(IC) New Bedford by Night: WtF II

[GKnightBC]

'Maybe.' She'll elaborate while keeping an eye on Fin through the car windscreen. 'The bus driver's cousin killed someone in Boston. Supposedly he wasn't the sort of person you'd expect to go that far. If he's just nuts I can probably handle him, but if he's being influenced by some spirit it'd be nice to have someone who knows what they're doing in town.'

'The Anchor. They the local pack? What do you know about them?'

Jeremy thinks for a bit before replying. "You'd be right in that assumption. Sane humans normally don't wantonly murder and sudden changes in personality are a good sign they're being ridden. I'm not familiar with this town, but the Anchor Wolves have built a reputation far outside their weight class in the short time they've announced themselves. They have been able to control and dominate some fairly important issues in this town, so I'm hoping to join them and ride their success. Other than some of their names - Bear, Blaze, James, Chris - all I know of them are their exploits."

[Haval]

'The more the merrier then. What do we do if no one shows up?'

[GKnightBC]

'The more the merrier then. What do we do if no one shows up?'

Jeremy grins wide "We hunt."

[Haval]

Joanna grins back in spite of herself, 'Why not. Shouldn't be too hard to find a Uratha pack in a town like this.'

[Bennosuke]

Fin steps to the side, giving Jeremy a scowl. Jo was already soaked from standing outside in the pouring rain talking to Fin the bus driver. The two go to Joanna's car to continue their conversation, but even as they are deciding to join forces for a short hunt, an elderly green Winnebago pulls into the parking lot, and makes a B-line for Joanna's car.

Out of the driver's side comes a stout woman in a black rain slicker. Under her hood you can see that she has short green hair. The passenger side door opens up and a lithe figure in little more than a shredded white T-shirt and equally beat up jeans stumbles out. It's a young woman with dark eyeliner, a choker collar around her neck, and a wild main of long blonde hair. She looks a little burned out, and she watches mutely as the driver comes around the Winnebago to stand just outside Joanna's driver-side door. Even from inside, you can smell Uratha coming from at least one of the two. The one in the slicker raps a knuckle on Joanna's window and peers inside, a small look of concern on her face. "One of you Jeremy? I'm looking for a Jeremy Coppers," she shouts over the downpour.

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

Blaze looks over his map, and his watch. They had already wasted a good twenty minutes at the restaurant, which meant they had about another 40 minutes tops to do some digging and get back for the last ferry. But the island wasn't very big, and an Uratha in wolf form could move frighteningly quickly...

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

The screen before Bear types out "Perhaps...", the letters fading out of existence just as quickly as they appeared on the screen. Bear's eyes keep getting pulled to the corner of the screen, where it always seems like he is just about to catch sight of one of the simian abominations, as if one was going to jump through the screen and begin wrecking havoc in Blaze's room. "Normally I like to receive payment first before doing someone a favor," the spirit replies, "even if they are Uratha."

(OOC: Give me a Presence + Persuasion here please)

[Daishain]

Bear pauses a moment before typing again, "We are all friends here yes? This threat concerns us all, and the faster we get to the bottom of it, the better. As to your payment, it is likely to take a while to set up, but it will be done. And in the future, we could make exchanges involving bandwidth time with no delay."

[Haval]

Joanna will switch on the car's heater and angle it towards herself. 'Ah, maybe that's them. I hope they have a towel.'

She'll respond to the green haired woman. If she wasn't Uratha then she was probably in on everything. 'That's him. You got room for one more? I think I need to come along.'

[Thundercracker]

Blaze

“Well, if this weather was cooperating I’d say let’s go have a look around, but if we go running off into the rain they’re going to know somethings up. Let’s just head back home and come back when it’s not pouring,” Blaze said.

Unless something really weird happens, Blaze is going to take them back home.

[Bennosuke]

There is a long pause before the spirit responds. "Very well," the text finally ripples to existence on the screen. Another pause, then, "You want to know about recent strange deaths? Describe them to me!" The spirit waits for Bear to type out an explanation of what exactly he is looking for, then replies, "That is not what was reported regarding Richard Taylor... very interesting. Looks like the local police are hiding something." There is another long pause, but before Bear can type anything, a long paragraph of text materializes, "But... it looks like there have been a growing number of deaths reported on local dock workers and fishermen. In the last three months there has been almost ten individuals who have been reported dead or missing; all men or women who work at sea. That's almost a ten fold factor of increased deaths for this group. Very interesting Uratha... very interesting. I can compile a list of names if you would like."

