TEXT: The 
  By Stephen Kenson 
  Illustrated by Alan Rabinowitz 
  First Published on Dragon #265, November 1999 
   
  First Electronic Release by Spicer 
  Current Electronic Release by IlCorvo 
  “The Voice” is an introduction to the DARK·MATTER™ campaign setting for the Alternity®  
  Science Fiction Roleplaying Game, a world not unlike our own – at least on the surface. Underneath 
  lies a shadowy world of mystery, magic and strangeness – a complex web of conspiracies covered up 
  by the organisations and individuals who know the truth. The heroes in the world of DARK·MATTER 
  are looking to find that truth, often as agents of the Hoffmann Institute and other secret organisations. 
  
  1 
  WHAT DO YOU NEED? | THE VOICE 
  WHAT DO YOU NEED? 
  To play this solo adventure, all you need is 
  a pencil and some dice. Keep the hero sheet 
  for Diana Hunter, agent of the Hoffmann Insti-
  tute, handy as you play; you'll need to refer to 
  it often in the adventure. Just start at “The 
  Call”, below, and read through it as the text 
  directs; you’ll learn the game mechanics as 
  they're needed. Important game information is 
  set apart from the main adventure text in side-
  bars. 
  The Alternity game uses the following 
  dice: d20, d12, d8, d6, and d4. The d20 is the 
  “control die.” You always roll the control die 
  when you need to make a roll. The other dice 
  are “situation dice”, which are added to or sub-
  tracted from the control die depending on the 
  situation's difficulty. First read “The Game 
  Mechanics” in the sidebar; other game me-
  chanics are explained as the adventure unfolds, 
  starting with “The Call.” 
   
  THE GAME MECHANICS 
  Using the dice described above, the basic 
  Alternity game rule is fairly simple. Roll 
  a number equal to or less than your target 
  score to succeed at an action. Target scores 
  include your ability scores, skill scores, and 
  action check scores. If you roll higher than the 
  target score, your hero fails. You always want 
  to roll as low as possible — the lower the roll, 
  the more likely the hero succeeds. 
  The scores on the hero sheet are divided 
  into three categories by slash marks. These 
  represent the target scores for three possible 
  results, respectively: Ordinary, Good, and 
  Amazing. Rolling the appropriate score or 
  lower is an Ordinary success, one-half the 
  score or lower is a Good success, and one-
  quarter of the score or lower is an Amazing 
  success. Any roll greater than the target score 
  is a Failure (or, in the case of an action check, 
  a Marginal success). 
   
  Example: Diana Hunter has an action 
  check score of 13. A 14 or greater is a Mar-
  ginal success. A roll of 13-7 is an Ordinary 
  success, 6-4 is a Good success, and 3 or less is 
  an Amazing success. 
   
  THE CALL 
  You're beginning to think your contact 
  won't call, that you've wasted over an hour sit-
  ting in your car in one of the most run-down 
  sections of town in the dead of night. It would-
  n't be the first lead that turned out to be a dead 
  end—and probably not the last, either. Then 
  your cell-phone rings, breaking the silence. 
  "Hunter,” you answer. 
  "Hello, Diana,” comes the quiet voice from 
  the other end of the phone. It's your informant. 
  You call him the Voice. You don't know his 
  real name or anything else about him, except 
  that his information has been accurate so far. 
  He knows things about secret U.S. government 
  projects, things nobody should know, but 
  which match information in the Institute's most 
  secret files. All efforts to track him down have 
  failed, but that's not surprising. If anyone knew 
  the things that the Voice was telling the Insti-
  tute, the Voice would have been killed by now. 
  "All right,” you tell the Voice. “I'm here. 
  Now what?" 
  "I'm glad you came, Diana,” the Voice says, 
  his calm tone reflecting some genuine appre-
  ciation. “I'm glad you decided to trust me." 
  "Don't push it,” you reply. “Get to the 
  point." 
  "Of course,” the Voice says. “I want to 
  show you something important." 
  "What's that?” you ask. 
  "I can't tell you over an open line,” Voice 
  says. “You have to trust me." 
  Easier said than done... Still, the Voice has 
  been right so far, and the knowledge he has is 
  tantalizing. “All right,” you say. 
  "Good. Just follow my directions. Did you 
  receive the package I sent you?" 
  Your hand drops down to rest on the small 
  cardboard box on the passenger seat. It arrived 
  this morning from a post-office box registered 
  under a false name. 
  "Yes." 
  "Good. Put on the headset from the box, 
  then hang up your phone." 
  The box contains a small, sophisticated 
  
