Shadowrun: The Disappearance of Samantha Drake IC

[a_humble_lich]

Seattle
13:06 -- June 24, 2071

As the end of the month approaches, the date when your rent is due comes closer, yet the size of your bank account stays the same. June always seems like a hard month, and the rain doesn't help either. Of course, rain in Seattle is not surprising, yet still, it doesn't make looking for work any more pleasant.

Finally you get a message from Enoch, <Hey chummer, I know that it's been a little slow lately but you know how business goes. Anyways, I think I've got something for you. If you agree met the Johnson at The Daisy Chain on the outskirts of Redmond at 9:30 PM. It seems that it involves finding a person who doesn't want to be found or some such. I don't know the details but their money is good.>

You are quite familiar with The Daisy Chain, it is a small dive bar, not in the truly bad parts of redmond, but by no means in a "good" neighborhood either.

[RdMarquis]

"Thanks." The "How did you get this commcode?" went unsaid. Mordred honestly needed the work, enough so that he literally couldn't afford to be suspicious. Anyway, this wasn't the first time someone who wasn't the adept's usual fixer tossed a job his way. He yawned and got up off the couch, heading to the bathroom to splash some water on his face. "Missing person, huh? Is that all you were told?" Typical. And with a meeting at a noisy, crowded bar, to boot. "Tell the Johnson I'm game."

He dressed casually for the meet, pulling jeans and a hooded sweatshirt on over a jumpsuit. There was no need to put on his best (which wasn't so good) for a place like the Daisy Chain. Mordred put a little more thought into his equipment selection. This was a meeting, not a fight. Considering where it was being held, however, he was not about to show up unarmed. There plenty of time for the adept to buy a concealed holster and double check that his pistol was in working order. Nonetheless, he left his apartment more than an hour early.

[Mari01]

"Good money you say? For an old fashioned snatch and grab? This person must be pretty gee then. Sign me up omae."

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora leaned back in her chair, balancing on the two back feet, hands wrapped around the mug of coffee she'd been drinking before Enoch had interrupted her late lunch. Turning her head, she yelled in the direction of the two bedrooms,

Hey Lukas? Did you get that? Feel like earning?"

Grinning, she set the mug back on the table and rocked forward til the chair was stable again. Glancing down, she accepted that ratty, holey trackpants and one of her twin's shirts wasn't really suitable clubbing gear. Pushing herself up, she retreated to her room to change, shooting one last comment in her brother's general direction.

"Come on Kas! We can race... I'll even give you a headstart!"

[big teej]

Lukas groaned as he rolled over to check his comm, which was buzzing angrily on his nighstand. he checked the time and muttered a curse directed at late night trid keeping him up to late.

he groggily punched in a reply to Enoch <sounds good chummer, I'll be there>

"the daisy chain..." Lukas muses to himself. lets save the race for another day sis. Lukas calls out to towards the main room as he starts putting his outfit and gear together.

GM

Lukas goes in his armored street clothes and a light jacket.

depending on if the daisy chain has metal detectors...

if it does, he packs the Raecor Sting into a concelable holster.

if it doesn't, he packs the Super Warhawk instead.

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora peeled the t-shirt over her head and grinned as the sleepy voice of her brother drifted in,

"You're no fun at all Kassie," she shot back, taking advantage of her more alert state to tease him. Rummaging through the pile of clothes on her bed, and deciding that she needed to do laundry, Leonora finally decided that a plain shirt and jeans would do for this meeting. Knife and - eh, the gun can stay in the car. Grabbing a black leather jacket from the back of the door, she wandered out to lean against the doorjamb of her brother's room, watching with amusement his clumsy and tired attempts to sort himself out.

[a_humble_lich]

At the door to The Daisy Chain is a large ork who looks you over as you each walk in. Inside the bar is filled with cigarette smoke and a pair of worn speakers are playing some emo-revival song from the 30's. It being a Wednesday there are not too many people in the bar, but there are a group of elves at the bar making jokes with the bartender, and a couple gangers sitting at a table with a pile of empty beer glasses. Sitting against the wall opposite from the bar sits a human woman in her late twenties. WHen she sees you enter she motions for you to join her.

[RdMarquis]

Mordred glances back at who he assumes is the bouncer, but says nothing. The adept headed for the table instead. "We have a mutual acquaintance in Enoch, correct?" He offers his hand as he sits down. "Just call me Mordred."

[Lady Moreta]

The first thing Leonora noticed entering The Daisy Chain was the cigarette smoke. The second thing she noticed was the immediate tightening of the muscles in her chest and she was reminded of why she never came here. One hand rose to her sternum and she forced herself not to try and rub the ache away, or show how hard it suddenly was to breath. Instead she scanned the immediate area and almost immediately noticed the woman sitting against the wall. It's hard not to, The Daisy Chain is almost empty and she is staring directly at Leonora and clearly waving a 'come here' hand at her. She is not, however, alone. Enoch, you never mentioned there'd be others she thought with a scowl that was instantly wiped away.

Leonora wove her way through the bar, coming to a halt in front of the woman. "I understand you have a job that needs doing." She smiles, comfortably aware of Lukas looming just behind her. "You may call me Gaia."

[Mari01]

Upon arriving, Jack immediately takes note of two things: the music playing and the gangers. It's so bland. This place is never gonna get big without some real atmosphere. He then saunters over to the human woman. A group job? Awww man. The pay on this had better be good ya dig?

[a_humble_lich]

One by one the group arrives at the club and meets with your employer. She seems friendly but is clearly uncomfortable and not used to working with shadowrunners. She introduces herself and says:

"Thank you for coming. In the interest of speed let us dispense with the usual formalities; you may refer to me as Ms. Johnson, but my name is Marianne Drake. I need you to find someone who has gone missing: my younger sister, Samantha Drake. She has been getting involved with some people who I thought seemed shady, and then two weeks ago she disappeared. I fear something horrible has happened to her. I can pay each of you ¥8,000 if you can find her. If something has happened to her I'd like to know that too, and I will of course still pay you for your time.

"Do you have any questions? Do we have a deal? I can tell you all I know about her recent habits and friends to help you find her.

[big teej]

"I've got one" Lukas rumbles in a quiet voice laden with violence.

would you like us to... educate, those responsible in how unwise this decision was?

[Mari01]

What's your definition of shady? Shady like where we are now? He glances over his shoulder at the gangers and elves.

[RdMarquis]

The adept attempts not to betray any emotion at what the second man said. It was his policy not to get emotionally involved. But he had to admit, if Morgan fell in with a bad crowd and vanished...

He felt the eyes of his mentor spirit on him, a reminder to keep his mind on the matter at hand. Right. Well, she's being awfully honest, not to mention open with who she is and what she wants. Ms. Drake must not deal with people like us often. Though, things are rarely what they seem at first glance. The dragon's mood became expectant, rather than reproachful, as he spoke to it.

Yes, I noticed. "Miss, is there a reason you cannot go to the authorities?"

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora leaned back in her seat, stifling a cough as she did. Damn cigarette smoke. She usually prefered to do the talking herself, but the others were all asking perfectly legitimate questions - even if Lukas' did make her want to roll her eyes. Realising there was one point nobody had raised, she opened her mouth and took a quick breath. Which proved to be a mistake, as she doubled over in a fit of coughing. Pressing one hand flat against her sternum, Leonora forced herself to slow down and breath - well, as deeply as she could. Straightening, and offering no explanation, she tried again,

"A picture would help." She said. "We need to know what your sister looks like. And any description you might have of these 'shady' types." She pressed harder against her chest and willed her suddenly watering eyes to stop.

[a_humble_lich]

She grins at Lucas's question. "I will leave that up to you. However, there will be a bonus if those responsible can be 'convinced' not to engage in such activities in the future."

"As for the authorities, I have tried, but it seems like Knight-Errant doesn't care much for the SINless. Perhaps it would be different if she disappeared in a different neighborhood, but here?

Her companions were significant more shady than this place. I don't know too much about them, but there was a black man with dreadlocks. I think he was some kind of foreigner; he had a thick accent. There was also somebody named Michelle who I don't think I ever met. I know they spent a lot of time at a bar called The Night Owl. The others I never saw personally, but from the stories I heard they sounded like some kind of Wiz-gang.

With that, she sends each of your commlinks a file. Inside are several pictures of Samantha Drake, her (most likely fake) SIN, and her address.

[big teej]

Lukas perks up at the mention of gangers.

of the ones you're familiar with, were there any shared coat-patches, ink, any sort of shared asthetic or colors?

[Mari01]

Wiz gangers. Bunch of stupid kids trying to take the easy way to the top using some amateurish magic. I'll gladly take your offer if it means showing those punks some real magic.

[Lady Moreta]

A faintly - satisfied - smile slid over Leonora's fact at the other woman's response to Lukas. She tipped her head back and twisted slightly to share the grin with her brother. And immediately found her already constricted airway scream louder at the increase of pressure. Twisting back around, Leonora dropped her head and sucked in as deep a breath as she could manage, swallowing the cough that burned in the back of her throat as she did. Instead, she glanced sideways to the tall, skinny kid who sounded - rather pleased, at the chance to teach magic-using idiots a lesson. She certainly shared that sentiment.

"I couldn't agree more." She said, smiling and trying to pretend her voice didn't sound as raspy as she knew it was. "If we leave these kids alone, and don't teach them a lesson, who knows what sort of chaos they'll cause? You're quite right, they need to learn..." Her grin turns ever-so-slightly feral at the end.

[RdMarquis]

The adept's lips draw back in a sneer, and he sighs. Ridiculous. Did these brats really think committing petty crime was best use of their gifts? What made them different than any punk with a stolen gun, then? "Ok. We have a deal." He considered what Drake had said. Small wonder she was hiring runners. There was no one else for her to turn to. And he'd probably have to run home to arm himself properly. Magic was a potent force, no matter who was wielding it.

[a_humble_lich]

Apologizing to Lukas, Ms. Johnson tells him, "I'm sorry, I never actually saw many of these guys. The only one I ever saw was the black guy with dreads. But I am glad that you seem to have the same feelings towards the Wiz-gangers as I do."

[Lady Moreta]

"Magic is not something to be taken lightly" Leonora says quietly. "Neither are gangs who take advantage of others." Her tone drops dramatically at the last sentence, the physical discomfort that has been obvious on her face since she walked in disappears, her expression is sad, angry, and somehow tense.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex finally rolls over and his eyes open to his dark apartment. The goblin-rock track he had set as his alarm last night had never woken him, which figured. He sat up groggily, that's the last time I get talked into a double shift.

As he throws his legs over his bed and starts to stand, his message alert goes off, the time stamp registering he missed the original call from Enoch. "s**t..." he mutters as he opens the message. "Oh...s**t!" he says outloud as he races about his tiny apartment to pull on his "best" pair of jeans, and a "clean" t-shirt. He pauses for a moment, and then slides the concealed holster with his Colt American tucked into it onto the back of his belt before throwing on his leather jacket and heading for the door.

He kicks his board as fast as he can the whole way to the Daisy Chain. With a nod to the orc bouncer he pushes his way through the door, glancing around he immidiatly finds the group sitting at the back of the bar. He takes a deep breath, which he instantly regrets as he checks his pockets for his Zero, and heads for the table.

"Um...sorry I'm late." He pulls a chair from another table and throws his leg over it, sitting on it backwards as he regards Samantha Drake, "Ms. Johnson, I presume?"