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

The woman's eyes dart from Joanna to Jeremy, then back to Joanna. She sniffs at the air, her lips curling back just slightly in a rather lupine sign of warning. "And you are?" she asks haughtily.

But even before Joanna can respond, her young female companion throws an arm around the driver's shoulder and giggles, "Hey, two for the price of one. Relax Pine, maybe today is our lucky day." She gives Joanna a wink that is charming to the point of being almost flirtatious.

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

James sighs and says, "Aww, I was really looking forward to a good little hunt in the rain." He sighs, but rises with Blaze and follows him out of the restaurant. Stepping outside, the two return to the dock for the ferry, but the ramp to the boat has been retracted. Standing on the deck is the familiar boat hand, a drenched peacoat hanging heavily from his frame. He calls out, "You're back too early. It will be another ten minutes before we can let passengers on. I suppose you are welcome to wait in the rain if you want." He guffaws at this, then turns his back to Blaze and James, continuing his labor and doing his best to dismiss the two out of towners.

(OOC: You can absolutely choose to just wait it out if you want, just giving you an opportunity to do one last thing if you want)

[Daishain]

"I think that would be a good idea, any chance we can find out a little about them? See if they have anything in common? It might be helpful to see how many are associated with the Church of Daigon."

[Haval]

Well that answers that. Joanna grins back at the blonde woman, before replying to her friend. 'Hi, Pine is it? I'm like her.' She'll introduce herself, 'I'm Joanna. I was just passing through but maybe I could help you guys out. I take it you have a place? Should I follow you?'

[GKnightBC]

Fin steps to the side, giving Jeremy a scowl. Jo was already soaked from standing outside in the pouring rain talking to Fin the bus driver. The two go to Joanna's car to continue their conversation, but even as they are deciding to join forces for a short hunt, an elderly green Winnebago pulls into the parking lot, and makes a B-line for Joanna's car.

Out of the driver's side comes a stout woman in a black rain slicker. Under her hood you can see that she has short green hair. The passenger side door opens up and a lithe figure in little more than a shredded white T-shirt and equally beat up jeans stumbles out. It's a young woman with dark eyeliner, a choker collar around her neck, and a wild main of long blonde hair. She looks a little burned out, and she watches mutely as the driver comes around the Winnebago to stand just outside Joanna's driver-side door. Even from inside, you can smell Uratha coming from at least one of the two. The one in the slicker raps a knuckle on Joanna's window and peers inside, a small look of concern on her face. "One of you Jeremy? I'm looking for a Jeremy Coppers," she shouts over the downpour.

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

After being introduced, Jeremy says "Yes, that's me. I encountered this friendly driver here when I arrived, and mistook her for you, for obvious reasons."

The woman's eyes dart from Joanna to Jeremy, then back to Joanna. She sniffs at the air, her lips curling back just slightly in a rather lupine sign of warning. "And you are?" she asks haughtily.

But even before Joanna can respond, her young female companion throws an arm around the driver's shoulder and giggles, "Hey, two for the price of one. Relax Pine, maybe today is our lucky day." She gives Joanna a wink that is charming to the point of being almost flirtatious.

Jeremy shrugs "She was here, you were late, I accepted a ride. Lucky for me, either way I get to ride where ever we're headed. If you're followable, that is?"

[Thundercracker]

Blaze

Rather than wait in the rain, Blaze retreats back to the restaurant and waits under cover until it's time to go.

[Bennosuke]

Databolt's reply appears and then fades from the screen quickly. "I'll see what I can do," it reads, "but it's going to take a bit of time." As the message dissolves away, the ghostly glow from the laptop fades, and Bear is left staring at the computer's log in screen.

Ciara comes knocking on the door, the sound the final bit of reality that pulls Bear from the trance of the computer monitor. The pack is gathering downstairs and she wants the two of them to join.

(OOC: See the last section below)

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

Pine looks with concern from Kara to the couple in the car before her. "**** it," she says with exasperation, "it's freaking pouring. Okay, just follow us. Kara, get back in the car."

The two rush back into the Winnebago, and the lumbering van sputters to life. They drive out of the parking lot and lead Joanna and Jeremy through the lonesome streets of New Bedford in the pouring rain.

(OOC: Will give you a chance to chat, or make any decisions but also see the last section below)

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

The ride back to New Bedford is mercifully uneventful. The boat hands steer clear of the two Uratha, though every once in a while the two catch a bald fish faced watching from behind a cracked door or studying them as he passes by the passenger cabin.