  2 
  HERO SHEET | THE VOICE 
  ALTERNITY® / DARK�MATTERTM 
  SCIENCE FICTION ROLEPLAYING GAME 
  SOLO ADVENTURE HERO SHEET: DIANA HUNTER (FRONT) 
  
  3 
  HERO SHEET | THE VOICE 
  ALTERNITY® / DARK�MATTERTM 
  SCIENCE FICTION ROLEPLAYING GAME 
  SOLO ADVENTURE HERO SHEET: DIANA HUNTER (REAR) 
  
  4 
  THE CALL | THE VOICE 
  throat-mike and headset. You take it out and 
  put it on, then hang up the phone. 
  "Can you hear me?” the Voice says over the 
  headset. You reply, “Yes." 
  "Now drive as I direct..." 
  You start up the car as the Voice guides you 
  through the darkened streets toward an area 
  filled with warehouses standing in dark rows. 
  You stop the car in a nearby alley and kill the 
  headlights. 
  "Go to the third warehouse building,” the 
  Voice says. “There's a side entrance with a 
  coded lock, but I'm sure that won't prove too 
  difficult for a woman of your talents." 
  "Then what?” you ask. 
  "Get inside, and you'll see,” the Voice says. 
  The headset falls silent. 
  You pause to check your equipment before 
  heading out, your 9mm semiautomatic fully 
  loaded and ready to go. You've also got a 
  small flashlight, and you took the precaution 
  of wearing some light body armor under your 
  dark clothing, just in case. You're as ready as 
  you'll ever be. You just hope that this isn't 
  some kind of trap. 
  Stepping out of the car, you approach the 
  warehouse carefully. There's no sign of anyone 
  outside. Still, you approach cautiously. 
  Make a Skill Check: To approach the ware-
  house unseen, make a Stealth skill check for 
  Diana. It's dark, and Diana is wearing dark 
  clothing, so roll a d20, then roll a d4 and sub-
  tract it from the d20 roll. Compare the result to 
  Diana's Stealth skill (11). 
  • If the roll is a success, go to 1. 
  • If the roll is a failure, go to 2. 
  - 1 - 
  You make your way cautiously to the ware-
  house door. It looks like reinforced metal with 
  a small electronic keypad. The door is locked, 
  but you should be able to decode the keypad to 
  get it open. 
  Make a Complex Skill Check: Diana has to 
  overcome the electronic lock to open the door 
  into the warehouse. Fortunately, she has the 
  Knowledge-computer operations skill to allow 
  her to do so. Roll against Diana's skill of 13 
  with a d20. 
  Overcoming the computerized lock is a 
  complex skill check, so Diana must accumulate 
  more than 1 success. In this case, she must roll 
  skill checks until she achieve 5 successes be-
  fore rolling 2 failures. Each roll of the dice 
  represents 1 minute of work on the lock. An 
  Ordinary result counts as 1 success, a Good 
  COMBAT AND DAMAGE 
   
  Secondary Damage: For every 2 points of mortal damage Diana causes to an opponent, she 
  also inflicts 1 point of wound damage and 1 point of stun damage. For every 2 points of wound 
  damage, she also causes 1 point of stun damage. 
   
  Results of Damage: For each point of damage inflicted, mark off one point of durability from a 
  character (stun, wound, or mortal, depending on the type of damage). If all of a character's stuns or 
  wounds are marked off, the character falls unconscious. If all of a character's mortal points are 
  marked off, the character dies. 
   
  Recovery: Stun damage is temporary, and any stun damage a character has disappears at the end 
  of a scene. (Each of the numbered sections is one scene.) Wound damage remains until healed by 
  rest and medical attention. Mortal damage requires the use of Medical Science-surgery and medi-
  cal attention to recover. 
   
  Armor: Some characters wear armor. After a successful attack, roll to see if the armor protects. 
  For example, Diana's armor offers d6-2 points of protection against high impact (HI) weapons like 
  guns. Any result of 0 or less means no protection. Any positive result is subtracted from the 
  amount of damage inflicted.  
  
