Waiting For Rain IC: Spring Slowly Comes

[Thanqol]

As she got closer, the man on the bridge started to give a muffled yell, and waved his right hand, the one that wasn't holding the stop sign. He was holding onto something with it, impossible to see through the glare. He didn't take so much as a single step.

[Deadly]

The urge to curse grew. Charlene drew a long breath and jumped out of the truck. "Better follow," she said. If they were going to do every wrong thing they could do they had better do it together.

[the_druid_droid]

Jon followed quickly out of the car, also a little upset. They would only get one chance with Cludge, and now that a hostage might be involved, things could get even worse if they couldn’t negotiate. “Careful Isabelle! We don’t know what we’re dealing with yet, or what he might be planning.”

Jon kept his distance from the bridge, instead trying to catch a glimpse of the giant in the shadows off the side of the road.

OOC:

Spoiler

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Is it possible for Jon to make a perception roll to see if he can find evidence of Cludge? He’s pretty sure that the giant is lurking near the bridge somewhere.

[Thanqol]

[You can make a roll; your dice pool is at -6 due to the external penalties/stealth/approach and angles. This means chance dice time.

You needed an exceptional success on the earlier perception roll to spot him on the approach to the bridge]

Still, no sign of Cludge - the headlights, the darkness, and who knew whatever else was keeping him out of sight. Even if their instincts were telling them this was a trap, it was a good trap.

[BlasTech]

"But that's just the problem!" Isabelle replied, frustrated. "We come all this way out to help the guy and he goes and does something like this."

She pointed towards the bridge, where the unfortunate man still stood.

[the_druid_droid]

OOC:

Spoiler

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So, I actually rolled 10 on this chance perception roll. I realize I’ve had a lucky streak lately, so if you want to call bull I can re-roll in the OOC thread. Of course I don’t know if it would give me that much more info anyway, but I’m cool with whatever...

“I know... I’m not happy either, and Cludge has a lot to answer for. Still, it’s possible he thinks we truly intend to kill him, and this is his last resort.” Jon squinted against the bright lights as he continued searching the the shadows and trying to listen for unfamiliar sounds.

“Just give us a chance to talk first...” As he spoke, Jon realized that he was now the one defending Cludge, even though the trip had been suggested by Isabelle. How had this happened? He had promised to return the giant’s truck, but things were starting to get confusing, and he wished there was time to sort things out in his head before they went running in...

[Thanqol]

[I'm not at any point going to call you guys on your dice rolls. I am placing pure, unqualified trust in you to be honest. I believe that your own consciences will be far better at producing honesty than any amount of scrutiny or suspicion from my part.]

Jon spotted, half-way along the bridge, one of the guard rails looked wrong. A little more scrutiny hinted at why - there was a fist clenched around it; a giant, misshapen fist. Cludge was hanging from that guard rail, over the edge of the bridge, dangling over the abyss below.

He also spotted a flash of light on the road in the mountains behind him; another car was coming, perhaps a few minutes away.

[the_druid_droid]

The headlights were strong, and for a long time Jon could only see vague shadow-forms, but then, for a split second they resolved into something he could understand, and he stiffened as he realized Cludge was hanging from the railing. Quickly approaching the others and keeping his voice down, he tried to fill them in, “I see him! He’s hanging off the side of the bridge, and we don’t have much time - there’s a car headed this way!”

[Deadly]

"He's desperate, he probably believes he already had his last chance," Charlene whispered back. People did desperate things when they felt hunted, she wasn't sure why Isabelle was so surprised. Something about what Jon said seemed off, though. "But hanging over the bridge doesn't sound like an ambush, to me." Did sound like desperation alright, though. She approached the man on the bridge cautiously, whispering back at Jon "Where is the car coming from?"

[BlasTech]

Isabelle grabbed Charlene by the arm before she could get much further.

"Um, I don't know what you're seeing, but this looks exactly like an ambush to me." She whispered, frowning as she looked at where Cludge was located in relation to the man with the stop sign. "What I don't know is whether it is for us, I mean who's to say for certain he even knows we're here?"

Her frown deepened. "Maybe I should get back in the truck and spring this trap, before that car Jon saw gets here. At least that way we'll know what we're dealing with, and you guys and Vorel can spring a trap of our own if he tries anything."

