Agents of VAULT

[Beige]

Episode 1

It had been a nice, simple week for the Agents of VAULT branch no 42. Sure there had been a near security breach on monday due to a bad combination of a jeweled cat statue and a pendant of invisibility in transit to the vault, a surprise mandatory training exercise on thursday leaving your tired to the bone, and Ian nearly blowing down the roof with Saturday's far-too-literal chocolate disaster cake, but each day you had clocked in at 9, gone home at 5.

This morning heralded the familiar alarm. The <deet deet deet> of the sirens flashed through the office – yellow alert; suspected artefact activity. All Agents to report to the briefing centre immediately.

“Morning, Team. I hope you had a nice rest” said DeWitt dryly as you gather in the simple white room, – a large smartboard set against the far wall providing light enough to just illuminate your superior officer, making his grey-black hair shine and highlighting the wrinkles starting to show on his face. The screen is showing images of a clean, almost compulsively neat suburbuan town, before switching to photograph's of rows upon rows of happy, smiling faces – each the same happy, smiling face. The last image is a birds eye view of a brick and mortar church, hastily patched up with wooden beams and slip-shod mortar work.

“Four day's ago we received reports of unusual behaviour from the locals in the small town of Harvey Grove, Cook County. Travellers passing through the town reported a constant feeling of unease, like they where being watched, and that the locals seemed unusually intent on getting the to join their public services, almost turning violent when they refused. In addition, there was a rather enthused effort to restore a disused church; so important, in fact, they applied for government permission after its completion. It was suspicious, but not directly our purview, but my gut was telling me we where heading there soon.”

“Earlier this morning, we got something much more substantial – a ping in the veil, to consistent to be a living spell caster. From the strength of the ping, we're sure the artefact is at least class 2, so be careful. We don't want to loose any of you”

“This is a simple job Agents; find it, bag it, bring it back here, and do so as quickly as possible." DeWitt stopped for a second, removed his glasses and cleaned of a smudge, before placing them back over his sharply angled nose "Any questions?”

[drack]

Sean rolls out of bed, once more hitting the floor before slowly picking himself up and heading to the briefing room. Surely it wasn't an emergency, the light was yellow...

Still he somehow manages to beat everyone else there, so he waits for a moment as John idly twiddles his thumbs...

At the mention of people getting the feeling of being watched Sean promptly gestures to the overhead shot of the building as if that itself explained everything, but otherwise he just sits quietly, waiting with the immaculate patience that a few centuries of life supplies.

[The Vagabond]

"GAAAAAAAH!" *Throw*
"... Oooooow."
Jenna silently rose, her Familiar rising with her, sitting upon her head. The two of them prepared in the standard fashion, slipping on their outfits (Jenna's looking more akin to a pile of rags, Ariel's looking more akin to the local uniform.
Walking in, they entered not long after the Necropolitan. Sitting down and listening to the briefing, she nodded.
"Yeah, too perfect. The town, I mean, it's just too... Perfect. It just REEEKS of Stepford Town." the young outsider said.
Jenna nodded in agreement, "Probably, can't really say much. As it is, any information about the spellcaster? May I ask the location of xir?"

[Ionbound]

Myrtle strolls into the room, eyeing the Necropolitan a little suspiciously as she does, then listens to the briefing. Once it's over she mutters, "Wonderful. Religion and crazies. Just what I needed."

[drack]

Sean ignores the two necropolis as they enter.

[BelGareth]

Akiva was already awake, he had been for hours, having learned long ago, that preparedness was close to godliness, not cleanliness.

But cleanliness was nice too, he thought as he stood in the steaming shower, merely absorbing the warmth from the almost scalding water, and thinking on his day.

It was how he thought, how he sorted through the near century of memories he had. This week had been slow, and it was starting to annoy him, he had things to do, corporations to topple, and those pesky diplomatic immunized thugs, who thought they had an inkling of how the criminal world worked, he liked those especially...but today would not be so. The alarm pinged in his chambers, alerting him if the briefing, he grimaced slightly and then smiled at the reaction, forever analyzing his own emotional reactions to things....and everyone else's.

It annoyed most people, so he tried to smother it, but his teammates...well, he almost enjoyed annoying them.

Today he was the government agent, suave and freshly clean from the shower, his glasses hid his non descript eyes from view, and his slowly balding head wore his hair in a combed form, that resembled a dozen other 30 ish year old male agents.

He was the last to enter, but he wasn't the first, and he noded silently to Sean, his team leader, standing passively as he was briefed.

He sighed as he realized what was going to happen.

Popping his sunglasses down his nose, he peeked at the church and smirked.

"Looks like we'll be going to church, it's been a long time since I took the sacrament."

[Tetraplex]

Erik, used to afternoon shifts and late nights before recruitment, was still getting used to the new routine. The alarm found him trudging to the washroom, and after hurriedly drying (no one wants to sit in a room with wet Erik), and slipping on his new suit, he attempted to blend brisk and casual into a style of walking as he made his way to the briefing room...