  5 
  THE CALL | THE VOICE 
  result counts as 2 successes, and an Amazing 
  result counts as 3 successes. 
  • If you achieve 2 failure results before achiev-
  ing 5 successes, go to 8. 
  • If you achieve 5 successes before accumulat-
  ing 2 failure results, go to 12. 
  - 2 - 
  As you make your way along as quietly as 
  possible, you suddenly spot a guard dressed in 
  a nondescript dark jumpsuit and armed with a 
  9mm pistol. The guard spots you at the same 
  moment, reaching for his weapon and ordering 
  you to halt. You can't afford to be caught. 
  You'll have to fight. 
  Make an Action Check: Action rounds are 
  broken down into 4 phases. Each phase is 
  about 3 seconds long, enough time for a char-
  acter to perform a single action. The phases 
  are Amazing, Good, Ordinary, and Marginal, 
  just like the results of skill and action checks. 
  Characters can act in as many phases as they 
  have actions per round, depending on the re-
  sult of their action checks. 
  Diana has two actions per round and an ac-
  tion check score of 13. If you roll a Marginal 
  success, she acts only once, in the Marginal 
  phase of the round. If you achieve an Ordi-
  nary, Good, or Amazing success, choose 
  which two phases Diana acts in, starting with 
  the phase that matches the degree of success. 
  The guard acts in the Ordinary phase of 
  each round and can perform only one action. 
  Using a d20, make an action check for 
  Diana. 
  • If you achieve a Good or Amazing success, 
  go to 3. 
  • If you achieve an Ordinary success, go to 4. 
  • If you achieve a Marginal success, go to 5. 
  - 3 - 
  You manage to get the drop on the guard 
  before he can draw his weapon, grabbing your 
  own 9mm pistol and taking aim. You can fire 
  two shots before he realizes what's happening. 
  Make a Skill Check: Diana acts before the 
  guard and can use both of her actions before 
  he can react. First, read “Diana Attacks” in the 
  adjacent sidebar. If the guard survives the first 
  two attacks, then see “The Guard Attacks” and 
  continue with the following rounds until the 
  guard is defeated (go to 6), or Diana is de-
  feated (go to 7). 
  - 4 - 
  You draw your own gun and level it at the 
  guard as he does the same. You only hope that 
  this place has enough budget problems that it 
  can't afford the finest security. Otherwise, this 
  could be a problem. 
  Make a Skill Check: Diana acts in the same 
  action phase as the guard, the Ordinary phase. 
  See “Diana Attacks” and “The Guard At-
  tacks,” then apply damage simultaneously. 
  Continue with the following rounds normally 
  until the guard is defeated (go to 6), or Diana 
  is defeated (go to 7). 
  - 5 - 
  The security guy catches you off guard. As 
  you move to bring your gun to bear, the guard 
  already has his out and trained at you. You're 
  playing for high stakes here, a matter of life or 
  death. 
  You're just hoping that it doesn't turn out to 
  be your death. 
  Make a Skill Check: The guard acts before 
  Diana in the Ordinary phase. If Diana sur-
  vives, then she acts in the Marginal phase of 
  the round. Since she acts in the Marginal 
  phase, Diana gets only one action this round, 
  rather than two. 
  First see “The Guard Attacks” and make the 
  necessary rolls there. Then move on to “Diana 
  Attacks” to resolve her action. Continue with 
  the following and subsequent rounds until the 
  guard is defeated (go to 6), or Diana is de-
  feated (go to 7). 
  - 6 - 
  Your shot catches the guard and spins him 
  to the side. He crumples to the floor in a heap, 
  his gun dropping from his hand. You holster 
  your pistol and keep heading for the door of 
  the warehouse. You only hope that you haven't 
  already raised the alarm. 
  • Go to 1. 
  
  6 
  THE CALL | THE VOICE 
  - 7 - 
  Burning pain stabs through you, and the 
  world seems to tilt out from under you as you 
  spin and drop toward the ground. As you start 
  to black out, you hear the Voice speaking to 
  you over the headset. “Diana? Diana, what's 
  happening? I need your help. You don't know 
  what they've done to me. Please ..." 
  The desperate plea is the last thing you hear 
  as the darkness smothers your senses and over-
  takes you completely… 
  - The End - 
  - 8 - 
  You work feverishly over the electronic 
  keypad to decipher the code to enter the ware-
  house complex. First, you try cross-circuiting 
  the system, but you must have picked the 
  wrong wires. A red light flashes at the top of 
  the panel and you step back from it in alarm. 
  Suddenly, a security guard comes running 
  around the corner. He spots you and charges in 
  your direction. 
  Make an Action Check: The security guard 
  acts in the Ordinary phase and has one action. 
  Roll a d20 for Diana's action check. 
  • If you achieve a Good or Amazing success, 
  go to 9. 
  • If you achieve an Ordinary Success, go to 10. 
  • If you achieve a Marginal Success, go to 11. 
  - 9 - 
  When the guard comes charging around the 
  comer, you're ready for him. You fire twice at 
  him before he even has a chance to react. If 
  you can take him down quickly, this mission 
  might still succeed. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Guards” sidebar to resolve combat. Diana acts 
  twice before the guard, then the guard returns 
  fire in the Ordinary phase, if he is still alive 
  and able to act. Continue the combat until the 
  guard is defeated (go to 12) or Diana is de-
  feated (go to 7). 
  - 10 - 
  The guard is expecting trouble, but he does-
  n't know who he's dealing with here. You only 
  DIANA ATTACKS 
   
