There are three starting threads, as follows:
- Scientist disappearance (Monday): One group learns of the abduction/murder of an eminent scientist (maybe he knew Devon Merrideth or Max Cohen?), and finds his latest research missing. Maybe he leaves a hurried message explaining he’s found the secret he’s been looking for (how to genetically engineer the mystic trait), right before he disappears?
- Colony disappearance (Wednesday, for Danielle): Another group investigates the recent disappearance of the outlying mystic colony (hit by the Destroyer). Some of them will be in the vicinity and hear the horrible psionic echo of the Destroyer as it does its work.
- Josef’s awakening (Saturday, for all Wednesday group Pax veterans): The third group somehow stumbles across Josef Derrota – who was once a man but is now formed completely from Emmanuel’s backlash – in some kind of state of hibernation, and accidently (or purposefully) wakes him up. Josef was asleep because once Emmanuel was cleansed, his essence could no longer be sustained as before. So he might be weak when he first awakens. In any case, there are several people and things he will be interested in exploiting to resume his goal of the Earth’s destruction. We may want to consider having these things happen at the end of each group’s first session, rather than setting them as backstory. Or perhaps they could be described as happening near the beginning of the first to draw everyone in properly.