He arrives directly after Akiva, apparently having taken the time to grab a sandwich on the way here. If anyone turns and looks at him, he shrugs and finishes taking a bite. He sits quietly, listening to the briefing and thoughtfully chewing his breakfast.

"Heh, seems so. I must admit, the good lord'll probably be surprised to see me too. Certainly seems like a simple enough job though, outside a' any witch hunt shenanigans, -- He draws the last word out, glancing briefly at Myrtle -- Anything artefacty going on with the people, that you know of, Mr. DeWitt?"

[drack]

Sean returns Akiva's nod of acknowledgement, albeit in a somewhat less disciplined form, his head nodding lazily on his neck, and rather slowly at that. His half opened eyes seeming to lack the sudden spark of recognition that was customary in such exchanges.

"Been almost three days for me." Sean adds casually as everyone jokes about the religious element. He hardly seemed the religious sort, but there was no answer on his face, just the restive idleness of a man half asleep.

[The Vagabond]

"Eh, not a religious sort, to be honest. And witch hunts tend not to go well. Ever." she said.
"Yeah." her Fairy companion said, sitting upon the Necromancer's head, idly playing with his dead hair.

[drack]

A heavy hand snatches the familiar as it begins playing with Sean's hair.

grapple [roll0] touch, and opposed grapple of [roll1]

Edit: feel free to try AoO.
"If witch hunts give you trouble, it goes to show you're no good at blending in. you must practice."
Then as if sudden;y noticing the undead holding the familiar he adds
"It seems John will hold onto this one for a time."

[The Vagabond]

The familiar rather easily slips out of his grasp, glaring at the undead menecingly.
"You know that doesn't work on me, right? Slippery as an eel!" she said, settling upon Akiva's head instead, pulling out her tiny 3DS and idly playing on it.

"Well, I could make something to help me fit in, push comes to shove." she said, "Shouldn't be too hard, to be honest."

[Erik Vale]

Erich, having been busy in the labs with a recent explosion causing temporary deafness, finally pads in.
---
"Caster to be hunted, artifact to be found, and church to potentially demolish. Sounds fun."
---
Speaking of disguises, Erich thinks a moment, suddenly appearing to be a 4'8 man [the blessing of being androgynous herself means she picks rather randomly] suffering from dwarfism, wearing a hoodie, which is of course, up.
"Or have yet to learn the value of a good shotgun.- Erich smiles "-I haven't gotten to knock down a building with her in months."

[drack]

The undead's hand is unrelenting, holding the familiar firmly. :smallwink:

[The Vagabond]

She get Freedom of Movement constantly. All grapple checks fail on them.

"Showoff..." she mutters to herself.

[drack]

Seeing the attempt fail the undead slaps the familiar downward, attempting to simply knock the noisy ferry out and carry it.in a hand.


(all nonlethal)
[roll0] for [roll1]
[roll2] for [roll3]
[roll4] for [roll5]

John is Sean's bodyguard for places he can't bring an army of undeads readily, low key and what not. Mechanically he's numbers and little else, melee only numbers at that, which leaves no end to weaknesses. That said Sean probably wouldn't shed any tears were John to take a rocket to the face and keel over. :smallconfused:

Edit: afraid I gotta be getting off now.

[Beige]

Barry just rolls his eyes at Sean's gestures when he mentioned the feeling of being watched

Anything artefacty going on with the people, that you know of, Mr. DeWitt?"

"I'm hoping it's just a cult of personality, and this will all blow over on it's own, but we're working under the assumption that the towns folk are under some form of illusion of enchantment to control them, due in part to the 'stepfordization', to paraphrase Ariel" He said this with a smirk and air quotes "of the people and the speed at which it spread - as to the scope of this, it's afflicted the entire town from what we can tell, but has not spread outside the walls, so we believe close contact is required. Now as I mentioned during the briefing, Agent Jenna, we believe the source is an artifact, and the traces of magic where located around the restored church"

DeWitt stops for a moment and taps the smart board with his cane, the previous images are gone, replaced with three faces.

"This, is Father Peter Stockham, a few years ago he was a televangelist preaching about the importance of family and unity, until his show was canceled. He moved to Harvey Grove from Manhattan afterwards - due to the church being the epicentre and his previous message, he's our most likely suspect." said barry, pointing at the first face, a man who looked to be in his early forties with a broad smile, wearing a vicar's outfit. Barry then moved his cane to the next face along, a young woman in her early twenties with shoulder length blonde hair "This is Mayor Abbigail Chaney. She unexpectedly won the town's last election by a landslide and has previously stated her intention to enter politics on a larger scale - she might just have got the tool to help".

finally, he points at the last person on the list, a teenaged girl with dyed black and purple hair "and this is Amber-Lynn Riley, a resident of the town. We arrested her brother last year for practicing sorcery and helping found an anti-government cult in the city; it's possible he taught her a few secrets before hand"

Barry stops, and turning back to you spots the little scuffle between minions. when it's over, he tap's his cane hard on the ground - click - which causes the smartboard to shut off the lights of the room to come back on in full

"Now if you two are quite done, maybe we can pretend we're professionals for once. Sean, please have your puppet stop antagonizing Navi. Navi, please stop antagonizing the necromancer and your team leader. If you have no more questions, transportation is prepared for you in the garage. Have fun, and try to bring back a souvenir" Barry stops, sighs, then mumbles under his breath "I swear, sometimes I'm not sure whether I'm the supervisor of the VAULT or a kindergarten"

[Ionbound]

Myrtle glares at the necromancer and familiar and mutters, "Why do we keep these two around..." as she files out of the room and towards the garage.

