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

[Bennosuke]

As the two are discussing, a message comes through on the group Pulse conversation. "I may not be able to come," the message from Aisling reads, and it's followed by some incomprehensible emoji.

(OOC: Someone will need to reply)

[Thundercracker]

"Agreed, tomorrow would be better, not least because we should try and determine if there is going to be some sort of problem. This individual may be trying to use or trap us somehow. Or they may be offering an opportunity, it is difficult to say."

Anna typed out a response: tomorrow evening, 3am at Tommy's Joynt.

[Bennosuke]

The reply to Anna's message was almost immediate; it read, "Sounds good. Meet you upstairs."

That taken care of, Anna steps out to find Gabe, while Karl goes upstairs to follow up with his grandson.

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

Gabe was down on the main floor, not far off from the room where Karl and Anna had been, standing in the shadows. He had clearly been waiting for the two, but of course Gabe's eyes fell on his Sire, appearing almost disappointed when Anna sought him out and Karl went the other way. Refusing to step out from the darkness he says with quiet frustration, "What's up?"

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

Karl continued on to the stairwell and marched up to Gabrielle's old rooms. Down the hall he could hear Aisling milling about in her room, maybe packing. When Karl opened the door to, he found his grandson in the dark, lying on the moldering cot. Despite the darkness, Karl could see that Fred's eyes were closed. He watched the rise and fall of the man's breathing... so mortal. The man did not stir as the Mekhet moved noiselessly into the room, though Karl could not decide whether the man was sleeping.

[Daishain]

Unsure what he wished the answer to be, Karl states in a low but audible voice, "May we speak?"

If there is no answer, he will turn and head back downstairs. Waking the boy would not seem prudent given how on edge he must be.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Body disposal,” Anna replied, “seems there’s a corpse on our property and it’s time to get rid of it before someone accidentally finds it and starts screaming, or calls the police or something.”

She paused.

“What are you doing back there, has Karl got you practicing obfuscate?” she asked.

[Bennosuke]

Before Karl can turn around, his grandson releases a loud and (to Karl's ears) exaggerated sigh. Without any evidence of grogginess Fred opens his eyes to look up at the vampire standing in the doorway. "Come in," the man says as he pushes himself to a seated position on the cot. His voice is haggard, flat, reserved. He adds, "What do you want to talk about?"

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

“Body disposal,” Anna replied, “seems there’s a corpse on our property and it’s time to get rid of it before someone accidentally finds it and starts screaming, or calls the police or something.”

Gabe scoffs at this. "Of course," he says, trying to swallow down his spite, before adding under his breath, "Thought I'd be done with the slave work after getting bitten." He grimaces, trying to give Anna a grin and show that he's alright with it all. "Very well then. I'm game. Is there a plan?" he adds.

She paused.

“What are you doing back there, has Karl got you practicing obfuscate?” she asked.

"I don't know," Gabe replies as if surprised by the question, "I guess I just... like it more in the darkness. I figured that was, I don't know, normal?" He was a Mekhet after all.

[Daishain]

"Everything and anything Enkel, but most of that can wait. I wanted to thank you for not turning me away. I know it was not easy accepting not only our connection, but this thing that I am."

"I'm afraid you will be on your own when you next wake, there was a young man I had originally thought might keep you company and give some perspective, but it seems he will be departing tonight. I can at least leave you my car and my card, so you can do something in the daylight hours before I can join you again."

Karl looks around the room with some distaste. "One way or another, these accommodations will be temporary. Things have changed rather significantly of late, and we've been a little busy trying to keep up. A new place for all of us to stay is likely in the works, and making sure there's an appropriate place for you in particular should be simple."

"There is much you will need to learn, more than we can really cover tonight, even if you forgo sleep entirely. But is there anything in particular you wish to know now?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

Anna paused and became unnaturally still, like a statue. She stared at Gabe for a good seven or eight seconds before replying.

