[M&M 3e] Defying the Future OOC

[Zelphas]

Spoiler: Fossil Results

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The processor was imperfect--roughly 1/3 to 1/4 of the material within the canister is just sand, rock, and dirt with small imperfections, and fully 1/2 of the remaining 'fossils' are so miniscule that without your Analytic sense of smell, you'd be hard-pressed to classify them as fossil matter even under a microscope. Still, it's impressive that there was this much fossil matter on the bottom of Lake Michigan, let lone within the Dome; the machine must have dug deep into the lake bed to find this much. Even more surprising, more than half of these fossils are extremely old--Paleozoic Era, with a few that you think might be Precambrian, the oldest age of fossils on record!

This ties into the idea that Doctor Proxy is looking for something/some things that are extremely old, but the amount of work for very little (seeming) reward suggests a few other options as well. Namely, it points to the idea that Doctor Proxy's search is either desperate--digging so deep, in broad daylight, for a bucketful of partial fossil fragments--or ludicrously meticulous to the point of mental concern.

Spoiler: Machine Results

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Once you take off the sleek outer shell of the machine, you discover that it is, in essence, a water treatment plant condensed down to (what two months ago would be called) an impossibly small container. It's extremely complicated--frankly, more complicated than you can completely understand; for example, its power source is so arcane to you that you can't find where it is, let alone guess what it could be--but the gist is this: the sediment in the bottom of Lake Michigan, along with a sizable amount of water, was brought up by the tubing into the body of the machine, where it was sorted by a dizzying array of filters, tubes, small mechanical arms, and other apparatuses into one of three ejection tubes. Two of those tubes went to the two canisters located at the back of the machine, while the third tube opened at the machine's bottom and simply dumped back into the lake through a small hole in the pier (you had to go back to check). You make two other interesting discoveries.

In the first place, the two canisters in the back are collecting different things, confirmed when you open the ones that were still attached to the machine. One (almost entirely empty) canister contains more fossils and fossil-like fragments. The other canister is half full of... water. Pure water. In fact, you smell contaminants in the air enter into the water the moment you open the canister; it's too late now to check, but you could bet that the water in that canister was literally pure H2O molecules.

In the second place, as you delve into the machine to discover more about it, you find yourself literally stepping into it to get a better look. It's only when you climb out again that you realize the machine is only just barely taller than you... on the outside. The inside is bigger, and you have a feeling (confirmed by Helios and/or Ariadne, if you have them look) that magic has nothing to do with this warping of space.

[Abracadangit]

Untangling the Mystic Threads x 2: Routine Expertise (Magic) for 30. 6 Successes

[Dorni]

Mystical Research: Expertise (Magic) DC 20. Routine 30. 3 Successes
My Brother’s Keeper: Expertise (Magic) DC 20. Routine 30. 3 Successes

[Zelphas]

All right! As discussed in the Discord, there will be no React Scenes this time around, at the very least.

Act

Tattered Memory (Manchineel/Abel's Scarf)
Jennifer Magrethe has no living relatives; she's unlikely to be connected to the scarf. But the Magros have a few different siblings and cousins that might fit the bill. How are they related to Abel? How will this information impact Abel himself? Will the players ever be interested in this Scene?

Fitting Face to Form (Manchineel/Missing Persons)
If you want to track down more information about missing persons, there's one good place to go looking: the Forest Eyes Neighborhood Watch, in the Residential Quarter. They should be able to narrow down your list of missing persons, and maybe our friendly neighborhood heroes should have some official contact with this group... or you could go in a civilian guise, whatever works.

High-End Chain Fashion (Lockdown/MW Boutique)
The high-class boutique is reservation-only for purchases, but they do have a display area in the front to tempt potential customers... and a small, discreet "help wanted" sign posted by the window. Smashing in and demanding answers for their connection to Lockdown may work, but a soft touch could also be fairly effective; either way, you should get some information on how the whole organization works by looking in on whoever does their tailoring.

[Dorni]

Expertise (Magic) (1d20+20)[26]

[Zelphas]

Spoiler: Ariadne: Threadwork Sense

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Your threads almost... dance around the girl in the bush out front, seeming more lively than normal, but the feedback you get from them doesn't change. Maybe the girl has power that could be similar to yours? Regardless of that, you're able to verify that she is the only one on the yard of the Magro home. You also discover the traces of magic that Helios mentioned on the plants and greenery; to your senses, it feels like little, uneven stitches on a patchwork; hidden to the normal eye, but almost glaring to your senses as accidental work. If you had to guess, you'd say at least two different people did the "stitching"; there might be a third person involved, but that person is so similar to the first two that you can't be sure of that.

