New York by Night MtA (IC thread)

[beastman1]

Bethany does not find his comments amusing.

This isn't funny. I already got trapped up in your bull**** for all of my afternoon... so **** you! If I can't hide it, I mean, can I just... shut it off? Get rid of it? Is there a cure? There has to be a way to end all of this.

[Bennosuke]

Steve's rueful smile disappears, and very sharply he says, "I wasn't laughing at you so calm down if you want my help." His voice has become sharper, and slightly louder. Hopefully, no one is listening.

In response to Bethany's question, Steve says, "Well there are all sorts of spells you could use, it just depends on how you want to go about it." He says this flatly, like it were obvious, and Bethany should know. "I know of mages who use Death Magic to suppress their auras, but there are all sorts of other things you could do, just depends on how you look at it. I don't know of the spell, but I'm sure you could develop a Life based spell to suppress or change your aura." As he finishes his statement, there is less vitriol in his words, and almost a hint of confusion or surprise in Bethany's naivete.

While the words "Death Magic" and "Life based spells" may be foreign to Bethany linguistically (these referring to the various Arcana of the game... perhaps a word she is familiar with), the concepts ring true to her. She understands that some off her spells rely on her ability to manipulate Life Forces, but that she is also capable of using magic to interact with The Spirit World (a plane of existence parallel to our own where Animistic spirits reside and influence our mundane world), and manipulating the strands of Time.

Spoiler

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Bethany fulfills her vice of being Stubborn, and gains a point of willpower back. She now has 8 WP points

[beastman1]

There lingers a slight pause in the air after he is done speaking and B comes to a conclusion that is somewhat half realized.

Please. Take me to one of these 'death magic' people. I need to find a way to end this. What do you want? Money? I can pay you.

Bethany pulls out her wallet, and fingers through some singles and 10's in her meager monetary collection. She then turns up to Steve's face and see's the wound, the dirt and the stare in his eyes.

No. You don't seem like the kind of... individual, to really care about that stuff.

Bethany decides to put her money away.

What do you want from me? Name your price.

[Bennosuke]

The man's shoulders slump, and he looks down at Bethany with concern and pity. He shakes his head, "Man, you really are something else. Where did you come from?"

Waving a hand back in forth in front of his face in the negative, Steve says, "You're right, I don't want your money. I WAS trying to help you before, because I was curious. But then...", and with this he rubs a hand over the darkened hole in his shirt where Bethany stabbed him, "well lets just say you weren't the most receptive." Steve pauses at that, his eyes clouded as if distracted in thought, or by something in the distance. "I could probably take you to someone who knows, but unless you are versed in Death Magic Arcana, it could take you a while to learn, and the person I know isn't exactly the most trustworthy, if you are trying to stay under the radar."

Steve looks around, scanning the area more decisively now. "We probably shouldn't stay out in the open much longer,", he says, "Chances are, our antics have already attracted the kind of attention you wanted to avoid. Look, I know you don't trust me yet, but I'll try to help you if I can."

[beastman1]

The words turn to painful notes in her ears. This was not the conclusion she was hoping for. This was not going to be easy or quick, she thought to herself.

What's the catch? I hurt you, and I hurt you badly. You could've died back there if not for me... and you're just going to help me? Just like that?

Bethany shook her head and crossed her hands.

We're not going anywhere unless you tell me what the score is. What is it you're getting out of this? I don't believe you for one second about "wizards" and "wars" and magic beacons. I snagged that scarf from you, and, I don't know. Could've been laced with something. I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around the unbelievable stuff I do. You've given me no reason to trust your charity. You do know they have things in wars, they're called "sabotaging spies"! How do I know you're not going to cut me up into little pieces and stuff the chunks into bonson beakers inside a dingy dungeon? I can find my own way if you're not being upfront with me!

[Bennosuke]

"No catch, no catch," Steve says with the tone one would use on wounded predator, "though I can't say I'm happy about what happened". Steve sweeps his hair back and pats it down vainly. He looks around nervously again, but then continues, "I am proud of my position in The Pentacle. I have earned what little status I have gained with my colleagues, and I wold rather my association with them, than to be leagued in with the sociopathic Seers".