"I don't _have_ to help you with this, you know. I am extremely busy trying to stay ahead of several individuals who are most likely plotting how to have me killed. It was _your_ virgin feed, it's only right you take care of it," Anna said, "but Karl asked me to, and it's not often I get to galivant around with a fledgling, so here I am."

Anna relayed Karl's plan to Gabe.

"You need to start thinking more like what you are, and less like what you were," she said, "the Kine are social animals, we are not. See this task for what it is, a chance for you to learn from a Kindred who is not your Sire, and who will probably not kill you if you become mildly inconvenient. If I were you I'd be jumping at the opportunity to learn from a neonate, who happens to be a Hound, to learn as much as I could while still under your Sire's protection. Once you're presented to the Prince, you're probably going to have to find your own way, at least for a little while."

"Think about it," she added, "in the meantime, let's find that chicken wire."

[Bennosuke]

Fred shades his eyes against the light coming from the hallway as he stares up at Karl. He listens to the vampire, nodding his head slowly. When Karl is done talking about how he will be alone, Fred replies, "I feel like every conversation I have with you ends up being so... melodramatic." He gives Karl a wry grin to show he's teasing the man. Before Karl can reply, Fred replies, "That's fine. I mean, I'm sure I can find ways to busy myself." Fred pauses to look around the dark room and adds, "Maybe I'll spend the day decorating." He lets this joke settle as well before his expression darkens. "Anything I need to know or can't do, while you... sleep? I mean, like for my safety?"

"There is much you will need to learn, more than we can really cover tonight, even if you forgo sleep entirely. But is there anything in particular you wish to know now?"

Assuming Karl does not answer it above, Fred replies, "Well... I think I need to know how to defend myself. Like, should I be loading up on garlic and crosses? Sorry, I no that sounds so stupid."

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

When Anna gets serious, Gabe throws both hands up in defense. "It's fine," he says quickly, though a hint of frustration plays on his still near mortal eyes. He even runs a tongue across his teeth as if trying to hold back some additional thought, before repeating himself, "It's... it's fine Anna."

He follows Anna, who walks back into the two car garage where the coterie have begun to store a number of nick nacks, tools, and supplies. Most things are still in shipping boxes, as the trio had only recently begun to move back into the property after it's reconstruction. But it is not long till Anna and Gabe find the supplies that they need.

[Daishain]

Karl stiffens for a moment as if he's done something wrong. "I'm... sorry. Its been so long since I've had a... normal conversation I can hardly remember what they're like. Maybe you can help me there?"

In response to the questions about remaining safe, he states, "The big thing not to do is try and break the masquerade. Just don't talk about anything you've learned since I contacted you with anyone and you'll be safe there. I may be able to protect you from consequences for a few minor slipups, but I suggest not testing the limits of that. At least for now, I also would suggest avoiding places run by the more powerful kindred. I have to assume that they know about you by now. If you show up out of the blue, they may assume I'm using you to pry into their affairs and react rashly. I'll leave a list of businesses and organizations to stay clear of for now. Most of them you wouldn't want to visit anyways, but there are some you might."

"As to fighting off an active threat, garlic and crosses don't do anything with most of us. Actually there's an order of kindred that freely bears the cross themselves. Sunlight does burn us, and while the sun is up we have extreme difficulty remaining conscious even indoors and well away from its rays. Fire is also an effective tool, and most of us will react to open flames with fear. The wooden stake in the heart thing is also somewhat accurate. Complete paralyzation if you can pull it off, but either overpowering or surprising a kindred to do that will range from very difficult to near impossible depending on the circumstances. Most kindred will have at least one weakness of some sort, but that varies by individual, so that's difficult to prepare for or take advantage of unless you know such details about the one you are fighting."

"Your most reliable bet in terms of weapons you should have the skill for would likely be ordinary high power firearms. It would be difficult to actually kill a kindred only using such tools, but bullets can still weaken or drive off most of us if you can land enough hits. Very few kindred will still be coming after you after a pistol magazine emptied into the chest, though I would not recommend simply standing around to find out the hard way if they'll manage to recover."

