(IC 2) San Francisco by Night: A Requiem in Fog

[Bennosuke]

Bernardo follows Aisling to the back of the line. The pair are stuck behind a group of girls who reek of stale alcohol, and who seem completely unaware of the their shrieking and slurred voices. The one closest to Aisling is somewhere between an angry rant about an ex-boyfriend and breaking down crying. Stranger still, is despite their giggles and gibbering, all four girls seem to spend more time entranced by their cellphones than making any form of eye contact.

Standing stiffly next to Aisling, Bernardo whines between gritted teeth, "Wasn't there something you could do back there? Some kindred trick? I mean, we are going to be stuck here foreeeeeveeer."

Just then the girl closest to the front of the line stands bolt upright, eyes suddenly wrenched from her phone. Her face goes pale for a second before she throws her head back and projectile releases her stomach contents, which is pink in color and mirrors the toxic smell that hangs over the pack of girls. The pink chunky emesis lands with an impressive splash all over a pair of fashionably dressed men.

The sight causes Bernardo to moan uncomfortably.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“I was thinking, we could tail him after he leaves one night, see where he lives,” Anna said as they walked away from the building.

She scanned around to make sure they weren’t being watched, then glanced back at the building to see if she could identify any windows leading to the office, and how easy or difficult they would be to access.

[Erulasto]

"Most of my gifts would not be pertinent to the situation, sweet Bernardo." Aisling says, brow crinkling in frustration. "I could take the form of a bird or a beast, but I cannot fathom how that would get me in any easier. Unless...." Pondering for a moment, Aisling looks up in disgust as the girl vomits all over the men in front of them.

"Forgive me, Bernardo....please wait out here for me. I will be as fast as I am able." Aisling gives Bernardo an apologetic look and begins to shout for help from the bouncer. Calling that someone is having an emergency.

If Aisling is able to create enough of a ruckus, she will slip out of sight of the line and call upon the power of her Beast and the vitae in her veins to shift into the form of a small, scruffy-looking alley cat.

Then she will try to slip into the club as swiftly and silently as her small, furry self is capable.



I forgot all about the third tier ability of Protean. Hehe

That costs two vitae to use and she could maintain the form indefinitely. I'm going to have to remember this for the future. I can totally see Aisling lazing around as a cat or whatnot.

To sneak in!

Dexterity 3 + Stealth 3 (+2 Move Silently)

[roll0]

[Bennosuke]

Anna remembers that there was a row of windows in the office that overlooked the same alley through which she and Karl entered the bathroom. The windows had all been closed, and locked from inside. Theoretically, if one was athletic enough, he or she could climb down from the roof, or up from the ground and break in, but otherwise she cannot identify any better form of entrance.

************************************************** ************

It is not hard to draw everyone's already focused attention on the spectacle of of the drunk partyers and the men now stinking of and dripping with pink stomach contents. As bystanderds point and whip out their cellphones, Aisling slips down the street into the darkest corner.

The transformation starts with a tickle deep inside Aisling's chest. The sensation reminds her of when she would ride horseback as a child, pushing the animal to faster and faster speeds as the wind rushed through her hair and blurred her eyes, and a funny sensation gathered in her chest and groin. It was also a little like falling. The tickle grew stronger, spreading through Aisling's entire ribcage till it branched out to become a pulsing pleasurable sensation that spread from all the way behind her eyes down to the skin at the end of her toes. The pulsing sensation moves faster and faster till all of a sudden the world is spinning and growing.

Then, just as quickly as it started, Aisling has transformed into a mangy black cat. Moving swiftly on silent paws, Aisling moves back down the street, passing Bernardo and the line of would-be clubbers. Just as she reaches the door, Aisling comes upon the wooden stool that where the bouncer had rested. Dully reflecting the neon lights of the club, are a ring of keys resting on the stool.

Jumping several times her height, Aisling deftly lands on the stool and picks the keys up in her mouth; the metallic taste a dull annoyance, before bounding down and entering the club.

As Aisling enters, her feline senses are overwhelmed by the throbbing music, whirring smoke, flashing strobe lights and the smell of tightly packed humans. The dance floor is a small throbbing mass of human forms moving and grinding against each other indistinctly in Aisling's blurred and overwhelmed vision. A stairway leads along the side of the dance floor up to a small terrace with a bar. Down the hall past the dance floor is a hallway with several bathrooms and a line of frustrated looking mortals, waiting for their turn to relieve themselves.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

Anna looked up and over at Karl.

“I’m a little concerned about Gabrielle,” Anna said, “nobody’s seen her all night, and I don’t know if she’s bonded to Aisling yet. And Aisling is new to this city, with two already under her wing.”

She sighed deeply.

“If she was abducted, that’s a problem, but even if she wasn’t, I don’t like the idea of her running off and not answering her phone, especially if she isn’t bonded to Aisling yet; someone else could get to her,” Anna said, “I think we should suggest to Aisling to bond her as quickly as possible, and give Gabrielle something to do, maybe plan the memorial to Estella, give her some closure. Otherwise she could become a liability. What do you think?”

[Daishain]

Karl shrugs, "That could work. Did you wish to attempt and see if we cannnot lend some assistance?"

"As to his place of residence, chances are that's easily found. He certainly didn't hide where he worked from the public record."

[Thundercracker]

“Can’t hurt,” Anna replied.

She wondered if she had time for a quick hunt on the way home.

[Erulasto]

Things were going much smoother than even Aisling had anticipated, especially with the added bonus of the key ring now in her possession. The smells of all the sweaty throngs of humanity dancing, the heavy noise and flashing lights weren't going to do her any favours.

Still as a cat, Aisling slipped further into the club looking for a quiet, out of the way corner where there was no bystanders - difficult as it would be in a packed club such as this. But Aisling was unable to get a good enough look at the patrons to find out if Gabrielle was here if she were only a foot off the ground.


As soon as she was able, Aisling fired off a quick text to Bernardo to let him know she had been successful in slipping aside, with an accompanying apology for leaving him outside once more - even trying to add a heart emoji to the message. People did that, right? That was part of popular culture? Aisling supposed it made a manner of sense. Trying to put some emotional context in the rather...artificial means of communicating. Though she was able to see the benefit of such convenient methods, something about the thought of the old parchment letters her father often received brought a pang of sadness. How the world had changed. Finally, the Gangrel pushed through the club trying to spot Gabrielle, hoping she wouldn't need to resort to fueling heightened senses with the dwindling vitae in her veins.

[Bennosuke]

(OOC: So assuming Aisling transitioned back to human form to text...)

Returning to her original shell was a process equally unpleasant and reminiscent of of the dying process that Aisling had experienced when she was Embraced. Though the process was over almost immediately, Aisling was left standing on unsteady legs as her head spun and her stomach ached with hunger. The pounding house music (completely alien to Aisling's sensibilities) and overwhelming smell of pumping blood and mortal did little to ease the growing discomfort. Deep down, Aisling could feel The Beasts fury, almost as if she could hear its growls and gnashing teeth.

Pushing down her animal panic and fury Aisling surveyed the club, looking for Gabrielle. After about 15 minutes of prowling the dance floor, she found the ghoul nearly passed out on her feet, gyrating like a whipped slave to the dominating music. Gabrielle was dressed in a dark red dress, perhaps something she had picked up while shopping with Aisling. The girl's black hair was slick with sweat and hung in long ragged clumps to her face, neck and bared bosom. Her eyeliner was smudged and smeared impressively, and Gabrielle was practically held up by a writhing mass of maybe ten men and women. The pack seemed to be enthralled with Gabrielle, practically bound to the Ghoul like she was to the music. Even from a distance, Aisling could hear just how hard the Ghoul's heart was racing, the pulse thready and rapid. Gabrielle was clearly unaware of Aisling's presence, if she was truly conscious of any of her surroundings at this point.

[Thundercracker]

Anna decided she would stop off at the best most likely place to find some vitae on the way home. She’d give it an hour, and if not she would have to wait until tomorrow.

presence + socialize: [roll0]

[Erulasto]

It was taking an effort of supreme will to keep the Beast at bay surrounded by the press of humanity, but the Gangrel bit down on her lip to distract her from it as she finally spotted Gabrielle dancing in the crowd.

Aisling began to push through the crowd towards Gabrielle as firmly as she could. Despite her diminutive size, she wiggled and wormed her way past those she couldn’t simply push past. The heat was sweltering, and the throbbing of the pulses of all those around her felt like she was being swallowed whole. That intense beat of music seemed to blend into the heartbeats, until the Gangrel couldn’t distinguish one from the other.

Pushing as fast as she could, Aisling sought to approach Gabrielle in the crowded club, reaching out with pale fingertips far cooler than the rest of the club and tried to just lay a hand upon the Ghoul. To draw her attention to Aisling.

A swell of panic bubbled in her gut as she thought of her growing family fracturing so soon.

”Gabrielle!”

[Bennosuke]

It was late at night, even for China Town. Anna had headed for the touristy trap of narrow streets festooned with tiny street level novelty shops knowing it was Ordo territory. Corny red paper lanterns had been strung up and lit with cheap bulbs, strung between the cramped one story buildings. Their light gave the side streets a garish illumination.

But Anna was surprised when, standing on a street corner with a clip board held tightly to her chest, a Chinese teenager dressed in a bright blue t-shirt approached her. Her breath stank slightly of cheap alcohol, but her voice was almost annoyingly chipper. It was maybe an hour before sun up, a ludicrous hour for this sidewalk prosthelytizer to be up. But as Anna approached, the girl cheerily says, "Hey there, you're up late!" This is somehow not an accusation, but instead a cheery observation. "Have you let the light of Jesus Christ into your heart?"; the question is asked as if the girl were asking for the time, a childish smile spread across her face.

(OOC: Don't worry about rolling. Anna already has 2 successes, so assume Anna's conversation goes well, unless you want to do something truly ludicrous.)

************************************************** **************

Reaching Gabrielle was like trying to swim up river. It took a lot of shoving and elbows, and Aisling nearly got knocked off her feet once on the way. When Aisling's dead hand finally caught the Ghoul's upper arm, Gabrielle's eyes locked on hers. The gaze was far away, with almost no recognition at first, and the girl continued to move herself to the pounding bass line. When realization finally did strike Gabrielle, her eyes narrowed, and suddenly Aisling could see that the girl had been crying.

"Go away!" Gabrielle's voice nearly drowned out in the music. When Gabrielle stopped dancing, suddenly the eyes of her mob, and of many of the other surrounding figures on the dance floor were on Aisling. It was as if Gabrielle's anger had cracked whatever spell had captivated the many nearby club patrons. Gabrielle's arms were crossed over her chest, and a man nearby was reaching out his arms to embrace and comfort Gabrielle. Again the ghoul howled, "Go away", and suddenly the patrons were moving to separate Aisling from Gabrielle.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Not so much,” Anna replied, “I’ve actually been feeling kind of depressed lately.”
Anna let the girl talk for a little while.

“It’s a little chilly out here, but I know a place nearby we could talk more,” she said, “it’s quiet.”

[Bennosuke]

At first the girl seems a little weary, but after taking a long discerning look at Anna, she nods her head. "You look like you've been through a lot," she says sympathetically, "You kinda look like you may be coming down with something." Seeming to lack better judgement, there girl follows Anna, only raising concern if the location suddenly becomes dubious.

[Daishain]

On a hunch that maybe something could come of the battered individual taken to the hospital after all, Karl heads in that direction after Anna goes her own way. He tries to find out about the man in question. If he has lived so far, Karl will tell a nurse responsible for the patient that he is working on a case related to those responsible for the man's injuries. He leaves them a card and asks that she give it to the man when she feels he has recovered enough to speak.

[Thundercracker]

At first the girl seems a little weary, but after taking a long discerning look at Anna, she nods her head. "You look like you've been through a lot," she says sympathetically, "You kinda look like you may be coming down with something." Seeming to lack better judgement, there girl follows Anna, only raising concern if the location suddenly becomes dubious.

Anna took the girl to one of the Ordo run establishments in the area, whichever one is the most upscale. On the way she asked the girl what she was doing out so early, and she also willed blood through her body to take the edge off her appearance.

She hoped to get the girl into a booth, with the girl on the outside, and from there subtly move into a Kiss from behind.

[Erulasto]

The moment when the crowd had begun to turn against the diminutive, youthful-looking Gangrel was the moment when Aisling’s frustration and anxiety had begun to fray away at the last vestiges of self-control she had. Glacial blue eyes darkened in anger, and her face twisting into a snarled scowl.

”You are needed! I need you!” Aisling shouted into the noise of the club. ”But if you wish to be alone? To give up what we’ve been building? The answers you wanted?” The Gangrel was practically hissing at the Ghoul. ”To throw it all away?”

The Gangrel practically shoved one of the other patrons who had been crowding around her, trying to separate her from her Ghoul. Aisling was a mess of flailing limbs and barely-contained frustration as she tried to create an opening for herself amid the crowding, suffocating press of humans.



I personally would have handled this a lot differently, but yay for teenage vampires with no emotional maturity!

I realize it’s unlikely given her own anxiety and whatnot, but is there any indication Gabrielle is acting like she may be under someone’s thrall?

[Bennosuke]

The music seems do hush as Aisling turns to exit, allowing her to hear the babble of the many staring Kine over the ringing in her ears. As Aisling shoves her way through the clot of bodies Gabrielle calls out, "You don't even care about her. None of you actually cared about her!" Her voice is filled with as much distress as it is with accusation, and a quick glance back shows that Gabrielle has suddenly fully come back, and that her face is twisted into a knot of grief.

[Thundercracker]

Anna led the girl to a restaurant, only to find it was closed.

“Damn,” she said, “honestly it just seems this is my life lately.”

She stood in the doorway and and wrapped her arms about herself.

“My boyfriend won’t even hug me anymore,” she said.

trying to get the girl to come in for a a hug which is easy neck access.

[Bennosuke]

The girl stiffens initially at Anna's embrace, even going so far as to mumble, "Oh, you're so co..." before swooning as hard teeth breech soft flesh. Blood rushes in quick spurts filling Anna's mouth with a warmth and release that will never be enough. The girl... did Anna ever get her name... goes slack except to pull herself into Anna.

(OOC: Please finish off the scene and update with how much blood you are taking and an updated character box).

[Thundercracker]

Character Box:

Vitae: 10/10
Humanity: 5
Willpower: 3/ 6
Health: 8
Beats/Exp: 9/0
Purchased obfuscate 1, safe haven 1.
Major boon from Ordo.
1st stage blood bond with Mobius
Tilts/Conditions:
Shaken (Gorman)
Aspirations:
1. Gain safety and security.
1a. Gain domain over a mental institution
1b. Gain trustworthy help during the day (ghoul, staff, etc). (Celestine)
1c. Create a safe haven for resting during the day (coven)
1d. Create a safehouse which can be fled to in times of trouble.
1e. Overthrow prince Gorman
2. End organized crime in the city.
2a. Eliminate Kindred reliance on organized crime in the city
2a(i). Discover the various Kindred needs which are filled by organized crime in the city and devise alternative methods by which they can be met.
2a(ii). Identify Kindred who need to be swayed in order to implement said alternative methods, and sway them
2b. Identify members of organized crime in the city
2c. Identify allies (among both Kine and Kindred) who share the same goal
3. Ensure the safety of younger cousin Katie
3a. Vet KT’s new bf.


Anna Wu

Sweet, intoxicating, Anna drew out the Kiss to let the moment last more than a few glorious seconds. Finally, she licked the wound closed and rested her chin on the girl’s shoulder. It was never enough.

She held the girl close in the alcove until her shuddering breathing normalized. Slowly at first, but then bubbling up, Anna was overcome with a feeling of revulsion. This could have been her ten years or fifteen years ago, or could have been her cousin today.

“What are you doing out here by yourself?” she whispered, now all but clutching the girl’s slight form to her, “what if it wasn’t me who found you?”

“I’m sending you home, go get some rest,” Anna said. She called an Uber, tipped the driver a bit extra, and put the girl in the back seat. Then she made her way home.

3 bp to fill up.

[Bennosuke]

A quick hunt on the internet confirms that the only "level one trauma center" in or around the city is San Francisco General Hospital. The hospital was actually just East of The Mission District in a neighborhood known as Porteo Hill and couldn't be more than a ten minute drive away.

(OOC: Assuming Karl heads there...) The Hospital was a mishmash of two different buildings. The majority of San Francisco General (now garishly named Zuckerberg San Francisco General... according to the sign out front) was a a series of polygonal brick buildings of various ages, shapes and sizes that had later been interconnected with modernly stylized glass walkways. However, the entrance facade screamed silicon valley bad taste. A modern art sculpture of what was possibly rain drops falling up was comically back lit with blue gobe lights (it had also been sufficiently vandalized with pink and yellow spray painted genitals). This sculpture stood unnobily before the building entrance; a cylindrical spire of tinted green glass and plasticized metal that looked like it had been taken from a space colony out of a 70's science fiction comic.

A similarly vandalized sign indicates that the ambulance entrance is around the side of the hospital, and Karl can see the overhang garage where EMTs can ferry critical patients directly into the Emergency Department.

************************************************** **************************************

The street-side proselytizer wobbles as she is released, her eyes unfocused with pleasure. "Oh," she half asks, half moans. She offers up little protest as she is ushered into an Uber, the black sedan disappearing into the morning fog.

[Daishain]

Karl heads within and attempts to find a receptionist that isn't incredibly busy. Whenever he has a chance to speak with someone without interfering with their work, he will step up and ask, "Greetings, I need to identify a particular patient that was likely brought here a few hours ago, a victim of a serious assault. Who would be the best person to speak with?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“This is so messed up, I didn’t even get her name,” Anna thought. Anna had her address, but she knew in her head that she shouldn’t follow up on the girl. Hell, she might still be in high school. This can’t continue.

The feeling of dirtiness refused to abate as Anna wakes back to her car. She decided she had to prioritize the hospital. The sooner she could get a stable supply of blood, the better.

[Erulasto]

"I did not know her!" Aisling hisses angrily. "But I still wanted to find out what happened. We all do. But these things take time, Gabrielle."

Forcing what would be a calming breath through her desicated lungs, Aisling stops in her flee through the press of bodies and turns back to her ghoul.

