Cargo
Premise
On the eve of the Iraq War, a mysterious shipping container bound for Baghdad is seized before exiting the country. This is a scenario about interagency competition — everyone wants their time in the spotlight and to justify increased federal resources in the ramp up of the War on Terror.
Timeline of Events
12,803 BC: While traveling to Asgalun, the sorcerer Sin-Urbalit is attacked by Mi-Go and his brain placed into a canister. Though initially subdued, his sorcery successfully drives away the fungi.
626 BC: Sin-Urbalit’s brain canister is rediscovered by king Nabopolassar beneath the ruined foundations of the Etemenanki. Nabopolassar has the sorcerer's canister placed inside a large ceramic jar sealed with pitch, kept at his side during the destruction of Assur and the sack of Nineveh. The mad sorcerer continued to provide counsel to Nebuchadnezzar and the kings of Babylon for almost a century before being hidden as Cyrus the Great approached the city.
1890: The jar is found by an American traveler outside Babylon’s ruins and sent to his home in Ogden, Utah.
1992-2002: After a century of sitting in the attics of family members, the jar is donated to the short-lived Garfield County Museum near Panguitch, Utah. After the museum’s closing, deaccessioned items (including the jar) were sold on eBay.
February 27th, 2003: A shipping container en route to Baghdad (including antiquities and a crate bound for the University of Baghdad’s Department of Parapsychology) is stopped by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey before being turned over to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for inspection.
March 19th-20th, 2003: Customs Officer Brian Hanson is found unresponsive near the container at 9:23 p.m and declared dead at 10:14 p.m. at the Brooklyn Hospital Center. Preliminary scans suggested spontaneous total brain death but follow-up x-rays, MRI, and CT scans show that his brain is entirely absent. Autopsy reveals brain stem termination just above the C2 vertebra and a total lack of brain material inside the cranium. Following autopsy, a friendly within CBP notifies the agents.
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The Scene
March 21st, 2003 — Red Hook Container Terminal in Brooklyn, New York. The container sits along with others flagged for inspection. The sounds of heavy machinery and seagulls mix with the arguing of two dozen representatives of different agencies and organizations in front of the sealed container.
The Shipping Container
Along with the object, the shipping container holds 4000 Playstation 2s (meant for an improvised supercomputer), a brand new Dodge Viper, a crate of 653 cuneiform tablets (if translated, one small tablet refers to Nabopolassar’s discovery, the rest are religious texts or business records), and a lamassu statue with the eyes gouged out.
The Object
A large ceramic jar whose contents are obscured by a thick layer of bitumen sealing the top. Within, an incredible device of alien make quietly buzzes and whirrs as it continues its 15,000 year task of maintaining the ancient sorcerer’s brain. The canister is seriously weathered, and close inspection will reveal marks made by ancient iron and bronze tools.
Organizations and Major Players
Named NPCs lead the small delegations sent by their respective organizations. They all have backup.
Sin-Urbalit: Driven mad, the living consciousness of the wicked sorcerer is sealed within the canister, fully capable of unleashing strange and ancient spells, psychically linking, and telepathically communicating. He will imprint on anyone of rank and privilege and work to his own ends through them.
Department of Homeland Security: DHS’ priority is securing the contents of the container for examination on the basis of national security. So far as they are concerned, the canister likely contains a hazardous biological or chemical agent.
Agent Jason Stewart: As head of this operation for the newly-formed Department of Homeland Security, he sees this as an opportunity to assert DHS’ position in the new federal law enforcement landscape, and to make a newsworthy seizure of goods from Saddam’s government.
Federal Bureau of Investigation: The container’s origin within the continental United States shows that some domestic threat is responsible for sourcing and shipping the contents, possibly evidence of an internal terror network.
Agent Scott Wood: An FBI agent with 17 years of field experience, this is not his first time dealing with inter-agency disputes. More used to assuming control of a scene from county sheriffs and small municipal police departments, he finds the pushback from other agencies, especially DHS, increasingly frustrating.