"That said, as long as you avoid going out at night the worst you are likely to encounter would be ghouls. They're usually a good bit more resilient than normal humans, but they're still in the end human. The same things you'd use to defend yourself against some random criminal work just fine on them. Just go a little overkill to be sure."

Karl puts up a hand, "That said, I don't want to give you the wrong impression. Chances are you won't need to fight off anything, and especially without training trying to do so should be your last resort. Kindred are taught to avoid killing if they can, dead bodies everywhere doesn't exactly help with secrecy after all. Even if you end up being hunted the odds are good that the worst consequences will be ending up confused and a bit woozy. Believe it or not you might even end up enjoying the experience. That outcome could very well change though if you injure such a hunter to the point of rage, but fail to actually drive them off or bring them down."

"Your best weapon for now, aside from sticking near me when night falls, is actually simple words. In any hostile encounter, simply stating that you are under the protection of the Prince's hounds will get the vast majority of individuals in our world to back off and give you a chance to retreat. Anna, Aisling, and I were all recently made hounds, which is perhaps best equated to a Sherriff's deputies. The position comes with a fair amount of clout as you might imagine. Don't expect it to be a perfect defense in all cases though."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Okay, now we need a boat,” Anna said, “Karl said there’s a rental company you typically use?”

[Bennosuke]

Fred remains silent mostly, letting Karl speak. He raises an eyebrow at the use of the term "Masquerade", but keeps listening. But as Karl talks on, the man becomes slightly more unnerved. He interrupts, "Avoiding places run by powerful Kindred? I... I don't understand. You mean vampires right? But how am I supposed to know if I'm... well on someone's territory?"

When Karl starts talking about arming his grandson, Fred replies, "I... I've never fired a gun. I mean, I know it's not the most complicated thing, but I mean, I'm a college professor." He puts a hand up and sighs. "Sorry," Fred says, "I know I asked the question. It's just starting to sound like maybe I shouldn't be going anywhere without you, like nothing is safe." Fortunately, Karl continues on, talking about going out at night, Ghouls, and using words, and this seems to alleviate a small portion of Fred's anxiety.

When Karl is finally finished, Fred sighs again and says, "Alright then. That was... a lot of information, but I guess it was helpful. I'll try to be careful and all. To be honest though this is all pretty, well terrifying." He shrugs and gives Karl a sheepish grin.

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

Gabe shrugs but there is a pretty negative look on his face, "I mean there is, but nothing that's gonna be open this time of night." He pauses for a moment. "We could try to steal one I suppose," he adds, "but to be honest, unless you have a Kindred friend with a boat, the best bet would be putting in an online reservation now and picking it up first thing tomorrow evening after we've woken up. I mean, it can wait that long, right?"

(OOC: Not trying to put up road blocks, just thinking rationally about the situation)

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

"That's weird, Karl seemed to think you'd have a method for tonight," Anna replied, "well if not, that's fine, he can take it up with you tomorrow early, since I'm booked up tomorrow."

She stopped and looked at Gabe again.

"So, what do you want to do?" she asked.

[Daishain]

Karl nods, "I understand, and there is real danger here, so I'm not going to tell you to fully relax. But it is best approached with caution and preparation rather than fear. A decent analogy might be working as a zookeeper with dangerous animals. A big part of doing the job means knowing how, when and if to approach, and panicking never helps the situation. You can and should expect to make it out intact if you don't do something foolish, but keeping your guard up is necessary."

"As to personal territories, like I said I'll make a list of places to avoid for now. With time I suspect you'll learn what to look for, and how to handle yourself. There are a few places run by kindred that actually should be safe to visit, chief among them Elysium, its a nightclub designated as a safe haven for all. You might even meet a few people there in a similar situation. I would still suggest staying away for the moment, but only so you have a chance to learn a few things first."

"As to firing a gun, if you wish it I could always teach you. Its been over a century, but my instructors' lessons were... memorable. As I said your best defense should be words for now, but that doesn't mean it has to be your only defense."