"Come. A chance to be part of our solution. Not a hindrance."

[Bennosuke]

Karl enters through the front of the hospital via large sliding glass doors. A folding plastic table has been set up inside at the doors, where a security officer in a navy uniform (complete with a mock police badge) sits reading a kindle. The man is African American, perhaps in his forties, with a tight crew cut and graying mustache.

Behind the security officer is a wide open parlor, filled with moldering plastic seats and dehydrated looking ferns. The chessboard tiled floor looks grimy. At the back of the entrance is a "Visitors Desk", though this area is unlit and no one mans the desk.

The security officer looks up from his reading, subtle disdain flashing in his dark eyes, and cuts Karl off mid-sentence. "Visiting hours are from 9am to 6pm," he says in a bored and rehearsed voice, his eyes practically rolling, "Otherwise only hospital staff are allowed to enter and exit the premise."

************************************************** *********

Arms still folded around her chest, Gabrielle practically howls the word "NO", shaking her head fitfully. She looks to one of the Kine in her throng, a waif of a man with platinum blond overly stylized hair, a fishnet stocking shirt, and thick black eye liner. Almost on command (and Aisling can feel the hot churning from Gabrielle as she calls on the Vitae) the man steps in front of Gabrielle protectively. "You stay away from her" the man says in a lilting protective voice. Lovingly he adds, "We will take care of her. You are clearly no good for our queen." This last bit is said without a hint of irony, though Aisling has to assume he is not referring to Gabrielle as royalty.

[Daishain]

"I am not a visitor, and I am not even asking to enter. I need to know if a particular patient was brought here, and if he still remains among the living."

Karl shows the rent-a-cop his card.

[Bennosuke]

The security officer grunts in frustration as he scan's Karl's business card. He raises an eyebrow at the vampire and says obstinately, "And what is the name of the patient you are looking for?"

(OOC: Did Karl even get the name of the guy?)

[Daishain]

"The man was too busy coughing up blood to give me a name. The hospital might not know his name either, those who left him for dead probably took his wallet"

"He should have arrived here shortly before midnight. Poor bastard was beaten to within an inch of his life and dumped in an alley. Multiple bone fractures and at least some internal bleeding. Probably some other injuries I did not see, I would suspect a concussion for instance."

Karl gives any other important details he can recall, such as a description of the man in question.

[Bennosuke]

The security officer grins, exposing big yellowing teeth. "I'm sorry," he says politely, "but I can't help you. The only thing I would be able to do for you is look a patient up by name. People are brought into and out of the ED all night, I don't know anything about that."

Without even waiting, the officer returns his attention to his book. Only looking up to make sure Karl isn't trying to break past the security desk.

[Erulasto]

There was a tense moment where Aisling simply stared at Gabrielle. In shock, frustration and a good deal of anger. Muscles were tight and tense and teeth gritted to bite back a retort that would likely do more damage and escalate the situation.

Oh, how she wanted to tear into the stupid human for daring to try and block her from her ghoul. No….she wasn’t really her ghoul. Aisling hadn’t fed her enough to force the blood bond, and it was clear that Gabrielle’s loyalties were still with Estella, despite the Daeva’s final death.

So Aisling stared at Gabrielle, hard, and struggled to build up her walls to close off the raging torrent of emotion she felt churning inside her.

If this is how she wanted to do it, then fine!

”You look ridiculous!” Aisling snapped at the blonde mortal that Gabrielle had in her sway. ”And if you value your bits, I would suggest you watch your tone with me.”

Finally, turning to the Ghoul, Aisling sighed heavily, shoulders sagging as if the fight suddenly went out of her.

”Fine, Gabrielle. Have it your way. Enjoy your….admirer’s while you can. It will not last forever.” She said wearily. The implication was strong – that the Vitae she had been using would eventually burn itself out and she wouldn’t have these nifty tricks to fall back on. ”If this is your choice, then so be it.”

With that said, the Gangrel turned to make her way out of the club and back to Bernardo.

This was not going how she had hoped.

[Bennosuke]

Gabrielle seems deaf to Aisling's words, as she becomes swallowed up in her throng of warm bodies, and the jackhammer base begins to pound again.

The girl can feel hundreds of mortal eyes on her as she leaves the dance floor. As Aisling walks out the door, the bouncer gives a quick double take and calls out, "HEY! How did you..." but Aisling is already halfway down the cue on legs powered by fury. The Gangrel's vision is red hot, nails digging deep into the flesh of her palms instinctively.

Bernardo's face goes pale when he sees her, and he clumsily mumbles, "Is everything okay?"

So honestly, it seems like the club scene may have been a good point for a Frenzy check, but you kinda played past that (which is totally fine). However I think Aisling gaining the Bestial condition makes sense given how pissed she is, and her Gangrel nature. Sound fair?

[Daishain]

Karl smiles without a hint of humor. "Then as I suspected, you are not the one I need to be talking to. Who is on night dispatch and how do I get in touch with them? And before you mention coming back during daylight hours. The person who actually handled the incident will have gone home by then, the odds of someone else figuring out what I need to know are fairly poor."

[Bennosuke]

Annoyance spilling over to outright anger, the guard pushes his kindle onto the desk and stands up. "Sir," he says the word sternly as if it were an accusation, "Ambulance dispatch is managed by an organization not affiliated with the hospital. And I don't think there's much more I can do for you. And I think it is time for you to leave." He points to the door through which Karl had entered, blood shot eyes glaring darkly.

Sorry, not trying to make this difficult for you, just playing it realistically. That said, Karl probably wants to check out the ED, and he does have Obfuscate, right?

[Erulasto]

Ignoring the bouncer – just another stupid, wretched brute – Aisling made a beeline for Bernardo, seething frustration burning heavy in her chest. It felt like she was suffocating – if such a thing could even happen to a vampire.

”No.” Aisling said, mannerisms tense and erratic and expression torn somewhere between rage and grief. It was as if she couldn’t decide what emotion to feel and it was all far too overwhelming.

”Gabrielle has decided she does not need us. Me. Anymore.”





Absolutely fair.

I was thinking it’d be an appropriate time for Frenzy checks as well. I tried to play to that extent, but next time I can toss a roll in if I think it’s appropriate if you’d like.

I’ll mark it on her character sheet and stat box. It’s an…interesting condition to have. Going to make dealing with her a bit touchier in the immediate future.




Humanity: 5
Willpower: 4/6
Health 7
Blood Pool: 7/10
Beats/EXP: 2/1
Tilts/Conditions: Bestial


1. Become known to the Kindred so she is safe from predation.
2a. Reveal the truth behind her past insofar as how it relates to her Sire, the book and Mother Blackstar's interest.
2b. Learn all the secrets from the Book of Gazren.
3a. Destroy Mother Blackstar and take what is hers so it can never hurt Aisling again.
3b. Investigate the attackers to find out who was truly responsible and why.
3c. Discover the secrets of Cruac.

[Bennosuke]

Bernardo takes a step towards Aisling, one eyebrow raised. "Really?" he says with true surprise in his voice, "Are you sure about that?" Suddenly Bernardo is studying Aisling with his eyes, trying to read through her. He adds, "Did she say why?"

[Daishain]

Karl simply turns and walks out, but can't help saying as he goes, "Typical, people always stick to doing just the lazy part of their jobs when there's something unusual."

Irritated now, the old man looks for a way back in, some activity he could blend into as he infiltrated the place.

[Bennosuke]

The security officer looks like he is about to burst with some snide remark for just a moment, but he clearly stifles the impulse.

As Karl steps outside the building, his gaze falls on the well lit ambulance drop off. Relative to the rest of the property, there was some activity, with EMT's busily folding up a stretcher to load into the back of large white ambulance. There were also sliding glass doors here, but these seemed to be electronically locked in the open position, and even from about 50 yards away, Karl could here human commotion coming from inside the Emergency Department.

[Daishain]

Slipping into the grey areas on the edge of human perception, Karl smoothly walks up to the ER entrance and inside. He won't be able to question anyone this way, but if he follows the activity, he might get lucky.

[Bennosuke]

The Emergency room is relatively quiet, except for the occasional beep of some monitoring machine or stopped IV. Unlike in a more modern hospital, San Francisco General's ED is really just a t-section of hallways with patient rooms created by dividing the hallways with curtains. Circular nursing stations are set up in the center of these curtained off hallways, where nurses in dark maroon colored scrubs sit chatting or working at computers. Occasionally a nurse will stand up and move quickly towards a patient room, sometimes responding to the calls of a distressed patient

No one seems to pay any attention to Karl as he makes his way into the Emergency room. In the center of the t-shaped ED is a square of computer monitors, each one listing patient beds by number and initials, showing vitals and the nurse responsible for the patient.

[Erulasto]

Bernardo takes a step towards Aisling, one eyebrow raised. "Really?" he says with true surprise in his voice, "Are you sure about that?" Suddenly Bernardo is studying Aisling with his eyes, trying to read through her. He adds, "Did she say why?"

"Yes!" Aisling snaps, a flush of that old frustration rising like bile in the back of her throat. "She said we didn't care about Estella. There is a whole throng of mortals that Gabrielle has enthralled using the blood gifts that come with the vitae." Aisling whispered, leaning in towards Bernardo's ear to speak so no one could hear. The Gangrel grabbed his arm above the elbow and pulled Bernardo away from the club and down the street.

"I'm afraid of what could happen to you or Gabrielle if the wrong person took an interest in you. I want to keep you all safe. But she makes it so hard."

[Bennosuke]

Bernardo nods his head deep with understanding. He waits till Aisling has finished and then gently says, "Well how much have we tried to find out what happened to Estella?" He lets the question sit there for a moment before continuing, "I know that if you disappeared I would try to spend all my waking hours trying to find you... and we haven't really done that with Estella." The look Bernardo flashes is filled with anxiety and concern.

[Daishain]

Karl grimaced. Of course the information he needed would not just be on display. He could likely find it amongst all these papers here, but that would almost certainly take a great deal of time while rubbing elbows with these busy nurses. Especially since he did not know the system. Obfuscation has its limits. Best to just check the beds.

Karl moves on down the rows, taking a quick glance in each space for anyone that appears to fit the victim he saw earlier.

[Bennosuke]

Though the sun was not yet up, Karl could feel it's rising presence as if the air in the ED was some how becoming slowly thicker and warmer; a tropical humidity. He knew he had limited time to conduct his search of the ED, but even moving with haste, it took a little over a half hour of moving up and down the ER halls to find his man. Attached to several long IVs running saline and blood, the man lay battered on a soiled hospital gurney. His face was bloated and bruised, and a face mask had been placed over his split lips to run humidified high flow oxygen. A thick tube had been inserted into the right side of the man's chest and was draining a bloody orange fluid into a collecting bag. The victim's scent reminded Karl more of a slaughtered cow than that of a human, but the visceral display still piqued the vampire's hunger.

A quick read of the man's hospital wristband read Carlos Medina, age 17, followed by a medical record number that was unimportant to Karl. Fortunately, none of the nurses seemed to mind Karl's presence looming over the man like an avatar of death, but the Mekhet knew that he could not stay long, for the sun's rise would surely chase him home.

[Daishain]

Karl checks the man's, no, the boy's chart. He tries to get a sense of how likely it is the boy will live through this ordeal.

If it seems more promising than that first glance suggests, he will make notes on the boys identity and depart.

If on the other hand, the boy's death seems to be certain, Karl will look for a syringe. Drawing a little bit of vitae, he would inject it into the IV port. He will try to use just enough to help heal the worst of it without making the boy's recovery seem miraculous or have other effects that are difficult to explain away

[Bennosuke]

Karl looks around for a paper chart but finds none. However, the digital monitor above the boy's bed shows his blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate and oxygen saturations. Karl was no medic, but as far as he could tell the kid was relatively stable. Pressure could be a little higher, and heart rate a little slower, but nothing screamed that the kid was eminently dying.

[Daishain]

Nodding to himself, Karl takes notes on the boy's identity and slips back out of the hospital, racing for his home ahead of the dawn. Before shutting down for the day, he'll add Carlos to the list of things for Gabe to take a look at during his shift.

[Erulasto]

Bernardo's words seemed to have something of a calming effect on Aisling, and she ended up offering the ghoul a soft smile. But her eyes were still flickering dangerously - the Beast hiding in plain sight behind them.

"You are sweet." Aisling says. "But you are also correct. I had thought that we would need to get answers regarding it, but I do not even know where to start asking questions. I do not want to bring threats against us so early."

[Bennosuke]

Bernardo nods his head. "I don't either," he says somberly, "but I don't think that is why Gabrielle is upset." Shrugging, Bernardo looks back at the club and the line filled with impatient would-be patrons. "Let's just go home," he says uncomfortably. Bernardo slips his warm live hand into Aisling's cold dead one and gives it a tender squeeze.

[Bennosuke]

Act 2 Scene v

“Loneliness will sit over our roofs with brooding wings.”
― Bram Stoker, Dracula

Katie sat across from Anna in a plastic boot at the Honey Tiger, a bubble tea and donut shop on the boarder of China Town and Broadway. This late the shop was fairly quiet, and the two did not have to worry about eavesdroppers. Katie was not as heavily made up as the night before, though her cheeks were flushed as she quietly sipped at her "Thai Iced Bubble Tea". The drink was a radioactive orange, with big black beads of tapioca settled heavily at the bottom. "Uh, I'm sorry if I was a little... much last night" Katie says uncomfortably, eyes down on the table.

Anna could see the humility and sincerity in her cousin's face.

Please confirm whether or not Anna is using blush of life, and if she has purchased anything to "eat/drink". One vitae has been spent for waking, Anna is now at 9.

************************************************** *********

Gabe yawns lazily, slumped in his giant black leather business chair. He sits across Karl in their "meeting room", with several manila folders stacked up in front of him. "You sure are piling a lot of work up for me" he says trying to sound nonchalant, though Karl can hear the desperation in the Ghouls head.

It had only been a few days, maybe a week since Karl had last fed Gabe, but the Mekhet could already hear the anxious hunger in the man's voice, see it in the ghoul's dark twitchy eyes. "But I got some good information for you. I think I have a little more on Spooky, which you might find interesting... he's not as clandestine as he first appears." Gabe grins awkwardly, probing Karl for a complimentary response. The ghoul was so pathetically see through. He pushes a folder towards Karl, but keeps the palm of his hand pressed on the paper. Leaning forward, Gabe hastily adds, "But is there any chance I could... get some more first?"

Karl spends one vitae to wake and is now down to 7.

************************************************** *******

The fury was still upon Aisling when she woke. The red anger of the Beast was heavily colored by the aching hunger in Aisling's gut. She had not fed enough recently, spent too much vitae. Her chest ached, her head ached, every artery extending all the way to her finger tips ached like each one was pulled towards snapping. The rage pulled Aisling from her roiling dreams nearly instantly. The smell of food was close.

Bernardo was sitting at Aisling's side, seeming to observe her. Perhaps it was Aisling's hunger, but there was worry behind the man's eyes. No, the look was real. Aisling could smell the man's sweat, it was ripe with fear, and it stoked Aisling's hunger and her need for violence. "Good morning" Bernardo says in a in a rushed voice, "Uh, how are you feeling?" Maybe he can see the Beast behind Aisling's eyes, or maybe he is hiding something!

Aisling spends one Vitae to wake and is now at 5. I am playing up her hunger a bit and mixing it with her condition

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu


yes, anna will use blush of life to hang out with her cousin, down to 8
"Ugh, it's fine," Anna replied, "I've definitely been there too."

She smiled, then sighed.

"Listen, I didn't just ask you out to go shopping," she said, growing serious, "unlike your mom who, like most moms, still sees you as a seven year old kid, I know you're a big girl and you're responsible for your own decisions, but that doesn't mean I can't help you out, make sure you have all the facts. Jay seems to like you, but you know your parents would never approve. I want you to know whatever you decide, I'm on your side, okay?"

She nodded reassuringly before dropping the evidence.

"I didn't facebook stalk your boyfriend," Anna continued, "I did a background check. He's involved with MS-13. They're a pretty large gang, spanning all the way from here to Mexico. Seems your boyfriend is a low level member, mostly involved in petty stuff so far, but he was recently involved in a shootout with the police."

Anna swiped through documents on her phone, showing her cousin what she'd found.

facts about Jay based on what I (player) can remember. Anna will be certain to only state the facts she got from Karl and from her police contact.

Anna watched Katie's reaction to this news carefully, to see if she was surprised.

[Bennosuke]

When Anna first mentions MS13, Katie looks at her dumbly, possibly not comprehending what "MS13" is. As Anna continues on, her face screws up with a mix of confusion and anger. Her cheeks redden and her eyes become glassy as if threatening tears. "Wait, what?" Katie says loudly, grabbing the phone away from her cousin. She begins swiftly flipping between the photos of papers with fine type and the images printed by Karl's ghoul. Not looking up, she says, "You did a background check? I don't understand. What were you trying to prove? Jay is a nice guy!"

There was now a slight tremble to the girl's hands.

[Daishain]

Karl sighs, "You're weeks early, and besides I seem to recall having given you extra the last time in case it was needful. Perhaps I should not have done that if this is the response."

"Remember when we started this? We both agreed that you would get what you needed and when you needed it. Not more, and not before. We both wanted it that way, because anything else was a sure path to letting the addiction rule your mind. Remember?"

[Bennosuke]

The ghoul crosses his arms across his chest, and under his breath growls, "It's not like you couldn't get more." He huffs, then sits back upright, and pushes the file across to Karl. The file is marked "SPOOKY" in big childish green marker.

The file contains a number of bank statements indicating a massive amount of money being siphoned through various accounts owned by Spooky. Obviously, the money is far more than the man could make through just his bar. The file also contains information on a contact of Spooky's, a man named Andre Chilton. The only significant information on Chilton was that he was likely involved in dealing designer amphetamines to well to do tech heads in San Francisco.

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“Kate, it’s okay,” Anna said, “you can keep dating him if you want. Like I said, I think he likes you, but I want you to go in with your eyes open. And, you don’t have to decide now.”

She gently took her phone back.

“Don’t take it personally, I’d do a background check on anyone getting close to me who had the word ‘fight’ tattooed on their face,” she added.