  Diana's Modern Ranged Weapon-pistol 
  score is 12. Because the fight with the guard 
  takes place at short range, and the guard has no 
  resistance modifier, roll a d20 and a d4, sub-
  tracting the result of the d4 from the d20. 
  On Diana's hero sheet, notice that the dam-
  age for the 9mm pistol is divided into three 
  categories, representing the effects of an Ordi-
  nary, Good, and Amazing attack. If you roll 
  higher than Diana's score of 12, the attack 
  misses. 
  Roll an attack. If successful, roll damage 
  against the guard. So, if Diana rolls a Good 
  attack against the guard, roll d4+2 to deter-
  mine the number of wounds the guard takes. 
  The guard has a durability of 8 stuns, 8 
  wounds, and 4 mortals. This is the amount of 
  damage the guard can endure before being 
  knocked out or killed. Note how much damage 
  Diana does to the guard using the boxes below. 
   
  GUARD ATTACKS 
   
  If the guard is still able, he can make an at-
  tack against Diana. The guard has a skill score 
  of 11 and rolls a d20 and “d0” because of 
  Diana's resistance modifier. If the guard man-
  ages to hit, Diana's armor offers some protec-
  tion. (See “Combat and Damage.") The guard 
  has a 9mm pistol that does the same damage as 
  Diana's: d4+1 w/d4+2w/d4m.  
  Stun 
  8 
  ���� ���� 
  Wound 
  8 
  ���� ���� 
  Mortal 
  4 
  ���� 
  Guard #1 
  hope you're the better shot as you both level 
  your weapons at each other and fire. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Guards” sidebar to resolve combat. Diana and 
  the guard act at the same time, in the Ordinary 
  phase. Then Diana acts again in the Marginal 
  phase. Continue the combat until the guard is 
  
  7 
  THE CALL | THE VOICE 
  FIGHTING THE GUARDS 
   
  Diana has a Modern Ranged Weapons-
  pistol skill of 12. Roll a d20 and a d4, subtract-
  ing the d4 from the d20. If Diana hits, her pis-
  tol inflicts the damage listed on her hero sheet. 
  The guards have Modern Ranged Weapons-
  pistol skill of 11 and roll a d20 and a d0 be-
  cause of Diana's resistance modifier. Their pis-
  tols inflict the same damage as Diana's, They 
  each have a durability of 8 stuns, 8 wounds, 
  and 4 mortals.  
  the combat until the guard is defeated (go to 
  12) or Diana is defeated (go to 7). 
  - 12 - 
  You manage to override the computerized 
  locking mechanism on the door and get it 
  open. Behind it is a nondescript corridor lit 
  with pale fluorescent lights. You close the 
  door carefully behind you and look around. No 
  one is in sight. 
  "Okay” you whisper into your throat-mike. 
  “I'm inside. Now what?" 
  "There's a way to close down the security 
  systems from in here,” the Voice says in your 
  ear. “I'll guide you. Go down the hall, take a 
  right, and go to the first door on the right. 
  That's the security station. There should be two 
  guards on duty there." 
  Following the Voice's directions, you move 
  quickly and quietly down the hall pressing flat 
  against the wall to avoid being seen. You gen-
  tly grasp the knob and twist, then fling open 
  the door and level your pistol into the room. 
  The two guards inside react with surprise. 
  Make a Surprise Check: When it is possi-
  ble for one side to get the drop on the other, a 
  surprise check is required. Make an Aware-
  ness-intuition check for the guards (their target 
  score is 8). 
  • If the guards fail the surprise check, go to 13. 
  • If the guards make the surprise check, go to 
  14. 
  - 13 - 
  You've caught the guards by surprise. Be-
  fore they can even blink, you have a chance to 
  fire off a shot. 
  If an opponent fails a surprise check, a spe-
  cial phase called the Surprise phase is added to 
  the beginning of the combat round. Diana can 
  take one action in this phase, then the normal 
  round begins. See the “Fighting the Guards” 
  sidebar, then go to 14. 
  - 14 - 
  Two guards, one of you—not very even 
  odds. But then, you're hardly going to let them 
  go and get more guards to even things out! 
  Stun 
  8 
  ���� ���� 
  Wound 
  8 
  ���� ���� 
  Mortal 
  4 
  ���� 
  Guard #2 
  Stun 
  8 
  ���� ���� 
  Wound 
  8 
  ���� ���� 
  Mortal 
  4 
  ���� 
  Guard #3 
  Stun 
  8 
  ���� ���� 
  Wound 
  8 
  ���� ���� 
  Mortal 
  4 
  ���� 
  Guard #4 
  defeated (go to 12) or Diana is defeated (go to 
  7). 
  - 11 - 
  The sudden appearance of the guard throws 
  you off-balance, and you turn toward him just 
  as the guard raises his gun at you and fires. 
  You just hope that he's a lousy shot. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Guards” sidebar to resolve combat. The guard 
  acts first in the Ordinary phase. Then Diana 
  acts in the Marginal phase. She gets only one 
  of her usual two actions this round. Continue 
  
