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

[Thundercracker]

Anna shook her head and kept quiet. The Sheriff would have ghouls with him, blood was there.

[Bennosuke]

Frank Beato leads newly armed militia through the well trimmed yard and around the palatial mansion of D'Agostino's Haven. The property lights have all been shut off at Beato's orders. The group moves in darkness and in silence to the ivy wrapped front gate. Down the street, the darkness is illuminated by the fire growing along the walls of The Coterie's home. Figures are illuminated by the flames, dark silhouettes that seem to be moving away from Anna and Karl's haven towards Frank's gathered army.

You count about eight of them, though it is near impossible to keep count in the shifting darkness. The specter of the bonfire looms over the street, it's heat threatening to blister the skin, and driving the alien conscious that shares your brain through loops of terror and rage. As the shadowy figures approach, it is clear that most of them are armed with pistols, though several of them carry two handed rifles of unclear type.

Frank orders the gate opened, and that is when Schultz and his men begin opening fire. Kindred rush to be free of the tall fence's confines, and to charge The Sheriff and his lackys. The air is filled with the reports of gunfire, muzzle flash helping to illuminate the darkness. Though still in control, your beast screams in your ear to destroy your enemies and defile your bodies. Somehow, the beast is closer to the surface now, perhaps strengthened by the carnage already witnessed tonight.

(OOC: Please roll initiative. The closest enemies are still about 30 yards away, likely out of reach for melee combat unless you have Celerity. I will be rolling initiative for Schultz's men and the militia of allied vampires.)

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

Once again she wished she had her sword. At least she had the rifle.

Anna set up against the fence and peeked over the top, hoping to present a small target against enemy gunfire, then aimed down the sight. She very much wanted to take a shot at Shultz, but would take her shots where she could find them. She also wanted to cover Julian but she figured it would be tough to keep an eye on him with how quickly he moved.

She was a bit worried about grenades popping over the fence, but she trusted her celerity to give her a shot at tossing them back or jumping over the fence if it came to that.

[Daishain]

Switching his purloined rifle to single fire, Karl takes cover near the rear, selecting his targets carefully, aiming to kill for the ghouls, and more to disrupt the actions of any kindred.

[Ladorak]

Lilith picks one of the guns at random, better that they announce she'd never used one before. Seeking more appropriate weaponry (Equally destructive but requiring less proficiency) she asked around for stakes and grenades.

[Bennosuke]

Kindred pour forth from D'Agostino's property, moving swiftly and silently except for the staccato blaze of gunfire. The nearest enemies all appeared to be Ghouls to Karl. Despite his best efforts, he could not find The Sheriff in the shifting blur of the fire and darkness.

Gunfire came back at the charging vampires, though in the shifting mass it seemed no bullet came close enough for immediate danger. Lillith called for grenades, though no one seemed to notice the Nosferatu in the back of the mob that was quickly charging forward.

(OOC: So it looks like Karl starts us off. I think a basic ranged attack will do, unless you have anything special in mind Daishain)

[Bennosuke]

Karl remains crouched in the darkness behind the tall iron fencing of D'Agostino's property, hidden among tall manicured bushes. He watches carefully, trying to focus in the midst of the growing chaos; gunshots thundering in the suburban streets. The German Mekhet takes aim at an approaching shadow, the silhouette armed with what appears to be a shotgun, and pulls hard on his trigger. The stock of the automatic rifle thuds hard into his shoulder, kicking with surprising force, seemingly simultaneous with his target jerking suddenly as if grabbed by the shoulders and spun around. The Ghoul takes a knee for a moment before collapsing face first on the ground.