Once on solid ground, Blaze and James rush back to the factory.

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

Following the Winnebago, Joanna finds herself driving along the sea-line. Dark grey clouds loom over dark churning waters. As they drive across the shoreline a single near monolithic building of red brick and concrete begins to rise above the horizon. Surrounded by towering iron fencing, the factory comes into view, orange lights glow from the windows, the only light in dark storm. Pine pulls up to the fence where a sign hangs reading, "The Winfield Cannary", letting the van idle to get out and open the gate.

After parking, Pine leads Kara, Jeremy and Joanna into the warehouse. Despite the characterless exterior of the building, the high ceilinged interior has been turned into the greatest punk rock crash pad. Torn up furniture has been set out all over the space. A loading stage has been covered in drum kit, amps, and a mine field of guitar pedals. Several guitars and other instruments rest on the stage, enshrined gloriously on stands like the armory of a Viking warband. Poster after poster after poster adorn the walls, and where there isn't pinned up paper the walls have been covered in ludicrous neon graffiti. A pack of figures sit huddled around one wall where fire crackles out of an industrial sized fireplace. The warmth inside is so inviting after the chilling rain. The place smells like man, and wolf dander, and beer, and strong coffee, and most of all of home.

The Anchor Wolves, a pack of Uratha and Wolf Blooded turn to greet the new recruits. They had gotten word that an Uratha was coming down from Portland, where the Anchor Wolves had originally hailed from, but following Pine and Kara are two new faces, one male and one female.

[Haval]

In the Car

'Fair warning Jeremy, I haven't exactly been doing this for very long, so if I say anything really dumb I'd appreciate it if you do the talking.' Joanna wasn't worried, but it might be easier if she wasn't the only new arrival.

At the Warehouse

Joanna will put up her already wet hoodie as she follows Pine and Kara inside. She had a change of clothes in the car, but she'll put up with it for the moment.

Inside the fire felt awfully inviting. Other then the smell of wolf, the place almost reminded Joanna of a few venues back home. She's briefly more interested in the instruments then the pack of Uratha. Any introductions could wait, 'Holy ****. Are you guys a band?'

[Daishain]

Standing in front of the rest as Joanna and Jeremy enter is a big and burly man, sniffing at the air a bit at the newcomers. He's dressed rather simply, in jeans, a Black Sabbath tshirt, and a worn biker jacket.

"Yeah, we're a band, but that's not important right now." He points to the young male, then Joanna, "He must be Jeremy, in which case he was invited and is welcome. You are neither." He says this with a slight growl, prompting the slender redhead behind him to put a hand on his arm, apparently calming him a bit, "But you seem young, so I'm going to assume that the trespass was made in ignorance. In the future, either take steps to be noticed at the edge of a pack territory, or just pick up a phone and call."

He takes a breath, eyeing her, "Now, who are you and what are you doing here?"

[Haval]

'Just wondering if we've been to any of the same venues.' Joanna was delighted at how normal this seemed, but she'll stare back at the big one without flinching.

'If I'd known you were here I would have come to see you last week. If nothing else I could have used the company. Now I've met you I realise I should have checked with my friends in Boston once I knew I was coming up here.' She wouldn't make that mistake again.'You're the first pack I've actually run into outside the city. I get that you weren't expecting me. I could give you some names if you want? One of them should vouch for me.'

'Anyway, I'm Joanna Sullivan. I'm an investigator and I'm looking for a man who killed a guy in Boston. If I'm unlucky there's a chance there's a spirit that was making him like that. If I find this guy I'd appreciate any help you can give me.'

[Daishain]

The big one looks around for any dissent before stating, "Let us talk then. Welcome to the den of the Anchor Wolves. The band is known to the humans as Cry Wolf, we're mostly labeled punk rock, but there's a bit of a mix going on there. My name is John, but most people call me Bear. Perhaps you should both tell us a little about yourselves." He extends a hand towards the motley collection of furniture gathered around the fireplace.

[Thundercracker]

Blaze

Blaze led James back into the warehouse.

“Hey guys there’s definitely something weird going on at... hi,” he said, noticing the newcomers.

“What’s goin on?” he asked.

[Bennosuke]

Kara saunters into the room following the others. She throws her soaking jacket on an empty chair, then proceeds to walk up to Blaze, give him a sultry wink, then shakes herself off like a wet dog. Splashes of cold water pepper the Ithauer. Kara grins and says, "There, that's better." She throws an arm around Blaze's shoulders and replies, "There's always something strange going on in this town man."