Since its mid-September in north-ish Michigan, the doors and windows of the home are shut tight; you can't find a place for your threads to get inside.

Spoiler: Perception DC 11

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While the house doesn't have any open windows or even a chimney, there's still a ventilation system! You get your threads inside in short order. The inside of the house is a nice, comfortable family home; the homeowners are doing well enough to buy matching furniture and plan out decor, but are not so wealthy that everything is brand new or high-end.

Two people--a man and a woman, in their mid-to-late thirties--are standing in the living room of the home, about thirty feet from the front door. The woman is in jeans and a grey sweatshirt, with short brown hair and blue eyes; the man is taller and blond, wearing a green-and-black checkered flannel and khakis. The threads dance around the woman ever so slightly, and you get a hint of magic from her, so faint as to be no more than a tendency; the man is magically inert.

Judging by their gestures and expressions, they're in the middle of a rather heated argument.

Since Ariadne has not personally seen the scarf (it is literally around Abel's neck), she cannot do much with it at the moment. It sounds like it was crocheted, from the descriptions, but besides that you don't know much.

[Abracadangit]

Perception Check: (1d20)[9]

[Dorni]

Expertise (Magic) (1d20+20)[35]: Who/what is this creature that Sarah called?

[Zelphas]

Spoiler: Helios

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This creature is radiating Earth, Water, and Life magic, in a similar fashion as the Satyr did when you ran into them. In this thing, a blend of Earth and Water magic (which you've started to think is essentially "plant" magic, based on experimentation) predominates, but Life magic is clearly there.

It is "tied" to this reality by a thin thread of magic connecting it to Sarah; in other summonings you've seen (mostly reanimated), this thread is thicker and edged with compulsions to obey the summoner, but that is absent here. You're fairly certain that without this thread, it would not be able to exist in reality on its own;' it is a construct of magic. However, its form wasn't dictated by Sarah. It's like something beyond this reality is wearing a "suit" of magic to walk around in it.

... You might need to take a closer look at any Reanimateds, the next time you run into them...

[Ridai]

Insight DC 15 (1d20+10)[13]

[Dorni]

Insight DC 15 (1d20)[19] ... ok then!

[Dorni]

Insight DC 15 (1d20)[12]

[Dorni]

Insight DC 16 (1d20)[3]

[Dorni]

Iala Sith aspect: (1d4)[2] Chaos. Of course.

[Dorni]

Insight (1d20)[13]

[Quellian-dyrae]

Oh while I'm at it, gonna Evaluate Abel. Detect Emotions is on.

Perception-as-Insight (+5 for Scent Intensification, +2 for Favored Foe [Manchineel's Minions]): (1d20+17)[32].

[Dorni]

Not able to post today but going to team check with Lily's Persuasion. (1d20+15)[35] ...crit

[Abracadangit]

HP rerolling the Expertise (Fashion & Garments) check to restore Abel's scarf.

Expertise (Fashion & Garments): (1d20+20)[39]

[Quellian-dyrae]

Using Thorough Researcher to swap Expertise for Investigation for Downtime Actions, I'm going to make one roll on Hero Work, not Routining. I'm also making a second roll here just to not have to double post BUT I'm pre-declaring that if the FIRST roll comes up as less than 5, I'll Routine the second one instead. If after both those actions I haven't accumulated at least nine more successes, I'll spend an HP for a bonus action and Routine it, since with the above setup I can't fail to pick up at least five (but just double-Routining only nets eight):

Hero Work (Expertise DC 15): (1d20+20)[31]. Four successes
Hero Work (Expertise DC 15): (1d20+20)[24] IF above is natural 5+, otherwise Routine for 30. Two successes
EDIT: Okay yeah spending an HP and Routining a third one for 30. Four successes

[Ridai]

Post-Scene 10 (Tattered Memory) Downtime Nopery! (2 actions + 1 from HP)
Free Action: Hug Uncle Bruno, then go to his room and stare at the ceiling for hours.
Free Action: Gather some extra supplies and bring them to Talia's and Natalie's home at night without letting them know.
3x Manchineel (Watching the Forest): Routining Stealth for 30. 9 successes.