The Mekhet's senses remain heightened by the thrill of spilled blood, but still he cannot find any sign of The Sheriff in the frenzied skirmish. His attention is suddenly drawn by the crack of an explosion. One of the vampires who had ridden on the helicopter, a female Daeva with raven black hair and a gymnist's body suddenly erupts in flames, as if she were doused in oil then lit like a candle. She shrieks, her voice filled with sudden anguish and surprise. The flames fill her eyes with an orange-red madness, and for just a moment Karl is certain she was looking into him, before she turns screaming, taking about ten running steps before her immolating body collapses into a gory twitching heap.

(OOC: Karl scores a hit and does 4L damage to the Ghoul. It is now Anna's turn, though I encourage both TC and Ladorak to feel free to state their actions and roll to keep things moving. As always, thank you for the patience!)

[Thundercracker]

Anna kept an eye out for allies, starting with Julian, then D’agnostino, then anyone else, in trouble to assist them if she could, otherwise she picked any otherwise occupied target, aimed carefully, and squeezed the trigger.

Spoiler

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Not sure what all actions we have available because I’m afb but posting now to keep it moving. Basically Anna is going to sit there behind stone cover and snipe.
Dex+firearms: (4d10)[4][6][7][9](26)
10 again: (4d10)[5][5][10][5](25)

[Bennosuke]

Following her companion's lead, Anna takes cover in the bushes that line the gates to D'Agostino's property. She watches her fellow Kindred go up in flames, only vaguely aware of the smell of charred flesh and fastly rotting corpse that now fills the air.

Anna's shot hits home too, taking out a rather large looking Ghoul. The dying flames of the forever dead corpse light this one's face, showing a dark face lined with mad glee and shadows. The bullet takes him in the stomach, causing him to double in pain and yip like a dog. The Ghoul collapses on the ground, weapon dropped, moaning as he holds his punctured gut.

The army of D'Agostino's vampires begin tearing into the Ghouls, their numbers dropping quickly in the gunfire. But still, more of Ghouls pour forward, firing at the mob of immortals, and still Schultz is nowhere to be seen.

[Thundercracker]

Anna activated her meager obfuscate for whatever protection it would give her, and looked around for the source of the immolation. If she found something she would alert the others near her, otherwise she sighted down another target and squeezed off another shot.

Spoiler

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Int+ occult what caused the fire?: (3d10)[1][7][10](18)
Perception Wits + composure find the source: (6d10)[5][4][3][5][1][5](23)
Dex+ firearms if can’t find anything: (4d10)[10][7][3][3](23)
10 again for all dice:(10d10)[3][10][7][6][8][9][7][9][8][2](69)

[Bennosuke]

Based on the small fragments of glass that sparkle and glow a molten red in the firelight, Anna thinks it was a Molotov Cocktail, though she can't seem to get a grasp on who threw it.

(OOC: I'm going to hold off on resolving Anna's second attack roll till Lillith has had a chance to go).

[Ladorak]

Lilith took up what cover she could, crouching desperately behind some broken masonry. No one had ever told her gun fights were so loud. The whole thing was shocking and, coming on the heels of tonight's events, overwhelming.

She dared not lift her head up, simply spraying bullets blindly into the night

Spoiler

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Chance dice: (1d10)[8]

[Bennosuke]

The submachine gun kicks hard, but fortunately the Nosferatu was strong, very very strong. It's report is loud, louder than most anything Lillith has ever heard. But the rule of shoot seems to be enough for Lillith as she haphazardly swings her aim at various Ghouls. Despite having never pulled the trigger of a gun before, two shadowy figures drop in the night as Lillith sprays bullets, practically emptying her clip in the span of a few seconds. The Beast cackles in Lillith's head, seeming to enjoy the ease of the kill with a near sexual pleasure.

Still, more and more Ghouls seem to pour forth, shooting this way and that and charging towards their foes.

(OOC: Karl's up next)

[Daishain]

Karl eases a bit further away from the bullet spraying nosferatu as he picks another target to fire at. She was nearly as dangerous with that gun than the enemy.

Damnit, where was Schultz! It wasn't like him to just not show that ugly face of his.