"But I understand if that's not for everyone," Steve says these words very slowly, almost cautiously, like his lips were dancing on a razor blade, "and I know how difficult and dangerous it will be for you if you try to go down that route".

Steve's smile returns, though there is a hint of bitterness. He says, "And I think I know you are too stubborn to have your mind changed". Steve winks and motions Bethany on. "Shall we go?", he says.

[beastman1]

So long as you promise not to wink at me ever again. Lead the way.

[Bennosuke]

At this a real smile cracks across Steve's face before he chuckles. "I think you are a little young for me. I don't think you have to worry kid", Steve says.

But Steve doesn't walk away, doesn't lead the way. Instead, he says, "Look, I don't know if I have everything to help you just yet. I'm sure we can figure something out, but Death Magic isn't really my thing. Give me a bit of time to do some research. Why don't we meet tomorrow anyways. I'm sure you want to get back to your friends, and... well, I would like some time to change, and just... recover after everything that has happened today." Steve looks down at his soiled and punctured clothing, then back up at Bethany. "Let's say tomorrow afternoon, around maybe 2PM. We can meet at a place of your choosing, but one with some privacy. Does that sound fair?"

[beastman1]

Bethany holds her ground, stubborn to the end.

No dice. And don't call me 'kid'. The sooner I can get to where I need to be, and the quicker we can both be done with each other, the better. Just take me to these other death weirdos now and I'll take it from there.

Bethany's face turns red and hot as she stares Steve down with her "do you want to dance 'mother****er?" face. She rests one hand on her knife hilt.

Leave my friends out of this.

*please see OCC thread for making a threat attempt roll

[Bennosuke]

Steve looks at Bethany with significant confusion. "I mean, I'll take you there if you really want... but what do you expect will happen? It's not like you can learn a spell in one afternoon. And even if you could, I can't promise you any other Mage would be willing to maintain your privacy."

Steve flinches at a sudden grimace on Bethany's face, perceived as a potential threat. Apparently the stabbing still stuck with the older Mage. "I will take you there, but it's not safe." With this, Steve runs his hair through his hands in frustration, and then shrugs, almost apologetically to Bethany.

[beastman1]

Bethany softens her stance and takes her hand off the hilt of her dagger.

Thank you, Steve. Please, lead the way.

Bethany and Steve leave for the magic death weirdos in the hopes they can teach Bethany to suppress her magic footprint and thus remain fully hidden from the world of mages.

[Bennosuke]

It is a quick though uncomfortable Uber ride, to a street Bethany does not recognize, in a neighborhood she can't identify. The two are standing on a narrower street than Bethany is used to in Manhattan. The buildings too are cramped, almost seeming to tower in over the street due to lack of space. Young pedestrians rushed past Bethany, almost as if she were an obstacle to climb around.

Bethany and Steve are standing in front of a brick fronted building with a tinted face level window. A neon sign with an eye in the middle of a pyramid flashes the words "Readings Inside". Next to the window screen is a thin wooden door, with a porthole looking into a flight of stairs leading up. Under the window hangs a sign that reads, "The Psychic Is In!"

[beastman1]

Bethany scans the sign and door up and down with here gaze, her head frozen in position.

She turns to Steve with a blank slate of a face.

So, is this where we part ways?

*If Steve says yes than Bethany will walk inside the building without him. If he says that she'll go in with her than Bethany will say Well then, after you.

[Bennosuke]

Steve nods his head in the negative, "Trust me... you don't want to go up there alone."

When Bethany invites him to lead the way, Steve hesitantly grabs hold of the door and pushes it open. He leads Bethany up the stairs, and as they go up, she is overwhelmed by the smell of old, perhaps rotten wood, and some sort of smokey burning incense.