[a_humble_lich]

"And I assume you are Alex. I glad you could come. The rest can fill you in on the details, but in short, my younger sister, Samantha Drake has disappeared. I fear involvement with some kind of Wiz gang. I would like you to find her, or at least find out what happened to her. I have just sent you" (you see an icon pop on on your AR display that your commlink has just recieved a file) "a data file which includes pictures of her, her address, the location of a bar she was know to frequent, her commcode, and her SIN. I can offer you ¥8,000 for your trouble.
"

Turning back to the others, "Thank you so much for your assistance in this matter, if you find anything or have any additional questions don't hesitate to contact me."


Heads up, kind_of_a_robot, Samantha Drake is who you are finding, not your employer :smallsmile:

Also, it always takes me a while to find the yen sign. At least now I've already used it so I can just copy and paste. I'll stop whining now.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex nods, feeling some of the aprension from his late arrival evaporating. Of course the ¥8000 didn't hurt either. He'd be able to pay Raul for next month's rent, make decent bids on a few old vids he'd had his eye on, and have enough left over to treat himself for a week or two, maybe...

He glances at the others at the table, and flips through the data packet Ms. Johnson had just sent him. The Night Owl...great, more time in smoky bars. HAVE to remember my Zero... he thinks, as he feels his eyes start to water and his sinuses start to ache. He pinches the bridge of his nose and closes his eyes for a moment, and regards the others at the table. "So, I'm assuming her home and The Night Owl are the best places to start, yeah?"

[Lady Moreta]

"I would agree." Leonora says, a frown on her face as though she doesn't like what she is thinking. She leans forward slightly in her seat, her shoulders tensing as she hunches over, away from the man behind her. "If necessary, I have- some contacts in a gang who may be able to provide additional information." Her head twitches slightly to the side, as if she's going to glance at Lukas behind her. "But for now, I-" Leonora breaks off abruptly as she doubles over in another coughing fit. This one seems a little more serious than the last, her face drains of colour and the hand at her heart clenches into a fist. Choking out something that sounds like it might have been 'excuse me' she pushes herself to her feet and half runs, half staggers out of the club.

Outside, she leans up against the wall, still doubled over, trying to get her breathing back to normal. Apparently giving the whole thing up as a bad job, she slides down the wall til she's balancing on the balls of her feet, hands fisted in her hair.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Glancing toward the door, Alex thinks Man, and I thought my allergies were bad... He turns to Lukas, "is she gonna be alright?"

[big teej]

"if she hasn't hacked up a lung yet... Lukas responds in a valiant (but ultimately failing) attempt to sound unconcerned.

getting up from the table and striding quickly towards the door he calls over his shoulder. I propose we finish our 'meet-and-greet' in a less cancerous environment.


once outside, Lukas crouches in front of Leonora, not even trying to hide his concern while it's just them.

"I think it's safe to say I've won the argument... we're getting you that respirator for those 'just in case' moments." he informs her quietly.

you okay sis?

[Lady Moreta]

"I'm fine." Leonora's pale face and hunched posture, not to mention the coughs still racking her frame suggest she's lying. "Mostly fine." She looks up at her brother's concerned face. "I will be fine?"

Sighing, she rocks forwards so she's now resting on her knees. Leaning over, she rests her head against Lukas' chest, for once not pretending to be perfectly all right. "Just this once, I'll let you win." She mutters into his chest. "Help me up?"

[big teej]

you better be fine. Lukas grumbles, too concerned to make a sarcastic-sibling remark about the "just this once"

Lukas picks up his sister and sets her on her feet before asking "are you okay to walk back to the car at least? and finish introductions if our potential new buddies come out here?"

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora takes a deep breath, smiling when it generates only a small cough. She wraps her hands around Lukas' arms and squeezes gently. "I'm good. It helps just being out of the smoke." She looks towards the entrance, her expression faintly nervous. "I didn't completely ruin the first impression did I?

[big teej]

Lukas shakes his head "nah, I think you're fine, I sorta got the impression that guy who was late has a similar problem, just not so bad.


GM

Lukas is going to send a message to Enoch, Kassandra, and Hughes asking if they've got any info about wiz-gangers that hang out at The Night Owl.

[a_humble_lich]

Lukas gets a message back from Hughes <Sorry omae, that is outside of our territory. I don't know who runs the 'Owl these days.> He get similar messages from Enoch and Kassandra, but Kassandra adds that she will try to look into it for you.

[RdMarquis]

The adept pulls up his hood. He gets up from his seat, giving the others a "come on" gesture. "You know, something just occurred to me," he says on their way out. "I never asked whether Samantha was Awakened herself." The answer might have been important in figuring out her reasons for going along with the gang.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex shrugs at the hooded man as he gets up to follow, "I would think she would've mentioned it, right?

Once out the door, Alex regards the brother and sisters, everything alright? By the way, I'm Alex.

[Lady Moreta]

"Gaia." Leonora straightens further and offers a hand. "Sorry about that - allergies." She offers a sheepish, self-deprecating smile.

Sorry to be a nuisance, but technically, the other characters don't actually know Leonora and Lukas are related... they haven't been told that yet :smalltongue:

[big teej]

"you may call me Maton." Lukas replies, stowing his commlink after checking his messages.

[RdMarquis]

"Mordred." The adept introduces himself. He leans next to the wall, thinking. "What kind of time limit do you think we're working with? It's better that we devote some time to learning about the Night Owl." And just as a precaution, the Drake family.

[Lady Moreta]

"Not enough, I would imagine." Leonora says, hooking one ankle over the other and leaning slightly against her brother. "She's already been missing two weeks. Of course, if she wanted to disappear, the urgency lessens. Otherwise?" She shrugs, glances up at her companion and adds, in a voice suddenly quiet. "A lot can happen in two weeks."

I should have thought of this earlier, but Leonora will also send messages to contacts asking if they know anything about wiz-gangs operating out of or near the Night Owl.
Marco
Wiremu
Ayelen
They're the only ones I can think of who might know something relevant.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex nods at Gaia's answer, I agree. The faster we get a look at her place, and some people in the Owl, the better, I think. We can probably learn a lot about the place if someone goes to have a look for themselves. What he doesn't say is that he doesn't want to be that someone...

[big teej]

well, I think Gaia has had enough of the smokey bar scene for awhile, so if it's cool with you all, we'll check out miss drake's place of residence. Lukas offers. wrapping an arm protectively around his sister.

[Mari01]

Are you sure she's cut out for this if smoke upsets her so much?

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora straightened up, shrugging Lukas' arm off her shoulder and glaring at the other man. "She will be fine." She snapped.

[a_humble_lich]

These messages actually filter in over the corse of the next hour, but for sake of convenience I'll just post them now.


After Leonora sends a couple quick messages to some friends, she gets a couple responses right away.

<Hola Senorita, havent heard from U in while. And C hw good my Spanish is now :-) Night Owl outside of R turf but ive herd that some serious **** happened their recantly. That used to be Ancients turf but i know they pulled out. dont know who there now.--Marco>

<Wiz-gangs in the Night Owl? I haven't heard anything about that recently. That is a neighborhood where we aren't able to patrol very often, so our intel can be spotty. I do know that that area was the site of a small gang war a couple of months ago. I wouldn't be surprised if somebody new has moved in. Sorry I can't tell you more.--Wiremu>

Ayelen doesn't send anything back, but that is not to surprising. Shamans have a reputation of not being around their commlink to get messages. Generally he will respond in his time.



If Marco's message is unreadable I can translate it to real English if you want. I had fun writing that and pretending I was 16.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

If you two are going to check out her place, I'll just need to swing by my pad really quick to pick up a thing or two. He can see the bottle of Zero laying on the floor next to his bed, as he feels the cool night air start to ease up on his sinuses. He turns to the others, that cool? We can meet up at the Night Owl later tonight?

[Mari01]

Mind if I tag along? It's easy to gear up when you can carry your weapons anywhere. Jack snaps his fingers and chuckles. Besides, you look like the toughest one here. I aint dying in some alley which means you and I need to be best of friends.

[RdMarquis]

The adept looks at the others. Two on each separate "team". He produces a very old coin from his pants pocket. Age had rendered any markings unrecognizable, but you could at least distinguish between the sides. Mordred flipped it, catching the coin in midair. Heads. Sort of. "I'll meet you at Ms. Drake's home," he says to Gaia and Maton.

He heads for his motorcycle, sending a message to his mentor on the way.
Nick, do you know anything about a wiz gang that frequents a place called the Night Owl? We've been asked to find a girl who went off with them. Incidentally...assuming this doesn't end in a firefight with appalling casualties and I can convince them, would you consider taking on any of the gangers as students?

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora gives a brief nod, already turning away towards her car. "One of my contacts tells me that some 'serious ****' happened at the Night Owl recently." Her lips curl up in something that's either amusement or exasperation, and you get the feeling the 'contact' isn't very old. "Used to be Ancients turf, but no longer. And he doesn't know who is there now."


If Marco's message is unreadable I can translate it to real English if you want. I had fun writing that and pretending I was 16.

No, it was perfectly readable... Well, not perfectly but other than making me want to claw my eyes out with a rusty spoon, I got it. :smalltongue:

Oh... also, Ayelen is a woman :smallsmile:

[a_humble_lich]

Mordred

On your way to Drake's apartment you get a reply from Nick
<The Night Owl you say? I know that used to be Ancients territory but they got kicked out recently. Not sure who it was but I hear they had some serious mojo with them. Not surprised to here its a bunch of wiz-kids. That is how those gangs usually operate--make a big initial splash and then disintegrate a couple years later due to infighting. Be careful. As far as taking new students, if you find anyone good let me know, those guys often have picked up all sorts of bad habits, but they can also be really good. Good luck.>

[big teej]

"serious ****" is often good for my wallet. Lukas observes, following Leonora to the car.

[Lady Moreta]

"It's also usually bad for your health." Leonora mutters, as she slides into the drivers seat. Her tone is light-hearted, but there is an undercurrent of worry in it, and the look she directs at Lukas is anything but amused.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex nods, dropping his board to his feet. He kicks off, turning back to Jack, he says, "If you can keep up, it's. not too far from here!". He smirks, headed home.

[big teej]

better my health than yours, madam coughs a bunch. Lukas replies, buckling himself in.

[Lady Moreta]

"At least I'm not constantly getting shot." Leonora retorts, turning the key in the ignition. "Stabbed." She spins the wheel one-handed, looking over her shoulder to check for traffic. "Drugged" The last one has more bite to it than the others, and her knuckles clench white briefly on the wheel as she heads towards home.

[big teej]

yea.... well...... there is that. Lukas responds in a somber voice, staring out the window at the masses of meta-humanity as they drive down the streets.

[a_humble_lich]

After a quick stop at your respective houses, you get to your destinations.

Samantha Drake's Apartment

You pull up to Samantha's building. It is a drab building in a long row of drab apartment blocks. The apartments circle a small trash filled courtyard with a set of stairs leading to the second story. Samantha's unit is on the second floor, but the stairs are "guarded" by a drunk, who is passed out his body sprawled across the lower part of the staircase.


The Night Owl

At first you drive by the Night Owl without noticing it. It is in a very nondescript builing and the sign is so faded that you hardly noticed it at first. Going inside, the place is deserted except for an orkish couple sitting in the corner and the bartender. As you enter he slowly stands up at looks at you with a look that show his disgust of customers. "Alright, come inside. Whadda ya want?"

[RdMarquis]

Hmm... Mordred might have simply stepped over the drunk and slowly made his way to the second floor. Considering how little they new about this job, however, it didn't hurt to be a little wary. The adept's eyes take on a red tinge as he switches to astral perception.

Should I roll for Assensing, as well? Anyway, what do I see?

[Lady Moreta]

Samantha's Apartment
Leonora eyes the drunk sprawled on the stairs warily and moves to the side to avoid him. "Straight up?"