  8 
  THE CALL | THE VOICE 
  Make an Action Check: The security 
  guards act in the Ordinary phase and have one 
  action each. Make an action check for Diana 
  using a d20. 
  • If you achieve a Good or Amazing success, 
  go to 15. 
  • If you achieve an Ordinary success, go to 16. 
  • If you achieve a Marginal success, go to 17. 
  - 15 - 
  The guards are reacting fast, but not fast 
  enough! You fire twice before either of them 
  manages to regain his bearings and return fire 
  at you.. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Guards” sidebar to resolve combat. Diana acts 
  in the Amazing and Good phases, or in the 
  Good and Ordinary phases, while the guards 
  return fire in the Ordinary phase, if they are 
  still able. 
  Continue until the guards are defeated (go 
  to 18) or Diana is defeated (go to 7). 
  - 16 - 
  The guards recover from their surprise 
  fairly quickly, drawing their weapons and 
  opening fire on you. You have some cover 
  from the doorway and return fire. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Guards” sidebar to resolve combat. Diana acts 
  in the Ordinary phase along with the guards, 
  then again in the Marginal phase. 
  Continue until the guards are defeated (go 
  to 18) or Diana is defeated (go to 7). 
  - 17 - 
  The guards' surprise lasts for only a mo-
  ment, then they're moving into action in-
  stantly. You're caught a little off guard by their 
  sudden response, and they both shoot at you 
  before you can return fire. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Guards” sidebar to resolve combat. The guards 
  go first in the Ordinary phase, then Diana acts 
  in the Marginal phase, if she is still conscious. 
  Diana acts only once this round. 
  Continue until the guards are defeated (go 
  to 18) or Diana is defeated (go to 7). 
  - 18 - 
  After taking down the guards, you check 
  out the security console in the room. You 
  should be able to shut down the security sys-
  tems from here, enough to give you access to 
  the rest of the facility. 
  “The guards are neutralized,” you say into 
  your throat-mike. 
  "Good work,” the Voice says. “Now you 
  can deal with the security systems. Don't shut 
  them down; there's another option. Just do as I 
  tell you." 
  "How did you know I was thinking about 
  shutting the system down?” you ask. 
  "There's no time to explain,” the Voice re-
  plies. “Trust me." 
  Yeah, sure, “trust you,” you think. Your 
  fingers fly over the keyboard as you set to 
  work. 
  Make a Complex Skill Check: To over-
  come the security countermeasures, Diana 
  must override the computer's security lockouts 
  and make some programming adjustments. 
  This is a complex skill check using her Knowl-
  edge-computer operations skill. Diana is get-
  ting some help from the Voice for this one, so 
  she gains a positive situation die. Roll a d20 
  and a d8 against Diana's skill of 13. The roll 
  on the d8 subtracts from the roll on the d20 to 
  determine the result. 
  Making the necessary changes to the system 
  is a complex skill check. Diana needs to accu-
  mulate 8 successes before she accumulates 3 
  failures. Each roll of the dice represents 30 
  seconds of work in this situation. An Ordinary 
  result counts as 1 success, a Good result counts 
  as 2 successes, and an Amazing result counts 
  as 3 successes. 
  • If you achieve 3 failure results before earning 
  8 successes, go to 19. 
  • If you achieve 8 successes before earning 3 
  failure results, go to 20. 
  - 19 - 
  Once you make the modifications to the 
  security system as the Voice instructs, you put 
  on a white lab coat you find in the closet, right 
  where the Voice said it would be. Slipping 
  your pistol and headset into the large side 
  