[The Vagabond]

"Because she's the only one proficiant with computers." Jenna commented.
Ariel just sighed, "Ariel. Or Elizabeth." she muttered.

[Erik Vale]

"and this is Amber-Lynn Riley, a resident of the town. We arrested her brother last year for practicing sorcery and helping found an anti-government cult in the city; it's possible he taught her a few secrets before hand"
"I presume he's already being interrogated as to confirm or deny such, and who if such is confirmed?"
After confirming he is, or is not and convincing them to, Erich then continues with.
"I'll be booking out some spell components before we leave, and perhaps perform a divination en-route."

[Tetraplex]

Eric stands and stretches, simultaneously popping more joints than any man has right to, and nods understanding to Mr. DeWitt.

Well, hopefully there won't be much call for big bad voodoo man and me this time, but I'll meet y'all down there once I get the rest of my gear.

As he pads out of the room, he hears Barry's comment and chuckles as the two parties continue to argue, noticing the slight drop in volume after the admonishment.

[Beige]

"I presume he's already being interrogated as to confirm or deny such, and who if such is confirmed?"

We pressed him for answers, but so far his response have been an expletive, what we believe was a rude hand gesture, a badly drawn picture of his manhood, and when we said it may lead to his sister being detained as well, he pleaded for us to believe she couldn't.

[drack]

Sean rolls his eyes. "Yes, why not blame the necromancer when the undead does exactly as it's commanded." shrugging lazily he adds "Body guards guard bodies... now this Amber, tell me more about her." Keenly Sean feels the eyes on him, the eyes that would never look away, the eyes of the one that undeath had sentenced never to leave him... "what sort of magic can she do." He clarifies.

My oh my, hostility from all sides today it seemed... Somehow Sean just knew this wouldn't be a good day...

[Erik Vale]

"She may not be the mage... But known magical abilities used in the area would be good."
She then shrugs, ready to gather her gear after the briefing.

[The Vagabond]

Jenna nods, rising up, with Ariel flying and sitting on her shoulder. She goes and grabs her purse, setting John up to continue working on her magical item, as she gathers everything she needs, and goes to the ship.

[drack]

John continues to stand as he was ignoring the artificer.

[BelGareth]

Sighing at the bickering he waited patiently for everyone to leave, already ready to leave at a moments notice, he was never sure if his companions needed to prepare.

"So, when do we leave boss?" he says to his team leader, slightly joking in an attempt to lighten the mood.

[drack]

Shrugging off the lack of intel on the other mage Sean replies "We may as well leave now so long as nobody has anything left to grab before we go. Oh and John, drop the pixi, you don't need that."

[The Vagabond]

The Pixie had long ago left with Jenna, who returned with her supplies and a walking briefcase.
"Shall we all leave?" she asked idly.

[BelGareth]

Akiva was waiting at the elevator to take them to the surface warehouse, his suit was pristine, and you could barely see the outline bulge from his service pistol. An ornate brooch in the shape of a snake eating itself is pinned to his right lapel, and on the inside of his jacket, his utility belt sat snug hidden from view.

He waited patiently for the rest of the team to arrive

[drack]

"As soon as everyone else is packed." Sean replies casually, not bothering to pack a bag himself.

[The Vagabond]

"Well, I'll see you there." she said, fixing her Purse, and laying her briefcase upon the ground, it's legs walking along with her.

[Erik Vale]

Briefing concluded, Erich heads down to the armory, gathering a few spell components before rejoining the group.

[Beige]

Stepping out of the elevator, you find the cars prepared for you – a sleek, is slightly beaten up, black minibus for most of the team, and Sean's personal Chevrolet Silverado – in the 'garage', a large windowless room, the four walls blank besides a small number of reflective pannels.

Choose between you the travel arrangements and who goes in what vehicle.

Slowly, as you begin to start the engines and get ready to set off, one of the wall panels before you begins to shimmer, switching from showing the inside of the room to showing a highway, a sign saying “Welcome to Harvey's Grove” just visible. Used to this by now, you don't give it a second thought as the cars drive through the image, finding themselves on the other side as the portal closes.

You pull into the town properly at 10 AM. As you pass, the people on the streets turn to look, and anyone looking out the windows will see a predatory smile on some of them.

The town itself can be described as nice, stopping just short of picturesque. The buildings are aranged so as not to be cluttered, the pavement and roads kept neat and tidy. In the distance, you can see the start of a forest forming at the town borders, growing denser as it got further away. The town's centrepiece, however, is the vast park located in the centre – the sound of gently flowing water fills your ears, the green neatly trimmed and controlled, surrounded by vibrant beds of flowers. Just past the park, you can see a large church.