[Haval]

The big one looks around for any dissent before stating, "Let us talk then. Welcome to the den of the Anchor Wolves. The band is known to the humans as Cry Wolf, we're mostly labeled punk rock, but there's a bit of a mix going on there. My name is John, but most people call me Bear. Perhaps you should both tell us a little about yourselves." He extends a hand towards the motley collection of furniture gathered around the fireplace.

'Good to meet you John. I'll have to look you guys up later.' Joanna will follow Kara's example and get closer to the fire. 'About me, other then recently finding out I could turn into a wolf you mean? I work for my Dad's agency where I find people who need finding. I would have said I was good at it but then the first change happened. I'm told I'm Irraka and that sort of thing was always there even before I understood it.' She knows the name of her auspice but doesn't typically have any reason to say it out loud. 'What other strange things have happened in this town?'

[GKnightBC]

In the Car

'Fair warning Jeremy, I haven't exactly been doing this for very long, so if I say anything really dumb I'd appreciate it if you do the talking.' Joanna wasn't worried, but it might be easier if she wasn't the only new arrival.

With a grin, he answers "Talking has never been a problem for me, when I don't need to keep quiet. Besides, I'm sure an added surprise won't hurt the reception. Let's see how they act when we arrive and tap dance from there. "

[GKnightBC]

The big one looks around for any dissent before stating, "Let us talk then. Welcome to the den of the Anchor Wolves. The band is known to the humans as Cry Wolf, we're mostly labeled punk rock, but there's a bit of a mix going on there. My name is John, but most people call me Bear. Perhaps you should both tell us a little about yourselves." He extends a hand towards the motley collection of furniture gathered around the fireplace.

Picking something that looks likely enough to hold his frame - at least for a few minutes - Jeremy sits into an ample chair positioned so he can both see the door and know his back is clear. "I've been told that your exploits here have been... remarkable. I've also heard that you had need of a talent for subtlety that I hope to provide. Lucky for you all, I've a bit of that, along with skill on the 88s to fill out your band. You know my name, but when we're working and not playing, I go by Spare Change, or Essee if you're in a hurry. I'm always being found when you least expect me." He says with a toothless grin.
Upon Joanna revealing her Aspect, Jeremy says "That's definitely the fates at work then! I'm also of that Moon. " turning to the group he adds "She happened to be on a trail of her own when I arrived in that lame excuse for a bus station, and from her scent and timing, I thought she was your contact. Alignments, Phases and Fates I think she's meant to be here, too."

[Thundercracker]

Blaze

“Yeah I know that, but I meant at this specific juncture,” Blaze replied to Kara.

“Hey everyone , I’m Blaze, play the drums,” he said, “crescent, iron masters, spirit guru and toking expert extraordinaire.”

“Bear, we have some new folks comin on board?” he asked.

[Haval]

Joanna gives a friendly nod to the new arrivals. She's sceptical of Jeremy's talk of fate but isn't sure if she can discount it either. She also registers his comment about being a musician,'Wait are you short of people?' There were a lot of people here but presumably they weren't all in the band.

[Daishain]

Bear nods to Blaze, "This is Jeremy, if you remember we talked earlier about taking him in. The other is Joanna. She wandered into our territory on other business. She only had her first change recently, and apparently no one mentioned to her that's a good way to end up on the wrong end of a hunt if its one of the more hostile packs."

He turns back to the young woman, "Speaking of, that's gotta change. You need a teacher, at least for the basics. I won't claim we're the best choice, but we're here, and the sooner the better. Besides, if that man you pursue is spirit ridden like you think, then its our duty to deal with it. I'm not offering a place in the pack, at least not yet, but lets teach you the code and see where things go from there."

"And yes, we're a bit short. Unfortunately our bassist Juno was killed not long ago. Solomon, also an Irraka by the way, was on the board, but he took Juno's death hard and left us. For the rest, I'm on guitar, Blaze mentioned his work on the drums, and you already met our singer Kara. The band's probably not our biggest concern right now, but it serves as a cover, its damn good stress relief, and it keeps our Totem Spirit happy."

He takes a breath, a little uncomfortable with all the exposition, "Anyways, you asked about strange stuff. I'm afraid this place is one of the strangest. When we got here, New Bedford was overridden by Beshilu. Plague spirits, usually look like rats in this world. They'd killed off the last pack, and managed to tear open big holes in the gauntlet. You probably heard about that big but short lived outbreak? Captain Drips? That wasn't natural, and it ended when we crushed the plague spirit king and their nests. That's the big 'exploit' that got some attention from others."