“So we’re going to take some precautions,” she said, “this is a burner phone.”
She put the slim phone down on the table.

“Carry it with you all the time, hidden, in your sock maybe,” she said, “if you get in trouble and you lose your phone, you can call me, or the cops.”

“Remember, I’m on your side,” she said.

“Do you still want that Kate Spade?” she asked as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

[Erulasto]

Rolling over, Aisling groaned as she felt the burning hunger sitting in her stomach like hot lead. The Gangrel pushed herself up on her elbows, following the scent of blood with her nose until she was pressed against Bernardo.

"I'm hungry." Aisling says in a voice muffled by the ghouls side, "I need to feed soon."

Suddenly, Aisling stilled as she scented the bitter tang of Bernardo's fear.

"What is wrong? You are afraid of something. Is...is it me?"

[Daishain]

"You know that being able to get more isn't the point Gabe. Now, how do you think this Chilton fellow relates to this mess?"

[Bennosuke]

Katie rises from her seat, face growing more red by the moment. "This is so ****ed up" she scowls. Then attending to her cousin, Katie says "This is America Anna," and with this she waves one hand overhead as if indicating the bubble tea operation, "you can't just... you don't just go snooping on other people like that!" But the girl does not step away from the table. Still standing, stooped over the table, Katie says softly, "I mean, I know everything that happened to you in China. And I appreciate that you are just trying to protect me Anna, trust me I do, but... I don't appreciate this."

She looks long and hard at Anna, waiting to see how her cousin reacts.

************************************************** *************************

"Oh, it's nothing," Bernardo blubbers, "I'm not...afraid." The ghoul peers over his shoulder anxiously. The motion suddenly helps Aisling become aware of the scent of another mortal in the room. It's Gabrielle, she is here in the attic somewhere; Aisling can hear her heartbeat as well as smell her warm sweet blood.

Perhaps unaware of his companion's realization, Bernardo says, "Uh, Gabrielle came back this morning. She's looked pretty out of it when she came home; was barely standing. She's still asleep." Bernardo steps aside and Aisling can see the insolent ghoul collapsed in the corner. The girl is still clad in the same clothes from the night before, and they reek of sweat and the odors of various other kine. Sleeping soundly, Gabrielle's chest moves in rather shallow raspy breaths, her heart rate a little faster than normal.

************************************************** ***************************

Eyes narrowing for just a moment's defiance, Gabe sighs and says, "My guess is that he's selling Spooky's supply. MS13 is into all kinds of drug running. The only thing that doesn't really fit is that amphetamines aren't really their thing. Mostly the gang is involved in running cocaine and heroine past the border; that and child prostitutes and illegal arms." Gabe pauses for a moment, and now the Ghoul is talking like his old self. There is that shine of clever reasoning sparkling in the man's eyes. "But I don't think Spooky is like most of the gang members. He isn't muscle, and he's smart. So maybe this is a side deal or something. Just a guess though."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

Anna’s face fell slightly at the mention of her past.

“Hong Kong. And you _don’t_ know,” Anna said softly, her eyes growing glassy with tears. She blinked them away quickly.

“Katherine, I was nineteen, in school,” she said, looking up, “same as you are now. I’m sorry I made you upset, but I hoped you’d rather know than not. What if the first time you found out is when you got arrested, or worse, caught a bullet?”

She sighed.
“I didn’t tell your mom and dad, because it’s your life.”

“You have to decide what to do now,” she said, “call it fake news and ignore it, break it off, understand the risks to yourself and your parents and keep going anyway. Whatever you do I’ll support you.”

“Take the phone, think about it, I mean really think about it,” she said, “and if you need help, or you want to ask advice, or just want to go shopping, you now have two ways to get in touch.”

[Erulasto]

Gabrielle is back?

How foolish did she have to be to spurn Aisling and then have the audacity to return to the haven?

The Gangrel pushed down a bubbling growl that hung low in her throat as she smelled the Ghoul’s presence. Her irritation and hunger were blending together, and Aisling found her mind frustratingly hazy.

”Did…she say anything to you?” Aisling asked, trying to keep the snarl from her voice. Aisling slowly disentangled herself from Bernardo, and crawled across the room towards Gabrielle. The Gangrel leaned in, sniffing at Gabrielle closely, trying to pick out any scents that may indicate something tainting her blood.

Aisling did not want to get second-hand exposure to whatever the Ghoul was on if…when she fed.

[Bennosuke]

"I'm sorry," Katie says, though there is still venom and hurt in her voice. She clasps the phone on the table, hand still shaking. Her tone wavering, Katie says, "You didn't have to do that. Things aren't so bad here... and Jay's not a bad guy", she adds though the last bit is colored with doubt. She drops the phone into her purse. "Thank you for trying to look out of me", Katie says curtly before stepping away from the table and leaving Anna in the booth at the Honey Tiger.

(OOC: Anna gains a beat for her third aspiration. She now has 2xp. Your character box has been updated in the OOC thread).

[Thundercracker]

Anna frowned at the table after her cousin left. She wondered if Jay was part of Spooky’s crew, if they would meet outside of social settings.

A reminder went off on her phone, and she stood up, paid the tab in cash, and left to meet Daniel.

She always had mixed feelings about meeting her ex fiancé. Kenji has made his thoughts on the matter quite clear, but Anna still found it difficult to cut ties with her old life. Soon it would be impossible to maintain the facade as five years stretched into ten and fifteen and she didn’t age, but... maybe just a few more months...

[Bennosuke]

The bar Daniel had chosen was an uber trendy cocktail lounge perhaps styled to look like a 1950s science fiction laboratory. Beakers and test-tubes all back lit with yellow gas or neon lights. Twenty and thirty somethings all dressed in slim cut blazers and black cocktail dresses, driving trance music, bartenders with period suspenders and waxed mustaches; this was not Anna's scene, but it also wasn't Daniel's... or at least not the Daniel Anna remembered.

Her Ex was sitting at booth on the far end of the room at a leather clad booth. Daniel looked sharp, dressed in a light grey sweater under a black pinstripe jacket. His hair was heavily styled, something he had only started doing recently, and a silver cross hung on a chain around his neck. Daniel looked up from a neon blue drink in a martini glass, pensively studying Anna. When Anna finally sits down, Daniel coldly says, "You've had me very worried the past couple of days Anna. What happened?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

Anna made sure the blood continued to pump through her veins, taking the edge off her appearance.

“Hi, good to see you,” Anna replied, “I’m fine, thanks for asking.”

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

“I’m sorry,” she said, “I’m just a little on edge. I told you, I fought off a mugging. Training took over. I’m not hurt, but he had a knife; it could have been a lot worse.”

[Bennosuke]

(OOC: Just to be clear, you don't have to spend more vitae to maintain Blush of Life)

Daniel looks at Anna with wide and perhaps disappointed eyes. "Do you really think it was wise to fight of an armed mugger with your bare hands?" He sighs, then says earnestly, "But I'm glad you are okay Anna. It's good to see you again."

He takes as sip from his fancy cocktail, and Anna can smell the mix of sugars, gin and perhaps something like rosemary coming strongly from the drink.

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“I know,” she replied, “it’s good to see you too. How... how are you?”

[Daishain]

Karl nods, "That might be it, it might also be that this Chilton has contacts that are useful in some other way. He might be part of Spooky's money laundering efforts for instance."

"Did you find out anything about the man Spooky had beaten half to death last night? My instincts tell me he might have some interesting perspective to share given some persuasion."

It looks like you might have missed it Benno, but Erulasto had a response for you at the bottom of the last page.

[Bennosuke]

As Aisling crawled towards Gabrielle, her companion replied, "She was pretty out of it when she came back. Didn't say too much. I pretty much had to carry her to bed." There was sympathy in Bernardo's voice, SYMPATHY! Aisling could see that Bernardo had even gone so far as to tuck Gabrielle in with a heavy black wool blanket.

The ghoul stunk of alcohol and mortal exhaustion. No other form of corruption seemed to be upon Gabrielle, who didn't even stir when Aisling came close. The Gangrel was so close now that she could hear the blood squeezing through the mortal's veins. Gabrielle was dehydrated, perhaps she had even been burning gifted Vitae last night. Her heart pounded quickly in her chest... it would be so easy to take, perhaps even to take everything.

************************************************** ***********

Daniel shrugged at Anna's question. "I'm good," he said with a sight, though Anna could tell he was holding something back. She knew Daniel too well, had known him for so long; practically their entire lives. But now Anna and Daniel's worlds were so far apart, she had barely seen him in the last couple of months.

A long pause sat between the two. Perhaps they no longer had much to say to each other; that would be unbearable. Taking another sip of his cocktail and nearly draining it, Daniel starts, "Anyways, I'd like to hear about everything you've been up to. It's crazy we are back in the same city and never see each other."

************************************************** ************

Gabe nodded and pushed a second manila folder across the table. "Ya, Victor Ortega," he says as he opens up the folder for Karl. He shows the vampire a picture of the boy before his face was brutalized into a swollen mess. From the photo, Victor couldn't have been any older than 14 or 15. A stone faced Hispanic kid with a big nose and a sad attempt at a mustache. Shrugging, Gabe says, "I wasn't able to get anything from the hospital; they're pretty tight lipped about that kinda thing and I don't really look like his relative." Gabe snorts at this then continues, "Anyways, he's a highs school student in San Francisco. Parents are from Mexico, not too well off. Grades are pretty poor. Went to the school and did a little snooping. Sounds like Victor was getting bullied a lot. One of his friends mentioned that he had started buying drugs to study better."

Gabe indicates the other folder in front of Karl. He grins at Karl and adds, "My guess is that he was buying from Spooky, or Chilton, but didn't have the money. Just a guess, but it seems to tie everything together okay."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“I cut up and beat up monsters and study mystical arts devised through inhumane experimentation. I drink blood to stay alive, and gave my aunt a Faustian bargain to save her life.”

“You mean aside from beating up criminals in dark alleys with my bare hands?” she asked with a smile.

”you should keep your distance.”

”just a little bit closer won’t hurt. It feels good to feel ‘normal’ again..””

“Oh, this is ridiculous,” she said, coming around the booth to sit next to Daniel instead of across.

“I’m studying a little, meditation, if you can believe that. And I’m looking to get involved in mental healthcare, not sure exactly how yet. How about you?” she asked.

[Daishain]

"Good work Gabe." Karl keeps looking through the files, "Its a long shot that he'll know something useful, but the kid was just given excellent reason to share anything he does know. He probably wouldn't talk to the cops, we might have better luck. Err, maybe Anna will have better luck, I won't pretend to understand that sort."

[Bennosuke]

Daniel stiffens for a moment as Anna changes sides and closes proximity. His body heat feels so inviting, even though the two are not touching. Daniel's face blushes, causing his mortal scent to blossom like a well aerated wine or a roast on the flame. "Oh, nothing much," Daniel chuckles, trying his best to appear comfortable, "Things are going very well with Ariel... my uh, girlfriend." His face is now purple, and he stares at Anna very nervously. "We may even be moving in together soon," he adds.

************************************************** *******************

"That sort?" Gabe asks mirthfully. But he grins under Karl's praise before shrugging and asking warmly, "So is there anything else we can accomplish." There is an edge to the man's voice, as if to imply that by doing as instructed he may be fed again soon.

[Daishain]

Karl nods, but he doesn't give any hint of acknowledgement of Gabe's hint, "I would like to get access to Spooky's computer files. Have a recommendation on some means of rapidly copying from his computer?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna

The vampire looked at the table and grew impossibly still for a long moment, then took a long, shuddering breath.

The unfairness of her situation crashed like a tsunami and she fought for control. The fact that she’d left him and her career to protect him from the Triads only to have him unknowingly follow her halfway across the world and drop this on her was almost too much to bear. Only the long years wondering when something like this might happen kept her from slaughtering everything in her path.

“You must be really happy then?” she asked, “tell me about her?”

She forced a smile, and tossed her hair, hoping to whatever unholy deities willing to listen that it at least looked halfway genuine.

[Erulasto]

The thrumb of Gabrielle's heartbeat was like a clarion call for Aisling, and she could feel her jaw tightening with a longing to tear into the Ghoul's flesh and drink her fill. It was intoxicating.

Aisling growled, the sound rumbling low in her throat as she turned her head away from Gabrielle as if that would quell the desire to feed on her. It was warring within.

"I...need to feed. I do not wish....to harm either of you...." Aisling said as she rose unsteadily on her feet. The Gangrel wanted to get out now, as fast as she could, and feed. But it was so tempting....


I figured a test to see if she can hold off her hunger is appropriate?

Would that be a flat willpower test? Or is it Composure and something else?

[Bennosuke]

Gabe grins, showing stained yellow teeth. "I'm good" he says, "but not that good." He gathers up the rest of his papers into a stack and leans back in his chair. With a shrug Gabe adds, "We do live in San Francisco. I'm sure you can find a hacker somewhere in this city. Didn't you once tell me the Nosferatu were pretty darn good for that?"

Standing up, Gabe throws the rest of his files under his shirt. "Anything else I can help with?" he asks, "otherwise, I've actually kinda got myself a hot date tonight." He winks at Karl, still grinning his yellow grin.

************************************************** **************

Daniel nods his head, clearly studying Anna's reaction to the best of his ability. "Oh yah," he says uncomfortably, "she's great. I mean you and here would totally get along, I'm sure." He tries his best to smile at Anna, but the look on his face ends up being more reminiscent of the rictus faces of a corpse in rigor mortis.

Daniel goes back to drink more, only to find his glass empty. He sets the martini glass down and bows his head. His hands begin to play upon the cheap glass, his attention seeming to be locked on the activity. Not looking up, Daniel says, "Actually... our meeting tonight made her pretty uncomfortable. I mean, she's not the jealous type, but can you blame her? We were engaged not too long ago." The statement is left to hang in the air, perhaps being contemplated or even pined by the young man. Very slowly, Daniel adds, "She actually asked me to not see you again."

Okay, I want to ask if you think this should merit a Frenzy check. Daniel is Anna's Touchstone, and agreeing to not see him again could be considered a threat to Anna's attachment with her Touchstone, so I believe it does. Anna's response to this otherwise has significant consequences; defending a Touchstone has mechanical benefits, and agreeing not to meet with Daniel does not mean she loses her Touchstone as Anna can instead choose to stalk him from afar. However, I do believe this is an appropriately dramatic scene with high stakes and can't wait to see how Anna responds.

************************************************** ********

Gabrielle stirs lightly as Aisling rises. From the other side of the room, Bernardo watches wordlessly, concern growing in the man's eyes.

So Anna still has half her blood pool, so she isn't starving starving. I don't think there is a clear mechanic to make you feed, other than Frenzy... though this is one area that VtM 5E actually addresses in interesting ways, they make hunger a much larger mechanic in the game. I don't think Frenzy makes much sense here, though Aisling does have her current condition, and is hungry so you could argue for a Frenzy check. I'd say play it however you want to for dramatic purposes, but understand that Gabrielle is already depleted so Aisling could seriously hurt her.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

not yet, Anna has had years of thinking about something like this possibly happening, and the target of her ire isn’t present, and daniel has not actually said he won’t see Anna again. He is here, he still wants to see her. She can salvage this...

Anna snorted.
“There’s a red flag,” Anna replied, referring to the attempted separation from friends.

“so that’s how it’s going to be, you b**ch?” Anna thought.

She was silent for a long, long moment. Then hit on an idea.

She flagged a waitress down for another drink for Daniel.

“So you told her you’re a man and can see whomever you wish, right?” Anna asked, “that you were confident she had enough trust in your relationship she wouldn’t be threatened by an occasional meetup with an ex?”

She smiled, of course he didn’t, and shifted a few inches away from Daniel.

“It’s okay. Just because we’re not getting married anymore doesn’t mean I don’t care about you,” she said, “I do, I care about you a lot. I want you to be happy. I don’t want this to be the last time we ever see each other.”

She spoke softly now, so he has to lean closer to hear.

“There’s things you should know, both of you, and you’ll see that, well, hopefully she won’t feel threatened anymore. I actually hope me and her can be friends eventually,” she said, “wouldn’t that be perfect? She won’t be constantly wondering if you’re out fooling around, and we can still see each other from time to time.”

“Let’s give it a try, okay?” she said, “and if that doesn’t work, then we’ll just go from there.”

presence + persuasion + will[roll0]

[roll1]
Feel free to add a bonus die or two of being an ex fiancé or a touchstone :)

“So tell me all about her!” Anna said, smacking Daniel on the arm, “I can’t believe you didn’t say anything!”

[Bennosuke]

Daniel seems to shudder as Anna begins to pour it on, his eyes suddenly a little foggy as the cocktail begins to work. Face still flushed, he orders another drink; something called a Hemingway Daiquiri, when the waitress arrives. Dumbly he asks, "Anna do you want anything to drink?"

Once the waitress has left, and Anna has finished her talk, Daniel nods his head, perhaps deep in thought. "Ya," he says slowly, "I think you're right. We can make it work." The statement seems to embolden Daniel, and he places a hand absent-mindedly on Anna's shoulder. He is grinning now, face crimson and lids heavy.


“So tell me all about her!” Anna said, smacking Daniel on the arm, “I can’t believe you didn’t say anything!”

His guard not fully dropped, Daniels says, "Oh, she's really cool, ya know. She's in law school, she wants to become a public defender... or something. She's very smart, and funny. I'm sure you two will get along well. But I mean, she's not Chinese, not that it matters, right?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“Sure, whatever you’re having,” she said.

“Or something?” Anna echoed with a grin, “is that the official term?”

“Of course it doesn’t matter!” Anna said, “is she a redhead like the mermaid? Let me see a pic.”
She huddled over the phone with him, as much to get a look at the girl as to see if Daniel would do anything about the proximity in his inebriated state.

”well, this could go one of a few ways,” Anna thought, “i sleep with Daniel tonight and Kiss him, he’ll never forget that, or I find out who this girl is and find some dirt on her and expose her, or blackmail her, or I guess I could just be happy for the new couple...”

“or you could slash her throat.”

presence + socialize: [roll0]
[roll1]

[Bennosuke]

(OOC: Don't worry about continuing to roll. We'll take your first roll as a significant success. Also, was that last bit about slashing her throat supposed to be said out loud??? )


“Or something?” Anna echoed with a grin, “is that the official term?”