  9 
  THE CALL | THE VOICE 
  pockets and clipping a security pass from one 
  of the guards on the breast pocket, you make 
  your way down the hall as you've been in-
  structed, passing various closed-off doors 
  marked with security warning signs. You spot 
  the door the Voice men-tioned at the end of 
  the corridor. Just then, the door opens and a 
  white-coated technician steps out into the cor-
  ridor. 
  He eyes you suspiciously as you approach. 
  You prepare to hand him a line and your pass 
  when he suddenly holds out a hand. 
  “Hold it right there”, he says. 
  • Go to 21. 
  - 20 - 
  Once you make the modifications to the 
  security system as the Voice instructs, you put 
  on a white lab coat you find in the closet, right 
  where the Voice said it would be. Slipping 
  your pistol and headset into the large side 
  pockets and clipping a security pass from one 
  of the guards on the breast pocket, you make 
  your way down the hall as you've been in-
  structed, passing various closed doors marked 
  with security warning signs. You spot the door 
  the Voice mentioned at the end of the corridor. 
  Just then, the door opens and a white-coated 
  technician steps out into the corridor. 
  He eyes you suspiciously as you approach. 
  You smile and hope your security modifica-
  tions pass muster. 
  'Transport orders,” you mutter, indicating 
  your pass with a wave 
  Make a Skill Check: Diana has to bluff her 
  way past the technician. Make a skill check 
  against Diana's Deception-bluff score of 10. 
  The technician has no resistance modifier, and 
  Diana's disguise and adjustments to the secu-
  rity system give her a situation die bonus of 
  d8. Roll a d20, then roll a d8 and subtract the 
  result from the d20 roll. Compare the result 
  against Diana's skill of 10. 
  • If you fail, go to 21. 
  • If you succeed, go to 22. 
   
  - 21 - 
  The technician glares at you and says, “I 
  don't think you're authorized to be here.” He 
  takes a step toward you, giving you a momen-
  tary opening. 
  Make an Action Check: The security tech-
  nician acts in the Ordinary phase and has one 
  action. Roll a d20 for Diana's action check. 
  • If you achieve a Good or Amazing success, 
  go to 22. 
  • If you achieve an Ordinary Success, go to 23. 
  • If you achieve a Marginal Success, go to 24. 
  - 22 - 
  When the technician moves toward you, 
  you get the drop on him. You use a karate 
  move to take him down. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Technician” sidebar to resolve combat. Diana 
  acts twice before the technician, then the tech-
  nician attacks in the Ordinary phase, if he is 
  still alive and able to act. If you want, Diana 
  can draw her gun using one of her actions to 
  fire at the technician. Continue the combat un-
  til Diana or the technician defeats the other.  
  • If Diana defeats the technician, go to 25. 
  • If the technician defeats Diana, go to 7. 
  - 23 - 
  The technician is expecting trouble, but he 
  doesn't know just what kind of trouble he's got 
  on his hands. When he approaches, you lash 
  out with a hand and try to take him down. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Technician” sidebar to resolve combat. Diana 
  and the technician act at the same time, in the 
  Ordinary phase. Then Diana acts again in the 
  Marginal phase. Continue the combat until 
  Diana or the technician prevails. 
  • If Diana defeats the technician, go to 25. 
  • If the technician defeats Diana, go to7. 
  - 24 - 
  You make your move, but the technician 
  sees it coming and tries to hit you. 1t looks 
  like he's taken a few self-defense courses, but 
  you're better. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Technician” sidebar to resolve com-bat. The 
  technician acts first in the Ordinary phase. 
  
  10 
  THE CALL | THE VOICE 
  Then Diana acts in the Marginal phase. She 
  gets only one of her usual two actions this 
  round. Continue the combat until Diana or the 
  technician wins. 
  • If Diana defeats the technician, go to25. 
  • If the technician defeats Diana, go to 7. 
  - 25 - 
  Getting past the technician, you open the 
  door and move into the room. It's dimly lit 
  with fluorescent tubes running along the ceil-
  ing, filled with a strong smell of antiseptic and 
  the faint bubbling and humming of machinery. 
  There's no one else inside as you sweep the 
  room with your gaze. You come to the rear 
  wall of the room and stop dead in your tracks. 
  Resting on top of a complex bank of ma-
  chinery is a row of three glass jars filled with a 
  greenish liquid that gurgles and bubbles 
  slightly. Inside of each jar, connected to the 
  bottom by trailing wires, is a human brain, 
  floating freely in the liquid. As you stand and 
  stare in shock at the disembodied brains, you 
  hear the Voice speaking to you again. 
  “Hello, Diana,” it says. “I’m glad you’re 
  finally here. I knew you couldn't resist a mys-
  tery.” 
  Your hand automatically reaches up to 
  touch the headset when you realize that it's 
  still in the pocket of your lab coat. The Voice 
  is coming entirely from inside your head. 
  “Who... what are you?” you ask, “and how 
  do you know about me?” 
  “I knew you'd come because it's what I 
  would have done,” the Voice says. “You see, 
  Diana, I am you. The real you.” 
  • Continue with 26. 
  - 26 - 
  "What?” you exclaim. You've seen some 
  weird stuff in your time working for the Insti-
  tute, but never a brain in a jar that claimed to 
  be you. 
  "It's true,” the Voice says. “You're the re-
  sult of an experiment in cloning and memory 
  implantation. I'm the real Diana Hunter. I was 
  investigating this project when I slipped up 
  and got cap-tured. As far as I can tell, they re-
  moved my brain from my body and created a 
  FIGHTING THE TECHNICIAN 
   