The stairs terminate at an entrance blocked by a pho-velvet purple curtain, which dusts Bethany with the odor of mold as she follows Steve through into a candle lit room. In the middle of the room is a round oak table with a black marble circle inscribed with ridiculous looking ruins. On the other side of the table sits an androgynous man who could easily be in his twenties or his fifties. He is draped in a black silk Kimono top, but his ribbed and veined chest is left bare. The man has a bony, defined face, sucked dry of any collagen or fat, and big round brown eyes stare up at Bethany and Steve. His thick lips are pursed in a half smile, and he locks eyes with Steve when he says in a husky and feminine voice, "Welcome, I take it you are not here for a palm reading?"

The man smiles mischievously at Steve, his head tilted so that he is almost ear to shoulder. Steve looks anxiously back at Bethany before saying, "My friend here seeks your help".

The man's dark eyes lock on Bethany, making her feel like a mouse cornered by a house cat. "Is this so?", he asks, the last word drawn out far longer than it should. The man has an almost Arabian accent, though Bethany would be hard pressed to pick his ethnicity.

[beastman1]

There lingers a moment of silence as Bethany takes in both oddities of environment and character.

Yes, it is... sir. Bethany chokes slightly on her own words and becomes hyper aware of herself, her sweat, her size, her smell and her presence being small in comparison to the figure she faces, I want, err, I was hoping you might be willing to teach me.

A moment of silence follows her statement- this is very awkward.

Umm, what I mean is, I have this problem, you see, and this guy told me you could train me to be invisible to, well, people like you.

[Bennosuke]

Yes, it is... sir. Bethany chokes slightly on her own words and becomes hyper aware of herself, her sweat, her size, her smell and her presence being small in comparison to the figure she faces, I want, err, I was hoping you might be willing to teach me.

The seated man smile, seeming to stifle a laugh at the young girl's request.

Umm, what I mean is, I have this problem, you see, and this guy told me you could train me to be invisible to, well, people like you.

Almost lazily, the man stands up from his chair, placing one hand gently on the table. He takes a confident stride forward and says, "He did now", giving Steve a measured glare. His hand drags lightly across the table, as his gaze returns to Bethany, "And even if I could teach YOU", the last word emphasized like an insult, "why should I?"

The man takes another step towards Bethany. He has long wiry legs, packed into tight and tattered jeans, that show as much flesh as his Kimono. Before she can respond, the man asks, "Who ARE you?"

[beastman1]

Bethany's flitch reaction hits up against her brain like a hot needle shooting into a firm rubber ball. Bethany resists the urge to step back, but just barely as the old man steps into her personal space.

My name is Bethany. And... that's all I know. I have people, friends, who I worry might be in danger of being drawn into, well, all of this.

Bethany realizes how her statement sounds at insinuating the World of Mages is a "dangerous" place and looks slightly embarrassed.

Err, umm, n-no offense mister. One thing I do know, however, is that I am apparently a peculiarity and I stand out. Just by the way you're eyeing me up and down, I can tell you know I'm some sort of enigma wrapped in a Chinese puzzle box.

She then turns to Steve and stares at him unapprovingly.

This one can tell you. Go on, tell him.

*Depending on what happens next Bethany will act.
If Steve speaks in her favor, explaining that Bethany is indeed someone who could be useful in the "mage war", then Bethany will offer herself up and perform any task he so desires for him - within reason - and will do so immediately.
If Steve instead, feeling uncooperative regarding Bethany refuses to speak to Bethany's claims or refuses to comment/be a part of the conversation at all, then Bethany will instead try proving her point by performing a magic spell (that spell to be determined).

[Bennosuke]

The man smirks at Bethany's words, neither confirming or denying her words. He looks to Steve, who just nods, a little embarrassed. The man turns his gaze back to Bethany, and his eyes seem to haze over for a second. Bethany can tell he is tapping into his Mage's vision (Mage Sight in the rulebook), scrutinizing her like an object at an auction. His grin widens, and again he takes another slow step towards Bethany. "Very well Miss Bethany," and with this the grin becomes almost a leer, as if he savors the use of her name, "my name is Djinn, at your service." Djinn extends a rope like arm with a hand to shake.