I forgot to mention... I had intended it to be the Leonora takes her summoning focus everywhere she goes, as a just-in-case backup measure. Is that all right? I keep forgetting this isn't D&D and I can't just assume that I'm carrying everything I own in a magic bag on my back.

[big teej]

Samantha's Apartment

"might as well, though after we check the place we might wanna pester the neighbors a bit, see if they know anything."

looking pointedly at the drunk at his feet Lukas continues "we could also question the local wildlife"

Moreta
it looks for all the world like Lukas is giving some slightly serious thought to kicking the drunk awake.

[Lady Moreta]

Apartment
Leonora glared at her brother, then calmly moved so she was between him and the sleeping drunk. "Don't even think about it." She said flatly. "At least... not until we see what we get from everyone currently conscious."

[big teej]

Apartment
Leonora glared at her brother, then calmly moved so she was between him and the sleeping drunk. "Don't even think about it." She said flatly. "At least... not until we see what we get from everyone currently conscious."

apartment
"killjoy" lukas informs his sister. after poking his tongue out at her in a wholly dignified manner, Lukas bounds up the steps to the door.

[Mari01]

Alright look. I heard gangers hang out here. And not ordinary gangers. What can you tell me about that? And try not to beat around the bush. I'll make it worth your while if I like what I hear.

[a_humble_lich]

RdMarquis, you probably should have rolled Assensing, just for simplicity (and if the roll wasn't needed its not that that's a problem), but in this case there is no need.

And Lady Moreta, sure you can carry your focus around as long as it's physical form isn't illegal (like say an assault cannon). You might get in trouble if a magic using cop saw your astral form if you don't have a license for it.


Apartment
Mordred focuses his presence into the Astral Space, but there is not much to see. The complex is the predictable grey from the concrete desert you are in. The auras of the few ferns that have been planted here is a sickly violet, as if one too many drunks has used those plants to relieve himself. But he does not see any signs of magical activity.

You approach Samantha's door....

Perception Checks!
Lukas: [roll0]
Mordred: [roll1]
Leonora: [roll2]

As you reach the door, Mordred can hear somebody moving around inside.


Bar:
"Who told you that? This is a fine respectable establishment here and we don't want any trouble." The bartender looks visibly scared from your question.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex shrugs and tries to smile amiably at the bartender, "Listen, friend, my associate and I are looking for someone. And we have heard that she might have hung out here with some dangerous people. Want to just cut the innocent act and tell us something about any...um...shifty characters who might hang out here?"

[RdMarquis]

The adept holds up a hand to stop anyone from entering the apartment. He types out a quick message on his commlink. We're not alone here.

[a_humble_lich]

Bar

In a hushed voice, the bartender says,
"Look man I'd love to help you, but I can't. I can't say anything." He nervously looks around while talking to you.

[big teej]

Lukas turns to his sister and whispers stay behind me.

Lukas then draws his Ruger Super Warhawk, and whispers to mordred you wanna do the honors or should I?

[Mari01]

Jack glances over his shoulder around the room. Should we talk somewhere more private?

What do I see behind me? Just looking to see who might be making him so nervous.

[RdMarquis]

The adept draws his handgun, aiming at the door. He points to the door and nods, indicating that Maton should go ahead and knock it down.

[big teej]

a grin splits Maton's face as he charges into the door at full speed.

OOC:
:smallbiggrin:
from memory, doing something like breaking down a door is strength + body sooo

Str+body roll: [roll0]



EDIT: the roller doesn't seem to be cooperating...

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora sighs and rolls her eyes, but it seems to be mostly for show, as she steps behind her brother without any argument.

[a_humble_lich]

With a run, Lukas slams into the door. Although he doesn't get a solid hit on it, the door is not strong and bursts open. Inside is a youngish ork woman, wearing what looks to be a nightgown. On seeing Lukas and the others burst in, weapons drawn, she drops the bag of Stuffer Brand Soy Chips (TM) her hand was in, puts both her hands up, and says, "Don't shoot. I don't have much money but my purse is on the couch."

[big teej]

Lukas scans the room, an extremely confused expression on his face before saying to his too compatriots.

uhm.... are you sure we're in the right place?

[RdMarquis]

The adept puts up his hands. With slow deliberation, Mordred puts up the safety on his gun, then replaces it in the shoulder holster. "I'm getting the feeling we aren't." Weren't they off to a roaring start? The adept makes sure his hood and goggles were on before speaking.

"I apologize. Clearly, we have the wrong apartment. We mean you no harm, and we'll be gone presently." Mordred glances behind them. Had anyone heard the noise? "But first, do you know a Samantha Drake? She may be in danger." The adept concludes his attempt at diffusing the situation by switching to astral perception once more.

Assensing: [roll0] Mordred gets an extra two dice for Aura Reading.

Ugh. Well, at least it's enough to see if she's Awakened or not.

[Lady Moreta]

"Did it not occur to either of you that perhaps Samantha Drake shares her apartment?" Leonora mutters under her breath as she steps around Lukas to stand beside him instead.

[a_humble_lich]

Once it becomes clear that you are not about to shoot her, or take her purse, or do anything else bad to her.

You lookin' for Sam? I haven't seen that girl in weeks. She was here, we ware livin' here together. But she disappeared some two weeks ago. You find that girl you tell her she still owes me 500 Y for last month's rent. I blame it all on that Michelle she's been hangin' about with. That one is no good, I'm telling ya. Although, judgin' by the looks of you guys you don't want to just talk with her. What'd she get herself in this time.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Once it becomes clear that they won't need to play good cop-bad cop, Alex steps up to the bar. "Just level with us, a young lady may be in trouble. We've got it on good authority that she has been hanging out here...I'm sure you've seen her, and her friends. Why don't you tell us about them?

[RdMarquis]

"Bigger trouble than any of us might know." Mordred frowns. So far, it seemed Samantha's roommate didn't know much more than her sister. "Which is why we were asked to bring her home. Can you tell us anything about Michelle, Miss...?"

[big teej]

somewhat reluctantly holstering his pistol, Lukas goes back over to the door and leans against the frame, facing out into the hallway, keeping an eye out for anybody who might be showing too much interest.

[a_humble_lich]

Bar
Looking around, the bartender motions you over and says quietly, "Look, this area has been taken over by some new wiz-gang, they call themselves The Trogs. They basically have taken control of this whole area and demand obiediance from all of us. There have been a few who have opposed them but they have all disappeared. Occasionally I will see girls with them, but I don't know who it is you are looking for."

Apartment
"Michelle was up to no good. I told her to stay away but she never listened. Wouldn't let 'em meet up here, but they would still get together somewhere. I should have 's address somewhere if that would help. You promise you aren't going to hurt her, right?" She fumbles for a bit with her commlink and finally find the address.

[Lady Moreta]

Apartment

Leonora smiles reassuringly at the ork woman, "Absolutely not," she says. "We've been asked to find her, that's all."

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex gives Jack a sideways glance, and nods at the bartender's information. "That's exactly why we're looking for this girl, and we might not have much time. If she's been here, I'm sure you've seen her..." he describes Samantha as best he can to the man.

[big teej]

"Find and Retrieve" Lukas corrects from the doorway

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora turns slightly and shoots a look over her shoulder that says, quite clearly, shut up and let me do the talking.

[a_humble_lich]

Apartment

As Leonora seems the most sane member of the group, the ork woman gives her a copy of Michelle's address. "If you find anything please let me know."

Bar


I will assume by "describe her as best I can" includes showing him the picture Ms. Johnson gave you.


"Yeah, I've seen her around. She used to come in almost every night. She and some boyfriend. He was a foreign fellow, had some kind of accent--skinny black rasta. Never did catch either of their names. Haven't seen him in over a week. Last time a saw your chica she was with some of them," he glances around nervously, "but that was last Wednesday, haven't seen her since."


For comparison purposes, it is Sunday night now.

[Lady Moreta]

Apartment

Leonora smiles again, "Thank you. Of course, I'll make sure you know if we find out anything. I understand being worried about a friend." She keeps her tone quiet and calm, then turns to leave, making a shooing gesture at Lukas and simply raising an 'are you coming?' eyebrow at Mordred.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Yeah, I wasn't sure how showing him a picture worked. Can I project a hologram if my commlink is cyberware? I didn't really want to send him the photo, I guess...either way.

Alex nods grimly. Thanks. He looks around the bar and glances out to what he can see of the street. You're awfully worried about a bunch of thugs who aren't even here...we're not gonna rat you out, man, don't worry. Do you know anywhere else they might hang out?

[RdMarquis]

On his way out, Mordred looks at the door, wincing at its condition. Under different circumstances, he might have told the girl to send him the bill. "Uh...ok. You'll want to wedge that closed with a chair until you can get it fixed. We'll be back with Sam, and something to pay for repairs." All the same, he closed the door behind him.

[big teej]

"it was a great idea at the time" Lukas says.

[Lady Moreta]

"You think a lot of things are great ideas at the time," Leonora muttered sourly. "Even when they're really not." She's half-glaring at her brother, and seems a lot more pissed off than a busted-down door would warrant. One final irritated look and she turns to Mordred instead. "Shall we head straight to this address, or find the others at the bar?"

[Mari01]

Well. It seems we're surrounded by the enemy so to speak. As much as I'd love to kick their asses and find out where our missing lady is, I think the whole room might be just a BIT too much for us right?

[big teej]

"uh uh. you've had enough of the whole 'smokey bar' thing today." Lukas interjects. then, with a mischievious smirk ghosting across his features he continues "I mean, if you really wanna go meet new people with a gas-mask on, I'm sure we could stop and get one on the way, but it won't exactly do anything for your hair.

[Lady Moreta]

"Ha ha." Leonora says flatly. "Shall we go then?"

[RdMarquis]

"Gladly." Mordred hefts the duffel bag containing his equipment. "I'm not eager for another situation like we just had, but this could be a chance to catch Michelle or our mystery man alone. Which reminds me..." He sends a quick message to Alex.

Got a lead on Michelle. How are things going on your end?

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora chuckles, "I promise to keep the reigns on this time," she says.

[a_humble_lich]

So where are you guys going? Have you left yet?


Bar:
"Sorry friend, I really don't know that much about them. I don't even know what they call themselves, let alone where they hang out. I do know they come in here regularly to drink, and I've heard similar stories from others in the neighborhood. And they demand their share of the profits every week. And that they they use magic to watch everyone all the time. It's scary stuff omae."

[Lady Moreta]

So where are you guys going? Have you left yet?

It was my understanding we were leaving to go to the address the ork woman gave Leonora. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex smirks and responds, They sound like a great group of guys, can't wait to meet them...do you think any of them'll be in tonight?

Then he responds to the message.
<Not great. This place is dead, and the bartender is either telling the truth about being clueless, or he's way too scared to say anything. I was thinking of hanging out and waiting, see if any of Ms. Drake's friends show up. What did you find at her place?>

[RdMarquis]

A broken door, a scared roommate, and Michelle's address. If you want, meet up with us. Odds are, she's not going to cooperate with us.
Mordred sends him the address they received.

[a_humble_lich]

The bar continues to be dead. If you want to meet with them go ahead, or wait whatever you want.

You arrive at the address. As you move deeper into the barrens the quality of the neighborhood rapidly decreases. At this point you figure the road is more potholes than road. The address you were given leads to an old laundromat. The windows are boarded up and the boards are covered with graffiti. The sign at this point just says "La ndro t". There clearly looks like there was a fire here quite some time ago which burned out the interior. However, through the cracks in the boards you can see a flickering light coming from inside.


I figure it is about 11:30 PM now.

[Mari01]

Weapons at the ready people. Do we shoot first, ask questions later? I'd much rather non-lethal someone and apologize than get caught with my pants down.