  Diana's Unarmed Attack skill is 9. Roll a 
  d20 and a d4 (for using a broad skill). Add the 
  result of the d4 to the d20.1f she hits, her un-
  armed attack inflicts the following damage: 
  d4s/ d4+1s/d4+2s. She can also choose to draw 
  her gun, but she takes a d4 penalty drawing 
  and firing in the same action; roll a d4 and add 
  it to the result on the d20. 
  The technician has an Unarmed Attack 
  score of 8 and inflicts the same damage as 
  Diana's attack. Roll a d20 plus a d4 for his 
  skill check. The technician has a durability of 
  6 stuns, 6 wounds, and 3 mortals. He is other-
  wise unarmed. Unarmed attack damage is con-
  sidered low impact (LI) for purposes of 
  Diana's armour.  
  Stun 
  6 
  ��� ��� 
  Wound 
  6 
  ��� ��� 
  Mortal 
  3 
  ��� 
  Technician 
  clone duplicate, programmed with my memo-
  ries, to infiltrate the Institute. That's you. 
  "There's a tiny implant in your brain that 
  allows them to send you commands. You're 
  working for the enemy, Diana, and you don't 
  even know it. 
  "What they underestimated was the power 
  of the human brain. Somehow, outside of our 
  bodies, we've learned to harness certain mental 
  abilities, the way I'm speaking with you now. 
  They allowed us to learn things about the 
  pro-ject, and to make certain things happen. 
  They also allowed me to contact you and con-
  vince you to come here. I'm sorry to trick you, 
  but I couldn't tell you the truth." 
  "Obviously,” you mutter. “Do you really 
  expect me to believe this?" 
  "It doesn't matter what you believe,” the 
  Voice says. “You're here, and we need your 
  help." 
  "To do what?" 
  "To put an end to our existence. We need 
  you to shut down the equipment here so we 
  
  11 
  THE CALL | THE VOICE 
  can finally escape from this half-life. I know 
  you don't want us to suffer, Diana, because 
  that's not what I would want." 
  "Will you stop saying that!” you reply. 
  “You're not me!"  
  "Believe whatever you want,” the Voice 
  says. “But will you help us?" 
  • If you agree to help, go to 27. 
  • If you refuse to help, go to 32. 
  - 27 - 
  "All right. I'll do it,” you say. 
  "Thank you,” a chorus of Voices replies in 
  your mind. Suddenly you know how to shut 
  down the equipment in the room. You start 
  moving toward the control panel when you 
  hear a noise from the doorway. 
  "Hold it right there, Diana,” a familiar 
  voice says. “Don't do anything foolish.” You 
  spin to see a figure standing in front of the 
  door, holding a 9mm pistol leveled in your di-
  rection. A cruel smile crosses her face as you 
  face off against… yourself. 
  Make an Action Check: Diana's duplicate 
  acts in the Good and Ordinary phases. Roll a 
  d20 for Diana's action check. 
  • If you achieve an Amazing success, go to 28. 
  • If you achieve a Good success, go to 29. 
  • If you achieve an Ordinary Success, go to 30. 
  • If you achieve a Marginal Success, go to 31. 
  - 28 - 
  Although you're confused by all that you've 
  seen and heard, you don't hesitate when faced 
  with danger. You spin toward your doppel-
  ganger and bring up your pistol. Your sudden 
  burst of action seems to have startled her. 
  Funny, you think you'd be smarter than that. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Doppelganger” sidebar to resolve combat. 
  Diana acts before her double in the Amazing 
  phase, then again in the Good phase. The du-
  plicate Diana acts first in the Good phase, if 
  she is still alive and able to act. Continue the 
  combat until one character wins. 
  • If the duplicate is defeated, go to 33. 
  • If Diana is defeated, go to 7. 
   