Before Bethany can even shake the man's hand, Steve blurts out in a fit of agitation, "She is hoping you will teach her how to obfuscate her Nimbus."

"Maybe I can help with that," Djinn says, grabbing Bethany's hand and shaking it. "But what would you be willing to compensate me with?". Djinn does not let go of Bethany's hand, and he leers at her with a look of hunger.

[beastman1]

I can make people and things disappear Bethany turns to Steve in a blank stare, calling back to her shrinking debacle with Steve, and I can heal, err, mend wounds and other stuff. Besides that I don't know.

Bethany, although doing a poor job of it, tries to keep her creeped outness to her self, turns to Djinn. But I'm not, like, a call girl or something. I'm not going to go down on you for lessons. No funny business.

Bethany pulls her hand back finally and breaks free of the weird man's grip. I'm hopeful that with you teaching me what I need to know, I can put all of this stuff behind me and just be left alone, just be a normal girl.

[Bennosuke]

Djinn lets Bethany remove her hand, but never breaks his smile or his locked gaze. He gives a stabbing laugh when Bethany finishes, and says, "Oh no, I have not interest in those sorts of things from you." He crosses his arms over his bronzed and bony chest and shifts his weight over one leg into a rather cocky pose. "Perhaps we can make an arrangement though. Can we speak in private?", he says cocking an eyebrow at Steve.

"No you absolutely cannot!", exclaims Bethany's companion, as if pleading with her to hear reason.

Djinn rolls his eyebrows at this and turns back to Bethany, "I don't see why not. This is really between the two of us. Don't you agree?"

[beastman1]

Bethany turns to Steve and gives him a silent, stolid stare that translates a somber look of desperation.

Please Steve, we, I... have to to do this, otherwise all... all of this is for nothing.

After that she returns her stare to Djinn and nods once.

We'll speak in private, I'll hear what you have to say.

[Bennosuke]

There is a desperate moment of shock in Steve's eyes. He opens his mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. Instead, his lips close and purse, as if tasting something sour. His shoulders drop, and Steve says, "Sure. Okay... well I guess I'm just going to head out". He locks eyes first with Djinn, then turning to Bethany, Steve says, "Good luck kid". Without letting Bethany stop him, Steve turns around and exits out of the room.

A toothy grin spreads across Djinn's face as he turns his attention to Bethany. Waving a hand towards the back wall, Djinn says, "Follow me". He walks to the back of the room, a plaster wall covered with various semi-erotic expretionistic or pseudo-occult images. He presses his hand on a poster, depicting a naked young man crouched over bleeding woman like a predator over a downed game. The image on the poster begins to blur as Djinn begins speaking in a language Bethany recognizes though doesn't quiet understand. The image warps and shifts, like the paper was made out of a sea of worms. Then the blurring, squirming effect spreads across the wall till a tall rectangle of of glowing, writhing distortion reveals itself. The rectangle changes color till it has become a doorway, guarded by a hanging curtain, like the entrance to Djinn's shop.

The Magician ushers Bethany into a a room of impossible size, given the size of the building. Silks and Persian carpet cover the floor, and there is a thick smoke of incense and tobacco. Djinn leads Bethany to an area of pillows and encourages her to sit on them. Standing over Bethany, so that her face is uncomfortably close with his tight and torn denim, Djinn asks, "Do you know what you are Bethany?

[beastman1]

Bethany walk into the room but does not answer the man's question, instead giving off a worried face and staring about the details of the walls and floor.

She examines everything around her and looks behind her to make sure the newly formed exit is still an exit and not something else.

[Bennosuke]

The exit still appears intact, but Djinn looms over Bethany, blocking what would be her path to the door. He looks expectantly at her, waiting for her to answer his question.

[beastman1]

*Before Bethany answers, please Game Master, describe in detail the room now that Bethany has given it a thorough look about.