"More recently, we've been dealing with some kind of... thing out in the ocean. Its not a spirit, at least not in the usual sense. No one seems to know exactly what it is. But there's a whole cult of people in town worshipping the damn thing. I'm not yet sure how we're going to fight something out under the sea, but it killed Juno, so we're not about to let things go."

He looks to the others, "Oh, that reminds me, I've been talking with Databolt, it looks like there are about ten people over the past couple of months that might have died like Juno and that Richard fellow. Still working on the details, but it looks like the local cops are covering up the nature of the deaths. They did that in Richard's case at any rate."

[GKnightBC]

He takes a breath, a little uncomfortable with all the exposition, "Anyways, you asked about strange stuff. I'm afraid this place is one of the strangest. When we got here, New Bedford was overridden by Beshilu. Plague spirits, usually look like rats in this world. They'd killed off the last pack, and managed to tear open big holes in the gauntlet. You probably heard about that big but short lived outbreak? Captain Drips? That wasn't natural, and it ended when we crushed the plague spirit king and their nests. That's the big 'exploit' that got some attention from others."

"That bit of cleanup reached the Packs over in Maine. It could have been a lot wider spread had your group not handled it. It had ripples through the Shadow a lot further than expected."

"More recently, we've been dealing with some kind of... thing out in the ocean. Its not a spirit, at least not in the usual sense. No one seems to know exactly what it is. But there's a whole cult of people in town worshipping the damn thing. I'm not yet sure how we're going to fight something out under the sea, but it killed Juno, so we're not about to let things go."

Jeremy responds to this with "If they are worshipping it, are they getting some kind of response or empowerment like a Totem? Speaking of which, I'd enjoy being 'introduced' to our Pack's Totem, when opportunity presents, and possibly this informed Databolt. "

[Haval]

'Hostile packs?' Maybe keeping some distance from all this hadn't been the best idea after all. 'Alright I'd appreciate hearing anything you think I should know. I know enough of the basics. The others said they'd keep an eye on me for the moment.'

'Sorry about your friend.' How exactly had this Juno died? 'I don't know how long I'll be around but I used to play bass if you ever need someone to sit in.'

'I think I caught the end of Captain Drips. A plague spirit king sounds...disgusting, but you probably saved a lot of peoples lives. This thing in the ocean. Do we have any idea what it wants? If that's not a silly question."

[Daishain]

"Nope, not silly, we've been wondering that ourselves, but I'm afraid we don't really have an answer for you. We think it might have convinced some of its followers to start a petition trying to convince us to leave town, but that might have been the only deliberate action its taken over the past while that we've heard about other than the seemingly random killings."

"Our pack totem is a spirit of Revelry known as The Reveler in the Vineyard. They'll introduce themself whenever they wish to. They're probably show up the next time we play a good bit of music, they really like the stuff. Informed is certainly a good way to describe Databolt, they're a spirit of information, currently residing in Blaze's laptop."

"While I'm listing off allies..." Bear hooks a thumb out towards the bay, "There's a Locus out there, which we share by agreement with King Sky Hunter, big seahawk looking hunting spirit. Kara has a social media spirit called Atant living in her cellphone that's been helpful. Hanging around the little garden outside may be a spirit of growth, it hasn't shared its name with us but is helping cultivate the plants there. The tannis root growing out there was a big help with the plague spirit I mentioned, the medicinal paste we made from it melted parts of the disgusting bastard like acid." Bear grins as the memory of that fight. "Ever since we've been planting some of the offshoots around the territory to help keep the beshilu away while the gauntlet heals from the damage they caused."

"Not so often seen around this place would be Immovable Hunter, a spirit of protection and endurance that I've been communing with lately, takes the form of a big grizzly bear. Bring honey if you want something from them. And then there's Brown Tail and his mate Zephyr, not spirits, but rather a pair of red tailed hawks. I convinced them to help us scout the territory and watch for problems. They have a nest out in the forest, but show up here now and again. Please be respectful around them, they might be working with us, but they are not tame."

"In regards to you stepping in Joanna, perhaps this was a matter of fate. We're setting up a benefits concert soon, partly to counter this cult trying to make us look bad. I was going to suggest a practice tonight anyways to get Jeremy up to speed, might as well see what you've got."

[Haval]

'A petition? Sounds like it's a politician.' Joanna muses 'Who came to see you? Do you think it would help if say someone who isn't obviously connected with you guys yet had a word with them?'

On the concert, 'I may be a little rusty but I think I was ok.'