At first glance, the townsfolk seem perfectly normal and happy, the dead-eyed smiles for the photos gone. However, after the fifth one passed you with the same greeting “Visitors? Good Morning and welcome to Harvey's Grove, the best place to live in the state. Why don't you stay the night”

Everyone – except Sean, friggin undead :smalltongue: - make a will save

[The Vagabond]

(Rolling will to not be terrified of cars)
[roll0]
She immediately bolts and either happens;
A) She rides in on the company horse instead of a car.
B) She is Tazed and plopped into the car anyway (Might be standard protocol)
Ariel pulled out her tiny laptop, and began to type on it, Jenna looking over her shoulder.
To bypass their security;
[roll1]
To access the data:
[roll2]
If Jenna assists, it's boosted to +17 to the check.
If she passes both, she gets information as to what sites that they've accessed over the last few days.
After that, she slips on her Greater Hat of Disguise, taking on the form of a short young woman with a ponytail.
Jenna sits in the Van, And Ariel with Sean in his car.
Ariel and Jenna watched the onlookers with a slight tinge of fear, exiting the car, Ariel's constant Detect Magic And Evil scouting around, looking for any traces of Magic or Evil in the town.
Upon exiting the car, they looked around, and smiled at the young woman.
Ariel: [roll3]
Jenna: [roll4]
"Oh, well, maybe. Me and my friend would like to know if there is any where to grab breakfast here?" she asked.

[drack]

Turning to the others Sean informs them "I think we should stay the night, but as it stands we should probably use what daylight we have left to investigate. Akiva, I'd like you to meet with the mayor, I assume you can pass yourself as someone important enough to merit her full attention, put her off easy, and most importantly to get any answers you can. Erich, I would like you to go to the academy, see what you can find from the students. It might be that some are shut ins outside the influence of this artifact, or it may be that you can get some idea of what's going on. Jenna, I'd like you to look into little Miss Riley. I'm going to meet with the good father since many of you seem Myrtle I'd like you to look into the Teraplex, most artifacts are mobile so i wouldn't be surprised if it's in some oblivious thrall's house, for now we've got to gather some information and that place is just too damn flash for most mesmers to pass up. In my experiance control over everyone they're in contact with can get to their heads... Lets all meet at Harvey's Arms, it seems much less suspicious a place to bed down for the night."

A sickening squelching sound emanates from the back of his pickup truck and five suits rise up. Oddly enough they aren't wearing suits on this occasion, but instead in geeky shirts and slacks with heavy boots, light gloves, and cloth wrapped about their heads. in fact the only things that look the same about them are the bulges in their side pockets and the shades. Taking a roll of aluminum foil from the truck Sean proceeds to wrap his and their heads with it making neat little hats. "None of us know each other, some of you just happened to be hitchhiking. The suits and I are conspiracy theorists drawn by one of the recent UFO sightings, hows about the rest of you?" While he talks Sean deals them each out two thousand dollars spending money, with an extra two thousand to Akiva in case the role he chose required it, and an extra thousand to Myrtle since that hotel looked like a damn pricy sort of place as compared with the rest of the town.

Edit:
Erik, see what you can find out about the fey that have been relocated to the nearby woods they might have noticed something.

[Ionbound]

Myrtle nods and says, just a slight dreamy tone to her voice, "Okay, sure." She starts heading across the field in the general direction of the giant Hotel that sticks out like a sore thumb.

[Beige]

Myrtle and Jenna, upon hearing constantly how good the town is and how they should stay the night, felt themselves agreeing whole heatedly. This was one of the best places they'd ever visited, and they just had to stay overnight. It all made perfect sense why people here never wanted to leave.

Ariel's magic fairy senses notice a faint magical aura over everyone she chooses to focus on, though the ground itself seems safe. She also notices the glow around Jenna and Myrtle. She does not notice anything that would register as evil

the woman Jenna had stopped flashed a large, if slightly spaced out smile. "I recommend going to Mitchel's Diner, just across the road from town hall - its a good, local business and provides the best food in the state. Make sure you avoid Gertie's place next door or - heaven forbid - the food court at the supermarket. those places have no town spirit."

[Ionbound]

When she gets to the Hotel, Myrtle smiles to the receptionist at the front desk and says, "Hi! Can I have a room for a couple of nights? I think I want to stay here for a while. It's pretty nice."

[Beige]

Myrtle had found the Tetraplex easily enough - it was easily the tallest building in the town, and the faux-futuristic exterior styling stuck out like a sore thumb against the older, more rustic style of the rest of the town.

"Of course, Madam" said the clerk, smiling and beginning to punch information into the computer on the desk. The lobby was styled to resemble the kind of upscale lounge you see on TV, with two red-velvet sofas set against the back wall for customers, and a number of. Strips of cool blue lighting run across each wall a few inches off the floor, and soft techno music plays over the sound system. You can see a sign for a bar to the left, and an entertainment center just beyond that

"Can I get your name, occupation, and what brings you to Harvey's Grove this beautiful morning? oh, and would you like a regular, first class or penthouse room?"