Daniel shrugs and says, "Public Defender I think. I'm in Tech, not law" He gives Anna a wry grin, and then slightly more seriously adds, "It's a lawyer who is hired by the state to represents people accused of crimes, I believe. She wants to help people; wants to help the community."


“Of course it doesn’t matter!” Anna said, “is she a redhead like the mermaid? Let me see a pic.”
She huddled over the phone with him, as much to get a look at the girl as to see if Daniel would do anything about the proximity in his inebriated state.

Anna's Ex makes no attempt to separate himself as their shoulders press together, their heads almost close enough to kiss. "Oh no," Daniel says numbly, "she's a brunette." The pictures are of an olive skinned woman, maybe a year or two younger than Anna was when she was embraced. The girl has wild long brown curls, an aquiline nose and a heavy chest. Several of the pictures show her wrapped around Daniel, kissing his cheek, or holding hands or the like.

The waitress returns with two bright blue cocktails, and hands one to Anna. The drink smells saccharine sweet, laden with notes of cinnamon and citrus.

[Thundercracker]

too bad, that was a good roll.

No, italics are internal voice.

Anna Wu

She memorized the girl’s face. Definitely going to Facebook stalk her later.

“Cheers,” Anna said as their drinks arrived, putting the phone down on the table.
She smiled at him after the glasses were out of the way.

“Do you remember that time, you fell into the pool, and then pulled me in with you, up on that rooftop bar in Hong Kong?” she asked, switching to Cantonese.

She kept the drinks flowing to get Daniel to open up and lower his inhibitions, relying on nonverbal cues, nostalgia and their shared history to see if he would make any kind of move. If he did, she would reciprocate easily.

[Bennosuke]

Daniel clinks his glass with Anna, and even stops to take a photo with his smartphone. Then he takes a long slow sip from his drink. Placing the martini glass back on the table, Daniel laughs, face scarlet and says with excitement, "Oh ya! you were wearing a that white lacy T-shirt!" He laughs again, his face filled with a joy that Anna can only remember once having.

Daniel was clearly relaxing with Anna now, the discomfort created by time and circumstances slowly melting away. He wasn't becoming handsy or anything, he had never been terribly physically affectionate in public (that was much more an American phenomenon), but he was allowing Anna to close proximity, for the their legs to meet and for Daniel to be so close that Anna could hear the warm blood rushing through his neck and behind his eyes.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“This is so much fun,” Anna said.

“But I have to get up tomorrow,” she said.

”bad idea, don’t say it... you want to have a long term friendship with both of them, remember?” she thought.

“Drop me off?” she suggested almost as an afterthought.
“I mean, neither of us is good to drive right now, so I guess... ride in an Uber with me to my house?” she said.

[Bennosuke]

Daniel's face turns an even brighter red, his eyes now slightly out of focus. "You aren't going to have any of that?" he asks, pointing at Anna's drink, "you haven't even touched it!" Perhaps Daniel was deflecting, although he did always insist on Anna finishing something if he was going to treat her. He was going to pay for Anna!

Sure enough, Daniel was looking over Anna's shoulder, trying weakly to lock down a waiter.

[Thundercracker]

Anna picked up the glass and killed the entire thing. It settled in her stomach uncomfortably, but she could take care of that when she got home. Once there she would suggest Daniel come in, just to use the bathroom. She could do the same and get rid of the alcohol then. Then... one step at a time, she supposed.

“Let’s go,” she said, looking at him purposefully.

[Daishain]

Gabe grins, showing stained yellow teeth. "I'm good" he says, "but not that good." He gathers up the rest of his papers into a stack and leans back in his chair. With a shrug Gabe adds, "We do live in San Francisco. I'm sure you can find a hacker somewhere in this city. Didn't you once tell me the Nosferatu were pretty darn good for that?"

Standing up, Gabe throws the rest of his files under his shirt. "Anything else I can help with?" he asks, "otherwise, I've actually kinda got myself a hot date tonight." He winks at Karl, still grinning his yellow grin.

"I would really rather not involve any more kindred than I must in this, but if there's no alternative..."

"I'll figure out what I can, go have fun with your date Gabe."

Karl sends a quick pulse out to Aisling and Anna, asking for an update on what each is up to.
Dang it all, I didn't expect a tech illiterate character to be so frustrating. With physical access to a computer, you don't need a hacker, or even any special skills. Just another computer, a spare HD, and the right cords. Copying will take a while depending on size of the files and the speed of the hardware involved, but then you have your copy and can take your sweet time using easily downloaded password cracker tools (that again require no hacking skills whatsoever to use given physical access), to open the stolen files.

[Erulasto]

The Gangrel leaves in a flurry – madly scrambling from Gabrielle as fast as she can in order to keep the temptation at arm’s length. Despite her frustration and tension with the young woman, Aisling didn’t want anything bad to happen to Gabrielle.

Looking up at Bernardo with hungry eyes, she frowns.

”I…I have to go and feed, Bernardo. I am too….frustrated….to be around Gabrielle while I am hungry and I do not wish to be the reason for her – or your – pain.”

Aisling tries to remember when she’d fed from Bernardo last – whether she could safely take a bit of blood from him if only to tide her over until a more substantial feast could be found.

[Bennosuke]

The drink does not go down easily; it had been years since Anna had put alcohol in her mouth, but she does a good job of hiding it. "Damn", Daniel says grinning. He follows Anna out of the booth and hastily pays the tab. Daniel places an arm around Anna, stumbling on numbed legs. He makes a noise somewhere between a sigh and a giggle then says, "I'm so glad to see you Anna. I'm so glad we did this." He pulls out his phone and opens up a car service application, "What's your address? Wow, how do I not know where you live in this city?"


Kar's post: Karl sends a quick pulse out to Aisling and Anna, asking for an update on what each is up to.

So help me out with closing this up. What is Anna's plan at this point?

************************************************** **********

"Thanks boss", Gabe says with a tired grin. Shuffling out the door, Gabe says, "Let me know if you need anything else. I won't be up all night... most likely" and with this he gives Karl a little wink, "but I can always try to take care of it in the morning."

I may have misunderstood you (and am also likely more computer illiterate than you), but I thought you meant getting files off Spooky's computer remotely, not with the physical hard drive. If you want Karl to speak up to clarify we can continue the conversation. However, remember that as a merit, Gabe can only do so much for Karl every scene.

************************************************** ***********


Kar's post: Karl sends a quick pulse out to Aisling and Anna, asking for an update on what each is up to.

It was hard for Aisling to focus, hard to try to remember under the weight of her rage. The Gangrel thought she had fed off of and fed Bernardo recently, but even the last few nights had been a strange eternity.

Bernardo says little but moves to Gabrielle, putting himself between the vampire and the mortal. The ghoul's eyes were filled with a sudden concern that was bordering on fear.

[Thundercracker]

Anna

When daniel went to pay, Anna called an Uber.

Reply to Karl: busy, talk later.

“It’s alright, I’ve already got one,” she said, “but it’s <insert address>.”
She linked arms with him and exited the bar to catch their ride.

[Erulasto]

The guttural growl that rumbled up Aisling's throat seemed disturbing from someone her size, but the Beast lent it strength. Skittering back a few steps, the Gangrel could at least remember for the moment that these were not people she wished harm upon.

Instead, Aisling turned viper-quick, and burst out of their haven and into the night.

The hunt was on.

There was a mortal out there who was going to have a very bad evening.

The shadows were her friends tonight, and the Gangrel clung to them like a life-line as she skulked around the periphery of populated areas, looking for wayward strays whom she could pluck off the street in a moment of weakness.



Wits 4 + Survival 3 (Hunting 2)
[roll0]

Parkour to get there quicker.
Dex 3 + Athletics 2
[roll1]

[Bennosuke]

The uber ride took Anna and Daniel back to her relatively spacious, but unsecured private apartment. Daniel feigned naivete upon Anna's invite, "to see her home" and what happened next was practically an inevitability.

Afterwards Anna lay in a sea of bed sheets, still entwined with Daniel. She was covered in sweat and heat, both from Daniel and in her body's best facsimile of mortality. The two had shared a bed so many times like this, and Anna tried to saver this moment as best as she could. Daniel's eyes were half mast, his breathing deep and slow, his fingers wrapped around Anna's. She had not been so close to to her mortal life, and Anna was left with both a near mortal happiness and an immortal emptiness.

Still out of breath, Daniel whispered, "I can't believe we did this," but he was smiling warmly. Giving Anna a tight squeeze, Daniel said, "Let's stay like this all night."

So the one thing I will require is a subterfuge roll to get out of staying with Daniel. He's drunk (and maybe still a little horny), and now that he'se with Anna, does not want to let her go. I didn't want to roll for you, because I figured you may want to use a WP for it. When Anna separates from Daniel the scene will be over. Please list the number of Blood points taken and make your roll.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

anna would take 2 to go back to full. And if this guy is still awake then maybe he’s not quite human either.
“Okay. I missed this so much,” Anna said, “trying to keep distance was so hard. I just... I don’t think I can do it anymore. Let’s not talk about it now. Right now, I just want to enjoy this.”

She stayed with him for some time, maybe 20 or 30 minutes, relishing her success. Her brain tried to interject with its concerns but she ignored it for the time being, content to simply exist in the present and forget about her larger problems and the bigger mess she was potentially creating.

“Bathroom,” she said, extracting herself from his arms.

While in the bathroom she decided to take a shower and wash off the residue from their session.

”mistress, I can be his mistress, still see him from time to time, and he’ll keep me a secret,” she thought, “lots of guys have mistresses, I’m pretty sure my dad had one...”

Stepping out of the bathroom, she checked if he was awake for a second round. If so, she happily indulged him, and if not, she quietly dressed and left the house, but not before sending him a note:

“set up the meeting with Ariel, or call me first, there’s very important things I need to tell you. I’ll be out of touch most of the day but will get back to you when I have access again.”

subterfuge: [roll0]
10 again: [roll1]
Presence is 3 dice, manipulation is 4, not sure what’s more appropriate.

Anna would return to the bar to retrieve her car.

[Bennosuke]

The shower's heat is inviting, needed, but its false vitality is nothing like the act that Anna had just committed. Daniel's life blood was deep inside her, warming her and making her whole again if just for a moment. For the time, everything was right in the world and Anna felt almost alive again. She was smiling in the first time in a long time, just out of happiness.

When Ann has returned to the bedroom, hair still drying and sticking to her face and neck, Daniel is just barely awake. Remembering a past life, Anna coos the man to sleep listening to has steady but racing heartbeat until he is no longer conscious. She leaves her note, and slips out the door, locking it behind her to protect the man she loves.

This is the end of Anna's interlude. She has defended her Touchstone and would regain a willpower but as the scene has restarted, Anna's willpower pool is full. She takes two blood points, leaving Daniel with two lethal wounds and likely a very bad headache. His stamina is 2 so he does not take the drained condition. I would say manipulation is appropriate, so it would be five dice, pulling your first 10 again dice up into your original dice pool that is an exceptional success. I'm ruling Daniel has the Swooning Condition as applied to Anna, which gives Anna 2+ on any social roll involving him.

Anna gains one beat for the completion of the scene. I have updated your character box. I will try to wrap up the other players' interludes (each should be one to two posts away from completion... just hope they are around this weekend), and I appreciate your patience.

[Daishain]

Karl nods, "Tomorrow evening then."

Unsure what he wishes to accomplish this night, and with the others apparently busy, Karl heads out to hunt. Best to do so before one is truly hungry after all. He stalks through his favorite hunting grounds looking for someone vulnerable

Going for a simple stalk and snag. Draining 3 BP to fill up if successful, Dex + stealth + obfuscate spec [roll0]
ten again[roll1]

[Thundercracker]

Anna sent a text to Karl: “free now, everything okay?”

While she was on her way, she also pulled up Daniel’s Facebook to see if she could find Ariel, and her last name.

[Bennosuke]

It took Karl surprisingly long to find a good bar with a large enough single bathroom to use. Calling on Obfuscate he let himself into the bathroom and turned off the light, leaving the door unlocked. After drawing on some straining patience, a middle aged man in a light grey suit that matched his salt and pepper hair let himself in. Karl waited like a trapdoor spider, looming directly over the man in the dark, as he closed and locked the door, and began fumbling for the lights. Heightened vision in the dark allowed Karl to see the man's diamond studded rolex and take in his musky cologne, during those few deliciously extended seconds of panic.

Just before the man (perhaps he was some sort of business executive) reached the light switch, Karl pounced. The man did not even have time to curse or cry out before Karl's fangs were sunk deep into the side of the man's neck, freeing the highly pressurized life from his carotid artery. The Mekhet fed deeply, glutting himself on the sweet tangy blood till he felt sated and tingled with vitality. The man moaned as Karl withdrew...

So I took some creative liberty with the scene to keep things moving and because I was lacking more specifics regarding what the Dex + Stealth roll meant. We will call this the end of Karl's interlude. Feel free to post once to describe how Karl leaves the victim (does he smash his head in and steal his wallet to make it look like a robbery?). Karl has replenished his blood pool to 10. Karl also gains two beats, one for the interlude scene and one for Gabe's investigation into MS13. Please see the OOC thread.

************************************************** *************

Anna made her way back to the Cotiere's haven in Seacliff. Facebook made 'researching' Ariel ridiculously easy. A quick browse through Daniel's profile for pictures of the couple (god they look so happy together!), found Ariel Vicarelli. Her profile was pictures of her and Daniel, pictures of her hiking, pictures of her doing yoga. Anna would be meeting with the others soon.

[Bennosuke]

The guttural growl that rumbled up Aisling's throat seemed disturbing from someone her size, but the Beast lent it strength. Skittering back a few steps, the Gangrel could at least remember for the moment that these were not people she wished harm upon.

Instead, Aisling turned viper-quick, and burst out of their haven and into the night.

The hunt was on.

There was a mortal out there who was going to have a very bad evening.

The shadows were her friends tonight, and the Gangrel clung to them like a life-line as she skulked around the periphery of populated areas, looking for wayward strays whom she could pluck off the street in a moment of weakness.



Wits 4 + Survival 3 (Hunting 2)
[roll0]

Parkour to get there quicker.
Dex 3 + Athletics 2
[roll1]



Aisling was out on the streets, quickly making her way out of the haven's neighborhood. Her mind continued to cycle over and over through her rage, like the wheels of some hell-bound carriage. She was leaping rooftops on silent bare feet, moving through the urban jungle of San Francisco like some reinvented predator.

It was not long, maybe a half hour, as Aisling moved between the roofs of the flat apartment complexes of the Outer Richmond that Aisling came upon an old woman. She shuffled down the well lit street, her back stooped low, her thin straw hair covered in a fine silk scarf.

Aisling dropped to street level, landing on all fours without even the slightest thud. Staying in the shadows, she followed the woman till she passed under a dead streetlamp. The night was quiet here, and Aisling was upon the woman before she could startle or cry out.

Aisling got 3 successes. I went with Dex+Stealth which had seven dice matching the number you rolled. This is a human. Please feel free to give a little post, and number the amount of blood Aisling is going to take.

[Erulasto]

The scent of the old woman’s blood wasn’t as palatable as the Gangrel had hoped. It was thin. Weak. But it would suffice. While Aisling wasn’t in the grip of the Beast’s frenzy, the wildness was still there, burning below the surface. Perhaps she could have been cognizant enough to be more precise – less bestial – but it didn’t matter at the moment.

Falling upon the woman, Aisling wrapped her thin arms and legs around the woman to pin her arms to her sides and prevent much of a struggle while she bit into the flesh of her prey’s neck and began to drink.

When she had taken her fill, Aisling took a long look at the old woman. It was, after all, the law of the wild. The old and the weak were taken to thin the herd and allow the strong to prosper. Bending down, Aisling took the silk scarf and wrapped it around her own neck before disappearing back into the night and beginning the trip back to the Haven.



Aisling is taking three blood points. I know it’s a heavy toll, especially for an older woman, and while I may want her to take it easy, I can see the bestial condition causing some impulse control in this situation.

[Bennosuke]

Aisling left the woman unconcious, but nowhere near dead. She could have taken more. She wanted to take more. Perhaps she should have taken more. These thoughts too poured over and over in the Gangrel's mind as she stalked back to the Haven.

[Bennosuke]

Act 2 Scene V

“A day will come when you think yourself safe and happy, and suddenly your joy will turn to ashes in your mouth, and you'll know the debt is paid.”

-George R.R. Martin

Three vampires stood out on the roof of their haven, looking out over the roiling sea to the North extending into the Western coastline, and the honeycomb of lights and shadow that made up the city-scape to the East. The fog was heavy this evening, insulating them in their conversation. Their dead bodies were numb to the cold. Endless nights were theirs if they could sort out the matters at hand, and lord knew there were many of them.

Bernardo was begrudgingly waiting downstairs with Gabrielle. The female Ghoul was still asleep, likely completely oblivious to her current danger as the monsters over her bed spoke.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“So what happened with Gabrielle?” she asked.

[Erulasto]

The Gangrel’s shoulders sagged in frustration as she huffed a deep sigh to Anna’s line of questioning. The Ghoul was a touchy subject at the moment, and even with her belly fuller than it had been, Aisling found the wildness hard to shake.

”She went dancing. Used the gifts Estella’s blood gave her to enthrall many patrons of the club. Gabrielle is….angry…that we do not seem like we are caring much for finding the truth behind Estella’s demise.”

Aisling paused thoughtfully.

”She may be…partly…correct? But she is not handling it well and has no patience.”

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Like a spoiled child,” Anna said, “maybe next time she can fight off a trio of kindred using blood magic against her. This better not result in a Masquerade breach. Just a humble suggestion Aisling, but I think it might be best to ensure she is bonded as soon as possible.”

Anna pulled out her phone.

“I was looking forward to receiving the invitation to the memorial for Estella you were planning, only to hear you were out partying and abusing her gifts to you. How disappointing. If you didn’t want to do it, you could have said something.”

She showed the message to Aisling and Karl before sending it to Gabrielle, hesitating if either of them caution her against it.

