I've been asked several times where the web site's HyperBear name came from. The name was coined during a Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game campaign set in my own twisted version of the Cthulhupunk universe. The campaign was called "The Right To Arm Bears" and ran from June 22 to October 27, 1998.

Instead of summarizing the campaign, I thought I'd write the events as a novella. The following story is the result. Unfortunately, I had to strip the story down to three main characters, in order to (hopefully) maintain a coherent narrative. The characters, and the people who created them and played them during the roleplaying sessions, are: Johnny Jihad (played by Michael Skeet), Jerry Wylde (Dave Nickle), and Franklin (Chris Smith).

These three characters, their actions, and some of their dialogue were invented by Michael, Dave and Chris. Even though the game was based on the GURPS Cthulhupunk world (which — in turn — is set in the GURPS Cyberworld universe), little of that background is found in this story. I made substantial changes to the background during play. About the only things to survive were the concept of a worldwide plague, a shattered United States (Hawaii is no longer a member of the Union), and the timeframe. There is mention of a Al Amarja, an island in the Mediterranean Sea. This island comes courtesy of Atlas Games' Over The Edge roleplaying game.

Most everything else — for better or worse — is my own invention, or the result of the natural interaction between a Keeper (referee) and the players. For instance, Dave wanted his character to have a converted oil tanker as a personal yacht, and I allowed it. I believe Dave named it the S. S. Minnow (an obvious homage to Gilligan's Island), but I think I was the one that decided it was actually the infamous (and refurbished) Exxon Valdez. The setting, plot, "non-player" characters and much of the dialogue in this story are mine. So, too, is a small part of the character background. Now you know where to lay the blame.

Michael, Dave and Chris graciously gave me permission to recreate their characters here. Since the story is based on write-ups from those game sessions (courtesy of Lorna Toolis), I will indicate the dialogue that was spoken by the players.

I hope you enjoy the story as much as we enjoyed playing the original game.