[drack]

After he's confirmed that everyone's square with their roles, Sean and his fellow "conspiracy theorists" head off to the church.

[The Vagabond]

Jenna nods, as does Ariel, who both takes their two thousand. Ariel chuckles at the tinfoil hats, "Well, you'll fit right in."

Jenna nods in agreement, "Yeah, nice town, by the way, I can see why it's the best." she said, walking into the opposing store, to see why they didn't like it.
Ariel sits down on one of the chairs, pulling out her laptop, and looking for a Wifi-Signal. Ariel buys a bit of the local food.

Ariel looks back, taking note of anything about the woman.

I'm assuming I can take 10 for all of these, so she'll end up with 27;
She hacks into the wifi, slipping further past it, and tries to access the Riley family household's internet history.
"You've been enchanted." she whispers.
"I've been what?" Jenna whispers back.
"Enchanted. Was difficult to tell early on, but after noting it through your magic items, yeah, you're enchanted. She's a spellcaster, or has a scroll, we can't be certain of which. I'd say that she might have been lucky, usually it isn't that easy to break through our defences, but looks like she was lucky."
*Chuckle* "Well damn, that's odd." she said.
Ariel nods, still in her human form.
"Also look at this pretty cat picture. It's cute."
"Awwwww."

[Ionbound]

Myrtle nods and says, "My name is Myrtle Wilmer, I'm an IRS agent, and I just wanted to visit because I heard your town was really nice. And, I have to say, I totally agree. It's the nicest place I've ever seen." At the question of the room niceness, however, the tilts her head in a circle, thinking, before eventually saying, "I think I want a first-class room. How much are they?"

[drack]

Earlier

$2,000/player.

[Erik Vale]

Erich hopes into the van, where despite protests, she burns some incense and plays some cards... She plays with the cards later actually, first she harrows herself, and the incense is followed by meditation.
----
"I'm investigating the academy for some rich guy thinking of sending his kids here." Erich shrugs... With a thought he makes her clothing look somewhat snappier, and appears like just another random American, except a midget.
---
Erich will look for a member among the academies administration, seeking to get a tour of the facilities.

[Beige]

To all characters who failed the will save
you are charmed to see the town as generally good, and react favourably to it. You find yourself agreeing with the townsfolk this is the nicest town in the state, you want to stay the night etc. The effect is not strong enough to overide your brain, however, so logic and memory still works and the like

Ariel/Jenna
properly studying the woman, Ariel notices nothing else magical. The woman is dressed in a simple pair of jeans and a t-shirt, a rose-shaped badge pinned to the strap of the shirt.

Jenna and Ariel walked into Gertie's Place – it's a nice, clean diner, the tables shined until they glisten – but it seems almost deserted compared to the place next door. The menu is offering the standard faire, pancakes, fried breakfasts etc, and the prices are actually lower than the competition. Also unlike next door, the building is not full to the brim with flowers

Gertie, the titular proprietor, actually managed a proper greeting when you entered “'morning. Names Gertie, what'll you have? An' if you're going to tell me ta join the 'family', you can just head next door”

Ariel's computer ministrations yield much more results than before – read, some – and finds the network titled Riley. Pulling up the internet history, you find nothing much that really stands out – facebook, youtube etc – you do find a few nameless websites, and a google search for VAULT, and an odd number of horticulture searches.

Myrtle
The man's smile wavers slightly when he heard her job, but it returned when he heard the familiar affirmation of niceness “First class is $165 a night, or $800 for a week. The room includes a large four poster bed, television, unlimited internet access, three meals a day at our restaurant, and unlimited access to the rooftop pool and entertainment centre” the clerk lists off the features of the room from memory.

roll perception

You notice the man's hand press a silent alarm buzzer under the desk – he's not as sneaky as he assumes

When his smile returned, you noticed a slight shift in his demanour, and an almost imperceptible change in his eyes, that both fade away as it ends. For a second, he looked almost fae

Erich

Sweet as sugar, sharp as steel
Dyed the shade of deep desire
Sweet words uttered, the minds rope
It blooms beneath hope

divination successful!

Shifting her disguise, Erich enters the grounds of the school. The younger children she sees all seem perfectly normal, running around and playing like nothing was going on. The older students where a little different, some seemed to be in the dazed state seen on the photos back at base, and others looked almost distrustful of their peers and the faculty – more so than usual, anyway.

Another odd thing you notice is the clothes worn by many of the students are much more understated and, truth be told, old fashioned than you'd expect.

Asking around, the students direct you to the School office, and upon entering the secretary – a woman in her early twenties who looks like she may just have graduated – greets you with a wave. “Good Morning, madam, and welcome to Harvey Grove Academy – the nicest school in the state! What can I do for you today?” she says, as chipper as anyone else.

[The Vagabond]

Jenna shakes her head, "Really? What's so wrong about the family? What is the family, anyway? Mind telling me?" she asked.
Ariel called out, "I'd like a Coffee, though a Frappuccino would be nice. Maybe some eggs." she called over to the cook.
She begins to poke around some more, poking through everyone elses internet history.