[Bennosuke]

Gabe shrugs, and almost apologetically says, "Sorry Anna. I mean, I guess it's gonna be a while till I'm not a ghoul. That's always been my relationship with Karl. He'd want something done... never cared to think about how easy it would be or how it would happen."

With Anna's question, it appears that the Fledgeling is a little uncomfortable. He stammers, "You mean, like if I have the rest of the night to myself?" Gabe pauses for a moment, clearly trying to appear torn on the matter. "I mean, wouldn't mind hunting tonight," he says, too human to hide the fact that it's THE ONLY thing he wants to do right now.

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

Fred nods his head in agreement. As Karl talks he becomes more reassured. "Thank you," he says when Karl finishes, "ya, that sounds good. I mean, I'm sure there's a firing range around here or something, and ya, if you wanna make me a map or something." Despite himself, Fred yawns once. He runs his hand through his thinning hair and says, "Sorry. It's... it's late, even with the jet lag." There were a few more hours before dawn, and Karl was as awake as a corpse could possibly be.

[Daishain]

"Yes... I imagine so. Please get your rest Enkel, I mainly did not want you to awake alone and feel lost." With that Karl begins to retreat from the room, returning downstairs.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Oh, how thirsty are you... never mind, you’re going to be super thirsty all the time until you figure out the new normal,” Anna said, “okay, show me where you usually book the boats and then we’ll go for a hunt, I’ll show you some of the best places.”

Anna sent Karl a pulse: Gabe says best to wait until early evening but I’m booked up tomorrow early. We are renting a boat for then. He is thirsty so taking him to the Rack for a bite now.

[Daishain]

Karl shows up right after Anna sends the pulse, "Very well, Fred's out cold, and I doubt he'll be poking around too much tomorrow regardless before we get up. What else do you have planned for the night?"

[Thundercracker]

Karl shows up right after Anna sends the pulse, "Very well, Fred's out cold, and I doubt he'll be poking around too much tomorrow regardless before we get up. What else do you have planned for the night?"

"I have some Dragon things to read up on, and I want to start identifying who would be a good contact for us in the media, and local kine government," Anna said, "I'm going to need them if I want to make things happen with the hospital."

“I may try to catch up with our cop friend, see how he’s doing,” Anna added, “if he’s awake that is. We haven’t talked to him in a while.”

Assuming there were no objections, once Karl and Gabe had left, Anna would reach out to their policeman ally, after finding his name in her phone.

Spoiler

Show

can’t remember the guys name..

[Bennosuke]

Karl shows up right after Anna sends the pulse, "Very well, Fred's out cold, and I doubt he'll be poking around too much tomorrow regardless before we get up. What else do you have planned for the night?"

Gabe shrugs, again trying not to show his desperate hunger. "Well Anna was gonna take me out for a hunt," he says sheepishly to Karl, "but I guess it's just you and me now?" Gabe gives his Sire a grin that was familiar to Karl for a long time now. Gabe had been a loyal Ghoul... maybe not a friend, but the closest thing to it that a vampire could hope for. That grin was familiar, that grin was welcome.

(OOC: Just trying to move things on. I think this was one of your original plans anyways.)

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

Anna separates herself from Karl and his fledgeling, walking back upstairs to her own private room in the coteri's haven. She pulls out her phone and dials Mort. Mort was a detective in the San Francisco Police Department. Anna had never met him, but had spoken to him on the phone once before, heard Karl talk to him a few more times. Mort was ornery, always a pain in the ass to deal with even though he owed Karl everything and always came through.

The phone rings several times, but never seems to go to voicemail. Just as Anna is considering ending the call, the line picks up. "Huh, hello? Who is this? Don't you know how ****ing late it is?" Mort asks drowsily. Mort sounded like his throat was used as an ashtray, and Anna imagined an old disgruntled man from New York or New Jersey, slumped over a desk covered with papers; a half drunk mug of cheap coffee held in the other hand.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

"Sorry, I thought you were working tonight," Anna said, "this is Anna, I'm an associate of Karl's. Are you okay to talk, or would you rather go back to sleep?"