[big teej]

Lukas coughs uncomfortably and says. "I, uhm.... don't exactly own non-lethal weaponry... except for a few flashbang grenades."

[a_humble_lich]

Quietly opening the door, you see the glow from candles on the far side of the laundromat. The washing machines are still there, but have all clearly been burnt beyond repair. The plastic of their touchscreens have all melted and bubbles formed, now frozen in the plastic.

Kneeling down in the center of a small circle of candles is a man with his back too you. When he hears you enter he stands up and turns towards you. He is a small, thin, black man with long dreads and a long leather coat. On seeing you enter he says in heavily accented English "Bonjour, can I help you. My name is Michel Pierre-Louis."

As he stands you notice there is a headless chicken laying at his feet, in the center of the circle of candles.


Sorry, I could have sworn I had already posted this. I guess I need to stop confusing dreams with reality.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

To Jack: <Got it, I think this place is a dead end for now, I'm on my way.>

Alex slaps the top of the bar playfully and smiles amiably at the bartender, "well friend, I've got other places to be, but I'll probably be back. And next time, I'd like a little more information...I can make it worth your while, if you know what I'm sayin'."

He turns and heads for the door, dropping his skateboard at his feet as he passes through it.

How long will it take to get to the laundromat?

[a_humble_lich]

For simplicity, we can just assume that yo left the bar earlier and arrive at the laundromat at about the same time as the rest of the group.

[RdMarquis]

There was a familiar face, if their employer's description was accurate at all. And if he were to go by common cliches, the guy was a voodoo practitioner. "We were hoping you could help us find someone." Mordred glances over at Gaia motioning for her to continue.

[Mari01]

Wait what? Enemies don't say hello and greet you! Where the hell is the girl!?

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora grimaced at Jack and muttered "Sometimes they do..." as she moved past him to face the French man.

"My name is Gaia," she said, her voice pitched with just enough warmth to suggest friendliness. "My apologies for disturbing you, but we are looking for someone and were given to understand that she might be found here. Have you seen this woman recently?"

Show the picture to the dude.

Also, is it worth trying some sort of check to get this guy to be helpful/not shoot them dead? I'm not sure how/when it's appropriate to make skill checks in this setting, I just know that in D&D I'd be pulling out the Diplomacy at this point.

[a_humble_lich]

While a little disturbed by the intrusion, Michel approaches you and looks at the picture. "Oh you're looking for Sam? I wish I knew what happened to her. I met her about two months ago. She had just awakened and I was helping her through the transition. I taught her what I could, but it seemed she was always hungry for more. Then about three weeks ago she met another group of sorcerers. These guys had a bad air about them. I don't know; I never trusted them. Would hang out at the Night Owl.

Then about two weeks ago I told her to stay away from these guys. She said I was controlling, we fought, and she left. I haven't seen her since. I wanted to go looking for her, but from what I saw of these guys I knew if they had her I would not have the firepower to deal with them."


First, imagine that is all in a French accent, my French accent typing skills are less than good.

Second, I guess this would be a good time for an Etiquette roll. I always forget to roll social skills, even though I often play a face type. I blame it on starting with old D&D where they didn't have any "social" skills.

[RdMarquis]

"Thank you." Assuming he was telling the truth, this was a complication. A lot of them, actually. Was there a way to confirm the man's story? Mordred frowned. Aside from asking her sister, it seemed their only option was to confront the girl herself. "Did you get the name of this group? And was a woman named Michelle with them?"

[a_humble_lich]

"I woman named Michelle? I think you must be confused. My name is Michel. As for the name of the group, that I do not know, but I do know where their primary safehouse is. They stay in an abandoned church about six blocks from here. I you want I could take you there."

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora grinned, then promptly smothered it. "There must be some confusion I think," she said smiling. "We were told Samantha had been in contact with a 'woman named Michelle'. Clearly that was a mistake." She smiled genially, then added, "if you could take us, I'm sure we'd appreciate it." She glanced over her shoulder at the others, seeking their reactions.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex nodded grimly at Leonora. If they were headed to the wiz-gang's home base he was somewhat comforted by the heft of the Predator on his waist, but wishing he'd packed something heavier. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket and glanced at his other companions.

[big teej]

if we're gonna go pay a visit where they live, I think I've got enough for it... I don't suppose mrs. johnson would appreciate her sister being perforated, so I don't need my grenades.

[Mari01]

YEA!!! This is what I've been waiting for. This ladies, gents, and resident troll are what we've been waiting for. Now then. My totem spirit and I won't accept anything less than perfection. So we wipe these dudes out with 0 causalities right? Jack pauses for a second. Are we going in to take hostages or headcounts? If they are just a bunch of kids, a good a** whooping might be enough...

[a_humble_lich]

"Well, in that case follow me," Michel says as he leads you out of his burned out laundromat and down the street. There are some neighborhoods in Seattle that if you make the wrong turn you can end up getting killed. Well, he is taking you down the wrong turn. At this point you are fairly deep into the Redmond barrens proper. This is probably the worse neighborhood any of you have ever been in.

Finally you see an old church across the street. Michel points to it and whispers, "There it is." The building is stone and solid looking, and while the windows are all boarded up, the large front doors are slightly ajar.


Roll perception.

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora frowns a little, clearly disapproving of a church being used in such a manner, but she says nothing, simply scanning the area. Bringing her focus back to the church, she sucks in a soft breath and her violet eyes softly glow.

Okay, I don't have any points in Perception, but presuming I'm understanding the rules correctly, I can do a default test based on intuition at a -1 dice pool modifier... so that makes it ermmm... 3. Yay :smallamused:

[roll0]

Y'know, while I'm at it, I'm going to do that astral perception thingie and roll for assensing at the same time...
[roll1]

[Mari01]

They're using a church? Man kids these days have no respect....



Perception: [roll0]
Assensing: [roll1]

[big teej]

oh that's just great. Lukas says with distaste, eyeing the building he'll soon be responsible for damaging even further.


defaulting on perception: [roll0]

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex glances about, frowning. "Yeah, I don't like this…

Perception
[roll0]

[RdMarquis]

Mordred slips on a pair of goggles. He taps his commlink screen and his vision is instantly magnified. The adept scans the area, looking for anyone who might be watching them.

Perception: [roll0]
Assensing: [roll1] 6d6 only applies to Aura Reading.

[a_humble_lich]

Lucas and Jack

While the exterior of the church seems unremarkable, you can faintly hear the sound of chanting coming from inside the church.


Alex

Yup, it's a church. Nothing special here.


Leonora

While you don't see anything unusual, you do notice the astral space here has been polluted. Something bad happened here which has corrupted the local astral space. You are effectively at -1 to your magic here.


Mordred

When you go to zoom in with your goggles, the zoom button get stuck at maximum zoom. While this means you can now identify the species of ants on the church walls, you are lacking in the big picture.

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora frowns and makes a face, moving her mouth like something tastes bad. Grimacing, she blinks a few times, ending with a glance at Mordred, she'd seen enough to suspect he had abilities like her own. "Are you feeling that?" She asks, mouth twisting in distaste.



While you don't see anything unusual, you do notice the astral space here has been polluted. Something bad happened here which has corrupted the local astral space. You are effectively at -1 to your magic here.


Meaning if I do anything that involves magic, I take one from the dice pool?

[a_humble_lich]

Correct. Technically this is called a background count and is described in full in Street Magic, but there isn't much more than what I said. It is a little more complicated for Mordred since he actually loses one point of adept powers, but he is free to choose which one he loses. I might suggest losing Astal Perception to explain your utter failure with Assensing just now, but you are free to choose. Also, while this effects Mordred, he doesn't actually know that there is a background count here until he tries something he can't do or somebody tells him.

[big teej]

gee, I wonder what would make that chanting stop. probably 1 or 2 well placed hand grenades. Lukas observes to nobody in particular

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora shoots her brother a startled - and confused look. "What chanting are you talking about?"

[Mari01]

You can't hear it? Something's going down in this place.

[big teej]

Lukas gestures in the direction of the decrepit church I can hear people chantin in there, judging by the appearence of the place, you'll have to forgive me for assuming it ain't no church service... and given that it ain't, I imagine The Man Upstairs ain't none to pleased bout whats goin on in there.

[Mari01]

You mentioned grenades... We should hold off on that until we at least know if the girl is in there or not. Wouldn't want to have to tell Ms J., "Good news bad news. We found your sister. She's right over there. And there. And there. And if you look reeeeeeal hard over there."

[Lady Moreta]

"No, I can't hear anything," Leonora says, looking unhappy, but also like she's trying not to laugh at Jack's comment. "There is - something wrong with the astral space here. It's - polluted, corrupted somehow. Something bad happened here." She says flatly, making another one of those there-is-a-bad-taste-in-my-mouth faces.

[Mari01]

Jack gets a very confused look on his face. Wait. You mean to tell me that these gangers are using a place where magic is weaker as a hideout?

[big teej]

they're non-lethal... Lukas protests in a petulant tone.

after pondering his sisters words for a moment, lukas says rather hesitantly "is it not possible... that it makes their magic stronger, and interferes with anyone not in the group?

[Lady Moreta]

"It's not - weaker, per se," Leonora mutters, still frowning and now clearly thinking out loud. "It's... wrong, like- like going through mud" she says suddenly, having finally hit an analogy that works. "You have to work that much harder to get anywhere. That's what it feels like here. If I tried any spellwork here, I'd have to try harder, use more force to get it to work." She frowns, then looks around at the others, giving herself a slight shake, she moves towards her brother and rests a hand lightly on his back. "Either way, we can't just stay here. Ideas?"

[Mari01]

Yea. We got two magic users. They're a gang of magic users. We go in pretending to want to join up after hearing about them being one of the toughest on the streets. I haven't gotten farther than that but eventually we just blow em up. Jack scratches his head. I haven't quite gotten much further than that.

[big teej]

I say don't even bother with the pretense of joining, just make sure we're not about to bomb the wrong people, lob in a few flash-bangs, race in, grab the girl, shoot and/or stab anybody who gets in our way, and skiddadle in a hurry. but I've always preferred the direct approach."

in a quieter aside to Leonora don't overdo it okay?

[Mari01]

The more flashy we can get the better. Alright men. No offense to the lady. Jack glances at Lenora with a smile. Are we ready to go see if the new neighbors wanna have some fun?

[RdMarquis]

Mordred slips on a pair of gloves, then tugs at a small, pointed metal object protruding from the one on his left hand. "We still have to confirm Samantha's location. Suppose a couple of us do a little spying. If we get caught...well, the alternative was a shootout, anyway." The adept grimaces at Gaia's comments. "By the way, I think the word you're looking for is tainted." Not that he could see for himself. Which was, in itself, proof the condition of the mana had weakened his powers, too. He could no longer astrally perceive.

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora looks between Jack and Lukas, her expression a little bemused. "It's like a match made in- well, somewhere." She sounds baffled and amused all at once, before her expression and tone turn serious again. "Mordred has the right of it though. We should at least make sure Samantha is in there - or not. While I doubt it will make any difference to the ultimate end-" she pauses and gives her brother an amused glance, shaking her head slightly, "knowing whether she's there might change our tactics at least."

She steps away from Lukas then, and shoves her hands into her pockets, staring intently at the doors of the church like she's measuring distances in her head. "I have something that may help."

Okay, this is probably going to break my brain, but as far as I can tell, there's no reason it shouldn't work. Leonora is going to cast Clairvoyance on herself, with the 'visual point' being the ajar doors of the church. I can't find anything that says this wouldn't work. Now... please excuse me while I ramble to myself and figure this out...