Spoiler: OOC

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Another simple shot, following with a perception roll to try and spot the hidden incindiaries thrower.
attack (4d10)[4][3][10][5](22)
perception (5d10)[5][10][9][1][9](34)
ten again (4d10)[10][3][5][8](26)

[Bennosuke]

Karl's second shot is true, taken at a Ghoul who had somehow gotten past the line of charging vampires as the Mekhet was busy surveying for The Sheriff. The rifle barely kicks, and the shot blows a cloud of gore out the back of the man's head. The Beast cackles, and Karl can feel his tongue worm across his tongue with hunger at the scent of misted blood and brain tissue. The poor Ghoul has time for one pathetic moan before his body drops limply to the ground.

The Mekhet continues to search for his nemesis, a nervous electric energy suddenly overtaking Karl. For a moment Karl is certain he can see a gleam of yellow feral eyes in the dark staring at him, but they disappear in the cloud of growing smoke. Except the cloud seems to pause momentarily, unnaturally, obscuring Karl's view of the battlefield. For an insane moment, it appears that the misted blood from Karl's downed Ghoul actually gathers into halted cloud.

Then the smoke moves forward, coming forward towards Karl in a rush, blowing over Karl in a blinding cold mist. As Karl is taken over, he can hear the mad cackling of Schultz, the word "Swine" in German swirling through the cloud. Within moments the cloud is gone, and as Karl turns around he can see Schultz eyes feral and shining yellow in the firelight staring with evil malevolence at Karl, the cloud transposed as if by satanic magic into the body of the Sheriff, rich with the smell of old blood and burning coal. He cackles at Karl's surprise, aiming the barrels of a sawed off shotgun at the Mekhet.

(OOC: Technically this falls to Anna's turn. TC, you can keep with your original shot, or use your 3d10 roll in a different action, now that The Sheriff has materialized).

[Bennosuke]

The number of swarming Ghouls begins to drop, the life exiting mortals with powers stolen from the blood. Each time Anna takes aim at an oncoming target, it seems there is the explosion of gunfire and the enemy drops, or is at least thrown back by the shot.

Finally Anna is able to take aim at a massive Ghoul, maybe 300 pounds of greedy fat clinging to bone. Even in shadowy outline, Anna can see the rolls jiggle on the man as he charges through the growing smoke, firing rounds from what looks like a machine gun. Anna's aim is true, the bullet seeming to catch the Ghoul in the chest and momentarily halting his approach as he drops to a knee. But the massive ball of flesh rises again and takes aim at Anna. His gun screams as a salvo of bullets are unleashed, though only one strikes Anna. A sudden thud swings Anna's shoulder around, as if she were shoved hard, but her brain barely registers the wound as painful.

(OOC: Anna deals four lethal damage but takes 4 bashing damage. I have updated Anna's character box with the nuisance. It is now Lillith/Ladorak's turn)

[Ladorak]

Every instinct told her to run, this may have been her fight but this was hardly her way of fighting. Her beast, who for years had subsisted only on careful feeding and obsessive long term plans for revenge, was now singing. Drenched in blood and ravenous for more, it cackled, mocked and howled.

She couldn't run though, not with all these bullets flying around, invisibility was poor protection against a lucky bullet. Instead she tried to worm her way further into cover, to entirely remove her profile from consideration.

Guns weren't her thing, having just killed two with one she could say that. It just seemed such a... mundane way to end a life, she almost felt she had cheated those Ghouls out of a more meaningful death. Instead she reached for more familiar powers. Reaching deep inside for the mystic stream beneath the flow of blood and bloodlust Lilith hooked raw power and brought it racing to the surface.

Nightmares can take many faces, but for men who lived their lives under threat of violence and knew just enough of the inner mysteries to recognise their own tiny place in the world, one fear would be common. An illusionary voice crackles over the ghoul's radios 'My God they're in the West Wing! What even is that?' a moment or two of silence and then a new voice, younger and scared 'Back up, we need back up in the west wing now!'