[drack]

Entering the cathedral the suits gather and sit in the front row of pews while Sean, casting his eyes briefly over any religious decorations in the room, looks for the priest in the rooms open to the general public.

[Erik Vale]

Erich takes note of some of the more wary faculty members, hoping to run into them again... While thinking it'd be a nice place to set up a lab. She also keeps the riddle to herself, wanting to have some time to decode it herself before sharing it...
Right now she's thinking about some sort of poison, something that clouds the mind and might normally be considered a weed... A pretty one one though, probably pink or red.
But she's a chemist, physicist and engineer, not a horticulturalis-.
Wait, alchemical ingredients... Going through those what would be poisons... She'll have to go through the list later... Call Arial and Jenna, have them look for 'occult' stores, herbalists and horticulturalists... Gems might also be of interest... Something that could be distilled and made into a crystalized form perhaps?
Uttered words... Perhaps a spell or other component, maybe used in a ritual.


Knowledge Arcarna: [roll0]
Craft [Alchemy] if possible, [roll1], possibly -4 based on whether Cauldren [Witch Hex] affects it.

Trying to think of any poisons that would come from pink/red weeds/decomposer plants/vines, or possibly crushed gems of similar colour, or would be distilled from them to create a red/pink fluid, or a crystal when dried. Of particular interest are mind clouding ones, and any used as spell components for mind-manipulating spells or items, such as love potions. [[Because those are a thing. They're just charm person, but a thing.]]

When she gets to administrator she returns the smile with an award winning one herself.
"Hi. I'm here on behalf of a friend, he's thinking about moving here, finding somewhere nice and safe to raise his kids so they get a good education. Is there any chance I could get a tour of the facilities?"

[Ionbound]

Myrtle nods and says, "Alright. I'll get two nights for now."

Perception: [roll0]

[BelGareth]

Akiva nods as Sean gives them their assignments.

That would be suitable enough, he accepted the funds and moved out, finding a suitable place where no one was looking and then changing himself into an average man with average looks, short brown hair, brown eyes, average height and weight, a gut that was bulging at the waist and then he adopted the stance of a man who was stuck in a job he hated but was clueless on how to get out. He then unattached his lapel pin, and reattached it as a Federal US auditor ID badge, his suit now a washed out, haphazardly worn, walmart brand.

Now wearing and being the part, he headed to the Mayors office, to initiate a surprise audit.


Using his Minor Shapechange ability and Hat of disguise (now the badge).
[roll0] +4 vs Females


When he got there, he entered the office, and looked to the receptionist "Harold Plant to see the Mayor please."

[Beige]

Jenna:

"Damned if I know - Stockham's newest crazy idea, came up with it when he came back to town with his new wife; 'we're all family under god, and by joining the yada yada' but it's got the entire town up in arms at us folks who ain't gonna join his cult." The proprietress sets a large cup of cofee down in front of the two of you as she finishes.

Poking around in the web around here, based off what youd just heard, you find many of the residents have been spending a lot of time on a page labeled 'family of the heart'

Sean

Sean sat alone - well, alone out of intelligent life at least - in the church for a few minutes, the interior of the hastily repaired church filled with the sound of recorded hymns playing through the sound system. Looking around the building, he notices a large amount of fresh flowers hung from the walls, in a rainbow of vibrant shades.

the wood used to repair the roof looks like it's still alive, almost growing

soon, however, the door to the church opened once more, and in walked father Stockham - his black vicars outfit replaced by a white one, a large red rose hung on his lapel. The smile looks the same as the one from the photo, and unlike most you've met his eyes are not the dull flatness of the other residents, but alive with life.

"Welcome, my sons, and may the lord be with you. What brings you fine gentlemen to the house of God today?" he asks to the nearest of the undead, smiling widely.

Erich

"Of course, Madam." said the woman behind the desk, before turning behind her to a student who had been sat in one of the reception chairs; a young girl with dyed black hair, dressed in typical gothic fashion - getting a look at her face, you notice her as Amber-Lynn Riley "Miss Riley, since you feel yourself above our school spirit, perhaps you can make yourself useful by showing our guest what our good, well-behaved students are like"

the girl gets up from the chair sullenly, her eyes downcast, befre turning to look at you. as she does, she seems to jump as if started, before composing herself. "Right, sure, whatever. what would you like to see...miss"

Akvika

"I'm sorry sir, but Miss Chaney is indisposed today. I can make an appointment for you if you want, though please understand her time is valuable" the receptionist says without looking up, but as she does and see's the badge, she seems to grow a little nervous "Oh, Good Morning sir. Sorry, I didn't expect you until wednesday. Is this about the... ah.... unexpected renovations on the church, or has something else gone wrong?" she finished, begining to shuffle papers on her desk nervously

[Ionbound]

When Myrtle sees the man press the button, however, she shakes her head and says, "No reason for alarm, my friend. I'm not here to audit you or anything. I just want to stay here for a few days and think about moving."