[Abracadangit]

Watching the Forest x 3 (with HP): Routine Insight for 20. 3 Successes

[Dorni]

Lets finish off Manchineel!

Downtimes
Watching the Forest: Expertise Magic DC 20: (1d20+20)[36] 4 Successes
Watching the Forest: Expertise Magic DC 20: (1d20+20)[35] 4 Successes. And its finished!

[Dorni]

Persuasion (1d20+17)[34]

[Ridai]

'ere we go, searching through the stack, while maintaining the order of the files.

Investigation - (1d20+10)[20]

[Ridai]

DC 20 Insight (1d20+10)[20]

[Abracadangit]

Resistance Check to Predator's Gaze (1d20+15): (1d20+15)[21]

[Quellian-dyrae]

Perception to try and get a better read on where the smell is coming from (granted for practical purposes this mostly means "whether or not its coming from the guy himself or elsewhere in the room"): (1d20+15)[26]. Still on full Senses, so Olfactory senses are Accurate, and baseline sense of smell (but not Detect Biology) has Counters Concealment (Overlapping Scents).

[Zelphas]

Spoiler: Floral Senses

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You can't see into the former holding cells, but your sense of smell tells you that the source of the smells is roughly 30 feet down the corridor, to the right of where you're standing. With family in the police force (as well as ludicrous amounts of intelligence and general knowledge), you know that holding cells are usually 8 by 8 squares, so it's almost certainly the fourth room down on the right.

The man in front of you smells like he has a really bad case of tapeworms (oh, the joys of an extremely sensitive nose).

Spoiler: Ariadne General Mythology

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Spiders are all over in mythology; Ariadne herself is sometimes conflated or confused with Arachne, the weaver who angered Athena by boasting or winning their weaving contest (depending on who you ask) and became the first spider. However, in studying this creature, you realize that the resemblance it has to a "spider" is only that, a resemblance; there are too many legs, too few eyes, the proportions are wrong. It looks most like a spider, but isn't one.

As for possessing spirits... the lwa (or loa, or loi) of the Vodou religion come to mind, mostly due to the striking colors, resemblance to a living creature without actually being that creature, and the possessing aspect. However, once again, while there are superficial similarities, the deeper you go the more they diverge. Lwa are protector spirits; some may be capricious, withdrawing their aid or inflicting disease due to anger or dislike of the offerings given to them, they are not malicious. In addition, lwa only possess their parishioners during certain rituals, and then to offer advice and aid, not to... consume. The name sticks in your head, but it is definitely off, not quite fitting.

The thing in front of you doesn't quite fit any mythology you can think of; it has characteristics of "demons" or "devils", but seems more like a spiritual predator of some sort, feeding off of the person and controlling him as it does so.

[Dorni]

Going to spend a HP on my Mystic Research Milestone 5. Routine Expertise Magic 30.

There's a summoning happening in the basement, and I don't trust the way the energy changed when we opened the door or Floral's warnings about some kind of infestation. Also nonzero chance the person who answered the knock is either a practitioner or a summoned being. So Helios is just going to focus on his mystic sense and try and sort out what he can sense within range.

[Zelphas]

Spoiler: Helios Magical Research

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Possession, surprisingly, has not come up very often in the Suneater Cult up to this point (as far as you are aware, at least). The Suneaters tend to summon distinct beings that form bodies out of magic, rather than spirits that require a host. Based off of your research, the main reason behind this seems to be that a possessed spirit does not automatically gain dominion over a the being it's possessing; it's a battle, often long and drawn-out, and something like spiritual "blending" is not an uncommon end result. In other words, if you summon a spirit to possess someone, in the worst case you might just give that person the powers of that spirit and a reason to hate you.

Going off of this, you're reasonably comfortable in deducing that the person in front of you is possessed, but also that the possession isn't fully "complete" yet. On first brush, they come across as a fully mundane human; no magical aptitude, no special powers, completely standard (though perhaps a bit malnourished). Your deduction that he is possessed comes from the signs that aren't there, as well as what Lily has told you about what she's smelled. Based on what she said, the "pests" you're dealing with fall into three metaphysical categories: predators (snakes, spiders), scavengers (rats, mosquitoes), and parasites (tapeworms, roundworms). A predator spirit would be obvious and possibly territorial; it's more likely that this person is possessed by a scavenger spirit or a parasite spirit, both of which would take a long time to fully "consume" their host... and both of which would have reason and ability to hide from easy detection.