the location of prisoners the party sought to rescue. The cockroach revealed that most prisoners had been moved upstairs to "the big room," forcing the group to revise their rescue plan. The conversation provided the party's first concrete lead on where their targets had been taken.

Details

While exploring the Underground Facility, Safia located a cockroach and initiated contact. She opened with a direct question: "Hey. Hey. How long have you been down here?" To establish rapport, Safia offered the insect food crumbs and employed compliments, telling it, "Also, you have beautiful iridescent scales on your back."

The cockroach, characterized by the GM as a working-class character wearing a flat cap, described its routine of moving crates between piles and a boat. When questioned about prisoners, the insect confirmed their presence: "They took most of them out, though. Upstairs somewhere. The big. The big room upstairs."

Safia pressed for more specific details about who had been taken. The cockroach responded: "There were two. They came out of bear costume. There was one or two others. It looked like you." This description suggested the prisoners included individuals the party recognized or resembled their own members.

When Safia attempted to determine timing, the cockroach explained its inability to provide precise temporal information due to its short lifespan and different perception of time. Safia continued feeding the insect crumbs throughout the interrogation to maintain cooperation.

As the conversation concluded, the cockroach made a final request: "Thank you. I really appreciate this. I've only got. I haven't got much time left. If you want to stick around and talk about mortality, I'd really be happy to have somebody to talk to." Safia declined the invitation, and the cockroach crawled away.

Participants

• Safia — Conducted the interrogation using her ability to speak with animals, provided food as incentive
• Cockroach — Provided intelligence about prisoner movements and locations within the facility
• Erin, Kat, Sucks, Vasso — Present during the intelligence gathering

Consequences

• The party learned that prisoners had been relocated upstairs to a large room, eliminating their original assumption about prisoner locations
• The interrogation confirmed that at least some prisoners resembled party members, suggesting their rescue targets were among those moved
• The intelligence forced the group to adapt their approach, redirecting their search toward the upper levels of the facility
• Safia's successful use of her animal communication ability established it as a viable reconnaissance tool for future situations