Castles of Steel - Lesbians Good, Imperialism Bad

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Lieutenant Arisukawa Haruna

Balance Stats
❁ • ❁ Work / Life ❁ • ❁
❁ • ❁ Warrior / Princess ❁ • ❁
❁ • ❁ Radical / Respectable ❁ • ❁

Tactical Stats
Gunnery 0, Navigation +2, Command +2, Technology -4, Personal -2, Strategy +3

Stress: 3​


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PLEASE READ THE QUEST RULES BELOW

You collectively vote on the actions of Arisukawa Haruna, the first woman to serve openly in the Imperial Akitsukuni Navy.

This quest is set in a universe which is much like our own circa 1910, but with different politics, cultural norms, and ideas about gender and sexuality, as well as some unusual and advanced technology in places.

We are using this quest to explore themes like breaking the glass ceiling, divergent outlooks on gender and sexuality, colonialism and imperialism, and the place of royalty.

Content Warning
This quest goes some dark places.

There is violence, often explicit, often unfair, often against undeserving targets.

There are not always good options forward. The protagonist is not necessarily a good person.

There is implied content and discussion of sexual harassment and assault.

This is a world where people are often racist, sexist, queerphobic bigots. Sometimes, even the PC and the people they are friends with.

Voting Rules

We will tell you if write-in votes are allowed. If we do not say that write-ins are allowed, they are not. This is to prevent people from unrealistically hedging their bets.

You may proposal other options in a non-vote format, subject to approval, on non write-in votes.

We will tell you when a vote allows approved voting. If we don't say the answer is no, pick an option. We like making people commit.

Discussions makes the GM feel fuzzy.

Game Rules
When we ask you for a roll, roll 3d6. You are aiming to roll equal or under the value of your stat. If you succeed, Haruna gets through the situation with no real difficulties. If you roll above the target value, Haruna will still succeed, but this success will cost her something or add a complication.

Whenever Haruna loses something or faces hardship from a botched roll, she takes Stress. The more Stress Haruna has, the more the job and the circumstances she's in will get to her, and it'll be reflected in the narrative. Haruna must be kept under 10 Stress: if she reaches 10 Stress, she will suffer a breakdown and the results will not be great for her.

Haruna loses stress by taking time for herself, by making meaningful progress on her dreams, and by kissing tall, beautiful women.

Meta Rules
Author commentary is in italics so you know it's not story stuff.

Please don't complain about the system or the fact we have to roll dice. We've heard it before, we've heard it a thousand times across multiple quests. We're not going to change it, and it wears at our fucking souls.

Just going "oh noooo" or "Fish RNGesus Why!" is fun and fine. Complaining at length because you didn't get what you want less so.

If you have a question, tag both @open_sketchbook and @Artificial Girl. If you only tag one of us, you will be ignored. Seriously, we both write this quest.

And yes this is an alt-history type setting with openly gay and trans people, ahistoric medicine, and weird politics. Just... deal, please?

This quest employs a special system called Snippet Votes. Please read this post for more information.
 
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10ebbor10 said:
The Army has the Dolphin, so they know the story is true (airplanes are still fledgling. To the commoner, the navy cancelling an airplane that could safe sailors is no more obviously true than the navy cancelling a bomber that could wipe out Moscow, or a battleship that could move onto land. No one has an idea of what works and what doesn't).

They have the rivalry, and thus the motivation to publish.

They have the institutional power to resist retaliation.
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...isn't Ohara Airworks in the city?

As an alternative: How expensive would it be to just, you know, go to Ohara Airworks?

Because seriously, if there's anybody who has the contacts, it's Ohara. You don't even have to go meta - everyone knows about the genius making planes for the Army at Ohara Airworks.
 
I'm pretty sure that Ohara is aware that their plane was cancelled.

We're not exactly providing any new information here. Ohara knows how good their plane is, they know it got cancelled, and they know navy politicking did it.
 
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Crasian01 said:
...isn't Ohara Airworks in the city?

As an alternative: How expensive would it be to just, you know, go to Ohara Airworks?

Because seriously, if there's anybody who has the contacts, it's Ohara. You don't even have to go meta - everyone knows about the genius making planes for the Army at Ohara Airworks.
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10ebbor10 said:
I'm pretty sure that Ohara is aware that their plane was cancelled.

We're not exactly providing any new information here. Ohara knows how good their plane is, they know it got cancelled, and they know navy politicking did it.
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Yes.

On the other hand however, Ohara may not know how useful and needed the plane would be from the point of view of the sailors and the officers that are actually in the thick of it, unlike the procurement office which is often largely a safe posting far from the fighting.
 
I mean, the point is to get the Army to publish the whistleblower report.