[Bennosuke]

"Anna," the voice asks with slight confusion, before Mort catches himself, "Oh, gotcha! You're Karl's friend, right? I AM working tonight. You, uh, just got me in the middle of something, that's all." Anna doesn't buy it, and is pretty certain that Mort is still trying to wake himself up. He adds quickly, "Can I help you with something?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Oh great,” Anna replied, “this is going to be out of the blue, but I wanted to get your thoughts on something. It seems the city is having trouble solving the gang problem. I wanted to find out what’s standing in the way of rounding them all up and sentencing them to lengthy jail terms or deporting them. Like if we wanted to solve the problem, permanently, how would we do it, in your opinion?”

[Bennosuke]

"Well ****," Mort says sourly, "I'm just a detective. Not sure you're talking to the right person, or that this is something to call a hard working cop about in the middle of the night." He pauses for a moment before saying flippantly, "So take your pick; the fact that you need proof of a crime to arrest any criminal, the difficulty in locating and tracking each member of any given group, the systems and road blocks in place that complicate any major bust, the lack of funding of the police department, interference by federal agencies. Christ, this isn't a TV show like The Wire. Have you ever heard of any city just rounding up all the gangsters in a city? It's not that simple!"

Mort was clearly working himself up. He takes a moment to calm himself down, and then having a realization says, "Is this really what you wanted to talk about? Normally when you or Karl call it's because you want me to do something for you."

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

"Sorry, I did ask if it was okay to talk now.., and you said you were working," Anna said, "and I guess there's nothing I need like... _right now_, but I could use your help with figuring out what we'd need to take care of them. Maybe you could recommend a few of those people who _are_ the right ones to be talking to. We'll need a bribe-proof judge for warrants and a prosecutor who can't be intimidated, right? Anything else? Know anyone like that?"

[Daishain]

Karl nods, "Need to fit in the rest of that lesson on obfuscation as well, and that's easier while there are still crowds to work with. Lets hit the entertainment district, there are still a few establishments open."

[Bennosuke]

Mort chuckles a couple of times, but the laughter gets caught in his throat and leads to a phlegmatic cough. "Sure, sure," he says, between struggles to catch some air, "No offense meant mam. I, uh, suppose I can get you some names and numbers." He pauses again, but this time not because of his airway, then asks cautiously, "Not to intrude or anything mam, but uh, you aren't gonna go do something stupid, right? I mean... you can't just put a stop to crime or whatever. You know that; there will always be more. And forgive me for saying this, but you... I mean Karl are just a small P.I. office. Again, I mean no offense by that... I just don't want no one getting hurt."

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

Gabe grins, and for a moment Karl can see a hint of the Beast within... and excited malicious hunger. "Lead the way then my Sire," Gabe says, gesturing an arm out before him in invitation, "I'll follow you're lead."

As far as "entertainment districts" went, there were maybe two options for hunting the Rack. There was the actual Theater District, which in Kindred circles was divided between some Ventrue hunting grounds and some open grounds that bled out into the Tenderloin. The Theater District included Broadway, which had a number of famous play houses on it. The other would be "down town" near City Hall, where the Opera House and a number of major museums were. This was also open territory, though perhaps not as easy to hunt.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Gotta break a few eggs to make an omelette,” Anna thought.

“No, I won’t do anything stupid,” Anna replied, “just doing some research on what it would take. Nothing happens without funding anyway right, and that’s a whole other conversation.”

[Bennosuke]

"I suppose," Mort says, and Anna can imagine him shrugging noncommittally, "... anyway... I'll get you those contacts. How you want me to send them to you? Otherwise, anything else I can do you for?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

"You can text them to me here," Anna replied, "nothing else right now. This is going to be like... months of work, but in the end it'll be worth it."