[Deadly]

Charlene stopped. They were kind of in a hurry with that car on the horizon, but she had been the first to ask for level-headed action, so she wasn't going to begin rushing anywhere now. "He's hanging off the bridge," she glanced to Jon for confirmation on that, "could be a trap, but sounds more like someone threatening to jump to me. Probably wants attention." She sighed, "Whether it's a trap or him threatening to jump we don't want to wade in all three of us, and we don't want it to spring if we can avoid it. That man on the bridge is probably just a victim. One of us should go and see what is going on, carefully and calmly, the rest stay back in case things go wrong, and to deal with that car."

[BlasTech]

"Well, I think it should be me then. I don't know how calm and collected I'll be though if it turns out he's actually trying to feed again." Isabelle replied, with teeth gritted. "But he at least deserves a chance to explain himself."

"It's because of me that we're out here again, so I can't ask any of you to do this. Just stay here and be ready to deal with the car. I'll ask Vorel to help me out if things look like they're going bad."

[the_druid_droid]

“The car is heading down from the mountains; we’ve got maybe a couple minutes before it’s here,” Jon answered Charlene.

When Isabelle volunteered to find out what the giant was doing, he nodded tentatively. “Ok, but be careful, and remember Vorel’s advice - try to get him talking.” Jon didn’t really like the way things were going, but there wasn’t much time before the car arrived to complicate matters, and they couldn’t afford to waste the moment arguing.

[Deadly]

Charlene nodded at Jon. She was feeling rather uncertain herself, but then a decision had to be made sooner or later. "Just remember, we know he's been trying to feed again. He tried with us. What's important is whether he's willing and able to change if we offer him the chance. Oh, and keep your hands where he can see them," she added as a last bit of advice.

She turned to Jon, "Perhaps I should stay here while you go back and tell Vorel what is going on? Just in case either she or Isabelle needs quick help." Seemed like a good idea to have someone in the middle.

[BlasTech]

"You guys can handle the backup plan, I ... well" Isabelle gave them a small smile as she began to walk off "Just keep an eye open in both directions. And tell Vorel to do the same."

Turning, she focused her attention on the bridge; on the approach, the man with the sign and that other strange thing he held, and on the hand clasping the bridge railing.

And on the fear. The fear radiating from the poor man on that bridge, the fear that, once again, seemed to sharpen the very world around her. She breathed it in, and let it strengthen her.

Harvest roll:

Spoiler

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Empathy + Composure + Harvest (Emotions) +1 Bonus = 6 Dice pool

Roll(6d10)+0:
6,8,4,9,2,3,+0
Total:32

Two Successes: Isabelle is at Glamour 5.

[Thanqol]

After she passed a certain point, close by Cludge's hand, she felt a strange web of glamour appear. Previously invisible, it had the taste of an alarm system, sending a shock back down the line - no actual impediment to movement, though.

Cludge immediately swung himself, one handed, up onto the bridge, and primed his shotgun. The purpose of the trap quickly became clear - a car, or unaware person, would have passed right by him to be blocked by the police car and man with the stop sign, allowing Cludge to sneak up on them from behind while they were distracted. It was surprisingly thoughtful.

Because of Isabelle's approach, she still had space to run in any direction. On the other hand, she was now at shotgun point as the misshapen ogre slowly plodded towards her.

"Fee fie foe four, I've smelt your blood here before," he muttered through jagged teeth.

[the_druid_droid]

Jon nodded at Charlene’s advice and moved quickly back to where Vorel was stationed by the truck. He gave the best explanation of their plan he could as quickly as he was able; it was pretty clear they were improvising at this point, and Jon pressed a hand to the reassuring mass of the knife handle hidden underneath his vest. Hopefully, Cludge had a very good explanation for all this...

[Deadly]

Charlene crouched down at the side of the road, a little like a runner about to set off, hoping to be less visible and less of a target. She hoped everything would work out and Cludge would come out to talk, but quietly readied herself in case things went wrong.

[Can she see what goes on on the bridge? At least roughly?]

[Thanqol]

Charlene crouched down at the side of the road, a little like a runner about to set off, hoping to be less visible and less of a target. She hoped everything would work out and Cludge would come out to talk, but quietly readied herself in case things went wrong.

[Can she see what goes on on the bridge? At least roughly?]

[You can see everyone as black silhouettes and hear anything louder than a whisper.]

[BlasTech]

So it was a trap after all.

Isabelle bit down on a sudden surge of anger. After all his talk of wanting to change, all his apparent remorse at being caught the last time ... had that all been fake? Maybe he had believed it at the time and had only now just begun to slip back into bad habits ...

Looking down the barrel of the shotgun, Isabelle reflected that now was probably not the best time to be justifying Cludge's actions. She began backing up slowly, keeping the distance between them, while some echo of Charlene's advice caused her to hold her hands open in an attempt to placate the giant.