So, go to Ohara Airworks and talk to Asuka. Ask for a contact in the Army who can get the report published. Asuka introduces you to a contact who can get the report published. Go talk to the contact. Report becomes published.
 
10ebbor10 said:
and they know navy politicking did it.
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But what sort of Navy politicking?
Admiral Akibara's hate-boner for Ohara Airworks?
Someone in the Navy deciding that now is not the time to try out new technologies in this role? (Though IIRC Ohara got the Lifeboat Service to pick up a few Dolphins, and any Army Surplus Dolphins will probably get snapped up by them right quick)
Some accountant doing devil's arithmetic and figuring out that saving these sailors with the Dolphin will, in the long run, cost more than training new sailors? Or perhaps doing the sums and coming up with how the Dolphin won't save enough sailors to justify the cost?

[X] Of course. (-1 Free Time, -1 Serenity)
 
samdamandias said:
But what sort of Navy politicking?
Admiral Akibara's hate-boner for Ohara Airworks?
Someone in the Navy deciding that now is not the time to try out new technologies in this role? (Though IIRC Ohara got the Lifeboat Service to pick up a few Dolphins, and any Army Surplus Dolphins will probably get snapped up by them right quick)
Some accountant doing devil's arithmetic and figuring out that saving these sailors with the Dolphin will, in the long run, cost more than training new sailors? Or perhaps doing the sums and coming up with how the Dolphin won't save enough sailors to justify the cost?
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Jealousy over us inventing the first flying submarine.
 
[X] … I can't. It's too risky.

I don't know if she's got the reserves of energy or nerves for this right now. I don't know... convince me otherwise, or that it's worth the risk?
 
A1-9: Decision time
  • Threadmarks
    • This was dangerous. Really dangerous. Like, go-to-jail-and-ruin-your-brother's-career dangerous. But someone needed to do something about it, right? You thought of Haruna, imagined her bobbing in the sea, alone, waiting for a rescue that would never come. Thought of Hideaki clinging to wreckage in icy water. Those images solidified your resolve and you reached out to take the letter.

    "I'll do what I can," you said. "I dunno if I'll get anywhere with it, though."

    "Thank you." Hideaki said solemnly. There was a long, awkward pause, then you saw Junji's face light up.

    "Yuri! Over here!"

    You turned to follow his gaze, spotting a young woman cutting off the path and waving cheerfully. She had a pair of oval glasses and a big smile as she joined the group, her small frame looking even smaller next to the three of you. You thought she maybe looked a little familiar… maybe one of the WEL meetings?

    "Hi Junji!" She greeted your oldest brother, then bowed towards you and Hideaki as you stood to greet her.

    "I'm Horiuchi Yuri. It's a pleasure to meet both of you." You exchanged names formally and then everyone sat down to dig into lunch.

    "So you'll never believe who I saw on the way here." Horiuchi said, beaming.

    "Oh?"

    "Nishioka Naomi, the boxer! The one from the Atlas Games!"

    "What? Where?" you asked, at the same time as Hideaki asked "Who?" You shot him an annoyed glare.

    "The winner of the silver medal in women's boxing at the 1908 Atlas games." you explained. "The one with the short hair? With the punching?"

    "Sorry, I don't really know who you're talking about." he admitted. "Junji?"

    "Of course I know who Nishioka Naomi is." he said. You honestly had no idea if he was lying or not.

    "She was at the newspaper stand just at the corner there! She's so cool… I asked her if she's going to be at the 1912 Games and she said 'they can't stop me!'! That's so awesome!!!"

    The conversation turned to sports, and inevitably to baseball, questioning why it wasn't an event at the Atlas games and discussing the ameteur requirements and how it might get in the way. You were enthused at first, but soon found yourself distracted, thinking about the letter in your bag.

    Who were you going to give it to? What were you going to do?

    As the conversation meandered towards the location of the next games, confirmed to be in Varnmark after all despite the recent instability, you thought about newspapers. The more conservative papers might not want to print it, but people might not believe it from the more progressive ones. Dawn Star was out, so that left the centrist Tokei Financial Observer, the conservative Akitsukuni Herald, and, worst of all, Our Way, the Purity Club rag. You didn't even want to think about that last one, but Haruna had said something about the Purity Club being driven not by the higher ups in the Navy, but by the middle officers. They might get really upset about it!

    "Hey, Aiko, isn't rowing at the Atlas Games?" Hideaki's voice cut through your pondering.

    "Huh? I didn't--Oh, Yeah, it is."

    "You should try to go!" he said enthusiastically.

    "Akitsukuni doesn't have a woman's team." you said.

    "Yet." Horiuchi said, beaming. "You row?"

    "I'm on the club team at my university. At Horonai." you clarified. "Cuz all the men joined the Navy…"

    They poked fun at that a bit before talking enthusiastically about the idea, and you'll admit, you found it fascinating. You should talk to your team! You could be in the papers!