  - 29 - 
  You and your double move at the same 
  time, almost like mirror images of each other. 
  You try to figure out how this could possibly 
  be, but you're too busy fighting for your life at 
  the moment. Let's just hope she's not as good 
  as you are, or at least not as lucky. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Doppelganger” sidebar to resolve combat. 
  Diana and her duplicate act at the same time, 
  in the Good and Ordinary phases. Continue the 
  combat until one character wins. 
  • If the duplicate is defeated, go to 33. 
  • If Diana is defeated, go to 7. 
  - 30 - 
  You make a move, but your duplicate has 
  the drop on you. She shoots once before you 
  can bring your own weapon to bear. You hope 
  she's not as good a shot as you are. 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Doppelganger” sidebar to resolve combat. 
  Diana's duplicate acts first, in the Good phase, 
  then again in the Ordinary phase with Diana. 
  Continue the combat until one character wins. 
  • If the duplicate is defeated, go to 33. 
  • If Diana is defeated, go to 7. 
  FIGHTING THE DOPPELGANGER 
   
  Diana's opponent has the exact same skill 
  and ability scores as she does. See Diana's 
  hero sheet for this information. The duplicate 
  is armed with a 9mm pistol that does the same 
  damage as Diana's, but she is not wearing any 
  armour. Since both Diana and her double have 
  a +1 resistance modifier for their Dexterity, 
  roll a d4 and add it to the d20 when making 
  Modern Ranged Weapons-pistol skill checks 
  for either of them in the fight. 
  Stun 
  9 
  ����� ���� 
  Wound 
  9 
  ����� ���� 
  Mortal 
  5 
  ����� 
  Doppelganger 
  
  12 
  THE CALL | THE VOICE 
  - 31 - 
  Too slow! You're too confused by what's 
  going on here. Even as you start to move, your 
  doppelganger starts shooting at you. The 
  Voice speaks loudly in your head “Get it to-
  gether, Diana! Don't give up now!" 
  Make a Skill Check: See the “Fighting the 
  Doppelganger” sidebar to resolve combat. 
  Diana's duplicate acts first, in the Good and 
  Ordinary phases. Diana acts in the Marginal 
  phase (if she is still able) and gets only one 
  action this round. Continue the combat until 
  one character wins. 
  • If the duplicate is defeated, go to 33. 
  • If Diana is defeated, go to 7. 
  - 32 - 
  “I’m sorry Diana, but you give us no 
  choice,” the Voice says in your head. Sud-
  denly you feel a powerful stabbing pain in 
  your mind as the disembodied brains try to 
  force their will upon you. You try to concen-
  trate and shut them out. What were you think-
  ing? Oh, yes, that's right… 
  • Go to 27. 
  - 33 - 
  As your duplicate drops to the floor, you 
  become aware of a snapping and crackling 
  sound. You turn to see that a couple of stray 
  shots have damaged some of the machinery. 
  Leaking chemicals pouring onto the floor ig-
  nite in a whoosh of flames, sending a searing 
  wave of heat across the room to slap you in the 
  face. Fire alarms suddenly begin blaring inside 
  the complex. 
  "Run, Diana!” the Voice says in your mind. 
  “Save yourself! There's nothing more you can 
  do for us.” You begin to protest, but you real-
  ize that it's true. There's nothing you can do. 
  You head out of the room, pausing for a mo-
  ment by the door to look back at the disembod-
  ied brains, then down at your double, lying on 
  the floor. Then you turn and don't look back. 
  The place is in chaos, so it's an easy matter 
  for you to slip past the guards and make it out-
  side. By the time you're out of the complex, 
  the fire appears to be spreading rapidly You 
  make it to your car and call the fire department 
  on your cell phone. When the authorities show 
  up, some people are going to have a lot of ex-
  plaining to do. They'll manage to cover it up—
  they always do—but at least the people in-
  volved in this project will know that someone 
  is on to them. 
  As you drive away from the darkened ware-
  house, with flames and smoke rising from one 
  side, you hear a faint voice speak into your 
  mind. 
  "Thank you, Diana. Thank you for our free-
  dom. Take your life and live it well.” The 
  Voice fades and is gone. You may never know 
  for sure if what it told you is true, but you plan 
  to find out.  
  What happens next? Pick up a copy of the DARK·MATTER campaign setting and search for the 
  truth! 
  Stephen Kenson is a freelance writer and a fan of conspiracy theories and high weird-ness. He's 
  fairly sure that he’s really who he thinks he is, although he occasionally has doubts. 
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Alternity/1st Edition/Dark Matter/Alternity - Dark Matter The Voice.pdf