"Yes, we've met before Cludge. Last night. Do you remember me?" She said, hoping that it might get the giant to stop pointing that gun at her, again. "I told you I'd try to help you, that's why I've come back."

[Thanqol]

"Yes. Yes. You brought my truck," Cludge ground out, though his voice seemed strangely friendly, though he made no sign of lowering the shotgun. It was like he'd forgotten he was holding it. "Good. Thank you."

[the_druid_droid]

Jon kept an eye on the proceedings from his position near Vorel. The giant didn’t exactly sound hostile, but his mind kept turning toward the car inching closer in the distance, and the rather awkward situation of the man on the bridge. They would probably have to address both situations sooner rather than later, but all of Jon’s ideas for dealing with them currently pointed back to Cludge, so he waited to see how Isabelle fared.

[BlasTech]

"Yes. See? Helping. You're welcome." Isabelle said as she continued backing away. She began drifting to the side, just to see if the barrel would keep tracking her.

"I don't suppose you'd like to help me in return? Maybe by pointing that gun somewhere other than me? Or telling me what you're doing out here?"

[Thanqol]

"Hm?" Cludge's gun had been tracking her as she moved, but lowered slightly when she pointed it out. "Oh. Oh yes, I've got a plan," Cludge smiled. It was not a pleasant sight. "I met the police man over there. I didn't want to eat him, I didn't. But he told me that there was a van coming along here very soon. A van with some death row criminals. He told me I could eat them!" Cludge looked delighted by the thought. "He said it was okay, and he's a police man."

[BlasTech]

"Oh. That was nice of him. How did you ever meet such a great 'police man' anyway?" Isabelle replied, her tone strained as her brain took in this new information. The picture it was forming was not a pretty one.

[Thanqol]

"Oh, just now. He stopped to ask what I was doing, and I told him that I didn't want to eat him." Cludge said, looking kind of uncomfortable at having to dwell on this. "It's better than eating him, right?"

[Deadly]

Charlene listened. Perhaps there was hope for Cludge after all. His "solution" may not be super great, but it showed at least some restraint and a wish to do better. She glanced back towards Jon and Vorel and the car that was apparently approaching. If it was a death-row transport it likely had some sort of armed escort or protection. Was the captive police man counting on that?

[BlasTech]

"Oh yes, much better"

Unless, of course, you're only doing it so you can use him as bait for a busload of innocents. Her mind thought, as her eyes flicked to the duct taped mouth of the patrolman.

Vorel's words floated back to her; "He is possibly very smart, and probably completely insane ..."

Last night, in the darkness, the ogre had seem truly repentant about being caught out here. It was tempting, oh so tempting, to not look past the surface remorse and to accept that this was simply a child-like creature in need of support and guidance. Isabelle had been certain that, like some mother with a lost toddler, she could have provided that guidance herself.

As her mind took in more detail about the trap she had just sprung, doubt was beginning to sound alarm bells in her mind.

The Cludge in her imagination would not have thought to gag the policeman, would he? And wouldn't he have let the officer go rather than keep him here, unless he intended to eat him too after all was said and done? These weren't the actions of a desperate child, they were looking more and more like the calculated moves of an experienced trapper.

She swallowed, hoping she was wrong.

"In fact" She continued "I do remember you saying you didn't want to eat people anymore? I still want to help, if I can, and I've got a little bit of money to spare now. How about we forget the bus, let the nice police man go, and go get a steak or something instead?"

C'mon Cludge, let's hear your choice.

She took a deep breath and awaited the reply, although a part of her was almost certain she knew what it would be.

[Thanqol]

"But what about my bridge?"

And there was a crack in his voice there. Like his entire worldview just fell apart with that word.

"If I go then they'll knock it down. They won't fix it, they'll build a new one. I've seen the plans. I know what they're thinking. They'll knock my bridge down. They'll get Solutions to build a new one, and it won't be mine any more."

It was like looking into the heart of madness; a single wrong word on this topic would send the whole thing spiralling out of control.

"Fee," he rasped, turning his head to look at the prisoner van that was now less than two minutes away, "Fie..."

[the_druid_droid]

Jon continued to measure the distance between the approaching vehicle and the bridge. Cludge hadn’t attacked Isabelle yet, but he wasn’t sure how things would turn out once the giant’s prey arrived. Silently, he wondered how skilled Vorel would prove if things turned into a fight; surely a Sheriff of the courts would be good to have on their side?