[Daishain]

Karl nods in agreement with Anna's assessment of the situation, "Yes, bond her as swiftly as you can. If she continues to be a liability, and we don't do something first, someone will deal with her in a very unpleasant fashion, and probably come after us as well."

[Thundercracker]

Anna nodded.
“It’s her choice,” she said.

“Karl, I have another private matter for your firm to investigate, not a huge priority, when you have time,” Anna said, “I will pay your standard rate of course.”

“I should let you both know I’ve requested the Ordo’s assistance in securing domain and legal control of a mental institution,” Anna said, “we need to be able to provide a safe and secure source of blood, to reduce potential Masquerade breaches.”

[Erulasto]

The Gangrel nods slowly, a small crease of a frown on her face at the suggestions from Karl and Anna. They were right however. Gabrielle needed to be a bit more docile if this was going to work.

Aisling had no objections to the message that Anna had sent, though the Gangrel knew she was going to need to sit down with the Ghoul sooner rather than later and have some words.

"I am to be inducted in the Circle of Crone, myself, soon. I have found a sponsor - Alejandro Perez - and their laws prevent me from being targeted by another member of the Circle so this should stay Lady Blackstar's hand for the moment. Though if she was willing to attack me before the Prince, I cannot say it will be a permanent solution." Aisling says at length to the other two Kindred.

[Bennosuke]

The name Alejandro Perez rings familiar to both Karl and Anna. Karl had thought the vampire to be rather foppish, and likely had been a homosexual as a mortal; that thought had been rather distasteful to Karl, though possibly a little less so now. Alejandro had been seemingly standoffish if not downright rude to Anna on a few occasions, and registered as a self important and superficial braggart. Neither one had such a negative opinion to likely protest Aisling's new ally, but it wasn't something to be celebrated either.

In the distance a car horn howls in protestation, and somewhere a large bird takes flight into the night.

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“I’m also going to speak with my Sire, see if he has any insight into finding who tampered with Estella’s phone,” Anna said, “we’re we ever able to break into it to see who she was in contact with before she vanished?”

“Are there any new developments with ms-13?” she asked Karl.

[Daishain]

"Two possible new leads there, Our friend at the bar has an unusual contact. A white collar type under suspicion of dealing designer drugs. Its tough to say exactly what they're doing together. I would guess one of two things, Either there's a side business deal, or its something that needs a more legitimate looking partner like money laundering."

Karl hands over the short version of his notes as he continues, "Then there was that beating victim from last night. A nobody really, but it looks like he got caught up in the drugs there, and fell out of favor somehow. Probably by coming up short on cash. I checked up on him at the hospital, he's in bad shape, but it looks like he'll live through it. Its a bit of a long shot, but he may have seen or heard something useful. Actually, I was hoping that you would speak with him Anna. The little I can guess of his personality suggests that he's more likely to spit in my face than help, in spite of how the gang treated him."

[Erulasto]

The abrupt sound of bird and horn caused Aisling to start suddenly, body tightening in apprehension. Despite the recent feeding, Aisling still felt the irritability of the Beast bleeding through into her wakening thoughts.

It took a moment for her to assess, and seemed to allow her to realize it wasn’t an immediate threat.

”Not that I am aware of….” Aisling answered Anna regarding the phone.

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“Of course I’ll talk to him,” Anna replied to Karl, “do we know his name or how to find him?”

[Daishain]

"Carlos Medina, and he's receiving care at San Francisco General Hospital. Based on his condition when I snuck in to find out if he'd survive, he's going to be staying there for a bit longer at least."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Could be tough if he’s in a hospital,” Anna said, “I’ll see if I can get in but we may have to pay him a visit after he gets out.”

“Is there anything else we need to discuss?” Anna asked, “I want to speak with Gabrielle... if it’s alright with you.”

She looked at Aisling quedtioningly.

[Bennosuke]

(OOC: As we haven't heard anything from Erulasto in a little bit, I am must going to move things along, and players can finish up the decision in spoiler/aside posts so that we don't lose too much steam).

The trio's conversation is interrupted by the sound of approaching bird's flapping wings, punctuated by a few piercing caws. Oily black feathers of the large crow briefly eclipse the moon and few visible stars. The bird circles overhead three times before dive bombing and landing with a few ginger hops on one leg, in between the three vampires. The raven, for it's far too big to be a crow, stares up at the three, looking from one Kindred to the next, before its big black eyes lock on Karl. It crows three times, each shrill announcement of different pitch and length, as if there were a language to its noises.

The raven hops towards Karl on one leg, before releasing with its other scaled appendage a roll of paper that clatters to the ground loudly. The bird crows again at Karl, as if encouraging him to take the parcel.

The paper, just a piece of printer paper, is wrapped around a key ring with three different keys. The paper is has writing on it in flowery cursive, "Schultz's haven", this is followed by an address. The location is in the Marin Headlands, a strip of land along the coast line just on the other side of San Francisco on the Golden Gate Bridge. The Headlands are mostly marsh and beach, and Karl and Anna have likely been around long enough to know about the few cabins and camp sites that exist in the area. After the address, the letter continues, "Six Ghouls. Video surveillance security. Weakest just before dawn." This is followed by the largest writing on the paper, swelling to take up the majority of the page, "Enjoy!"

The raven ***** its head sideways at Karl, seeming to grin up at him with it's large yellow beak and round black eyes, before shrieking one more time.

[Thundercracker]

“Trap?” Anna asked.

[Daishain]

Karl gets a big grin as he looks at the materials. In response to Anna's question he says, "That is a possibility, one we'll need to assess. In the meantime, this is a very interesting development."

Looking down at the bird, he says, "My thanks to you, and to the one responsible for this."

He waits until the bird is gone and well out of earshot before continuing, "Whether or not it is a trap, someone is attempting to use us by goading me into taking action against the sheriff. This serves someone else's motives"

"But no matter who sent it or why, there should still be a chance to turn it to our advantage. Even if it is a trap, a trap can often be reversed against those who set it with the right foreknowledge."

[Erulasto]

Lost in thought, it takes Aisling a moment to sense the raven's presence, though when she does her head snaps towards it with a start. Glacial blue eyes wide, the Gangrel watches the large bird drop the message into Karl's hand.

The news is welcome, but Aisling doesn't vary her gaze from being upon the oily black bird. Instead, she slowly raises slender fingertips to gently graze along a wing, movements cautious to not startle the bird.

"You are a pretty bird, yes?" Aisling coo's.


Composure + Animal Ken

[roll0]

[Bennosuke]

The bird hops back from the Gangrel's cold touch, as if surprised by Aisling's presence as well. It flaps its wings out and puffs its chest, stepping up and down, first on one leg, then the other as it stares at Aisling.

[Erulasto]

Scowling, Aisling retracts her hand from the raven and threads her fingertips together as she clasps her hands in front of her calmly. Tilting her head to the side, the Gangrel dips into the feral aspects of her Beast, and brings unbidden memories to the surface of the language of birds.



Animalism 1 = Feral Whispers

Manipulation 1 + Animal Ken 3 + Animalism 1

[roll0]



When her lips part, the sounds that flow past are anything but human.

"Who bid you bring us the message, pretty little thing?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“As fascinating as this is, I think I’m going to pay our slumbering friend a visit,” Anna said, reentering the house.

She skipped down the steps into the kitchen and filled up a cup of water.

“I like you Bernardo,” Anna said, “don’t interfere. She is safe from me.”

“for now,” Anna thought.

She took the water to where Gabrielle was sleeping and locked the door behind her, then proceeded to turn on the lights and unceremoniously dump the cold liquid over the ghoul’s head.

“Get up,” Anna said as Gabrielle sputtered.

Fangs extended to let the ghoul know the Kindred meant business. Anna will roll her out of bed and onto the floor if necessary.

“I thought you cared about her, instead I find out you’re off clubbing,” Anna said, “disrespecting Aisling. Disrespecting Estella’s vitae. Do you have any idea?”

Anna glared at Gabrielle, her sword swinging loosely at her hip.

“Honestly I couldn’t believe it when you chose to drink from her over me,” Anna said, “but that’s neither here nor there. You had better get on your knees and beg forgiveness from her. Literally! Aisling is from the thirteenth century! Karl was on the other side in world war 2. Neither of them tolerate insubordination. Clean yourself up, present yourself to Aisling, and pray she’ll allow you the privilege of drinking from her again, instead of going all dark ages on you.”

[Bennosuke]

The bird takes another awkward hop back as Aisling opens her mouth and lets loose a series of crows. It is at this moment that Anna simply shrugs and leaves.


“As fascinating as this is, I think I’m going to pay our slumbering friend a visit,” Anna said, reentering the house.

The raven stops its posturing, pulling its wings in and bowing its head. Shiny black feathers along the bird's chest and neck still stick out at odd angles, ruffled from the activity. Its head rotates on its long avian neck till the big black eyes are almost pointing down as it studies the Gangrel. Then in response to Aisling's question it says, "The Lord Corpse. He lives in a big mansion with shiny glass and much light. His nest is not far from here. He bid me take the shiny metal here. He spoke like you corpse. Just like you corpse."

All Karl can understand is Aisling and the raven squawking back and forth at each other, though he can appreciate the bestial look that has come over the young girl's face as she calls on her Discipline.

************************************************** ***********

Bernardo takes no action to intercede, though he does watch Anna anxiously as she closes the door behind her.

The water drenches the still dressed Gabrielle, soaking her clothes, and bed sheets. The girl is slow to respond, bringing a hand up in front of her face, sluggish and trembling. "Ooooh" she moans, and it takes several seconds before she starts to sit up and wipes her tangled black hair from her face. The hair has caught flakes of now running makeup, turning strands a whitish pink.

It is another few seconds when she begins to look around, still moaning. And then another few seconds before she recognizes Anna. The girl seems to initially not be registering what Anna is saying, and the vampire is forced to repeat herself as the girl begins belly aching about her splitting headache.

Finally, after Anna's words eventually get through, Gabrielle crosses her arms over her chest (and now the girl is shivering with cold), "Why should I? Why should I help any of you? We need to find Estella. Maybe she's still alive... didn't you say that Karl's visions were tampered with?
"

If you are going to continue with the same line of approach, could I get a Presence+ Intimidation roll? Otherwise, if we are going to try more reasoning with the girl, maybe Manipulation + Persuasion.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

Anna smacked Gabrielle across the head, not a hard slap, but enough to make someone with a severe headache wince.

"Get this through your head," Anna said, "you don't tell me what to do."

"The three kindred who ambushed us the other night are probably looking for you and Bernardo right now," Anna continued, "if they catch you, you will most likely be tortured to death. You would be aware of this had you answered your phone instead of throwing a tantrum. Every second I have to spend tracking you down or worrying about you getting kidnapped or breaking the Masquerade is a second I'm not looking for Estella, and the trail is getting cold."

"I'm not going to tell you again, clean yourself, go apologize to Aisling, and take tonight to sober up," Anna said.

presence + intimidate: [roll0]
10 again: [roll1]

[Bennosuke]

Anna's blow causes the ghoul's eyes to open wide, even as her hair flies and her cranium rolls sideways from the force. She sits staring up at Anna for a long moment, eyes wide open, mouth agape. Then Gabrielle stammers; once, then twice. "Okay", she finally manages to get out. The girl rises, legs trembling and hand trembling, and face all too pale.

She places a hand on Anna, perhaps to steady herself, and looks into the vampire's eyes with yellowed sclera cracked with bloody rivers. When she speaks, her voice reeks of alcohol, and rotten mortal smells, "Okay. I'll do it. I'll go apologize to Aisling." Then she moans, clutching at her chest as her heart pounds unsteadily. "I'm so hungry," she whines as her grip on Anna's shoulder tightens, "Can I... can I have just a little of your blood?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Remember how this feels the next time you get the urge to boil away vitae for no reason,” Anna said, “you’re drinking from Aisling, it wouldn’t be appropriate for you to drink from me. Besides, you don’t need vitae, you need eggs, bacon and toast first. And water.”

She helped support Gabrielle out of the bedroom and into the kitchen and into a chair.

“Bernardo,” she said, “you know Aisling best, can please you help Gabrielle get some healthy food into her system, eggs, bacon, toast, that sort of thing, and plenty of water, and maybe give her advice on how to apologize to Aisling if you’re so inclined?”

“I’m going to go chase down a lead on Estella,” she said, “do you need help before I go?”

[Daishain]

Karl watches bemused at the exchange, but stays quiet for now.

[Bennosuke]

A whine starts in Gabrielle's throat, but she stifles it. Her cheek is beginning to redden in a five pointed star where Anna's hand landed. Gabrielle glares as Anna leaves the room, her pout turning to somewhat rotten as she sways with one hand against the wall.

As Anna enters the next room, Bernardo watches her with cautious concern.


“Bernardo,” she said, “you know Aisling best, can please you help Gabrielle get some healthy food into her system, eggs, bacon, toast, that sort of thing, and plenty of water, and maybe give her advice on how to apologize to Aisling if you’re so inclined?”

“I’m going to go chase down a lead on Estella,” she said, “do you need help before I go?”

"Uh, sure," Bernardo says, his eyes darting to the room behind Anna to quickly study his fellow ghoul, "I'll do what I can."

Anna makes her way downstairs and out the haven, securing the new system behind her.

So where to now?

************************************************** *****

(OOC: So I am going to move this along. We can retroactively finish the scene as needed, but it looks like Erulasto is a bit busy ATM, and I'd rather not hold the game up too much)

Aisling finishes her squawking conversation with the large bird, which extends its massive wings and sets off into the night. Once the bird is gone, the Gangrel says, "I think the key was sent by Nicholas."

So where to now?

[Thundercracker]

“Thanks Bernardo, you’re the best,” Anna said.

Anna leaned over next to Gabrielle as she sat unsteadily in the kitchen chair, and cupped the girl’s cheek.

“You’re part of this family, but you’re still new,” Anna said, “learn from us, and Bernardo. I don’t want to see anything bad happen to you.”

The vampire planted a kiss against the reddening skin and gave the girl a pat on the head.

“Let me know about the memorial,” Anna said as she departed.

presence + empathy: [roll0]
10 again: [roll1]

Once outside she called her sire from her car.

“Kenji, sire,” she said, “I need some advice, do you have time to talk? Are you at your haven?”

[Bennosuke]

The kiss leaves Gabrielle with a shocked look on her face, big rheumy eyes staring out behind running dark eyeliner. She says nothing more as Anna departs.

I'm giving Anna a beat for working to "Gain Safety and Security" by trying to rope down Gabrielle. The beat is reflected in Anna's Character box on the first page of the OOC thread. She now has two beats and two XP

Outside, the phone rings several times before Kenji Tanaka responds. The man's voice is measured and warm in response to Anna's question. "Anna dear, good to hear from you childe," he starts, "I do have plans for the night, but if it is important, I will always make time for you. Perhaps we could meet at the Wyrm's Nest? I have business to attend to with The Covenant, and I know you are meeting with Lady Miho nightly now to study the Coils of the Dragon!" Anna can hear her Sire's triumphant pride in this last remark.

[Thundercracker]

“Yes,” Anna replied, “she is tutoring me, and I am trying to take her lessons to heart. I will meet you at the wyrms nest. Thank you Kenji.”

[Bennosuke]

"My pleasure my childe," Kenji says before adding, "Jya, mattana" a Japanese phrase that Anna was pretty sure meant something like, "see you later". Then the line went dead and Anna was in her car, racing through the evening traffic to the Wyrm's nest on Octavia.

The large Victorian mansion was well lit, and seemed to warmly smile at Anna as she passed the gate and walked down the stone path, then up the stairs to meet Julian, who was standing guard on the porch. The Daeva watched as Anna approached, and said, "Welcome Anna. I take it you are here to see Lady Miho?" There seemed to be a touch of hurt in the Dragon's voice. Yes Julian was probably one of the most dangerous vampires in the city, but Anna was suddenly struck by how sensitive he seemed. Could he really feel slighted that Anna had given up her lessons with the Sworn of the Axe, to study with Lady Miho?

[Daishain]

Karl nods in response to Aisling's revelation, "Well, that at least reduces the chances of it being a trap. Shall we see to Gabrielle? We must ensure a repeat of last night never happens again."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“i think this might be the most emotion I’ve ever seen from Julian,” Anna thought.

“Not until later,” Anna said.

She texted Kenji: “I have arrived, let me know when you’re free.”

She joined Julian on the porch, turning to face the stone path alongside him.

“How have you been?” she asked.

[Erulasto]

Aisling watches the raven fly off, before turning and giving Karl a nod. Her gaze hardens somewhat as she thinks back to the interactions with Gabrielle the night before. The insolence. The ungrateful little ghoul.

”Yes. You are correct.” She grumbles. ”We have too many enemies in the shadows to worry about a wayward child. I am not inclined to give too many chances.”

With that said, Aisling sweeps back through the haven, seeking out Gabrielle and Bernardo with a scowl marring her face.

[Bennosuke]

Downstairs, Karl and Aisling find Bernardo working at the small kitchen stove cooking a few eggs. The smell is repulsive to the two vampires though it clearly doesn't bother the others. Gabrielle is sitting at the small folding table, her two hands clenched around a tall glass of water. The girl's eyes are glassy, but she turns her attention to the two vampires as they enter with a jerky anxiety that belies her apprehension.

Bernardo looks up from the eggs he is frying to watch as the two Kindred approach. "I'm making Gabrielle some breakfast," the ghoul announces with wavering voice; then adds jokingly, "Can I make you two something?" He offers a half-hearted chuckle that dies in his throat quickly. Gabrielle scowls at Bernardo, but says nothing to him or two the two Kindred.

************************************************** ****

Julian shrugs, looking out over the city street as cars roll by lazily. "Not bad. Still getting ready to go back to the Art Museum. Lady Miho has been very helpful." The words are said flatly, as if he were repeating a script. He offers a half-hearted smile to Anna and then says, "Well, I won't keep you. Mr. Tanaka is here, and told me to send you up when you arrive. He's in the Moon Room."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Julian,” Anna said, placing a hand lightly on his shoulder, “I must master my Beast or it will master me. I can’t fight well if I can’t control myself. I’ll come back, I promise.”

She left him to seek out her sire inside, finding the Moon room easily and knocking on the door.