Magic rating is reduced by one, so she's at 3... She'll cast at Force 3 (that being as high as she can go right now), which makes the range 12m. Obviously, if they're currently more than 12m from the doors to the church, she will move closer.

Leonora gets +2 dice to Detection spells from her mentor spirit, so with the minus 1 from the tainted astral-ness, that's essentially a +1 (and I checked this with my husband, and he's a maths teacher. Any problems, go complain to him :smalltongue:).
So... Magic + Spellcasting (+ Detection bonus) is 8 dice...
[roll0]

And drain is... (3/2)-1 - which makes it either 1 (rounding up) or 0 (rounding down) and I can't find anywhere in the book that tells me whether to round up or down :smallsigh: I'll roll it anyway...
[roll1]

... and I think that's it. Someone tell me if I screwed up?

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex steps up between Mordred and the rest, pulling his Predator IV from its holster and checking the clip. He slips back beneath his jacket and nods at Mordred, "can't let you go alone…" He turns back to the others with a shrug, "if anything goes wrong…well…it should be obvious. Come in guns blazing."

[a_humble_lich]

Moreta, you are all good. And to answer the question from the other thread hear, the background count shouldn't have any effect on your focus. You can't the spell outside the bad area and it stays cast, even if you wouldn't be strong enough to cast it here.


Your senses peer into the church and at first you see nothing. As your eyes begin to grow accustomed to the dark light You can see light coming from a back room, which is also where the chanting is coming from. Although the angle is not very good to look into the back room, from where you perception is it looks like the light is actually coming from a staircase leading down into a basement area.

You can see that the interior of the church is in a state of disarray. many of the pews are missing or overturned. The walls are covered in graffiti. There are many crude drawing of what look like horrible monstrous creatures and writing written in a variety of languages. There is nothing you can read, and many of the languages you don't even recognize, but you do see some of the writing in in Latin, Greek, Sanskrit, and Arabic.


Oh and just to be clear, Michel is still with you. He lead you here and unless you tell him otherwise he wants to go into the church with you.

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora stands quietly, one hand resting lightly on Lukas' forearm, her eyes are blank and expressionless, though flitting around in the sockets. She is clearly seeing something and it is equally clear that that 'something' is somewhere else.

"There's no one in the main church," she says quietly. "There's light coming from a room at the back, and I'm pretty sure that's where the chanting is coming from. Maybe a staircase going down? I can't really tell from this angle." Her violet eyes flick from side to side briefly, "Church is a mess... graffiti everywhere." Her hand curls briefly around Lukas's arm. "If we can get closer, I can move the focal point of the spell to see into this back room better."


Moreta, you are all good.
Thank goodness... if you'd said I'd done something wrong, I think I might have cried...

[big teej]

"well, if there's nobody in the main room, I don't see any reason why we can't set up shop just outside the front door."

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora turns her head in the direction of Lukas's voice. "Works for me. Lead the way."

Teej - not sure if you're aware, but while the Clairvoyance spell is in effect, Leonora can't see normally, which is why she's got her hand on Lukas's arm... she needs him to be her guide dog :smalltongue:

Also, once we're close enough/in position, Leonora will move the visual/focal point of her spell to a place she can see into the back room from.

[big teej]

ooc: thanks for the heads up :smalltongue:

Lukas draws his Ruger Super warhawk and with his free hand gently guides Leonora to the left side of the main door, then stands between her and the door.

is here okay? he whispsers.

[RdMarquis]

"Admittedly, I have no reason to back this up." The adept glared at the church. Something just occurred to him. "But could time be an important factor, here? Doubtless that chanting serves some kind of purpose. I'd rather not let them finish and find out what, especially if it involves our girl." He looks at Michel questioningly.

[Mari01]

Cast Increased Reflexes at force 3 and sustain it using focus.
[roll0]
Drain Resist 3: [roll1]

[a_humble_lich]

JUst to be clear, you guys are moving next to the frond door so that Leonora can move her Clairvoyance and look down the stairs? If not, please disregard the following post.

Michel agrees, "Mon ami, you are right. Times like dis, chanting is rarely a good sign. Even is Sam isn't here, de chanting could be some kin of ritual magic, and I don't want to see de result.

Quietly moving closer to the door, you can all now hear the faint chanting. Inside, Leonora "walks" her vision into the back room and down the stairs.

As you go towards the back room you notice that the alter of the church has been replaced with a large black flat slab of basalt, with ominous looking gutters carved into it.

In the back room, huddled in a corner of the room outside of your sight from earlier are three young women. All three of them are tied, dirty, and bruised. Although it takes you a while to look past the dirt, one of the women is indeed Samantha drake.

At the bottom of the stairs is a largish room which appears to have originally been a kind of basement or crypt, although you don't see anybody buried in here. In the center of the room is a round hole in the ground, about the size of a well. Around the hole you see four figures in robes involved in some kind of ritual, although between the poor lighting, the robes, and the difficulty of remote viewing you cannot get a clear image of their faces. You do feel you can safely say that none or them are either Trolls nor Dwarves.

[Lady Moreta]

"It's fine," Leonora murmers in reply, her blank eyes start flicking around again and she blinks and shudders. "Urgh.. that's creepy."

She is silent for a moment longer, then her expression brightens a little. "She's there." She says, softly but triumphantly. "In the back room, with two other girls - they're tied up. And downstairs..." her voice trails off again. "Big room. There's a hole in the centre. Four figures, in robes, I can't see their faces. Some kind of ritual going on... I'm surprised you managed to hear anything at all." She blinks a few more times, shudders slightly and flicks her fingers like she's shaking water from them. She blinks a few more times, and when her eyes reopen, she's definitely looking at the group - well, at Lukas really, but she turns slightly to encompass everyone.

"It looked like it might have been a basement, or maybe a crypt." Leonora begins, adding more detail now that she can see again. "The hole is in the centre, about the same size as a well. That spell's not always the easiest to work, so all I can really say is that there are four people down there wearing robes. Don't think they're trolls or dwarves though," she adds thoughtfully.

[big teej]

Lukas doesn't quite manage to hide a grin as he reaches into his coat and pulls out two fist sized spheres. "knock knock" Lukas says with a chuckle.

I'm not exactly savy in the magic department, but I would imagine having these go off in the middle of a ritual would be rather distracting.

looking at the group "shall we?"

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora is trying to look calm and serious - and is failing miserably.

"Yes, I imagine it would," she says, with a grin to match her brothers.

[Mari01]

It's time for the show! I'm going full force on my spells. Non lethally of course. He smirks at the others at the last comment. No magical taint is gonna tell me I can't shine!

I dont quite remember how Shadowrun handles readied actions, but I'm readying a spell. Stunball.

[RdMarquis]

In spite of himself, a smirk crosses the adept's face. Mordred gives the glove another tug, then draws his pistol. He levels the weapon at the door, and nods.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex follows Mordred's lead, drawing his own weapon, regretting not investing in some non-lethal ammo…oh well, there were always kneecaps.

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora silently tugs a handgun free from a concealed holster, checks the clip and then puts the weapon away. "I have a spell or two that are good at resolving situations without harming anyone. She takes a step or two backwards, moving to just behind her brother and waits for the others to lead the way.

[a_humble_lich]

OK can I assume somebody is actually going to go through the door and not just get ready? In that case...


Entering the church, you first pause for a few second to let your eyes adjust to the dim light. Other than the candle light that is filtering through the back room, the only other light is whatever gets through the open door and boarded windows. The interior of the church is in a state of disarray, with many of the pews overturned. In the dim light you can see graffiti covering the walls, all in a variety of languages that you don't know.


Everybody roll Infiltration+Agility and Perception+Intuition (unless you aren't even trying to be quiet.

Also, this counts as partial light, so anyone without Lowlight vision is a -2 to hits things/see stuff.

Finally, Jack can roll Magical Knowledge + Intuition = [roll0]
Leonora can roll Spirits + Intuition = [roll1]

(OK I'm actually rolling that for you two)


Jack

Looking at the graffiti you suddenly get a sinking feeling in your stomach. With the writting are crude drawings of all sorts of horrible creatures. You realize that many of the creatures seem to be some kind of insect, and you dearly hope that this doesn't mean that there are insect spirits involved in this.

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Infiltration - [roll0]

Perception - [roll1]

[big teej]

defaulting on stealth: [roll0]
defalting on perception: [roll1]


ooc: would somebody like to explain to me why I roll so much better on fewer dice?

[Mari01]

I had no intention of sneaking in, considering I thought the plan was to blow them up. Perception : [roll0]

We might have to deal with some insect spirits if these walls are any kind of hint. I can try to conjure a fire spirit to fight them but this whole area puts us at a disadvantage.

[RdMarquis]

Oh, joy. Mordred walks on his toes, staying in an area that would keep him out of sight if anyone came up the stairs. Manually, he swaps the clip of regular ammo for stick and shock. "If he's right, switch to electric bullets. Normal ones don't do much good against spirits. Let's move."

Infiltration: [roll0]
Perception: [roll1]

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

"Um…electric bullets? Alex stammers quietly, following the others through the door.

[Lady Moreta]

"'S news to me too," Leonora mutters to Alex, sliding her gun - with it's regular ammo - out from under her jacket. Her eyes are on Jack up ahead and her expression is definitely unhappy. "I can probably conjure a spirit or two myself, provided this taint doesn't screw me up too badly."


Inflitration: [roll0]
Perception: [roll1]

kind_of_a_ROBOT - wrong font colour dude :smalltongue:

[big teej]

"of course not, why can't anything ever be simple?" Lukas mutters to himself.

[Mari01]

It wouldn't be fun if it were simple Stopping, Jack turns to point at the group before kicking in the door. One last thing folks. Who grabs the girl? I can't say she'll be very safe during the fight. And do we help the others? We're not getting paid for them, but I'd hate to get left in their shoes.

[Lady Moreta]

"I'll do it." Leonora says promptly. "And yes, we help the others. They're all tied up, so I assume none of them are particularly willing participants. At the very least, we get them out of here so they can make their own ways home."

[Mari01]

Without further ado, I'd ready to (literally) kick this door down and drop my spell on the other side. Everyone else good?

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex nods, "alright, I'll give you hand with the girls, Gaia." He pulls his goggles down over his eyes, and readies his Predator. "Ok, let's do this."

[big teej]

as soon as we're in the room, Lukas is going to lob one of his flash bang grenades down the stairs (and I'll spend edge in whatever manner is most appropriate to do so.)

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora gives Alex a quick nod in return and grins briefly at her brother.

I'm good to go nuts :smallsmile:

[RdMarquis]

"We'll handle the chanting guys, then." Mordred takes a deep breath, willing himself to relax. Out of habit, he makes sure his smartgun system is functioning properly.

Ready.

[big teej]

couldn't find the appropriate demotivator. but...
"why are you preparing? you're always preparing! let's just go!"
:smalltongue: sorry, feel like we've been doing 'okay I'm ready" posts too long.

[a_humble_lich]

Well, that is really my fault since I didn't post. I have all of great excuses though like my dog ate my post, my internet has been iffy, (or the most accurate) I got stuck playing Civilization and the (*&|^%$ French just tried to invade Hong Kong so I had to send a counter attack to Hanoi....


You kick the door in and the chanting immediately stops. You can hear footsteps running up the stairs in the back. Lukas throws his flash-bang and ...

The back room is on the opposite side of the church and is about 25 m away, and the church is about 10m wide. There are pews along both walls with a fairly clear isle in between. As said before, the lighting here is low.