Central Intelligence Agency: The container is bound for a hostile foreign power and the contents betray the intent to construct a powerful, albeit ad-hoc, supercomputer. The role, purpose, and function of the canister is unknown, but of likely intelligence value.
Agent John Murphy: A man who just wants to do his job, he (like everyone else in the agency) has been under intense pressure from the White House to turn up definitive proof of Iraq's WMD program. Even lacking definitive proof, something that could pass as one would be good enough. Either way, they need something to get the president off their back, and getting the container back to Langley just might do the trick.
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Explosives: The container possibly contains a volatile and dangerous explosive, manufactured domestically but shipped to Baghdad. Disassembly and analysis of the canister could reveal clues about the composition of the “bomb.”
Agent Daniel Keene: Even with only a few years under his belt, he knows that this doesn’t likely fall under the agency’s authority, but if anything in the container are or can be considered explosives or precursors, seizure would be a major career boost.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection: The container is bound for a hostile foreign power and must be seized, and its contents have already resulted in the death of one Customs agent. Keeping a handle on the situation, making sure other agencies don’t muddle things, and investigating to make sure other seized shipments don’t pose a similar risk are priorities.
Agent Glen Webb: Agent Webb is of the opinion that this is purely a Customs matter and would prefer if everyone else would fight it out after he's taken the container into CBP custody and filled out the requisite paperwork. To him, this snafu is a result of everyone tripping over themselves to get a big win in wartime.
Center for Disease Control: The circumstances of the Customs agent’s death suggest a powerful and hazardous biological agent. The container must be quarantined and analyzed.
Doctor Ray Marvin: A medical microbiologist and leader of the CDC rapid response team, he has no time for hotshot federal agents and will not let anyone in or near the container until containment and quarantine protocols are in place. While he technically lacks jurisdiction, the level A hazmat suit he’s wearing may give everyone else enough pause to listen to him.
Port Authority of New York & New Jersey: This occurred under their authority, in their territory, but there isn’t much to do but comply with the agencies’ demands. They will not let accusations of negligence or responsibility be leveled at them though.
Officer Tim Lewis: An officer with the Port Authority Police Department, he wants to do right and help in any way he can but he has a very short temper and anyone that tries to place the blame on the Port Authority, or that disrespects him will find him much less helpful. He also isn't afraid to chew out anyone that needs it, badges be damned.
International Longshoremen's Association: The container proves a substantial threat to the well-being of good, hardworking, dues-paying members. It’s bad for “business.”
Tony Agostini: Container or not, having federal agents, cops, and the media asking questions isn’t good, since they might start asking about other things too. The boss wants them away from the docks as soon as possible.
NYPD: Officers are on scene managing the situation and keeping the public away from the scene. If inter-agency conflict becomes heated, they’ll intervene.
Sergeant Ben Roberts: A veteran cop who's seen just about everything, but never anything like this. His main priority is not letting this turn his precinct into a circus, even if that means he has to get his hands dirty.
Possible Complications
- Sin-Urbalit telepathically imprints on the agency representative with the most institutional power to influence their affairs to his own end.
- Sin-Urbalit objects to further disturbance and curses the agents on scene.
- Representatives of so many agencies are already on scene that the Agents’ cover stories are likely to be called into question.
- A high-profile TV journalist has been tipped off about the shipment, and they’re hoping to break a big story capitalizing on the Iraq War frenzy as the bombardment and invasion of Iraq commence.
Possible Outcomes
- Destruction of the canister.
- Allow it to travel to Iraq as a weapon against Saddam.
- Compromise — the CIA could be persuaded to take the Playstations while leaving the jar and the antiquities alone.
- The canister goes misidentified and the Agents seize the wrong item.
Credits
Cargo was written by Austin Rode and David Stucker for the 2024 Shotgun Scenario contest.
Source: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1oxjE3MxQgXcAKF-5PAb1FE3IL6SToDnRYMTe-sWhoyo/edit