[Bennosuke]

Stepping back into The Wyrm's Nest is like entering Anna's other home. The building is well lit and inviting, and she makes her way upstairs, exchanging greetings with other Dragons as she goes. The Moon Room is in the North East corner of the house, named for it's large circular window which looks out East over San Francisco. Tanaka's voice from inside beckoned Anna to enter.

Kenji Tanaka is dressed in a comfortable looking forest green tween jacket and a mustard yellow v-cut sweater. Anna's sire was a brick shaped man who was embraced in what was probably his 40's. His hair was just starting to thin and go grey, his dark and spotted face just starting to wrinkle. The vampire's eyes were always filled with a light that belied both a terrifying intellect and a thread of mischievousness. Kenji sat at a desk by the window, with a large and ancient book spread out in his lap as he pecked away at a keyboard attached to an ancient looking computer monitor.

The vampire swiveled in his leather office chair, and adjusted his wire rimmed spectacles to greet Anna. The Elder Mekhet grinned showing yellow near-rotted teeth, and Anna could smell the tobacco from Tanaka's cigarette habit even from across the room. Without rising he says, "Good to see you Anna. Please have a seat." He gestures to the floor, rather than to one of the many chairs or couches that line the room. "What was it you wanted to discuss?" he asks, as he quickly saved the document he was working on, and closed the file.

[Thundercracker]

“Hi Kenji, thanks for meeting. I’m working on something for Miho-san,” Anna said, “we used auspex to trace an item of Estella’s, the neonate who recently went missing... but it seems someone has used blood magic to tamper with the visions that come from the psychometric readings. Do you have any thoughts on who would have the capability or motivation to accomplish this?”

[Bennosuke]

Anna's sire squints his eyes till they are almost closed as he thinks the question over. "I am not familiar with such a power," he starts, his voice rough like the bark on an old tree, "though I imagine such a Devotion could be developed with the right application of Obfuscate and Auspex."

He relaxes and allows his eyes to open, nodding his head thoughtfully while he still works the question over in his mind. Then the corner of his mouth turns up in a half grin, causing crows feet to appear at the corners of his eyes. He leans forward towards Anna, and in a voice much lower, as if telling a secret, Tanaka says, "I imagine its just the sort of trick that Prince Gorman's cronies would employ. It wouldn't be the first time The Sheriff was accused of tampering with Kindred evidence..." and this last part he whispers, "and you do know what they say about The Prince's feeding habits of late."

[Thundercracker]

Anna leaned back, the corners of her lips tuned down in a small frown.

”does it even matter if someone is trying to manipulation you,” Anna thought, “you want the prince gone, if someone is trying to get you to help do what you would do anyway, why not?”

“That is,” Anna said, “wow.”

She shook her head.

“Thank you Kenji, there is one more thing,” Anna said, “I am requesting our primogen’s approval for the major boon, and I will ask for domain and legal control over a mental institution. First, are there any roadblocks you might be aware of, and second... lady miho sought me out to tutor, and she offered to arrange the meeting... do you know why she’s taken such an interest in me?”

She left the next question unasked: should I be worried?

[Daishain]

Karl looks to Aisling to take the lead here, the girl was her responsibility more than his. Chances are he'd make a mess of things trying to interfere. He was just here to loom a little and add weight to the gangrel's words.

[Bennosuke]

“That is,” Anna said, “wow.”

She shook her head.

Anna's sire smiles, nodding knowingly as his childe takes the information in.


Thank you Kenji, there is one more thing,” Anna said, “I am requesting our primogen’s approval for the major boon, and I will ask for domain and legal control over a mental institution. First, are there any roadblocks you might be aware of,

Kenji frowns and raises both hands imploringly, "Anna my Childe," he always started like this when giving bad news, "The clan owes you a debt, and you are certainly within your right to ask. But you are relatively new to the Covenant, and still uneducated in the Coils of the Dragon. You should be thankful that Lady Miho is taking you on to instruct you so. As your clout within the Covenant rises, and you prove yourself as a scholar of the Dragon's tail, such requests will be more happily approved. That said, I don't think anyone will stand in your way."


and second... lady miho sought me out to tutor, and she offered to arrange the meeting... do you know why she’s taken such an interest in me?”


Kenji shakes his head in the negative and says, "No. Perhaps she sees the same potential in you that I did when I chose to embrace you. Again, you should be thankful for the opportunity; Lady Miho is one of our greatest scholars."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Thank you Kenji, I know you’re busy. Is there anything you would ask of me?” Anna asked.

If he says no, Anna will thank him and depart and return to the haven, texting Karl on the way to let him know she’s on her way back.

On the way, she called her aunt Celestine.

“Hello auntie, how are you?” she asked.

calling an npc to give the other two pc’s time to wrap up their scene before rejoining.

[Erulasto]

Shoulders were tight with the tension that was in the room, and Aisling spared Bernardo a brief glance.

"No, thank you Bernardo. I am...fine." Aisling said, before turning her attention back to the Ghoul seated at the table. Aisling made her way across the room to stand before Gabrielle, eyes narrowed.

"You need to eat. To replenish your strength." Aisling stated, matter-of-factly as she caught the glare at Bernardo. "You are hungry, whether you want to admit it or not. Last night would have burned through much, I would wager."

Taking a seat across from Gabrielle, Aisling laced her fingers together idly while resting her hands comfortably on the surface.

"What happened after I left?"

[Bennosuke]

Kenji laces his hands together and rests them in his lap. "No, no requests," he says lightly, "just take your studies with Lady Miho seriously and show her the respect she deserves as one of the elite scholars in our Order."

He bids Anna goodbye, but as she leaves he adds, "Oh, my Childe... please do let me know before you submit your request for Boon fulfillment. I will do my best to assist you in your enterprise."

Later on the phone, it is actually Uncle Henry who picks up the phone. The man has a coarse throaty voice, formed by a back a day habit he still has not kicked despite his wife's cancer. "Anna dear! How are you doing? Thank you for coming over so often and taking care of my wife and my daughter. Are you free tonight? Perhaps we can have you over for dinner?"

************************************************** ***

Gabrielle stares at Aisling, her eyes hard and defiant despite her drained pallour. "My apologies Aisling," she says slowly as if struggling to get the words out, "I know the way I treated you last night was not wise... nor was it fair. I hope you will accept my apologies." The ghouls hands are shaking against her glass of water, and the moment she is finished, she races the glass to her mouth and lustily drains the glass before placing it down on the table with a loud thud.

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“Sorry uncle, I was on my way to my next appointment and I had some time to call,” Anna said, “how are you, how is everyone?”

[Erulasto]

Aisling rises from the table and steps around it slowly, like one would a wounded animal. The soft smile she wore was marred by the prominently visible fangs behind her lips, and there was still something wild just behind her deep, glacial blue eyes.

"Gabrielle...." Aisling said as she came face to face with the sitting Ghoul, "All is forgiven. I know you are struggling. I remember what it was like to lose....someone special to me. Lean on us and we will ease your demons. I promise."

Leaning down, Aisling placed a light kiss on Gabrielle's forehead before bringing her wrist to her mouth and drawing blood on her fangs. The fresh pooling of vitae on her wrist was offered gingerly to Gabrielle.

"Drink, and know we care."



If Gabrielle is fed twice in one night does that count as two feedings for the purposes of a blood bond? Or is it night by night.

[Bennosuke]

"Oh, we're just fine Anna," Uncle Henry says quickly with a sigh, "Better than fine actually. Your Auntie is doing amazingly, all things considered. You should come over this weekend. I know you have been visiting, but it has been too long since I got to see my niece. If not tonight, perhaps we can have you over tomorrow? Maybe we can do Dim Sum for brunch!"

************************************************** *************

Gabrielle recoils slightly as Aisling approaches, but when the vampire offers her a chance to drink, the ghoul reaches greedily for the cold bleeding arm. "Really?" her voice comes out high pitched and breathy, her eyes seeming to dart around the room as if to ask, "is it okay?" before pressing her warm mouth to Aisling's dead arm. The girl's pulling mouth sends shocks of burning pain through the cord like veins in Aisling's arm as she drinks.

[Daishain]

Karl is uncertain about the timing of this, he'd have stuck out for a fair bit longer and some more contrition from the ghoul before rewarding her return.

Then again, perhaps establishing the blood bond was the more important thing for now.

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“I’ve got something on tomorrow, but we’ll meet up soon,” Anna said, “it would be good to see you too. I’ll come over if I can, maybe Saturday night. I’ll call first if I can, I might be busy. Is auntie there?”

[Erulasto]

Aisling remains silent to Gabrielle's breathy, uncertain question, but a sharp hiss is drawn from the diminutive Gangrel as she allows her to drink.

After a moment or two, Aisling threaded her fingertips through Gabrielle's hair and drew the Ghoul away.

"That is enough, for now, sweet Gabrielle. There will be more, if you remember that we only want what's best for you." Aisling says, softly, using her thumb to wipe a bit of blood from the Ghoul's lips.

Turning to Karl, the Gangrel's lips quirk faintly, as she holds back a smile.

"With this new information....what do you make of it?"


Going to give Gabrielle 1 Blood point worth of Vitae. Less means more frequency, and then Aisling can secure the Bond quicker.

[Bennosuke]

“Saturday night sounds good honey” Henry responds. He then calls for Celestine, his voice coarse and bellowing as he calls for his wife.

When Anna’s aunt picks up the phone, her voice is lined with a subtle tension. “Hello Anna dear, how are you doing?”

****************************************

Gabrielle ‘s head rocks back as Aisling breaks their bond. The girl’s mouth is smeared with wet shiny crimson, her tongue still working. She sighs slightly, stoned and unaware of the world around her.

Bernardo watches the scene from the small kitchen countertop. His eyes are narrowed, his lips pursed.

I’ve docked the one blood point, and moved Gabrielle up to a second degree blood bond with Aisling.

[Thundercracker]

“I’m good,” Anna said, “busy, just wanted to check in and see how you’re feeling.”

[Bennosuke]

“Oh, I’m just fine,” Celestine responds, though her voice is hard and a little strained, “Did I hear that you will be joining us for dinner tomorrow night?” (OOC: I believe we are on Friday, but if not just assume she refers to the appropriate night). “It would be lovely to have you and share a meal.” The words sound forced and mechanical coming from Anna’s new Ghoul. It was unlikely the woman had burned through her new Vitae in the same way that Gabrielle had, but The Blood could be quiet addictive, and there was no telling hw badly it would affect Celestine.

She adds, “And Katie told me that you have been spending time with her. I appreciate how you have been looking out for our family dear. Thank you.” The way this is said is wholly different; Celestine’s voice suddenly dropping into a relaxed earnest tone.

[Daishain]

"If you mean this gift from Nicholas, it presents a great opportunity. You have not met Schultz yet, but he is a monster even amongst monsters, and has been a threat and a thorn in our side." Karl's voice grows ice cold and his eyes harden as he continues, "The man threatened the last of my living kin on this earth not long ago. It would not do to strike at the Sheriff directly, that would only incur the Prince's ire. But finding some manner of leverage over him should be possible, given access to his haven. With sufficient leverage, we can act to ensure he never bothers us again

[Erulasto]

"I have only met Schultz in passing. During my announcement by the Prince. But even then, I did not enjoy the presence of either." Aisling says with a shudder. "I will do what I can to ensure we are safe from their wickedness."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“I will try, auntie,” she said, “you’re the only family I will ever have.”

“Are you okay?” she asked, “are you keeping busy during the day?”

If the answer is anything but completely swamped with activity:
“I might have a job opportunity for you soon, if you’re getting bored,” Anna said, “something to help people, and keep you from going stir crazy, and make a bit of money as well. We can talk later if you’re interested, I’m almost at my destination. Let me know, love you! Oh, if you need _something_, text me and I’ll make an extra effort to stop by for dinner. Bye!”

Anna rolled up at the haven and entered the code to unlock the door before entering.

“I’m back,” she announced, “and I have some information. Did I miss anything?”

[Bennosuke]

“I will try, auntie,” she said, “you’re the only family I will ever have.”

“Are you okay?” she asked, “are you keeping busy during the day?”

There is a pause before Aunt Celestine responds to the question. When she does speak up, her voice is low and rushed. "Oh, I'm fine. Things are great!" she says with forced words. Perhaps there was pain behind the woman's voice, or maybe just anxiety, but it was clear that the ghoul was holding back.


If the answer is anything but completely swamped with activity:
“I might have a job opportunity for you soon, if you’re getting bored,” Anna said, “something to help people, and keep you from going stir crazy, and make a bit of money as well. We can talk later if you’re interested, I’m almost at my destination. Let me know, love you! Oh, if you need _something_, text me and I’ll make an extra effort to stop by for dinner. Bye!”

Celestine responds, "That would be good. I would like to know... more." As Anna rushes off the phone, she adds, "I'll see you Saturday dear."

[Erulasto]

"Would you like my help now in looking into this?" Aisling asks Karl, after a moments consideration.


When was Aisling supposed to meet Alejandro at the Crone gathering?

[Daishain]

"I would like to look into it tonight yes, and I would appreciate your support. I would not however expect excitement if I were you, all I have in mind is observation for now."

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“You want to bug the place?” Anna asked, “I spoke with someone, apparently the Sheriff has been known to tamper with evidence in this fashion in the past... are you sure bugging is all we should be doing?”

[Daishain]

"No, but whatever we do, I want to be very sure that we get it right. A mistake here could easily spell doom for us all."

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“I agree, we should be prepared, find out if there are any back doors, escape hatches, that sort of thing,” Anna said, “we should at least know the layout before we go in. Do you think you’ll be okay if you go inside by yourself? Honestly I think I’ll only get us caught.”

[Daishain]

"You proved quite capable at the bar, don't be afraid to trust the instincts that got you in and out of that place unscathed. But I am glad you're showing caution here."

"Lets leave the question of who goes in for later, once we've assessed the haven's weak points we can start planning an infiltration. It may even be a shapeshifter whose skills are most suited to part of that task." Karl looks at Aisling with this last.

[Erulasto]

"I have fed recently, so I can take the shape of bird or beast easily." Aisling says with a small, toothy smile. "Just tell me what it is that you wish for me to do. I do not have much experience with...I believe Bernardo called it a stake-out."

[Bennosuke]

The Cotiere drives out to the Marin Headlands (OOC: How many cars and who is driving please?). The drive across the towering and brightly lit Golden Gate Bridge is easy with little traffic. However, the act of leaving the confines of the city is unsettling, watching as the protective bars of the sky scrapers and tightly packed apartment buildings gives way to narrow roads running through winding hillsides.

Headlights become the only illumination (not that the Kindred need it) as the Cotiere exits the highway and pulls onto a narrow two lane, two direction road. From this side of the bridge, the night sky is much more visible. Though the drive is scenic, there are few trees or even green grasses. Instead, this area is somewhere between marsh and desert. The road passes under a long tunnel, before climbing up a series of hills and then finally plummeting into the valley of the Marin Headlands.

Now the Cotiere are the only ones on the abandoned roads. Stopping to view, the road winds down into a squat valley populated by a number of randomly placed cabins and trailers. Each cabin is maybe no more than a thousand square feet, wood paneled and protected by a redwood fence. One of these, if not many of them were supposedly owned by The Sheriff of San Francisco, and this territory was his.

(OOC: Everyone, please give me a perception roll at -3, and tell me what the next move is. )

[Daishain]

Driving an old Enterprise rental car with more than a little stench of cigarette smoke filling the cabin, Karl finds a place to park well away from the territory and kills the engine. He observes the area carefully as he gets out and starts retrieving the gear he brought, "Make sure to pay attention, no doubt Schultz has many eyes watching this place. He seems to like using ghouls, who should not be that difficult to avoid, but that's no reason for a lack of caution."

Resolve+composure-3 [roll1]
ten again [roll0]
Phew

[Erulasto]

Aisling rode with Karl in the back of his rental car silently staring out the window at the street lights flashing by. Lost in thought, it took her several moments to realize they had finally parked. Finally slipping out of the car, Aisling gave him a firm nod at his instructions.

Allowing her glacial blue eyes to sweep out across the approach, she tried to envision places where it would be easy to enter and where the best vantage points may be.

As she did so, Aisling began to call upon the power of her vitae, preparing to shift forms when she was called upon to do so.



Resolve 2 + Composure 3 - 3 Penalty

[roll0]

[Thundercracker]

Anna relied on her Kindred augmented senses, not just sight, but sound and smell as well, as she exited the car and scanned the area.

[Bennosuke]

Perhaps it was the sea salt and roaring tides from the coastline nearby, or just the anxiety regarding the serious nature of breaking into the territory of The Sheriff, but neither Karl nor Aisling noticed anything particularly significant as they stepped out of the ashy rental car and surveyed the area.

But Anna saw things differently. First off, she picked up on the smell of spilled blood. The stench was old and far away, but it was as if thousands of feasts had occurred in this area. This was definitely vampire territory.

Then it was the sound of movement coming from the farthest cabin, where two beat up pickup trucks were parked. The lights were on in that cabin, and Anna could hear the rustling of fabric and the beating of mortal hearts. Maybe three of them from that far cabin. There was also a heartbeat coming from one of the closer cabins, where the lights were off, though there wasn't much else coming from that direction.

Then Anna's eyes focused on the security cameras. They were small things, no bigger than a computer mouse, rectangular and black. There was one above every cabin entrance, and several installed in the low barren trees that loomed over the valley. This place was incredibly secure, and it would be difficult though maybe not impossible to infiltrate.

(OOC: For Anna's exceptional success she gets +4 on any stealth roll and can give Aisling and Karl a +2 for the same to avoid detection. This counterbalances the territory's Safe Place at dots 4, which will act as a modifier of -4 for the same stealth roll. I am ignoring the distance rules for Kindred senses given Anna's impressive exceptional success.)

[Thundercracker]

"We shouldn't get any closer," Anna said.

She quickly communicated what she observed about the place.

"Can your obfuscate hide you from the cameras?" she asked Karl.

"Maybe if you turn into a small animal, you could get closer without a problem," Anna said to Aisling, "I have no idea if you can do that or not.."