[Bennosuke]

The room is maybe 500 square feet, in the shape of a rectangle. A number of carpets and pillows liter the floor at various locations, around low coffee tables. Bethany sits at the table nearest the entrance. Along the walls are a number of book shelves, though they are covered with an assortment of nick knacks, stuffed birds of prey, crystals, and strange fetishes, as well as a number of books of various sizes and shapes.

There is a larger, round table at the far end of the room, littered with sheets of paper, some white printer paper, others appear to be parchment. In the corner, between the far wall, and one of the long walls of the room is a glass walled cabinet filled with intricately painted ceramic jars.

[beastman1]

The room, for some reason, greatly fascinates Bethany, like as if she's been here before or something in the room holds great historical affinity for her.

She immediately walks past the weird old man and approaches the shelves across the room on the wall that houses the assorted items and knick nacks. She specifically focuses on the crystals in the room and stares t the prettiest while answering his question without looking at him.

I know WHO I am. What difference does it make, what I am? I'm just a normal teenage girl. Bethany, almost in a trance begins moving her left hand to grab and hold the prettiest crystal, but not yet actually grab it, And I'm going to go out on a limb here and say you're not... human. Like Steve.

[Bennosuke]

The man's smile widens at Bethany's words. He seemed anxious as Bethany crossed the room towards his belongings, but his shoulders relaxed when she directed her energy at the various crystals on the shelf.

When Bethany said, "And I'm going to go out on a limb here and say you're not... human. Like Steve", he cackled ruefully. "I'm not Human? Well isn't that a funny concept", he brought a hand to his face, rubbing his cheek and jaw. Pointing a finger at Bethany, the man said, "I would argue that I am probably more human than you. To be honest, that is why I wanted you here."

The man walked towards Bethany, but turns and picks something up from the table at the far end of the room. When he turns back, Djinn is now holding a long ivory stick, engraved with various patterns to small for Bethany to see. Perhaps it wasn't Ivory though, no, as Bethany looked harder, she was somehow sure it was carved from bone. Taking another step forward, and clutching the bone wand like a steak knife, Djinn said, "I think I am going to eat you up, little girl".

Spoiler: OOC

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Ok, so a couple of things. First, Bethany may wish to scrutinize the man in some way with her Mage sight, or scrutinize the room. I would probably use peripheral mage sight for this, but up to you. Please read about mage sight before posting.

We may be entering combat now depending on what Bethany wishes to do. If Bethany is going to do anything either to fight or Flee, I'd like to have her roll Initiative first. To do this, roll 1d10 please.

[Bennosuke]

Djinn grins greedily at Bethany. Even as she begins to draw her knife, he is already casting a spell. He points the silver wand at Bethany, his off hand creating a series of intricate circles and symbols in the air. His eyes go wide with power as the spell is finally cast. Through Bethany's Peripheral mage sight, she can see Djinn cast a spell, extending from the wand like a series of spider webs meant to pull on Bethany's soul.

The spell hits Bethany in the chest almost knocking her over, even as she frees the obsidian knife from it's leather ceremonial sheath. With a yank, Djinn pulls on Bethany's soul, trying to cleave her very Supernal Being from her body. She can feel her very life, live an extra layer of skin being ripping off her being, but try as Djinn might, the pull is too weak. Bethany's Soul refuses to leave.

Djinn looks at Bethany wide eyed as he realizes his spell has failed.

Spoiler

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So Bethany has a very high resolve score, which lets her essentially Withstand the effect of the spell. The spell sloughs off of her having absolutely no effect. So now it's Bethany's turn. Knowing that Djinn is essentially trying to steal her Soul, does Bethany still want to draw her knife, or does she want to take more drastic action?

[beastman1]

Frightened but somehow not undeterred by the assault on her "soul", Bethany makes an immediate action to lunge at Djinn, strike the wand out of his hand with the knife and then pin him to the ground, knife to his throat.

*Just tell me what traits I need to roll for and I will try to roll for them to see if she succeeds or fails in this action. If she succeeds then she'll say something threatening when I post next post.