See I've learned now not to make you roll to kick in the door :smallbiggrin:

First Lukas throws his flash-bang. Go ahead and roll Throwing+Agility. Since you are throwing at the light source I'm only going to give you -1 for vision, but you will also get -3 for range (ouch). And another -2 since you don't actually know what you're doing :smallsmile:. Luckily you can't roll less than zero dice. I suggest adding your edge in dice, since getting a reroll isn't going to help you on zero dice. So roll your Edge, and since you are spending it before you roll you can reroll any sixes (after counting the six as a hit).

Then everybody roll initiative.

[Lady Moreta]

Then everybody roll initiative.

First I have to look up how :smalltongue:

[roll0]

edit: That gives me a total of 7

[big teej]

alrighty, rolling edge on the long shot throw.

[roll0]

EDIT: SOOOO MUUUUCH RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGE

and initiative: [roll1] + 8

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Initiative: [roll0]

[Mari01]

Cmon high number! I need to blast first :D [roll0]

[RdMarquis]

Initiative: [roll0]

Ugh. One hit, for a total of 8.

[a_humble_lich]

OK everyone remember to mark down Edge you have spent. You all ended up rolling higher than the gangers, so the players will go first. (For speed via pbp it is easier for the group to go as a whole unless somebody minds. Also, if anyone doesn't post in a day I will bumb you to the next initiative pass, if possible, otherwise you will just be skipped.)

Lukas's flashbang sails gracefully through the air, right into the wall above the door, bouncing back into the main room of the church, just before the door. It does make a loud noise though. Shortly after it lands, three robed figures run up the staircase. Two look human, the third is an ork. The humans are both carrying pistols, the ork has a nasty looking baseball bat that somebody has driven several nails through.

Your action.

[Lady Moreta]

Okay... since no one else is posting an action, I will - and hope to heck I get it right.

Leonora will summon a spirit to protect the girls until she and Alex can get to them and get them out. I'm thinking a Beast spirit (combat spirit for shamans, according to the book) would be the best option, but feel free to suggest other possibilities.

I just realised that the summoning foci have to be attuned to one particular type of spirit... which is annoying, because I thought it could be used for any summoning and Leonora wouldn't have one attuned to combat spirits, so oh well, no extra dice for me.

Summoning the spirit at Force 3 since that's as high as I can go right now.

Summoning: [roll0]
(that's already minus the one from Magic because this area is tainted. I am assuming the entire church area is also tainted)
Resist Drain: [roll1]

Someone please tell me if I've done something wrong or need to do something else as well. I understand that the Summoning is actually an opposed test against the spirit itself, but I figure the GM would roll that part?

[big teej]

ooc: can anybody remember if Lukas has his warhawk in a quick-draw holster? I can't.

anyways, Lukas is going to attempt to quick-draw his Warhawk and shoot the ork with the baseball bat.

according to the book, it's pistols+reaction(3) test, but the threshold is only 2 if I have a quickdraw holster.

quickdraw: [roll0]

and shooting at the ork: [roll1]

not sure what else I'm supposed to do...


EDIT: the warhawk does 6 physical and has AP - 2

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex lifts his Predator and fires a shot at one of the gangers with the pistols.

Attack: [roll0]

[RdMarquis]

Mordred crouches behind a pew, leveling his pistol at the nearest ganger with a gun. He fires a burst at his target.

Pistols: [roll0]

Each burst deals 8S electric damage, -half armor.

[Mari01]

A baseball bat? Really? Come on now you're making this too easy.

Force 6 Stunball centered on the guy with the bait w/ nails [roll0]

[a_humble_lich]

First let me apologize for not posting as much recently. My internet has gotten not good and stops working for no reason. Usually right about when I am going to post.

Edit: For example it went out 3 times (!) when I was halfway writing this--I hate Comcast!

Also, a minor note, when you post rolls could you post it as something like Magic+Summoning [roll0]. Not that it really matters, but for people who are less sure of the system it makes it easier for me to see if you made any mistakes.

For future note, big teej, you can quickdraw and fire as a single simple action, giving you a second simple action to fire a second time, albeit with a recoil penalty.


First, a large translucent wolf-like animal appears before Leonora, it glances at her, and then darts to the back room, through the wall. You get three services from the spirit (two left) and take no drain as it utterly failed its resistance.

Lukas and Mordred's bullets go wide, but the shot from Alex's hits the ganger square in the shoulder. He tries to return fire but just ends up shooting into one of the pews.

The second ganger dives behind one of the pews with only his head and right arm exposed. Then a stream on fire emerges from his hand towards Jack. Roll Reaction+Counterspelling, and if you get less than 2 hits, roll Body+1/2Impact Armor to resist the damage.

The ork charges up towards you smashing a couple pews as he runs.

Jack does get his spell off, but he feels an entity blocking his spell.

Then Jack sees what he assumes was blocking his spell. A fourth figure emerges from the stairs. It is wearing robes like the others but it could in no way be called meta-human. Its "hands" seem to be covered in some sort of hard exoskeleton ending with sharp talons while its face looks more like the head of a giant ant. Looking at the group, it runs at you following the ork



...################################
...#.........................#p.>.#
...#...I.I.I.I.I.I.I.Ip....g......#
...#...I.I.I.I.I.I.I.I.......#...w#
[email protected]....#..ww#
...#...I.I.I.I.I.I.I.I.......######
...#...I.I.I.I.I.I.I.I.......#
...#.........................#
...############################

. -- space
# -- wall
g -- gernade
+ -- door
w -- women
r -- robed guys
> -- stairs
@ -- You guys
I -- pews
O -- alter
p -- pistol gangers
k -- ork
S -- bug looking guy

[Mari01]

Reaction + Counterspelling
[roll0]

Body + 1/2Impact
6d6

[big teej]

just to clarify, I'm pretty sure I can't fire the warhawk again because it's Single Shot not Semi-Auto

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora hastily pulls her handgun from its holster and readies the weapon. Her eyes flick up to the beast-spirit and she nods briefly.

Shoot... I wasn't expecting to get more than one service, now I don't know what to do with the others!

Actually, yes I do. I would like wolfy to attack the guys with the pistols hiding behind the pews. And she's going to draw her gun (assuming I can do both), just in case.

[RdMarquis]

It appeared as if they were right about the insects. Unfortunately. Mordred switches targets, firing at the spirit. As he pulls the trigger, the adept eases the monofilament whip from his glove.

First burst: [roll0]

Second burst: [roll1]

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Alex's eyes go wide as he sees the bug, "Frag me!" He immiediatly shifts his focus, firing two shots at the thing.

Pistols+Agility: [roll0]
Pistols+Agility: [roll1] (-1, recoil)

[a_humble_lich]

Alex's first shot goes wide, but the second shot hits the bug right in the center of its chest. It screams in pain as the bullet pierces its chitinous armor and a green fluid oozes out of the wound.


Wait Mr. Robot, I thought I told you to take two actions?

Anyways it is the party's turn again. Normally we should reroll initiative at the beginning of each round, but unless anyone objects I think for extra speed in PbP we can use the same initiative for the whole fight. Although if anyone wants to send edge to get an extra pass they still of course can.

Also, kind_of_a_robot, if you want to take two actions now (since you only got two passes last round) you can.

I'm I making any sense? This is the first time I've actually run combat in SR with PbP. If anyone has suggestions for how to speed things up let me know.

Edit: I almost forgot. Mordred, I assume your last post was for this new round. I will wait until other people have acted before resolving your action. I only resolved Alex's because he gets three initiative passes now and those shots were actually still part of last round.

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora hastily pulls her handgun from its holster and readies the weapon. Her eyes flick up to the beast-spirit and she nods briefly.

I would like wolfy to attack the guys with the pistols hiding behind the pews. And she's going to draw her gun (assuming I can do both), just in case.

Using the one initiative for the entire fight to speed things up makes perfect sense to me.

[a_humble_lich]

Sorry for the delay, I went against my own advice and was thinking the others would post something.


Round 2

Leonora draws her gun and ducks behind a nearby pew. (Unless you really want to stand there like an idiot, movement is free in Shadowrun so you might as well get some cover.)

Mordred sends a hail of lead at the insect, but most of the bullets just end up bouncing off the far wall. The last bullet of the burst grazes its arm.

As the bullets hit the wall, a massive wolf with scary sharp looking teeth materializes on the far side of the church. Behind the pew you hear a small yell and gunfire as it attacks one of the gunmen.

The second gunner continues shooting at Alex and he is hit twice. Roll Reaction (twice) to get out of the way. if you don't get at least one hit on either of those rolls Roll Body+Armour-1 to soak the damage. (The minus one is their armour modifier. If you want you can add your dodge skill (if any) to the reaction roll, but that will use up your next action.

The ork runs up with the baseball bat over his head bringing it down on Mordred. Roll Reaction+(Dodge, armed combat, or unarmed combat) to get out of the way. If you score no hits, try to soak 5P damage.

Finally, the insect seems to have eyes for Alex. And the thing seems to have many eyes. As the thing makes ready to disembowel him, he steps behind a pew and the insect just manages to disembowel a pew.

OK your turn, start of round three.




...################################
...#.........................#p.>.#
...#...I.I.I.I.I.I.I.Ip...........#
...#..LI.I.I.I.I.I.I.IW......#...w#
[email protected]....#..ww#
...#.k.I.I.I.I.I.I.I.I.......######
...#...I.I.I.I.I.I.I.I.......#
...#.........................#
...############################

. -- space
# -- wall
g -- gernade
+ -- door
w -- women
r -- robed guys
> -- stairs
@ -- You guys
L -- Leonora
I -- pews
O -- alter
p -- pistol gangers
k -- ork
S -- bug looking guy
W -- Wolfy

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

Ouch, this is probably gonna hurt...

Reaction 1: [roll0]
Reaction 2: [roll1]

And, in the very likely event that ducking doesn't help...

Body+Armor: [roll2]

[kind_of_a_ROBOT]

((I should have combined my reaction and my next move, sorry for the double post!))

Alex ducks for cover behind a pew, moving as far away from the bug as possible, while again raising his Predator to blast the ugly thing.

Pistols+Agility: [roll0]
Pistols+Agility: [roll1]

[big teej]

alrighty.... I think I know what I'm doing.


first, Lukas is going to move to take cover next to Lenora (placing himself between her and the bug-thingy).

next, Lukas is going to take another shot with Doormaker at the ganger he shot at last time.

sooo pistols+agility [roll0]

and I'll spend edge of I glitch on it.

damage for the warhawk is 6P AP -2



EDIT: wish I'd spent edge to invoke the rule of 6. :smallsigh:

[RdMarquis]

In close quarters, his gun would be quite a bit more difficult to use (also, he needed to reload). While the insect was distracted, Mordred turns on it, making a slashing motion with his hand. The movement sent the tiny weight on his glove hurtling toward the spirit, with a length of incredibly sharp monofilament trailing behind it.

Attack: [roll0]

Damage is 8P (plus hits), -4 AP.

[a_humble_lich]

Round 3

Skillfully dodging the bullets aimed at him, Alex sends a hail of bullets at the insect-thing. At the same time Mordred send a monofiliment aimed at taking of the thing's head. In a graceful move the insect ducks beneath the whip. However, it dodges right into Alex's bullets, both of which go straight through the things chest with an explosion of green goo. As the thing falls to the ground, you can see its features change into a young human male.

Meanwhile, Lukas jumps next to Leonora and continues firing at the gangers. His aim is true and his target drops. From behind the pew you can hear growls and more gunfire from Leonora's spirit and the remaining ganger.

But that is not all of them. The ork channels Babe Ruth and pretends Mordred's head is a baseball. Roll Reaction+Dodge to get out of the way. If you get fewer than 3 hits, try to soak 4P (plus any hits you failed to dodge) damage with Body+Impact armour. After his swing, the ork notices how many fewer companions he has and looks a little worried.