"Honestly Karl, I think it might be a good idea to set up a camera with a zoom, from far away, where we can observe and see if we can pick out any patterns," she continued, "this place is pretty secure, so charging in without a plan might be a bad idea, one because we might get killed, and two because our quarry might get away and then we will be killed."

"One more thing we might want to think about is calling in some help," she added.

[Bennosuke]

Anna did her best to approach unseen. She could see every camera, and was confident in her ability to move between the gaps in their coverage. Gaining proximity, she was able to peer into the closer hut, where there was a single heartbeat. Using her binoculars, Anna can see through the tinted window where a massive man appears to be sleeping in a chair. The light of a computer screen illuminates his face in an odd blue shade. He has thinning waves of hair and a round flabby face with an upturned nose and wormy lips. There is something piglike in the man's chubby features. Now that she is closer, Anna can hear the man's throaty choked snores.

[Erulasto]

Now was the time.

Calling on the power of the vitae, Aisling willed her body to shift and to change into the form of a crow. When the process was complete, she fluttered her wings experimentally before taking to the sky.

Her path would have her circling the residence several times, always on the lookout, before whispering down and settling on a the roof of the hut that Anna was watching.



Spending two blood points to take on an animal form.

Wits 4 + Composure 3

[roll0]

Perception to see if Aisling can find any small nooks or holes that she’d be able to squeeze through in one form or another.

[Bennosuke]

Aisling burns vitae to fuel her desired transformation. The Beast simultaneously growls with deepening hunger, as it revels in the supernatural exaltation of Aisling's Protean abilities. In some way, this animal skin is more natural to the Gangrel than her human costume, and taking flight is like returning to a womb long forgotten.

Winds ripple through Aisling's feathers as she wings up and up and up, till she is above the cluster of cabins looking down. The crow's eyes are sharper, and Aisling begins to survey her quarry as she circles. After much study, she believes she has found several landing spots she could land to allow her to peer into the cabins without tripping any of the cameras.

(OOC: Aisling will still need to make a stealth roll to land without setting off the security, but she gets an additional +1 to the roll now. Aisling's blood pool is now 5)

[Bennosuke]

Karl is able to follow Anna's path through the valley to the cabin with the sleeping ghoul. He immediately recognizes the man as the pig-faced ghoul from the car with the shotgun. He can also see that there is a back entrance to the cabin, and hanging on a peg is a ring of keys.

[Erulasto]

Patience.

Between the missed freedom of flight, and the desire to keep from announcing their presences, Aisling circled a few more times before finally coming in low.

With wings flapping swiftly to slow her approach, she descended towards one of the most prominent landing spots she had found.

When her claws found purchase, her head cocked to the side curiously as she looked into the nearby window.



Dexterity 3 + Stealth 3 + 1 Bonus (2 Move Silent Specialization?)
[roll0] + [roll1]

[Bennosuke]

Powerful wings ease Aisling down to a wooden fence railing that lines a back porch to the far cabin. Raptor claws silent grip the smooth wooden cylinder, allowing Aisling to peer into the well lit cabin.

A man paces back and forth in what looks like a living room. The man is dressed in a heavy grey jumpsuit and has long greasy hair. Aisling would recognize this man as Schultz, the Sheriff of San Francisco. In one corner of the room stand two ghouls, who watch the man nervously. He seems to be saying something to the ghouls, but Aisling cannot hear anything.

[Daishain]

Karl whispers to Anna, "It looks like this has been set up as a security booth of sorts. Unless I miss my guess, the pig is supposed to be watching the cameras. We might be able to turn that system off from here, but that one must not wake."

Karl double checks to be certain the approach to the hut is safe.

[Bennosuke]

Karl sees that the entrance to the cabin has a camera over it, and he notes motion sensors and a number of lights rigged to the building's wooden front porch.

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“What if we could tap into the feeds somehow? Then we could watch and listen from far away, without getting caught,” Anna asked, “if we shut the system down and anyone finds out, they will know this place isn’t safe.”

[Erulasto]

Peering at Schultz and the ghouls for several long moments, Aisling flutters her wings nervously. The Sheriff was…scary. Much like the Prince himself. For a moment, the Gangrel wondered what they were thinking. It was like poking a hibernating bear with a sharp stick.

Maybe she could provide a distraction? If she tripped some motion sensors as a bird…maybe scavenging for garbage or trinkets…they wouldn’t think much of other alerts that Karl or Anna may trigger.

[Bennosuke]

Moving cautiously, Karl cases the small building. He finds several windows, and while many open from the inside, there is one around the back that looks into the Kitchen and appears to have a simple sliding mechanism. Karl can probably get it open, but it is tight, and wriggling through it without making much noise or setting off the motion sensors will be very difficult (OOC: Dex+Larceny -3).

*****************************************

Try as Aisling might, and perhaps hampered by her crow's vision, Aisling is not able to find any clear entrance into the cabin that won't go unnoticed.

[Daishain]

"Tapping into the feeds is a possibility, but I don't know how. I suspect we'll need help for that, and this is one matter I'd rather none others know about."

"Look, there, that window, I bet our Gangrel friend can get in there easily if I open it, now where did she fly off to?..."

If Karl can spot Aisling, he tries to quietly get her attention.

[Bennosuke]

Aisling has flown off and is unfortunately no where in sight.

(OOC: She's flown down to the farthest cabin and is on the far side of that cabin)

[Daishain]

Karl looks about, but is unable to see Aisling, "Hmm, might as well work to get this open." Sidling up to the window, he attempts to jimmy it open.

Dex+larceny [roll0]
ten again [roll1]

[Erulasto]

With her own vantage point showing nothing other than the Sheriff and his cronies – and no easy point of entry – Aisling took to the sky once more, wings flapping furiously to build elevation before she circled a couple more times.

This time, it was her companions she was looking for. Anna or Karl. Or anything out of the ordinary.



I don’t have access to the book, at the moment, but I was wondering if the Protean power allows her to change back and forth across a whole scene – or is it just a single change?

Like, can Aisling turn back to her humanoid form, talk to Karl and then turn back into a bird? Or would that require more blood points spent?

[Bennosuke]

With a little bit of work, Karl is able to get the kitchen window up. The glass pane slides open without too much noise, but when Karl looks in side, he realizes that a drying rack filled with glasses and bowls rests under the window.

Very slowly and very carefully, Karl lifts himself up and very carefully eases himself onto the window sill. Then somehow, flexing one leg up and over the bowl, Karl performs his greatest attempt at graceful acrobatics and vaults over the bowls, landing surprisingly quietly inside the kitchen.

(OOC: As stated above, the roll was at a -3 to get in, which turns Karl's roll into a chance dice, yet somehow Daishain gets two successes)

Aisling takes to the sky, again relishing the freedom of form provided by the raven's skin. From above, she can see Anna and Karl circling the cabin, and watches as Karl eases himself inside.

[Daishain]

Karl quickly slips around and opens another, larger, window for Anna's and hopefully Aisling's entry. He whispers to her, "I don't suppose you have any talents useful to ensure that the pig stays asleep for a time? Perhaps simply draining him a bit will do the trick."

"If we resort to the latter, it had best be you, I don't know if I'll be able to hold back from killing that one, we have some history."

[Erulasto]

Hopping up onto the window sill, Aisling ruffles her feathers as she peers down at the sleeping man. Much as she relished the freedom, the wings of a bird would not suffice inside, so Aisling released the power holding her in her black-feathered form.

Once more in human form, Aisling crouched low on the window before glancing to Karl and Anna.

"I can slip in and make an attempt at removing him. I am getting somewhat hungry..."

Aisling looks askance to Anna to ensure the vampire doesn't want to slip in and remove the obstacle herself. If she has no objection, Aisling swiftly pulls her shoes and socks off, wiggling her toes in pleasure. As much as Bernardo emphasised the need for shoes in this day and age, Aisling had spent so much time barefoot in the forest that it felt more...natural.

Lowering herself into the room quietly, Aisling creeps towards the pig man. Low to the floor, she quickly flits her eyes about to look for any other dangers, before advancing on the man. In tried and true fashion, she creeps up behind him and when the moment is right, her arms snake around his neck and mouth to stifle his cries.

With a baring of fangs, Aisling tears into his throat with relish.



Unless Anna wants to go in and do the deed herself, here's some rolls. If Anna does want to do it, then please disregard this.

Dexterity 3 + Stealth 3 (+2 Move Silently)
[roll0]

Wits 4 + Composure 3 for Perception!
[roll1]

To initiate a grapple:

Strength 2 + Brawl 2 - Defense (?) + 2 for a Willpower point (Now 5/10 I believe?)
[roll2] + [roll3]

[Thundercracker]

Anna simply shook her head and stayed silent.

[Bennosuke]

A swift ruffling of feathers, and a darting black shadow in the room. Then Aisling was in the kitchen with Karl and Anna.

After a brief run of stifled debate, Aisling rushed over to the sleeping ghoul on silent bare feet. The man was rotund and smelled heavily of garlic and fried potatoes. But the smell wasn't coming from his mouth, instead it seemed to be an oily concoction spreading from his skin. He snored in long slow strained breaths, apparently unaware of the Gangrel looming over him.

The computer screen in front of the Ghoul flashed various video feeds, like on a security monitor. However, the images were not of the territory in the Marin Headlands. Video footage of different parts of San Francisco flashed on and off the screen; The Golden Gate Bridge, Tommy's Joynt elysium, the inside of some church, and the office space of Nicholas D'Agostino, among various other locations.

(OOC: I am going to say a grapple is unneeded to touch/hold/feed on the Ghoul, as he is sleeping. Aisling, or any other Kindred with a successful stealth roll to approach, should be able to initiate and maintain the kiss on this unsuspecting Ghoul. That said, I will probably roll to see if he wakes up after the pleasure of the kiss ends at the end of feeding... if you aren't going to just kill him).

[Erulasto]

The Gangrel was in her element as she latched onto the ghoul and began to feed. Despite her focus being fairly well attuned to her target, Aisling did make a note that both D’Agostino’s office and Tommy’s Joynt in Elysium were being spied upon. It wasn’t likely that Nicholas was aware of this – and it caused some uncomfortable questions to rise in her mind. How much of their plans had the Sheriff heard about?

Not to mention the bridge. Wasn’t that where they found Estella’s ashes? Could Schultz have had a hand in her death? It was seeming more likely by the moment.

With her task at hand, Aisling drew the blood from the Ghoul greedily, only stopping when she felt his skin begin to cool and pallor to set in.



Aisling will take, I’d say about….4 blood points? Maybe 5?

[Bennosuke]

Aisling's fangs suddenly extend, ripping forward like they were fired from a gun. She dives into the sleeping man's neck, finding the artery before he can register the pain and fully awaken.

The blood is more than just delicious, it is superior, it is powerful, it is tainted with Kindred vitae. The feeding goes almost immediately to Aisling's head, and her Beast howls with growing desire. Over and over Aisling fills her mouth with shooting bursts of blood, letting the man's powerful heart do the work for her.

He moans slightly, his eyes fluttering open and shut, though not clearly registering anything.

Aisling continues to feed on hot mouthfuls of life till she is near sated. Just when she has decided to stop, her Beast whispers, "Take more, take it all. He is still alive! He is still a danger! And we are still hungry"

The man is beginning to rouse to consciousness.

Aisling takes 4 blood points. Her Bestial condition wants her to take one more blood point and thus fill one of the man's last three health boxes, and thus resolve the condition. At this point his only negative modifiers to action will be his drained and swooned conditions. Someone should probably take him out before he wakes.

[Thundercracker]

Anna

Anna moved swiftly to the ghoul and put him in a chokehold, cutting off blood supply to his brain. Once he was out cold, she glared at Aisling.

“What are you doing?” she asked in a harsh whisper, “I thought we were here to bug the place and gather evidence? Now we have this to deal with!”

She pointed to the rotund ghoul.

“If we kill him, they’ll know someone was here, and if he wakes up, there’s a good chance he’ll know something is up and they might search the room and find the bugs,” she whispered, “what are we going to do?”

She quickly snapped a few photos of the screens, showing the locations.

[Erulasto]

The Beast’s call was strong in the Gangrel, and she couldn’t help but take that last little drop of blood that it craved, even as Anna came swooping in to catch the fading Ghoul in a chokehold. The blood…powerful as it was….broke the savage spell Aisling had been under, and she scuttled away from the Ghoul – blood still upon her lips – with a grimace.

”Forgive me.” Aisling mutters softly, lowering her gaze to the floor to avoid looking at Anna.

[Daishain]

"He's down for the count now, that is what we needed. Keep taking pictures Anna, we want to know exactly who he's spying on." Karl Scrolls through the camera feeds, making sure they get at least one picture showing each.

Then he takes out tonight's burner phone and calls Gabe. Assuming the ghoul answers, he will say, "Apologies for waking you, but something has come up. We have open access to a security terminal, one tied into camera feeds all across the city. You're more familiar with these Contraptions than I am, what would you do with this?"

[Bennosuke]

Aisling dives back in to feed on the ghoul, even as he is being choked unconscious by Anna. The Gangrel gluts herself on the man's blood, taking every last drop that her body can hold, even though it means taxing the man's body to a dangerous limit. The blood is so sweet, so satisfying, but when Aisling finally separates herself, she feels bloated, like a tick that has fed till near bursting.

The act is likely embarrassing for the other Kindred, such a foolish loss of control, though perhaps it is understandable. The Ghoul is now slumped over unconscious in his chair, breathing in fast gasping snores.

Gabe responds, "Well I'm not there, but usually with digital security feeds the footage is being recorded. See if you can find the files and then take them; email them to yourself, or use Drop Box or something. You do know what Drop Box is, right?"

(OOC: Aisling now has 10 blood points, resolves Bestial and gains a beat, now at 2 xp. Taking the files will be an easy Int/Wits+ Computers roll with +3 modifier).

[Thundercracker]

Wits3 -1unskilled +3 = 5
[roll0]
10 again: [roll1]


Anna

"We'll talk later, let's just do what we came to do," Anna replied.

Unfortunately, she had no idea what kind of system was set up.

[Erulasto]

With a barely concealed grimace at the bloated feelings, Aisling cradled her stomach and rose to her feet. She looked at the monitors again, trying to pick out anything out of the ordinary on the screens. Any unusual activity where they were watching.



Perception!
Wits 4 + Composure 3
[roll0]

[Daishain]

Karl says irritably, "Yes I know what dropbox is. Let me know if there's anything else you can think of."

Karl hangs up, pulls out his good phone, and quickly looks up dropbox...

A few minutes later he's found the files and dumped a copy of them into a dummy dropbox account. Afterwards he tries to restore things to exactly how he found them.

He points to a likely spot with a view of the computer screen. "Let's get a camera up there to capture anything new. Right then, did anyone see any other opportunities we can exploit?"

[Bennosuke]

Karl has no difficulty transferring the files to himself, collecting what looks like hundreds of hours of video footage.

As Karl works, Aisling watches the monitor, and is surprised to see as the feed switches that there is a camera videoing Prince Gorman in what appears to be his private work room. The boy Prince sits in a high backed chair and reads a book while a voluptuous woman in maybe her mid twenties talks at him from the corner of the room. The camera appears to placed in the ceiling, looking down on the room.

[Daishain]

Karl grins as the computer does its work. Stealing secrets could be so much easier these days. He works to set the camera in a position to watch the monitor, hiding it as best he can.

When done, he says, "All right, we're done with this building I think. This might be enough for one night's work, but if there are any other vulnerabilities to exploit while we're here, I'd love to hear about them."

[Thundercracker]

Anna shook her head.

“I want to get out of here as quick as we can,” she said, “what about him?”
She pointed to the unconscious ghoul.

[Erulasto]

”Excellent work, Karl.” Aisling says, eyeing the computer uncomprehendingly. It was getting easier to use modern tools, but she some hurdles were too significant to clear in such a short period of time.

”As for the Ghoul…I could feed him some blood back…let him sleep it off? Would someone know what happened to him? Would he know?”

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“I think as long as he’s out when we leave, he shouldn’t have a clue,” Anna said, “let’s just get out of here while we can.”

She made to move towards the window they entered from and hopefully back to the car with the others.

[Daishain]

"Chances are he'll sleep this off and not remember anything. And even if he does suspect something happened, I think this one is a coward at heart, he'd never willingly admit to sleeping on the job."

"Yes, let's get out of here, we've gained a lot this night, no need to push our luck. I knew we could find something useful."

[Bennosuke]

The three Kindred make their way back to the car, following Anna's lead to avoid detection of the various cameras. Perchance they are aware of just what they have accomplished, and how much danger it may have put them in.

They reach their car without serious event, and with headlights off, drift back into the night.

(OOC: So where to now? Whose care and who's driving?)

[Thundercracker]

Anna

the car is rented iirc.

Anna jumped into the front passenger seat and strapped herself in. She didn’t start to relax until they were well away.

“I can’t believe that actually worked,” she said.

“I think we should tell d’agnostino what we’ve found,” Anna said, “if he knows his office is being watched, he can feed false information to Shultz.”

She wanted to pay site visits to the mental hospitals in the area, but there were more pressing matters at hand...

[Daishain]

"Before we get back to the haven, lets go over those photos again, check for any familiar locations. I don't want to be caught discussing this stuff in front of the same cameras." Karl gets in and starts driving away, leaving the lights off until a safe distance from the compound.

"In regards to D'agostino, telling him about the cameras is certainly a priority, we don't need him to discuss something related to us in front of those things unknowingly. After that, I was going to suggest trading him a copy of the files for an appropriate boon. He has the resources needed to make better use of the information within than we are likely to be able to manage."

[Erulasto]

"I remember that one of the camera's was in D'Agostino's office. That one concerned me greatly. What dealings could the Sheriff have witnessed?" That was a thought that Aisling didn't want to have, as she sat quietly in the back seat. She was still uncomfortable after having fed so heavily, but at the same time there was a contented peace that had settled over the feral aggitation she had been feeling for the last while.

The Gangrel nodded to Karl and Anna, happy enough about the proposed course of action. Aisling did, however, send a quick text to Bernardo letting him know they had finished their errand and ask for a status update on Gabrielle.