When the man looks Fae for a few seconds though, she blanches and her hand moves to her gun. She doesn't draw yet, but she's on edge.

[The Vagabond]

Jenna nods, "I see. Have you seen anything unusual recently? I think I remember reading something about in in the paper somewhere..."
Ariel smiles, taking the coffee and taking a drink of it. She logs into the website, handing it over to Jenna, where she turns to the Owner, "I don't think we've introduced ourselves! I'm Ariel, I'm a software Engineer, that's Jenna, she's an accountant. Pleasure to meet you!"[color] she said, a smile on her face. [color=goldenrod]"We're passing through, currently, looking for a decent place to settle down."

[drack]

Silently Sean pulls the invisible threads of magic that controlled the undeads. It was a fascinating craft, some even speculated that the very souls of the dead were returned and entrapped in the remains, and that rather then control them, the dark energy would control them through an agonizing pain that it caused them... Sean however cared little for such moral speculation. They were given new life and did whatever he wanted them to do. That was enough. Enough to save lives, enough to...

Sean glided gracefully over to the good father, his own eyes rarely ever showing any light of life, remain dull and flat as his "companions" give the priest suspicious stares from under their sunglasses, making sure their tinfoil hats are secure, and looking about as if expecting Bruce Lee and James Bond to crash through one of those stained glass windows and attack them. "Hello Father, it is indeed a wonderful day today isn't it? And the beauty of your town has be-stilled my anxious heart..." One of the other "conspiracy nuts" jabs him in the rib with a boney elbow. "Oh yes, my friends and I have come to this charming little village because we've heard tell that you have an above average number of UFO sightings! Tell me Father, have you seen any little green men around? Perhaps little grey men? Tall alien creatures covered in spikes? If not perhaps you've seen something strange so I could better convince my companions at least to stay the night..."


perception. :smallbiggrin:
[roll0]

[Erik Vale]

Erich

The girl gets up from the chair sullenly, her eyes downcast, before turning to look at you. As she does, she seems to jump as if started, before composing herself. "Right, sure, Whatever. What would you like to see..? Miss?"

Corrected. Feeling a rushed post.

"Just the school, I don't expect good explanations, and perhaps you could show me around. And it's Erich, funny name, I know."
Once they get out of immediate earshot of the woman though, Erich speaks again.
"And perhaps you could tell me about this 'school spirit', because the 'spirit' seems to be catchy enough to infect everyone." Erich chuckles.

[Beige]

Myrtle

The clerk laughs nervously in response "Sorry, sorry, my mistake. Have to call in the higher ups for official visits, and I jumped the gun a little – new management and all, don't want to upset them. I'll just ring ahead and let them know it was a false alarm”

He takes a deep breath, and smiles, making a show of keeping both hands in sight as he reaches for the cubbyholes set into the back room and retrieving a keycard “Room 6E, fifth floor – should give you a great view of the surrounding woodlands and the lake.”

Seeing you reach for where you concealed your weapon, the clerk smiles and shakes his head, looking very nervous “Don't worry about paying yet, we'll total the price when you return the key. Have a nice stay, and if its not to forward, can I recommend you visit our Entertainment centre; today's show is about to start, and I'm sure you'd enjoy it – or maybe take in that view...”

Roll a DC 11 will save to shake of the charm

yeah, he might be lying about that company policy. whodathunkit :smalltongue: He seems to be very determined you don't leave

Jenna/Navi
Gertie thinks for a second “Unusual? Well, a few folks have been meeting up last each night in the park, an' everyone in the 'family' seems to have gone gaga over flowers. Come to think of it, both of em started a couple of weeks ago – besides that, we're a nice, quiet town. Well, I suppose poor Abbey’s running herself ragged in some talks with a bunch of folks from Chicago wanting to buy up the land at the top of town, trying to talk em out of it – kinda odd considering how she's normally all for anything new, but I dunno. Gotta say I agree, these folks seemed shifty. And Old Bert claimed to have seen a UFO last week, but then he see's one every week. You sure picked an interesting week to visit”

“Well if your looking to settle, can't do much better than Harvey's – folks are nice, great place to raise your kids, if you want any “ she said with a wink to the two of you “and the place looks like a postcard; this 'Family' thing should blow over soon enough, the Father's never been good at sticking with one thing fer more than a few weeks.”

The website is a simple page, set against a rustic backdrop, soft choir music playing as the background. It contains a number of paraphrased bible quotes, combined with pages extolling the virtue of community and living with others, how we need to break down our barriers and become one family with our neighbours and the world around us. How we must strive to embrace everyone into the fold, and how we have to love our home and do all we can to help it grow and prosper. Though it starts of rather casual, the text dumps start to read a little obsessed.

it invites anyone to donate to the cause, and to come join the family even if they are not nearby, and invites everyone near Harvey's Grove to visit the next “family get together” tonight at the church. Oddly enough, it says you must bring a new “family member” to the get together

There is an invitation only members section, which Ariel breaks into without effort (hacking DC below a take-10, so...) but as it begins to load her natural ability to see magic kicks in about the page and she averts her eyes, getting a strong sense of compulsion without activating the spell.