Spoiler

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You probably already guessed but using Nightmare (Dread presence) to conjure illusions. No dice roll required.

[Bennosuke]

It takes a moment for Lillith's powers of Nightmare to take effect. Radios begin to crackle with static before delivering her hallucinatory message. Then several of the Ghouls start screaming as if in surprise, and begin firing at air. The sudden change of focus of the enemy leading to a lapse in defenses. The now distracted Ghouls were quickly picked apart by Lillith's allies, their numbers dropping rapidly till only a few enemies are left. The remaining Ghouls break, fleeing for their lives down the well manicured suburban street.

But The Sheriff seems not to notice. Undeterred he continues toward Karl, gun drawn, eyes filled with a hatred that seems married with the mad fury of the Beast. His mouth was working at the word "Die" over and over, though nothing was coming out.

(OOC: Karl's turn)

[Daishain]

Karl tenses, and drops the rifle. A heartsbeat later, he vanishes in a blur, reappearing just behind Schultz with the SMG previously at his waist inches from the Sheriff's torso. From point blank range, he squeezes the trigger before shifting away again in another blur. He lets the weapon recoil kick the muzzle up more than he normally would, tracing a line of fire as best he can up along the Sheriff's spine.

Spoiler: OOC

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Popping one Vitae to activate Celerity for a boost of speed, as well as a willpower to enhance this attack. Bit expensive as rounds go, but worth it under the circumstances I think. After the attack, will move away from Schultz and that shotgun as much as remaining speed allows. Total speed for this round is 18. Even if its not enough to get away from the shotgun blast, I don't want to be right next to the guy when allies start shooting him too.

Long burst for +3, I think other modifiers are appropriate given the range, automatic fire at point blank is incredibly devastating, but that's up to you Benno.
(10d10)[4][10][8][9][9][3][7][2][6][7](65)
ten again (10d10)[3][5][7][7][7][6][8][6][1][3](53)
Four successes, nice.

[Bennosuke]

Calling on the power of the blood, Karl's body becomes light like a shadow, preternaturally faster than it should physically be capable of.

In a blur, Karl has turned the tables on Schultz, pressing the muzzle of his SMG into the small of The Sheriff's back. A growl escapes the Mekhet's clenched jaw as he pulls down the trigger to nearly empty the clip into Schultz's back. The Sheriff howls in pain and surprise as round after round is emptied point blank into his back. The hail of bullets tear the back of Schultz' jumpsuit apart, exposing black kevlar underneath. . Schultz turns, swinging the butt of his shotgun around as he turns, but Karl has already moved about 15 yards away from his foe.

Schultz screams a barely intelligible curse at Karl as he raises the shotgun to his chest and fires. The black void of the double barrels suddenly ignite. Despite Karl's speed, the vampire is unable to evade the spread of shot as it takes him in the chest and left arm. The pain is like a million mosquito bites, and Karl can feel several ribs cracking from the impact. Schultz cackles, and calls after Karl in German, "Come back little Brownshirt (a term commonly used to refer to a Nazi)!" The Sheriff steps forward, completely unfazed by Karl's best efforts, his eyes glowing a mad animal yellow in the firelight.

(OOC: Karl spends 1 BP and 1 WP. After the armor and the activated Resiliance, Karl does 1 Lethal and 1 bashing to Schultz (I'm converting Karl's damage to Lethal for the point blank range). Schultz shoots at close range with 3 successes, for a total of 6 bashing damage. Karl is down to 9 BP, 2 WP, and has a -2 due to having bashing in 6/7 health boxes. Everything has been updated in the OOC thread)

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

He sound of sub machine gun fire and shotgun blast draws Anna’s attention.
“Shultz is here! He’s here!” Anna shouted, “Shultz is here!”

She flipped to full auto and unloaded at Schultz.