    Oh right, the papers.

    Well, maybe not the big papers, maybe that was a bad idea. There were other options. Print shops at your university and at Tokei U might be able to spread it more anonymously, and you could be more sure it would be published, but maybe it wouldn't get much traction. There was the shops that produced the essays you read, and… as a last resort, you could talk to Inaba Chizu back home. She'd know how to get it to the communist print shops, but then it might be seen as just a lie. Or even put more people in danger.

    "I don't see why we shouldn't have an entry in every competition. If we're going to be on even footing with the rest of the world, we need to be able to have the same sorts of institutions. There's no point to a men's team if we don't field a women's team as well," Horiuchi said.

    "I'm just excited to hear they're going to do motorcar racing again!" Junji said. "That's the future there. I have a friend who says he wants to try for it, he took a summer job as a chauffeur and he says he could compete for sure."

    "I don't understand why there's different categories for men and women for stuff like that. Motorcars and chess and stuff." you said. "It makes sense for the physical sports, I don't want to get punched by Hideaki and I don't think Ms. Nishioka does much either, but that stuff? How much does upper body strength matter in an automobile?"

    "If you don't keep those things seperate, it'll just become ways for men and women to try and compete with one another, it'll just lead to trouble down the line." Horiuchi said. "The Europans keep these things separate so women can have their own place, and that means men can have theirs as well. Everyone wins."

    "I guess." you said, a bit skeptical. Haruna had told you how much she was against a women's Navy Academy and stuff, how she wanted to be in the Navy and not the Lady Navy, which was a really funny way of phrasing it.

    "Well, that just sounds like us having to play by their rules, doesn't it?" Hideaki said. "Like, sure, we'll send our best chessmasters or whatever, but I don't see them opening a spot for Go. I'd love to see them try."

    You tuned out the conversation again as you wracked your brains for any other options. There was one, though it was a lot. You had the contact information for Haruna's father. He'd likely be horrified to hear they were doing that, that his daughter might get left in the frozen water with no rescue because of petty politics. And he was powerful. But… how powerful? Could he get this changed? Could he risk it?

    "... Aiko? You paying attention?" Junji asked, waving a hand in front of your face. You swatted it away with a laugh.

    "Sorry, I was thinking about telephones. They're really cool." you lied awkwardly. "What's going on?"

    "We're wrapping up. I have to be back at class in half an hour, and Hideaki..?"

    "I'm supposed to look up someone for a fellow officer. It's been lovely, though, to get everyone back together!" he said, a huge smile on his face. "After the war, let's try to meet back up at our parent's place too. Get everyone together."

    "That sounds great." you said.

    "And sis, we should hang out more. We've lived in the same city for months and I haven't see you at all!"

    "Oh… yeah, sorry. Busy…" you said sheepishly.

    "Don't worry, I understand, I've been in your shoes. But I'm sure we can find some time."

    This had been nice, despite it all.

    "Of course!"

    Everyone went their seperate ways, and you stepped onto the streetcar and started riding home. Your bag felt heavier than it ought to be, with the portenious letter inside. You had to do something, and fast. Every day you delayed was one more day people you loved could be in danger.

    ---

    [ ] Take it to the Tokei Financial Observer.​
    [ ] Take it to the Akitsukuni Herald.​
    [ ] Take it to Our Way.​
    [ ] Get it printed at the WEL print shops.​
    [ ] Give it to your communist roommate and hope for the best.​
    [ ] Contact Haruna's father.​
    [ ] Write-In (SUBJECT TO EXTREME VETO)​
     
  • Threadmarks
    • Tokei Financial Observer sounds like they might care more about how good an investment rescue planes are compared to submarines than Our Men In Danger! don't you think?
     
    The Purity Club might run with it, but the consequences of whatever source we choose succeeding and being believed means that they get a major journalistic coup, so let's *not* give the fascists a leg up unless there is literally no other option.

    The same logic then would compel me to consider the WEL along with the safer option of the Herald for the sheer presence the scoop would give our political platform of "stop being such fucks to women".
     
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    [x] Contact Haruna's father.

    Tempted to add a little written in rider to be very polite and apologetic about it, because Aiko can be stubborn and a little bit blinkered sometimes...
     
    [X] Write In - Give it to everyone.

    Yes, this will cause bigger problems than any of the individual options. But the one problem it is guaranteed not to cause is that nobody listens.
     
    [X] Write In - Give it to everyone but reduced info to Our Way

    Fun for everyone but missing info and maybe some vague/weak lies to get Purity Club involve and discredit them at the same time.
     
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    [x] Contact Haruna's father.

    We made a good first impression. Let's see if he's willing to use his connections to do something good.
     
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