Sean
The father's smile widens “I am glad you saw the beauty of our little corner of the world, and that it touched you as it has touched us all. And at a most fortunate time for us both as well, because many of my flock have shared with me tales of those from another world being sighted in the nearby forests, and many of us have seen lights and shapes underneath the branches at night. Truth be told, none of us are sure of the cause, but I have heard no reports of spikes; I don't know if that's good or bad news to you folks.
Your arrival now must be the work of the Lord, because myself and many of my family have plans to investigate this very night, and though I suspect it will just be some local hooligans without respect for their community, men of your expertise should help our relations if it does indeed turn out to be visitors from another world of our Father's creation.
So, I pray this news settles your heart further, and that you will join us tonight?” the priest chuckles at his own wording, extending his hand to shake

He's telling the truth about something from another world, but he's lying about not knowing what it is

Erich
“Right, well, prepare to have even those expectations underwhelmed” said the girl “This is the
reception, it's a reception just like every other reception. Over there 's the principals office – sorry, not the principal, the 'head of educational spirit'” she corrects herself with a scowl, almost forcing the words out, before gesturing to the door “and now for the rest of this prison. Welcome to the home of school spirit. Go School” she said with a major lack of spirit
The girl leads you away, looking around until she can't see any of the staff around, half-heartedly pointing out classrooms, buildings and the like as she goes – eventually, after showing you the wings full of placid students and smiling staff and a staff room she seemed reluctant to go near, until she stopped you near the library
before continuing in a tense whisper “Speaking of spirit, infectious is right – it's pretty much a virus; you talk to someone with it, it gets into you, and it's already got pretty much everyone I know, turning them all into happy, friendly morons; so pretty much the same as before, except now there's someone pulling the strings – though I suppose you'd know more about that than me, Miss Sorceress. The hat gives you away.”
“So, you here to help with that, to take advantage, or where you actually looking for somewhere for a kid and just have terrible luck?” she asks with a wry smile.

[Ionbound]

Myrtle smiles to the man and says, "Alright. Thank you for your hospitality. This really is the best place on earth, isn't it?" as she accepts the room key, and continues, "I might just have to go see that show. Can you give me directions?"

Will Save: [roll0]

Sense Motive: [roll1]

New rule: Myrtle is not allowed to pass a Will Save

[Erik Vale]

Erich
Erich smiles when Amber picks out Erichs use of the hat.
"Seems your brother did leave you a few things, though if you haven't already you may not wish to pierce the illusion, it's not pleasant for most... And..." Erich shakes her her, snorts.
"I don't care about the line. I'm here to help, and running into you is a lucky coincidence... And if I was looking for a place for someone to settle I'd first need to check I wasn't asleep. Perhaps we could talk somewhere in the stacks? Or elsewhere, but somewhere were being overheard is a minor problem..."
Suddenly, Erich looks up slightly.
"Londila, would you mind running distraction?"
Being invisible, and flying magically, there's little evidence Erich is speaking to her familiar, but a rustle as it rubs a Y on her back is enough for Erich to look back to Riley. Londila meanwhile takes to staying above Erich, watching for other people.

[drack]

sense motive

[roll0]
Posting under the assumption I failed since I keep getting to roll skills I haven't trained him in. :smalltongue: That said Sean already knows what's out there so... :smalltongue:

Also tinfoil hats give immunity to mind effecting effects right? :smalltongue: You know, since they act like a Faraday's Cage on your head blocking out any elector-magnetic potentially-mind-controlling-radiation? :smalltongue:

Shame that only those already immune to mind effecting stuff are cool enough to wear them... :smallwink:


Sean, as relaxes and spacy as ever, nods. "I'd love to go... no, we'd love to go." The suits scratch their heads and move as if to discuss it privately. Three of them give a thumbs up and one a thumbs down which earns the suit disapproving shaking of the others heads.

"See Father?" Sean asks. "This town is perfect, fresh air and aliens!"

Sean will chill at church, perhaps cross his forehead with holy water which doesn't burn immortals horribly, and have his minions do the same since they're really only get some on their cloths. :smalltongue: Helps shake the whole undead thing off of people's minds.

[The Vagabond]

"Well, this is odd." she says, closing the window.
Jane nods, "Thank you for your time! Have a good day!" she says, exiting, Ariel finishing up her coffee.

They go to the Riely household next.

[drack]

One of the suits drums its fingers idly on the church bench before it.

[BelGareth]

Akiva nods politely, keeping an air of authority to it, a gleam in his eye he smiles. "Exactly my dear, the church, now, would you please guide me to the record department, I will need to see everything regarding the new....renovations."


[roll0]

[The Vagabond]

Jenna finally arrived at the Riely household, knocking on the door with Ariel.
"Oh, good morning. My name's Jenna, pleasure to meet you! I'm house shopping with my friend, you see, and I would like to see if I could possibly take at look at your house- Not to buy it, we're planning on buying a new house here." she said.