Spoiler

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1firearms + 3WP + 3full auto + 3dex(10d10)[1][5][2][6][6][5][6][1][3][7](42)
10 again: (10d10)[2][3][7][7][4][10][7][4][9][6](59)
Well, there was less than a 3% chance for zero successes..
Need to know if there are bullets left in the clip?

[Ladorak]

'Oh Shultz' Lilith muttered, privately joking to herself. Even by the standard of the Nosferatu the Sheriff was a terrifying man, she had hoped to avoid him in the firefight but this really was not her night. At least he was focused on the 'Brownshirt' (Whatever that meant, she was sure she'd heard it before somewhere) for now. Lilith had no idea what Karl had done to enrage the Sheriff but as long as it kept him off her back she was thankful for it. With bullets no longer whizzing overhead she stood up, doing a very good impression of someone who wasn't totally terrified, and loosed a short burst of bullets at the Sheriff. Her first two kills had given her confidence and she felt far more sure of herself as she lined up the sight and depressed the trigger.

Spoiler

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Autofire medium burst, that should empty the clip. Also spending a WP point

dex - untrained + autofire medium + WP
1-1+2+3

(5d10)[6][9][3][8][6](32)
10 again
(5d10)[6][9][3][9][6](33)

[Bennosuke]

Anna calls out, but no one seems to hear; her Kindred allies too busy chasing down and picking off the fleeing Ghouls. In frustration Anna depresses the trigger of her submachine gun, but seems to hit nothing despite her exposed target.

Then his body is jerked backwards as a hail of bullets tear into Schultz, fired by none other than the Nosferatu Lillith. But the volley of stubs does little to slow down the Sheriff, who cackles as his eyes never leave Karl. "Do you think your bullets concern me little swine," he howls, again beginning to move towards Karl.

(OOC: Anna has about 7 bullets left in the chamber. Lillith does 4 bashing damage. It's back to Karl's turn.)

[Daishain]

Damn, he's tough. Need to wear him down. In his mother tongue he calls back, "Of all the people who died in those days, above them all it is you who should have stayed dead. I will correct that tonight if it is the last thing I do!"

Shifting his aim downwards, Karl continues to retreat, firing in short bursts as he draws the Sheriff towards the the bulk of the other kindred.

Spoiler: OOC

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A note for Ladorak, Karl and Shultz have been talking in German, so unless you know that language, or at least enough to puzzle out what Braunhemd means...

Retreating 9 meters towards the nearest of D'Agostino's men. Not many bullets left. Wasted most of them burying them into that kevlar unfortunately. I was really hoping that would be more devastating than it turned out to be. Just a short burst this time, making a called shot to the leg for -2 to hit. Schultz' armor shouldn't apply against this attack, and it will apply leg wrack if it manages to do as much damage as his stamina. Spending another WP. If I am especially lucky, Schultz' next attack might have to be from medium or even long range for that shotgun.

Dex+firearms+Sburst+WP-2calledshot (6d10)[8][6][9][4][3][3](33)
ten again (6d10)[3][2][5][6][8][9](33)
two successes. Here's hoping I'm still alive after his go...

[Bennosuke]

Karl's burst of gunfire tears into the Sheriff's leg, shredding the stained fabric of his pants and exposing flesh that quickly becomes pulped meat and bone. The hits stumble Schultz, nearly dropping him to one knee. But as he rises there is a terrible predatory look in his eyes. Karl notices it as a mirror of what his face must look like when he has cornered a terrified mortal, right before they recognize the monster before them.

Schultz jumps forward, his damaged leg seemingly unaffected, though he covers little ground. Gun raised at Karl, the Sheriff pulls the trigger, the double barrels of the shotgun unloading a spread of shot directly into Karl's chest. The Mekhet can feels his ribs crack and fold inwards, puncturing lungs that no longer serve any vital function. Despite this, the pain is agonizing, like Karl's a grenade has gone off inside Karl's thorax. Karl instinctively tries to scream in wretched agony, but finds his ruined thorax incapable of pushing enough air to his mouth.