OK, my dice really like Alex and hate Mordred. I rolled 5 successes on the spirit's dodge and 7 on its soak from Morded. In comparison, against each of Alex's bullets it only roll a single success to dodge and only a total of 3 to soak the damage. Then the ork got three sixes on six dice to hit Mordred.
I was fairly impressed.

[big teej]

Lukas fires another round from Doormaker, this time at the babe ruth the ork.

pistols + agility: [roll0]

and I'll spend edge if I end up glitching and shooting a buddy instead.

damage is still 6P, AP - 2

[a_humble_lich]

Well that would be a glitch so you may want to consider spending that edge.. And it is the party's turn now, if anyone else wants to try to go.

[Lady Moreta]

I do! I'm just not sure what... I'm not convinced I'm really needed for this fight up by the door, so I think what I want to do is move down the church a bit, using pews for cover, to get closer to the pistol gangers and my wolfy. I noticed on the map there appears to be a ganger just in the stairwell as well... is that still accurate?

Can I move and shoot in one round? And for that matter, are any of those gangers still alive? No sense in wasting bullets if they're all dead!

[big teej]

alrighty. so.... spending edge basically allows me a reroll right?

pistols+agility [roll0]

[a_humble_lich]

That was a point of edge well spent. From a glitch to three hits.

As to Lady Moreta, the only gangers left alive are the ork with a bat and (possibly) the guy behind the pew your spirit is attacking; since you can't see him you can only assume he is still living. But Shadowrun lets you move for free: I think the designers watched to many John Woo movies with the hero jumping sideways though doorways firing two pistols.

[big teej]

That was a point of edge well spent. From a glitch to three hits.

As to Lady Moreta, the only gangers left alive are the ork with a bat and (possibly) the guy behind the pew your spirit is attacking; since you can't see him you can only assume he is still living. But Shadowrun lets you move for free: I think the designers watched to many John Woo movies with the hero jumping sideways though doorways firing two pistols.

ooc:

or maybe they got tired of DMs telling them "no you can't do X, you moved this turn, so you can't do X AND attack"

[RdMarquis]

The adept had heard about how bug spirits manifested in their world. But he didn't expect to see those methods firsthand. This didn't look like a depraved cultist. The bug spirit had been a boy. Mordred is shocked enough that he almost doesn't see the ork advancing with a bat. There was little time to react. Quickly, he ducks into a roll.

Gymnastics: [roll0]

[Lady Moreta]

As to Lady Moreta, the only gangers left alive are the ork with a bat and (possibly) the guy behind the pew your spirit is attacking; since you can't see him you can only assume he is still living. But Shadowrun lets you move for free: I think the designers watched to many John Woo movies with the hero jumping sideways though doorways firing two pistols.

Okay then, I shall move down to there and if the guy is still alive, I shall shoot him.

Pistols+Agility [roll0]

[a_humble_lich]

Alex raises his gun and puts a bullet square in the ork's chest. You see him start to bleed heavily. At this time the ork notices that none of his friends are standing and tries to run to the open door behind Mordred.

If Mordred likes, he can make a free attack on him.

At the same time, Leonora runs across the church to see Wolfy on top of the remaining ganger. If he was still alive, a few rounds from her gun correct that.

It is now your turn, but the only opponent left is the ork, who will have left the church unless Mordred hits him.

[RdMarquis]

"That's enough." Mordred advances on the ork, readying the length of monofilament. "You're no match for us. Drop the bat, or cut you to pieces," he warns, ignoring the deep scrape the ganger had already inflicted.

[big teej]

Lukas levels his Warhawk at the ganger and thumbs back the hammer. words being rather meaningless in comparison to the mute threat of the ominous large bore barrel, says nothing.

[[ooc: Lukas is going to use the Take Aim action on the ork, and if mordred doesn't stop him I'm going to try and take a shot. OOOH! and since movement is free Lukas is going to move to have a clearer line of fire if the ork bolts.... provided I can do that.]]

[a_humble_lich]

As Leonora is looking down at the ganger she shot, she hears the sound of a large piece of wood dropping to the ground. Looking up, she sees the ork with his hands up and the fearsome bat laying at his feet.

"Don't shoot, I'll talk, I'll tell you everything, just don't please don't shoot."

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora looks up at the now subdued ork with a smug smile on her face. She quietly flicks the safety back on her gun and holsters it, then nods towards her brother.

"Sit him down Maton," she says calmly. "Alex, you want to help me with the women?" She adds, moving towards the corner of the church the women are in, apparently confident in her brother's ability to keep the ork subdued.

So did I use the last service from the wolf spirit in the end or not? If not, I'd like it to stay on guard basically... have it keep watch at - the door to the church for as long as it'll stay around for. I want prior warning in case anyone else shows up :smallsmile:

[a_humble_lich]

By my count one still have one service left. One two check on the girls and one to attack the guy. What else were you thinking you had asked it to do? Did I miss something?


The wolf disappears. Leonora and Jack can see its astral form move to the door and wait. Inn the back room, Leonora and Alex see two girls/young women tied up. Both are gagged and one of them looks like she could be Samantha Drake. In the center of the room is a staircase going down to the basement.

[big teej]

Lukas gestures for the ork to sit down at one of the shattered pews. he doesn't stop pointing Doormaker at him however.

[[if the pews are too shattered to sit on, Lukas simply instructs the ork to sit on the ground.]]

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora moves further into the back room and drops into a crouch in front of the two women, her hands held out towards them. Keeping her voice gentle, she reaches for the gags to remove them as she speaks.

"It's all right, we'll get you out of here. You'll be okay." She pauses briefly, glancing between the two. "Is one of you Samantha Drake?"


By my count one still have one service left. One two check on the girls and one to attack the guy. What else were you thinking you had asked it to do? Did I miss something?

I mentioned, in the OOC thread, that I'd use the wolf to block/intimidate the ork into giving up if need be. It appears that he was subdued without wolfy, but I wanted to be sure. Looks like I was right and Mr. Wolf can go on guard duty.

Do I need to roll something to remove the gags? And I don't want to untie them just yet, I'm - a little paranoid :smalltongue:

[RdMarquis]

The adept regards their prisoner with a disdainful expression. "Now, as you said. Talk. Who are you and who are those girls? What were you doing here?"

[a_humble_lich]

As GM, I'm never quite sure what exactly should be in spoilers for being OOC.

Anyways, I got the conversations confused a bit and thought RdMarquis was talking to the prisoners and was a little shocked at his tone.

Leonora, why don't you roll Charisma+Etiquette to make a good frist impression (If you don't have Etiquette you can roll Con or Negotiation instead but it woun't be as effective). Also, I can never spell Etiquette right on the first try. :smallredface:

I'll post more, like reactions, tomorrow.

[Lady Moreta]

One Charisma+Etiquette roll coming right up! (I have First Impressions, so I get an extra 2 dice as well)

[roll0]

edit: not that the extra dice did me any freaking good! :smalltongue:

[a_humble_lich]

What are you talking about, those extra dice gave you your only success! I will say this has been one of the worst rolling groups I've ever seen.

With the ork

"Hey, omae I'm just hired muscle. I don't know what all da bossmen have been doin'. The wiz types just told me that I had to watch them when they were doing dis ritual thing. I know ya don't get paid if ya ask too many questions, if you get my drift. I don't know where they got the girls man, honest."


With the girls

When you take their gags off, one of the girls says responds "Why should we talk to you. Don't talk to them Jane; it's just another trick." as she eyes you suspiciously. Both of them are clearly scared, dirty, beaten, and hungary.

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora drops her head and sighs, caught somewhere between exasperation and sympathy. Raising her head again, she reaches out to the nearest woman, and starts untying her.

"My name is Gaia," she says conversationally as she works. "Marianne Drake asked us-" she tips her head in the direction of Alex, and the others, "to find her sister. You can trust me."

OOC
Do I need to roll something to untie the ropes? For that matter, if the knots appear to be untieable, she'll just cut them instead.

Is there anything else I can roll to get them to trust her? I seem to have better luck the fewer dice I have...

[RdMarquis]

Mordred scowls. Most of his frustration was not directed at the ork, however. If the tainted mana hadn't been suppressing his powers, he could have seen for himself whether the man was Awakened, or simple hired muscle. He decided to try a different tack.

"Sounds like we're in the same boat." The adept slowly winds the monofilament whip back into his glove. "So, I'm giving you a chance to come clean. Did they tell you who they were? Or say anything about what they were up to?"

[a_humble_lich]

With girls

After you untie them, Samantha stands up, and walks to the doorway to the main part of the church, still keeping her eyes on you. Upon seeing the numerous bodies on the floor, she gasps. "Mari sent you? To find me!" SUddenly you see her face break and she rushes up and gives Leonora a huge tear soaked hug.

No, these are not especially tricky knots to untie. Unless of course you are the one tied. :smallsmile:

As for trust, the best way to earn her trust would be to untie her and then not kill her.

With Ork
"Dey said dey were with some religious group called 'New Acropolis' or some such. Dey said they just needed a guard while they did some religious stuff. Honestly, I can't really remember that much after I got to the meet location."

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora twitches half a step backwards as Samantha all but strangles her in a hug, before she relaxes and returns the gesture. Gently untangling the young woman, she eases her back to the other girl and sits her down. Her head jerks around as the ork says he can't remember much, and when she turns back around, her eyes are wary and concerned, and though she's still smiling, it seems a little forced.

"Can you tell me what happened?" She asks, then, suddenly remembering, she turns towards the entrance of the church and calls for Michel to join them.


As for trust, the best way to earn her trust would be to untie her and then not kill her.

Right. I think I can handle that much :smallbiggrin:

I think I'd like to take a quick look around the astral space - and see if I can confirm whether or not Samantha is awakened (I know Michel said she was, but I want to double check).

Intution + Assensing: [roll0]

[big teej]

not taking his eyes (or his aim) off the ork, Lukas fishes his commlink out with his free hand and types in a quick message to the rest of the team.

text: the ork doesn't know anything useful, I say we ice him.

[a_humble_lich]

Samantha begins, "I was hanging out with Fredrick a few days ago in the Night Owl when he said there was something special he wanted to show me. He brought me to this old church and the next thing I knew I was tied up here in this room with six other girls where I've been ever since. Frederick and some of the other guys were doing some king of ritual downstairs but thank GOd I never saw what they were doing..."

While Samantha's talking, Leonora allows her perceptions to shift into the Astral realm...and nearly falls over from the shock. As she had heard, Samantha is in fact awakened, although she is clearly not yet very powerful. The other girl also has some small magical abilities. But both of their auras are nearly overwhelmed by the angry tint the entire astral space has taken which seems to be eminating from the stairs down.

Upon seeing Michel, Samantha runs over and hugs him as well.

[RdMarquis]

Mordred wasn't enthusiastic about the idea. He had implied the ork wouldn't be harmed if he told them all he knew. Oh, sure, the adept lied often, but generally, a life wasn't on the line. Even if it was that of a thug who had tried to kill him. On the other hand, a surviving enemy was a liability. Furthermore, to hope the ork would change his ways and go straight was laughably naive.

Wait till we have everything taken care of.

[Lady Moreta]

"Hahhh..." Leonora gasps suddenly, and falls backwards, catching herself with one hand before she actually hits the floor. She squeezes her eyes closed and raises the other hand to press against tightly against her temple. "Woah. That is not normal," she whispers. Frowning, she looks up at Samantha and rises to her feet, blinking rapidly and shaking her head slightly, one hand still pressed to the side of her face.

"Hang on. You said six other girls. Where are the other four?" Leonora suddenly sounds extremely worried.

OOC
Is there any knowledge skill Leonora can use to tell anything about the magical taint? How long it's been there? any idea what could have caused it? things like that...