[Bennosuke]

It was maybe an hour later when the Cotiere arrived via Uber at The Night Owl, Nicholas D'Agostino's nightclub. During that time the fog had rolled in, turning the otherwise well lit streets of San Francisco into a darkened sea of greyish white. Even still, there was a small line of youthful Kine waiting to get into the door. A familiar looking large bouncer, dark skinned and too much muscle for his overly tailored suit, stood at the door wearing sunglasses like it were daytime. He grinned as he saw the Cotiere coming down the block, and he smelled of gifted vitae.

(OOC: Did someone contact Nicholas or Tony ahead of time?)

[Thundercracker]

Anna

Anna called Nicolas as soon as they were clear of the Sheriffs territory.

“I’m sorry to call you directly sir, but we’ve found something important and we should meet as soon as possible, preferably before you have meetings with anyone else,” she said.

If she can’t get through, she would call Tony:

“Tony it’s Anna,” she said, not disguising the urgency in her voice, “we need to meet with your Sire, ASAP, he’s going to want to know what we’ve found, preferably before he has any meetings with anyone.”

[Erulasto]

Aisling remained – more or less – silent the entire trip to the Night Owl. The bloated feeling hadn’t abated quite yet, and she was somewhat embarrassed by her loss of control. Still, she felt that they had made some progress at least tonight.

Slipping out of the Uber when it arrived, Aisling looked the Ghoul bouncer over curiously. The Gangrel was glad that Anna had the presence of mind to call ahead and warn D’Agostino that they were coming over. But something had been troubling Aisling.

Nagging at the back of her mind.

How had the Sheriff gotten a camera inside D’Agostino’s haven? The notion was repulsive, and it made the Gangrel somewhat paranoid. Was there a spy somewhere?

[Bennosuke]

Anna was unable to get a hold of Nicholas, but Tony was quick to pick up the phone. He instructed Anna to come to The Night Owl, and he would take care of the rest. He probed Anna for more information, and sulked when none was offered up.

************************************************** *****

Outside of the Night Owl the Ghoul working bouncer moved a hand to his ear piece, as if to call for one of his superiors. However, before this is neccesary, Tony comes rushing to the door. There is a mortal ruby flush to his cheeks as he bursts through the curtained glass doors with the large owl symbol printed in dark gold. He does his best to grin at his guests, arms out stretched. "Welcome" he says grinning, "come in, come in. Let us get you a booth... unless you would rather go upstairs right away."

Tony looks from Anna to Karl to Aisling, studying each one's face as if trying to discern the reason for their "important" visit.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“We’d better go upstairs right away,” Anna said.

She weighed the odds of whether d’agnostino knew his office was bugged against the inconvenience of interrupting whatever he was doing. She figured it was better to err on the side of informing him straight away.

[Daishain]

Karl shakes his head, "We can wait a brief time."

If others question that, he will quietly whisper, "The bug has likely been there for quite some time, a little more is unlikely to do significant harm. Bursting in there and causing him to leave in a panic will alert them to the bug having been discovered. If they think the bug remains undiscovered, it can become a useful tool for our use."

[Thundercracker]

Anna nodded.

“Ok, good point,” she said.

[Bennosuke]

Tony studies the group as they whisper amongst themselves, face suddenly full of concern. "Here, why don't we go to the table I reserved," he says as he ushers the coterie in. He leads the three Kindred to a large and luscious dark oak table polished to a near mirror finish that has been set up in the back corner of the club in a raised area, protected by velvet red curtains. Patrons watch as Tony leads the group to the area, parting the curtains so that the group can sit.

Once everyone has taken their place, Tony says in a hushed voice, "Do you want to talk now, or would you rather wait till we go upstairs" The young vampire watches the group, his face lined with confusion and concern as he waits to hear what the coterie has to say.

[Daishain]

Keeping his voice low, Karl says, "Actually, I think it would be best if we did not go upstairs at all. Someone has been spying on your Sire." Pulling out his phone and swiping through the images taken, he stops when he finds the one showing the camera feed of D'Agostino's office, and shows it to Tony. He then pulls out a notepad and starts writing.

"Stay calm Tony, such things can actually prove to be helpful to us. but it is best not to discuss such things in front of the cameras. Just go upstairs, and hand him this note. We will await his response."

The note he gives Tony reads, 'Camera feeds discovered in your office and other places, I suggest not revealing any hints they've been discovered so that they can become a feed for disinformation. A large stash of sensitive information has also been found, it will need to be discussed. How do you wish to proceed?

[Thundercracker]

Anna nodded and stayed quiet. Karl was definitely better at this stuff than she.

[Bennosuke]

There is shock in Tony's near mortal face. His eyes seeming to bulge, and face flushing warm with blood. "Who... who did this," he stammers, "Where did you get this?" His hand reaches reflexively for his cellphone, and opens the Pulse app to contact Nicholas, but his hands are now trembling.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Tony, that’s the kind of thing Nicholas has to decide whether you should know or not,” Anna replied, “we can’t make that call.”

“No specifics over Pulse please,” she added, pointing to his screen, “hand him the note.”

[Bennosuke]

The Ventrue grimaces, his lips curling back to reveal extended pearly white fangs. "I am my Sire's right hand", he growls in a low hushed voice. But then the tension leaves his face, and perhaps with slight embarrassment Tony says, "Apologies. But my Sire is currently unavailable, and this is information that needs to be passed on quickly. If you don't trust the Pulse, perhaps your best decision is to tell me everything." This last bit is said surprisingly firmly, the neonate showing a degree of regal control befitting his Clan and Covenant.

[Erulasto]

Aisling was not the one to indulge in political intrigue – it was the part of her father’s court that she always detested the most. Entertaining envoys to his Earldom and skirting the line on what was and was not appropriate discourse.

With any luck, Aisling would likely end up sticking her proverbial foot in her mouth.

Still, as Tony seemed to be wanting them to spill it all now, the Gangrel leaned in with a frown on her face.

”Schultz.” Was all she said, in a hushed voice.

Hopefully, that alone would be enough to spur the younger Ventrue into action and clue him in on just how dangerous this particular information was.

As soon as she was done speaking, Aisling glanced to Karl and Anna apologetically as she realized she had spoken without thinking.

[Thundercracker]

Anna

Anna filed Aisling’s undermining of her explanation away for later private discussion.
She nodded and smiled at Tony as if it was all planned.

She leaned in close to Tony.
“Keep your expression neutral,” she whispered into his ear, “Its from the sheriff’s territory, he’s monitoring these feeds. If he’s watching this without anyone’s knowledge, is it possible the Pulse is also being monitored? It’s not hard, China does it for the whole country.”

[Bennosuke]

Tony's face turns an appropriately Kindred pale. "The Sheriff?", he stammers. He studies the faces of each vampire at the table and in a low whisper, "The Sheriff has a video feed of Nicholas' study, and... was that The Prince's haven as well? This has to be some sort of infraction of the Traditions, right? I have to let my Sire know about this as soon as possible."

To Anna's last remark, Tony says, "My understanding is that The Pulse is a private Application designed by a number of Unaligned Kindred in Palo Alto. I don't know if Schultz can hack it, but I'd like to imagine it would be difficult to do." though Tony's voice does not sound too confident in the assertion.

[Thundercracker]

“Better safe than sorry?” Anna ventured, “but yes, we agree with you, he needs to know ASAP.”

[Daishain]

"I highly doubt that the Pulse has been hacked by anyone, but doubt is not certainty. In such matters if you can avoid taking risks while still achieving one's goals, it is usually best to do so."

"Calm yourself, yes this is a problem, for many people. But it is not one that will be solved by rash actions."

[Bennosuke]

"Very well, I will be right back." Tony says somberly. He rises from his chair and removes what is clearly a burner phone from his pocket. He grins at Karl and Anna and says, "Don't worry, I will use this."

He steps away from the table for a moment.

(OOC: I am going to pause here to give the group a moment to chat. If you have nothing to discuss, let me know in the OOC thread, and I'll just move things forward)

[Bennosuke]

Returning to the table, Tony D'Agostino's face is pale though a foolish grin has spread his lips. "You have done excellent work," Tony says as he lets himself into the chair, practically dropping himself down. He leans in to the group and in a hushed voice says, "My Sire will not be able to meet with you till near dawn. He wants all files and photos that you have sent to this email", and he scribbles an address that is mostly a jibberish mix of numbers and symbols. He adds, "We shall meet you at Elysium at say 5 am? My Sire is certain our privacy will be guaranteed."

[Erulasto]

"Will we be able to remain there for the day, or should we arrange secure transport back to our own haven? That is uncomfortably close to sunrise. I suppose it cannot be helped." Aisling said as she acquiesced to Tony's proposed meeting place

[Bennosuke]

Tony shrugs, then shakes his head in the negative. "I don't think it will take too long," he says, "so we should all be able to get back in time. My sire was simply confident that Elysium is the only place where our privacy is guaranteed." Grinning, Tony adds, "That place creeps me out. It's like magicked or something."

[Thundercracker]

Anna nodded and glanced at her watch.

[Daishain]

"Right then, I think we ought to get going, as I'm sure you can imagine we have our own work cut out for us in response to this mess."

Once away from prying eyes, Karl addresses those with him, "I think we ought to go through the footage we reclaimed, at least make a start at identifying everyone the sheriff has been spying on."

"We also have a question to ponder here, the information within could be both incredibly valuable and dangerous. D'agostino casually asked us to simply give it all to him. We could do that and wash our hands of the matter."

"Or we could ask for appropriate boons in exchange for the files. If we go for the latter option I do suggest that we hand over the ones on him as a show of good faith, I would not care to be accused of blackmail."

[Erulasto]

”I agree.” Aisling said. ”We should give Tony anything that pertains to him. As you said, as a show of good faith. Especially since he has done so much for us to assist in setting up our haven.”



I’m good to proceed as well.

Thanks for the Beat!

[Bennosuke]

Tony smiles and shakes the hands of each member of the Coterie before the group departs. "See you later tonight," he says with an excited grin.

As the group makes their way back out of The Night Owl, Aisling sees that she has received a Pulse message from Alejandro Perez. The message reads "Just a friendly reminder, we are having a meeting in two hours. Sorry if I didn't say where, but it will be at a bar called The Kink. Ask for Mama Yaga when you get to the front door." The message is time stamped at about one hour old. This is followed by a second message that reads, "Oh, and bring that special book of yours, if you would :)"

The three vampires step out into the grey foggy night. Much has happened though the night is not yet over. There is still a long line of customers waiting to get into The Night Owl.

OOC: Ok, so where to now?

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“I don’t know about you two but I’ve got a bad feeling,” Anna said, “I almost want to head straight to Elysium right now and stay there until the meeting.”

[Daishain]

Karl considers Anna's suggestion, "That's... not a bad idea actually, we can take out a private room and go through this stuff together."

[Erulasto]

Aisling took a look at her small brick of a phone, brow furrowing in thought as she eyed the message from Alejandro Perez. After a moment, the Gangrel looked up at her two companions with a grimace.

”Forgive me, please. While I agree…something about this whole thing makes my stomach turn…I have somewhere else I must go. Mister Perez and I have a meeting shortly at The Kink as a way of preventing the Circle of Crone from coming after us. It…is supposed to be in a couple hours. Would you like to join me, or would you prefer to go to Elysium and secure it there? I can meet you when I am done?”

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“Why don’t you ask him to meet us at Elysium,” Anna said.

[Erulasto]

"I could try..." Aisling said after a moment of thought. "But I suspect that since there will be other members of the Circle of Crone present that it will not be a viable option. Mister Perez is supposedly introducing me."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

Anna took a long, appraising look at Aisling.

“It’s your choice, I’ll be at Elysium,” she said, “hopefully Karl and I can get a room there to go through what we found and strategize a bit.”

[Bennosuke]

Aisling insists that she must go, but that she will meet Karl and Anna at Elysium to discuss things with Nicholas D'Agostino. She leaves her coterie outside the Night Owl, seeming to slink into the shadows like the nocturnal predator that she is. Her movements are a chilling reminder of just how far she is from the teenager that was embraced.

Unless they pursue any detour first, Karl and Ann arrive at the garishly decorated Tommy's Joynt just a little before 1 A.M.. The mortal's downstairs tavern is relatively quiet, though filled with the usual mix of rabble, police officers, and struggling artists.

Once upstairs, they are greeted by Lady Stardust, whose hair is a wild red and styled into wicked glam rock mullet. She is wearing a black eye patch and a navy polka dot scarf around his long pale slender neck. A flowing frilled cotton blouse is tucked into a bright red vest and matching trousers. Grinning widely, Lady Stardust fluffs his hair and walks forward to embrace the two. "Darlings", she says regally, "come in, come in. Glad to see you both tonight. Can I get you a table? Are we meeting someone, or maybe something tonight?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“Good evening Lady Stardust, it’s so good to see you,” Anna said, returning the embrace, “we will be meeting someone later, but in the meantime we’re wondering if there are any private rooms available?”

[Bennosuke]

Lady Stardust pouts devilishly and says, "Well there aren't any separate rooms up here, but I can guarantee your privacy during your time at our Elysium."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“A booth then, if one is available, otherwise a table will have to do,” Anna said.

She smiled at the androgynous vampire.

[Bennosuke]

Some time later, Aisling arrives at "The Kink", which appears to be a night club in The Castro. The streets of the Castro have already started to empty. The primarily queer neighborhood is populated by a number of garishly decorated clubs and bars, all sporting rainbow flags. Their storefront windows are covered with posters advertising "Drag Race Wednesday" and "Karaoke in Heels Endless Brunch", many with pictures of scantily clad, but well built male models.

However, the Kink appears to be far more surreptitiously advertised. Ailsling wouldn't even know it was there if not for a pink neon sign that cuts through the heavy fog to indicate that the bar is down a flight of stairs in some sort of basement level space. From street level, Kara can hear the distant but heavy pound of some sort of pulsing dance music. A nondescript man who smells faintly of vitae, but whose heartbeat marks him as mortal stands outside the club. He is thin, dressed in a heavy knit wool sweater, jeans and a conservative pair of loafers. He has a gaunt face and thinning hair, and a thick brown mustache over full lips and a strong overbite.

He notices Aisling approaching, and admonishingly says, "Girl you shouldn't be out so late. What are you doing in the Castro at this hour?"

************************************************** *********

Lady Stardust grins, "Well of course my dear. Let's make sure you are comfortable, and that there is enough space for when your friends arrive." She gives Anna an almost cheeky wink, before turning and leading the two vampires through the hauntingly hazy room. Again is the whirl of distant shadowed silhouettes seated at tables lit only by a single small candle. No single face is clear in the thick fog like atmosphere of the Elysium. The three seem to walk for longer than either Anna or Karl have ever traveled. It is as if the room has suddenly defied the rules of space and logic, seeming to extend for almost a mile till Lady Stardust leads the two to a large and luxurious booth attached to a wall. A window over the booth looks out over the streets below.

"Here we are darlings," Lady Stardust says with a grin, "Please make yourselves comfortable. And rest assured that your privacy will be protected while you are in my care. Can I get you anything else?"

[Erulasto]

The Gangrel had paused in her silent stride down the streets and alleys of the Castro to look at the myriad of garish advertisements on the walls. She had heard of karaoke from Bernardo….but the notion of a drag race struck her as odd. What exactly were they dragging around? Aisling had visions of people pulling wagons, or ploughs like the horses that tilled the fields in her father’s earldom.

When she arrived, finally, at The Kink, she was still feeling a little uncomfortable from gorging on blood earlier from the pig-like ghoul, but the trip had allowed her to work through some of it.

”I am here to see Alejandro Perez.” Aisling states simply to the gaunt man outside the club. Her glacial blue eyes flickered across him curiously, but it held the glint of a predator sizing up prey. He wasn’t Kindred. Maybe a Ghoul. Likely, even. But the Gangrel wasn’t truly exepcting any trouble from him.

Then again….if this was a gathering of the Circle, perhaps there would be threats about.



I assume that she went back to fetch Gazren’s book, Benno?

I hope that you have had success on your journal article!

[Thundercracker]

Anna smiled.

“No Lady Stardust,” she replied, “I hope you have been well, and to continue to see you for visits for decades to come.”

Once Anna and Karl were alone, she starting looking through the photos to figure out where was under surveillance.

[Bennosuke]

”I am here to see Alejandro Perez.” Aisling states simply to the gaunt man outside the club. Her glacial blue eyes flickered across him curiously, but it held the glint of a predator sizing up prey. He wasn’t Kindred. Maybe a Ghoul. Likely, even. But the Gangrel wasn’t truly exepcting any trouble from him.

Then again….if this was a gathering of the Circle, perhaps there would be threats about.


The man's face turns so pale it almost looks blue, his eyes going wide with sudden fright. The ghoul takes a step back, his balled fists finely trembling. "My apologies my lady," he says as if expecting to be suddenly struck, "You must be here for The Gathering. I apologize, but I have never seen you before. Are you a... 'member of The Circle'?"

************************************************** ************

"I have been," Lady Stardust says with a smile. She gives a gracious bow and says, "Just ring me if you need anything dears." Of course there are no bells on the table, or any methods of summoning, though the Master of Elysium has slipped away into the miasmic haze before this point can be raised.

OOC: Just wanted to double check, Karl and Anna brought more than just the phone pics Karl took, right? You've brought a laptop or something to go over all the video footage before D'Agostino arrives, and then to show him when he does?

[Daishain]

Karl nods respectfully to Lady Stardust, eager to get to work. Once alone, he looks to Anna, "So, I think we probably ought to start by identifying all of the places with a camera, make a list of who and what is being spied upon."

"In the interest of avoiding accusations of betrayal, I suggest setting the files for D'Agostino to the side, along with any that might exist for your own sire. We don't bargain with that information. The rest is going to be quite valuable though. To keep and peruse, or to trade."

Yeah, we'd have at least brought a laptop. Probably two so we could work in tandem.

[Erulasto]

With Gazren’s book secured in a bundle of wrapped plastic shopping bags and tucked safely into her weathered satchel, Aisling sniffed thoughtfully at the ghoul before her.

”No apologies necessary, sir. I am here for the Gathering, yes.” She did not, however, admit vocally that she wasn’t a part of the Circle of Crone as of yet. The mutterings of her Beast instilled a sense of paranoia – she wasn’t keen on drawing any more attention to herself than necessary.

”Is Alejandro here already?”