(OOC: Okay, so this is getting... well not good. Karl spends a WP and is down to 1. His shot does four damage, but The Sheriff spends a BP to soak the damage with his Resiliance. Schultz tries to use Vigor to jump into melee, but his roll fails miserably, covering all of 4 meters. He remains within short distance for his shotgun, and instead fires, rolling four successes for a total of 7 bashing damage. All of Karl's health boxes are filled with lethal except the last which is filled with bashing. Karl is now at -3 penalty to all rolls. I recommend using some BP for healing. Do we feel this is worth a frenzy roll? It is now Anna's turn)

[Thundercracker]

Anna emptied the rest of her bullets at the Sheriff then moved to pick up the machine gun the ghoul who had shot at her dropped.

Spoiler

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Not sure how many bullets I need for a long burst but Anna will empty the clip regardless.
Firearms 1 + dex 3 + long burst 3? : (7d10)[10][7][7][2][5][7][1](39)
10 again:(7d10)[8][7][2][4][4][7][3](35)

[Bennosuke]

Anna pulls down the trigger, firing round after round into Schultz till the SMG's report becomes nothing but the empty clack of the reloader working with nothing. The impact of Anna's shots cause causes Schultz' body to writhe like a shaken marionette. The Sheriff turns his attention to Anna, lips curled back in a growl exposing his long fangs. "You're next bitch," he calls to Anna, eyes glowing hot with rage in the firelight.

(OOC: Anna does 4 bashing damage and empties her clip; it was a medium burst with 7 shots left in the chamber. Schultz spends another point of Vitae to soak the damage. Ladorak's turn.)

[Ladorak]

'Jesus.' Lilith's hands were shaking, she struggled to reload as she backed away from the enraged Sheriff 'How many bullets is this going to take?'

Spoiler

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OOC: Away from books but reloading is a reflex action I think? So backing up and reloading would be the whole turn

[Daishain]

Karl grits his teeth and wills the worst of his wounds to heal. Due to his particular curse, the holes in his body remain open and seeping, the rest of him just... adjusts. Letting off another burst of gunfire directed at the Sheriff's legs, he continues to move away from that nasty shotgun. He also looks around for a weapon with more punch left behind on this battlefield, regretting dropping the assault rifle from before. It had made sense at the time.

To the others he calls out, "Keep your distance and wear him down, fire at anything other than his chest!"

Spoiler: OOC

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Spending three bloodpoints to heal three lethal damage, then letting loose another short burst, again called shot to the legs. No WP this time though, need to save that last one I think.
dex+FA+SB-2called shot (3d10)[3][8][1](12)
short burst (3d10)[3][3][7](13)

Better than nothing, dang it all, I might have to bugger off and go get help, but I don't know if I can do that fast enough for you guys to still be alive.

[Bennosuke]

Karl stumbles backwards, pulling down the trigger till the trigger only goes click. His rounds tear into Schultz' leg, pulping the flesh till it is little more than a mass of bloodless meat and shredded cloth. Impossibly, the damage seems not to affect Schultz, doesn't even cause him to stumble. Instead, he turns the shotgun around till he his clutching the barrel like a baseball bat. Then he turns and jumps at Anna. Despite his destroyed legs, the Sheriff seems to fly through the air, moving about 25 yards till he has landed in front of Anna.

Far away, maybe about twenty yards away (though it's hard to say in the haze of the smoke coming from the cotiere's haven), Karl can see the silhouette of Frank Beato, the massive rocket launcher slung over one shoulder.

(OOC: Daishain, please see my OOC post about healing. Karl's emptied his gun, and does 3 bashing damage, but Schultz spends another BP to soak the damage. He uses his instant action and Vigor to jump in front of Anna. It is now Anna's turn.)