[a_humble_lich]

Sorry I've been away, I really have no excuse other than I made then mistake of starting a game of Civilization.

As to your question, you don't really know what caused it. If you had somekind of Knowledge skill relating to Astral Phenomenon you could roll it, but otherwise your not really sure. You know that strong emotions can alter the astral plane, and that there are other less understood phenomena.


On being asked about the other four, Samantha suddenly gets quiet. "I don't know...They took them down there," pointing at the stairs. "They never came back up."

[Lady Moreta]

"Madre de Dios..." Leonora whispers the words, looking almost sick. She runs her hands through her hair, tugging out the tie holding it back, then rapidly smoothing it back down and tying it up again. She turns to Samantha and the other girl, "Come on."

Leonora leads the girls back to the rest of the group, seeing the ork still alive, her expression hardens, going from quietly grieving, to blank-eyed fury. She stares down at the ork, then raises her eyes to gaze at the rest of the group impassively.

"Why is he still alive?" She says coldly.

[big teej]

Lukas quirks an eyebrow at his sister's mood, but simply shrugs and violently removes the orks head from his shoulders (via a warhawk round to the face)

better now?

[RdMarquis]

"Guess we're not waiting." The adept cannot stop himself from wincing slightly, though he couldn't say he felt sympathy for the ork. Mordred quickly runs through his hear. He still had ammunition to spare, and everything looked as if it were in good condition. "We've fulfilled our contract. If Ms. Drake is willing to accompany us somewhere safe, that is." He glances at the stairway. "So, what now? Do we leave? Or do we make sure there isn't anything else lurking around?" The adept asks, fairly confident they would find something lurking.

[big teej]

Lukas thumbs in enough rounds to refill his revolver and says in a quiet growl to mordred. we're not leaving without the rest of the women.

[Lady Moreta]

"Much." Leonora replies flatly, ignoring her brother's raised eyebrow. Her eyes flick to the stairs at the back of the church, then return to Lukas, as she switches abruptly to speaking Spanish."Creo que ya están muertos"

"We can't leave yet." She says, in reply to Mordred. "There is something wrong here. The astral space is... full of anger. And we need to- hang on..." she sighs, though it's not entirely sure who she's saying needs to 'hang on'. She clasps her hands together, frowns and mutter something under her breath - Lukas at least, will recognise the signs that Leonora is casting a spell.

OOC
The Spanish, for those whose characters speak it, says 'I think they're already dead'. Or at least, it does according to Google Translate, because I don't speak Spanish!

Also, Leonora will cast Detect Life (extended), because if those girls are anywhere, they'll be downstairs and while I doubt they're alive, I ain't gonna just barge on down there!

Casting at Force 3, and as it's an active spell, that's

Spellcasting + Magic: [roll0]

Resist Drain: (F/2)+2= 3 (or 4)
[roll1]

Actually, a question... when you divide force by two for drain... do you round up or down? Becasue 3/2 is 1.5 - am I going up to 2 or down to 1? If it's up then Resist Drain is 4, if down, then it's 3. I can't find where in the book it says which.

[RdMarquis]

"Fair enough. I wanted to be sure I wasn't going to reenact a dumb horror flick and descend into the basement of this hell hole all by my lonesome." The adept sits down on the ground, waiting for Gaea to finish whatever she was doing.

[big teej]

OOC
The Spanish, for those whose characters speak it, says 'I think they're already dead'. Or at least, it does according to Google Translate, because I don't speak Spanish!

Also, Leonora will cast Detect Life (extended), because if those girls are anywhere, they'll be downstairs and while I doubt they're alive, I ain't gonna just barge on down there!

Casting at Force 3, and as it's an active spell, that's

Spellcasting + Magic: [roll0]

Resist Drain: (F/2)+2= 3 (or 4)
[roll1]

Actually, a question... when you divide force by two for drain... do you round up or down? Becasue 3/2 is 1.5 - am I going up to 2 or down to 1? If it's up then Resist Drain is 4, if down, then it's 3. I can't find where in the book it says which.

OOC:
I do speak spanish (at least a wee bit) and if it's not spot on, what you have is close enough.

[a_humble_lich]

Leonora detects no life in the building other than the party, Samantha, and the other girl whose name you don't know.

I believe you round down for drain, although if anyone has any info to the contrary let me know.

You might think that growing up in New Mexico I would speak Spanish, but alas, my Spanish really sucks. (Of course, so do all the other languages I've studied--as a friend one said to me, "I'm American, so I speak two languages. English and English loudly.")

[Lady Moreta]

Leonora frowns and turns her attention back to Mordred. "There's nobody alive in here except us," she says quietly. "We can go down now."


I do speak spanish (at least a wee bit) and if it's not spot on, what you have is close enough.

And close enough is good enough! I'm just getting a kick out of actually being able to use another language, instead of just going 'so and so says xyz in elven'.


I believe you round down for drain, although if anyone has any info to the contrary let me know.

So... that means it was 3 to resist drain and I scored a grand total of - one hit! (got three ones though :smallamused:) ... what does that mean for Leonora? I admit, drain and the resistance thereof still confuses me a bit... and I get nervous whenever I roll ones. Ones are bad.


You might think that growing up in New Mexico I would speak Spanish, but alas, my Spanish really sucks. (Of course, so do all the other languages I've studied--as a friend one said to me, "I'm American, so I speak two languages. English and English loudly.")

I speak two languages too! New Zealand English and Australian English! (and a very, very little bit of Maori).

[RdMarquis]

"I suppose, under the circumstances, it'd be actually rude of me to say, "Ladies first", wouldn't it?" Mordred opens the door slowly, trying to prevent it from making noise. Keeping his gun at the ready, he heads down, testing each step before he puts his weight on it.

[a_humble_lich]

At the bottom of the stairs is a small room, about 6m square with a circular hole in the center of the room. The hole is about 1m wide and there are lit candles and chalk diagrams surrounding the hole. The stones surrounding the hole seem very worn and there might have once been writing on them, although if there was it is too worn to read now. It is hard to tell how deep it is as your light sources don't do that far.


Can I assume everybody is going down the stairs, if you are not, now is the time to speak up.

[Lady Moreta]

Definitely going down the stairs... but still haven't got an answer to my question - repeated below.


So... that means it was 3 to resist drain and I scored a grand total of - one hit! (got three ones though :smallamused:) ... what does that mean for Leonora? I admit, drain and the resistance thereof still confuses me a bit... and I get nervous whenever I roll ones. Ones are bad.

[a_humble_lich]

Sorry, missed that. I got distracted wondering what the difference between Australian and New Zealand English is....

So that means that you take two stun damage (I assume you have a Magic attribute of at least 3, otherwise it would be physical damage). That will take about a hour of rest to recover from. Luckily, you don't suffer any penalties until you take three stun damage so you are OK for now, if you end up taking one more you will be at -1 die on all actions.

[Lady Moreta]

"It would be. Very rude. Yes." Leonora says, her words a little disjointed and wearing a smile that seems rather forced all of a sudden. As she moves towards the staircase, her shoulders slump and she weaves a little at the top of the stairs, before easing her way down.

[big teej]

Lukas puts his free hand on Leonora's shoulder to steady her as they go down the stairs, Doormaker still in his other hand.

Lukas scans the room when they reach the bottom.


which... I believe.... is..... a...
defaulting on intuition
so....

[roll0]
bubkis..

or. "ow, I've got something in my eye"

[a_humble_lich]

Lukas doesn't see anything else than the description of the room given earlier:



At the bottom of the stairs is a small room, about 6m square with a circular hole in the center of the room. The hole is about 1m wide and there are lit candles and chalk diagrams surrounding the hole. The stones surrounding the hole seem very worn and there might have once been writing on them, although if there was it is too worn to read now. It is hard to tell how deep it is as your light sources don't go that far.


Anyone want to do anything once you get to the bottom of the stairs?

[Lady Moreta]

At the bottom of the stairs Leonora pauses and looks around, nose wrinkling. She moves over to the hole and stares down it, being careful not to get too close. Frowning, she closes her eyes and they flare violet as she opens them again, this time examining the astral space.

OOC
Three things...
One:
I figure I might as well default on an intuition check as well... never know, I might roll three sixes :smalltongue:
[roll0]

Two:
Aim the detect life spell down the hole, she never shut it off and it has a range of 90m, since it's the extended version, so if there's anything alive down there... (which I doubt)

Three:
Check the astral space... if I can keep the detect life spell going at the same time, I will, if not, I'll drop the spell to check the space.
Intuition & Assensing [roll1]

[RdMarquis]

Placing his flashlight level with his pistol, to steady it, Mordred scans the basement. The hole catches his interest, of course, but to jump right in would be even more foolhardy than entering the basement of a bug den. Reaching into his pocket, he retrieves a small plastic bottle containing white tablets. The adept shakes one into his hand, then flings it into the hole.

OOC
Perception: [roll0]

3 hits. He's looking around the room, and listening for anything happening down in the hole. Both auditory and visual perception have the same dice pool.

[a_humble_lich]

OCC


As GM I'm never quite sure what counts as out of "character", but here we go.

The detect life spell finds nothing down there. But you should be able to keep the spell going while checking out the astral. I think you get a penalty to other actions for sustaining a spell, but I'm too lazy to look that up right now, so I'm not going to worry about it :smallbiggrin:

The intuition check was to default on perception like Lukas tried, right?

Can I say how annoying that the forum doesn't show what people dice rolls were when you are replying in a tread. You don't know how many times I've wanted to recheck somebody's rolls while writing a response.


As you see the white pill fall down the hole and disappear into the darkness you count the seconds to see how long it takes to hit the bottom. After you get to 60, you figure that you must have missed the sound of it hitting the bottom. The room itself is eerily quiet: the only sound you can here is a faint sobbing coming from one of the girls upstairs.

As Leonora gazes into the Astral, she can see that whatever is tainting the astral plane here is coming from the hole. Waves of dark colors seem to be coming out of the hole. Looking at it makes you feel all icky inside, like you have an itch you can't scratch on the inside of your head.

[Lady Moreta]

"Ugh..." Leonora staggers back from the hole, claps her hands to the sides of her head and digs her fingers into her scalp so hard her fingertips turn white. "That's... that's... ugh..." Her voice trails off and she lifts her head to stare at the hole. "I don't know what that is," she says finally, slowly lowering her hands and looking a little shaky. "Michel might," she adds, turning away to look up the stairs. "Is he still here?"

OOC
Yes, that was defaulting on a perception check, like Lukas.

And I can't believe I forgot the npc! In my D&D game I'm usually the only one who remembers! Still, I feel like this is significant but I'm out of other ides, so I figure, let's ask the npc.

[big teej]

ooc:
I kinda wanna drop my other grenade down the hole.... even with stun damage, the hole is only 1 meter wide. which sounds to me like it has great potential for the chunky salsa rule. :smallbiggrin: :belkar:

[RdMarquis]

OOC
Before you do that, I'd like to make one last attempt at getting the attention of anything inside by lowering in a flashlight attached to a rope and banging it around. See if a bit of movement, light and sound has any effect.

[a_humble_lich]

Michel is still upstairs with Samantha and the other girl whose name you never got. Or at least, that was where he was the last time you saw him.

And you are right, a grenade down a well would defiantly qualify for the chunky salsa rule.

[RdMarquis]

Not being an expert with knots, the adept simply and roughly ties his lit flashlight to the end of the rope. Mordred then lowers it into the hole, shaking the rope to make the light tap against the wall of the hole. It also served the purpose of telling them how deep the pit was. Of course, if something was actually lying in wait down there, it might not take the bait.

[a_humble_lich]

OCC


How long is your rope?